Happy Saturday folks! I hope your weekend is going well. Early this morning my friends called me and wanted to know if I wanted to join them in having their nails done and then maybe hit some antique shops. The kids were still fast asleep and the coffee was hot in my mug...but I sat it down and said what the heck! I would love to join you gals. My husband had a busy day planned full with getting rid of the junk we seem to accumulate. He loves to purge. So, I left him with it. We weren't going to be away long, so I would be able to jump in to assist before he really even missed me.
Between you and me, I really don't give a toot as to what my toenails look like. I keep them trimmed, and normally I do not polish them, but there is something really nice about sitting in the massage chairs while someone messages my calves. I am normally barefoot (or with just the left shoe on, since I kick off my right one to operate my foot pedal.) so my feet are not the most lovely things in town, but frankly I really don't care. They are feet, I flit around the house with them and I don't think anyone ever looks at my feet, so I don't either. So I was in the back of Jill's van trying to take off my glitter nail polish (Emma and I did do our nails a couple days ago while chatting about the pros and cons of bras...yep she is growing up.) with the last remaining teaspoon of nail polish remover I had on hand with the 2 remaining cotton balls I could find. You would think that 2 cotton balls and a bit of acetone would do the trick, but glitter is hard to remove. I admit that I am cheap. I didn't want to pay the $5 charge for them to remove my glitter nail polish for me. I knew we were going to some really good antique shops and I want...no NEED a good sewing basket to keep my Alabama Chanin dress and skirt safe while sitting beside the sofa.
So I was doing some mental math...should I spend $30 on a pedicure or save it for the antique shops?...One of the ladies announced that she would be sitting out of the pedicure area due to an ingrown toenail, so I announced that I would be too. I told them I was on the hunt for a sewing basket instead. Well, plans changed on a dime and we didn't go the the nail place at all. We ONLY went to the antique places.
I did find a couple items that would serve as great sewing baskets, but I didn't buy them. I figure I am the only one who sews in town, so they will be there when I go back. It was a good RECON. I did buy a bunch of buttons for $4. I love buttons. I used to play with my Grandmothers button box and I still love looking at my mom's button tin.
I love to sort them when I get home. Sam and Emma helped me. This little pile was the junk. Not buttons, and not snaps, just odd bits that wound up in the button jar. A shell fossil, a zipper pull, a bracelet closure some wooden bits and broken buttons. This pile is actually missing a tiny car and 2 old buckles. Sam scooped them right up. Makes me wonder if the lady who used to own these buttons had a little fellow giving her gifts all the time like my boys give me? My sewing drawer does have a couple sewing things like bobbins and seam rippers, but it also has lego dude heads and tiny paper airplanes and little glittery stones that the kiddos give me while I sew.
We sorted the buttons into darks, colors, lights and fancy ones. These are the blacks and brown buttons. These are the serious fellows in your button jars. See them all straight faced and their sarcastic sense of humor?
These are the go toos. I will use many of them as eyes for finger puppets that get given straight away to the neighbor kids as last minute birthday gifts. They will carry on in a different role from their former one. I can see where your previous owner cut you right off the tweed coat you used to hold secure.
These happy kid colors must have graced many a party dress and Sunday best. I can almost hear this little pile laughing and giggleing behind their dirty little hands.
I love the white buttons the best. I love to find the ones made out of shells, and the ones made from glass. I like their formal, yet functional demeanor. I like the change in color from pale yellow to opalescent pearl. Some are made of bone and others even ivory. I love the weight of a handful of these creamy buttons they are more heavy than the others.
We also have a fancy button spot. These are the date night buttons. These are the buttons that were worn on special occasions. They saw their owner on their best days and maybe on their worst. Emma has already snatched up a bunch of these and they are being made into necklaces for her new teacher and her little friends.
I also found these tools. A rusty thimble, a leather needle and a safety pin. All great tools with such important jobs. They were used hard. And I hope they were used well. As I was going through one of the antique shops, I found one of the dealers selling little sewing kits in ziplock baggies for a dollar. It looked like ladies sewing drawers were dumped out into bags. I hope no one ever does that to my sewing drawer. There are such treasures in there. Things that are truly special. Things that evoke wonderful memories. But if it does happen down the road, I hope someone like me finds it. I want my little bits and bobs to live on in their families.
I stacked this quilt yesterday before going to a school meeting. School hasn't even begun yet and already I am going to meetings with teachers and principals. I am not totally sold on how I will be quilting it, I know exactly how I am going to do the applique boarder, but the main blocks and background I am not positive on yet. It will be a while until I get to it, but it was nice to have it all stacked and pin basted.
My husband made a ton of progress on the house sorting by the time I got home. He was on such a roll, that he even set up an overflow area in the garage for some of my sewing things. I think we may have the most tidy garage in town.
I love a clean sewing room. I am all rady to get back to work while the kiddos go back to school.
I hope you have a great rest of your weekend. We are making pizzas for dinner, so I better get to it since the dough is not going to rise much higher.
xo,
Tia
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