Fall Flea Market

What a gorgeous perfect day!
Sunday was just what a person pictures in a fantasy of flea market fun---sunny, crisp, brisk breeze. Abig cheerful crowd.
And well, yes, somewhat surly dealers packing up early despite the happy throngs offering money and smiles.

You'll look at my treasures and think, Same old, same old...I guess I like what I like.
A fun rusty tin primitive scoop for my autumn bowl of woodland-y pods and berries.

I'd prefer  rosehips, but I haven't had time to order from my Cape Cod vendor of lavender and other dried botanicals...

The inspiration gathering had a grungy flicker candle too and maybe something else. I can never quite achieve what my favorite eBay seller, Michelle at Oldefarmhousesimples does in her Maine home...here

Then, I got some crystals...

One of these rainy days I'll sit down with my silver wire and my rusty hooks and make a big batch of Christmas icicles for my etsy shop...

These were unusual...love the round drops, they're for my old bottles on my window sill. They'll cast tiny rainbows for me all winter. (They can't cause a fire, can they? You know, like "earth science 101 in Middle school", start a fire with a magnifier thing? Are they safe? Anyone know?)...And the unusal smooth oval lozenges will have collages of old photographs perhaps.

And this star! Beautiful...all are heavy old lead crystal from dismantled chandeliers.

I must take a second to point out the linen backdrop in my photos. This is a homespun towel gifted to me by one of my etsy customers! So generous. She thought for my lavender hearts...but maybe it's too nice to chop up? It shold be a throw pillow? Look at the careful, wonderful old buttons/ buttonholes.

And what's a flea market day without a box of buttons!?

I love the old green box, looked like a bandbox type of paper, though it certainly has a prominent mid-2oth century Made in China label. I'm seeing it filled with greens at Christmas or as a stand for a Santa figure...

The buttons have great potential, though I didn't sort or wash them yet...

Lovely old carved mother of pearls (which I keep for  myself!)...And an interesting finely crocheted covered button, a fancy floral too...

Neat art deco..

fun "Peggy" pastels, maybe 1940s?

And the real reason I bought the box: it had all these lovely little spools of 100% cotton thread.

Has anyone noticed how truly ghastly the sewing thread we buy is nowadays? So thin and icky and polyester, yuck. So I was hoping. I think though they are too deteriortaed, the old cotton has "crashed"/ rotted.

Last, I bought an exceptional linen tablecloth....I'll post it separately.  I'm still researching it.

so...more soon!

love

   lizzy

             gone to the beach..............

Snow Day and Button Sorting...how---fun!

Hello everyone! Yes, we are again having yet another snow day at The Beach! This is very unusual...and disconcerting!--- despite its first-falling white pristine beauty.

Snow becomes tedious when the last drifts are still snarling iceberg-like on all the  streets. And my local grocery shelves are sadly bare. There were only two---TWO!---boxes of spaghetti on the shelf---and no toilet paper at all. (Lucky for us, we went to the big-box store during last week's snow and ice.)

Anyway since my family efficiently dispersed themselves to their snow day destinations well in advance of this current storm, I am home alone with my provisions and a nice quiet bit of time to watch TiVo'd "What Not to Wear" and "Hawaii Five-0" episodes while I sort through a big tin of vintage buttons that was my last flea market buy in December.

I bought the tin for a dollar, on a frigid grey Sunday. The dealer kindly threw in his other two containers of buttons and seemed happy y to get my dollar. I took the tin home and set it in the crafts closet til after the holidays....

Now, as I first began sorting I kinda could see why the dealer was happy enough with his dollar from me: anything "good" had already been removed from this stash of basic, mundane vintage sew-thrus.

I almost decided to toss them all, but sorted again, setting aside the many dozens (very sweet!) of tiny, real mother-of-pearl flower buttons and some doll sized little dark pearl buttons.

 Then I looked again (snowing, you know?) and found some fun color assortments...

in my colors...

And some for clients who like navy or purple tones...
 

And some charming beads [top right], including a mammoth pearl![top left] Two c. 1940s pennies and a German "nickel". And one lone perfect, tiny metal and pave' rhinestone beauty, smaller than your little fingernail.

I use the buttons on my hearts:



white Valentine hearts, on eBay now and etsy soon!

 The rest of the buttons and the tin were listed and sold! on eBay, how fun...much nicer than throwing them into the bin!  Very useful for a home sewer or crafter and I think the price was right.

Lotta entertainment for that dollar, hmmmm? Now if I can just get the tin of buttons to the post office........

love

lizzy

[gone to the beach]