Valerean

Since I didn't win any of my wannabuts last time I bid, I'm trying again. These are items I want to thrift but only for a set minimum price. This brooch lot is bigger and nicer than the one I just lost, so I went a little higher with a max bid of $14.00. Lately jewelry is really attracting bidders so I'm not very optimistic. For this vintage linen lot I bid $10.00 as my max. These lots are 50/50; sometimes they get no bids and other times they attract bidding wars and last-minute snipers. I doubt I will win this big yarn lot for $10.00, but you never know. Stay tuned to the blog to see how I do. :)

Here are the results of my latest round of wannabuts, where I bid on thrifted items I want but only for a minimum bid, which this time is again $10.00. This lovely vintage brooch lot would make a neat collage picture, although I didn't think I would win them -- and I didn't. Winning bid was $43.00. I was hoping these three framed needlework pictures could find a new home with me. Nope, I was outbid at $11.00. Sticking to my $10.00 limit meant not bidding again (so hard sometimes, especially when it's just a dollar over!) This 9.2 pound lot of yarn has colors I need, but big lots are attracting lots of bidders. I was also outbid on this one, which went for $16.00. Oh, well, it was fun to try! Image credit: all of the images in this post came from the original auction listings at ShopGoodwill.com.

It's time to play another round of wannabuts, where I bid on thrifted items I want but only for a minimum bid, which this time is again $10.00. I'd like to make a collage picture out of vintage pins for the holidays, so I decided to try for this lot of brooches. I probably won't win them, as large brooch lots tend to attract a lot of bidders, but you never know. These three framed needlework pictures really charmed me, and I'd love to own them, but only if I can get all three for ten bucks. There are several colors of yarn that I need in this 9.2 pound lot. Yarn has become more desirable to bidders now that we're approaching the fall and winter holidays, so it may go for more than my minimum bid. Stay tuned to the blog to see the results. :) Image credit: all of the images in this post came from the original auction listings at ShopGoodwill.com.

The floral brooch lot, one of the Christmas presents I gave myself, arrived in time to go into my new stocking. All the brooches are really pretty, and in very good condition. The listing claimed some of them were vintage, but all of them look fairly modern to me. I fell instantly in love with this rabbit and bumblebee basket of flowers pin. Two of the rose pins match, although one flower is a bit darker than the other. This one had a tiny Catholic medal attached to it. It's hard to make out details of the figure but I'll guess it's Blessed Mother. My mom would have loved it. Since I'm no longer Catholic I might take it over to the local church and offer it to them for one of their parishoners.

I mainly use old broochs as embellishments for my quilted bags. One of the floral pins in the vintage lot that just arrived works perfectly as a focal piece on my scrap strip bag. The nicest part of using old brooches is that you only have to pin them in place, and they can also easily be removed. I have been looking for a star brooch to top a quilted Christmas tree of mine for a while now. The vintage Avon brooch is a perfect match. I spent a long time making this piece, which has holographic thread hand-quilting and hundreds of little faux pearls on it. Topping it with a lovely shimmering star made me very happy. :)

I recently acquired three lots of some pretty vintage brooches. Two arrived here last week, and one is on the way. I'm going to use these in my first mini art quilt series. Stay tuned to see what I do with them.