RED: Refinished Curbside Find: FOUR

I love yard sales; I love bargain hunting. The ultimate success of such hobbies occurs on that glorious day when you stumble upon a hidden treasure... and it's free!

I came home from work one day last fall to find a little surprise beside our neighbors trash can out back. I was skeptical as to whether or not furniture set beside trash cans became free game for everyone else. Where I come from, it is not uncommon to see functional every day items become long term lawn ornaments. Bathtubs and tractor parts adorn many a Tennessee yard and I guarantee that is it not socially acceptable to take these items from their lawns no matter how close they may be to a trash receptacle.

Nonetheless, I drug Ben outside to get his approval on this adorable little cabinet that had been abandoned. We decided it's only defect was a little wobble and that it had indeed been discarded. We dusted it off and carried it inside where it would wait on the stairway until I figured out what it's next purpose would be -- which ended up being 8 months later. The piece happens to fit our current culinary situation just right. We needed a bit more storage space in our new kitchen (we just moved two miles down the road - more about our new spot later), and the refurbishing began. Please enjoy it's evolution in the photos below.

Before...

and after! Ben suggested the yellow color and it really looks great with the rest of the kitchen and the little knob that I stumbled upon at Anthropologie a few months back. I've already referenced my cook books more in one week than I usually do in one month with them being so easily accessible. Our micro and toaster oven inconspicuously rest on the lowest shelf while the top is reserved for such important activities as below:

We love our new space - it's got a great little backyard with a patch of mint which went into the home-made Mojitos that our good friends (now neighbors!), made for our cookout that evening.

Ben grilled some delicious steaks and we enjoyed our first of many summer evenings out in the backyard. Bodie, our neighbor dog even came along!