Thrifty Thursday, Latest Creations & My Giveaway Revealed

There will be no Funky Junk for me this week, so instead I have some thrift store finds.

The revolving spice rack will be great when I have a craft room, for keeping jars of buttons or beads within easy access. I found a set of double vintage sheets, that came with 3 pillow cases for some reason. I finally found a decent sized crochet hook, and I got it free! Also free was a bottle, and the scrabble tile, I think the woman just couldn’t be bothered adding amounts that were under $1. Also got a couple of things for the tea party, a couple of little bags full of random bits of lace and ribbon, and a vintage table cloth/runner. There’s a couple of things missing from the photo: underneath all that stuff is a cool vintage suitcase, not in the best condition, but great for holding some craft stuff for my crafting weekend away, also got a huge ziplock bag full of broken bits of jewellery, artificial pearls, beads etc.

These are the only crafty things I have had time to work on this week, with hospital visits and getting ready for the big weekend. My daughter helped me paint the piggies, then I stamped some words and images on them. Some of them are stuck onto pegs, some are on magnets. The two tiles at the bottom got the same treatment, but they will be made into pendants.

And now for the GIVEAWAY!!! I heard about Giveaway Day on Kelly’s blog Reclaiming Me, and I thought, why wait until I have 18 followers when I can do it this way. I had all the stuff already (except the fudge), all I had to do was put it all together, and this is what I got.

The package will include: A set of 4 gift cards and envelopes in a pouch, a mini crayon roll which holds 4 jumbo crayons, a magnetic notepad & matching pen, a little notebooks set which comes with pencils & erasers, a gift card with gumball machine (sentiment reads “wishing you the sweetest day ever”), a vintage pillow case, a necklace with bird design, red glass bead memory wire bracelet, six little pegs (3 yellow ladybug & 3 yellow bird), two small doilies, a packet of chocolate fudge (YUM!! That is if I can resist the urge to eat it!!), and the best part…..

BUTTONS!!!! I don’t know about you, but I LOVE me some buttons!!! I think it’s a pretty common love among crafters, you either have, or dream about having a HUGE collection of every button imaginable. I have a pretty big collection, because I have been collecting buttons FOREVER! I remember when I was a kid, only about 6 or 7, being taken to an op shop and given a couple of dollars to spend and buying jars full of buttons….ah the good old days. Anyway, somehow over the years of moving a trillion times I managed to keep (or hoard) m0st of my buttons, while still adding to the collection. In my fantasy world buttons are the currency, the more beautiful they are the more they are worth. So I am parting with a (relatively) small part of my button collection, in the name of love, because I love my followers, those wonderful people who stop by, see things they like and leave lovely comments. You are worth so much more than 60 beautiful buttons, but that’s all I could bring myself to part with on this occasion. These 60 buttons are in sets, some are only pairs, some are triplets, and there are even a few quadruplets and quintuplets. They are wrapped up securely in a little purse.

So, to be in for a chance to win, all you have to do is be a follower. I’m going to leave this open for international followers too, but if you win and you live outside of NZ, I may not be able to package it all nicely in the basket due to the cost. So if you are already a follower, leave a comment to let me know, and if you become a follower leave a comment. That’s it. I don’t have a facebook page, I don’t do twitter, and as of yet I don’t have anything listed in my felt shop, so I don’t have any other way for you to get extra entries. Maybe if you leave me a super uber nice comment, or tell me about your button fantasies, I will slip in an extra entry for you. Giveaway is open until 20th May. Good luck, may the force be with you.

Wondering why this is the longest post ever and why I’ve jammed a whole weeks worth of stuff into one post??? Because I am going away for the WHOLE WEEKEND, on a child free, girly craft weekend. How lucky am I?!?!?! But I have changed my mind about going so many times these last couple of weeks, because it’s the first time I’ll be away from my little man, and I’m going to miss him like crazy! Of course I will miss the hubby and my daughter as well, but they don’t need me as much as this cutie does. I wish I could smuggle him in, but that would defeat the purpose of a child free weekend. So when I get home on Sunday the house will be a mess, there will be piles of laundry and dishes all over the place and I will have some serious recon to do, so blogging will have to be put off until I can see the floor.

Eighteen

The magic number, well, my magic number anyway. So this is my eighteenth post, and what better time to announce that my first giveaway will happen when I reach 18 followers. When I first started thinking about having a giveaway I had that number in mind, but I thought it would take ages for me to get to 18 followers. Well, today I’m up to 12, and most of those are only from the last 2 weeks, so if all goes well I am hoping to get to 18 by the end of May. Here’s an idea of what will be included in the giveaway:

* A little bit of vintage - some buttons and a couple of doilies or something like that.

* A little bit of handmade – this will include at least 1 item of jewellery, one of my altered coasters or placemats, a set of gift cards and anything else I can find stashed away in my craft closet.

* A few little extras – a little notebook set, chocolate (of course) and anything else that I find that is appropriately cute and important to any crafter.

I will get everything together and post photos later this week hopefully. So watch this space if you want to see what you could be in to win.

Funky Junk Friday & some library books

Some interesting finds from Funky Junk last night: – Cute cups & saucers, doilies and other table linens, lots more fabric scraps & bits, some books, a puzzle, and some other random items that I couldn’t resist.

This is my most favourite find, it is perfect for those times when you need a few bickies with your cup of tea, and the colour is awesome, a gorgeous shade of turquoise.

I ordered a couple of books from the library last week, and got an email yesterday to say they were ready to be collected. They are pretty awesome books, especially Handmade Home, which features a lot of projects using vintage fabrics, especially vintage sheets. The online library request system is great, because if someone on one of the blogs I follow talks about a great book, or if I see a great review in a magazine, I can just hop online, look it up in their catalogue and request it easy peasy, and for only $1 per book, I think it’s totally worth it.

Know of any brilliant craft books I just have to read? Please let me know so I can look them up.

99 Things

I can’t blog surf tonight because we have once again used up all our bandwidth in less than 2 weeks, and waiting for pages to load on this super slow connection is driving me mad. So I found this on Kelly’s blog, Reclaiming Me, and thought I might as well fill it out. It’s pretty boring, because I haven’t travelled a lot and most of the questions are about places and things around the world. It’s just something to fill in the time, and this space.

Started your own blog – Yup.
Slept under the stars – yes, and it was not a fun experience.
Played in a band - No but I always wanted to, just never got the chance to learn any instruments except piano.
Visited Hawaii - not yet.
Watched a meteor shower – no.
Given more than you can afford to charity – no.
Been to Disneyworld - no, not really on my list of must dos.
Climbed a mountain - yes, a long time ago.
Held a praying mantis – yes, I’m the only one in our house that will go anywhere near them, so I am on bug removal duty.
Sang a solo – does singstar count?
Bungee jumped – no.
Visited Paris – no.
Watched a lightening storm – yes, but I don’t like it, it’s scary.
Taught yourself an art from scratch - yes, a few.
Adopted a child – no.
Had food poisoning – yes, and I will never eat luncheon again.
Walked to the top of The Statue Of Liberty – no.
Grown your own veg – I don’t think so, I’m not a gardener, I have never been able to keep plants alive for long.
Seen the Mona Lisa in France – no.
Slept on an overnight train – I don’t think so, but possibly in egypt.
Had a pillow fight - long, long time ago!
Hitch hiked – yeah, kinda. Didn’t actually accept a ride though.
Taken a sick day when you're not ill – yes.
Built a snow fort – No, I DO NOT like snow, yuk!
Held a lamb – I think so, when I was little.
Gone skinnydipping – Ummm, maybe, but I think I may have been intoxicated at the time.
Run a marathon – No.
Ridden in a gondola in Venice – no.
Seen a total eclipse - don't think so.
Watched a sunrise or sunset – yes.
Hit a home run – no.
Been on a cruise – yes, on the Nile. Would LOVE to go on another longer one on the ocean.
Seen Niagara Falls in person – no.
Visited the birthplace of your ancestors – no.
Seen an Amish community – no.
Taught yourself a new language – Not really. Hubby has been trying to teach me Afrikaans for the 10 years we have been together, I can understand it a lot more than I can speak it.
Had enough money to be truly satisfied - I think no matter how much money we have, it will never be enough.
Seen the Tower Of Pisa in person – no.
Gone rock climbing - not rock climbing but did abseiling at camp when I was a kid.
Seen Michelangelo's David – not the real thing.
Sung Karaoke – does singstar count?
Seen Old Faithful – no.
Bought a stranger a meal in a restaurant – no.
Visited Africa – Yes, only Egypt.
Walked on a beach by moonlight – yes.
Been transported in an ambulance – no.
Had your portrait painted – no.
Gone deep sea fishing – yes, I love fishing.
Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower – no.
Gone scuba diving – no.
Kissed in the rain – yes I think so, a loooong time ago.
Played in the mud - of course!
Gone to a drive-in theatre – no.
Been in a movie – Do short films made at art school count?
Visited the Great Wall Of China – no.
Started your own business – Sold my jewellery for a while, someday I’ll try selling my handmade stuff again, when I have more time.
Taken a martial arts class – no.
Visited Russia – no.
Served in a soup kitchen – no.
Sold Girl Scout cookies – girl guide cookies, yes.
Gone whale watching – not deliberately, but have seen some while out on boats and stuff.
Got flowers for no reason – No, I don’t like flowers and anyone who knows me should know that so I don’t get them.
Donated blood – yes.
Gone sky diving – no.
Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp – no.
Bounced a cheque – no.
Flown in a helicopter – no.
Saved a favourite childhood toy - yes, I have a few dolls and teddies and a huge bucketful of lego.
Visited the Lincoln Memorial – no.
Eaten caviar - eww, no thanks.
Pieced a quilt – no but it’s on my to-do list.
Stood in Times Square – no.
Toured The Everglades – no.
Been fired from a job – no.
Seen the Changing Of The Guard in London – no.
Broken a bone – no.
Been a passenger on a motorcycle – once when I was a kid and I burned my leg, haven’t done it again since.
Seen The Grand Canyon – no.
Published a book - no, but I'd love to write a book some day.
Visited the Vatican – no.
Bought a brand new car – no.
Walked in Jerusalem – no.
Had your picture in the newspaper – yes, when I had my son, but that doesn’t really count.
Kissed a stranger at midnight on New Years Eve – yes, also a looooong time ago.
Visited the White House – no.
Killed and prepared an animal for eating – yuck, no!
Had chickenpox – yes.
Saved someone's life – no.
Sat on a jury – no.
Met someone famous – I feel like I have, when we lived in wellington, but I can’t remember who it was, so can’t have been anyone too exciting.
Joined a book club – no.
Had a tattoo – yes, 3.
Had a baby - yes, 2.
Seen The Alamo in person – no.
Swam in The Great Salt Lake – no.
Been involved in a lawsuit – no.
Owned a cell phone – yes, many.
Been stung by a bee – yes.
Performed on stage in a capital city – no.

Now it’s only 9:30, everyone else is in bed, and I have nothing to do. This never happens. It’s times like this I wish I had a craft room, so I could get my craft on without waking everyone up.

One day.

Soon I hope!

Reclaiming Me: 100th post ***Giveaway***

Reclaiming Me: 100th post ***Giveaway***

Last day for entries, winner will be drawn tomorrow. Check it out, some lovely goodies in this giveaway!

A few things I’ve made

I thought I would share a few things I have made recently, all using materials found at Funky Junk.

I made a drawstring bag to use as a gift bag for my MIL’s mothers day gift. I liked the idea of a fabric gift bag because it is reusable, not necessarily as a gift bag, but to hold delicates, jewellery, makeup for travelling, for example. The fabric and the lace used as drawstrings were from funky junk. I hand sewed the bag, using thread given to me by a great crafter from my craft group. So this bag cost me nothing to make, and I think it is lovely.

I also made this pin cushion using vintage curtain fabric and a little pottery bowl found at funky junk. I can see myself making more of these, because they are so quick and easy, and CUTE! I got the idea from a tutorial for making teacup pin cushions found here, but I didn’t add extra details, because I thought it looked pretty cute as is. I do plan to make a super embellished teacup version, using cups & saucers that will be left after the Tea Party.

This is a work in progress, a dress for my daughter. Everything used so far to make this, except the buttons, was found at funky junk. The main fabric is polar fleece, and the peice I found was quite big, because even after cutting out the peices for this dress there’s still a lot left. If I ever get around to it, I would like to make mittens to match, and maybe a scarf. Oh, and a hat would be cute too, but she is not a hat person (much to my absolute horror, she won’t wear anything on her head, that includes headbands, hair ties, hairclips, or anything remotely cute and girly that I would love to make for her).

On a totally different topic, I have TWO new followers since my last post, so that number is creeping up and I am shocked and amazed, but totally thrilled and looking forward to giveaway time.

Linking up to Anything Related Tuesday at All Thingz Related. Go have a look to see a whole lot more crafty projects, and browse through their awesome blog to see the great things they have made. Also linking up to Wednesday at Tea Rose Home link party, another beautiful blog with heaps of great ideas and tutorials.

Am I Being Followed??

Oh yes I am!!
This is just a quick post to say that I am super thankful to my followers (especially the ones who don't know me personally and are not related to me) for being interested enough in what I have to show on my blog to become a follower. I have a giveaway planned, but I haven't decided when it will be. I'm thinking when I get to a certain amount of followers or a certain amount of posts, it'll be giveaway time. I have loads of stuff I have made stored away all over the house, so I will put some together and should be able to make a nice big package for one lucky person (or maybe a few). Giving things away is not really in my nature, because I am a bit of a hoarder, but there is only so much handmade stuff I can use personally or give as gifts.
By the way, I love getting comments, it makes me feel like I'm not wasting my time doing this because people are actually reading it, so thanks for the comments and please feel free to leave more :)
Image from The Graphics Fairy (slightly altered by me).