Sixteen Dollars and an Estate Sale

When we headed out to an estate sale on Saturday, I didn't expect to buy anything. Once we got to that old metal barn and walked in, I was sure that there was nothing I'd want, but Hubby started poking around and I wandered a bit while I was waiting for him. Everything was dirty. Nothing had prices. 

There are some things I'd love to have, but don't want to pay the going price for.

Like this fan....

And this scale...

A vintage bottle and jug cutting kit has never been on my list, but I know I saw something on Pinterest that required cutting bottles. And I remember wanting one as a kid and I'm sure this would be safer than using string and nail polish and fire and a sink full of ice water. (I should buy band-aids, shouldn't I?)

I've got two of these drying racks already, but my girl is going out into the world someday and she's not taking mine. This one is a slightly different style than mine and definitely neater...but keeping it means I'm the one who gets to clean it up.

I got my share of the haul, which also included the tea pot that's hiding there by the drying rack and a wonderfully sturdy step stool for my kitchen (something that's been on the wish list forever) for sixteen dollars Seriously, I would have paid that for a new stool if I'd ever found one as sturdy as what found in the old dirty barn.

This was the kind of sale I love, where people are just trying to get rid of stuff they want and don't really care too much. The drying rack wasn't as cheap as I would've liked, but the scale and bottle cutting kit were super cheap (two bucks for that scale?!?!), so it all evened out.

And now I've got a fan and a scale and a bottle cutting kit!

This post is linked to Treasure Hunt Thursday.

{Yarn Along} Have I got enough yarn here?

The more I knit on my Constant Companion, the more convinced that I am there's not enough yarn here. I already knew that I needed something else for the straps, but now I'm wondering about the body....and I'm not quite worked up enough to go through my stash to see if I have any feltable yarn that will go with this colorway. I'm fairly sure  I don't, but I suppose I should check just in case.

It's not helping my knitting mojo that I can't find the second partial skein of Mellow Stripes that I need for the Leftover Socks that I showed you last week. Two projects I'm making great progress on, and I probably can't finish either.





If you read thrillers, run and get your hands on a copy of Method 15/33 by Shannon Kirk. I did think twice about reading this one.  Was I really in the mood for another abduction story? In this case, a pregnant sixteen year old is pulled into an old van and driven for days....and that's where it stops being like anything else I've read. The book opens with the girl alone in a locked room, carefully listing every asset and assigning it a number. She is determined to keep her baby safe, to escape, and to exact her revenge.  I read straight through, turning pages to find out just who this girl was and what was going to happen to her. And was surprised when I thought the story was coming to an end and realized that I still had half of the book to go. (One of the quirks of reading things on the Kindle is that you don't have a constant physical indication of your progress.)

For more pretty knitting projects to drool over, check out On the Needles at Patchwork Times.


  Disclosure - The publishers provided me with an ARC.

No More Bicycle Wheels for Me!

Not for a while at least -- until I find another pattern so adorable that I forget how much of a pain these wheels were. 

My problem with them?  I couldn't find a logical order to do them in without carrying the thread more than I'd like.

Now that she's done, I'm busy on a new block and not avoiding my embroidery anymore.

Garden Party Quilt Update

I haven't taken a picture of my Garden Party blocks since November.  A couple of blocks are winning the game of hide and seek, but this is almost all of them. It's the closest to a quilt that this project has ever looked!

Laying them all out like this is a pain, but it gives me an idea what the finished project might look like and reassures me that I don't have too many chores or plates or things taking baths, so it's worth the hassle.

This post is linked to Design Wall Monday at Patchwork Times.

Stocking Up on the Self Striping Stuff

In the year and a half since the accident, I've knit twenty-four pairs of socks, most of them with self-striping sock yarn that's been aging in my stash since I first fell in love with the idea of sock knitting. 

I've still got plenty of sock yarn to play with, but most of the self-striping stuff has been converted into striped socks. I've been waiting for Serenity Sock from Joann's to go on sale.

This time, I did my homework, checking to see what the yarn would look like as a sock so there shouldn't be any unpleasant surprises when I start knitting.

It puts me a little bit in the red for the year, but I don't think that'll last for long. 

Weekly Stash Report 

Fabric Used this Week: 0 yards

Fabric Used year to Date: 0 yards

Added this Week: 0 yards

Added Year to Date: 41 yards

Net Added for 2015: 38 1/2 yards

Yarn Used this Week: 0 yards

Yarn Used year to Date: 2800 yards

Yarn Added this Week: 1610 yards

Yarn Added Year to Date: 3675 yards

Net Added for 2015:  875 yards

This post is linked to Patchwork Times. 

Ask the Past: Pertinent and Impertinent Advice From Yesteryear

If you're as intrigued by random bits of history as our family is, Ask the Past: Pertinent and Impertinent Advice from Yesteryear by Elizabeth P. Archibald may be just what you didn't know you wanted to read. I learned how to dye my hair green (from a source dated 1563), some new tips for childbirth (scream loudly so people will feel sorry for you and give you treats), and to only give cheap clothes to small children because they tear and stain them. Although I knew that last one already.

It's all in the original spelling and grammar and some entries are more challenging to decipher than others. There's a brief comment after each entry and I found myself giggling at quite a few of them. What I really wish the book included was some explanation of the historical context.

If you're intrigued, you can check out Ask the Past, the blog that the book is based on, or the Ask the Past Facebook Page. Both will give you a good feel for what the book is all about.

 Disclosure -- The publisher provided me with an ARC.

Let's Make Baby Quilts! {5/1/15}

Let's Make Baby Quilts Linky Party Rules: 
Link directly to your post or specific Flickr photo. Your post can be about a baby quilt that's finished, or in progress, or you can be writing about what you have planned,  as long as it's about baby quilts. You're welcome to link to baby quilt posts that aren't brand new, but please don't submit the same post or picture more than once. I'd love it if you linked back to my site, either with a text link or the Let's Make Baby Quilts! button.

Beware of Owls!

I wanted something quick  and fun to knit, so I cast on the free Owl Ornaments pattern from Ravelry. Very quick, very fun, and there are a bunch of different options, so I may knit another one or two for our Christmas tree.  A scrap of Red Heart Supersaver and two buttons from Grandma....I think finding two matching white buttons without spreading out the entire contents of the jar was the hardest part of the whole project!

The city of Salem has installed angry owl warning signs in Bush Park because an owl was attacking joggers. Makes me glad that our little friend just knocked on the dining room window at night. (He has, happily, stopped doing that. I was afraid the poor little guy was going to knock himself silly!)

This post is linked to Finish it Up Friday.

{Yarn Along} Leftover Socks

With all of the socks I've been knitting over the past couple of years, I've got plenty of leftover bits of yarn. Not enough of any one colorway for an adult pair...and I don't have any little feet to knit for... But these two looked like they'd play decently together. 

That's the leftover yarn from my Mellow Stripe Socks and my Lemon Drop Socks. I thought it would be the yellow that pulled the two yarns together, but it's actually the green that makes it look like I didn't grab two skeins at complete random. They're not matchy-matchy perfect, but they work.




Antiques Swap by Barbara Allan is the first Trash 'n' Treasures Mystery I've read and it was so much fun that I've already got the first two books in the series sitting here and ready to read. The murder mystery is intriguing and kept me guessing, but it's Brandy and her mom and their writing style that kept me turning pages. Because they're writing the book and making sure that the reader knows exactly how to get caught up. If they refer to a previous event, they let you know which book it happened in. So even though I jumped in with the tenth book, I wasn't feeling lost, just eager to backtrack and read the rest of the series.



When a man inherits a house from a cousin and finds a dead rat under the refrigerator with a note in its mouth, that sets him off following a creepy game of puzzles and hidden clues, wondering the whole time whether his cousin set it all up before his suicide, or if there's something more sinister going on. Mortom by Erik Therme pulled in in quickly and kept me reading, but it's just an average thriller.

For more pretty knitting projects to drool over, check out On the Needles at Patchwork Times.


  Disclosure - The publishers provided me with ARCs.

This is Why We Save Things

I am so glad that I don't come from a family of minimalists, people who throw away everything that doesn't have a definite immediate purpose. If we were like that, I wouldn't have had the fun of dressing Teenage Daughter up in her great-grandmother's wedding dress. 

Just look at that kick pleat!

I wish we could have taken this picture last year, or the year before, so that Grandma could have seen her, but I didn't know the dress existed until Mom pulled it out of a drawer and then happened to glance at the picture hanging on the wall. (Now that I do know it exists, I'm halfway convinced I would have worn it for my own wedding!)

We also took pictures of Alex in my mother's wedding dress. (She says it's too short for me to post pictures of, and I suppose I should be a good mom and honor her wishes, but think Daphne from Scooby Doo in that pale mint that would make a perfect dress for Queen Elsa. It is the cutest thing ever on my eighteen-year-old, even if I can't figure out how that was appropriate for a church wedding.)  And in the near future, I want to  get out my own dress and take pictures of her in that one, too.

Because who has pictures in her mother's, grandmother's and great-grandmother's wedding dresses?

This post is linked to Share Your Cup,

Procrastination and Wheel Spokes

I love this kitten and her bicycle and I really want her in my Garden Party Quilt, but something about those wheel spokes was intimidating. I got the black part of the tires partially done, then it sat untouched for almost a month.

I can't abandon the whole project over a few wheel spokes, can I? But I couldn't convince myself to work on it, not even fifteen minutes at a time. For the moment, I'm ignoring the wheels and working on the cat. Maybe if I get everything else done, I'll be able to force myself to finish the wheels and chain.

Either that, or I'm going to start another block!

This post is linked to Design Wall Monday.

A Day at the Quilt Show

Mom and I spent Thursday at the quilt show in Rickreall. Except for Sisters, I haven't been to a quilt show in years. The last time I made it to this one was in 2009 -- and when I wrote about it, I said that my quilt show days were probably numbered. 

This year, I left the kids at home -- one of the perks of having a responsible older teenager. While she's still living at home, I'm going to enjoy the stolen moments of freedom.

The quilts were gorgeous. I've got a stronger urge than ever to make Calendula Patterdrip's Cottage, but I really can't justify starting another witch quilt, or Crabapple Hill quilt, until I at least finish stitching the blocks for Hocuspocusville. 

And I came home with some fabric. This panel is from the Princess on a Pea Around the World collection by Denyse Klette and I just can't get over the colors. 

Look at the lanterns!

And the mason jar full of fireflies....

I'm not sure how I'm going to turn this one into a quilt. This panel, which has six old sewing machines all surrounded by wonderful notions and sewing goodies knows exactly what it wants to be when it gets sewn together.

Weekly Stash Report 

Fabric Used this Week: 0 yards
Fabric Used year to Date: 2 1/2 yards
Added this Week: 5 yards
Added Year to Date: 41 yards
Net Added for 2015: 38 1/2 yards

Yarn Used this Week: 400 yards
Yarn Used year to Date: 2800 yards
Yarn Added this Week: 0 yards
Yarn Added Year to Date: 2065 yards
Net Used for 2015:  735 yards

This post is linked to Patchwork Times.

Cabin Lessons: A Nail-by-Nail Tale

I enjoy reading memoirs because I usually seem to learn something interesting. Cabin Lessons: A Nail-by-Nail Tale: Building Our Dream Cottage from 2x4s, Blisters, and Love by Spike Carlsen taught me about vacation homes near the Great Lakes, building codes, and small cabin design. Even though I never plan on building a vacation cabin or relocating to that part of the country, I found it all interesting. The author's enthusiasm is contagious. His love for his wife and their shared passion for Oma Tupa, Oma Lupa (the name they choose for their home away from home) is contagious.

Disclosure - The publisher provided me with an ARC.

Let's Make Baby Quilts! {4/24/15}

Sheila from Sew Cook and Travel took four messed up Pineapple Blossom blocks and made them into the center of this baby quilt. Can you believe that something this cute was an accident?

Let's Make Baby Quilts Linky Party Rules: 
Link directly to your post or specific Flickr photo. Your post can be about a baby quilt that's finished, or in progress, or you can be writing about what you have planned,  as long as it's about baby quilts. You're welcome to link to baby quilt posts that aren't brand new, but please don't submit the same post or picture more than once. I'd love it if you linked back to my site, either with a text link or the Let's Make Baby Quilts! button.

Yarn Over Cable Socks

This is another pair that will be going to Teenage Daughter because, even though I knew better, I didn't increase for the leg. That stitch pattern isn't really a cable, but it's enough to pull in the fabric and make it too tight for my leg. 

I really like the yarn (I think it's Opal, but the label was long gone by the time I cast on)  and its extra-subtle striping. The stitch pattern hides in those striped a bit, but it's a lot more fun to look at than plain stockinette. It was just challenging enough to keep things interesting, but not so hard to keep track of that I can't do it in a room full of talking family members.

This post is linked to Finish it up Friday.

Thrift Store (almost) Temptations...

Teenage Daughter needs the perfect pair of shoes for a costume, so we've been stopping at all of the thrift stores. Three pairs of shoes and a glorious coat full length black coat later, she's still looking.

Did you realize that the Goodwill Outlet sells shoes by the pound, and that there are plenty of cute pairs to be found if you're a size 8 1/2?

While my girl tried on shoes, I wandered and tried not to look at anything I'd want to buy for myself.

I could see myself rescuing this poor baby. It was in such sad shape, missing all of the knobs and buttons, but it was only ten bucks and I've never seen anything like it at the bins. Someone who isn't me will find it and do something wonderful, I'm sure. And one of these days, Hubby and I will decide what to do with the old radio we've got out in the barn.

I've never  seen a bar like this at the bins -- or anyplace else for that matter. My father's parents had a bar down in their basement, with a mirror and shelves. As a kid, it's existence baffled me. Now, it baffles me even more and I wish there were pictures.

This one was only fifteen bucks -- and that's a turntable and an 8-track tape player hidden in the back. I've got faith that someone will rescue it and do something Pinterest worthy.

If you know what these bars were actually called, please let me go. I'm trying to find pictures of something like the one Grandma and Grandpa had, but I must be using the wrong terminology.

This post is linked to Fabulous Friday, Treasure Hunt Thursday, Share Your Cup

{Yarn Along} My Constant Companion

My Constant Companion, a bag from the book Knitter's Stash, was one of the first knitting patterns I fell in love with. Later, I saw a shop sample somewhere and fell even more head-over-heels....And then I made a whole bunch of other things and forgot about it. This week, I finally cast on. I don't have enough yarn to do it as written, so I scaled it down a bit and have my fingers crossed.





House of Echoes by Brendan Duffy is one of those creepy books about a family who moves to an isolated small town, hoping for a better life. The wife is struggling with her own emotions. The oldest boy spends hours wandering through the forest that surrounds the mansion that his parents are working to convert into an inn. And the father is working on a book based in part on the historical documents he found in the basement.  Those are a whole bunch of familiar elements, but in this book they all work, without sounding like every other book I've read about a family moving to a small town where the traditions are just a little strange.

The Lie by C. L. Taylor tells the story of Jane Hughes, a woman who works at an animal sanctuary and of Emma Woolfe, a young woman on a dream vacation with her best friends. Jane and Emma are the same woman and this is the story of how she survived that nightmarish trip, which took the lives of two other women, and became Jane. The chapters alternate between the retreat in Nepal and Jane's life in the present where she's just become aware that someone knows her secret. I enjoyed the book, but I was hoping for more. The most chilling scene had nothing to do with either storyline.

For more pretty knitting projects to drool over, check out On the Needles at Patchwork Times.


  Disclosure - The publishers provided me with ARCs.