I'm Such a Thrift Store Junkie!

It seems like I'll go a couple weeks without any desire to hit a thrift store and then WHAM! All of a sudden, I'm Jonesing for a fix! This week, I've visited five, I think! Truth to tell, I had a vague idea of something I was looking for, and that's really never a good idea. In my experience, when you're looking for something, you never find it, and that's been true of my latest hunt.

Oh, that's not to say that I haven't found anything, though. Sheesh! I've found plenty--and then some! I'll show you a couple things.

The other night, I stopped by the Goodwill closest to my house, and in the "crafts gone wrong" aisle, I found a bunch of plastic bags, each containing five boxes of "Tri-Chem Liquid Embroidery Paint." And since I've renewed my interest in embroidery, I thought I'd buy a couple bags and see just what this stuff was. I examined the boxes and each contained a paint "pen."

I also did a little internet research, and discovered that these things are supposed to be pretty neat if I can get them working. Apparently it may take a little fussing with the tips and possibly the paint inside, but I'm game. So the next night, I went back and bought more, so I'd have a decent range of colors, and I also bought a bag that included a tin of solvent--solvent is necessary to get the tips working correctly. Now I just need to find time to play around with them! Have you ever tried these?

Tonight I went to another Goodwill store. I never really thought about it before, but do you know they have books on tape? With the television season coming to an end, I thought books on tape might be a great "noise" substitute while I quilt, so I picked up a few.

The Smoke Jumper? The book's been sitting on my bookshelf for years, waiting for me to read it, ever since I read The Horse Whisperer. Now I can! Well, sort of!

And while I was browsing the books, I found two quilt books--Gerry Kimmel Carr. Pretty cool, huh? The cashier asked me if I knew they were $2--I guess she didn't want me to get home, look at my receipt, and think I'd paid too much. Silly girl!

And here's the really exciting news: I read in the newspaper today that another Goodwill is going to go into a shopping center that has a large, vacant store about a half mile from Bearpaws and Hollyhocks quilt shop--right on my drive to and from Bearpaws, in fact! AND it's right near a Starbucks. AND it's kitty corner to a Michael's store. Heaven on Earth is what I'm thinking!

Anyway, I thought I'd celebrate by another little giveaway so you can share the joy too. Do you remember when I mentioned I'd gotten a book (at the thrift store) that had some great ideas for using vintage tablecloths as curtains? Click HERE if you'd like to refresh your memory, and then scroll down a bit. Well, I found another copy of the same book at the Goodwill this week. It was published in 1996, so some of the ideas are a little old, but it's still a terrific source for inspiration.

If you think this might be something you'd be interested in, please leave me a comment telling me you'd like a chance to win the book. I'll draw a name on Saturday night, so if you ask to be put in the drawing, check back on Sunday to see who won.

Bedtime for me--time to go to bed and dream thrifty fantasies!