So Long Shabby Sweet Furniture

When my second daughter Hannah was born I looked around for furniture for her bedroom that was vintage with the shabby-sweet style that I love. As with ALL of my furniture and home decor, I am usually on a very limited budget. Most of my furniture, with the exception of a few chairs from Ikea and my television set, are second hand. I'm not sad about that in any way. I actually prefer older styles and a rustic & worn patina. The great benefit of old furniture is that it is usually solid wood and well constructed  - which is uncommon in the furniture for sale new today - unless you want to pay out of the nose for it.

This is the furniture that was bought for my sweet baby girl's room.

I think I channeled a bit of Rachel Ashwell on the day I found these pieces. They were not purchased together. The dresser with the mirror was bought first - at an auction. I saw it and instantly fell in love. We lingered at the auction for a bit and the dresser still hadn't come up for sale. Having to leave, I left an absentee bid and prayed that I would get this piece. A few days later I heard that the dresser was mine. It is hard to see from the pics but the paint is perfectly distressed and cracked. The color is close to the shade of cooked oatmeal. There is even a floral decal on the drawer of a pansy. Now this kind of ready-made perfection doesn't happen much in my world. I usually have to paint, distress, or refinish to make a second-hand piece of furniture in my price range look like I want it to look.

The wardrobe came a short time later when I spied it at one of my favorite antique stores for sale. It too was painted like the color of oatmeal and already had decals. It was in my price range and it was the perfect match to the dresser.

Sadly, they are leaving us and moving on to another family. Hannah is 8 now. Her room went from pink, to purple to the latest...green. She has new paint, new bedding and she is done with this old furniture. She wants Ikea. (it pains me to say that publicly) - I want my kids to love their rooms and feel comfortable there. That is why I agreed to sell this furniture so that I could buy her some Ikea stuff (junk). Oh well. We are not our kids. They have their own style, and that is great. God made us each unique and I wouldn't have it any other way.

So goodbye perfect, shabby, sweet, distressed, adorable, Rachel Ashwell-inspired furniture. Have a good life at your new home.

Love,
KayteeJane