warm hearts

I've been doing some small projects as I wait for our baby girl to be born! It's helpful to distract myself with something creative when I'm feeling so ready to greet this sweet little one.

For a long time now, I've wavered between giving away and keeping a certain pink wool zip-up hoodie I've had at least since my freshman year of college. It's cute, cozy, and the perfect fit...and I've worn the elbows to death. I darned them multiple times, and it just was not working anymore. I'm not really into elbow patches, so that option was out. So I kept the sweater. And tossed it between the "mend" and "give away" piles. Until a couple evenings ago.

Joshie and I came in from a very cold day in the snow last Monday, and I heated up my big rice pack for him to warm his hands and to keep him snuggled on the couch for a few minutes. It was hard for him to hold the large hot pack, but he was soon warm enough to be happy. That sparked my thoughts...maybe he needs his own hot pack!

I also recently saw that a friend (and relative) of mine made a small hot pack for her preemie's belly; it has helped his tummy troubles to subside and allowed him to sleep! Baby Center also recommends a warm pack like that for soothing colic in newborns, and I thought I should make one.

The final push to get this little project done came when I saw someone's adorable heart-shaped rice packs, and I had to give it a go! I honestly don't remember where I saw it, so if it was you, please know that you inspired me.

Would you like to make some, too? They're quick and easy, and you can make them in any shape you'd like!

You'll need:

Paper for creating a pattern
Dry rice (not quick rice)
Funnel
Spoon
Sewing machine
Scissors
Essential oil or dried lavender, if desired
A natural fiber fabric (cotton, wool, etc.)
Note: I used two fabrics, a wool sweater for the outside, and a 100% cotton tee shirt fabric (jersey) for the inside. You really only need one, but my wool sweater was worn very thin and needed some more structure.

Use your paper to create a simple shape for your pattern. I chose a heart shape, but it would be just as functional to cut a square, triangle, circle...or you could get fancy and do something else!

Cut two fabric pieces for each hot pack, and stack them with wrong sides (inside of fabric) together.

Using a zig-zag stitch, sew almost all the way around your fabric sandwich, leaving about 1" of the perimeter unsewn.

Using your funnel, spoon rice into your hot pack. My 4" hearts needed about 4T of rice each to feel full enough. You should have enough room to be able to shift the rice around a bit; don't stuff too firmly. At this point, you could also include dried lavender or a few drops of essential oil, if you'd like a scent other than warm rice.

Remove the funnel and sew up the opening of the hot pack. Be sure to start on top of the existing stitching so that there's less chance of the stitches unraveling.

Trim your edges close to the stitching so that they look neat. 

Microwave for about 30 seconds on high and enjoy!

short sleeves for spring

My mother-in-law loves to dote on her grandson. This makes me a happy momma, indeed!

Last week, we stopped in at a local children's resale shop, and she picked up a haul of great deals for Joshua to enjoy this spring and summer! A couple pairs of shorts, a Fisher Price bubble mower, and their everyday 10 onesies for $10 deal.

Four of the onesies happened to be long sleeved, and that's not so suitable for spring, right? But I had an idea...

...and I made them into short sleeved onesies!

You may remember that I wrote a silly little lament for my sewing machine. The machine is still out of commission, but a good friend of mine let me borrow her (new in the box!) machine for my little project. So generous! It was a dream to sew on such an easy-to-use, smooth machine. Everything went so perfectly. Thank you, Dena!

I cut off the sleeve at the length I wanted the finished sleeve to be. I used an existing short sleeved shirt of Joshua's to be sure it was a good length.

Then, I cut off the original shirt sleeve cuffs, turned them inside out, and fitted them over the newly-shortened sleeve so that the raw edges lined up.

Lastly, I stretched the fabric out and sewed straight-line stitches to reattach the "new" sleeve cuffs. Turned them back to the right side, trimmed threads, and there we go!

Cute? I think so! I'm pleased and happy to have some "new" play clothes for my little boy! Thanks, "Grandma!"

thrifty Thursday

I love thrifting. It's thrilling to me to find something I've been needing for so much less that it would cost from its original store.

Lately, Brad has been needing jeans to wear to work. His office recently switched over  to more casual dress, and he hasn't worn a pair of khakis to work in ages! His jeans collection was starting to be a bit threadbare, and one of his last good pairs ripped all the way up the leg. Dire situation, indeed.

My mission upon entering thrift stores, then, has been first, to find jeans for Brad, second, to find clothes for my ever-growing toddler, and third, to find a couple nice pieces  for myself, since my post-pregnancy shape is so different.

Today was a triple win. Hooray!

Not one, but THREE pairs of pants for Brad:
One pair of Levi's (about $58 new), one pair of brand new, with tags, Old Navy jeans ($29.50), and a pair of Banana Republic jeans ($89!?!) for a grand total of $35.

A likely brand new baby Gap thermal (white with navy stripes) for my sweet little boy:
(Similar one $19.95) for $0.75. Boom, baby.

And a cute sweater and skirt for me! The skirt is old, from Old Navy. Probably about 2006? Let's imagine that it was probably about $15. The sweater doesn't have a tag, but it looks like it could be Old Navy, as well. I'll imagine that it was likely $20 new. Both items came to $6.50 total.

So the grand total is about $42.  It would have been about $222 new. I paid about 19% of the original price of these items.

I. Love. Thrifting.

Happy Thursday!

darning in action

Quite a while ago, I wrote a little tutorial on how to fix knit garments that get holes in them. I showed you a mitten and a glove, and said that you could use the same process to fix most any kind of knit article you care to keep.

Today, I pulled out one of Joshua's hand-me-down shirts, only to find that there was a small hole in the back. It's a really cute polo shirt, so it made perfect sense for me to just darn it!

Here's the finished project:

I believe that you can click on the picture to see it larger.


Let me know if you try fixing any of your holey clothes or accessories, and show me how they turn out!

Incidentally, this is my 300th post on this blog. I didn't realize I had so much to say! It has meant a lot to me to be able to put my "pen to paper" and to process my thoughts this way. Thank you for your encouragement, kind words, and thoughts as I share my life with you like this! I hope that you are also encouraged and inspired as you read.

garage sale scores

The other day, we passed a garage sale on the way home. We didn't stop, but I kept it in mind. Later that evening, the baby needed to get outside for a walk - well, I needed to get outside for a walk, so the baby had to come! And we just happened to walk right to that garage sale. Happy.

I got a brand-new, complete with tag, no scratches or any sign of use, pink Nalgene bottle, like this one (retails for $10.99).

I also got a sealed tin of Harney & Sons peppermint herbal tea  (retails for $5.99).

I dug through a box of baby clothes labeled $0.50 an item (woot!) and got a matching set of microfleece pants and a half-zip pullover in solid navy blue for Joshua to wear this fall and winter (full price is $34, on sale for about $19).

And now, I'm sure you're wanting to know how much I paid for this haul (about $51, full price), and I'll tell you.

Two. Dollars.


Yes!

A blessing :)

Anyone want to come over for tea?

thrifting again!

Saturday morning was Joshua's first yard sale trip with his Mommy! We met up with Meg, who blogs over here. She invited us to check out the community-wide yard sale event just a few miles from our new home, and there were so many great things!

It was difficult to find parking, but we succeeded in finding a space for our big SUV. I set up the stroller, plopped Joshua in, put his sun hat on his head, and headed out!

The neighborhood was so beautiful, with nicely planned gardens, well-kept homes, and friendly people. There were so many great sales, too! I spent a whopping five dollars. Here's the breakdown:

Two dollars for...

...a belly band (for my next pregnancy... not anytime too soon!) in black. Similar ones retail for about $18, and you can see how it's used here. The one I borrowed from my friend, Sarah, allowed me to wear my non-maternity pants for all of my pregnancy. Yes, maternity pants were more comfortable at about 8 months and following, but I could still wear the non-maternity jeans, and it felt GREAT.

One dollar for...

...a gently used Nalgene On-The-Go bottle in a vivid lime green. Sanitized in my dishwasher, and bam! About $10 saved.

One dollar for...

...two, count 'em, two, Pyrex refrigerator dishes, like this blue one. That would have set me back about $10 each at an antique store. Now I have three blue and one aqua, and I'm only missing one lid. I also have two small dishes - one red, one pink - and two large yellow dishes. Yay!

One dollar for...

...an adorable nautical romper, a lot like this one, for my baby boy. He wore it that very day to a friend's first birthday party!

And that, my friends, is five dollars well-spent. A modest guess of how much I saved off of retail prices? About $60.

To add to the fun, I had been to one of my favorite thrift shops earlier in the week with my sweet baby. He enjoyed his nap in the Ergo carrier while I enjoyed some thrifting...that's a win-win situation. I found him a little fisherman's floppy sun hat (similar to this, for $20), a set of about 120 colored blocks, similar to these (about $20), and six children's picture books, including a Pat the Bunny ABC book, a Baby Einstein book, a Priddy book, a beautifully illustrated Max Lucado children's story, and a book of Bible stories. It just happened to be 25% off everything day, so the blocks came to $7.50, the books were just $4, and the hat was $4. Amount saved instead of purchasing brand new? About $80.

Oh! And just this past Monday, Stephanie and I took our boys to Once Upon a Child, where we found adorable little shoes and summer clothes for them. It's so easy to overspend there, and I did spend more than I meant to spend. Alas, it was all for good deals and for things my baby can use all summer. Hooray for thrifting! Hooray for friends! Hooray for sisters!

And thanks be to God for the many ways he has blessed us. We have so much more than we need, and I am grateful.

Scandinavian snowflake hat

I made a hat! More knitting for our baby boy, of course.

I'm working my way through my yarn stash, trying very hard not to purchase anything new. As long as I keep my little feet out of craft stores and my mouse away from the Lion Brand website and Ravelry, we'll be good.

There was almost a full skein of navy blue acrylic yarn. I seem to remember purchasing it on a music ministry team trip in college, but I can't remember what the brand was...I only know we were at Wal-Mart. Funny. The light blue yarn is what was left of a Patons acrylic tweed skein that I bought to make infant hats for the little twin boys I watched when we lived in Ithaca. Together, the two colors look great! At least, I think so!

 

The hat is a toddler size, and will be just right for next winter, I hope. I borrowed the snowflake chart from this pattern, and I think I may retroactively add earflaps to my improvised hat pattern so that it looks a bit like this one. The tassel on the top was fun to knit, and an easy way to finish the project. The hat is thick and cozy - just right for our snowy winters. What do you think of it?

burger buns

Well, friends, sometimes being short on pennies brings on wonderful things.

I know, you're probably thinking I'm a little off my rocker. I might be. But hang on.

It means that I can only purchase basics, and I have to make do with what I have. It means I have to be more creative and more careful.

And tonight, that meant that I made hamburger buns rather than buying them.

Success!!

I used this recipe, and believe it or not, I didn't change any of the ingredients. I did let them rise (raise? Where are the grammar police when I need them?) for 30 minutes instead of 10, though.

My tummy was making the strangest sounds, so I had to eat one to make sure they were okay for dinner consumption. The verdict?

So delicious. Soft, nice texture, not too done on the bottom, and oh! delicious with honey. Yes, I slathered honey on one.

And Brad loved them! He said they looked and tasted a lot like the ones he was used to his mom buying - score. In fact, his words as he walked in the kitchen were something to the effect of "Where did you get those rolls? They look like the ones my mom buys." Oh, that made me smile.

sewing for Baby

You already know that I like to reuse and repurpose fabric - often a thrifted vintage sheet or pillow case, and sometimes, cast-off clothing.

This weekend, I pulled out a much-loved and much-worn (and too small in the neck) short-sleeved dress shirt that belonged to the resident daddy-to-be, and turned it into a play suit for our little boy!
First, I traced a 6-month sized outfit from our slowly growing stash of clothing for the little guy:

Isn't this a cute little outfit? It will be perfect for Memorial Day!

 I then measured sides, arm holes, and leg openings and used a ruler to square up my lines. I traced a coaster to get the right curve for the neck, since the neckline on the red outfit was different than what I was wanting for this one, and then measured a 1/2" seam allowance around the entire pattern. I folded the pattern in half so that I could cut it out on the fold instead of taking a chance and having mismatched sides.

Then, I cut the dress shirt open at the seams, across the back yoke, and around the collar. I cut off the sleeves and set them aside for a future little project. I ironed the easy-care no-iron fabric, which just made life a little easier. I first cut from what was once the back of the shirt, moving the pattern to one side so that I could save as much fabric as possible. The great thing I discovered about this woven dress shirt fabric is that it's the same on the right side and the wrong side. Sweet. I then used the opened up back piece, centering it on the front button placket, pinned, and cut out the front piece.

First, I determined how many buttons I wanted to actually be able to use. Three seemed sufficient, so I sewed over the existing seams to close the button placket at the bottom.

It almost looks like a zipper fly.  I then finished the leg openings with an easy rolled hem (sew 1/4" from the edge, press toward the wrong side, fold up and press again toward the wrong side, and then sew 1/4" seam to finish).

There's the little "fly" for the little guy's outfit!

Next, I sewed the front and back pieces together - just up the sides and across the shoulders, avoiding arm and leg holes - with the wrong sides together, using a scant 1/4" seam. I then turned the outfit inside out and carefully pressed the seams.

Working on the wrong side of the fabric, I sewed the same sides and shoulders again, just a little bit bigger than 1/4" from the finished seam. This enclosed the raw edges of the fabric so that nothing will be itchy on Baby's soft skin. Then I pressed the seams toward the front side and sewed them down, again just a scant 1/4" from the finished edge. This is called a French seam, by the way. You'll see this kind of seam in really nice dress shirts - check the side seams! Here is a good tutorial, if you'd like to try this kind of seam on your next project.

Here's the inside of the French seam. Click on the picture to see it better!

Next, I had to re-trim the armhole openings because of my zeal in seaming the sides. Alas.

Then, I used this tutorial to make bias tape out of the remaining shirt pieces. I then trimmed the neck, armholes, and crotch opening with my snazzy matching bias tape.

 

Sigh. Then I had to wait, because I didn't yet have snaps. But yesterday, I picked some up! Hubby was impressed with my use of a hammer as I fastened the little snaps to the outfit. I love that he's proud of what I do.

And now it's done!!

What do you think? Little guy wearing Daddy's clothes - I love it!


I'm linking up at Sew Much Ado's "We Did It! Wednesday." Go check out what other people have made, too!

refashion

use it up,
wear it out,
make it do,
or do without.


For much of my life, this has been the theme. Buying new was the lesser choice when there was a thrift store, and repurposing or reusing was more highly esteemed than spending hard-earned cash. Garage sale-ing was an event! Even my little brother, according to my mom's anecdote, wouldn't wear the new clothes that Nanny bought for him because, "these can't be mine;" he was used to our brother's broken-in hand-me-downs.This attitude has come in handy in these first four years of my married life, as we have very little in the way of extra pennies.

I've come to love thrifting, creating-from-thrifted-stuff, plain-old-creating, and finding new uses for stuff. For instance, there's a cotton tablecloth covering a mismatched armchair, rather than me paying close to $90 for a new slipcover. There's my full-length mirror that my parents found at a garage sale, whose adjustable angle is held in place by a ribbon tied across the bottom of the oval frame. (you can see that ingenuity in the picture below) There's a ribbon tied to my pull-on overhead light fixture so that I can reach it. There's a clip-on desk lamp above my apartment kitchen sink instead of built-in under-cabinet lighting. I'm currently using a couple of picnic baskets, one on top of the other (neither of them new), to make a night stand for my side of the bed. So many of my clothes are second hand that it feels special, even extravagant, to buy something brand-new. I love vintage dishes, for more reasons than just because they can be less expensive to buy.

Not that I don't recognize quality, or want really nice things. I treasure the beautiful jewelry from my grandmother, the china I got for wedding presents, and my J. Crew jeans (second hand, of course). It would be awesome to have under-cabinet lighting in the kitchen, matching new furniture that's my style, and all of the latest fashionable clothing. It would be really convenient to have a light switch for that pull-on light by my dresser.

But that's not where we are right now. Right now, we find the best things we can at the best prices we can - even if it's not the most convenient. We wait for the right thing to come at the right price, sometimes to my husband's chagrin. Sometimes he does want me to just buy it new. :o)

All of this to say: I've done it again!

Back in May, at the end-of-year community free swap, I got a really soft J. Crew t-shirt in a men's size medium, much like this one. It's a nice, light blue color, with a couple of stains - a bleach stain on the v-neck, and a small stain on the shoulder. I was pretty sure hubby wouldn't want it, so tonight, I cut it up...

...and now, it's an XS flutter-sleeve maternity shirt! Hooray!

First, I folded it in half down the middle - sleeves together, and the v-neck matching up in the front. I lined it up with another one of my v-neck shirts that's nicely fitted around the bust, and cut a bit off of the sides, including cutting off the sleeves. I then cut the excess fabric off the sleeves, and cut off the hem on the sleeves. I sewed up the sides of the shirt, re-attached the sleeves (backwards, though, so that they'd be fluttery), and ta-da! I have a new shirt.

thrifting in a new place

Hello, blogworld! It has been entirely too long. Let's get to the thrifting though, okay?

Hubby and I have been living here in the city for a little over a month, now, and I've Found Some Thrift Stores. This is capital. It's especially lovely, because a whole bunch of these thrift stores are all in a row and across the street from each other! This means I can have an entire afternoon of thrifting if I want it...and if the wallet allows.

Anyway, I wanted to share some of my findings! 

 Here is a little Linnea made of clothes! I got the swingy, super-soft white top (MODA) and maternity shorts (Ann Taylor LOFT) for $7. It was half-off-everything day!

 This cute navy skirt by J. Crew is made of a rugged cotton, and only cost $5! Love.

This black button-down shirt is from Gap, and was only $5. Hooray for half-off day!

I've also recently acquired a pair of swim trunks for the hubby that look almost brand new ($5), and yellow empire waist top for me ($5) that I'm currently wearing.

Do you know how hard it is to resist buying baby clothes? I want to wait until we know Baby's gender, and even then, I think I'll wait to really go all-out until after Baby is born! Hooray for thrifting.

Strawberry Scones

Last night, I was planning to make biscuits to go along with dinner - ham, potatoes, salad for me, broccoli for hubby, and apple sauce. I pulled out my Betty Crocker cookbook for the recipe, but had sudden inspiration.

Chalk it up to pregnancy: the biscuits had to be sweet. With strawberries. I figured I'd add a couple more tablespoons of sugar, and call it a day. But then, I turned the page to the recipe for scones (page 74, Betty Crocker Cookbook, Bridal Edition). Yes! We'll have scones! For dessert, that is.

I set about making the scones recipe, figuring I probably had everything I needed (nope). So here's the recipe, with my changes in parentheses. You know I have a hard time sticking to a recipe!

1 and 3/4 c. all purpose flour
3 T granulated sugar
2 and 1/2 t. baking powder
1/2 t. salt

I sifted the dry ingredients together with my new vintage sifter, very much like this one. Did I tell you about that? Mom and I found it at a thrift store for a dollar. Sweet.

Anyway, I then had another moment of inspiration and decided to add the following:

1/2 t. cardamom
1/2 t. cinnamon

Betty clearly didn't know that this would make scones taste amazing-er.

Moving on. I then used my pastry blender to cut in the 1/3 c. cold butter, (cut into small pieces). Betty says to stir in the egg, vanilla, and just enough of the heavy cream (or skim milk!) so that the dough leaves the side of the bowl. Here are the quantities she recommends:

1 large egg, beaten (or not... I just cracked it into the mix)
1/2 t. vanilla
4-6 T of heavy whipping cream (um... make that skim milk)

Then, I skipped down to the raspberry variation of scones, and folded in about four large strawberries, cut into rough chunks. It was probably a little more than half a cup of fruit.

Next, Betty says to knead the dough and flatten into an 8" circle. I skipped the kneading and just plopped the whole thing down on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet. I sprinkled sugar on top, cut it into eight pieces without separating the pieces, and in the oven it went! About 20 minutes later, we had delicious, hot, strawberry scones. So good! We had ours with a bit of vanilla ice cream - the hubby approved.

spring knitting

Quite a while ago, my mom found a lot of red merino wool yarn at an estate sale, and she bought all of it for me! At fifty cents a skein, it wasn't a bad price. I've been enjoying making things out of it - here's the most recent project!

It's a spiral-y, ruffly scarf. It's light and airy, but still warm - just right for spring! I found the pattern on Lion Brand's website. It's called the Spiral 'Ruffled' Scarf. They recommend using a thicker yarn for most of the project, and then switching to mohair for just the outside edge of the ruffle. However, I used mohair for the entire project, making it a much lighter weight scarf!

Here's the ruffle scarf, folded in half, with the ends tucked through the loop!

The construction of a ruffle in knitting is really ingenious. For this one, at least, you cast on 100 stitches - this is the length of the scarf, rather than the width. Then, increases are made by yarn overs (abbreviated yo) for ever stitch in the first row, doubling the stitches. The stitches are doubled twice more for about 800 stitches! The rapid increases make the fabric appear to ruffle as it spirals on itself. Neat! I like the pretty pattern that is created by the yo - lots of lacy eyelets in the fabric.

hunting and thrifting

 Many of the things I enjoy involve looking for quality, beauty, and loveliness in places that may be surprising. This is one reason that shopping, thrifting (form of shopping), hiking, gardening, puzzles, and crafting of all kinds are so fun for me!

On that note, Hubby and I went apartment hunting this weekend. We saw four that had topped our list, and quickly crossed off the first one. The pictures completely hid the fact that it had been inhabited for nine years by heavy smokers, and did little to show that it was so tiny. No, and no. Scratched from our list.

The second place was a little bit too far into the city for me - it's across from a medical building and some little shops, on a busy street - but it was absolutely gorgeously remodeled. Hardwood floors, soft, sea glass colors on the walls, stainless appliances and glass tile in the kitchen, beautiful light fixtures, new double shower in the bathroom... it was a little small, and the price is a bit high for the amount of space, but that place is sittin' pretty at #2 on our list.

The third place we saw is a three-bedroom half-house in a nice residential area. There's sunlight coming in every window, hardwood floors in the first level, three carpeted bedrooms, a claw-foot tub in the bathroom, and a great attic and basement space. It's wonderful - #1 on our list, for sure! We're hoping and praying that our application shines in the sea of applications the leasing company will view.

The fourth place we visited is a second floor one-bedroom apartment with original hardwood floors and neat details. However, the kitchen and hallway are extremely tiny! I don't know how we'll get furniture in that space. Also, there's no dishwasher. Possible deal-breaker. It's a good deal, so that's at #3 on our list.

Tomorrow, Hubby will visit a fifth place: another two-bedroom apartment in an 1880's (restored) mansion. Lovely paint and updates, from what I've seen! And the landlord seemed really friendly on the phone. And the laundry is free.

Today, we went to church as usual, and did our regular grocery run. Little blessings included the surprise of ham being on sale - yay! Post-grocery trip, we went to the local thrift store for some dress pants for Hubby. He scored a pair of almost new, olive-green Dockers for $7, and a pair of Banana Republic khakis for $11. Sweet!

I, of course, couldn't resist these lovely vintage sheets. You know me. I love the soft coral, deep coral, and white watercolor-ish flowers! And, at just $3 for the sheet and $1 for the pillowcase, why not? I foresee some sewing in my future...

thrifting

It's an art, my friends.

Well, not really. But there is a bit of a method to the madness.

First, find out about the store's "specials." For example, at the Salvation Army, they'll put items with a certain color price tag on sale, just for the day. Some have a frequent shopper program where you can get a stamp on a card for each $XX purchase, and then get a certain percentage off your next buy. Some allow you to earn credit for your "donations" or the items they buy from you. Some allow you to make an offer on an item. Some put out their newest items on Tuesday morning, just like the other store by that name.

But my favorite stores? They have Half-off-everything-in-the-store Day. One store I know calls it Wow Wednesday. Wow, indeed. Things start off at a decent price, and end up just...wow.

I went home to visit my parents for a couple days this week and happened to be there on Tuesday, which is their 50% off sale day each week. Yay! I was also in town for 50% off Wednesdays at the local Salvation Army store - hooray!

Here is how I go about searching a thrift store for awesomeness.
First, I take a few seconds to breathe and avoid feeling overwhelmed. This usually means that I move away from the doorway, step into an aisle, and take a few minutes to see the general layout of the store. Women's stuff here, shoes there, Men's stuff, baby and kids' stuff, home stuff. What are today's deals? What color tag should I be looking for? Check.

Then, I ask myself what I'm looking for - is this just for fun? Do I have a need in mind - new fabric to sew with, jeans for the hubby, closed-toe dress shoes in the perfect brown? How much time do I have?

Next, if there is a specific goal, I head directly to the point of the visit. Sometimes this is really disappointing, and I'm out of the store just a few minutes later. Other times, it starts the shopping success with a great find!

If there's no real goal but spending time with someone, I'll start by exploring the perimeter of the store. I love to touch things and get a sense of the texture of an item before I try it or buy it, but I'm pretty picky: I won't touch something that doesn't look like it's brand new (or almost new), vintage in great condition, brand name, a great color, something I or someone I love could use, or something inspirational. This limits the speedy pushing of metal-hooked hangers along a rack (squeak, squeak, squeeeeeak, clack, squeak). It also limits the number of chenille sweaters I touch (shudder).

Once I pick something up, I'll carry it around with me until I'm ready to try it on (clothes), or until I convince myself to put it back. When I'm thrifting, I'm generally looking for almost-new clothing, classic styles, and brands I love. I'll almost always try it on, unless I already own the item in a different color and know what size it is. I'm always thinking about the price I would pay in-store for any given item, and if the tag at the thrift store is worth it.

For instance, I know for a fact that I could purchase a lightweight cotton sweater for my hubby at Old Navy for $15. When I saw the same sweater, new with the tags still on it, at the thrift store, it was marked $15. However, it was 50% off day! Score.

Sometimes I drool over the luxurious sweaters, scarves, dresses,shirts, pants... made by J. Crew, but I quickly click away because I can't afford the $50-$200 price tags. I'm so excited when I find some of their great stuff at thrift stores! Today was no exception. Here are my scores, with the price I paid and the estimated store-price in parentheses:

Navy cabled sweater vest, Aeropostale, $1.50 ($45)
I've worn this twice already. I still have it on.What a cozy layer!

Navy/green floral ballet flats with grosgrain bow, $2.50 ($30)
Spring can't come fast enough! 

Vintage red/navy/white Pendleton wool skirt, $1.50 ($30)
I'm planning to shorten this skirt and fix up a little moth hole before I wear it!

Men's gray/navy/white cotton sweater vest, Old Navy, $7.50 ($20)
For the hubby, of course.

Vintage half slip, $0.50 ($20)
Because the vintage slip material is so silky soft. Love.

Gray cashmere scarf, Caroline Grace Cashmere $10 at T.J. Maxx($100)

 I've been waiting for this scarf to go on sale since I spotted it in the store in late November!!

Charcoal gray embellished V-neck tee, J. Crew, $4.50 ($30)

Grape-purple cotton sateen A-line miniskirt, Express, $1.50 ($30)

Possible Easter outfit beginning?

Next, my absolute favorite score of the week...

Gray/navy/orange/red argyle merino wool and angora cardigan, J. Crew, $2 ($60)

Look at those cute little gold buttons!! I love this sweater! So classic, so me.

 

God blesses us with everything we need, and so very much more. If I had purchased all these things at full price as I estimated above, it would have come to about $365. I paid $25.50, and my momma picked up the other $6 as a little gift to me. I'd say paying less than 10% of the estimated retail value of these things is a pretty great deal!! Happy. 

Thankful. 

Grateful. 

And so content in God's provision for me. 

little things

Some little things today that made me smile:

Sunshine on sparkling snow, and no reason to drive in it. hooray!

Norah kitty voluntarily snuggling with me...

Oscar kitty cuddly as always...


Knitting a scarf for charity - almost done. I almost fell asleep on the couch during this project, though. It was cozy with Norah-Dora on my lap and fuzzy yarn in my hands.

Altering and then wearing an Aran sweater vest I found at a secondhand shop, along with a scarf and hat set I got at that swap meet back in May. The vest was a rather spontaneous purchase - I was on a wintry walk with my mom, sister, and a family friend, when we passed the shop window. I knew it was for me! It just needed to be a little smaller. I made a Linnea Out of Clothes so you could see:

I'm cute and cuddly, friends. Just like the penguins from the Madagascar movie. Cute and cuddly.

Choosing some new music to study this semester, and subsequently deciding to be excited about it.

Enjoying a microwaved s'more on cinnamon grahams. Yay! Perfect follow-up for a healthy meal of tilapia, avocado slices on wheat toast, and parmesan-sprinkled spinach, you see.


Loving my new gold nail polish! Conductors and pianists don't get to wear polish often, you know. Winter break and summer break present excellent opportunities for this little indulgence!

 

Hubby told me I should buy something little for me to enjoy, since I'm always buying or making little things for him (cookies, this last time). $2 well spent, I think.Thank you to the hubby, and to Wal-mart for meeting my budget requirements.

Hanging and turning on my new Swedish welcome star - love. Thank you, Grandpa and Grandma!

I'm feeling a little less burdened by my cold. Thankful for medicine, extra sleep, and vitamins.

Listening to a Bach motet and singing along - at least, as best I can with this cough I'm struggling to get through

Having (many cups of) tea in many varieties - hooray for Twinings.

And those, my friends, are just the little things. I am blessed - may I never forget.

vintage sheet collection

I have a few collections. We've already discussed my extensive sweater collection, and the beginnings of a Pyrex collection. On display today: my vintage sheet collection.
Why vintage sheets? The older sheets are often 100% cotton percale, very smooth fabric, softer than my 500 thread count brand-new sheets. The designs are pretty. They're not sateen, so they don't pill. The fabric is useful for things other than sheets. And they're inexpensive, especially when found at thrift stores! The only downside? Most sheets are sized for a double bed. This does not deter me from purchasing them, though! Besides, we own a full size air mattress. A flat double sheet can be tucked onto a queen size mattress (just barely), and a second flat sheet on top works just fine. It does mean that there's a little less sheet to go around, though. Most of my sheets have been purchased separately from each other. I have three distinct color patterns of this daisy print sheet (all double size) - two pink flat (one faded pink), one blue flat, and one gray fitted sheet. These are gracing the guest room bed right now, since my brother and his wife are coming to visit. Her favorite flower is the daisy. Naturally, I chose the pink daisy for the bottom sheet, and the blue for the top sheet, with some basic white pillow cases. Cute. I'm considering making the gray fitted sheet into pillowcases... thoughts?
Some of my sheets have yet to find a match - the yellow flowers with blue centers are a recent addition to my collection (far left). The fabric is unevenly faded, though, and I'm considering this for a future sewing project. Maybe another apron? Or even cute pj bottoms?
The pink pillowcase is awaiting either a project or a pillow. I have yet to decide!
The white with floral embroidery is a heavy linen-like fabric. The embroidery was done by my great grandmother, Alice.
The white lace-edged pillowcases I found at a Salvation Army store - hooray for a pair! I use them regularly for their intended purpose.
I have three twin sized sheets and a few pillowcases in the pink and blue pansy print. I found these at different garage sales and thrift stores. These are my favorites, I think! They come with me as sleeping bag liners when I go on women's retreats with my mom.
The blue/green/white/aqua daisy print is a twin sheet that I found in my mom's collection. Very flower-power.
You can see the top corner of a set of two white-on-blue daisy print pillowcases that I found at Salvation Army. I also use these two as regular pillowcases - you can see them better in the bottom right corner of the first picture in this post.
The yellow and brown floral (very retro, I know!) is a complete full size set with two pillowcases (purchased at different times). Most of the set is very silky-smooth and faded from use, but the pillowcase on top is almost new and quite a bit stiffer. Still very smooth fabric.
And that embroidered pillowcase in the middle? Also the handiwork of my great grandmother, Alice. I never knew her, but I admire her patience and creativity. It's beautiful work. There are two of these, two, and they'll always be pillowcases in my house!

And that is one of my collections. Upcoming: scarves. What do you collect?