fiveandtwo

Gratitude

I'm immensely grateful for all your kind words of support. You are all wonderful.

I wasn't going to say anything, you know, revealing too much, going too far on what is supposed to be a craft blog, after all. Interestingly, I've found I have less time than before, although the no drinking change coincided with others that're labour intensive. I have an old Kenwood mixer from a garage sale, with a dough hook, and that makes short work of kneading the bread! The machine beavers away while I do other baking or prepare tea. Highly recommended, although I do knead it a little bit by hand at the end because I enjoy it. The Laucke organic bread flour I can get locally comes from Turkey! Rather more than 100 miles.

Not that much crafting has been going on. Hmm...could be I spend too much time fossicking in op-shops.

Leah had a netball game in Lakes Entrance on Saturday. With two oppys open and an hour to kill was I going for a walk along the beach? Not likely.

Buttons! And the bowl that they're in and the gorgeously soft charcoal wool fabric (with red embroidered dots) in the background.

Enid Gilchrist pattern books. How I love these books (no, love is not too strong a word). I have been using them for inspiration for my children's clothing designs. You know, that shop I'm going to have. You are all going to die of shock when it finally gets off the ground.

Old patterns are inspiring too. Interesting styles and design details. Little girl's dresses and skirts were  very short in those days. Well, except for the long 70's styles.

I think this comes from the days when many everyday objects had covers made for them. Baby powder containers and the like in this case.

Old cards. I particularly like "Jolly Birthday Greetings". I have a collection of old cards now. Like I really need another thing to collect...

I was very taken with this book. Clare and Ally don't like it and they usually like old how-to books. Mainly because the making materials are usually found lying around the house or in the shed. Materials usually don't have to be bought.

This book is full of interesting stuff. I guess I bought it for myself - I would've loved to have it when I was a kid.

  An old Sindy doll. My sister had Sindy and I had Patch (an English schoolgirl) and a trio called The Sunshine Family (mother, father, baby). Sindy today looks like a wannabee Barbie, sadly. My mum despised Barbies, hence the other dolls. I wasn't even aware of Barbie though, living in the boodocks without TV helped, and I loved my other dolls. I used them to play "Borrowers", I was very influenced in my play by the Mary Norton books.

And I have actually made something. This jacket for the new baby sister of one of Clare and Ally's friends. The pattern is from a Japanese book that I no longer have but was called something like "Organic Cotton Baby Clothes".

Must go and walk the dog !

There's A New One!

A new op-shop in town. At the Uniting Church. There's now a total of eight in town, and more in nearby towns. Of course I had  to visit and check out the merchandise.

A worthwhile foray.

Plenty of goodies, including the suitcase.

Couldn't resist this old block set.

Picture heavy. I'm having a bit of a word drought at the moment.

Hmmm, Could Be A Theme.

Definitely a theme in this week's oppy finds.

Citrussy colours, stripes of black.

A new crocheted knee rug/throw. When I asked the price I was told $6. Six dollars. For a new handmade item. Nah...I gave the lady $30 (still a bargain in my book). I am so glad to be able to do this now. Not so long ago $6 was money I needed for food - I would have bought the rug and felt enormously guilty: for spending food money and devaluing someone's handwork. The volunteers make these items to raise a bit of extra money. In this case the local Rural Ambulance Service.

Splendid biscuit or cake tin (quite airtight). What's in it now? Anzac biscuits, of course!

I've never seen the like of these before. So of course I had to have them.

Reminds me to sort out the spice shelf. So I can fit in these two lovelies. I need to raise the shelf above the spice section in the pull-out cupboard so I have better access.

Black and orange again! Good for pencil storage.

Unusual to have such a thread of colours  in a week of oppy purchases. I enjoy these colours but they're not my favourites. I lean more towards blues and greens, with a dash of purple. Red gets a look in too, sometimes.

Cheers

Adding to My Collections

Gee, I havn't posted about op-shop finds lately. How deprived you must all be feeling...

Vintage patterns to add to that collection. I especially like these doll's clothes ones. Clare fancies an ice skating outfit for one of her Barbie dolls, and some of those splendid gowns.

I collect old buttons, and have come across some beauties lately. I love the weight and sheen of mother-of-pearl buttons, much more "solid" than the mussel shell ones common these days. A good friend has made a stunning necklace with her collection.

The lovely little flocked box was an oppy find too.

I've learnt to wash clothes I sew the pearl buttons onto in a lingerie bag, otherwise they get chipped.

New storage receptacle for elastic (most of which comes from the op-shop as well). When I bought it the elderly lady serving me said, "Oh, these are marvellous for putting things in. I've got some in my shed". One for her angle grinder, one for her cordless drill. I love these women, always full of surprises.

Here, a new ric-rac receptacle (gee, I like the sound of that!). Old sewing basket is the recent purchase, the ric-rac is part of my random haberdashery collection. Those in the picture I've bought over several years. If it has interesting packaging I don't use it,  the rest gets used.

Now...on to fabric. Greens. A colour I use a lot.

Splendid ponies on a border print. This would make a wonderful skirt, or dress, for a little girl.

Assorted florals. How about that sheet on top of the pile!

Recycled linen shirts and dresses. All ready to be transformed. On some I've retained the button and buttonholes to incorporate in the new garment. Also things like the back pleat you get on some shirts, and pintucked front panels.

Ah, I'm really taken with this metre-or-so of fabric. I held it up to myself (shirt potential?) but it just made me look rather matronly. I could make something decidedly cool for Clare or Ally, but they'd never wear it. It wouldn't be skanky enough, or have brands emblazoned on it. Sigh...

I don't let them wear skanky or branded clothes, but that's what they want to wear. Sigh...

However, I have an idea that's growing. Maybe, just maybe, I could have a line of one-off children's clothes. Strictly 0-4 years. I have a lot of vintage/interesting fabric to hand! It's just embryonic right now, growing though.

Collections

Noticing a few collections around the traps lately got me thinking about what I collect.

A surprising number of things. Things in constant use that I've never considered collections would actually qualify.

Like linen tea towels.

Old beach towels.

Old bath towels.

These towels and tea towels, because they're used, get all raggy: wear out. So I'm always on the lookout for replacements.

Fairy stories, folk tales, myths and legends, nursery rhymes. I enjoy them all, in their myriad versions. Some of these were mine when a child, some I've bought for my kids, some given to them, lots from the op-shop.

Some things I buy sporadically, like the fairy tale books.

Old bottles, I have a collection of them that hasn't been added to for years.

When we did some renovating several years ago they got their own special shelf in the laundry. I had an "Angus" glue jar which I gave to a friend whose son is named Angus - how could I not!

Haven't come across any old scissors for a while.

Those tailor shears on the right are a family heirloom. Originally belonged to my mum-in-laws grandfather, who was a tailor,of course. They were passed to her when she began sewing from home for extra money. A superbly skilled dressmaker, I've learned much from her.

Those little blue-handled scissors toward the left: look closely - it's a rabbit!

Old keys.

Scissors and keys. Make what you will of that.

Wooden cotton reels. This collection gets added to from time to time. Well, they're not made anymore...

Continuing the sewing theme, old trims.

Oh, and the lace - old, modern. No synthetics allowed.

Bad photo, big shame.

How about buttons.

A mere portion of the button collection. This is a highly active one=actively seeking additions to the collection.

Baskets, those ones from the big basket making craze of 1955, or thereabouts. With the masonite or ply base, "cane" and some plastic-covered stuff. Called barsticks in this house. Toddler small fry's inability to pronounce basket.

The latest addition. A small one. Excellent to store the wool for a sudden interest in pom-pom making.

Can't explain my fascination with old maps, atlases and street directories. Collection added to sporadically. I'll use these. Circulating in my head are numerous ideas yet to achieve fruition.

The colours of these old maps are much more vibrant and distinct than the ones you can buy now.  I get all "arty" when I see them, but no artwork produced so far.

Happy collecting, people!

Quickie Op Shop Post

Yesterday's finds.

From the flannelette fairy:

I'm going to make myself some pyjama pants with the navy/red/white piece.

From the silk sprite:

Actually, the gold is synthetic, but will be excellent for princess costumes. The beige is a wool mix. I'm planning to overdye all bar the gold because these colours make me look like a corpse!

Haven't seen the like of this before. Little wooden blocks printed with multiplication tables. The front side of each has the answer printed on it.

I like Ravensburger puzzles. This is number seven that Clare and Ally have - all from op shops.

And who can resist calendar and souvenir teatowels? Well, probably lots of people...not me though.

1976 and 1980, neither of them good years for me!

I'm planning a visit to the enormous Salvation Army Family Store in Traralgon tomorrow on my way to the Big Smoke.

Op Shop Catch Up (Includes Garage Sale Goodies)

This is couple of week's worth. But firstly, yesterday, when I was procrastinating (I was sorting my embroidery floss into colours, a most urgent task...) my husband rang. He was on his way to Paynesville to do a quote and had driven past an interesting-looking garage sale. Rather thoughtful of him, don't you think?

Man, I was into the car and over there in a flash.

Interesting it was. Think old lady who's lived there for decades, is moving into a small unit and must pare back her belongings. There were ten garbage bags of fabric. I spent a good hour sorting through every one of them. Lots of knit fabric and quite a bit of old seersucker. I'd say this woman hated ironing! Here is a selection, artfully placed to also display two old suitcases - part of my recent op shopping haul.

Some Enid Gilchrist pattern magazines. I love Enid Gilchrist. I posted about them last time I found some, and asked if anyone had any information about her. A commenter called Therese (blogless as far as I can tell) had found a death notice in the paper. Enid died in October last year, aged 90. She was described as being an author, designer and creator of fashion for women and children.

I also found this booklet:

Look at these beautiful ladies. Look at their miniscule waists!

Buttons and trim. I think I'll make my next procrastination project sorting my buttons.

I'm very taken with that nautical trim.

This tiny, weeny tin (it's 2cm high) was in one of the button jars I bought. The little guage thingy - not sure what it is - was inside the tin.

I don't write nearly as many letters as I once did, but I couldn't pass up this lovely stationary set. The envelopes are lined with grey tissue paper. So refined.

A jar made to look like a light bulb. Whatever next?

More from the garage sale. This for my husband.

A chair to fix up.

I also bought a sideboard which needs work. Quite a bit of work. Like I even need more projects.

The floss box, anally sorted. Just to finish a picture-heavy post.

A Number Of Things All In One Post

Where to begin. With The House of Disease, I think. Our usually quite resilient immune systems have developed cracks, crevasses  more like it. First the hacking cough, then the evil gastroenteritis. Poor little Ally had a spell in hospital having some IV rehydration. Vomiting, diarrhoea and a constantly sore throat (even with paracetamol) made it an uphill battle to get her to drink, or even suck ice. Friday morning saw her alarmingly flat. It's quite impossible to get a same-day (or even same-week) GP appointment in this town, so I went to sit and wait, hoping to catch one of them as they came off their hospital rounds. Strike. Off to A&E for IV insertion prior to admission. Admitted to Children's Ward at around 3.00pm - the saga began at 8.30am!

Not one to waste all that waiting time sitting around twiddling my thumbs, I read The Trout Opera by Matthew Condon (recommended), and started Barbara Kingsolver's book of essays, Small Wonder (lovely, insightful, thought provoking). If I could knit with any competence that would've had a look-in too. Ally just wanted to lie down. Poor little chick.

(Giles with dreadlocks, Linsey, Ally and Suska-the-dog)

The difference even a couple of hours of IV fluids made was...well, miraculous. By the next morning she was pretty much her usual cheeky self. I'm grateful to live in this country, to have access to modern health care, to have it low cost (the GP fee is claimed at Medicare), all that was required was hours of waiting (gainfully used). And Ally is well again. It's so important to maintain accessible, low cost health care for all. Free for those on a low income. Same with education. And...now I'll climb down off my soapbox.

Prior to The House of Disease there was The Wayward Daughter. Leah is grounded for the entire holidays. Having a couple of friends sleep over turned into sneaking out when the house was asleep. At 1.30am a phone call from the police to collect the trio. Picked up by the patrol car making a racket and in possession of several Vodka Cruisers. Leah is not quite thirteen. I don't like to swear, but shit. Shit. So, grounded, has to pay a $55 under age drinking fine = no pocket money for quite a few weeks = not being able to buy phone credit = out of contact with buddies = torture for a (not quite) teen.

Actually, she appears to be mortified and embarassed by the results of the escapade (rather than proud). I take this to be a good sign. Ah, she's such a sweetie. May she navigate this adolescent stuff with skill and emerge intact. This stuff, it's me, back in those years. I will fight for (with) her to emerge with a strong sense of self ( because I didn't).

I'll probably edit this post soon. It doesn't need to stand for eternity. I just wanted you to know that I'm no perfect parent.

Several years ago women at my Steiner Playgoup, and later, Kinder, were convinced I was some sort of super-parent. No assurances that I was fine as long as I took my medication had any weight. They only saw that I had five kids, did this, did that and so on. I think they didn't believe I was on Zoloft. I just couldn't shake the super-perfect-parent label.

I think this label is starting to creep in to the impression people have of my blog. Nooo-oo. Hence this divulgence of family shit.  It's all here, but I just don't post about it. Mostly I just want to post about nice things, and keep the other stuff out of the picture. It occupies my daily life, and I don't want my blog to be a constant reflection of the daily stuff. I can't write about it eloquently like many of my favourite blogs (see sidebar).

Ok, scale down. I got a "Sewing Susan" needlebook from a garage sale on Saturday. I'm attracted to these because my name (formally) is Susan - and I sew!

This is the third I've bought. They're all different.

But similar. Lovely.

Red Shoes, Among Other Things

Yep, got myself a pair of unworn red shoes at the op-shop. Not quite Dorothy's - more practical, more comfortable too, I reckon.

Interesting colour combination in this vintage towel. We use these towels as everyday ones. They wear out, so I must replenish the pile regularly. It's interesting to note how bath towels have "grown". New towels are a good third to half a size bigger than the oldies. Supersize towels? Bath sheets are even more enormous, I've unfolded them in shops.

A barstick for the dress-up overflow in Clare and Ally's room - it fits under the bed too. Pretty floral sheets for their beds as well, still with the original packaging (removed for photographic purposes).

Some craft books, Quilting and Patchwork, a Sunset Book, had these quilts which really appealed to me. How about this "Tree Nap Mat".

And some crazy patchwork using different wool fabrics. I have a real soft spot for woollen fabric. Mmmm.

Two wonderful embroidery books. They're inspiring, so many ways of making marks with needle and thread on fabric.  The books are older, 1979 and 1964, but the effects are quite abstract and graphic. Makes my fingers itch. Like I really need new projects to work on.

And lastly, a work-in-progress in the ongoing fixing-up of the house category.

Up until three years ago we had a wood-burning cookstove in this spot. Moving the bathroom doorway from opening-into-the-kitchen to opening-into-the -back-hallway meant we didn't need it for heating. A big part of me misses it, but the wood needed to be cut shorter than usual, and I am not the woodcutter, so...off it went. The chimney recess was partially tiled so we decided to tile the rest and install adjustable shelving. Look at all that adhesive I'll need to scrape off the face of the tiles!

Leah and I painted her room on the weekend. It's mighty good to have that task out of the way, for sure.

Owl Tea-Towel

Other commitments saw me op-shopping on Thursday instead of Wednesday. Linsey came with me - her year eleven exams are finished. She goes on Senior Band tour at the end of next week (Linsey plays the clarinet). A bit over two weeks travelling to Canberra, Dubbo and the Gold Coast. Performing at schools and so forth along the way. They toured Tasmania last year.

I love this tea towel. I would like to make an owl like this.

A storage suitcase, blankets for Clare and Ally's beds and plain white pillowcases. For embellishment, embroidery perhaps, or just to use as is.

Another stool. My favourite shape. Needs a new cover.

This is such a good place to go op-shopping.