A'thrifting I Have Been

Oh no. I think maybe my purchase of that $7.99 pair of pants opened the floodgates on my profligate ways.

I paid $6.50 for grandpa gnome. I just wanted him. He's from Gorham and dated 1979, so I figured he might at least have some vintage cred, but there doesn't seem to be much interest in old gnomes on ebay. That's okay. He's happy here.

THRIFTING TIP!
In case you're wondering, the price tag is still on there because I want to hit it with the hairdryer to soften up the adhesive before peeling it off. That's a good way to ensure you don't peel up paint along with the sticker. It works well on paper too.





A couple of years ago, Cath Kidston was selling a colorful, granny square blanket. Bloggers the world over started whipping up their own versions. Like this one and this one and this one. Here's the original:

I love all the different versions, and I would love to make one of my own, but you all remember how well last month's attempt at learning to crochet went. I've resigned myself to looking for them at thrift shops. I found this throw at the thrift shop for only $2.25. While it's not as elaborate as all those examples, I think it has its own charm. Every yarn item I bring into this house ends up as a cat bed anyway!

THRIFTING TIP! This blanket is acrylic, but I've successfully washed wool blankets in the washing machine using either Woolite or baby shampoo and the delicate cycle. Dry flat or set your dryer to fluff. I try to avoid dry cleaning because of both the cost and the chemicals.

Another of my recent finds is this thing, whatever it's supposed to be! I suppose it's a trivet or hot pad of some sort, but I'm planning to use it in a little arrangement somewhere, to add height and pattern.

THRIFTING TIP! This one's pretty obvious, but consider alternative uses for things. I didn't need another trivet, but I really liked this thing, so I'll find a way to use it!