Thrift Store Fun

We've had way too much snow this winter... we had a huge snowstorm earlier in the season with over 20" of snow, and I enjoyed it a lot. Mostly because I had just quit my old job and I hadn't started my new one, and I had nothing to do but sit by the fire and crochet. Now it's a little different; I have places to be, and the snow is quite a bit less magical.

On Monday, my uncle and grandfather arranged for me to be picked up and delivered to work, then home again that afternoon. Last night my uncle called to tell me that they thought the road would be passable, but since we were supposed to get even more snow that night, if I had any qualms in the morning, I could call my grandfather and get a ride.

I was dreading the ride in this morning, but it wasn't bad despite the fresh snowfall. The snow was the best kind - crunchy and wet - and even though I was a bit freaked out by it, it didn't give me any issues.

My view this morning.

Today was the first day I struggled with cabin fever... I was cooped up all weekend because the roads were impassable, and I'm going a little stir-crazy. Abigail was wakeful and cheery, so I thought we'd take a little field trip, and we drove up to meet Mom and the kids at our local thrift store.

I LOVE thrift stores! They're a great way to spice up a wardrobe on the cheap. Today's find was a silver star anklet (not pictured) and this incredible yellow studded bag.

I've never liked studs before, but I've seen so many neat studded pieces over the last few months, and they've begun to grow on me. I'm also coming around to this mustard-yellow color... I detested it mightily when I first saw it, but I'm slowly coming around.

Check out this stud action!

After our shopping, Mom and I took all the kids to Burger King - don't worry, hamburgers for the kids but apple dippers for Abigail! :) - to play on the indoor playplace. It was a nice way to chase the winter blues away!

Treasure Hunting at WalMart!

Don't forget... the giveaway ends on Monday!

So yesterday Anna and I ducked into WalMart after homeschool co-op... we (ok, I) came in looking for fabric to make a new duvet cover/pillow shams, and we ended up finding lots of good stuff, mostly on clearance!

I've been looking for a gym-type bag that I can stash my yucky workout clothes in (we don't have a dryer, so things can take a few days to dry, and I don't have enough clothes to wear a new outfit each day... and I figure I'm showering after working out anyway, so whatever. Gross, I know). I saw this bag at WalMart, it called to me, I looked at the label, and it was on clearance for $5. I slipped the super-wide strap over my shoulder and fell in love. Gym bag, yeah right. I have a soft spot in my heart for mind-blowingly big bags. Today I shoved my computer, Bible, camera, etc in it and added the contents of my purse. I'm in love!

Anna, the incurable tomboy, was walking through the aisles and suddenly exclaimed "OH! I LOVE this purse!" I was expecting some camouflage monstrocity, but instead I like it. Sporty but adorable. It was full price but only $10 so I bought it for her just to be able to say I found a purse we both liked.

Lastly, my sister Maggie bought 10,000 bees and two hives last year and has been a little bee crazy ever since (we were outside enjoying the nice weather yesterday when a bee buzzed up... the rest of us backed away; Maggie crooned sweetly, "Well, hel-LO there!"). For Christmas this year, the kids and I found her a little silver bee pendant on a chain; naturally when I found this wallet (by No Boundaries, $5) I had to pick it up for her birthday!

Fun Day!

I've enjoyed striking up a friendship with Tracey of Lovin' Life... We've gotten together a few times to cook and bake, and we made date today so we could sew matching aprons for her and Brianna. Tracey is always fun to be around and I knew we'd have a blast!

Our visit started out with a terrific surprise - Tracey came bearing (lots of) gifts! I still don't know how she managed to find gifts for everyone that fit so well since we haven't known each other for very long! My gift was a beautiful cedarwood/rosemary scented oil reed diffuser wrapped in black and white tissue! What a great gift!


After we had fun wrapping and admiring our presents (and eating some tasty food), we began our project.


This is the pattern we wanted to use... The idea was that I would teach Tracey how to sew, but I'm the one who believes that a pattern is made to be altered, so I don't know how much I was able to teach. Tracey had bought some curtains at a thrift store nearby that were strangely covered in little plastic loops, so our first order of business was to undo the seams and remove all the little loops.

Anna gives us a hand.

The sewing machine decided to have issues when we first started, but Mum soon had it put to rights!

We had two major issues with the pattern: one, we had nowhere near enough ribbon to make two aprons (one for Tracey and one for Bri), and we had no D-rings (the pattern called for four). We solved this problem by electing to use the ruffled edge of the curtain for the bottom of the apron, instead of edging it with ribbon, and we used the loops that we took off the curtain for rings. Perfect!

The pattern went together pretty easily... we never had to take out a seam we sewed (though we did lots of ripping on the original seams!).

Here's the finished product (as modeled by Tracey)! I love the slight 50's flair the ruffle adds! Isn't she cute?

Tracey and I take a moment to admire our hard work. You'll notice the windows were light when we started and dark when we finished!

Mission accomplished!

Virtual Tour - My Room

After spending so much time and effort getting my room super-clean and organized for the new year, I thought I'd reward myself by doing a little bragging and giving a virtual tour!

My room is the place I come home to, the place I feed my soul; since I don't share it with anyone, it's totally "my space." Over the last few years I've filled it with things that reflect who and what is important to me. I've also done a little interior decorating that I'm pretty proud of (I'm totally a former Trading Spaces junkie and I lovelovelove looking at interior decorating/design books).

It's not a lot of space, but it's a space with a lot! :)

Welcome to my room! This is what I see when I come to my room (ideally - it's usually a lot more messy!). My room is on the corner of the house, so it gets a lot of light.

This one one side of my room...

... and this is the other. :)

I've blogged before about how much I love this art, but I thought I'd just say it again. :)

I bought this sheet set a few years ago on clearance for $7 at WalMart, back when you could actually find 100% cotton sheets there. Aren't they awesome? In case you haven't noticed, I LOVE black and white and strong geometric shapes.

I bought these bedside tables a few years ago... I love their Asian-inspired design and their versatility (I've had them stacked as a tall bookshelf, side-by-side as a headboard, as two bedside tables, etc).

I bought this diffuser over the summer... it's Bergamot oil scented and I love the scent, but one of my goals for the new year is to replace all the candles in my room - pillar, votice, oil , diffuser, etc - with sandalwood scents (which is my fav scent in the whole. wide. world).

I'm not sure why I have an obsession with bamboo, but I do. :)

These two matching copper frames were given to me on my graduation day by my voice teacher, an incredible Christian woman who has really spoken into my life in a profound way. :) They hold photos from that day.

This "Dream" decoration was given to me for my birthday by my good friend, Becka, who knows how important dreams (and dreaming!) is to me!

This is my other bedside table, featuring my very sensitive alarm clock (which randomly chirps and beeps for no reason. Time to get a new one).

My best friend, Robin, moved to Alabama a few years back, so this is my little spot to keep her close by. :) Anyone who has had a loved one at a distance for any period of time knows how hard it is to have "half your heart" separate from your body. Robin and I keep in touch frequently through phone calls, countless text messages, facebook, etc, and visit as often as we can, but having photos and reminders around makes me feel less distant. Isn't she gorgeous?! She gave me both photo frames at various times, and also sent me this handcarved soapstone candleholder last year for Christmas. It's almost time to add another frame, though - Robin is expecting her first child, Khy Christopher, in February! :)

I've had this fountain forever, but it has never worked well, so once I came close to getting rid of it... then Robin came for a visit and reminded me of how much I love this Stargate-inspired design. I put it back on my shelf. :)

Fun story - years ago, I see a bamboo rug and fall in love with it. Cheapest price I can find is $150 (just a bit out of my price range :)). While I am saving up for it, I find this beauty clearanced at a decorating discount store for $20. What can I say? God loves me. :)

These are actually gardening stepstones that I picked up at the dollar store... they are stone and each one features a different sun/moon carving. Someday when I get a moment I am going to mount them all... someday...

This is my messy desk/workstation. I need a bigger desk - or just another one to shove up against this one, lol - but until them it's a little crowded. I actually do very little computer work here (I prefer to work on lapdesk on my bed, or at Panera Bread, or the library, etc) but I do sew, write letters, etc here. The mousepad was also given to me by Becka. ;)

Isn't this lamp awesome? I think I paid about $10 for it years ago on clearance. It's a pain to keep clean but is gorgeous, especially lit.

And, of course, whatis important to me? Books! I thrift books frequently, keep my college texts, take books that friends are giving away, ask for books for birthdays/Christmas... At last count I have over 350 tomes (and yes, I DO read/reference every one at least every few months!).

Another gift from Robin... you can't really tell in the daylight, but this candleholder has two layers with star and moon cutouts which shine when lit!

I picked up these two storage bins at WalMart on clearance years ago...

I also have an undying love for Ikea and picked up these media storage boxes for $1-$3 per pack (depending on size) on the last trip Maggie and I took.

I picked up this french coffee press from the World Market in Texas on my first trip there with Maggie and Anna and our grandparents. If you have never been to a World Market, go! Filled chock full with hand-made items from around the world, with prices ranging from ridiculously cheap to just ridiculous. :)

This little "Hold on to your dreams" snowglobe was a present from Robin.

This fireside candle from Bath & Body Works was a Christmas present from a coworker. It's a smoky, woodsy, pinesy scent that instantly evokes the memory of bonfires and fireplaces. :)

I also picked up this unique pencil cup (really a mini kitchen colander!) from Ikea for about $1.50.

This is where I store my current crochet projects... I also have a bin in the closet where I store the rest of my yarn (I LOVE yarn of all kinds!).

Isn't he cute? I picked up this little hand-carved soapstone owl for $1.

And these star bookends from Alabama (I bought two) for $1 apiece.

This hot oil warmer was a gift from a coworker last year. :)

My space is filled with photos, old and new.

This little silver and black "Dream" decoration was handmade for me by Robin.

Moving on to my closet... A while back my dad installed hooks all along one wall of my closet for my ever-growing purse collection. I totally love purses. :) Now that I've pretty much maxed out the wall, I might move on to collecting boots (my latest obsession).

I also took a cue from Project Runway and Robin (who installed hand-painted star hooks on her wall and displayed her gorgeous charm necklaces as a decoration) and installed hooks on the opposite wall for my necklaces. I totally love this arrangement... I wear a lot more of my pieces now that I can see them displayed instead of having them hidden in my jewelery box... also, they stay in better condition and don't get snarled/snagged.

I'm ALWAYS ready to travel! :)

My latest organizing project... eight mini-Rubbermaind bins that fit perfectly into my above-the-closet shelf. I even labeled them!

The cowboy hat I brought home from Texas...

A few last Christmas presents waiting to be wrapped.

The only ugly part of my room is the top of my dresser... I have no idea what I'm going to do with this space to organize it. I'll keep you posted.

This dresser came from the thrift store and as soon as the snow melts it's getting a new coat of paint (I have an incredible idea - look for it!). I also removed the old pulls and replaced them with these star pulls that I bought. On clearance. For $3/6. :)

This wrought-iron sun deco needs a new position... Hmm...

This is my poetry mirror... lol. I tape printed poems to it, write poems on it, etc. Weird English major compulsion. :)

Another weird oddism... I installed these glow-in-the-dark stars on my fan blades. In the summer when I turn off the lights and turn on the fan, the effect is surreal and incredible. :)

The back of my door is my catchall... currently it has my calendar (over top of my new calendar) and sonogram picts of Khy. :)

This is from my old room... we've been on sub-flooring for years and I wrote poetry, quotations, lyrics, book excerps, etc on the floor around my room. :)

I hope you enjoyed "touring" my room! Come back soon!