Happy Halloween!

Halloween is my favorite holiday. The cool air, mixed with tons of candy, costumes and the air of mischief.   Oh and probably because my birthday is the next day as well has a tiny bit to do with it.

Since it's Halloween I'll link you to my personal encounters with the paranormal and give you an update. The house in Seattle never showed itself as having any tenants beyond myself and my husband. To this day I still get visits from my Uncle. I find them comforting. I miss him very much and it's nice to know that somewhere in the ethereal, in a place we don't fully understand he's there thinking of me too. Lights go on and off here, things go missing then turn up in the most obvious of places. It's him and I'm grateful for that. He visits my Mother and Grandma too and usually we'll all get a visit around the same time. Other than those visits our new home is 'unoccupied'. Just us and the cats and it's warm and friendly and everyone is happy.

Earlier this year I was discussing this subject with a good friend and she has had some experiences as well. Fence-shaking, apparition type stuff and she and I both still call ourselves "Skeptical Believers". No matter what weird, unexplainable thing happens to us we will still try to find a rational explanation for it. I think those shows on tv are hokum, orbs in pictures are just dust and anyone calling themselves an 'expert in the paranormal' are scheisters but I just can't explain the things that I've seen.

Here are my stories Part one and Part two. Have a Happy Halloween!

Speaking of cats...

Today is the day we adopted our cat Lola.

We've had her five years. We adopted her two days before Halloween. Normally I'd be shocked a shelter would adopt black cats out that close to Halloween but the shelter we got her from wasn't the greatest.

We went in looking for the cat who had been there the longest. Lola had been there 14 months. All they knew about her was she was found in an alley in Yonkers (we lived in New York at the time). In the time Lola came into that shelter and the day we adopted her 3,000 other animals had been registered there. That's a staggering fact.

The best guess at her age is 6 or 7 (probably closer to 6).  She's been a tough nut to crack. She's never liked being picked up and isn't really a lap cat. She's made big strides though, just last night she hopped up on my belly and took a nap. Our other cat Bruce and her are Yin and Yang in every way. She loves to purr, he only does for food. She hated being picked up, he's like a rag doll. She's petite and graceful, Bruce is twice her size and walks around like a lumberjack.

 I feel so grateful to have her in my life.

Please spay, neuter and adopt! 

Living Room Update

I know I've been talking about chairs a lot lately. I promise that will stop...eventually. I made a small change to the chair in the living room. When I bought the mustard chair it wasn't in bad shape. It was kept in Bob's office and the cats just slept on it. When we moved, things changed. The cats alternated from sleeping on it to using it as a scratching post. I was appalled.

They're good cats, they don't do this to any other piece of furniture, they keep it on their scratching post but something about this chair brought out the worst in them. 

Take a look:

Assholes. So I went on ebay and a month later my package from Uzbekistan finally arrived. I know, I know. I'm crazy worldly.

Ooooh Fancy fix right? These days I've been leaning towards a hippy, textile-loving, art-leaning vibe. Which ultimately just means I'm content not having gobs of money and will attempt to make do with what I do have.

So here's a before and after:

 I also added a yellow drafting lamp and I've got a leather pouf on it's way from Tunisia. Check me out, I'm more cultured than Cost Plus. Yeah I call it 'Cost Plus' not 'World Market' because I'm old school like that. Recognize.

I can't figure out how to keep the pictures light and still show the hanging light. I think I need to finally read my camera's manual.

The Suzani did not stop the cats it just hides what they've done. They're clever little beasts and now they just go under it and sharpen their nails. Jerks right?

Collecting Eames Exhibit

Not far from me the JF Chen exhibit "Collecting Eames" opened (October 3-January 14). On display is furniture, a pavilion designed by the Eames, toys, a radio and over 400 chairs arranged chronologically. This exhibit will be accompanied by an upcoming book. I took a walk through and had a look. Why? Because I like to torture myself by looking at furniture I'll never own.

These were my husband's two favorite pieces. Aside from the lounger he said this chair looked like the most comfortable chair in the place. He was in love with the speaker, he asked if they still sold them.

Here is the chair timeline:

These were my favorite pieces, a stainless steel lounger, the wood chairs, a set of seafoam shell chairs (one day my pretties) and Tim Burton's Le Chaise. Random.

If you're interested in checking out the exhibit it's running from Oct 3-Jan 14, JF Chen, 941 North Highland Avenue, Los Angeles, California 90038. Show hours are Monday through Friday 10am to 5pm, Saturday 12 to 5pm, and closed on Sunday.

To see more photos check out my flickr set.

Liz's Jewels

 Over the weekend I dragged my husband to stand in line and pay money to see someone else's jewelry collection. America is weird.

Anyway it was the collection of Elizabeth Taylor on display before Christie's auctioned it all off into the hands of the 1%

The weirdest thing I heard in line? Glad you asked, it was from a woman who was talking about how she had been on Wheel of Fortune in the 70's and won $3,000 and $150 worth of Kentucky Fried Chicken. Incidentally my Mother-in-Law was on Wheel in the 70s and she won some amazing china that she's promised to will to me. I'm not saying I'm waiting for her to die but I've got some table linens picked out to go with the set (Love you Jill).

So let's get to the goods. Liz had exquisite taste in jewelry and a bevy of gentlemen ready to buy it for her. The amount of money spent on this stuff boggles my mind. After a while, seeing all this your brain just can't accept that it's all real. I was trying to convince myself that it was fake. The amount of security, however, was a sign that it was the real deal.

The Warhols were there, the Oscars were there...

 Liz was such a baller that she would wear diamonds in her hair when she ran out of places. She had jewelry owned by Emperors and Queens dating back to the 16th century. Before Shah Jahan built the Taj Mahal for his favorite wife he gave her this diamond and That Pearl? Yeah it's the Peregrina Pearl it used to be the crown jewel of Spain google it, it's in royal portraits:

Every time I would get up to a case, I would think that it couldn't be outdone but BAM the next case is 100x more valuable than the last one. The value on some of these pieces is just staggering.

The rings in the middle here are my favorite. They're called the "Ping-Pong Diamonds" as the story goes Liz and Dick were playing Ping-Pong and Dick promised her a diamond if she won. She did and they went into town and found the smallest diamond they could and just for laughs two more. Oh hahaha you crazy millionaires! This would be the ring(s) I would want if given a choice (and the 33ct ring was off the table 'natch).

Yeah this paperweight..

I mean, SERIOUSLY?!

The best part is she used to let people try it on. I've heard lots of stories of Liz encountering groups of school girls and letting them see it and put it on. It's incredible in person. Doesn't seem real at all.

So that was my Saturday, looking at the most expensive estate sale in the world. If you'd like to see more pictures check out my Flickr set. The stories behind the jewelry is worth looking into. You can check out this site or better yet grab the book Elizabeth wrote (I got mine for a steal on ebay).

Long Beach Flea Market

I think I can officially go on record and say that the Long Beach Flea Market is my favorite here in SoCal. The Rose Bowl is great if you're looking for big pieces and furniture but Long Beach has more smalls and smalls are cheaper and that's more friendly to my wallet.

This week I found another Playboy Puzzle, three 8-Tracks (at a dollar a piece) and a Pearl Jam shirt. While digging through the 8-Tracks a dad brought his daughter over and was trying to explain what they were for, she asked him "Is that what Walkmans were for?" The time to feel old is now.

If you're in the area the Long Beach Flea Market will be having a special sale October 30th. I'm not sure what makes it so special but you can't get mad at an extra flea market this month.

Mod Dining

I've become a tad obsessed with my new table. I've been trolling flickr and blogs for images. How do other people style them? What kind of chairs are people pairing with them? Dangerous questions.

This new obsession has spurred my monthly ideabook for Houzz.com. I've put together my dream dining room. Check it out...

Mod Dining

Browse Home Office Products on Houzz- For Example:

Bulletin Board · Cable Management · Desk Accessories · Desks · Filing Cabinets And Carts · Task Chairs ·

Rose Bowl

The Sundays when I visit a flea market are my favorite day of the week. I get up early, spend two hours walking around with my husband making fun of people and then come home, maybe with a treasure, maybe with kettle corn, watch a Law & Order marathon and take a nap. This Sunday was no exception. The Rose Bowl delivered tons of people for us to giggle at and I scored a large Dansk Kobenstyle baking pan. At $30 it wasn't a steal but it wasn't bad deal either. It's in fantastic condition, I would be willing to guess it was only used a handful of times.

There were two sellers we encountered that were just unreal with their pricing.  We found some 8-Tracks and since we now have a player we asked what they wanted for them. There was some good stuff Led Zeppelin, Supertramp, Kiss, Queen...a good selection of 70s rock. The guy wanted $10 a cassette. TEN. That's outrageous. For something you don't even know if it still plays & could break the second you try to play it. We quickly said "nooooo" and walked on. Later I spotted a guy hanging up some shirts and in his hand was the Nike shirt my brother is wearing in this photo:

(In case you're wondering, I was building a Lego remote control. Suprinsingly no on lets a 4 year old have a real one to play with. Whatevs)

I thought it would be so cute if I could buy the same shirt for my nephew, here's what happened when I asked how much the vendor wanted for the shirt:

Vendor: "one fifty"

Me: "um...one HUNDRED and fifty dollars?"

Vendor: "Yes"

Me: "Hahahaha"

Yep, my knee-jerk reaction was to laugh in his face and walk away. Normally when some seller names a price I think is ridiculous I will just say 'Thank You' and walk away but this guy was unreal. $150 for a child's shirt? Good luck with that.

Photo Friday

New flowers, new table, new vase. It's a lovely day here in SoCal. I'm off to enjoy it. Have a great weekend!

Addition and Subtraction

Hi, my name is Ana and I'm a Chairaholic. I have a problem. I just can't seem to say no to a chair. After buying a tulip(ish) chair off of Craigslist on Monday I went out again yesterday and bought another, then one-upped myself and bought a table.

See the issue? Five chairs and two tables in my tiny ass dining room. What the hell is wrong with me? Yesterday was the rainiest day in months. It was pouring and that's the day I decided to drive 40 miles to pick up that adorable aqua chair and everyone's favorite knock-off table the Docksta from Ikea. The idea of a $180 table for $40 will do that to me. I can't pass up a deal. It can be scary to watch Hoarders and think how easily that could be me. I'm so thankful for my husband for many, many reasons. Him keeping my chair addiction in line is just one of them.

The conditions on which I could buy these chairs were simple. Since my Birthday is approaching I was allowed some leniency and as long as I got rid of the old table and two chairs I was in the clear (according to him). So out with the old, in with the new(ish). Here's where the subtraction come in:

Out went the Bamboo veneer pair of chairs and in came a new aqua chair, the old aqua chair and staying are the two mustard chairs. I need to find a similar base for the old aqua chair, I keep trolling Craigslist and Ebay. I'll find it one day. Soon precious, soon.

Since I couldn't decide which picture to show you here's another:

Bruce is almost camouflage isn't he? Why are cats such camera whores?

Chairs, Lamps, Cats.

This weekend my plan was to go to the PCC Flea Market but as is the norm when you make plans the fates laugh.

We had to take Bruce to the vet. I suspected he had a UTI. $200 later we're still not sure the cause just that it's not a UTI and he has crystals in his urine. Not the hippy, twirling, chakra kind; the expensive to medicate and diagnose kind. Bruce will be fine, he's on meds and hopefully this will never return.

So that put a wrench in my plan to troll the flea market on Sunday. Instead I trolled Craigslist, which is my favorite vegging out activity. I love my ipod for many reasons and the Craigslist app is just one of them.

Lately I've been on the hunt for the perfect hutch. In the fruitless search for that I found a really great chair. So naturally having just sold a lamp on CL I turned around and bought a chair. I already have too much of both (lamps and chairs) but this was a deal I couldn't pass up. I was able to get the chair for the same price I sold the lamp at and since it's less than a month until my birthday I was able to call it a birthday present.

I bought it from this really awesome lady in Silverlake named Molly. Her house was high up a winding hill and she was in the process of gutting it and rebuilding. You could tell the house was going to be gorgeous when she was done. It was a spanish-ranch style home probably from the late 30's. It had an amazing view and was set back from the road, nestled in the hills.

Here's the before and after:

 I don't think you can really tell from the pictures how much better the after looks. I cleaned it with a Magic Eraser, Barkeeper's Friend and some Method Spray Cleaner. It wasn't that dirty to being with but there was definitely a layer of grime on it and some spots of gunk. The Barkeeper's Friend really brought the whiteness of the chair back.

I'm not sure where it's going to live right now. It might be my sewing chair, maybe a dining chair, maybe a desk chair.