Making bows from thrifted clothes

Just a quick post today!
I was checking out a local thrift store and came across a pair of brightly colored floral capris. I'm not a huge fan of that many flowers decorating my bottom half, but the cotton material and print size called out to me anyway!
It would make the perfect material for hair bows!

I took one of the legs apart and cut off a short length of fabric. I hand sewed the edges and created a loop which I gathered in the middle and tacked down with some thread. Then I wrapped the center with a small piece of a mango colored fabric froma  thrifted skirt, attached a hair pin, and voila!

A perfect little bow with a pop of color as we limp through the gray days before spring finally makes its way to Michigan. We had a beautiful day in the 60's yesterday, and a gray day in the 50's today, but we'll be dropping again and whisperings of snow have been floating through the air. I really can't wait for spring...it's not usually such a big deal for me, but this year I really have cabin fever! How about you?

One last thing...I wanted to share a picture that my son made at school. We had the school book fair last week and as I was setting up, I looked up and saw this on the wall. I love their art. :)

New vintage finds!

Finally sharing the vintage goodies I found at an estate sale when we were up north!

Above:

Blue Gingham metal tray

Silhouette picture in frame

2 cards, Birthday and Mother's Day (the back has a sweet note from "Mildred")

Photo

Above:

A collection of magazines & small books (Open page in the center right)

Singer Home Decorators Guide & 2 Insurance Receipt books (1940's - open pages on bottom right)

Half circle table (thankfully it was so small and light it fit in the car for the drive home! I haven't decided if it will get a coat of paint yet)

2 School Books (Speller and History, on top of table)

All this for $25.00!

Just realized I forgot to take a photo of one other item, but I'll post a pic as soon as I get it framed and hung. It's a marriage license, and so pretty!

(And on a side note...I am so excited to finally know how to make a photo collage! I don't know what I was so nervous about...using Picasa it was so easy! Maybe one of these days I'll finally figure out all of these blogging tricks! ha ha!)

Frogging project

So a while ago I took this, a plain cotton sweater from the local thrift store:

Took it apart and unraveled it in a process called "frogging" (apparently because of the "rrrrrip" sound you get when you pull the yarn apart - lol).

I then wound the yarn into many of these:

And tonight, it's turning into this:

A new dishcloth!

I LOVE these dishcloths, and have knit a few for myself over the years. They are so easy to make, and when it comes to a heavy duty, all purpose, non abrasive scrubber, nothing beats them. This is a classic dishcloth pattern called Grandmother's Favorite and can be found for free all over the internet. When I was reteaching myself to knit a few years ago (my grandmother taught me when I was a girl, but didn't really keep up with it so I forgot many of the things she taught me), I bought a book called "Knitting Pretty". It's been a great book for me, and it really helped me remember the basics. The pattern in the book is a bit different than some of the patterns I've seen online, calling for a K3 then YO, rather than K2, YO and it goes until you have 50 stitches on the needles before beginning a decrease, but that's what so great about classic basic patterns like this, you really can vary it anyway you want. And no purling - woohoo!

This is the first one I've made using reclaimed yarn,but since it's 100% cotton like the yarn I've purchased from the craft store I think it should work up the same as before. And with all the yarn I collected from a sweater that cost me $2.00, it's super economical.

If you're interesting in Frogging yarn, here are a few links to sites I've used as reference that you may find helpful:

Neauveau Fiber Arts

My Virtual Sanity

Rewind Yarn - some good videos

Thrifty find!

Look what I found at my local thrift store for $10.00! Woohoo!

I'm a sucker for a typewriter...especially one that looked like it was still in working order. It came with the case, and besides smelling a bit musty as though it's been stored in the garage for a long time and in need of a good cleaning, I thought it was worth seeing if I could indeed get it working.

It's a Remington Quiet Riter Eleven and dates to probably the 1950's. I didn't need to do much to the body of the typewriter itself. All of the keys work, nothing sticks and the rest of the mechanics were in good shape. The only thing that wasn't so great was the ribbon. It was fairly light. Not surprising considering how old the tape could have been. It's a cloth tape and I was surprised that there was any letter image at all when I tested it. So I did a bit of research to find out if a replacement ribbon could be found. Well, yes, it could be (was I really that surprised? No.) But, then I also found out that these fabric ribbons were often inked with an oil based ink, which last a very long time. I wondered whether I could reink it. After a little digging I found some chatter among folks who restore vintage typewriters and learned that some revive the existing ribbons & ink by applying WD-40. Who knew?

So I sat down with a can of WD-40, a few cotton swabs and paper towels and set to work.

I took the spool off and started to unwind the ribbon. I then sprayed a bit of WD-40 in a plastic cup and used the cotton swab to dip into the liquid and wipe it on the ribbon. I found it was easier to lay the ribbon on the paper towel and apply it that way so my hands were a bit freer.

It actually went pretty fast. Once it was applied I rolled the ribbon up again and placed the spool back into the machine. Then came the test!

Beautiful!

I love well how my typewriter works! I'm hoping to use some typed phrases for lots of projects down the road. I don't know about typing long passages at this point...it's amazing how different it feels to type on a typewriter again. In high school typing class we used electric typewriters and I had a great Brother electic typewriter all through middle & high school. This one needs more physical force to type. If I press as lightly as needed for a computer keyboard, the manual keys don't have enough momentum to raise the letter up to the paper. We are indeed spoiled in the modern age, and I have a new found appreciation for secretaries  who could sit at this machine and type 85 wpm! Well done ladies! :)

I also found this great 1950s commercial for the Remington Quiet Riter and I just have to share it!

Vintage Finds

I wanted to share a few recent thrift store finds!

Two pair of vintage salt & pepper shakers...I love the little Michigan set! The little smiling toadstool set are also really cute, and my daughter loves them, but I thought they might be a fun set to sell...Etsy maybe?

They had a sale running that day...50% off dishes and glassware. I found this teapot and 2 cups - so cute! I can't find much on the manufacturer "Capistrand Japan", but will keep looking.

Then I found this set. Isn't it cute too?? The price tag was 12 for $5.99, so I got all of this for $3.00. The downside is that there were only 11 pieces. I don't know what the other piece was, or whether they just miscounted the set. This set is by Seltmann, a German company. The stamp on the bottom says "Seltmann Weiden K. Bavaria W. Germany". I've been trying to track down the pattern and haven't had any luck yet. There are dozens of patterns from this company at Replacements.com, but for some reason I just can't find this pattern. Frustrating! :)

I also found this sweet little glass dish. My hubby laughed when I showed him, and told me that it would always have to have "old people candy" in it. Right now it has plain M&M's, but I'm waiting for him to come home with something like bulk store hard candy or buttermints as a joke. It's a little hard to see in the picture, but there is an eagle and a star alternating on the sides which I really liked.

I also found a milkglass mug, but I didn't post a photo because I couldn't get a good photo of the three figures on the front. It's tall and narrow and will make a great vase.

I'm currently on the hunt for some kind of cabinet or shelves for the ugly bathroom. This weekend hubby had to make a repair to the toilet. In the process we decided to throw out the metal shelving thing that was around the toilet. We bought it soon after we bought the house. It was metal and glass, which worked because it mimicked the metal stripping on the walls, but over time the legs have become very rusty. It was impossible to clean, and looked terrible. So we tossed it. But now we need something to store brushes, lotions, etc. So maybe I'll get lucky and find something fun at a thrift store or on Craigslist...fingers crossed!

Vintage finds

I am becoming a thrift store junky. It starts innocently enough...I thought that some little glass sundae cups would be a perfect way to add a little pizzaz to some simple sundaes for the kids this weekend. So on the way to the grocery store I made a quick stop at the local St. Vincent de Paul and headed straight to the glasswear shelves. Searching through, I find these little juice glasses:

Aren't they cute? Into the basket they went. But no luck on sundae cups. So I head down aisle full of household goods, just in case. Plus, I might find some vintage Pyrex or milk glass, right? Nope, but my daughter did find this:

A little girl with a kitten? Of course she loved it. :)

Then I found this:

Swoon!

A few weeks ago I saw a gorgeous tufted chair, but the burnt orange color just didn't work. This one however, will work great in my living room! I should have stopped there...really I should have. But then I found this:

Now let me explain about the living room. It is a collection of random furniture from all over. We have black leather couches from my husbands bachelor days, a small dining room table from my single days, a piano, rug, and lamp from hubbys parents, and a set of stacking tables that used to belong to hubby's grandpa. Throw in a couple of mismatched bookshelves and it's a room that has no cohesion and generally drives me crazy. But it's also the kids playroom, so I try to let it go. The rug can get animal crackers accidently ground into it, the couches wipe down easily and can handle their fort building, tv watching, and anything else they can throw at them.

But I hope that slowly we can start to transform this room into something bright, cheerful and still comfortable. This little table will replace one of the stacking tables. I'm thinking of painting it, but not anytime soon. There are other projects to work on (like the marble topped table that I haven't had time to tackle yet).

So I went to the store to pick up the chair, because I didn't have our bigger car to take it this weekend. I just should wait outside! lol

Because I found these:

They didn't have a price so I asked the sales clerk. She looked at them and said, "How about $5 for all of them?" Sold! I love them, even if its a completely mismatched number. 5 cups, 7 saucers and 6 bread & butter plates. But the pattern is great and I loved the shape of the cups. I'm really picky about teacup shapes, it's just a thing. :)

I've done a little research on the pattern. It's by the Homer Laughlin Company and the code on the bottom indicates it was made in 1955. It doesn't have a cool pattern name, but I eventually found the pattern number after more digging than I expected. I checked everywhere I could but no one online seems to have replacement pieces in stock. I'll have to keep looking, because I would love to even out the set.

Finally I found two wire chairs...nothing fancy but I think I'll spraypaint them in a bright color and use them in the yard.

So, needless to say I had a LOT of fun at the thrift store. :) It's becoming dangerous territory for me! lol What are some of your favorite thrift store finds?

Have a great day!

I made a tent!

I mentioned yesterday that I was searching thrift stores for sheets (and ended up finding lots of other goodies!). I wanted to share what I needed those sheets for. I found this great A-Frame tent on the blog by cakies and have been itching to try it out.

It's so simple to make, and perfect for little kids to dream away an afternoon. I'm proud to say that I built this myself (with my hubby holding the moulding down while I drilled) yesterday and today it went off to the home of a little girl who was celebrating her 3rd birthday. I was happy to see her crawling into her new tent as we were leaving the party. :)

If you are looking for a fun, easy project you should give this a try! I have another to make...my daughter was enjoying this one too much not to give her one of her own. :)

Vintage finds!!!

One thing I know...the Thrift Store gods were smiling down on me this weekend. I have a project I'm working on as a birthday gift which called for a twin bedsheet. A perfect time to head to the thrift! I stopped by one on my way home from work yesterday...no luck on a sheet, but I did find a 2 quart casserole dish (with lid) by GlasBake. It came out in 1917 as a competitor to Pyrex. The dish I have has a mark identifying it as coming out sometime between 1961 and 1983. It's just plain white with the original clear glass lid. I only paid $4.75 for it after a 25% discount, since Friday is "Ladies Day". :)

Today I continued the hunt for sheets. There is a little thrift in my town, so off I went. Again, no sheets, but I did find something I went a little gaga over: a whole rack full of vintage laces & trims! The laces were alright but nothing screamed "Buy me!" (yet!) but the trims...oh my, the trims. Take a look at what I came home with:

I loved that they were on their original spools. The labels are fantastic and hopefully I can salvage them to use as ephemera on other projects.

Then I found this:

Wow. I didn't buy it with the trims. At $50.00 I thought "No way, hubby won't go for it". But I couldn't get it out of my head...I had to have it. So after trying to describe it to him we went back. I bought it and we loaded it into the car. Small it may be, but light it is not. I have the perfect spot for it bit it needs some work...maybe a lot of work. But it was too good to pass up and I can't wait to fix it up for the house.

Then off to yet another thrift. I was finding a sheet come hell or high water! Thankfully I finally did find one that will work. But I also found this:

$9.99? Score! It was coming home with me! It's in great shape, just dusty. The color isn't my favorite but there isn't anything wrong with it. If I really don't like it, I could just paint it with a white enamel. I think it would be great as a little cart for parties and lots of other things. But yet again, I found something I drooled over. A beautiful chair. It was upholstered in a pristine burnt orage velvet (so soft, but not an ideal color). The back was rounded and had lovely caning on either side of the upholstered back. I loved it. But it was also $50, and there was no way hubby was going to go for that. So it's still at the store...sigh.

So there we are. I can't wait to work with the trims and put some elbow grease into the cabinet. Once it's done I'll post pictures, but it may be a while. I've never tried to fix up something like this so I need to figure out the best way to go about it. Any suggestions?