Confessions of a T.C. thief...

Well, idea thief that is.

I stole this idea from Trader Pup. He has a little treasure chest in his waterfall by the pool. One day I see this chest at an estate sale and ask "how much" The lady wanted like $50.00. It was in bad shape but she said they are very rare and the inside could be fixed. I told them I only wanted it for outside and offered $5.00 and the guy behind her said "sold!" Since then I've seen these "hope chests" at antique shops for several hundred dollars. They are really old. The top is rounded and the sides are stamped metal (I haven't tried to polish anything) Oh well...

So I filled it with dirt, put two of my, more rare, cycads in there, sprayed some "weed stop" and rocks gold and there it is. The best part about it is when I'm having one of those bad garage saleing days where you don't find anything, I'll ususally find something cheap for the chest (like the goblets and the pirate cap gun) It cheers me up. There are also memories in there like some beads from me and my best friends trip to Mardi Gras, my "Clamming Tiara" from a Martha's Vineyard trip, and shells gathered on Turcs and Cacos and hauled through a customs inspection.

There is also something I was able to talk a friend into stealing from an actual tiki restaurant. Those that know me know I try to get people to steal stuff when I get even a little tipsy (see sometimes it works). I don't even know why I wanted this thing but it has been with me for years and even moved with me.

The lights are solar lights, two are red and the one in the chest is gold. It is beautiful in the evening when the lights ripple on the water.

Thanks TP for being so creative, Laney

Anyone else have confessions?

Can you see the gold tiki?

With the Treasure Chest and my mermaid, my yard is slowly becomming quite a cheese fest!

[ Edited by: laney on 2004-02-18 12:13 ]

[ Edited by: laney on 2004-02-18 12:17 ]

Laney, that is so cool.
But won't the dirt inside the chest rot the wood?
That's a great idea! Thanks for the pics.

Laney, that is f**kin' awesome! Must look great by the pool!

You're right, having something like that always gives you something to find when hitting the garage sales.... even on the worst day, there's always a buck-or-less treasure to get for the treasure chest.

Our backyard is getting torn up next month.... I'll be hitting you up for some good SoCal cycad advice for the new landscape......

On 2004-02-18 12:45, jungletrader wrote:
Laney, that is so cool.
But won't the dirt inside the chest rot the wood?
That's a great idea! Thanks for the pics.

Well the wood inside was in bad shape already. I lined the sides with heavy plastic. It is sunk in the ground about 2 inches and the bottom just has holes drilled for drainage. The outside is metal so hopefully it'll hold up, if not it'll just look more authentic, I guess. It's alreay been there a few months through rain and wind.

That is way cool!

Other than the chest, my favorite are those large links-o-metal. I've actually looked for those, but haven't had much luck yet. At the party stores, they carry plastic gold coins that are as shiny as your mardi gras beads. Maybe a couple dozen or two thrown (literally) in and around the chest?

Great work!

Nice work Laney! My family has a bunch of old chests that were used to move their worldly belongings to Canada in the 50's, they're kind of big, but would be perfect for a big treasure chest display! We used to store costumes in one, for 'dress-up', but now I'm seriously considering resurrecting it for the Huki Lounge. Just love that Pirate/Tiki combo.

Great stuff - kinda like a "Pirates of the tiki-beann" in your own back yard! Very cool idea, I think you and Trader Pup have sparked the imagination of many a TCer. Thanks for the pictures!

"Hey! Careful, man! There's a beverage!" - The Dude

Somehow it all comes down to Pirates and Tikis...

[ Edited by: Polynesiac on 2004-02-18 14:44 ]

On 2004-02-18 13:18, SugarCaddyDaddy wrote:
That is way cool!

Other than the chest, my favorite are those large links-o-metal. I've actually looked for those, but haven't had much luck yet.
Great work!

I'm not sayin where I got those links (see discription). They're heavy!

Bahooka used to have lots of chain like that around their parking lot......

LOVE IT Laney!! I've gotta do something like that...hey, where's my pool?? Maybe I'll do it anyway... :)

On 2004-02-18 12:13, laney wrote:

Anyone else have confessions?

Well, since no one else here has the balls to answer laney's original question, I'll confess that I shamelessly stole TheMuggler's idea to put a tiki inside an old rain lamp. No pictures yet- come up to the Grotto if you want to see it. It was a time consuming and disgusting process to clean all the old mineral oil out of this thing. But it looks great with a little thatch on the roof and a Munktiki moai mug as the tiki inside. Thank you Muggler!

Inspirational thread:
https://tikicentral.com/viewtopic-new.php?topic=4031&forum=6

C'mon, confess people- you'll feel the weight of the world lift off your shoulders.

I confess.........I stole the idea of drinking a Mai Tai from you Martiki, and a Navy Grog and Zombie and......thanks, you da Great Martiki.
YAAAY! Now I can get my balls back.

Now back to my crow.

[ Edited by: jungletrader on 2004-02-24 20:23 ]

On 2004-02-18 12:46, Traderpup wrote:
Our backyard is getting torn up next month

Traderpup, how's the backyard coming along? Any progress photos?

:drink:
I've been trying to think of how to display my shells and fossils, but oddly enough a treasure chest never occured to me. I think I'm going to steal your idea.

I found myself an old chest, much like yours, Laney, at a garage sale. $12 for a big one that's all charred on part of the inside(adds to the pirate-ey feel if you ask me :wink:) Now I'm hunting for the guts...I may have to order some mardi gras necklaces online, my local thrift store wants $1.50 for each one! I found some nice shells today, and have a couple of abalone ones at home. Finding the treasure is the best part so far!

Bead shows are a good place to go to find treasure and spend buttloads of money. In addition to the sixty dollar made-with-love-in-every-annealing lampwork beads, you're bound to find predrilled nuts, pearls of any description, belly dancing (and other assorted) coins and what have you.

And don't forget the toy section of your local closeout store. Kids love colorful shiny stuff almost as much as grownups.

Great ideas! Thank you!

BUMP

Sweet treasue chest! Looks like its been sitting there for years with the palms growing out of it. If only I could con my folks into letting me tikify their pool...