Moving Into Macrame

This flowering spider plant was the cause of my movement into macrame. 

I finally tended to it, trimming off the dead ends, pulling out the dead leaves, and giving it a soaking watering. 

Joann's was having a clearance on macrame items. The clerk said she didn't know why they were phasing it out as it was a popular craft. 

The instructions are provided inside the cord band. A simple plant hanger for less than $10 and a bit of time invested. 

Holy Page Views Batman!

Thought I was kicking a** with 2,000 page views in one day. Another milestone passed with nearly 4,000 page views in one day. I am not sure where or how I am trending. What fun! 💞

I took some time to organize the playlists in media player on my laptop. Classical was my first playlist. Jazz next, Folk and so on.  

Seller update: Getting all of the miscellany items listed. I don't know why I procrastinate on these types of things. Here is one of the listings of beautiful blue chinchilla yarn. 

https://www.ebay.com/itm/186098033313

Now that the littles are listed, I can turn my attention back to the sewing pattern sessions. Here are the best of the bunch recently listed. 

https://www.ebay.com/itm/186098236275

https://www.ebay.com/itm/186098308943

https://www.ebay.com/itm/186098314605

Finally, for fun I pulled this Simplicity 9873 pattern, a 1980s skirt, for my own collection. It was cut at size 10 so it will be an easy alteration.  

Next up on my listing sessions are books and CDs. I am thinking of pulling some of the non-sellers in both of those categories to make room for newer listed stock. 

The September Weird and Wacky post will be going live at the month's end. 

Until next time,

Tami

Little Crocheted Critter and the Cat Quilt

https://www.ebay.com/itm/186089768386

This crocheted critter came in a pieces in a $5 bag of crocheted items from the Attic Thrift Store in Fort Bragg, California. I sewed on the legs and muzzle which were pieces in the bag.   

I knew I could find a button nose for him since I have a good-sized collection.

Rag doll was also a recent thrift shop find. Toys were priced half off at thrift. She was spruced up by a lingerie bag washing in Woolite. 

https://www.ebay.com/itm/186089777907

I began work on a cat-themed quilt for a relative. Going through my stash, I stumbled on this pieced cat fabric backing. I can't remember when I made it. All the better because it just moves this project along even quicker. I began the quilt top listening to the Cal Tjader's Latin Kick album.

The brightly-colored side of the cat print fabric is called the Catsville line, with a skosh of purple Moda grunge. 

I hope to get the cat quilt in to the longarmer before month's end. That will make three quilts in for completion. 

There are a couple of big garage sale events coming up at the end of the month. One sale scheduled is a church rummage sale. Those sales are the absolute best because they usually don't know the potential value of what they are selling. Books usually go for a song, and fabric-related items they nearly give away. 

Our weather is finally cooling from the intense heat of summer. Phew!

First day of estate sale

I finally made it to the first day of an estate sale. Since most open on Friday, I work that day albeit remote. This sale was on my way to the post office with my eBay deliveries. I have since branched out on my categories for sale. Added to my list are vintage games and Bibles. This estate sale produced a new Bible in its box, and an older Monopoly game. Next year, I will be free to visit all of the estate sales on Day 1. 

1966 Barbie was $1.50 at half off day at thrift. Since she had her clothes, she was a bargain. The individually priced outfits were $3.00 each. I gave her an upgrade in her outfit to this one. I am on the lookout for Barbie shoes. 

Barbie fans know that Barbie faces have changed over the years. The first Barbie looked like a world-wise older woman. 

And on to other things:

Finally getting my own estate in order. The safe deposit box now opened, I have a phone appointment with an estate planning attorney. When my mom passed, everything was in order. I had simply to follow the instructions she had left, down to the last detail in her celebration of life event. 

Promo here for my upcoming Countdown to Christmas beginning December 1st. This is an annual event. I have gathered my usual 25 holiday-themed Christmas CDs - all thrift shop rescues. Image gathering of Christmasy items continues all year long. 

These are the fabrics I have pulled to wrap my eBay orders in. When December rolls around, I will wrap orders in holiday-themed fabric. 

My department had its first all staff in person meeting a week ago. Out of approximately 200 people, 6 so far have contracted COVID. I am down with something so it is either a mild form of the ick, or is the seasonal flu. 

Lastly, I garnered over 2,000 views in one day on this blog. That is a first! Hello to all of my regular readers and those who have recently joined me. 

Visible Patching and Vacation Sourcing

These Rolling Stone overalls came in a bag of giveaways from my daughter. Since I am not a fan of the ripped-jean look, I thought I would try visible patching to see how these would come out. I chose an automotive print fabric in a similar red color scheme. 

Here is the setup of the first patch. 

Here are the completed patches. I chose a thread that blended in with the jean material. I also left the frays intact. I did sew the patches on using the sewing machine. A bit challenging but done. 

My daughter tried the overalls on and they are now back in her possession. 

Segueing to my vacation sourcing - it hit on all cylinders finding books, CDs, a crocheted item, and Barbie clothes. 

There was a Friends of the Library book sale in Fort Bragg, California. While I didn't find the high dollar books, I did find a few I could sell. 

I am concentrating on listing for sale all of those miscellaneous items that never make it into a regular listing session. I removed a couple of items that will never sell - a boy's baseball mitt, and a big ole stuffed cow I got at an estate sale. 

I have come to my senses and realized I will never be making tote bags. It doesn't interest me. I had pulled the sewing patterns, and collected a bit of upholstery-weight fabric. I have cleansed my craft cabinet of all that. That and seed bead projects - those items go to my hairdresser. She is having her first craft show of her hand beaded earrings.

I will stick with what I do best and that is turning patchwork pieced blocks into bed-sized quilts. At least three quilts are promised to close family members. I may even attempt another art quilt. We'll see.

Labor Day weekend Weird and Wacky

 This plate was for sale at one of my favorite hospice thrift shops. 

As with all things oddly wonderful, it eventually found its home. Everything sells at thrift. 

Let's delve into the weird and wacky offerings I see for sale at secondhand shops. 

Chinese take-out purse

Floating eyes

Lemon pitcher for lemonade

Baby shoes - but not the actual shoes some kind of die-cast collectible. I am sure very sellable, but I didn't purchase them. 

Yet another pair of abandoned shoes discovered on my downtown walk. Usually it is just one shoe or sock or dirty pieces of clothing. 

I found the iconic Red Stapler at thrift. At first I thought, I could get some good money for this $2 investment but decided it is a forever keeper.  

If you've never seen the movie Office Space, it is high time you did. 

Scrap Savin Maven and The Tiki Room

While I can give myself all the titles I want, I can claim Scrap Savin Maven for this post. I began my quilting journey 8 years ago by reusing material from men's Hawaiian shirts. My first attempts at patchwork piecing were nothing short of disastrous. 

It is a good thing I saved remnants from my original projects. I also utilized border pieces from a commissioned quilt I recently sent off for quilting. This type of quilt can be completed from start to finish in a weekend. It measures 29" x 29".

A close-up shot. 

The backing reveals the straight-line quilting or stitch in the ditch.

It is also news-appropriate with the fire-related disaster in Maui. I have never been to the Hawaiian islands but hope to visit some day. The conditions at that island echoed a similar disaster in Paradise, California in 2018. 

But back to fun stuff, the images below are the tiki painting and quilt in my cubicle.

There is no work-related stuff to write on my white board (so few people are actually in office), so it has become The Tiki Room.

Because I made reference to my patchwork piecing progress over the years, I have included a link to my 5-year retrospective of quilt projects.

https://thriftshopcommando.blogspot.com/2020/01/5-year-retrospective.html

Moving on to seller update: This time two years ago I reported 1,500 active eBay listings. Two years later, I have increased my listings to 2,500. Course that averages out to posting 500 listings per year, or approx. 40 per month.  

Yarn and books were the items in my latest eBay listing sessions. High quality yarn is a rare find out in the thrift shop wild. This is the best of the bunch. This shot has an artsy quality to it. Just one skein of Lion Brand acrylic yarn Homespun Pueblo. 

https://www.ebay.com/itm/186042795253

Until next time,

Tami

Original art find

I am obsessed with nearly all things tiki. I haven't scored a thrift shop painting in quite awhile so I was overdue. Can't complain at the $6.99 price. The matting is jacked up, nothing a bit of glue won't fix. I painted the mat brown because the light green one was stained. It landed in my tiki-themed work cubicle. 

Sometimes I biff on thrift shop purchases. I bought a bag of remnant fabric at thrift for $10 that turned out to be all unusable scraps. Outside the store was a bin of freebies, and there was the button doll. She was worth the $10 spent at that location. 

Back to listing sewing patterns for now. This slightly-risque pattern is from 1982.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/186036643869

I am kicking around the idea of lotting up sewing patterns, especially the older ones. I may even move out of the sewing pattern category. Sales have come to a skreeching halt. I try to analyze trends maybe people are less interested in sewing and more interested in doing and going. 

I found some packets of Barbie clothes I had squirreled away. Anything Barbie bumps any other listing session. 

Turns out the No. 1 collectible dolls are Madame Alexanders, next are Ginny dolls, then OG Shirley Temples. I was watching an episode of the Incurable Collector, and that was their list. I bought this fall attired Madame Alexander and silk flower foliage for a few dollars at thrift. 

My grocery store was already decked out in Halloween decorations. That means Christmas is sure to follow. Next month, I will queue up my Countdown to Christmas posts. The weeks fly by.

It Almost Feels Like Autumn

The kids must be back in school because things have bounced back to normal in eBay sales. It is still warm in Northern California. I must be wishing and hoping for cooler fall weather. 

This rag doll is the latest to go up for sale. Her only fix was to add a missing button to one shoe. 

https://www.ebay.com/itm/186026329626

Here she is acting as iPhone laptop charging station in my remote office dining room table. 

Quilting update: I sewed together a quilt top with fish print fabric I had been saving over the years. I utilized mystery quilter's premade quilt blocks for both the top and bottom borders. It measures 80"x96" and is destined to become the camping trailer quilt. 

This was the first layout before I added more borders. The piece of fabric of koi pond was a remnant printed in and found in Seattle some years ago on a visit to mom. 

The completed quilt blocks came through thrift a couple of months ago. I will update once it is quilted and bound. 

I have turned my attention to the mini-quilt of men's Hawaiian shirts. The commissioned quilt is at the longarmer for quilting. For that project, I am making scrappy 4-1/2" squares with the same neutral border fabric shown below. 

Seller's update - 2 of the 4 sets of Barbie clothes have sold. Tarot and fortune telling games are also quick selling items. 

This set of two patterns are some of the oldest I have put up for sale both from the San Francisco Pattern Company. 

https://www.ebay.com/itm/186021102128

https://www.ebay.com/itm/186021107148

I am heading back to the ocean for the weekend. Here is hoping I spot some whales and catch some fish! 🐟

Keep On Truckin'

My post title was a popular phrase in the 1970s. It is hard not to get discouraged as a seller during the summer months. I try to keep my eye on the prize. My sales prior to summer averaged $500 a month.  

Trying to clear up the backlog of items to list for sale. My latest listing session was needlekits. I cannot remember where I picked up this nearly-finished cross-stitch kit. I don't even remember buying it. So sad. I know I "zone out" when I am at estate sales. Especially if there is a large amount of items in my categories. Like a kid in a candy store. 

https://www.ebay.com/itm/186020799732

I don't pass up the partially completed kits. Santa also needs a home. 

https://www.ebay.com/itm/186020786578

Sneaking in some images from the Amador County Fair. This is one of my favorites - the court in the craft exhibition wearing their tiaras, sashes, and cowboy boots. 

We arrived early and left early to avoid the crowd. We gobbled down some hamburgers, fries, cotton candy, and a waffle ice cream maple syrup carmel concoction that was indescribably delicious.  

The fair theme was Zinfandel and Zinnias.  

The rooster who was such a show-off. 

On to other things: Sally Stand-In models this apron I found while rummaging through my fabric. 

The Mr. mentioned he would like a "fish" quilt. I have been saving remnants of fish print fabric so now is the time to make it into some useful. I will detail the process in an upcoming post.