{A fabulous bulletin board. A gift from Greg.}

So we have a situation at our house. A thrifting situation. When Greg and I first met we were both obsessive thrifters. We still love it but we don’t get to hit the thrifts nearly as much (and frankly, Bay Area thrift stores are pricey AND picked over). Our old flat in the Mission was awesome…loads of kitsch and goodies everywhere. I had prom dresses hanging on the wall, paint-by-numbers. Our bedroom was 50s asian, with bamboo lamps and bright orange walls. Our living room was space age pop. Silver walls, an egg chair and a huge collection of 8-track players and space age TVs. Oh yeah, and we had the Toy Room, with our collection of 70s collectibles and dolls…Evel Knievel, Mr. T, Bionic Man and Woman, Sonny & Cher…the list goes on and on! I have to say it was pretty awesome. We loved it! When we finally bought a house of our own, we kind of wanted to step it up. Of course we’d still have vintage goodies, but we wanted it to look a little less like a thrift store exploded inside and a little more “nice”. Ish.

ANYWAY…..old habits die hard. We still kept thrifting. And we still have all our old stuff. Some in the house. Most in the basement. I have been saying I’m going to have a garage sale for…oh, 7 or 8 years now?? And we just never have the time. So Greg and I FINALLY hit the basement/garage and did a massive sorting. We didn’t get to everything. But we managed to hit a lot. My Master Plan? PURGE or PRETTIFY (POP!). AKA “Use it or Lose it”. I either have to dust it off and display it in all its glory or I have to get rid of it and let it go to a new home.

Step One: The Flea Market. I’m going to rent a booth at the Alameda Flea next weekend (June 12) and I’m crazy excited! And nervous. I hate when people overcharge for things, but at the same time I DO want to make some money on this sale. I’ll def have to do a little research this week and see what’s fair and the going rate!

{A collection of knitting magazines from the 60s}

Step Two: Have a boutique sale. I did this last summer (you can see it here) and it was a smash success. I set up a little Vintage Boutique in my house—made the living room look kinda like a shop. And invited girlfriends and their pals to come over. Prices were higher than a garage sale but cheaper than a vintage shop. It was like a big ol’ dress up party and a total blast!

{Novelty panties still in ze box! They are indeed unusual. Not so sure about comfrotable! I love “Mi Lady”}

Step Three: An online yard sale. Probably in July. Because in addition to allllll the “stuff,” I also have about 3 or 4 racks of vintage clothing (I used to have a vintage shop on eBay). Last year my friend Pilgrim (draw! pilgrim) held a really successful Online Rummage Sale. I thought it was a genius idea but I could never get my act together. This month my friend Jenny (frecklewonder) is having a HUGE blow out sale and it’s doing soooo well (if you haven’t stopped by you must! She is constantly updating and has tons, TONS of really cool stuff!). She’s calling her quest, The Road to Minimalism, and I’m really excited to watch her progress!

{Agent Honey Bunny is a charming little sponge & bubble bath set.}

It was very fun sorting through everything and also kinda daunting. Everything was dusty and there was a lot of random crapola. Exhibit A:

Greg: “Um, who the hell is Blaine?? Why do we have this thing?”
Alix: “I don’t know. He came with turn tables! I wanted them for Blythe…”

Everyone has a scarecrow that wears vintage clothes, right?? Hah. We put this guy out every Halloween. I realized his old skool Levi’s and Pendleton were in dire need of a wash, so he’s getting a stuffing refresh and clean duds.

It was an exhausting process but very satisfying.

Frankly, our garage is a Bionic Crisis.

But we DO have the sexiest TV tray in town….

I’ll be keeping you posted on my progress friends! And we haven’t even touched upon the vintage shoes, handbags, jewelry and CLOTHES. Sigh. It’s gonna be a looooong (but stylish!) summer.