I've Been At It Again

I just can't stay out of thrift stores. Every time I drive past one I wonder what treasures are waiting inside...and what if I don't get in to find them? My girls will not willingly go to a thrift store...but if I ask them if they want to go to a "treasure store" they are all for it. Knowing that they will more than likely walk out with some small "prize" of their own that we really don't need. At least not like I need fabric!

The above lovelies were picked up at a thrift store that supports the local animal shelter. I love that! I also loved that everything was half off!! (Yeah, half off...YAY!! More exclamation points!!) The stack of linens is sitting on a purchase from there as well. I almost cried when I found it. It's a table cloth, the colors are brand-new vibrant and save for two small spots in the center, which is white, it is in perfect condition and I know my Oxi will take care of that for me. It set me back $4. That may have been the happiest I've ever been to spend $4! I am also in love with the bottom sheet, which is really heavier than a sheet, soft, but not flannel. I know not what it is, but it was a $1 and I loved it!

This stack was bundled together at the local Goodwill. I really wanted it for the patchwork piece about two thirds of the way down, but after getting the whole bundle home and washing everything, there are several other vintage pieces in there that I'm quite excited about. I also love the two knits on top. I don't know to work with knits, but these will be fun to find some use for. Oh...and the bundle was $1.99.....but it was also half off, so $1 well spent!

And....totally unrelated, somebody started second grade today. Seriously, I have tangible memories of second grade (some good, some not so good)...how can I now have a second grader? She was nervous about this year - I'm not sure what had her worried, but by the time I picked her up, everything was great. Phew. My baby starts kindergarten this week as well. She doesn't go until Friday and will only be there once a week for the first two weeks for what they call "phase-in". She is not excited, but hopefully the fact that I will be with her almost all day Friday will be reassuring and she will actually get excited once she sees all the cool stuff she'll be doing. In all fairness though, she will get her own post. So two more weeks of hanging with my little buddy and then I'll find myself a stay-at-home mom with no-one at home. Sniff...sniff....

Stocked

Well the girls and I are back from out visit with my parents, albeit a few days later than what we had intended. My Dad gave me the scare of my life while we were at the city pool with the girls. He was feeling a little "woozy" on his way up the stairs to the water slide and while we aren't sure what all happened before people got to him, the end result was him lying on the landing unconscious in my arms for several minutes with cuts to his head and lip. He obviously fell and hit his head, but no one saw it happen. He passed out once I was with him, so I know he didn't fall and hit his head at that point, although maybe he passed out more than once. Who knows. I know that I was scared. Very scared. And I know that I am so proud of both my girls for how brave they were. I am also very grateful for the people at the pool who help him (and I) and some very kind mothers who took my girls under their wings and watched over them while panic and chaos ensued.

The end result was almost four days in the hospital, numerous tests, a heart catheterization and still no concrete answer as to why. Thankfully, he is going to participate in a clinical trial of a new medication and will be more closely monitored by doctors than if he had been sent home with no commitment to the trial.

That's not really happy talk though, is it? So instead of dwelling on that, I am excited to share you what I brought home with me from our journey. Have I mentioned how awesome the Goodwill is by my parents? Well it is. So good that I'm afraid to tell you where it is...you might beat me to the good stuff. The middle pillow case in the above photo came from there. The matching set came from their Salvation Army. The were folded and looked like they'd been stored in a box somewhere very dirty. At $2.99 for the set, I decided it was worth the gamble to see if they came clean. I've soaked them in OxiClean, mixed an OxiClean paste to cover some stubborn spots and the results are pretty good. They need a bit more spot treatment and then I'll hand wash them and I'm sure they'll be just right by then.

The above stack all came from the Goodwill, although I did have to go more than once to score them all. The top piece is a tablecloth (I think.....well, it is now), the rest are sheets. I remember my Grandma having a set like the bottom one, so I was happy to find that. I also purchased my girl's school clothes for the next two years on Saturday, when kid's clothes were on sale for 79 cents a piece. I picked up several Gap tops and jeans amongst (many) other things.

And my awesome thrifting Aunt had left a box for me at my parent's that was full of goodies. This is just a sampling. Beads, buttons, sewing notions, embroidery floss, jewelry pieces, stamps.....a little bit of everything. I am hoping that once the girls are in school, I will have some new found time to put all of my goodies to use. Right after I make the house sparkling clean and have a delicious dinner ready and waiting, of course ; )

Summer at Grandma's

I've been moving right along on my new quilt, and by "my", I really mean that it's going to be mine. Except that it's going to be so soft and light and wonderful that I expect people are going to want me to share. I'm making nine patches out of vintage floral sheets from my stash. The stash I was afraid to cut into for fear no more floral sheets would come my way, but they are still showing up, so I can relax while I cut more squares for this quilt.

And cut more, I must. Because I am not a planner, I just made what seemed like a big pile of 6" square blocks and figured I had enough for a quilt. And I did have enough...for a baby quilt. But for a quilt somewhere in the size of a twin, I am going to need more blocks. I've completed four rows and will probably want it at least 10 or twelve rows long, so I've got some work ahead of me - but really, is it work? Not in the least.

As I piece these blocks I am flooded with memories of summers at my Grandparent's house in Northern Michigan. The prints on the sheets remind me of the sheets on the beds at their house, their cool touch reminds me that there was air conditioning at their house and not ours. I was lucky enough to be able to spend a good bit of my summers with them, with their big back yard, their circular driveway perfect for riding bikes and roller skating in, their big basement that we played in and oh yeah, that lake across the road. I was prepared to share some horribly embarrassing pictures from my summers with you - pictures of excellent 70's fashions, bad hair and general grubbiness from playing outside all day, but I can't find them. Honestly!

My quilt will have to take a respite though, as I'm off on Wednesday to spend a week with my Aunt in California. A whole, responsibility free, obligation free, child free week. Hopefully I will return with a new energy and lots of good thrifted finds! Until then, enjoy your summer!

Peace Out

If you want to know what seven year old little girls are into right now, at least at our school, it's peace, love and happiness. Especially when illustrated with a peace sign, heart and smiley face. They are drawn on everything. I have yet to find them drawn on my car door, the walls, or other places where drawings have previously made their way, but I'm sure it will happen. There are worse things to be digging though, I'd say. If only we could spread some of the peace, love and happiness around and share it with our younger sister when school lets out. That is neither here nor there though, but this t-shirt is here. I picked up a cute t-shirt for Rachel at the Goodwill by my parent's house at Easter that had peace, love and ice cream on it (also good). It was a hit at school and one mother lamented that she could not find any shirts with peace signs for her daughter that weren't crafted out of skulls or age appropriate. I told her to bring me a t-shirt and I'd hook her up. The above shirt is the result.

I attached the peace sign with Heat 'n Bond Lite and then stitched around the symbol to ensure that it was secured. This way, if the Heat 'n Bond starts to give, the worst that will happen is that the edges will take on a slightly frayed look, which I thought would also be cute. When I stitch on t-shirts, I always back them with freezer paper for stability - it works great. My critic told me this morning that it needed more stuff (the same critic who once told me that her "style" was "fancy"). I found this tutorial on making fabric flowers and decided to add some embellishment. I made the flower into a pin, so that if the friend doesn't share the same fancy style, she can remove it. Probably removing it for washing would be smart as well.

And while I was initially searching my shelf of fabric for just the right one, I remembered my recent thrift store scores. The fairies have kept me in mind, as I scored the above just recently. The bottom two are sheets and the top piece, which I ended up using on the shirt, is several yards of a vintage print. I love all three. I'm thinking that the bottom soft yellow floral will be the back for my sheet quilt, but that is on hold while I wrap up baby gifts. So here's wishing you a peaceful weekend full of love and happiness. We'll be busy celebrating just about every occasion worth celebrating except for a wedding - two birthday parties, a baby shower and a graduation. Busy weekend!

Yummy!

These are so so good, I have to share the recipe with you! But first, their history. I just finished Beth Moore's Esther Bible study. I loved the depth at which we studied the book of Esther and the history of the Jewish people at that time. These cookies are typically made during Purim and are called Hamantashen or Haman's Ears - Haman being the "bad guy" in the story of Esther. They are also said to represent Haman's the cornered hat. Google them, you can learn lots more, I bet! So, bad guy = good cookie! Here's the recipe:

Hamantashen

2 sticks butter or margarine, softened
2 cups sugar
2 large eggs
2 tsp. vanilla
4 tsp. baking powder
4 cups whole wheat flour or 2 cups whole wheat & 2 cups white flour

Filling: Traditional fillings are poppy seed and prune. I used homemade strawberry and blackberry jam. Fruit butters or pie fillings would also work.

1. Cut butter into sugar. Blend thoroughly. Add eggs and vanilla, blending thoroughly. Add baking powder and then flour, 1/2 cup at a time, blending thoroughly between each addition.

2. Put the batter in the refrigerator overnight or at least a few hours.

3. Roll it out to about 1/4" thickness and then cut circles with a cookie cutter or glass. Make sure they're at least 3" in diameter so you have room to fill them and fold the edges over.

4. Put a tablespoon of filling in the middle of each circle. Fold up the sides to make a triangle, overlapping the sides as much as possible so only a little filling shows through.

5. Bake at 375 for about 10-15 minutes, until golden brown.

I opted for the half whole wheat, half white flour variation for my first attempt. I love the nuttiness of the whole wheat - the cookies are still plenty sweet and they don't taste overly whole wheat. The dough is similar to a sugar cookie dough, but in rolling it out, I found it to be a bit more crumbly. It also didn't need much (if any) flour on the rolling surface. Perhaps I started with too much on my surface and that's why it crumbled. Regardless, these are buttery and sweet and oh so yummy. I really do suggest you give them a try! And check out the cute plate and mug I picked up at the thrift store the other day as well!

Faith in Fairies

I've done it. I've done what I've had a really hard time getting myself to do. I've gone and started cutting up my awesome floral sheet collection. As soon as I cut into my favorite, I had this horrible thought that I may never find an awesome old sheet for $1.39 ever again. It was not a good feeling. My trip to the thrift store this morning did nothing to allay my fears, as I left empty handed. Still, I have to have faith that the floral sheet fairies will not turn their backs on me and will continue to throw little treasures my way.

So what's a girl to do? Get on with making herself something pretty then, I guess. Five squares into the quilt that was to be fabulous and beautiful and for the Mister and me, I stopped loving it. Actually, I haven't loved it at all. That's been a road block for me the past month (or longer) - I want it to be done and wonderful and nothing about what I'm doing makes me think it will be that. So for now I am going to work with 2.5" squares and make some 9 square blocks with white centers, sash the blocks in white and whip me up some old sheet loveliness. It seems like just the sort of task I need right now. Fingers crossed that I keep on loving it because if I don't, I've going to be crying over a bunch of sheets that are no longer suitable for beds.

Score!

....and I'm not talking football. I had one hour left this morning before I had to go pick Sarah up from pre-school. I was tempted to run by my nearest thrift store. I almost didn't. But I did. Not only did I pick up three jackets for the girls in varying sizes for 99 cents each, I also scored this globe, which I am so excited about. It set me back $2. I am so happy to have a thrift store that actually puts thrifty prices on things from time to time. Not like our Goodwill that wants $8 for a used Walmart sweater. I will say though, that at one point I brought home quite a good haul of linens and then a week later, their prices on linens seemed to have gone up, as if they realized that they had someone looking for them. Apparently they hadn't had a big run on old globes. Another great thing about scoring this was when Sarah asked me, "Can I hold the world?". In the palm of your hands, baby.

Have you tried picnik yet? I'm still loving it and today they are celebrating their billionth photo edited and almost all the premium offerings are free for the day. There is a great tutorial here about how to layer photos using features available from the premium membership. And there are all sorts of free texture groups on flickr. Most just ask for acknowledgment if you use their texture. All I'm sayin' is I know what I'll be doing all night. So go have a picnik!

More Fabric

The above goodies are part of my haul from Michigan. Not only was my good friend Anne kind enough to watch my kids while I ran amok in JoAnn's for an hour, but she also had the top three vintage fabrics waiting for me when I got to her house. I am in love with the top geranium print and was surprised to find a tag on it saying it came from JC Pennys and cost 36 cents. The others are vintage as well. The bottom fabric came from a thrift store and feels more like home decor fabric, but a test swatch washed up just fine, so I'll be treating it like cotton.


And then I got an email upon my return from Michigan. Sew-Bee-It, a local quilt shop, is having happy hour for the remaining Thursdays in August from 4-6. All cuts of a yard or more are half off. So after picking Rachel up from school today, we went straight for happy hour, as all good mothers would do. The above it what came home with me, but here's the problem. I gave myself a dollar limit and worked very hard to stay within that limit....but while trying to restrain myself, I totally forgot to give myself fifty percent off, so I only bought half of what I could have. The horror!! I only realized this after I'd waited in line and had everything cut. The only remedy for this gross error on my part will be another trip to happy hour next week.

So, what am I making with all this new fabric? I have some ideas running through my head, but I also think I've gotten smart enough to figure out that a concrete plan might be a good thing to have, so I've got some sketching to do, some loose math to throw about and then I hope to be off and sewing. My sewing area is getting a good cleaning and organizing at the moment so that when I'm ready I'll have a good space to work in. Looking at all my new goodies is making me want to step on the gas!!

Time to Get Crackin'

This has been a busy summer. Lots of road travel for the family, busy days at home, lots of here and there and all over the place. School starts next week. I'm actually looking forward to it because we'll have to stay put for extended periods of time (even though I've already been thinking of traveling over fall break). Last night we returned from out last trip of the summer (I think/hope). We spent a week plus in Michigan visiting first with good friends from college and then venturing further North to spend a week with my Grandparents and ended with a family celebration commemorating my Grandma's 90th year, which will commence in September. By the time her birthday rolls around they will be 90 and 91 and have been married 67 years. They set the bar high!

That's the background story and more pictures will follow, but here's the point of this post. I've been working on my fabric stash. It hadn't seen many new additions as of late and I needed some inspiration. On our hike up I-75, I managed to time our lunch break with a lightening fast trip through Ikea to pick up a few things I had been hunting for, namely the big gray organic flower print. The girls got to play in the play area, I got fabric, we ate in the cafeteria and then hopped back in the car. It was seamless (pardon the pun).



Then, my friend Anne was willing to watch my kids while I went to JoAnn Fabrics. This is a BIG DEAL for me, especially since the closest one to me is a two hour drive. I had enough to time to thoroughly browse, think, rethink and get what I was looking for. I owe her big for that one!!



And then I hit some thrift stores once I reached my final destination. My vintage sheet collection got a really nice boost this past week and I'm so excited to put them to use!! I found lots of other good treasures while thrifting, including some fabrics, and will share those later, as I ran out of daylight today. Why is is that thrift stores in other towns are always better than the ones in my town? I'm not sure if that's a perception or a reality, but it feels like a reality.


So, despite the fact that no, I don't have enough fabric, I do have more than I did two weeks ago and hopefully, it will be getting put to use soon. Very soon.

A One Trick Pony

I feel like a one trick pony. Well, actually maybe I have two or three tricks as of right now. But as birthdays approach, and I try to keep my goal of making more gifts and spending less at Target, I find myself making many of the same things. Above is a gift for Rachel's oldest friend, Elle. Not oldest in age, but as in they've known each other since before they could sit up. I'm hoping these aren't too girly for Elle, who is not a fan of the pink and purple princess scene. Skirt was made using the Oliver & S Lazy Days pattern and the t-shirts were just appliqued with a bit of the fabric from the shirt. I was wanting to try and cut a flower out to applique and then paint a stem and leaves on, but my applique skills are currently best left to straight lines. I'm not so swift with the curves yet.

And Sarah has a party to go to this Saturday as well, so another Black Apple doll was whipped up last night. This one is sporting cashmere hair, recycled from a $1.59 thrifted sweater. It's super soft, but doesn't get as "felty" as wool does when washed, so it was a bit stretchy to sew with. I Think it worked out fine though. If time permits, I'll try and make a bag for her as well, but I've also got to come up with a baby shower gift by Saturday morning, so time is in high demand.

My photos are looking pretty crummy these days. Something happened a while ago between my computer and photoshop and now, pictures in photoshop look totally different than they do in other photo viewing programs. I'm in a quandary and if I want a kitchen, I'd best not as my husband to trouble shoot for me. And speaking of kitchens, the walls are coming along. Pictures soon.

Off the road

We're finally home from an almost two week trip that took the girls and I first to my parent's in Indiana, and then on to Northern Michigan to visit my grandparents. The trip was good, the weather was decent and while we had lots of fun, I'm glad to be home for a while. I feel like this summer vacation will be over before we know it. That might have something to do with the fact that Rachel starts kindergarten August 12, which feels entirely too early for me. I guess I don't get a say though.

I got in as much thrifting as I could, which included two trips to my parent's Goodwill, on to the Goodwill nearest my grandparent's and a frantic trip through the Bargain Barn on the grounds of St. Joseph's Orphanage in Louisville. This store was the best, but sadly was only open from 9-12 and it was probably 11:30 when I got there. I know there were so many more treasure to be had in there and I'm already kicking myself for not buying more buttons. They had a whole room that was just sewing patterns, notions and costume jewelry! Thinking about it just makes me short of breath. I did score these great buttons, as well as a really nice white vintage sheet that will probably be cut up and used in some quilts that are rattling around in my head.

This dress became mine as well. My Grandpa had a box in their basement filled with random things (old wallpaper, a pair of socks, a sheet that I've never seen on one of their beds and I can't even remember what else) that he told me to go through and take what I wanted. I felt like I'd hit the lottery when I saw this dress. I'm guessing that my Grandma must have bought it while they were in Hawaii at some point. The tag reads "hoaloha". I am loving in. I'd really like to turn it into something for the girls to wear, but what? The colors are just too good!

There were more treasures along the way, but I have to save something for another day! One of my biggest surprises though, was the discovery of this. Part of the road from my parent's house into Louisville was closed and my Dad showed me his secret mystery detour instead of the one indicated by the big orange signs that read DETOUR. I'm so glad I got to take his route, as how else would I have learned that this exists in Southeastern Indiana?

A castle? A secret site for Knights of the Round Table to rendezvous? The place is huge. I have never been to a medieval dinner theater thing, but I would guess that it's about the size of one of those places. There are no signs, no indications of what it might possible be used for, no sign by a mail box that says, "the Joneses'". Nothing. Lots of grass, no paved parking lot, no obvious front door, and also no drawbridge or moat. I am very eager to get to the bottom of this mystery, but a google search of "southeastern Indiana castles" turned up nil. This one's going to haunt me!

I heart the Goodwill

Last week, when we were at my parent's for Easter, my sister and I made a run to the local Goodwill. No trip is complete without a trip to this particular Goodwill, where all children's clothes are $1.59, unless they sport the tag color of the day, in which case they are $1. Both the girls really love wearing dresses right now, so I was very excited to score this green velvet number with flowers embroidered all over it.

Shortly after finding the green dress, this little aqua number jumped out at me. It is wool with a cotton knit lining and the label is in French. All the embellishments around the bottom are wool as well. I think I may need to tack a few of these down, but for the $1.59 price, I think I'm up to that. Here's a picture of the detail as well. Something to keep in mind for future dresses that might need to be spiffed up.

And for me, who can resist a llama shirt? I tried on three things. Two of which did not fit, or at least did not flatter me (at all), but I saved the llama t-shirt to try on last. I think I actually squealed when I put it on. A little googling has revealed that guster is actually a band out of Boston. I am not hip or cool enough to know such things any more and while I wonder what sort of music I'm promoting, the llama is just to cool not to wear. Prior to my googling, I was certain that guster was the name of the llama. It's a story I might stick to. I am also thinking about llama freezer paper stencils, because really, who wouldn't want a llama on their shirt?

I was also lucky enough to score a new pair of Nine West shoes for myself that set me back all of $3.95, as well as a groovy bed sheet that was the color of the day and half off. My sister picked herself up two never worn pairs of shoes, including a pair of Clarks. Other goodies were also had, although none quite as pretty as the above. I live in fear of the day that one of us goes there and prices have been changed to reflect a general lack of good deals. My sister use to get great kid's toys there, but pickins were slim this time around, although I did see an opened (and taped shut) box of Target brand sugar cones for $2. Those are the sorts of price changes I fear.