I dwell in Possibility.
~ Jane Austen
~ Jane Austen
I love
flea markets
antique stores
occasional sales
Good Will....
As I enter any of these
my heart begins
to beat faster, my
pulse races
and my mind
swirls with
possibilities.
Only problem
is, I am married to
a man who doesn't
necessarily see
what I see when
I haul some of
these treasures home.
I see vintage charm
He sees squeaky ~ needs oil
I see time worn and well-loved
He sees old and cast-off
I see chippy patina
He sees lead paint dangers
I see groovy, re-purposed
He sees fire danger!
 |
| Almost came home with one of these! |
What's a girl to do?
Last Thursday I brought
home two cool, industrial-
chic chairs....great prices,
both fit their intended
places....BUT....I didn't
consider the lead paint
possibility when I piled
them into my friend's
car to tote them home.
He did.
 |
| My Toledo school chair is just like this only it's chippy and white! {And hopefully lead-free.} |
According to Country Living
Magazine, "Not all painted furniture
from the past was created with
lead-based paint, but much of it was,
so you do need to be careful,
especially with small children in the house.
The danger lies in ingesting paint chips and
inhaling paint dust, not in touching,
so chipping surfaces pose the greatest threat."
They go on to explain that
very old pieces most likely
do not contain lead; the biggest
worry is furniture made in
the early to mid 1900's.
How do you know? The best
thing, of course, is to ask
the vendor who is selling it.
If you forget, like I did, or
the dealer doesn't know,
there is a test kit available
at most hardware stores
that will test whether that
old paint is lead-based.
 |
| This one's available at Home Depot. |
If you find that your piece
does contain lead paint, it
is wisest not to use it and certainly
to keep it away from
where children play.
The easiest remediation
where children play.
The easiest remediation
would be to apply a low-luster
polyurethane varnish, but
it could affect the look of your
item. It's best not to refinish
in this case because of the dangers
posed by stripping or sanding,
even with a face mask.
Country Living goes on
to say, "Unless a dealer can guarantee
that a piece of furniture is lead-free,
the safest option for households with
young children may be to choose new
pieces that look old for now and purchase
authentic pieces when the children are a little older."
Which leads me to
another delightful giveaway
from CSN stores!
another delightful giveaway
from CSN stores!
CSN sells everything from
nightstands to stand mixers
and they are giving one lucky
Privet and Holly reader a
$60 gift card to spend, as you
wish, at any of their
on-line stores.
on-line stores.
After reading the Country Living
article, I got to thinking about
new items that look old....or
give the impression
that you've had them in your
that you've had them in your
family for generations
and decided to peek around CSN,
just as if I were wandering through
a wonderful antiques store.
a wonderful antiques store.
My heart started beating
faster....my pulse began
to race....my mind to
whirl!
Here are a few
lovelies
lovelies
that I found ~
{No, I wasn't
looking at price tags...
just dreaming!}
Inspired?
Want a chance to win?
with the name of
a CSN item that
would make your
heart dance....
a CSN item that
would make your
heart dance....
For a second entry,
let me know that you
follow my ramblings!
For a third,
shout it out
somewhere on your
blog, if you write one.
{Leave each comment separately}
{Leave each comment separately}
That's it!
The giveaway
will wrap up on
October 20th.
Just think
of
the
**possibilities**
xx
Suzanne
[images: 6,9 google images;
2 Savvy City Farmer
4,5 Privet and Holly;
7 flickr ~ click for attribution;
1,3,8,9 Country Living;
10-14 csn.com]
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