Crafty or Crappy?

Well Hey

2010-09-28T06:07:00.000-07:00

I have to really apologize to all of you who left me comments. As you can tell I rarely post here and was not getting the notifications that anyone actually stopped by here and then left a comment. Oops. Guess I better get working on some projects and post more or at least check my comments.

Again, so sorry I never got back to any of you and apparently never had my email on here so you could find me. It is in the about section now if you still want to chat.

My craft room was taken over for the summer by my parents who stay with us in the summer and live in Mexico in the winter. They leave on Thursday, BOOHOO! I replaced the double bed in that room with a daybed and trundle so that really opened it up for them to have room for the summer and when they leave I can just pop down the trundle and stuff it under the day bed and hopefully get a table in there to get some work done.

We had some new windows put in the living room and replaced the crappy kitchen window this summer but now that the windows are new and clean it is really hard to get pictures as the glass actually reflects now. ;) I made some super simple roman shades that I found on a blog out there, can't remember where but if I do I will be sure to give credit where it is due as they were no sew, all iron and heat and bond. AWESOME!!

Now that I know people have stopped by I will try to get posting again and get some pictures up. Just for fun here is one of my children, very rare that I get one of both of them together and looking somewhat normal. ;)

They kind of like each other, which is good considering they are 14 years apart.

See that blanket on the back of the chair? $5.00 at an estate sale and the 60 year old man running it said he grandma made that blanket. All hand stitched and very few worn spots. Also, nice and cozy since I am too cheap to turn the heat on yet at home. ;)

Been a while

2010-03-27T04:44:00.000-07:00

Yeah, I had such grand plans for this blog and then I dropped the ball. Not all that much thrifting happens here in Wisconsin over the winter. Plus new management at my local Salvation Army store has led to lots of junk and not the good kind either.
I have a few good finds that I need to get pictures of so that I can put them on here. Still need to set up some sort of a shop to part with some of these treasures.
I spent a couple hours last weekend ironing hankies that were my grandma's that I have been hanging on to for who knows what reason but now I am going to try and sell them and see what happens. So they are pressed and ready to photograph.
Having a 2 year old sure cuts into any serious crafting and I sure can't take her with to rummage or estate sales.
Oh crap I hear the beast wailing from the upstairs. I will try to get back here sooner next time and with pictures.

Inspiration

2009-10-22T15:49:00.000-07:00

Here are a few books that I found at various rummages over the summer, Goodwill just last week and Bookcloseouts.com. Probably total for all these books I may have spent $25. Hopefully they will give me lots of inspiration to make stuff over the winter and maybe make back that $25. ;) A girl has to have a dream, right?

These came from Bookcloseouts.com

These were my Goodwill finds

These are a few from rummages this summer.

Here are the sweater haul I made at Salvation Army 3 weeks ago. All wool, cashmere, lambswool and merino. I have to decide if I want to make diaper covers out of these or some of the other adorable craft projects I have discovered to use wool sweaters for. Guess we have to wait and see what I can find in those books, eh?

Hi Kristin!

2009-10-22T10:09:00.000-07:00

Hey,
Thanks for stopping by and I am going to try my best to get your book to you soon. It arrived yesterday, thankfully before the rain started as the delivery person apparently couldn't read my huge note that said packages are to be placed in the garage and not the front steps to be ruined by the weather. ;) So I have it, have your address and now just need to get my butt to the post office to send it your way. I hope you don't already have it. That would kind of ruin the fun now wouldn't it?

You are my first follower, I actually didn't even know I had that option on this blog. This is the new and improved format that blogger has now unlike my other blog. So learning all kinds of new things with this one. It is much easier to get started with this format though.

Hopefully you can comment here soon. I did make a couple changes in the comment section so maybe that was the problem. I can't wait to see what you do with your craft room. ;)

Promoting a good cause

2009-10-14T11:04:00.000-07:00

Extraordinary times call for extraordinary action. If I cannot find a job by conventional means, then why not enter Project Green Search’s contest to be the next spokeswoman for the green industry?

Everything about this endeavor is outlined on today’s post of The Thrifty Chicks, http://thethriftychicks.blogspot.com/ . Public voting to whittle down contestants to 10 to be screened and interviewed by the final judges was supposed to start this morning.

I had my blog post set and plea for a vote running early this morning for the East Coast to read as they sipped their coffee.

Alas, Project Green Search is behind in their deadline and public voting will not start until tonight at the earliest or perhaps tomorrow. I will send out information as soon as I learn when the polls open.
I would greatly appreciate it if you could give me your vote and a plug, a boost on your blog.20Perhaps post tomorrow once we know voting is live.

If you do not wish to post a plug, I will certainly understand.

If you wish to leave a comment to my page on Project Green Search, please do so at http://projectgreensearch.com/model-search/model-search-contestants/ Contestants are listed by alpha order by first name. I appear as Shopping Golightly on the 11thor 12th page.
I called Project Green Search to determine what was going on. After learning who I am, the gentleman noted that the judges are looking for “models.” Oh? And a mother can’t model?It seems to me the green industry would be wise to push common sense and green education, not the same old mundane attempts at standard seduction. Who is so foolish to think that common sense and education are not beautiful?Contest eligibly listed no previous modeling experience required and no age limit but for those under 18 needing parental consent.Project Green writes:"Project Green Search is looking for the next “it girl” for the Green Revolution: The woman who wants to take a stand, get noticed, and align her career endeavors with her personal beliefs, to be an advocate for the environment, animal welfare, fair trade, and human rights. She’s=2 0a model, spokesperson, host, brand ambassador and all around green model citizen, for progressive, sustainable, ethical companies, from fashion & beauty to cars & computers."Guess what? That's me!

Besides, many of the contestants didn’t bother to write the required essay and if they wrote something it was a short paragraph. Few actually took the time to write something meaningful. So how are we to know they have the qualifications to be a spokeswoman?

If I sound a bit cheeky, I apologize. I’m trying to take this contest to heart because I take this emerging industry to heart. Plus there’s a lot of stress on my plate as my family has been unemployed for over a year.

Godspeed!Ms Shopping Golightly of The Thrifty Chicks, known to the IRS as Amy Hardin Turosa

Some before pics of the craft room

2009-10-06T13:54:00.000-07:00

Quick before blogger or my computer decide they won't let me download pictures.

I only have one of the craft room but will include a couple from other parts of the basement then I can post after photos of those areas for your viewing pleasure. ;)

So this is the corner that the entertainment center sits in now. As you can tell from the finished pictures I covered up where the water pipes come into the house.

This is the back wall of the "Man Cave" though if the damn man doesn't start doing something with it other then filling it with speakers that he will never use, it will become the overflow to the crap room. ;)

This door leads to the Poop Room. That will be a post all on it's own someday. I do actually have after photos but I can't seem to find before photos of inside the Poop Room.

A little something I did on my day off

2009-10-05T20:10:00.000-07:00

I need to find my pictures of the before for my basement rooms but for now you can see what I did when I took Friday off and sent Marjorie to the babysitter. It was just me, the cats and the dog and I didn't sit down from 7:30am until 4:30pm when I picked the girl up from the babysitter.

The old suitcases used to hold all my free material stash. Now two of them hold my yarn collection. I should have waited to put more crap in there before I took these pictures. The shelves are full of books. My Trixie Belden collection is almost complete too.

The shelves in the corner are my old entertainment center that I painted aqua and have all the my material that I got for free! The green and white bread boxes are currently empty but I still have plenty of treasure upstairs in the dining room that needs to go down to the basement.

This is my vintage apron collection, found at rummage sales for 50 cents to a dollar a piece. I will have to take a better picture of my vintage prom dress, I have two vintage slips hanging with it and they block the view.

These aren't the best pictures since there is only one little glass block window in this room. This is the room mom and dad lived in all summer, it was their choice not mine.

This is the way I always wanted my bed to look when I was a little girl. Well, finally at 42 I get my childhood bedroom. Guess I will have to get that attic room made into a bedroom so mom and dad have a place to stay when they come back in May. I can just imagine what the old man would say if he had to sleep in this one. ;)

So that was my fun Friday. I will try to find the before pictures of this room as well as the other rooms in the basement and the rest of the house and share them with you. This house is a non-stop project and we are slowly trying to bring her back to her former glory. Someone at somepoint, probably the 70's tore out all the old panel doors from the first floor and also all the baseboard. I was lucky to find a place in Madison that sells salvage from old houses. They were giving away doors one weekend so I got 5 for the house plus then purchased enough baseboard to do the living room, dining room and kitchen. So someday this baby will be back to what she used to look like, at least what I think she should have looked like.

I suppose, it is 10:00 so I better go. If anyone does find this blog, leave me a comment so I know I am talking to someone out there in Blogland. Thanks.

Thanks to Sonya and Stan

2009-10-05T17:18:00.000-07:00

My first post on my new blog! I need to send a shout out to two wonderful people who made me the winner of my very first blog give away. Stan from The Elegant Thrifter and Sonya from Dime Store Thrift did a joint give away a while ago and I left a comment to be put in the drawing. Amazing I was picked. So last weekend a beat up package, thanks to USPS was left on my front steps. I looked at who it was from and couldn't for the life of me figure it out. While I opened up what was left of the envelope and surprise, there was my book from Stan. Sent from New York! I have had very little time to sit and read through it all but I have looked at all the gorgeous pictures in it and can't wait to read what the words all say.

So I wanted to send a big, long delayed Thank You to Stan and Sonya for picking me and sending me that beautiful book.

Sonya has also inspired me to start purging stuff from my house. I sorted out and am getting rid of about a third of all my books that I have been collecting since high school. Yes, a very long time ago that was. ;) So far I have had two people bite on some of my books. Now I just have to find a big box to send my friend Flicka the set she picked.

I will post the list here in a few days so if anyone else is interested in some books let me know.

So welcome to my new crafty/thrifting/crap(as my husband likes to call my treasures) collecting and creating blog. There may be some venting or whining as well as showing off my finds as I try to not purchase anything new new but try to find stuff at thrift stores, rummage sales and auctions plus at some point once I get brave enough I may try to sell my treasures on Etsy and Ebay. So come along for the ride.