Thrifting Saturday

I know from your comments that some of you were motivated by my thrifty decorating tips in yesterday's post but were any of you motivated enough to venture out to the thrift store this weekend? I WAS!

Funny that I got myself all excited, isn't it? Our weather was beautiful today and I needed to pick up a few things at the grocery store anyway, so I thought I'd spend a little time out and about, enjoying the day. Here's my "haul" from two thrift stores--both Goodwill.

I spent approximately $40 and came home with about six bags of "stuff." Where can you go anymore and get six bags of anything for that price?! Not the grocery store, that's for sure!

Thimbleberries' Lynette Jensen has said that if you ever find wooden benches, buy them. I've taken her advice and picked up a couple now. You can see a small burgundy bench there near the back on the right.

Thrift stores are a great place to find cookbooks. They're inexpensive and you can find new recipes to try out. The Boy Child enjoys cooking, so I found a couple for him and a couple for myself. Here's an idea though: If you like to give gifts of food at Christmas, consider picking up a couple cookbooks at the thrift store and baking something from the books--then you can give the food gift along with the book. It would make a terrific gift! (Baskets and table linens, like cloth napkins and placemats, are also reasonably plentiful at thrift stores to dress up your gifts of food.)

Before I went out today, I was emailing back and forth a little with Patti about decorating ideas and I suggested an interesting "decoration" for the kitchen might be a medium sized bowl from the thrift store in neutral or autumn colors with a pumpkin sitting inside the bowl. You can tuck a little leaf garland around the pumpkin to liven it up a bit. Sit an interesting-looking rolling pin next to the bowl. Prop a cookbook behind the bowl, open to a pumpkin pie recipe, or cut one out of a thrifted cookbook and glue it to decorative cardstock and tuck that into the bowl too. So, see what I got at the thrift store? A medium brown and cream bowl and an interesting looking rolling pin! I bet you can guess what I'll probably end up doing with it once the pumpkins are delivered to my local stores!

In that photo, there's also a wooden tray. I have a few vintage Halloween images I've printed from my computer, and I'm thinking about decoupaging them onto the tray. I think that will be a quick craft idea--maybe I'll have that done to show you in the next couple days.

Whatever you spend your Sunday doing, whether it's thrifting, spending time with friends and family, or quilting, I hope you enjoy yourself!

Retail Therapy and A Little Decorating and Thrifting Lesson

As a busy work week was nearing its end today, I thought a little retail therapy would perk me up enough to make it through the final hours, so I took a late lunch and made a quick trip to Quilters Corner, one of our local quilt shops. The fact that I had an email from the shop early this morning letting me know that they had several new Thimbleberries Cover Story panels in really made the decision a no-brainer.

I thought that I might like a quick, easy panel to sew this weekend, so I picked up the new Halloween panel and a couple other Thimbleberries Halloween prints.

Then I browsed the 50% off fabrics and found a few more things.

Also in the 50% off fabrics was a Jo Morton print--brown and pink! I decided it might make either a nice border or setting triangles for the brown-and-pink "someday" quilt. And since they were there--but, alas!, not 50% off--a couple fat quarters in the appropriate colors were added to the stack.

You know what though? I sure feel less guilty buying fabric when I know I'll be getting a little extra overtime pay in my next check! Of course, by the time I GET that next paycheck, I'll probably have spent that overtime pay at least three or four times.

Originally--as in earlier this morning--I had been thinking about going to the thrift store at lunch time. It's completely understandable, then, that I decided to stop on the way home from work, right?

This is killing me. I love this old school desk. It was there the last time I stopped in a week or so ago, and it's still there. And I still have nowhere in the house for it. I hated leaving it behind! But at least I got a photo.

Now, a little decorating and thrifting lesson. See, I told Hubby I was being completely selfless when I stopped at Goodwill. I said I only did it for my Blogland friends. You believe me, right?

First of all, here's the disclaimer. I have no real education or training in decorating. Most of what I know I've picked up from TV, books and magazines, or looking at shop displays and blogs. So what do I know? Generally, I know that I have fun playing around with decorating my home for the holidays. I know many of you have complimented me on what you've seen here. I also know that some of you have told me you wished you could decorate and/or see the possibilities in thrift stores but you have a hard time. So I'll let you in on my thought process here. Of course, if you like the idea, feel free to use it--that's why I'm posting it.

I suspect many of you have thrift stores in your area that carry many of the same things mine do. One thing I notice in every thrift store I shop at is an abundance of candleholders. And specifically what I looked at today were the ones meant to hold the larger, pillar candles. For $5 total, here are the three I came home with:

Decorating tip--when you're putting together a display, think in odd numbers. That's why I bought THREE candleholders. I also wanted them to be different heights and different sizes. I was lucky enough to find three with similar finishes, although if I hadn't, I would have just painted them to match. You'll notice the styles of all three are completely different. That's good. Matching everything tends to be a little boring. At the same time, though, I wouldn't mix in a candleholder with sleek, modern lines because it wouldn't look "right" to me. And look for candleholders that don't have the spiky thing in the center. One of mine did, but Hubby was kind enough to grind it off for me.

And here's how I plan to use them--more or less:

Because the larger pumpkins haven't hit my local stores yet, I've just used three of the smaller pumpkins to show you, but I plan to get three different sized pumpkins. If you like sleeker lines in your home, just plop three pumpkins on top of your candle holders. For this photo, I used a candle garland from Michael's to show you how you can dress them up a bit more. You can also tuck some silk leaves and/or faux fall foliage around the base of the candleholders. Or pick up a framed mirror at the thrift store (repaint the frame if necessary) and put the candleholders on top of the mirror. Then add a couple more candleholders with real candles--when lit in the evening, the light will reflect off the mirror for a festive sparkle!

I could go on and on with ideas, but you'd probably get tired of reading them. Still, here are a couple quick ones: Use gourds instead of pumpkins. Put mini ears of dried corn around the bases of the candleholders. Use white pumpkins, or paint the pumpkins with clear gesso and sprinkle them with opalescent glitter for a less "rustic" look.

Is this stuff helpful or am I just telling you what you already know or don't care about? Can I tell Hubby that the "lesson" went over well and that I need to stop by the thrift store again next week?

And, by the way, remember my idea about buying that Thimbleberries panel for a quick weekend project? I think I have a better one, and if it turns out, I should be able to share it with you by the end of the weekend. In the meantime, the weekend's here and I'm ready to relax and have fun. I hope you are too! Thanks for stopping by!

Nothing!

That's what I've done tonight. A BIG, fat zero! I'm telling you, the work kids are kicking my rear end. Well, them and my "real" life, staying up late at night and decorating for fall.

If you follow my attorney "kids" analogy, then I suppose these two are toddlers now. Twins, in fact, and not so easy to keep up with. And it's not their fault. As they've learned and proven their abilities over the past year or so, they've been "rewarded" with more and more work. And young attorneys get dumped on, big time. All the large, involved, deadline projects become theirs. And mine. Lucky us, huh?

I've worked on so many motion documents lately that one of the other secretaries suggested I might have motion sickness. Yep, that's it! Think I can call in sick with that?! I would, if I could, but I can't afford to take any time off. In fact, I've had to put in a few hours of overtime this week just to keep my head above water. (Motion sickness. Head above water. Get it?! Yep, a pretty bad joke, so I must be tired!)

So, there's my rant for the night. Or maybe it's just an excuse for not having much to say. I had very good intentions of coming home from work and cleaning house tonight, but once Hubby and I got past the Chinese fast food, I turned into a slug. I thought an iced latte might help, but nope. Too far gone for that. So I sort of climbed into bed, still in regular hang-around-the-house clothes, and read. I need to take a bath and get my jammies on, but I'm not sure I won't drown in the tub. (There's another head-above-water bad joke here, but I won't inflict it upon you.) One more work day to get through--and boy do I need this weekend to arrive!

Ah, That's Better!

It's a little past 11:30, and once I post this, I can actually go to bed! Unlike last night when I was up until 2 a.m. decorating. ARGH!

Last night--while I was decorating--a bit of a wind came up, and it was much cooler today. Beautiful weather in fact! I think our high was in the high 70s and we can expect more of the same the rest of the week. I'm taking credit--I think Mother Nature must read my blog and realize it's time for Autumn OUTSIDE and not just INSIDE!

As promised, here are some photos of my decorations. Ready? First, here's the quilt you'll see when you come in the front door. It's a slightly altered Thimbleberries pattern from a couple years ago. Once I finish the Hey Ghoul Friend witch quilt, though, it will be replaced.

Now, come on into the kitchen.

This is a fun little arrangement I put together last year. And remember my Halloween tree? The one I made from the dead camellia bush? Here it is all dressed up.

It's kind of funny when your kids reach adulthood and you find out they actually WERE paying attention when they were younger. The Boy Child saw my tree the other day and asked what it was. I told him, of course, and he told me he had gotten a manzanita bush from somewhere to decorate. Cracks me up!

And my hutch. Sorry the photo's so dark, but it was night time and the lighting wasn't great. I know it's kind of hard to see in this photo, but I found the bat garland at the quilt shop the other night. Lindy at Bear Paws and Hollyhocks always has neat stuff!

Remember that corner cabinet I got at Goodwill last week?

There it is in the corner, all painted up! Last night while Hubby was trying to sleep, I was drilling screws in the wall and moving that green shelf/drawer unit up high enough to make room for the cabinet. Poor Hubby! The stuff he has to put up with around here!

If you look close, you might be able to see that I put together parts of a witch's costume--a broom, shoes, and a hat. The broom was a small, beat up one Hubby kept on the patio and used occasionally. I painted the handle and prettied it up a bit. I guess Hubby's going to have to get himself a new broom. Then, on the chest of drawers, there's an antique pair of shoes my mom passed on to me a couple years ago. She had painted them gold, which I thought was pretty odd, but I added some purple plaid ribbon and they seem just right for a Halloween decoration. Want to see them--and the cabinet--a little closer?

And the last part of the witch's wardrobe--here's her hat. I used a purchased papier mache cone, added a paper plate as the brim, and covered the whole thing with papier mache. Once it dried, I painted and decorated it.

Martha Stewart's cut out rat sillouhettes are kind of fun! I put some on the bottom of the door from the kitchen to the garage--in addition to these on the range top--and Spike wasn't sure how to react--she thought they might be real!

The top of my fridge. I really need to clean off all the papers, coupons, magnets, and such from the front of the fridge, so I just photographed the TOP--that's all you get to see! Don't you think that wooden basket needs some little pumpkins? (Don't look close at the dirt! I really, really need to clean, and I'll probably do that in the next couple days!)

Finally, I'll leave you with a close up of the Halloween tree--and Archie, of course!

Those are Boo Bells tied onto the branches and there's a string of purple lights on the tree too. And crows--Halloween wouldn't be Halloween without black crows.

Well, it's just past midnight--the Witching Hour! Time for me to get in bed and pull the covers up over my head so the ghosts and goblins don't get me! I'll see you again next time!

Waaaay Too Late to Chat

Sorry I have nothing for you tonight. I've stayed up waaaaay too late decorating and crafting and I'm getting close to done--other than making the appliqued witch quilt, which will probably take another couple weeks. I hope to have some photos for you tomorrow night of what I've been doing, so come on back!

More Autumn "Stuff"

Come on into my bedroom. If you were reading my blog last year around this time, you've probably seen most of it already and can continue on to the next blog on your blog roll if you want, but if you're a new friend, and especially if you're a quilter, you'll probably want to take the tour.

See that computer monitor over in the corner? That's where I'm sitting right now. And see the side of the bed closest to you? There's a big old lump in it now--it's Hubby trying to go to sleep! Shhhhh!

So, anyway, that's the quilt I put on my bed in the fall. It started out as a BOM by Kansas Troubles, but before long, I found myself adding my own applique designs in the border and extending the original borders to fit a king size bed. This is Hubby's favorite quilt, I think. And it's finally cool enough at night to be able to get this heavier quilt out. Autumn--even if it still seems like summer in the middle of the day here, the cooler night and morning temperatures tell me the seasons are changing.

A couple years ago, I pieced the panels above the bed to match the quilt. Nifty, huh?!

And about a year after that, I pulled out all my leftover scraps and made the valance.

See those wooden shutters on the window sill? Those were from the thrift store. Did I show those to you before? I can't remember. I had a third, slightly taller one that I used on top of the entertainment center in the living room--I think it's in yesterday's photos. [Editor's Note: Nope, not in yesterday's photos--I'll have to get a photo to share.] Hubby worries that someone is going to peek in the bedroom window--which is in our back yard--so I thought if I put those shutters up, he wouldn't worry so much. I think he's afraid someone will see us naked and sue for emotional distress. Or go blind. Or laugh so long and so hard he can't breathe. I think I still want to do something to the shutters though--maybe add garland or decorations of some sort to brighten them up a little. Maybe I'll just tape a photo of a face to the back side looking in and freak Hubby out a little. I guess it will depend on my mood. Which reminds me--did you know the moon's full tonight?

Then there's this quilt that's very special to me. My online group did a Halloween block challenge one year--everyone who wanted to enter made a block, and we voted on our favorite. My good friend Eileen won--she made the block near the center with the barn and the pumpkins. I was soooo envious because all the blocks were wonderful! Well, she pieced the quilt and hand quilted it and gave it to me as a Christmas gift the following year. Isn't she a sweetheart?!

Time for my beauty sleep. Crawling under that quilt and getting into bed sounds mightly inviting! Goodnight Blogland friends! Goodnight big old lump! Goodnight Moon!

Show and Tell, Part 2

I suck at photography, but I'm inflicting these photos on you anyway. Actually, I think a good part of it is the camera. That's my story, and I'm sticking to it.

Hubby thinks it's funny when I go around the house and take photos of the decorations. I think it's funny when I decorate and he says we'll have to invite people over the see it. Of course, I'm thinking all of YOU see it and I don't even have to get dressed and fix my hair first!

Yesterday I was working on two projects that weren't finished. One still isn't, but I finished this "sign" today so I can show you. Witches' Ride Nite, Oct. 31st. I made Hubby save some old fence boards so I could make signs. Of course, he thinks I'm nuts.

My plan is to decorate the kitchen for Halloween, and the rest of the house will have Autumn decorations. Then, after Halloween, I only have one room to redecorate. I know, I know--some of you probably think I'm nuts with all the seasonal decorating, but I enjoy the crafting/artistic side of it, and I also enjoy looking at it. For awhile. Then I have to change everything again.

The garland on the mantle has lights, but because I'm an inept photographer, you can't see them very well. No matter what setting I select, the photos pretty much come out the same. Sheesh!

There's AUTUMN. I fully expect the Boy Child will come over some day when I'm at work and rearrange the letters to spell something obscene. I don't know if it's possible, but if it is, he'll figure it out. I'm planning to put a pumpkin or two up there, but the pumpkins--the larger ones--haven't hit the stores yet. So I'm just saving some space for them right now.

Here's the Wild Child's former room. Remember the bench I bought at Goodwill? It sure comes in handy for decorating! Speaking of the Wild Child, she just got home from a week long kayaking trip around Lake Tahoe. She has a ton of photos she wants me to see, and she's uploaded them all to a photo album on Facebook. She said I have to open a Facebook account of my own to view them. And I have to ask if I can be her friend. And if she's in a good mood, she said, she might consider it. Argh!

See that tray on the table, bottom center? Goodwill! It has a Charles Wysocki print on it--I love his stuff!

Here's a wool pumpkin tabletopper I made--I think it was the year before last. This is one of my favorite Autumn pieces!

This little display--it's been up for months. I just threw some Autumn leaves in there for effect. Sometimes easy is good.

Dress up squirrel is ready for Autumn!

If you've been reading my blog for a long time, you might remember Phineas Pheasant. Phineas used to belong to my mom until she moved and she passed him on to me. He was around when I was a little kid. One of these days, his feathers will probably all fall out. In the meantime, though, he gets to come out every Autumn and visit. It looks like he's thinking about eating those pumpkins, doesn't it?

Mostly I've shown you photos of the living room and a couple other limited areas tonight. That's because despite the fact that I've been decorating all freakin day long and my feet are about to fall off, I still have a way to go. Not much has been done in the kitchen yet, and although the other rooms are decorated, they're a bit chaotic right now with stuff coming out of the cupboards to be displayed and more stuff piling up to be put away in the cupboards. So, you can look forward with eager delight to more decorating wonders from my home. Just don't expect me to get dressed and fix my hair when you come over to my blog for a visit!

Show and Tell

Nothing amusing happened to me today, so I have no stories to tell. Most of the day, I spent playing with crafty stuff and getting my fingers dirty, so I'll tell you about that instead.

But before I do, I'll show you the quilt I finished earlier this week.

Remember this one I pinned awhile back? And I promised I'd do a little tutorial to show you how to make it? Well, that's still coming. I hoped to do it this weekend, but I've gotten sidetracked by Halloween projects. So, hang in there if you were waiting for the tutorial. It's coming, one of these days!

And remember the Halloween tree? I found this orange vase at the thrift store yesterday. The tree still needs decorating, but the decorations are in boxes in rafters in the garage and we're waiting for the Boy Child to come over and help get them down. Tomorrow morning he says.

I bought this little lantern kit at Michael's and added heavy wires to the top to make it into a lampshade. The lamp, by the way, is one I found at the thrift store a couple months ago for $5.

And a fall floral arrangement. Yes, the idea was shamelessly stolen from Hop Hop Jingle Boo--love her blog! The vase though--thrift shop yesterday.

And speaking of the thrift shop, here's something I found yesterday. I have plans to fix it up. Sort of plans. Ideas anyway.

Funny thing is that I remember wishing I had a corner cabinet and now I can't figure out where it was I wanted a corner cabinet for because it seems my corners are all otherwise occupied. Well, I'll find a place! It would be nice to get it done before Halloween and display Halloween treats inside, but I have a lot I want to get done, so I'm not sure that will happen.

Several of the crafty things I've been working on are in different stages of completion, but I should have more to show you tomorrow, I think. See you then!

I Should Have Expected . . .

. . . the day to be a little "odd" when I realized on my way to work this morning that the clowns had come to town.

But I didn't. Not then. I just wondered where the elephants rode.

During my lunch hour, I decided to make a visit to the Goodwill store. You know the one I shoplifted from last time I went? Yeah, that one. And sometimes you run into odd people at thrift stores. Oh, I'm not talking about ME or any of YOU, of course. WE'RE all quite normal. But still . . .

I wonder who would drive this car? I'm pretty sure this lovely purple doesn't come standard on a Lincoln Town Car. The fact that it's not lowered and all tricked out tells me it's someone with a restrained sense of style. In other words, it's probably not your average pimp. I wondered whether I might be able to spot the owner inside.

Could it have been the two Hispanic men in the electronics aisle, speaking in Spanish on their cell phones, cranking up the stereo systems to ensure good speaker quality?

Could it have been the mother with the heavy Southern accent and her daughter who appeared to be in her late teens? They were an interesting pair. Both were overweight, lumpily flabby, and dressed in sloppy clothing. During the time it took me to pass them by, I heard the mother admonish her daughter at least FOUR TIMES that she should NEVER dress in scanty clothing like some of the clothes on the racks because men won't respect her and will treat her like "sh!t." Guess what mom? I don't think that's going to be the biggest problem! No, I'm pretty sure they weren't driving the flashy purple car.

In the textiles/linens aisles, I felt something poke my rear end. Ouch! I adjusted my pants but the pain continued. When I oh-so-subtly hid myself between the racks and stuck my hand down inside the back of my pants, I felt something that seemed to be a sticker or a splinter. The pain stopped for a few moments but then I felt a different pain--kind of an itchy/stingy sensation. As best I can figure, I got stung by a bee in the Goodwill store. The one I shoplifted from last time. Karma?

You can bet I finished my shopping as quickly as I could, trying not to be obvious about scratching my rear end, and checked out. And yes, at the checkstand I made a $3 donation to help train the handicapped, so I've made restitution for my previous shoplifting. I don't think I want any more of that karma following me around and stinging me in the butt!

Well, you'd think that was enough excitement for one day, but no! Late in the day, as I was going out the front door of my office building, I saw a rat.

By way of background, our office is located in a very pretty area with lots of vegetation. Because of that, there are rats all over, although we don't usually SEE them. Our pest control guy puts out poison, and on a fairly regular basis, the rats eat the poison and climb up into the building's "attic" space and die. The pest control guy comes back out when someone's nose alarm detects the need, and he and removes the little rat bodies. Unfortunately there's something about the building's design that causes most of the rats to die in the space above the reception area. Understandably, our receptionist doesn't like rats much.

So, anyway, I opened the front door, saw a rat outside, and turned back to our receptionist to jokingly tell her there was a rat out there, waiting to die. As I turned back to the door, I saw the rat charging at me full speed. Before I could close the door, it zoomed right in, acting like I was nothing more than the WalMart greeter, scurried past me, and made a beeline for the receptionist's desk.

The receptionist didn't believe me about the rat until she saw it run around the corner of her desk. I felt kind of sorry for the person whose phone call she had just answered, because she screamed into the phone THREE TIMES before she announced the name of our law firm. Once she transferred the call, she ran out of the reception area as fast as she could and sat on top of the nearest desk, while I went to get my fearless Boy Boss and a box to catch the rat in.

Because our receptionist had disappeared and the phone was ringing, I started answering calls while the rat was running all over near my feet and Boy Boss was trying to maneuver the box into position for capture. The first call I answered was the senior partner wanting to know what was on his calendar for Monday. I think I did a pretty good job at not letting on that there was anything unusual going on, despite the fact that a rat was running all over the place, Boy Boss was under the desk where he'd been joined by one of the tender-hearted staff members, and by that time, the office manager had appeared to direct the two of them--from the OTHER side of the desk where I kind of doubt she even had a view of the proceedings--on how to catch the rat.

As you may imagine, by that time, it was getting kind of loud up there as several more people had come out to see what was going on. It seemed the only one who hadn't appeared was our receptionist, so I continued to field calls. One of the other partners called looking for his secretary who was nowhere to be found. Then the secretary called from somewhere in the office. Then the receptionist called from somewhere else in the office to say she had found the secretary. Just as the phones quieted down a little, the rat was caught in the box, and we all trooped outside to release it back into the wilds.

And it's a darn good thing someone had the presence of mind to close the door this time because as soon as the rat was released, it ran right back to the door--but this time, it kind of slammed into the glass, bounced off, and ran away in a different direction. Hopefully it wasn't trying to make its way up into the attic. I'd prefer to believe it ran off to join the circus and scare the elephants.

On the Lighter Side . . .

I've been hitting all the stores this past week, looking for Halloween and Autumn decorations, and I found these rats at Michael's. Just had to have me a couple, of course!

I thought I'd introduce Spike to one. Spike kind of sniffed at it for a few seconds, nose to nose, and right after this photo was taken, she jumped on it and they rolled all over the floor until she was sure the rat was dead. She's such a fiece hunter!