And just like that, I’m back from visiting my mom.  Isn’t it funny how trips fly by so quickly?  Oh, what am I saying?  Time in general just flies by so fast these days, am I right?

I had a lovely time visiting my mom.  The Las Vegas area was experiencing a warm spell last week and temps were above average while I was there, so I was able to enjoy five glorious, sunny days in the 70’s … only to return to -8 in Minnesota!  Jeesh!

That patio makeover that my sister and I gave Mom last year is really paying off.  I spent a fair amount of time sitting on the patio, soaking up that warmth with a cup of coffee and a good book from the local library.

I’ll be sharing reviews of those books later in the week, so be sure to stay tuned for that.

I also visited the Goodwill that is literally just around the corner from my mom’s place.

I usually stop in there when I’m visiting.  Although obviously it’s not like I can buy much, only items that I can fit into my suitcase.  But honestly, that’s not usually much of a problem since they don’t typically have much in the way of my kind of vintage out there.

This is a good example of the usual sort of thing I see …

Creepy, right?

But this visit was the exception to the rule.  I saw a couple of items that I wished I could purchase starting with this copper boiler …

It was $19.99 and I would have snatched that up in a heartbeat if I was at home.  It would have made a fantastic window box like the ones I have on my carriage house and photo cottage.

Of course, mine are just galvanized.  Copper would be so much more fabulous!

I also saw this adorable kid sized antique roll top desk.

It was also $19.99.  And it would be such a fun project!  Can’t you just picture it painted in some chippy milk paint?

By the way, my mom’s Goodwill offers a much better senior discount than mine here in Minnesota.

She can get 40% on Wednesdays, and 20% all other days.  At my Goodwill I get 25% on Wednesdays only.  I was surprised to find that these details were different in a different part of the country.

I did find one thing I could purchase, this set of canisters …

They were half off (with an orange tag), so a bargain price.  And to be honest, even more of a bargain for me since my mom insisted on paying for them!

There are actually three in the set (they were all stacked inside of each other at the store).

And being able to stack them meant I could fit them into my suitcase!

The wooden lids on these do not fit tightly, so I knew they would not be suitable to use for food storage.  But I thought they’d be great for storing art/crafting supplies.

Another great option would be to use them on your potting bench and fill them with seed packets, flower food, or garden tools.   Gardening season is also just around the corner!

They had lots of possibilities, so I brought them home and gave them a quick makeover.

I started by giving them a good cleaning, including using a Magic Eraser to get any scuff marks off.  Next up I added some of my favorite IOD Pots transfers to them.

These are the black ones from the Classic Pots version of the transfer, although the black ones in the newer Traditional Pots set look pretty much the same.

I ended up painting the lids black using Dixie Belle’s Caviar.

Originally I thought I would leave the lids ‘as is’ because I liked the sort of faded driftwood-ish appearance of them, but once the transfers were in place I felt like black was a better option.

I finished everything up with a coat of clear wax for some protection.

I’ll probably bring these into the shop on Wednesday, so if any of you locals need some canisters for your craft room or potting bench be sure to stop in.

I had a very relaxing get away at my mom’s.  I have to say, now that I’m retired it practically feels as though my mom’s place is just around the corner.  It’s a quick 3 hour flight, and I can generally find some pretty good deals on flights to Vegas.  Now that I don’t have to ‘use up’ vacation time to go, I think I’ll be visiting much more often.  In fact, my sister and I already have a trip out there booked four weeks from now and I’m already looking forward to some more of that warm weather!