Comments on: Portland Day 11: Everyone is Going to Hate Me.

By: Kara

Kara — Sun, 04 Mar 2012 01:07:33 +0000

I just found your blog an hour ago. I’m standing in my kitchen, unable to tear myself away from my computer screen, laughing and thoroughly enjoying your posts, and I’ve had to pee for the entire time, but I can’t stop reading. You, my friend, are a good story teller.

By: _Moementum

_Moementum — Tue, 22 Mar 2011 16:52:24 +0000

So, what are you going to do with the upholstered one? I recently got an upholstered armchair (ca. 1976) from a rummage sale and it’s not in the best of shape, or even the prettiest… (Well, the form is perfect, but the colors are a bit off…)
A friend of mine brought his roughed up Eames arm chair to an autobody shop to get it painted, and attached a rocking base from Modernica. I’m really tempted to remove the vinyl and do what he did, but I just KNOW how much that will affect the value. However, what’s the use of an ugly, beat up piece of furniture?

Ah, conflict…

By: AnnW

AnnW — Sun, 23 Jan 2011 22:04:05 +0000

If you don’t put in the time, you won’t get the find. Reminds me of the time I bought a long two pedestal mahogany table at an estate sale. I read about it, and went the day before to reconnoiter for the possibility of looking through a window. There were people coming and going, so I did. I went back the next day and went right to the table. It was a gem. I paid $2000 and sent it to NYC to be French polished. While it was in the shop, a decorator offered the polisher $10,000 for it. I eventually found 10 chairs to go with it, using the same techniques. I couldn’t afford to buy a brand new set, or an antique set. So you have to work at it. When I was at that estate sale, a dealer from Mamaroneck had a crew that ran through and stuck stickers on everything with “Sold – Leonards of Mamaroneck” or something like that. So you have to be quick. Love the Portland posts. Could you please stop going to school and just travel around doing this? Ann

By: Mich

Mich — Sun, 23 Jan 2011 20:31:41 +0000

i die. I would totally sit outside a thrift store slurping coffee with blood shot eyes- like a stalker….
what great finds! so happy for you!

By: Pam

Pam — Sat, 22 Jan 2011 06:03:46 +0000

OMG, Daniel, I loooooove the way you tell a story. It feels like I’m right there with you, operating side by side like partners in thrift store lurking. The Eames chairs?!? What a score!!! What a rush!!!

By: Sara

Sara — Fri, 21 Jan 2011 19:13:52 +0000

I am, indeed, green with envy!

By: Rose

Rose — Fri, 21 Jan 2011 16:46:43 +0000

I have a shell chair and table set from my grandfather which is Burke (a Knoll knock-off) and some of the chairs have arms. They are really quite comfortable!
Glad to see I’m not the only one has the junk-shop force. Great finds!

By: Jinia

Jinia — Fri, 21 Jan 2011 05:28:30 +0000

I thrift pretty hard core to support my habit and I have found the scarier the store the cooler the finds! I frequent one that I swear I hear dueling banjo’s in but I find some great things in there – then I wash up like thoroughly! Good find-Good thriftdar!

By: Daniel

Daniel — Thu, 20 Jan 2011 20:00:18 +0000

Get on that, girl! Yeah, it’s hard to find a good deal on ebay for shell chairs. On CL, I’ve found sometimes that it’s better to search for things like “Herman Miller” or just “retro chairs” or something rather than “Eames Shell Chair.” Sometimes people don’t know exactly what they’re selling.

But thrifting is pretty much always best. There MUST be junky stores in Seattle you can dig through for a while.

By: Lauren @ chezerbey

Lauren @ chezerbey — Thu, 20 Jan 2011 19:43:58 +0000

I think you’re right. Maybe a good first step would be to stop scanning CL/Ebay and actually go to a thrift store. We basically live next door to a Goodwill and have never checked out their furniture.