Flea Market Survival

I’m sad to report that Brimfield was a bust. Early in my adventure I found one decent pair of chairs. In the right place with the right paint and fabric they would have been awesome. But they were a little too feminine for what I have in mind for my space. Fast forward 3.5 hours and I found a pair of old, perfectly worn leather club chairs. I sat in them. I admired them from afar. I sat in them again. Then I asked the price and choked. $5000 for the pair! Not exactly what I’d been budgeting for chairs. Alas, the hunt continues.

Since I have nothing to show for my hours of wandering I thought I’d share my flea market survival kit instead.
(1) Cash, because it is king. For cases of emergency spending there is a check and a credit card but you’ll get the best deal with cash.
(2) A notebook and pen. When I leave home this book is filled with measurements for spaces I’m looking to fill, door jamb widths, stairway heights, and the space in the back of the car. A treasure isn’t a treasure if you can’t get it into your house.
(3) Measuring tape. See number 2.
(4) Camera. Sometimes it helps to snap a picture of something you like but aren’t too sure about yet. Also, write down the booth information in that handy notebook you brought so you know where to return to when you realize you can’t live without said item.
(5) Sunblock and sunglasses. I’m pale, really pale. The only way to survive is with sunblock and sunglasses. If it hadn’t been overcast with threats of rain you would also see my brimmed straw hat up there.
(6) Water. You can’t be dropping two dollars here and there every time you’re thirsty so I always carry water and refill at fountains as necessary. I’m stingy with the cash since that is what will make my deals even better.
(7) A big canvas tote to store everything you see up there. It’s also really convenient for those tiny treasures you find along the way.

So Many Options

Have you been noticing all the great new fabrics recently? I have and it’s got me thinking about how I can justify buying up a bunch of them. My answer: that stack of napkins on my handmade list. The way I see it, with just half a yard of fabric I can make two napkins. That means for a week's worth of napkins I’ll need 7 half yard cuts. I should allow for some realistic delays in laundry though. Perhpas I'll need 8-9 half yard cuts to be safe, right? The hard part could be narrowing it down!

{from my kitchen} baguette with anchovy butter and radishes

There is something to be said for keeping it simple and this little nibble illustrates why I should keep it simple more often. Slices of French bread slathered with a flavorful anchovy butter and topped with crispy radishes and a sprinkle of sea salt were awesome and paired perfectly with our negronis. Add in several hours of watching the Kentucky Derby coverage and it was a rather nice way to spend an on again/off again stormy Saturday afternoon. Our picks to win the race came up short, but oh well. We had delicious food and drink to ease the pain.

Weekender

So, so long ago I alluded to the fact that I had made a weekender bag. And then I never told you about it. It may have been because I needed space and time and healing after that project. It was a doozy to put together. There was laughing, crying, swearing, and a little bloodshed. At the end of it, though, I had a gorgeous weekender bag ready for trips here, there, and everywhere.

Though truth be told I’m too afraid to take it on an airplane. It could get filthy in the overhead or under the seat in front of me! After all the work I can’t bear the thought of my masterpiece ending up covered in grease or grime or spilled beverages. This bag is now the official bag of road trips. I’m wondering where she’d like to go this summer?

A Contender

Hunting for the perfect chairs is hard, very hard. I’ve been to thrift stores, consignment shops, and flea markets. You might find one great chair but what I really want is a pair. Which leads me to think I might need to go retail. The above example is right up my alley. It is classic with a bit of flair. Just like me.

But I'm not willing to throw in the towel just yet. Brimfield is next week!

(Image from Ballard Designs)

Progress Report

I have a finished quilt top and I love it! It looks just like the picture I had created in my mind. It is huge though. Little Miss Lou could crawl underneath it and not be seen for days. It measures 72” wide x 84” long which is an appropriate size for a twin sized quilt according to the internet.

I’d been a little stumped about what to do for the backing so the quilt top has spent the last few weeks folded neatly on the back of my sewing chair. I was leaning towards something quiet and calm since there is a lot of color and pattern on the quilt top. I finally decided I'd do a band of patchwork with the leftover bits from the quilt top with a wide swath of white above and below. However, as I put together that wide strip of patchwork it all went wrong. Somewhere amdist all my piecing something became horribly stretched and no matter what I did my patchwork strip would not lay straight. It was shaped more like a patchwork rainbow with a huge bump in the center. I could not continue with that! Instead the backing became the very simplest it could be: all white.

But all is not lost. I think the plain white backing will work better with my original plan to quilt it on the diagonal along the prints. If the patchwork strip had worked out I think I would have wanted plain vertical quilting and that just seems a little boring next to all those great half square triangles!

The quilt is now sandwiched, pinned, and the quilting begun. I hope to get the quilting completed by the weekend and then I can sit back and stitch the binding while Netflix keeps me company.

{from my kitchen} homemade pasta

Can there be anything wrong with homemade pasta? I didn’t think so and my latest kitchen experiment, thankfully, proves I’m right. What started out as a few eggs, some flour, salt, and a bit of water turned into the silkiest, most delicious pasta I’ve had in a long time. Maybe ever.

I tossed all that glorious pasta in a simple sauce of prosciutto, orange, and cream and found myself near heaven. As I melted into my first bite I couldn’t help but think of it as the ultra-sophisticated cousin of an alfredo, but even that sells it a bit short. I have to admit I am feeling pretty smug about the perfection of this meal.