thrifting is kitschy

i made something today, and it only cost $3.75! i <3 houseworks...

here it is empty...

and with my knitting notions on it...

and a side view... you know, i don't know why i couldn't put jewelry on here...

the whole thing is only and 7" high... here's the top plate in the palm of my hand!

good thing they're limited in their uses, or i might make more. unless someone wants one, of course... then i'd have a reason to make more...



don't know how much longer...

...i can keep up this pace without going mad. all this crafting work (fun, but there are always parts of some projects that, well, aren't), plus the wedding in 10 days (10 days! eep!), then we move right after that... ohmigosh.

official square count for the august wedding afghan?

76

yeah, baby. it makes me want to start another project. yarn harlot calls it "startitis" and i got it baaaaad. i want to learn new knitting techniques, i want to start my hubby's mittens, heck, i even want to work on his vest. do i want to work on the dreaded-tension-cursed-baby-blanket? heck no.

here's my knitting progress:

i think it'll end up being a little scarflette when it's done. i'll put some metallic fringe on there to match the yarn and i'll start combing the thrift stores for a cute little shawl pin to keep it closed, seeing as i have no idea how to do buttonholes yet.

i finished the flower girl basket!

not bad for my first time flower arranging, though the picture is a little washed out. i started with a plain wicker basket, spray painted it silver, added all the ribbon, bows, and gems, added the little handkerchief, and stuck all the flowers into some styrofoam in the bottom. it helps when you've got high-quality silks to work with.

and the finale of my yarn deconstruction process! (okay, the penultimate part, i guess... there's one more skein drying)

ta-da! that's going to be about 775 yards of sport weight yarn. i'm thinking about doing this pullover on ravelry... of course, it is knitting, and my skills will have to take a major upswing on this one. i wonder if i can find a simple rollneck raglan sleeve pullover that would work with the yarn i've got... short sleeved, of course, with a band of ribbing at the bottom of the sleeve and the body...

i gotta stop posting so late at night. it robs me of my wit.

busy busy busy bee

i did sooooo much today i'm kinda surprised i'm still going.

had a wedding appointment, went to the bank, paid some bills, then worked on my knittng, surfed ravelry, worked on the wedding afghan, took a nap, went shopping to get painting stuff, stained, painted, did three and a half loads of laundry, worked on deconstructing the sweater, and did two sinkfulls of dishes.

and watched a movie.

here's some picture goodness for the day.... i think most are fairly self-explanatory

wandering eyes...

so, i was on a mission today. black peep toe heels, and some short sleeve dress shirts for the man. despairing at buying anything new, i hit the thrift stores, and, be still my beating heart, scored yarn.

total price tag? $7.92 and not a single acrylic in the bunch.

the three vintage spools are thread-weight wool, the two seafoam skeins on the right are mission falls cotton, the red in the middle is some sort of variegated wool (single-ply... there's no ball band, but the texture suggests wool), to the left is blue-black-purple fingering weight wool (okay, 75% wool) and the turquoise on the left is 100% wool. the white stuff in the bag is a mystery, but it's the most buttery damn yarn i've ever felt. can't possibly be acrylic.

then in between laundry loads, and some slight packing for the move, i got this sweater out.

it's an express sweater, also wool, but i just don'g really dig it. the yarn is gorgeous though. so i started unraveling it for the yarn. not too hard, but time consuming. i started with the right button band, which is why you can't see any buttons in this picture (cuz i took them off already).

but here's the thing. this stuff in the sweater is fine. it isn't felted, or nubby... then you pull it out and it's like this:

i expected the yarn to be curly. it's been in that shape for goodness knows how long... but is there anyway to recondition the yarn? should i wash it? soak it? knit/crochet it first then wash soak it? i'm at a loss here. help please.

reconstruction - acquisition and first attempt

so ever since the fiance and i moved into our rented house (which has this awesomely large kitchen/dining area), we've wanted to put a breakfast nook in one of the corners with a window. but future hubby wanted tall stuff, so we kept our eyes open and eventually i found this set at houseworks for about 60 bucks. thankfully what you see in the background is not, in fact, our kitchen but the garage.

not bad, eh?

however, looking at the top of it, it was pretty scratched, beaten, and the paint finish was generally worn. yes, i am a perfectionist.

and the metal, well, lets just say it has seen better days. this here is one of the more noticeable rust spots, but the overal condition of the metal on both chairs and table was pretty poor. not to mention a few stripped and rusty screws... and i didn't get a good photo, but the vinyl cushions, though decent, did have a small hole in one and were generally pretty dirty.

"what's this, mama? a new toy for me?!?" says Clarisse. not quite, honey.

but yet, she still approaches the disembodied dining set with curiousity and a touch of paranoia. no, babe, the cushions are not out to get you. eventually she got over it and we would often see her perched on one of the cushions, awaiting our arrival with her morning grub.

so here's the plan. i buy extra fine grain sand paper, a black matte finish spray paint, silver "hammered finish" spray paint, red and white craft paint, 5/8 yard black vinyl, and a couple of replacement screws and bolts. not to mention a drop cloth, needed for spray painting.

the plan is to gently sand the lacquer off the top of the table, matte finish the top in black and paint on a coca-cola logo in red and white, then either seal it with varnish or get a round piece of glass to protect it. the vinyl seats get re-upholstered, and the metal gets treated with the slightly textured new finish to dull down the annoying shiny-ness and mask some of the rust spots.

the thing is, i apparently SUCK at spray painting. you could see all the patterns of where i went and everything! i also somehow got spray paint all over my feet. so take two, dad recommends i roll it on. gives me a roller, a roller brush, and the pan and advises me to buy a liner which i promptly do on my way home. i'm determined to get this top finished tonight, right? so i dig out my old can of black paint i used on my previous dining set, shake it up real good and pry the top of with a screwdriver... and what comes oozing out? hell if i know but it looks like the bastard offspring of the tar baby. i finally get enough good paint in there and get the disgusting stringy, clumpy, oozy, slimy, semi-dried paint out of the way. i begin to roll and look what happens, i mean just look at it!!!

okay, look closely, and do not attempt to clean your screen. it is not your monitor. those are thousands, perhaps millions of tiny little shiny bubbles on my table top. i swear i'm going to scream if it hasn't gotten better by morning. and to top it all off, i still have paint on my feet, but now it's also on my knees, shorts, and hopelessly caught under my fingernails.

right.

on a happy note, i made a major score at wal-mart. who would have guessed? they used to just have those crappy poncho patterns but i got some really nice FREE ones back in the craft section: 2 scarf/hat sets, sweater vest for kids (that i'm hoping to modify for adult sizes), 2 sweaters, a tank top, 2 vintage doilies and 7 amazing afghan patterns. seriously i don't know where to start!

i also got this great fabric for $1.50/yard. hopefully it'll become a cute little skirt, but we'll see. my sewing skills are about as on-par as my painting skills.

next episode: will we be venturing to the hardware store for some serious paint thinner? will i ever get the paint out from under my nails? will the table cease to look glittery in the face of photo flashes? tune in to find out!