Thrifted for $5.74

Recently, I got a few random thrifted items. I got this thermometer at an estate sale for $1. I thought it was really cute and liked the happy yellow color.

The serving fork, meat thermometer and measuring spoons I got at one thrift shop for a grand total of 50 cents.

I got this gray belt at another thrift shop for $1.49. I really like the braided gray elastic material—it’s awesome. It stretches to fit your waist and you can put the prong through any part of the belt.

At another thrift store I bought 1.375 yards of black and white fabric for $2.75. It’s a thicker fabric (perhaps meant for upholstery); I liked the graphic nature of it. It was rolled up and I didn’t take the time to unroll it because I was in a time crunch. When I opened at home, I saw there were some stains—which totally sucked. But I’m hoping I can just use sections of the fabric to make something.

Things I Didn’t Buy

Sometimes I do restrain myself from buying things. Although I may think, “That’s cool. I want it,” I’ll try to remind myself that I have no purpose or need for it, or I already have something similar so I don’t require another, or I just don’t have the space for it.

Here are a few things that I refrained from buying. First is a Wizard the Oz record. I thought the illustration was adorable.

Next up, a Peter Pan 8mm film. I just like the art on the box.

This Captain Kangaroo book’s art is super cute. I love that 1960s style.

I wasn’t ever going to buy it, but I thought this girdle pattern was interesting.

And I was never buying this smock pattern, but I liked the drawings on it.

Quote: Tell the Truth, but Tell it Slant

Seven Sewing Patterns

I got some more sewing patterns; some of the patterns I didn’t see dates on, so I just ordered them in increasing costs.

The first is a dress and jacket pattern from 1966. I like the simplicity of the garments. I like the drawings of the dressed-up women.

The second is a wrap dress from 1974. It’s a half-size pattern for petite women. I think this looks like a fun and easy dress to make.

Next up is a skirt pattern that looks like it’s from the 1970s. The main reason I got it is because of the pockets. I’ve only done non-visible pockets and thought this might be a good pattern to try different pockets.

This Pucci dress pattern (that looks to be from the 1970s) is super simple. I like the ease of the dress.

I avoid knits, but I liked this shawl collar blouse and dress pattern from 1980.

Okay, when I saw this Oscar de la Renta top and skirt pattern, it clearly screamed 1980s. That top immediately reminded me of a Members Only jacket. But I think if it was a bit slimmer in the fitting, it could be pretty cute. Although I think the bow version is a bit odd.

Finally, my mom gave me this skirt and cape pattern from 1995. I’ve never had a cape before, but I think it could be fun to have one.

White Summer Skirt

When I saw this white fabric at an estate sale, I thought it was cute (although it also slightly reminded me of a tablecloth). The fabric was taped up, so I wasn’t sure how much yardage there was, but I happily bought it for $2. When I got home and measured it, I found it was a 45 inch fabric with two yards. I thought there was probably enough fabric that I could make a skirt with it.

I decided a pleated skirt would work well with the fabric’s horizontal woven pattern, and chose this 1950s skirt pattern as a reference. I’ve used this skirt pattern before (with some adjustments), so I knew it was a simple skirt to make. And I didn’t have any major issues with this skirt (beside some slippage of the pleats when basting, which was annoying).

The main addition I made was adding a lining to the skirt since I thought the white fabric had some transparency issues. I selected some cheap off-white broadcloth from my fabric stash for my lining. I used a simple A-line skirt shape from another pattern as my basic pattern (disregarding the darts and shortening the length); the main point I had to keep in mind was the lining’s circumference had to match the skirt’s circumference. The lining tacked on some additional hours, but I think it was well worth it.

The original pattern called for more length in the skirt, but with the limited amount of fabric I had, I had to shorten it (which I think worked out fine). Also, instead of the prettier hem using bias tape the pattern specified, I decided on doing a narrow hem out of necessity.

If I had more fabric, I would have liked to have used the woven pattern horizontally across the waistband, but sadly, this was not to be. Overall I’m happy with my skirt. It is a bit large, but it’s not a huge issue. I think this skirt cost about $7 in total; $2 for white fabric, $3 for lining fabric, $1 for thread and $1 for the zipper and eyes and hooks. And I think it’s a really great skirt for summer.

Three Estate Sales

Over the weekend I went to three estate sales, two on Saturday and one on Sunday. The first estate sale was in the wealthy part of town and I hoped I’d find something interesting, but I instead I found it bland and overpriced and I ended up buying nothing.

The second estate sale I went to was in the country and it was much better; there was a broader array of items at fairly reasonable prices. I got a bag of buttons for $2.

And a bag of thread for $3.

I got a deck of Northwest Orient playing cards for 50 cents. I had never heard of Northwest Orient, but imagined they were an airline (which they were…many years ago). I thought the design was cute; the actual cards have the same design as on the box—and they’ve never been opened.

I also got a perforator for $1. I thought it was a useful tool that I could maybe use on a project

The third estate sale was in the suburbs, and I got a 32 inch wide by 2 yard long piece of black fabric for $1. It feels pretty nice and may be cotton.

Fabric in hand, I was ready to leave, but when I saw the line to checkout was super long, I decided not to stand in line. I went back to the fabric area to kill time and wait for the line to shorten. The woman, whose stuff we were buying, was really into quilting, crocheting and cross-stitching, so there were many pieces to look at.

I can appreciate the time and effort it takes to create these handmade items, even if they may not be my style (which many weren’t). On a whim I decided to get some crochet pieces that perhaps I can use somehow someday.

I got two smaller circular pieces for 50 cents each.

And one larger circular piece that I think is quite beautiful for $1. My grand total for everything was $9.50.