the irony of it...

last week my iron of 10 years gave up the ghost.

since he departed this world i have come to realize his value.

i only ever use an iron when i am making things.

i see now i was a fool not to give my iron a name.

for indeed in hindsight, his value was equal to that of Miss Ethel...

i am actually rather teary thinking about my little iron now,

how for many years he did his job without complaint,

knowing others around him had names of affection

and yet he was known simply as 'the iron'.

needing my little bits of fabrics to sit flat

i headed to the thrift store to see what i could see.

as i was on a mission, i had no time to listen to the weight of my heart.

knowing i was to step through the thrift store door without Our #1 by my side

was something i was not prepared to linger on.

with 'a hoppity and a skippity' i was over the threshold

and transported into 'hunt mode'.

unfortunately the irons laid out upon the shelves of despair,

were indeed a despairing lot.

i picked them all up individually, peering at their bottoms

and twiddling with their bits.

one after the other, i replaced them with a sigh.

i returned to the shed empty handed and a little fretful.

after all, i was deep in 'making wares for the shop' mode

(obviously it would appear last week i was in quite the mode)

just taking a breather from beavering away on making stock for the shop,

could spell disaster for moi.

Mr Procrastinator, whom lurks in cupboards and around corners in the shed,

well he sees these moments and pounces when i am at my most vulnerable.

to avoid arousing suspicion from Mr Procrastinator, thinking i had weakened,

i said in a loud voice

"no worries Tif, i have a cunning plan... tra la la la" in a rather over the top squeaky sort of way.

i heard him sigh and step back to the shadows.

then continued a conversation inside my head with the little voice.

"so" said the little voice "what you gonna do Tif, after all you cannot buy a new iron"

i pondered my response

"well technically little voice you are wrong. for it is most clear since 'the iron' passed onto a better life, that he is a tool of my trade, a well needed little fellow that without, i am unable to make hand crafted goodness"

the little voice gasped, quite taken a back by my cleverness

"true, true... but still does it not make you feel like you have let yourself down"

oh! that little voice is so good at what he does.

the next day i spoke to my man,

and this dearest readers is where the 'irony' of the whole matter comes into play

(actually do you like how the word 'irony' is used in a tale about irons, i like that very much, it actually is the kind of thing to make me smile)

for many, you will already know the tale, others perhaps not.

nearly two years ago, i turned the big 4-0.

i will admit it was a struggle for me,

for i was not supposed to get to 40 as quickly as i did.

however the struggle was made worse for moi

by the gift of a panini maker from my man.

now some may think me most ungrateful

but as i am totally crappity crap in the kitchen

i found to be gifted a kitchen gadget for turning 40

by someone who had 24 years to ponder his gift

was a little unfortunate.

the situation made a little worse by finding the receipt

and noting it had been purchased the day before.

however i can say no more, for there is closure on the issue.

actually before i say no more, can i just say,

not a day goes by when the panini maker isn't topic for conversation within the shed.

it has become the most loved piece of kitchen gadgetry we have...

Our #4 always asks "but surely mum after all this time,

you can see what a great gift it was?"

hoping one day i will cave and say "yes it was lovely wasn't it"

but i stand my ground and i stay strong,

advising him as only a mother to a son can do

"dearest child of mine, when you have been married for umpteen years

to the love of your life, do not be foolish enough to think a gift for the kitchen

is a gift worth giving.

whether you understand the wisdom of my words or not, is immaterial.

just heed them and heed them well"

roll on nearly two years and here i am talking to my man,

with the words 'the irony of it' going around and around my head.

"soooo" i began "you know my birthday is coming up in a couple of weeks"

to which he looked a little frightened.

i continued

"thing is, i know i gave you a really hard time over the panini maker but i have a situation here,

a situation that is causing me untold strife"

by now, i had his attention

"i was wondering if you may care to buy me a new iron and perhaps even better still, could i have it as an early birthday gift" i finished in a flourish and 'pretty please' grin

i have not seen the light in my man's eyes look quite so sparkly in quite the while.

i could see the cogs turning through them,

i could tell his little voice inside was chuckling at the irony of the situation.

here was his wife, whom declared with great voice

he was never ever to give her a household appliance for her birthday again,

was now requesting an iron for her 42nd birthday.

with that, he picked up the car keys,

drove me to the store,

stood for nearly an hour going through each iron on display,

discussing the merits and the disadvantages of each

whilst i pointed out the ones that would not do, due to their color.

after much debating,

i came to the conclusion the only one up for the job was The Shark.

my man kindly took The Shark to the till,

paid for him

and

drove us both home

promptly announcing when inside the shed,

with big grin on his face and sparkly stuff still in his eyes

"Tif, as it is nearly your birthday and i know you cannot do what you do without an iron,

i thought it quite nice if i gave you your gift early"

where upon he presented me with The Shark.

in the week that has past i have dallied with Mr Shark (his mossy shed name)

for quite a few hours.

he steams like i have never seen an iron steam before,

and he is a heavy weight for sure, causing me to pause between presses.

Our #2 when seeing his hunky silvery good looks exclaimed

"blimey mum, is your iron on steroids!"

to which i quipped

"no, but i may have to start myself, if i am to lift him everyday"

she is thanking you all so very kindly for the grand reception you gave her bigger than big news ~ Tif

thrifty thursdays...

hurrah! it is thrifty thursdays,

oh how i have missed my thrifty thursdays 'show and tell'

so without further a do i shall proceed...

well, truth be told dearest readers i felt a little guilty leaving my children to loiter,

but upon entering the thrift store my guilt slipped away

for that is the wonder of a thrift store...

it just becomes you,

your thoughts

and the your next peachy find.

i do believe yesterday,

i had my most peachiest frock find to date.

i found her rather neglected upon the racks of despair.

indeed it was her color i was instantly attracted to,

that 'perfectly perfect' sludgy, slightly icky, green.

and then to see that perfect green matched with blossoms and branches,

not to mention a mandarin collar...

well i think it comes as no surprise

when i say

i was overcome with dizziness and not the Mr Vertigo kind.

i did not bother to try her on,

her price tag being only $5 i was willing to take a chance...

if her fit was iffy

then i would 'choppity chop' her up to make cushions.

upon returning to the shed

i donned my new thrift store frock,

i gasped the gasp

could it be this little sweetie had potential,

perhaps a little loose and yes way too long,

but surely nothing Miss Ethel could not handle

after a few stolen moments here and there in my studio

i noted my thrift store frock began to shine...

i added a little tie detail with lace trim

and voila!

her pretty summery self shone forth.

she is thinking it is all adding up to Mr Summer doing a bit of loitering himself ~ Tif

eight months and counting...

oh you don't miss a trick do you my lovely dearest readers!

in the words of my beautiful late grandmother

"there are no flies on you"

for indeed i am most reassured, if ever i need to remember something,

all i have to do is ask upon my shiny place

and you will remember for me.

i have no clue as to what i rambled on about last week,

and yet

you seem to have your recall skills in 'tippity top' condition.

i think i am most lucky indeed to have you as my readers of the utmost kind...

and so it would appear,

i have past the eight month marker for my handcrafted secondhand year.

in the time that has past i could nearly have added to my clan

but instead of a babe in arms

i have a 'ton of thrifty finds' to love,

who do not demand anything of me

other than a place to rest their weary discarded souls.

despite my love for little babies,

i'm a tres weary some days in the mothering department.

i'm saving myself for some 'granny loving'

until then

i'm fine and dandy

with my collection of forsaken souls

i am giving out several gold sticky stars for observing my latest used clippity clogs.

they are indeed new to me.

they came used from the aisles of Ebay,

in the description it said they had a few scruffs.

upon arrival at the shed,

after a well fought battle with another who wished to make them hers.

(or possibly his, but i'm thinking he would have to have small feet, so i'm going with hers)

i had to get out my magnifying glass to find the scruffs...

i found two.

they were in tippity top condition,

just like your recall skills.

when i wear my 'i can't quite believe you are truly mine' clogs

with the pretty painted flowers,

i am transported to another world

a world of folksy things,

dala horses

and other such lovelies.

indeed i have them upon my feet at this very moment

my only regret is no longer having braids to match them...

so my dearest readers,

i must just say to you

not a single day goes by that i am not humbled by the kindness

you bring to my inbox

and

the comments you leave on my shiny place.

you continuously take time out of your busy days

to say hello,

thank me for inspiring you and lifting your days.

but what you will never perhaps fully understand is,

i should be thanking you.

for giving me the confidence

to continue down the path of 'crafty vintage rambling' goodness upon this blog.

the mere fact you appear to read my ramblings is quite extraordinary to moi.

especially as i appear to have taken on a poetry like writing style...

i have no idea how it happened,

perhaps it has always been there

but to me,

i often look at my post

thinking it looks like a poem

and indeed quite often reading like 'a nonsense one' at that

to say my 'thank yous' properly with perfect manners

something i'm thinking 'mrs dull' would approve of.

and to let you know just how much 'i like you' lots...

oh, alright then,

'i love you' lots.

i will be having a 'give away' on monday

"oh yippee!" i hear you cry

until then, she is wishing you the peachiest of peachy weekends ~ Tif aka still mrs dull (according to the creatures in the shed)

a challenge and a 'hangy-me-jig'...

i fear i have painted my DOUBTER in rather a poor light.

if indeed he stepped onto the stage right now,

i'm thinking a ripple amongst the crowd may result in some boo-ing...

so please allow me to correct the wrong i have made.

for my DOUBTER is perhaps worthy of way more than a gold sticky star,

he has stuck by my side near on 25 years

and

he does not doubt in any way that buying second hand is a good and proper thing to do,

no sirree!

his doubting ways come into play concerning my rather addictive ways to thrift store shopping,

my continual need to bring in forsaken little souls into our shed,

cluttering up our space,

always exclaiming how each and everyone of my finds will one day look peachy upon the shelves of a store...

today marks the 7 month milestone in my 'challenge of the utmost kind'.

it has been an interesting path for me.

i am without doubt

(and we know how we like 'no doubting')

that my challenge has helped further my creativity within my crafting

and indeed my shed.

i would be lying if i said it has been easy peasy every single day.

some things have been,

i don't actually think about it most days,

buying secondhand and handcrafted has become the norm.

but on occasion, i can tell you i would love nothing more than to walk into a clothing store such as anthropologie,

try on everything and anything,

and be able to purchase just one thing to cheer up my closet.

but then again because i haven't be able to do just that,

i pushed myself to make a 'high hopes' dress.

something i doubt (oooh, there it is creeping in again) i would have attempted without the challenge...

so with that being said i thought i would list to you all the things i have bought for myself new in the past 7 months,

and before you gasp! shocked that indeed i have purchased new,

the majority of what i bought became an ingredient used within handcrafted or rescuing a forsaken soul so it may shine in all its glory

1. three tins of eco paint

2. four sheets of pretty paper for birdie decals on the kitchen nook wall, purchased in China Town whilst visiting Vancouver over spring break

3. five spools of thread for Miss Ethel to do her thing, i bought these last week and they are my first since the challenge began, not bad considering just how much thread her and i go through in a week

4. three yards of new fabric, bought once again last week, so i may attempt a second dress.

being aged 41 i decided most of the fabrics i had with enough yardage in my stash were a little on the twee side for myself.

5. five little birdies

when i found an old lampshade frame i was inspired to make a 'little birdies hangy-me-jig'...

my inspiration came from the lovely Sandra of Yarning and her use of an old lampshade frame.

she truly is a wonderfully talented crafter.

i used my little sprightly spring scraps, along with some lovely vintage kimono fabric my soul sister sent me...

i knew i wished for little birdies upon my hangy-me-jig and so after some pondering, knowing fabric ones would not give me the look i was going for, i bought some.

6. a brass lamp harp for a thrift store lamp

7. a spare part for our broken kitchen tap so i could stop myself going insane

i am most admiring of all the challengers upon my sidebar especially those who have their family included,

it is something that takes a certain amount of willpower, definitely passion and a strong belief in what you are doing.

whatever the reasons they are doing it for

i am delighted they should take this challenge alongside of me...

and also for so many of you out there who choose to do this within your day to day life and have been doing so for many years.

you truly are an inspiration for me

and for that i am thanking you kindly...

she has three wraps made and several more to go ~ Tif

a thrifted tale...

i tell you this tale today dearest readers,

so those amongst us that live with DOUBTERS

may take heart

and continue to stay strong

whilst 'a thrifting'.

for indeed life with a 'doubter of the secondhand kind' can be most inconvenient at times...

so if you are sitting comfortably,

have rather a lot of time on your hands to spare,

i shall begin.

once upon a time in a Mossy Shed surrounded by an acre of moss, lived Tif.

once again we find Tif to be an eclectic bohemian crafter of a uncertain age,

pottering about her usual friday morning, doing 'pottering must dos'.

after a bit of pottering Tif had to go out,

Tif rarely left the safety of her shed but some days it was necessary.

this time she required something to complete a crafty project

(more of that tomorrow)

on the way back from said place Tif passed her local thrift store.

she never went there on a friday for getting a parking spot was always most stressful and put paid to any enthusiasm for thrifting.

but for some reason she thought perhaps she'd just try her luck,

"no harm" she thought to herself

and

as she was passing it would seem silly not to try.

she visualized the space and voila! one appeared...

after a few minutes of pottering around the shelves thinking it all was rather 'crappity crap' and begining to doubt the space in the parking lot was karma,

Tif rounded the corner to the furniture aisle.

at that moment dearest readers,

Tif experienced her most peachiest thrift store find of all time...

for she knew her thrift store did not do mid century furniture,

other than perhaps the odd side table.

in fact for a long time she was suspicious that those out back who did the sorting, knew their stuff and never allowed any mid century lovely pieces to go out onto the shop floor.

but Tif learnt several lessons that day,

one of which,

miracles do happen

and the thrifty gods do bless those that shop secondhand.

she noted a chair,

looked a little closer,

felt a little weak,

checked around and saw its brothers

and that is when it happened

Tif knew she had in her hands something so sweet and beautiful it made her want to weep.

but Tif also knew she lived with a DOUBTER

and this DOUBTER was sending her doubting thought waves.

so Tif faltered from what was right and goodly,

from what the thrifty gods had laid out before her

she took only one chair to the cash till.

but then she hesitated

the gods on one shoulder, telling her

"Tif this is your moment, your most glorious thrift store moment of all time",

the DOUBTER on the other, telling her

"Tif, put it back, how many chairs can one family and one shed need for crying out loud"

Tif returned to the furniture aisle and tried to please both the Gods and her DOUBTER.

she decided to buy two.

hoping to silence the converstation going on in her head.

on returning to the shed,

she pondered her purchases,

$15 a piece.

she noted the label

she placed a bit of fabric over the iffy seat covers

she gasped,

then the fog lifted,

it all became clear.

the thrifty Gods had moved in mysterious ways,

opening up a parking space,

guiding Tif to a set of mid century chairs in all their glory,

at an incredible price

and she had let them down

she had been swayed by a DOUBTER...

Tif quickly emailed her soul sister in old blighty

confessing the sin.

her soul sister emailed her back immediately

telling her she was not to listen to the DOUBTER in her shed or her head

and get her arse back in the car and rescue the other chairs before it was too late.

after 45 minutes of fretting, thinking someone else would find the last two chairs before she got to them,

she was rewarded for returning to the righteous path the thrifty Gods had shown her.

a little while later,

armed with furniture polish,

four peachy chairs

and

some 'spring fling fabrics' she got to work....

later that evening

she was ready for the DOUBTER to return from work,

and

indeed the following day, Tif once again had to leave the shed to run some errands,

she left a gentle reminder for her DOUBTER to find upon his return from soccer.

so there would be no doubt in his mind,

Tif would never again,

wavier upon discovering mid century furniture at the thrift store...

for to have come most close to walking away from the set,

splitting them apart forever

would have been a 'thrift store sin of the utmost kind'

Tif is grateful the Gods blessed her twice that day,

allowed her to be influnenced by the DOUBTER who lives in her shed,

knowing that it was all part of their greater plan.

for they knew she had to falter,

to lose her way,

so they could prove to her

once and for all,

the secondhand path she tries to stay on,

day after day

is a

goodly

and

rightly

one...

without a DOUBT

the end

she has 'high hopes' for summer apron wraps this week ~ Tif

Mr Lurgy and his saviour ways...

it is a few days until i reach the half way mark in my handcrafted secondhand year and yesterday was, i do believe the greatest temptation to have crossed my path since September 20th 2009

yes dearest readers, yesterday saw Liberty of London hit the shelves of Target.

i knew the day was coming for i had stumbled across the info somewhere in cyber land.

i have been preparing myself for several weeks.

i took a good look at all they were offering,

now some may think this foolish for one that cannot have,

but i saw it as a way to deal with the situation.

i took a good long deep look,

and then i came to the conclusion that in fact there wasn't anything at all i actually needed and very few things that i wanted.

except the bike,

lordy how i love the bike

oh and then the gardening gloves

who wouldn't want to garden in those peachy things

and then lets not forget the mens shirts,

colin firth would look fabby in one of those and so would my man.

then i saw the little girls clothes

i don't have a little girl but i still would like a dress...

and so it continued and then i said

"enough Tif, this is madness... this is precisely why you took up your challenge!"

and dearest readers i was quite right,

it is the very reason why.

to see if indeed one can live without the temptations of the advertising world and the feeling of 'want', especially when it comes to such lovely wares as Liberty of London.

so armed with the knowledge that this past weekend was going to be all about temptation i kept myself busy...

i cleaned up my studio space, which was in dismal disarray due to shop work

i made a pretty curtain for my bookcase from pillowcases

i wrote the supply list for my workshop retreat

i finished up some coat hangers i had been working on,

i have done crocheted hangers before but when i found a cream and orange shell patterned one i knew i wished to try one for myself

i made a whatnot garland to hang in my shop window

and all those things kept me busy,

but at any time i could have walked out the shed,

got in my car

and

been tempted amongst the aisles of Target.

what stopped me was just as it always seems to be...

the handcrafted thrifty gods intervened

they noted me wavering,

they saw me looking online,

they heard me talking on the phone

and they made a plan.

for they were not willing to see me fall from the righteous path i have chosen for one year,

they saw a soul that was a little lost, a soul that needed saving.

so who should come knocking at the shed door late on saturday night?

well none other than Mr Lurgy.

a visitor i haven't seen in nearly a year,

a visitor i had been so pleased to have kept at bay,

but i knew the reason

and

i knew i must take what comes.

for Mr Lurgy has taken me down

thus giving me no energy to take a trip to Target

and despite his wicked and cruel ways

it would appear he has saved my soul from losing its way.

today as i tippity type with a hankie by my side

i feel good

i feel proud

i feel strong

(well actually i feel quite weak from Mr Lurgy, but you know what i mean)

that i did not cave

to the lovely, oh so beautiful,

lordy let me look at you closely, perhaps even touch you,

can i smell you?

Liberty of London in Target

she is thinking the second half of the year is going to be child's play compared to yesterday ~ Tif

me and my glue sticking ways...

before i got sidetracked by

my thrift store saturday

my closet issues

and

my clog lusting ways

i had planned to bring you the thrilling adventures of moi and my glue stick.

ah yes, dearest readers i am in love with a glue stick and if you are sitting comfortably then i shall begin...

last week when i was looking for my 'lost groove' amongst the shelves of despair,

i rounded the corner from towels to furniture and blocking the aisle was a little table.

the little table spoke to me.

she told me of a time when she had been loved,

but alas was now forgotten.

she also informed me that she was a solid little table made of oak, no less.

(i'm not sure about the oak bit, but i didn't want to hurt her feelings on the matter so i just nodded, knowingly)

after she had finished her little 'please, please help me' speel,

i got down on my knees and looked at her under bits, shifted her around to see if all her legs were level and matching.

i then told her,

yes indeed she was a sturdy little table but it would appear i had no need for her solid ways and promptly pushed her back under the shelf, tucked out the way so i could get past.

now before you 'gasp!' and hang your heads, saddened to think the Tif you read about today is not the Tif you know so well. in my defense we must remember i had lost my groove at this point, i was drifting without direction, i was unable to give a little table the love she deserved and yes, i will admit it, i was heartless and cold.

on my return to the Shed, the little table haunted me,

she knew that i knew she had potential, a thing i respect.

she knew that i knew, she had shuffled out into the aisle purposefully to find me.

she knew that i knew, i needed her even though i didn't know it at the time.

("blimey Tif, this is another epic tale" i hear you exclaim

"i know and i haven't even got to the glue stick bit yet, so perhaps you may care to take your pea soup off the boil and come back, for you are in for a long haul" i kindly suggest)

i was left with no option.

i needed to go back,

i needed to find the little solid table,

i needed to beg her forgiveness

and

i needed to bring her home to Mossy Shed...

all the members of my clan had an opinion on the little table that stood in my studio waiting for her moment to shine.

i'm pleased to report, most were favorable.

they appreciated her solid ways and marveled at how one doesn't find a little oak table everyday at the thriftstore of such delicate proportions.

(ah yes, i feel i have brought them up well)

it was the oldest member of the Shed who let me down, his eyes alighting upon her, exclaiming "oh no Tif, not more crap! i can't move for crap these days. please why?"

i chose to ignore him, which i think in these circumstances is the best way to go. after all he does not possess what we do... alas he was not granted the 'gift of vision' when it comes to thrifty finds, bestowed upon us by the thrifty gods. yes we are the choosen ones and we must be kind to the folks in our lives without 'gifts' such as ours.

after four coats of glossy soft white paint, showing off her lovely little feet and underskirt, she appeared to need something else.

she needed something pretty on top.

i knew what i wished it to be, i wished it to be the most loveliest of vintage wallpapers but alas my stash is rather lacking, and no piece was large enough.

i pondered,

i procrastinated

and then

i had an epiphany

why yes indeedy, the very thing i needed was lurking in my drawers.

(ha! do you like that line, me too!)

armed with nothing more than a glue stick

(actually two, as one was rather low, so i had to rustle around in a few other drawers to locate another to finish the job)

origami paper

and a pencil

i got to work.

the edges were a little tricky, and they are certainly not perfect

but at the end of the day after much patience and a coat of varnish, my little table is looking rather lovely.

she has become a much needed extra surface for myself and Miss Ethel, fitting in quite nicely indeed.

now i'm not saying that a glue stick and origami paper is perhaps the most robust of surfaces, but in the case of my little table, where she will be gently used and cared for by myself, allowing no other clan member to treat her harshly, i'm thinking she has a long life ahead of her, being the solid little number made of oak, that she is...

she is thinking if only she could do the same with a thrift store dress she would be onto a winner ~ Tif

a matter of thee utmost importance...

dearest readers,

never in all my born days of rambling have i ever rambled more than once in a day...

i can tell you that there have been times when i have wished to rush to your sides and ramble sweet nothings all day long but i have stopped myself, held back, knowing you have your own little world to get on with and 'once is enough' coming from me.

but today i must break my 'once is enough' rule for i have been overcome with clog lust.

overcome i tell you.

yes i have 'googled'

(yes! ha! i 'googled' and not 'binged', because i'm a rebel within my shed)

i have googled

"handcrafted Swedish clogs"

and i found

SVEN

the new love of my life

(please please let the linky gods be with me on this one)

i have sat mesmerized by Sven's changing pretty photo at the top.

i have fallen in love with the pretties on show.

i have scrolled down and read the blurb, albeit rather hastily due to my 'quickening heart',

and even with my failing eyesight,

(knowing bi-focal hell is beckoning me once again)

i do believe i have found handcrafted clogs.

i have ignored the scary prices, choosing to put that little bit of the screen in my 'floater' area of my vision.

i'm delighted to have at last found a 'positive' for those pesky black dots that float around and sometimes jump out at me when i'm least expecting them.

but i digress and we must not digress for we are looking at handcrafted clogs.

we must not faint at the cost of such attire for one's feet, after all we know they will last forever and ever...

well we can faint but then we must get right back up upon our little stools and take another looky at clog heaven.

so dearest readers i am without a doubt,

quite postively sure,

you are way, way too busy doing busy important stuff of your own to take a little looky at

these sweet things,

or perhaps

these pretties

knowing they come in

all the colors of the rainbow

and as if that wasn't enough

to get your clog juices craving

then i'm thinking this

peachy pair

will...

how tres fabby it would be to wander about the place in clog boots!

do you see it, do you!?

the apron wrap,

the slip peeking out

the chicken under the arm

i need to stop,

i'm overcome with it all...

for i am now becoming a clog boot luster of the worst kind,

and no one likes a clog boot luster,

or do they?

she is quite sure Sven and her 'peachy looking souls' factory must be the closest thing to clog heaven this side of the pearly gates ~ Tif

progress report...

oooh, doesn't that title make it sound like i have terribly important things to say?

like i perhaps have made progress in a very professional way?

like i need to report it in a pie chart or graph of some kind?

i'm almost tempted to change out of my 'natty' clothes into something more befitting a progress report,

but then i know that's not possible for my closet contains not 'an ounce' of progress reporting attire.

nearly five months into the challenge of the utmost kind

and

i am becoming a little desperate for a different dress to adorn myself.

i like to wear dresses daily, it is my uniform.

i like to wear dresses with tights and boots,

i like to wear dresses over jeans, with a cardi,

i like to wear dresses with flip flops and a slip

and i'm thinking

i would like to wear dresses with a pair of painted swedish clogs

(in fact i know i would)

and so it is quite apparent from that bit of divulging about my 'dress wearing ways' that indeed any dress of mine gets a lot of wear.

it is an all season little bit of cloth,

layered for winter

and unlayered for summer...

and that is where i am struggling with the challenge

two of my dearest dresses have given up the ghost,

no amount of patching and stitching was going to bring them back.

for the past few weeks i have started to lurk in the dress and skirt aisles when out and about thrifting.

but here's the thing,

i believe it is a 'talent', ney a 'gift' from the thrifty gods, to take a forsaken bit of clothing and make it smile.

Our #1 has it coming out of her fingers and toes by the bucket load.

the most awful sad neglected item upon the rails of despair can by taken down by her and made to shine in all it's glory...

a 'gift' i am sadly lacking in.

i took a look on Etsy

there were some rather lovely organic cotton skirts and dresses available but i'm looking for a little pattern, a little nostalgia, a little color

i'm shopping for a 41 year old with a 32 year old eclectic bohemian 'alter ego' inside of her.

this makes my search a little more tricky, my alter ego is egging me on and i'm happy to go down that path of 'eclectic' wear if only i could find it handcrafted or secondhand...

and so in the end,

out of desperation,

i took a loved and worn skirt from my closet bought over 4 years back and popped her in Miss W. Machine with a packet of dye.

i chopped out the lower ruffled panel and added a 'fat quarter' from my stash.

and completed my 'overhaul' with a little dash of doilies...

i'm not loving it,

i am especially not loving it over jeans, teamed with a rather dubious green sweater,

and i am especially not loving,

that after five months of being a handcrafted thrifty mama this little skirt is the best i have to offer for my efforts

she is thinking it most fortunate that Miss Ethel has made much better progress than herself ~ Tif

the missing groove...

i've lost my groove,

i'm trying to remember the last time i had it, i'm thinking perhaps it was on friday...

i recall returning from the thrift store, quite late with several pillowcases, a lovely little quilt and a couple of stick back chairs.

i was rather elated by my finds.

a few hours later, i discovered i'd mislaid my groove...

i'm assuming i must have left it at the thrift store.

i will have to go back, just in case it lurks amongst the shelves waiting patiently for me to retrieve it.

i'm now picturing 'my groove' feeling lonely and frightened,

having been left behind by me, of course not intentionally,

but my 'little groove' does not know that does it?

no, my 'little groove' has been all alone for three nights, enough time to dwell on being left.

at first i'm sure my 'little groove' would have had reasonable thoughts

"oh that's okay, Tif will be back in a minute for me, she's a little forgetful these days" turning to a discarded forsaken soul for reassurance

but after a while that forsaken soul will not have any reassurance to give, it will start to mutter things like

"don't bet on it deary, that's what we all thought, but time goes on and you wake up one day having lost count of the hours it's been. that's the day it dawns on you, they ain't coming back, mark my words"

oh my poor 'little groove'!

thinking i have no use for it, when i do.

for without my groove i am nothing.

i can't get a thing done, my procrastinating reaches an all time low and i wander through my days lost, bewildered and without direction...

i blame 'clogs' for my lost groove.

if i hadn't been so busy trying to 'visualize' wooden clogs at the thrift store then i wouldn't have absentmindedly put my groove down.

for i have become a 'visualizer' when thrifting, this in turn i blame on my best pal Debbie.

she informed me when staying last Fall, that if you visualize a parking space in a 'full to the brim' parking lot, quite often one appears out of nowhere...

since 'imparting knowledge' of such wisdom to moi, i spend most of my thrifting moments visualizing.

and especially when it comes to 'clogs'.

lovely little dutch wooden clogs for the walls of mossy shed

since discovering these beauties i have got 'clog' fever, and i've got it bad.

last week i found a little pair that made my heart skip a beat.

on returning to the shed, i promptly painted the sweeties 'coral'.

i like 'coral' it is indeed the color of a grandma's lipstick and it makes me feel warm and comforted.

i now appear to be a collector of clogs, i didn't know it until i added my coral lovelies to my wall and my wall stared back at me, begging for more where 'coral' came from...

and it would appear, dutch wooden clogs are not my only obsession, for i am now obsessing about a swedish pair of clogs for my feet this summer.

i am foreseeing spring and summer being most worrisome when it comes to the challenge.

for there is something about spring and the need to buy a nice new pretty pair of attire for one's feet.

i'm thinking colorful clogs would be so very appealing.

i'm thinking colorful clogs with painted flowers would make even the most mundane of domestic chores be so much more exotic.

i'm thinking this thinking of clogs maybe the undoing of me...

she is off to visualize her 'groove' amongst the shelves of despair, hopefully next to a pair of swedish clogs with her name on ~ Tif

a basket case of sorts...

before we start today's thrilling installment i must just point out that all pictures are unrelated to my heartwarming tale. they are just random bits of 'eye candy' to help you get through the ramble, and let me tell you, you're going to need it...

having got that out the way i shall proceed with a tale from my 'challenge of the utmost kind' life.

i am now four months into my challenge and a 'happening' that happened to me this past tuesday, has happened to renew my faith and stay strong a long the path of thrifty handcrafted righteousness

allow me to enlighten you dearest readers on this day that just past...

i have a dishwasher.

i have a love hate relationship with my dishwasher. i love him because he does the dishes leaving me to not have to, but i hate him because he doesn't do it to the best of his abilities.

it is not his fault, for within my dishwasher lurks a cutlery basket, my cutlery basket has five compartments

("why this truly is the most thrilling of reads Tif, i think you may have surpassed yourself this time" i hear you interrupt...

"why thank you kindly" i say in return)

now as i was saying, my cutlery basket has five compartments which most of you will think is nothing special or worth note. but what i haven't yet revealed is, for the past year only one of those compartments has a sealed bottom to it.

for near on a year i have cursed and sworn at my clan for tossing their cutlery into the bottomless compartments and avoiding the one with a bottom.

(that is when they can actually find the dishwasher, which isn't very often i might add)

forks, knives and spoons left to dangle through, causing a blockage of the worst kind.

resulting in my dishwasher not preforming his duties to the best of his abilities

and me using language inappropriate for a lady of any description.

on tuesday i exclaimed to my man i could stand it no longer, i was a broken kitchen worker driven to insanity by the ridiculous of the situation.

armed with my little sad plastic cutlery basket i left Mossy Shed, intent on locating a new one despite my challenge.

first port of call, our local appliance center.

the very nice man looked rather crescent fallen when he glanced up from his desk hoping to find a customer intent on buying a whole array of shiny new appliances and not just one plastic replacement basket.

my attire put paid to any doubts in his mind that i was for the persuading...

he informed me, they were not the place for me, but that the very place i was looking for happened to be in the industrial area ten minutes further down the road.

by now all i could see was precious thrifting time being spent locating this darn plastic basket. i proceeded to the industrial estate armed with the very nice man's directions and then proceeded to drive around umpteen laps until i discovered a tiny door with the correct number above.

once again with my 'seen better days' basket i entered a door into a tiny front area where a lady stood behind her tiny desk.

"can i help you?"

"i'm hoping against all hopes that you have a replacement for this" i said, placing my mangled little basket upon her tiny desk top

"ah well, we don't actually, but we could special order it in, if you have the serial number with you" she offered

"oh... i was so hoping you would have one and now i have to go home to get the number" i replied dejected and disheartened

"well i suppose i have this one but it's used" she offered up whilst turning to retrieve her pen holder from the side...

and that was it dearest readers, the moment i knew the 'thrifty handcrafted challenge' gods had shone down on me once again.

for in her hand she held a used, old but still with it's bottom, little plastic cutlery holder. it's handle long gone and it's color well faded...

"i'm wondering if you can pull the handle off yours and reattach it to my pen holder, then you can have my pen holder and i can have your broken basket in return" she suggested

"but won't your pens fall through?" i asked

"no worries, i'll just put a bit of foam in the bottom and that will do the trick" she smiled

i left the little appliance place with a warm and fuzzy feeling in my heart...

i told the lady, she had quite possibly made my whole year, for in my hand i had a cutlery basket to end my cursing days and best of all it was secondhand and didn't cost me a penny.

now if that little tale didn't warm you through and through then i'm hoping at least the pictures of randomness helped pass the time nicely for you.

she is thanking you most kindly for giving used dog and little olive canvasing time on your doorsteps ~ Tif

a challenge...

it never occured to me that a new year would bring new challengers but then when does anything obvious occur to me.

my head is in a dream world most of the time...

and so it would seem we have lots of new lovely 'challengers of the utmost kind' added to my sidebar. now i am quite sure there are a few of you lovelies out there going

"but i can't see my name... hey Tif, what's that all about, i've been doing this for a while and i even wrote and told you"

and yes you probably did,

but i hold my hand up and say, please forgive me and my 'inbox skills'.

for i know on occassion a few challengers have perhaps slipped through the net. i can only apologize, tell you i lie awake at night worrying about it and mumble something about having a word with 'little olive' and 'used dog' who are now my admin help. if i have neglected to add you then i ask, please to rewrite me, making sure you give me a link to your blog, that way i can find you easily.

and so i must welcome one and all, because that's the other rather crappy thing i've not done of late, replying to everyone individually, welcoming them on board and all that jazz. quite honestly it's not that i don't care, because i do... i just hope you can understand that time is quite short around mossy shed at the moment.

for those of you that perhaps found me and my challenge through another challenger and have questions of your own, then i hope i have the answers here and here as to why i started my challenge.

i think it most important that anyone interested in joining, understands it is a personal challenge which you can take to what lengths you wish. there are many brave souls amongst my sidebar whose spouses and children have joined in. there are many who have been doing this for years and have liked the idea of being amongst friends and there are many i hope that are having fun doing it... whatever the reasons it may be, i'm thinking them very admirable and i am delighted that so many have been inspired by moi and my nostril hair of the worst kind.

for me the handcrafted secondhand months are rolling by... three and half months into the challenge and i have suffered some moments of "inspirational breakdown".

just starting to get to the point of looking in my closet and sighing...

not really knowing what to put on.

i have dug deeper and found a few 'oldies' that i've donned and felt quite cheered by wearing an old aquaintance for the day.

an example would be the dress i have on in the above picture (taken for bench monday). 'twas a dress my aunt bought me many years back for my birthday when we had been shopping together.

a lovely cotton wrap dress.

it felt nice to find it and to visit that moment in time again.

this past weekend our #3 broke off the kitchen tap sprinkler head. he claims he happened to be the unfortunate victim that touched the tap at just the wrong time... it could have been anyone of us according to him.

i pointed out this could be quite true or in fact it could be, that hitting the top of a sprinkle headed tap with great gusto over and over again, because you are trying to change it from shower to stream is perhaps not the way to do things. needless to say there was a lot of water and a lot of cursing for the next few hours by my man. but instead of seeing it as an opportunity to change out the ugly thing, rushing out to find the kitchen faucet of my dreams. we searched around online, found the replacement piece and did what was best, made do and mended it.

when consulted by my man, whether 10 business days was okay for delivery, i delivered the look that said 2nd day air was probably the best option.

the kitchen fiasco happened on the first night i have been to our local thrifty store since dec 12th. please note dearest readers how i know the exact date i last stepped inside of the store, as though i have counted the minutes of my absence from within it's four walls.

i was most fortunate with my little haul.

a granny knicker pink plastic colander. i like to use these to hold all my tiny scraps for sewing. one contains lace scraps, the other bits of fabric. nothing goes to waste that way and i can also see what i have to hand.

a lovely sludgy greeny pyrex bowl, perfect for holding fruit, along with a mat... there was actually a whole set of these mats available but i couldn't think for the life of me why i would need 8 of them. so i bought one, imagining it as a center piece mat

and last but by no means least, the most 'catch your breath' quilted retro bedspread.

the possibilities for this beauty is endless. over a couch, a picnic blanket, over our bed... i'm really rather dizzy with the thought of where it will go. at the moment it sits in my studio awaiting it's moment to shine...

so there we have it, a little round up of the challenge... a few thrifty thoughts and with that i am away to Miss Ethel, whom i'm pleased to report, has done a sterling job this morning.

i have much to tell you over the coming few days. such gripping, ney thrilling subjects as crochet, laundry, sewing, making over a cupboard and other tremendously exciting world changing topics.

she is thinking does it get any better than that ~ Tif

controversial maybe, handcrafted definitely...

our christmas tree is up in mossy shed

never has a christmas caused so much debate amongst my clan...

and the tree was no exception.

however, i am pleased to report,

despite the odd bemoaning about lack of greenery and lighting

(the latter due to little olive gnawing through the only string of lights i had),

it would appear that my 'lovely lot' have located their rose colored, handcrafted, thrifty specs...

so for this year

(and one year only, i am told by my nearest and dearest)

we have ourselves

a 'whatnot' gleeful tree to fit in with my handcrafted, secondhand year

she is hoping you can find your rose colored specs, if not pop next door and borrow your neighbors.... pleaseeeeee ~ Tif