week of photos : tuesday

old stuff

I love this little spot on my shelf in the craft room. I got the globe at the flea market for $2 and I found the plastic lion buried in the garden. I love it when I find bits of my childhood out in the dirt (usually it's old Matchbox cars!).

weekend finds

On Sunday my mom and I went to the flea market. It was a little slow, but here's some of what I found:
I found a couple more vintage puzzles for $1 each. These make me really happy. I'm in love with the illustrations on the one with the numbers.

And look! Some of the deer puzzle pieces are fun little shapes. Adorable!

I also found two embroidered doily things.. I love the simple look of the flowers. They look sort of modern.

flea market tips

Ok, here are my techniques for getting a good deal at the flea market. Hopefully you'll find them helpful. :)

1. First of all, I haggle. The vendors expect it. The ones that completely refuse to go down on their prices usually don’t get my business. Plus it’s really fun.

2. It never hurts to ask. If something’s not priced and I think it could be a little out of my price range, I ask anyway. Sometimes I’m shocked at how low their price is.

3. Offer a price you think is fair. Again, it never hurts to ask. They just might take it.

4. I go often. The more I go the more I’m familiar with average prices on the items I’m looking for so I can spot a steal (or a rip-off).

5. When I’m looking for something in particular, I’m very stubborn and patient. I spend a few weeks (or seasons, in some cases!) pricing the item I’m interested in and wait until I find it at a really great price.

6. Sometimes it’s good to walk away. I've had vendors call me back and accept the price I offered them (after they turned it down at first).

7. I try to control myself when I’m really excited about spotting something I love. I ask about a few other things first. I've found that if they know I love something they’re less willing to go down on the price – they assume I’ll pay their price because I love it.

8. I don’t ask them if they can go any lower on a price. Usually when they give a price it’s still a bit too high for me (um, I’m really cheap). Instead, I give them a price that I’m willing to pay.

9. I show them the money! If I think they might be unwilling to haggle, I like to have the exact amount out and in my hand when I name my price. It seems like they don’t say no as often when they can see it.

10. But I make sure they don’t see all my money… if they see a couple of $20’s I don’t think they would negotiate as much.
11. I bring lots of singles. If I ask if they’ll take $3 on something priced $5, I wouldn't hand them a $5 bill.

12. If I see something I liked but the vendor turned down what I offered, I go back to it later in the day. They may be willing to negotiate so they don’t have to bring it home.

13. You find good stuff early in the season and early in the day and good deals late in the season and late in the day.

14. When I’m looking for furniture, I basically ignore the condition. Instead I focus on the shape. Things like chipped or ugly paint, missing drawer pulls, wobbly legs, often greatly reduce the price and those things are easy (and fun) to fix.

15. Finally (and I think most importantly!), I make sure I’m nice. I tell them good morning, smile… make eye contact, maybe chat a little with them. They’re more willing to make a deal with me if they like me.

rain out

I had plans on Sunday morning to go to the flea market for the first time this year but it was closed due to rain (and then of course it cleared up and was beautiful for a while and then it rained again. If you don't like the weather just wait 5 minutes right?). Anyway, I was bummed.. I'm itching to do some serious haggling. They don't negotiate prices at thrift stores, you know. I've tried before. hehe... (Later this week I'll share some tips that I've found helpful for getting good deals at flea markets. Exciting!)
So for Plan B my mom and I went to an estate sale, where I found a few little treasures: vintage handkerchiefs, a linen dish towel, doilies, a set of cute little painted trays, an old canning jar (for a terrarium of course!), an old frame, and a vintage suitcase... all for $5! And if that wasn't enough, as we were leaving my mom spotted some amazing moss growing in the cracks of the cement and I took some. Is that considered stealing? Wait 'till you guys see this stuff before you judge me.. I think you would have done the same thing. :)

my first thrifted silhouette

Oh, I love this. I may need to start a collection. Yes, I said need. :)

I'm going to take the day off from blogging tomorrow... I hope you all have a wonderful holiday!

napkins? coasters?

..I don't really know what they're for, but I love them. Look at the mermaid!

More lovely things I found: vintage sheets, linen napkins, an awesome crochet pot holder (Brian hates it, hehe), and a few more linen napkins. One cannot have too many linen napkins! :)
A vintage stuffed dog and cat sewing pattern and a tin of buttons:
And finally, one of my favorite finds from the weekend:

isn't it sweet?

a weakness:

vintage aprons. I found these at an estate sale on Saturday.

(I love the rick-rack on this one.)





I'll post more of what I found tomorrow..

i love this

(photo by Jamaica)

I found this pillow on Jamaica's blog the other day and I fell in love. The pillow is to die for but what I really love is how she did it. She scanned vintage papers and then printed the images out onto inkjet fabric sheets.

This is one of those wonderful ideas that just overwhelms me with all of the creative possibilities... I'm thinking.. old maps, dictionary pages, paint-by-numbers, vintage magazines.. so many things would be perfect for this. Even vintage fabric scraps maybe?

day 27 : blue

Close up of a very fun button on a vintage handmade dress I found this week at the thrift store. Love it!

day 11 : painting & some quilts

First my thing-a-day photo:I actually forgot all about it until just now so that's why the lighting is yuck.

And here's some more photos of the quilts made by Susana Allen Hunter that were on display at the Henry Ford Museum last year (here's where you can see the others I posted):

Do you guys like these quilts? I love quilts designed like these but my mom can't stand them.. I wonder how most people feel about them.

more quilt inspiration

As I was collecting those wonderful quilt images from Monday I was reminded of a quilt exhibit Brian and I went to last winter at the Henry Ford Museum. It featured quilts made by Susana Allen Hunter dating from the 1930s to the 1970s. They were such an inspiration so I figured you would all enjoy them as well.Several were made from old work clothes.. see where the jeans pockets were removed?
A saying I tell myself often (and try to live by) is "Use it up, Wear it out, Make it do, Or do without."
These quilts are proof that you don't have to go out to the fabric store to get brand new pretty fabrics to make a pretty quilt, don't you think?
(this one's my favorite)

I have more quilt photos from this exhibit that I'll post sometime soon.

estate sale finds

Here's what I found on Sunday..
Two paint-by-numbers.

And I saw this old falling apart envelope that looked to still have fabric in it.. I thought it might be pieces of the aprons.

But it was the entire piece! All three tea aprons, including waistbands and teenie tiny pockets for each one. I couldn't believe my luck. It wasn't even ever washed, so when I washed it it faded a lot, but I actually like it better this way.

(I think Henry likes it too.)