Spent on dolls : $1.54
Spent on Lab Décor : $1.34
Spent on sewing : $1.44
It's a good thing I started recording my spending again, ‘cause I seem to be on a shopping spree every day ! One more piece of ‘Lab Décor', and I think the whole room'll collapse. But I had such a good time customizing today's little project...
Woke up fairly early to hit a church yard sale. Those are often very good. Since it's bits and pieces of stuff from lots of parishioners, there's usually a little of everything, especially toys. Well, not this one. No dolls at all, and very few toys. More basketballs than stuffed animals, really. I got a lights-and-sound lightsaber for Dearest Son, a new purse calculator (with an Allegra ad on it), two outdated Monet calendars (doll photo backdrops !), a pattern that makes two kinds of fleece slippers and other winter accessories (McCalls 4738), and a hardback copy of The Weekend Sewers Guide to Blouses. The book details how to customize favorite simple patterns to make wearable art. A bit beyond me, perhaps, but leafing through it was a fun read. Lots of sewing history and anecdotes sprinkled throughout. $3. for the whole armload.
From there, I got to go to the junk shop. It's been a while ! Bought Beloved Hubby a sushi book and a translated manga that looked interesting. I found a purple earringed Jasmine doll in a fantastic outfit - Barbie size - and she was in nearly new shape, so I got her. They had a sort of worried-looking Belle, too, with beautiful eyes, but she had ink marks on her face. If Charmin' Chatty is any indication, it'll be six months before the ink's eradicated, and I just wasn't in a mood for another lengthy project. The vintage nude Michael Jackson doll, believe it or not, is still there. That's about two years or so for him.
I also found a printed fabric pattern to make a witch doll, but I just wanted it for the pumpkin print pieces - it'll make a nice small doll outfit. Found a nice new package of ribbon roses, and a Burda vest pattern. It has ‘Easy' all over it, so I'll give it a shot. Went through three huge bins of patterns, and didn't find a single one of any size doll or doll clothes. Hmpft. Found a cute ‘Jaq' (Cinderella's mouse friend) Happy Meal toy, along with one from Lady and the Tramp. Jaq is on a gold ‘Disney Anniversary' stand and Lady and Tramp are on what looks like a videocassette. Those things are getting more rare by the day. It's even getting hard to find a VCR !
I also found some small fabric rectangles with various ‘country' sayings beneath silhouetted images. Two showed a cat regarding a mouse on a cheese wedge, with the legend "Better to feed one cat than 100 mice", another had a mother and son with the typical ‘a mother holds her children's hands...' saying. The one I wanted was of an antique design sewing machine. It had the also-familiar "A stitch in time saves nine", but I could have cared less for that. I already had plans for that piece...
Y'see, last time I went to Dollar Tree, they had French-themed metal plaques with a hook beneath. Called ‘Decorative Hooks' on the purple packaging, they're probably designed for coats or such. I selected a nice cream colored one with the Arc de Triumph on it in black. Just wish they'd had a dress form one, to go with the ‘shoes' and ‘perfume' themed ones. Or an Eiffel Tower - I know it's a tourist icon, but I loved it each time I saw it. The Arc was nice, but I wanted something custom. Was toying with glue-sticking the last of that ‘wedding dress form' scrapbook paper to it, but I knew I wanted something else.
And that antique sewing machine-themed fabric panel seemed perfect. I folded it to hide the ‘stitch' saying, and it fit perfectly. Gave it a quick ironing, added a bit of spray starch, and squeezed out the last of a drying-up tube of SuperGlue on the plaque. Perfect ! A quick two coats of Krylon Matte Finish, and I hung it proudly by my modern-day sewing machine. It now holds my embroidery hoops much prettier than the large screw eye I had doing that. And at $1.34 for the hook and fabric, it's not that much more expensive than the screw eye !
Not sure what I'm doing with the ‘mother' and two ‘cat' pieces. They have a nice brown floral border, but there ‘s not much of it. I could make a couple of cat toys...
I was thinking of the bins of patterns I go through on a semi-regular basis. The ones at the junk shop. The shelves at the thrift stores. The occasional pile or a box at a yard sale. They simultaneously make me happy and sad. Happy, because I might find something for a quarter or dime that started out at $16.95 - or that I couldn't buy otherwise, since it's been out of print for thirty years. Sad because each bin, box, shelf, or pile represents a lot of intent that just didn't become reality. I'm no more immune to that than anyone - I bet I have a dozen patterns I paid 99c for that I haven't touched past the purchase - but it kinda hurts to see sometimes. Lately I've come across patterns for sale that are still pinned to fabric. This may be even sadder than an uncut, untouched one. Who knows how long it's been sitting around waiting for a conclusion that hasn't come yet ? It may never come, even though the bag of it all's in the yard sale.
