Valerean

Be careful what you thrift for is my new mantra. I bid on and won this storage chest of sewing supplies, which I wanted to use for my own needles and sewing things. It arrived leaking pins, beads and buttons, with several drawers jammed by the same. I spent an entire day unloading it, sorting out the contents, and then unsticking the drawers. To my relief nothing was broken or permanently damaged by the poor packing job. Let's look inside some of the drawers while I tell you about it. The original owner knew what was good thread, and kept a colorful supply of Sulky and Gütermann on hand. These spools run between $1.24 to $3.99 depending on the type of thread. Like me the maker also saved old thread, bought thread on sale and otherwise practiced thrifty purchasing. There might be a few spools in this drawer that belonged to an older family member, as they date back to the 70's. Lots of buttons. The little collection was mostly for repair purposes, and

Before Hurricane Helene passed by us back in September my guy and I went out for a drive and stopped at a Goodwill, where I found an intriguing bag of bagged antique-looking table linens. I'm always on the hunt for vintage textiles, and it looked like something that might have been donated by an pro seller who had closed out a booth, so I bought it and brought it home. I hit the jackpot with this bag -- everything was quite vintage, in mint condition and included some pieces I'd never before seen anywhere. Everything also still had the original price tag attached as well. This embroidered linen napkin holder (originally $10.00) was a unique piece. It will come in handy, too, as there were 30 napkins in the bag. The napkin holder unfolded. Really interesting. Ten of those napkins I was talking about, which will be perfect for a project I want to do. Cobweb doily, beautifully crocheted and in unused condition. Will make a wonderful embellishment wi

Because I'm brushing up on how a clever antagonist is portrayed in different storylines I decided to rewatch Love Me if You Dare , a chinese romantic drama with a criminal investigative spin. I remembered that two of the antagonists were especially smart and manipulative, and on the second watch I focused more on them instead of the romance. Bad guys like these two seem to be enormous narcissists, that's for sure. To them other people exist only to fulfill their needs. That seems to be true of any psychopath incapable of empathy. The pettiness and need for vengeance is just as extreme. The puzzling aspect in this series was the degree to which the antagonists were obsessed with their murderous fantasties, which seemed over-the-top. Also they never hesitate or show any doubt in themselves, or try to find another way to exist. If you're that smart, why wouldn't you control your impulses and urges, and find ways to address and correct the problems you have, especi

In September my guy took me for a drive, during which we stopped at this huge lake bordering one of the largest cities in our area, not too far from our home. It was a bit like an inland sea, and I asked if he could come here to fish (his only hobby.) He told me that while they've been trying to clean it up for years the water is still too polluted, so they don't allow fishing. You would never guess that just looking at it. It was a sobering moment for me, as I've always comforted myself on the fact that we live in a county of 1500+ lakes. I thought that if we had to after a disaster or whatever we could fish for food. How many of our lakes are like this? I have no idea, but I guess I'd better add some more protein to the emergency pantry. My guy found somewhere a photo that showed an election sign that read "Everyone Sucks 2024" which made me laugh. I wanted to post a copy on the blog because I thought it was so funny. In a way it reflects a littl

During our travels at the end of summer we visited a few brick and mortar thrift stores. Often I find things that I want but I'm unwilling to buy new at these, with the bonus of being able to examine them in person. Here's one little haul: a brand-new-looking mini muffin tin for $2.75 (this exact one is $10.00 at Wal-Mart); a low-carb cookbook from 2005 for $1.00 (new it runs about $8.00; the cheapest I could find it used online was $1.92), and a two-sided plastic container stuffed with interesting ribbons and trims for $6.99 (really a steal; the case is $9.99 new and there's about $50.00 worth of supplies in this.) While I show you the cool ribbons in the case, which opens on both sides, let's do the math. Paying retail for everything would cost over seventy dollars. I spent $10.74, which went to Goodwill and a hospice center thrift store. I still pay retail for other things. Example: I spent forty dollars on new books at Writer's Block in

While visiting Winter Garden back in September my guy let me visit Writer's Block, the little indie bookstore I love there. I promised myself since it was the last day of summer I'd get one of their blind date with a book offerings, although this time quite a few had been sold. Which one do you think I took home with me? Yep, the hockey romance. I have never in my life read a hockey romance, so it should be fun. I love going on a blind date with a book; unwrapping it was like giving myself a present and so exciting. I'll write up my thoughts on it as soon as I read it.

My second thrifted lot of winter clothes arrived in September; let's see if it's worth what I bid. New with tags Tommy Hilifger cable knit sweater (I did not know it was designer when I bid on the lot; I just thought it was pretty.) Retail for the sweater was $79.50. A pair of Sound Style cream linen trousers; still had the paper size/care tag clipped on the waistband so never worn. I looked up their MSRP and they're $54.99. Chico's maxidress with tags. Retail was originally $139.00 marked down to $59.99. A very nice pair of burgundy sweat pants with neat zippered pockets, new with tags but no price. This brand goes for $27.95 to $34.95 on Amazon. Winter PJs! Love the dog walker. At $64.00 they're quite pricey PJs too. Altogether these clothes sold for $286.43 new. I got the entire lot for the minimum bid of $8.99 with no challengers. Savings: $277.44.

After we left the Wirewood Market in Altamonte Springs back in September I told my guy "Never leave me alone in that store." If you like old furniture, eclectic antiques and marvelous vintage objects and decor, don't let anyone leave you alone in the place, either. This adorable hand-painted trivet had to come home with me. I also found the perfect pumpkin to put on our coffee table for fall. It's furry, it's covered in sequins, and it has a glittery gold stem. It's so over-the top I had to have it. The prices for my purchases were quite modest, and I saw too many bargains while I was at the store. Some of the gorgeous antique furniture is a bit pricey, but unusual, beautiful pieces generally are. The proprietor is a lovely person, too. If you're ever in the neighborhood I recommend you stop in -- just empty your wallet first!

Back in mid-September I had a lot going on, including plenty of arthritis flare-ups, so my progress on hand-quilting my one-pound challenge quilt was pretty slow. For the first time since I began quilting I didn't care, and I didn't want to set aside the project to do something faster. Working this year on embracing my limitations has really helped adjust my mindset to a healthier/happier level. I'm also realizing why some older people are the way they generally are (depressed, quarrelsome, always in a hurry, downright rude to youngsters but expecting to be catered to by everyone.) It's easy to become dispirited and fearful in the final stage of your life. I don't want to squander what time I have left on making myself or others miserable. I already know I'm lucky to wake up every morning. This time of my life has been the most painful, and yet also the happiest. I can do what I want now for the most part, and I don't have to take care of an

Chinese dramas tend to be squeaky clean. I say clean in the sense that life in China is presented as existing in a Disney World where the major players are well-spoken, slightly annorexic-looking beautiful people who are never dirty (they might sweat a little, which makes them freak out), live in fabulous apartments, wear designer clothes and have semi-interesting jobs in the Disney Worlds of offices where they wrestle with such gritty pseudoconflicts as a printer not delivering an important job on time, or a product being mislabeled, or a misunderstanding that makes the lead female look like a slut when she's always, always, always runner up to Mother Teresa in chastity, moral character and general helpful citizen goodness. In other words, it's all lies, propaganda and make-believe. Pretty lies, entertaining propaganda, wishful thinking make-believe -- if I could live in a country like that I'd move there in a heartbeat -- but, alas, entirely invented. Love Me

That little yarn holder I picked up in a junk shop cleaned up like new, and is proving very handy when I don't want to haul out my yarn bowl. A bunch of hand-dyed embroidery thread that arrived at the end of summer. This is instant inspiration. When little things make you happy you don't need big things.

To start October I completed my summer one pound challenge quilt. I made another 23 yoyos out of scrap fabric during Hurricane Milton, bringing the total up to 104. I fashioned a table runner for the holidays by joining together three vintage embroidered napkins with some wide lace. I finished this home sewn tunic, which came in a thrifted lot of fabric, as a pajama top for me. I slow-stitched a fun Halloween treat bag for my kid (they're never too old for treats.) To exercise my fingers I embroidered a thrifted handkerchief and turned it into a mug rug. I tailored a thrifted pair of shorts to better fit me, and I repaired a thrifted blouse that was missing a closure. Finally I kept up with my crochet calendar mood blanket, which you see draped here on our king size bed. I had a three-way tie for the mood colors I used most in October: busy, happy and determined at fives times each, with focused in second place at three times. Aside from two sick da