Nifty Thrifty

My sourcing focus for selling on eBay has changed to decks of cards. These next two listed were recent finds found after digging through the kids toys bins full of Old Maid and flashcards. 

https://www.ebay.com/itm/188783114580

https://www.ebay.com/itm/188783168791

That rustic barn fabric used in the background? One of my last retail fabric splurges - 5 yards of it available if I need to photograph larger items. 

I have also been replacing our stoneware dinner and dessert plates. When my daughter got married, I kept at least 6 patterns of fine China from that event. Those plates cannot be placed in a microwave, but stoneware can. 

At thrift, I also check for CDs that are unique or unusual. This Mingo Fishtrap, From the Private Bag, caught my eye. Not only was the CD in great condition, it appears each the band members signed the CD insert. If I didn't list it for so much, I would keep it. Such a fun listen. 20 other Christmas CDs were also listed. 

https://www.ebay.com/itm/188783260057

Glad I had the foresight to hold back from sending all of my former eBay product to thrift. Here is the tub o' needlekits, 30 of them are those formerly listed for sale and those I had kept for myself. My days of hand-crafting are severely limited. The neddlekits are queued up next for an eBay listing session. 

I have upgraded to picnicing and camping on the back deck. Fleas found their way into my indoor tent, so the tent technique ultimately failed. As long as it isn't 100 degree days, it is OK sleep outside. One advantage to a cot is the ability to move it around. 

Before you know it, fall will be here. Next month, I start preparing my Countdown to Christmas posts. In November, we will begin decorating the front yard for Christmas. 

Six months post eBay

Lead-off image is when the poppies were in bloom. Thrift shop ceramic frog in permanent wonder at their beauty. 

Having taken a six-month hiatus from selling on eBay, I am ready to start over again. I do have my shop tam_gonza and over 1,200+ positive feedback. 

The only bugaboo to this Grand Plan is my product is stored somewhere in a packed outdoor shed.  

Most of the eBay branded boxes and rolls of tape, I gave away. What I found most useful are the different sized polymailers. Those, I kept. 

I will limit my sales to the following items:

Uncut sewing patterns
Unique books on cooking or crafting
Tarot or New Age philosophy deck of cards
Color-coded sets of Barbie-sized clothes
Needlekits

Those are the few categories that I know I still have items to sell. In the move/purge, I can't remember what flew out the door. 

I had been avoiding estate sales. There are certain items, like those listed above, that other buyers overlook. Old bibles and dusty pieces of artwork can be fabulous finds.

Quick thrifting update: New feather/down pillow $9, retail price $29. 

Gardening update: Plants have to be watered twice a day with the 100+ degree heat. 

We are hibernating inside during the heat wave.😡

Belated Birthday Celebrations

I was looking for some important documents and found this gem stashed in the top tray of our cargo trunk. McCall's mermaid skirt 3482 from 1955. Or skirt with flouce. When I get back to sewing clothes from vintage patterns and modern material, this pattern will move up on the list. The packet is pretty torn up, the pattern is cut, but most important the instructions are there. You can even see the thrift shop 39 cents scrawled on front in blue marker. 

The garden is going great guns. We've harvested a tomato or two a day this past month. Tomatoes are in the background near the ladder. Still trying to trim back branches resting on top of the shed. 

A close-up of the Blue Beauty heirloom tomato. The pepper plants are still growing, not yet flowering. 

It is a constant battle with the deer that roam the neighborhood. No predators here, unless you count bad drivers on the road. Around the fabric planter, I used pet exercise case fencing. Atop the fencing, I zip-tied chicken wire. 

Random thrifting news - needed a wine rack and found one, in fact there were about 8 of them at the large hospice thrift in Placerville, California.  

Other fun additions from my constantly creating environment, two birdhouses from the same hospice thrift. Two were from my mom's estate, so the other two fit right in. 

Gourd koi also joined my family. Bought retail at ACE Hardware in Cameron Park, California. He is keeping Buddha company in the garage right now.  

Belated birthday celebrations included red velvet cupcakes from Icing on the Cake in the Folsom Palladio. My absolute favorite! 💜💙💚💗

Stormy Weather and Fall Feelings

I have been hankering for a fall color quilt and found this MODA quilt kit on an Etsy super sale. 

This is the first time I have purchased a quilt kit. That center piece is a preprinted panel. The surrounding blocks look easy enough to assemble. 

Monday thrifting resulted in bags of doll clothes $1.99 each. 

I look for Barbie and Build A Bear - this time it was Cabbage Patch Kid clothes. I won't complain. The doll is in storage, easily reunited with this new set of clothing. 

We are having stormy weather. No sales for the past two days so I haven't left the house. Just finished having some homemade vegetable soup with a piece of sourdough buttered bread. 

Altering the Rehearsal Dress and the Fabric Find

While my daughter chose none of the maternity dress patterns for me to sew, she did ask for alteration of her rehearsal dress. A knit crocheted v-neck maxi we are hoping the baby bump will accommodate. 

I removed the eye hook fastener and the zipper on the back of the dress. I have had this bridal ribbon in my craft stash for I don't know how long. Delving in to new projects highlights the fact that it is a good thing to hoard craft supplies.  

This YouTuber The Sewist showed me the way on how to alter this dress. 

After about 6 attempts, I finally got the hang of making spaghetti straps. 

While I didn't understand half of what the Sewist said, I got the gist of it. 

Thrifting update: A trip to a community yard sale at a senior trailer park resulted in a tub of quilting cotton fabric for $40. 

The seller said she hadn't sewn in 10 years, more likely closer to 30. Here are highlighted fabrics from the late 1990s. 

1994

Power Rangers! A TV show I used to watch with my kids.

1995

1996

1997

I am running out of places to hide the fabric. Sewing seller did include one nearly finished quilt top that I will feature in the months to come.  

Happy Easter

We interrupt the regular programming with an Easter break. It is also the Mr.'s birthday - 73 years young. 

The crocheted cutie in the image is from the 1985 Carry-Along Crochet publication. 

Every once in awhile, I purchase mystery boxes of fabric from my fav online auction site. My latest purchase included this small pieced purple portion and a few pieces of Easter-themed fabric. 

Gonna sneak in a thrifting update - A bag of doll clothes $7.99 at thrift will be turned into approx. $40 profit. There were many Barbie clothes, a few specialty doll clothes, and an original Cabbage Patch dress. 

Each month there is a new display at hospice thrift - here is the Easter-themed one. 

When my children were small, each year I would dress them in Easter outfits and they would go on an Easter-egg hunt in our backyard or at the lake in Cameron Park. 

Wishing everyone a Happy Easter! 

The Making of the Dog Bed, Part 1

Our annual pilgrimage to the coast is fast approaching. The Princess of All (Zipper, our dog), needed a new dog bed. I had the fabric, and the patterns, so why not give it a whirl? 

I first tried Simplicity 4793 that I pulled from my eBay inventory. Good thing that I did, because the pattern was missing part of the pattern and instructions. I did keep the applique star pattern. 

The next pattern that I prepped for sewing was Simplicity 9065 - the large bed pictured in the upper left hand corner in the pattern pictured below. 

Finding an area big enough for cutting was a challenge. Both materials, the large floral print and the lightweight denim, are upholstery weight. 

The stars were raw edge appliqued onto the side panels. When it is laundered, the stars will fray around the edges. 

The zipper installation went pretty well. I hadn't created a zippered project in quite a few years. The cream colored zipper was sewn between the plackets. 

Updated to link up with ninamariesayre's blog for off-wall-friday

Part 2 will feature the further construction and completion of the dog bed. My sewing projects sort of lag along, now that I have dropped out of "competition" quilting. Both of my fabric art pieces received honorable mention at the California State Fair, but there was a snafu on the fair's part that my last submission wasn't exhibited. I won't detail it here. 

Thrifting update: A morning power outage meant a sweet escape from work to visit the hospice thrift. The online sellers were there when the doors opened. Had I been more awake, I would been able to purchase more of the boxed Hallmark ornaments. I bought 2, one I will keep and one I will sell.

My other purchases were fabric, 2 Raggedy Rag dolls, and uncut sewing patterns. $37 at one thrift store meant my budget was spent. 

I splurged with an online auction buy - I knew there were quilt blocks and fabric but that was it. Total spent including shipping $120.00. 

My heart sank when I opened the box - this is what I saw. Quilter's remnants. But beneath Mystery Quilter's remnants were 34 Grandma's Flower Garden blocks, along with a pieced section. Precut remnants ensure the finished project can be completed. 

I have always wanted a Grandma's Flower Garden. This one is unique in that it is done in vintage fabrics. I have an entire box full of replacement fabric along with the white spacer fabric and templates for cutting. 

Sometimes I have biffed on online auction purchases but this one was a winner.