Unexpected Yard Sales Are The Best!!!

Hi everyone, How are you? I do not have to work again till Monday. I'm so thankful, because the rest was much needed and deserved. What are your plans for Thanksgiving? My father and I are going to make lunch/dinner albeit slightly non-traditional. He's really getting into holiday meal planning this year!!!

Oh goodness, okay...it's super cold in Oregon and you'd think the yard sales would be all finished for the year...NOPE...My dad and I found an unexpected yard sale last Saturday. We were actually driving out and about looking for some good places to take photos. He turned down this one street on our way home and we found a garage sale. Here are some of the items that I picked up....

Here's most of what I found at this yardsale last Saturday....

My father and I were driving around looking for places to take some good photos. It was proving rather difficult, so we decided to head home. I like to "find" yardsales rather than plan out a route. It's more fun that way. It was looking like we weren't going to find anything. My dad turns left on this particular street heading towards home...and voila, there was a yard sale being held in a garage. The glue gun was only $3...and I totally need one, so this was perfect. I'll talk about the other stuff as I go along.

This tiny bench is ADORABLE. It's wrought iron and wood slats. It was $3.  I think this will make an adorable place for my pink stuffed cat to hang out...maybe with a friend? What would you do with this cute piece?

There was an overwhelming amount of craft items at this sale. I asked the lady running it, why she was selling everything.  I'm not sure why I ask that question now...but I'm always curious now about the stories behind the items that I'm purchasing. The lady said that her mother had recently passed away and she was selling a lot of her craft stuff. Oh my goodness, this is clearly a lady who I would have been friends with if she were still alive.

Here's a side view of the little wood and wrought iron bench. The detail is really neat. Yes, I think my pink stuffed cat will LOVE this new hangout.

This is one of those times it was a good thing I had a limited amount of money with me. I would have purchased a lot of the craft stuff. There were some boxes of buttons that I almost purchased...but hesitated...not sure what I would ever use them for...There were lace trims and even a giant box for storing fabric.

This "Simplicity" pattern...I'm not sure how old it is...but it was only $1...and it has complete instructions and all pattern pieces for making fabric-covered baskets and other goodies....like sachets. This is so sweet...

The daughter explained that her mother LOVED crafting. In fact, one whole wall was lined with baskets for sale. Her mother would buy these and decorate them according to the season. So you can imagine the house was well color-coordinated for every month of the year :) :) :)  

This sweet little glass jar with latch-hook lid was only $1. It is very cute and slightly different than others I have seen. The first noticeable difference is the French  "Le Parfait".

I'm not quite sure what the exact purpose for this sweet little find will be just yet...but when I saw it, it had to be mine. I've been "snapping" these up wherever I can find them...especially if they're in good condition. This one says "Le Parfait - Super" on the front.  At the base it says "V.M.C. - Reims". It's bottom says "0.75 L"...then blow that " S Made in France 8"  Oh almost forgot...around the rim it says "Niveau de  Remplissage" What really made this piece attractive other than price was the fact that it was made in Europe :) :)

These are two vintage  Singer sewing books. These were just $0.50 cents each...a steal of a deal. 

The "Singer Illustrated Dressmaking Guide" was originally published in 1936. My version was a reprint from 1941.  The "Singer Home Decoration Guide - How to make draperies, slip covers and other fabric furnishings" was originally printed in 1940...my copy was a reprint from 1943.  What's really funny is the original price on both these items when they were brand new was a mere "$0.25 cents"  

This is one of the sewing techniques demonstrated in the dressmaking book. I deliberately did NOT show what this particular technique was called...because it's a word that means something completely different now... however, they show you how to do this technique by hand and with machine. Very nice :)

This book might come in handy if I were inclined to make vintage clothing. Since it's direct from that time period, that should be good...however, it's more for the fun of just browsing through it and reading.

This was another page where to find out how to measure each of these parts of the body for a well-fitted dress suit. Now ...this is a FITTED suit...tailor made!!!

I'm not sure that I could pull off wearing something like this...but it's amazing to think of all the detail that goes into making an outfit. There's some math involved...and it's well worth it for the results!!!  Have any of you ever made things by hand or from a pattern? It's been awhile since I've sewn clothing. However, it's something I would love to take up again.

This was really sweet because the lady who owned this book had written down the measurements of a particular chair that she wanted to cover with fabric.

Now this is something I'd LOVE to do...make sweet slipcovers for my chairs..to make the house look more romantic, country, Victorian, rustic, vintage, shabby chic etc :) :) Really, to beautify the home. The only reason I haven't done it yet is budget...although Joann's Fabrics is having a sale on fabric this month...so who knows...but it's all going into my craft repertoire!

This page shows you how to make a slipcover for your car!!! How cool is that!!!

That's about it for the moment. I did return to this same garage sale the following Sunday and picked up one more item...however, that will have to wait for another day :) :) The weather is very cold. It actually started snowing quite heavily yesterday after I got to work. By the time afternoon rolled around, the snow had melted off the streets. I'm hoping for some more, so that I can take lots of photos for you all!!! 

Oh, I discovered something really cool...actually a co-worker pointed this out to me...Lion Brand Yarns has a website that shows ALL the yarns they make....and you can order off of their website. I LOVE their cotton yarns, especially for making dishcloths and other household items. That yarn I find at Fred Meyer. Click here to view their website. They have a free newsletter with a free pattern. You do have to register...but I had fun just browsing through the site. Here's what I purchased today at Fred Meyer...

This particular color is called "Wedgewood" Doesn't it remind you of the famous china? It does for me at least. I plan on making some French bath mitts with this yarn.

This yarn was on sale today, so I was able to pick up two skeins of it. It'll make quite a few bath mitts and dishcloths even...

Here's another lovely site called "Mountain Colors Yarn"...It's a blog that is featuring a free pattern once a week up through till Christmas. Their yarn colors look absolutely divine...and the blog is lots of fun. Click here to visit the blog. OR you can go directly to the website, too. Click here to visit their website.

That's a lot of garage sale-yarn lovin' goodness for one day :) :) I'm actually going to try and make an honest effort to talk more about sites that I like...  Maybe it'll inspire you in someway or bring just that much more joy/creativity to your lives :) :) :) Anyway, thanks so much for visiting me today...LOVE IT...Have an awesome Happy Thanksgiving to all my friends here in the U.S.A.....and for all my international friends, too...:) :)  That's the news from Oregon today....Love and hugs, Heather :)