Goodwill Hunting, Part II

How sweet is this little teacup and saucer? The colors are so cheery -- it reminds me of Japanese quilting cottons. The little teapot shapes are melamine teabag coasters. The one on the right is a nod to the Red Hat Society.

Below is a page from the Cross-Stitch book from the last post. Some of the projects are "dated" (bad) as opposed to "vintage" or "retro" (good). In another 25 years or so, "dated" will mature into "vintage". (Copyright of the book is 1991.) Moot point in the case of the tea cozy, as I can't recall a tea cozy I didn't love. (Okay, maybe if it was decorated with Smurfs or worse yet, Care Bears....)

I love soup plates, and I love forget-me-nots...so this pair is a big score.I can't seem to resist any of the needlework books put out by Better Homes & Gardens in the '90's, even with the occasional project that makes me cringe a little.In the above photo, everything was from the GW shop, except the little heart-shaped pincushion on the left. I just thought it looked cool with the bright thread and button colors.

I made it when I was a girl. I didn't realize I still had it, and ran across it recently. The plastic bag was so intriguing, just $1.99. And the zippers! A variety of lengths, and all in colors I tend to wear:: JaCkPoT!I had such fun discovering what was in the bag. It was hard to get a look at the buttons; it was the thimble and crewel/embroidery needles that grabbed me.

And look at the interesting screwdriver on the spools - I've never seen one like it. I assume it goes with a sewing machine, like for adjusting the tension on the bobbin case?

The buttons are okay; I think my favorite is the MOP one next to the thimble, or maybe the 3 large ivory leather ones...or the few little itty-bitty baby ones.I couldn't pass up these Folkwear patterns. They were among a bunch which were "dated".

And I thought I'd try this one for the pants and vest.

I haven't often bought thrifted clothes. I get so discouraged, being a plus size. Most of the really cool vintage stuff is tinier than I could possibly ever wear. (Not many women in the 1940's and '50's were 5'8", and they certainly didn't have my "robust" figure.) I haven't typically had the patience to look through the overstuffed racks. But, I'm warming up to it. On one trip, I found the silk scarf below, which features two of my better colors: the soft blues and the corals. Behind it is a black knit velour skirt, long and narrowly cut. I wore it to church on Sunday with black boots and a pretty top. Looked great, super comfortable. $2.50!

And finally, another trip, LL Bean's ladies' blouses (with darts!), and some light sweaters, all in my color palette (I think I am a Summer, according to the "Color Me Beautiful" book I picked up for $1). All 6 for probably less than $20, as have learned to shop the color-coded tags for the 50% savings! I should have discovered thrift store shopping a long time ago.