Benched...

Gus and I have a huge king-sized bed. I've wanted a bench to put at the foot of it for awhile now, but most are just too small and would look weird. The few that I found that were large enough were outrageously expensive. With a dog and three cats, I'm really not enthusiastic about spending a lot of money on something that is likely to have a short lifespan.

When we were in Gatlinburg in August, we went to Old Time Pottery. I love that place!! We used to have one here, and I was sad to see it close, but it was never as nice as the one in G'Burg. There was a fire at the one in G'Burg a couple of years ago, so when they reopened, it was a complete remodel. Anyway, about 5 minutes into the store and what do I see? A nice big bench for $60!! It wasn't a storage bench, but they had it displayed with baskets underneath, and I liked the look of that.


I finally put it together the other day! Ignore any other part of the bedroom that you see - we're going to be repainting and redecorating later this year. I have most of the things I need for redecorating, but I don't want to put them out until after Gus paints the room. So there are things sitting everywhere, LOL! The new colors will be grey, greige, with accents of white, dark plum/purple, and green. I can't wait!


I loved that there was velcro around the edge of the bottom so that you could easily attach the cover. It made it look so much more like a nice piece of furniture. Not that anyone really sees under it, but you know what I mean.


It only took about 20 minutes to put it together - and I'm really pleased with it!

I bought the same baskets they had displayed in the store. I'm not sure if I'll keep those liners or make new ones, but for now, they'll do.


Right now, the baskets are filled with redecorating stuff, LOL! I don't know if I'll keep them under the bench or move them elsewhere once we redecorate, but for now, they're keeping all that stuff from being on top of a dresser or on the floor, so I like them "out of sight".


The bench is actually well-padded and pretty comfy to sit on, too. So I really feel like we got a bargain.

I also picked up these pillows. They're a nice size, very soft & fluffly - and best of all, under $10 each. I saw similar ones at Target for $25 each - and that was the sale price.


And I grabbed this bag of potpourri for $5. I'm not big on potpourri, but I thought the orb was pretty nifty and I liked the other chunky pieces as well. It will look nice in a decorative vase or bowl.


Not everything at Old Time Pottery is good quality or even a good deal, but if you take your time and look around (and know what is available elsewhere & how it's priced), you can come away with some pretty cool finds! Can't wait for our next trip to G'Burg!!