10 Minute Slouch Beanie DIY

I love me some goodwill; both the happy feeling and the thrift store. Weeeell, their prices could be a bit better since they are, at times, the same as Walmart, but often i still find cheap treasure. While there recently, I snagged a couple of old, thick sweaters to make into beanie hats for the kids... and, okay, for me too. It was an easy 10 minute project, and hard to mess up, yay. (perfect for this sloppy sewer) Here's how i went about it...

- grab an old sweater, flip it inside out
- use another hat as your template for size and line it up with the bottom of the sweater (NOTE: for a slouchy look, I cut my hat several inches taller than the template hat)
- cut it out. ugly edges are fine, just try to make both sides fairly even
- pin the two pieces together
- use a small, straight stitch (stitches close together), and sew yourself a beanie!

hope y'all like yours as much as I like mine! and I promise Eva liked hers too, but she wouldn't let me take a picture that could convince anyone of that. stinker.

 

Easy Ruffle Shorts in 10 Minutes

Y'all, i am NOT a short shorts kinda gal....mostly because Jesus told me I look cuter in longer shorts, but also because I'm half-ginger rather pale and freckly. As I like to say, with a hearty chuckle, "These thighs bless few eyes." Teehee. Anyway, if you're like me and prefer more length on your shorts, then you've probably noticed there are two options out there: Bermuda shorts (they hit right above the knee - a fine look, but limited.) or what I call "classic" shorts (you may know them as "Mom" shorts, a take-off from "Mom" jeans - high waisted, thick, rather roomy, and not typically fashion-conscious. An unfortunate few are still constructed with the use of elastic in the waist. Girls! That look does nothing good for your hiney! But I digress...) Classics shorts are at best bland and at worst the worst, but they do provide a "canvas" to work with as I did here...

 

Frustrated with the selection in the stores, in recent years I've taken to making my own shorts out of old wide-leg jeans, though those are getting harder to find with the whole skinny jean craze. This summer I just couldn't find any wide-legs, so I bought these "classic" shorts at the thrift shop for $2. Not bad, but they were a little wide and a little long. An easy way to fix both of these problems typically, is to simply roll them legs up a bit, but inspired by a trend of ruffly shorts on Polyvore, I decided to give these an added touch.

Some pins and fabric glue assited in the transformation, as you can see here. Note: It's really important to try them on with the lace pinned lik this so you can see what the final length will look like on your body. Just look at that smiling lace! So happy to be hangin' out with me. Teehee again, no?

And there they were! Tada! The whole thing took about 10min.

 Of course this look is so customizable for personal preferance. I was pretty happy with out they turned out, might try adding a touch of lace to my little girl's shorts too!

 So there you have it! My little...

Hope ya liked it!

Lamp Re-vamp

remember this wonky beauty from my thrift score post? yeah, well she's had a make-over... actually all i did was take off the pretty-but-so-unnecessary shade and suddenly, i fell madly in love. i knew when i heard this lamp call my name from the dingy floor of the store that we would be good friends, but i didn't know how cool of a friend i had made.

she's not for everyone, i know, but golly, when she's lit up, it's like something from a 20's train station - a warm, bewitching sorta glow. seriously, if i was a moth, i'd be smackin' my powdery little skull (do moths have skulls?) into this bright orb whenever somebody flicked it on. as it happens, i'm not a moth, but i do find myself staring at it all the time when it's on... hmm, even if it's on my computer screen....so.. pretty... priiiity. time to move on.

 right, so i now had this really fascinating shade with no lamp for it to hover over, and well, that just wasn't right, ya know? no problem tho, i just grabbed me an old lamp we've had and spray painted it "soot" black to suit the shade's styling... and tried 'er out. the bulb light was too harsh showing through so much of the wicker, so i lined the interior with brown mailing paper, my fav. (prolly not something Smokey the Bear would advise, but i tested it for a couple hours and no fire, so i figured...)

tada! now adam and i began testing objects around the house that could pass for finials (that's the top thingie that holds the shade on the lamp). first one we tried was too tall. adam calls this one the "pineapple."

the next one was sorta clownish.

and after a couple other rejects, we ended up going back to the pineapple and sawing off the bottom with a pipe saw. we likey. and there ya have it!



whaddya think? anybody tried somethin' like this before?

Thrift Score: All for $10!

check it divas...

i got all you see here for only $10! mm, hmm, you read me right, $10 for this score! let's inventory, shall we?
2 brand new flannel snowflake pillow cases
6 vintage look-a-like tulip napkins
1 giant embroidery hoop
1 stuffed paper bag filled with craft supplies - hoops, fabric, thread, yarns, picture frames, foam, etc.
1 vintage floral platter
1 light bright game
1 pair open-toe garden clogs (they're hiding)
1 pair real leather cowboy boots for the huz
1 kitty cat park play set (i'll explain)
and 1 wonky adorable lamp

impressed? yeah, i was pretty thrilled ma'self. you see, my man gave me $10 to "go have fun" thrifting for the afternoon, and i took that and added to it my own $15 of fun money and began the hunt. (i adore thrifting) after 2 hours and $25 were spent, ("hey!" you say, "i thot you said $10 before." i did. quit interrupting and read on.) i had all the items listed above, plus another pair of authentic leather cowboy boots. i took them downtown to mike, an owner of one of our local vintage stores and sold 'em to him for $15. bam.

napkins, pillow cases,  garden clogs, and purty platter

sorry cat people, but i really hate dislike cats. however, if they come in a non-shedding, tiny form that has the ability to entertain my toddler on the long drive to the beach - i like cats.



the restyling of this kooky light will be coming up in a future post.

so there's ma thrift score, mamas. now, hear me this: this sport ain't for the faint-hearted, y'all. if you don't like hunting through mildewy posters for vintage art, scavenging amidst dusty fabric scraps for hand-made surprises, groping in bins of worn shoes for that muddy pair of boots at the bottom, fearlessly haggling down $1 or $20, and maybe even elbow-fighting for your spot digging through the bacteria-ridden children's toys (back-off, Nana! my little girl's scorin' that doctor's kit this round!), then stay home, pansies. but if you're up for the dirt, the disorder, the smells, meeting and being in close quarters with the 'salt of the earth,' taking risks on possibly-broken-beyond-repair and likely-to-never-get-that-stain-out "treasures," then saddle-up with me, girlfriends. 

those of you who know me well, know that i'm a total germaphobe. i won't eat something if there's a pin hole poke in the bag. i disinfect me keys, phone, remote controls, and steering wheel monthly...sometimes weekly. but when it comes to thrift store shoppin' - i'm a different woman. why? answer's simple, as you can see above, you can completely score! adam's boots were 50 cents, honnys! 50 cents! one day thrifting will be a sport, and when that day comes, you might wanna pick me for your team. i'm jus' sayin'...