Comfy, Practical, and Fashionable - Toms Shoes

I have one pair of Toms. I need more. I asked for a pair for Christmas because I just liked the way they look and heard they were extremely comfortable.* And they are, indeed, extremely comfortable. People have started customizing Toms with brilliant artwork. Some are really fantastic, but usually pretty pricey. I may try to do my own eventually, but not until I get a second pair. Here are some envy-worthy options from Etsy:

Giraffe Toms (in case you didn't know I love giraffes) - $73

Paisley Toms - $82

Flying Birds Toms - $90

Galaxy Toms - $100

 

And there are so many more where these came from! Including some fantastic Hunger Games options!  

 

*While it is true that Toms do one-to-one (giving one pair of shoes to someone who needs it for each pair bought). However there are several problems with that equation that Toms keeps buried, but in summation the one-to-one, in my opinion, is mostly a publicity stunt for a for-profit business. I just wanted to clarify that I wanted a pair because of the style.

Thrifting in Cedar Rapids (Iowa)

So I shared some of my thrifting adventures before, also in Cedar Rapids, but here are some more.

I went to Cedar Rapids this past weekend for to visit a friend, and before I went I looked up a few shops I wanted to see and even mapped out my route. Let me tell you I was excited. Cedar Falls, where I live, has a few shops like Antiques on Main but I haven't been able to find stuff around here like I can in Cedar Rapids.

I had three stops on my agenda:
1. Treasure Chest Collectibles - They were having a "grand opening" to celebrate new ownership
3203 1st Ave SE Cedar Rapids, IA 52402
 2. The Cellar Door & Stable on the Alley

2900 1st Ave NE Cedar Rapids, IA 52402

3. 1st Class Finds - I had gone here before, as mentioned in my last thrifting post
227 14th Ave SE, Cedar Rapids, IA 52401
So I set off on my journey with high hopes and a little cash. I wasn't disappointed.


Treasure Chest Collectibles
The owners here are a little annoying, bordering on a lot annoying. I am not sure if they were just over-excited because they just came into ownership and were celebrating or if they are just naturally pushy, but I didn't appreciate that. The shop itself is great for nicknacks and collectibles, and there is some furniture but not a ton. It was mostly benches tables and dressers. I did manage to find a $5 rolling pin that I was pretty excited about. Here are a few pictures of some other things I found:

I did snatch up this adorable hand painted vase (supposedly Japanese but all I can read on the bottom is hand painted):

 

The Cellar Door & Stable on the Alley
This place had awesome reviews online, despite looking a little shady. So I thought I may as well go for it. It is actually two shops that are connected. The owner of The Cellar Door (approximately 8 rooms in all) is a riot. He's very friendly and funny and wants to talk. He had a few good things, and quite a range from absolute crap to valuable items to things that looked brand new and modern. I thought some things were a little overpriced, but overall it was decent. I will say it was a little more flea-market-esque than most of the places I've been, but not overly so. A few finds below:

Attached, as I said, is what I assume is The Stable on The Alley. Just one room in the back, I liked this more than the several rooms of the cellar door. A woman worked this, and she was very laid back and nice. The stuff in this area was mostly nicer and better quality. I may be slightly biased though as I found the absolute best chair there for just 30 bucks.


She made great use of space too, you have to make sure to look up at the ceiling if you go here because she stores stuff up there that you can also buy, like some really great looking vintage suitcases. But the most exciting part about this side is that I found this fantastic chair for just $30:

1st Class Finds and The Copper Alligator
So I've talked about 1st class finds before, but when I went this time it was so different. It looked rather empty actually. It's a pretty big space, and a room that has previously contained mostly clothes and accessories had been emptied and filled with records and more furniture. I naturally inquired about this as the clothes were one of the most interesting parts there, and he told me that he had rented that room out to a couple of girls and they moved down into the Czech Village and the store was called the Copper Alligator. 1st Class Finds is pretty good for furniture, but stuff is snatched up quickly and it's not the best I've seen, but the Copper Alligator is wonderful for clothes, accessories, decor, and some furniture too. I love the small child shoes you can see below on the right; I wish I had someone to give them to who would have their little girl wear them. And sadly the other shoes shown were just about one size too small, that was a bummer. This store is definitely worth a stop.

Hope this helps with your next thrifting adventures as well! 
Stay Lovely,
Katelin

Surprised in Ames

I don't go over to Ames (Iowa) very often. And I rarely go out and about when I am there. I went this past weekend however and was surprised by the little things of art I came across. I went to Wheatsfield, a health store, and found a lot of great product design. If you are in love with graphic design as well as being crafty then check out my other blog, The Gallery, to see the great packaging I found.

In addition to great packaging, I came across this handmade cards by Lonna.

I only got a chance to get a picture of two of the cards, but you can look through the options and buy your own Lonna's Cards her site here.

One more surprise I came across in the store was an art vending machine. You read right. It was a vending machine where you could get little pieces of handmade art. It was so cool.

It had jewelry, a little bowl (which didn't seem like the best idea to me considering it could break when you let it fall), little drawings, bookmarks, bags, buttons. Just a ton of stuff. It was very cool, unique, and definitely a surprise.

Adventures in Thrifting

One of my New Year's goals* was to work on thrifting. I know people in real life and on the blogisphere that are awesome at it and had the most fantastic and unique things, from clothing to furniture, because they were great at thrift shopping. I love the idea of having unique stuff AND it is (usually) cheaper.

So I've dabbled here and there, not finding much worth sharing honestly. But this weekend I went to visit a friend in Cedar Rapids (Iowa) and we went to a store I had found online called 1st Class Finds and wanted to check out. It is by far the absolute best second-hand/thrift/vintage store I have found yet. The owner had everything it seemed like! Really great stuff. I wanted like fifty different things, but tried to stay financially concious and just bought one item. One amazing item!

This Italian made, unique, triangular table that doubles as a music box when opened for just $25 (hopefully I'll add more pictures later or on the Hello Lovely Facebook page)

 

Some other great finds at 1st Class Finds (sorry for no prices**):

Vintage radio. Would look great on a bookshelf or table!

Traveling bar briefcase!

Couldn't decide if this was a blanket or a rug but it was gorgeous

 

My friend and I also went to another thrift shop in the Czech Village that had some interesting stuff but was a tad overpriced. These awesome blocks were $3 per block.

But they also had some fantastic military wear that is worth keeping an eye on. Including jackets from Vietnam for just $10 and tons of authentic patches and medals.

*I don't make resolutions but call them goals. "Resolution" makes me feel like a failed if I don't do it, since it means I resolved to do something.
**I'll try do do better at pictures and pricing next time I go on a thrift adventure.