Bella Dia

Vintage Quilts

Not too long ago I had a first at a thrift store: I found
two old quilts! This never happens to me! The older
one pictured above was just $14 and in pretty good
condition with only a few repairs. The back is cream
colored flannel which is perfect for me. 

My favorite thing about scrappy quilts is that I love
looking at all the different fabrics used in the making
and deciding which is my favorite. There are some
real jewels hidden in there so here are some close-ups
of  a few of my favorites. You can click on the
pictures to see them larger.

red, white, and blue baby blocks and bears

It wasn't until I put this picture into the computer that
I noticed that the red, yellow, and turquoise
"flowers" were really dancers!

What can I say? Windmills, tulips, sailors!

I think this one is a bit of an optical illusion. Can you
see the ladies with parasols and hoop skirts on the
black background pieces? There's also a gentleman
with a cane and top hat.

This is the front of the second quilt I got and for
just $10! We'll be using this for a picnic blanket. 

This is the back - yep, it's patch work too. Here's
some closeups of my favorites from this quilt:

Both of these remind me of feedsack prints but
I don't know if they are or not.

I love this print - I always have a hard time
finding good gray prints.

My kingdom for a fat quarter of any of these fabrics!

Thrifting: The Wood Aisle

One of my favorite aisles in the thrift store is the wood
aisle. These are some of the things I found on one of my
last forays - I was especially excited about the little
hutch and the wooden shoes. 

These are after pictures of the hutch and the chair, aren't
they cute?! I have visions of making the little hutch into
a miniature craft cabinet with folded bolts of cloth and
jars of buttons and stuff. For the little green chair I
want to make a cushion and imagine relaxing in it
with a mojito at my side.

I don't have a before picture of this bench but it was
plain wood when I bought it. I used acrylic paint and
finished it with a coat of varnish. 

These are fun for the kids to do too. You might
need to use some sandpaper on items that have been
previously painted or varnished but take a look next
time you're thrifting and see what you come up with!

Thrifting and Thank You

I was able to go to one thrift shop over the weekend and apparently I was attracted to really bright colors.  Of course this striped blanket caught my eye.

I love the picot edging on this blanket and am thinking about using it on one of mine.  I'm still working on my striped blanket with only about 8" to go but it's a very long eight inches.  Then all I have to do is weave in about 400 ends and crochet the border so it will probably be done in time for hmmm, let's see, Christmas? ....gaaah.

This is the first time I have ever bought towels - just couldn't get past the "ick factor" - but this bright orange and avocado green are one of my favorite color combinations. I thought they would make a great summer bag to take to the lake.

   

A couple of cute linen dish towels are always a great find :)

All of your kind comments on my previous post are most appreciated.  It really does help you keep moving forward when you know there are others out there who care and can relate to what you are going through.  Your comments truly lifted my mood and I thank each one of you from the bottom of my heart for being so kind and thoughtful. 

Thrifting Fridays

Have you found one particular day of the week better than others for thrifting? I think I always find the best stuff on Fridays so that's when I try to schedule my thrift shop time. Maybe because they are preparing for the weekends and putting out more stock. Anyway, these are some of my favorites that I found in my last few Thriftshop Fridays.

These adorable little Chinese children figurines holding their favorite pets - I almost passed them up but my daughter liked them so in the cart they went and I'm so glad they did.

This is an old vase but doesn't have any markings on it. I haven't had time to research it but I love it no matter what. It's large, about 12" high.

And a little Swiss chalet music box - wind the water wheel and listen to Edelweiss. Aaack, I love it!

Folk Art Dishes

Recently, I found these dishes while thrifting. My research hasn't revealed much more than the information already on them: the maker is Gibson and the pattern is Adam and Eve. I'm two dishes shy of having four place settings so I'll be on the lookout for a salad plate and a dinner plate. Not a bad deal though, 14 pieces for $8.

I need more dishes like a hole in the head but I couldn't resist these sweet folksy designs. Just look at how cute that little house is!

And the deer! C'mon, tell me you couldn't resist them either ;)

Flowercarts and Mushrooms

I've been finding these Japanese mugs at only one thrift shop and only every few months.  I go for weeks with nary a mug in sight then suddenly there are three!  I thought I was going to faint when I saw the mushroom one ;) 

I took an unplanned blog break but have lots of good things going on.  Spring fever hit me hard with flower planting, decluttering and organizing the house, the biannual switching of wardrobes from winter to summer, and general herding of ducks to get them in a row.  More to share soon!

Thrift Finds

Things have been busy here but I was able to make a quick pass through the thrift store the last time we were in town and I found a few treasures.  I'm still loving these Japanese mugs...

and I bought some wool jackets for the first time.  There's a few stuffies that I want to try and I thought this fabric looked good.

I have no idea what I'll be doing with these little wooden soldiers but I thought they were cute and only 50¢ so in the cart they went.

I was happy to find a whole box of unused vintage Christmas cards too.  There are six different designs and each one has a little activity on the inside.  There are more pictures over on my Flickr page if you're interested.

Thrifting Surprise

I purchased this crocheted afghan over the weekend during a short thrift store run.  I was immediately attracted to the colors but didn't open it up fully until I got home.  What a happy surprise!  The blanket is like a giant sampler with each square being a different stitch.   I'm going to share the squares in future posts as soon as I can figure out the names of the various stitches, but I think it's a great idea for another blanket project.  Oh, what I wouldn't give for more time in a day!

I also purchased a few aprons that will be used for their fabric, a pair of Vera napkins,

some sweaters to felt, half a dozen of old Workbasket magazines, and a tea towel designed by Tammis Keefe.

I  purchased this cute hippo hanky a few years ago but I can't find where I shared it so I'm showing you now.  It's also designed by Tammis Keefe.

I think it's a real cutie :)