Post Surgery Check-in

Hi friends. I know I've seen some of you on fb so you know I'm alive but for those of you who don't fb, here I am!!

Today marks three weeks from my surgery date. I'm doing really well, walking 1-3 miles per day. Walk, walk, walk.....that is what is on my doctor's orders. It actually feels so good to walk, and the weather here has been gorgeous so it's easy to get out at least twice a day. I still can't sit for longer than about 30 minutes, so reading is limited and crafting is nonexistent. :-(

This little steering wheel looking thing is a bone generator.  I have to strap it once a day for 30 minutes.  I do this at home and not while I'm walking otherwise I might have little boys chasing me down the street trying to steer the old lady right and left!!!  lol

When I have completed my 30 minutes successfully, I get to see this little happy face.  Now doesn't that just make life worth while?

Saturday morning when I was out walking, there were several yard sales. I was only going to walk around one block because I woke up a little sore.  Somehow my injury disappeared when I saw these three chairs!!!  I hurried home and told my hubby, "Get the Suburban! Somebody has the cutest chairs at a sale!".  He is such a good guy, he didn't even question me. (Years of marriage, I guess he knows me!).

The photo above is when the chairs are folded up, which makes it oh, so convenient to store them when not in use.  And below is what they look like when opened up.  They remind me of ice cream parlor chairs.  There's a little rust so I guess I should spray them with a coat of rustoleum but I kind of like the shabby look.  And then the cherry lover in my sees them red!  I will let them sit while I recuperate and decide on a paint color later. 

Well, I just wanted to check-in and say hello, I'm doing fine and hope you are too.  Guess I better get my morning walk in cuz here comes the sun!

Jello Mold Pincushions

Even though I'm working at a snails pace, I did finish a few more things for the craft show tomorrow.  I saw a tutorial for making Jello Mold pincushions.  It looked fairly easy so I got out my stash of jello molds and some scrap fabric and gave it a shot.  The tutorial was pretty easy to follow.  If you like making pincushions, give it a try.

I didn't have a doily like the one in the tutorial so I gathered up flat lace to make a little embellishment.  I added a button from my stash and wrinkled up some basting ribbon from Stampin' Up!

I printed the little labels in a Word document and punched them with my label punch.  All in all, I think they turned out pretty cute.  My wire was a little tweaked but I just couldn't get it smooth.  Hopefully, people will think it adds to the vintage feel.  :o)

When you can't make `em.....

....buy `em!! Honestly, I practically "own" a fabric store in my sewing room but the "little" wedding details for my daughter's wedding are taking a lot of my spare time so....when I went to get lunch today, I saw an 'Estate Sale' sign. Errrrrrrt! Put the brakes on and off I went. There were lots of old toys (collector type) and antiques but this was an Estate Sale company so things were priced a little high. At least, higher than a yard sale so I passed on most of it. I hope I didn't get taken on this quilt....

It was marked $100 and marked down to $75. I offered $45 for it and the worker-bee said they would take $50. I himmmed and hawed and bought it. I can't tell if the fabrics are 40's, 50's or 80's. LOL The binding and backing are very white compared to the quilt top so I'm thinking it was a top that got newly finished.
I loved the quilting and I'm thinking it doesn't look store-bought or like some it was made in China.

The back is plain white but it really shows the quilting.

I will NEVER hand quilt anything I make so this is the only way I'll have something hand quilted. :o)

The front has several stains, almost like smokers stains but it doesn't stink, so it is soaking right now in the washer. We'll see how it comes out after a bath! hehe

Antique Mall and Swap Meet Shopping

Before and after making cards this past weekend, I did a little shopping. First, on Saturday, Isabel, Kelley and I went downtown Fullerton to a favorite little antique mall called The Brick Basement. The prices are decent compared to antique shops and sometimes, depending on the vendor, they will negotiate or offer deals and sales. Sometimes, things might be priced a little higher than I'd like to pay and then "sometimes" an item calls to me and I've gotta have it!! Such is the case of this little chicken cookie jar. I should probably name her but as of right now, she adorns my table.....and she looks quite at home on my table topper!!

I doubt she is very old and perhaps there is no value, except for to me. I walked past her twice and while on another aisle, I told Isabel, "I think I need to buy that chicken." Being a supportive sister she agreed I needed to have it. hehe I thought I would put it on my kitchen counter but I need to clean up and put some things away first. Until then, she can keep an eye on things from the table. :o)
***Insert card making here, from yesterdays post some sleep and then onto Sunday.***

Sunday, Kelley, Richard and I went to Long Beach Veteran's Antique Swap Meet. Kind of some good stuff and kind of some junk. I guess you get that with any antique swap meet. Kelley and I laughed when we saw a set of horns that must've measured 6' across. I don't know what animal they were from but what's funnier is we saw a man loading them into his pick-up truck when we were leaving. It just tickled us that there's somebody out there to buy just about anything!

Looking at some of the painted furniture made us think that some of the old pieces we have and are ready to pitch out because maybe they are stained an old fashioned maple color or not our taste, look pretty darn good with a coat of paint!! I couldn't believe all the old consoles they had there from the 50's and 60's. I guess there is a new generation loving that retro look.

Some booths had pretty good displays. This woman had little groupings that were very cute. She had a red, white and blue section for the Memorial holiday or 4th of July that will be here before we know it. I couldn't get a picture of it though because there were people just standing there blocking my shot. The nerve!

I loved this little ironing board and iron but it was way overpriced. I don't have any place to put it anyway. Thank goodness or I might of lost my senses and bought it!

Kelley found this little cabinet. She's not sure what she wants to do with it and really doesn't have room for it right now. It was marked $30 but we asked if she would take $20. We thought that was decent for a display piece.

These are the pieces I got. The crocheted flowers aren't antique but I'm going to tea stain some and leave some white and use them for crafts and cards. The spoon had a handle in great shape compared to some that I've gotten. I paid $2. You can tell the little bowl was painted on the inside so I'm not sure I can use it for food but I might use it in my sewing room. I haven't decided yet.

I think we might be hooked and will try and go again. It's the 3rd Sunday of the month, rain or shine.

I did my duty....

...Jury duty, that is. I received my notice several weeks ago and did the "phone-in" thing for the Fullerton Courthouse. They didn't need me Monday or Tuesday but Wednesday I was asked to show up. Pooey...

I got called first thing in the morning after orientation and as if I had a sticker on my forhead, I was one of the first groups to be polled. I didn't even put a dent in my stitchery that I took with me!!! It was a DUI case and before they even called any jurors, they read what the charges were. In my head I thought, 'GUILTY!' I kept telling myself that I didn't even know this person but I couldn't help it. During the polling process, the attorney for the defendant asked me if I thought his client was guilty or innocent. I told him that I thought he was guilty from the moment they read the charges when I was still sitting in the chair with the other jury members. They waited a while but they dismissed me. They dismissed my entire row. I never really gave it much thought but in this day and age, I would hate to be on trial for driving under the influence. Who hasn't been affected by a drunk driver, either personally or just in their own town. I would've listened to the information and based my decision on that but the first thing that came into my head was guilty so I was being honest.

Since they let me off the hook, I could've gone back to work but when I called the boss said I didn't have to. YAY!!!! Time off for good behavior! lol I was still on Harbor Blvd., our main street that runs downtown Fullerton. Here's a picture from the internet to give you an idea of the quaint feel.

There is an awesome little antique mall I have mentioned here before, The Brick Basement. My daughter Stephanie met me there. She had seen some elderly patients for P.T. and was done. Perfect timing! We went in there and found some treasures I couldn't live without. :o) Like this two tiered wire basket. All of the booths are owned by individuals and one vendor was filling her booth when I saw the basket sitting on the floor.

I pretended to look at other things on the shelf because I wanted to give her room to breath but I just kept looking down at it. Finally I reached down and picked it up and saw the little sticker that said $11.00. I guess I expected it to be more because I said the price outloud....ELEVEN dollars???
I'll take it!!! The woman said she was thinking she would use it at Christmas and fill it with glass bubbles but never did. I already set it on the table and can picture using it for every holiday. And if I get tired of it inside, I can put it on the patio and fill it with moss and flowers.

And this was my other find. And embroidered tablecloth. Lazy daisies all over the place.

It looks handmade and there was this little tag on the back. I liked it even if it's store bought. I'll have to take a leaf out of my table for it to fit or I can use it on a card table. So darned cute.

And here are my cherry tart pincushions.

I didn't think of these myself. I saw them on a blog and saved the picture for reference. But I didn't save the link to give the lady who thought of this pincushion credit. :o( I'll keep searching the internet because even though it isn't a pattern, it was someone elses idea and I'd like to mention who thought of it. I do like the way mine came out. I couldn't find the right color tan for the crust though. Looks a bit "burnt". lol

Rose Bowl Flea Market

Sunday I went to the Rose Bowl Flea Market. My husband went with me so that I wouldn't get lost. The last time I attempted this trip was several years ago. My friend Sherrie and I tried to get there but we got to talking.....and we missed a freeway merge and ended up in Barstow! If you know CA, you know Barstow is a little farther drive from Orange County than Pasadena. lol Hard to believe two women in a car driving would get so busy talking we'd miss a turn off but I'm sure it's been known to happen. :o)

This time, with my hubby at the wheel, I made it. Although he told me I owe him a trip to Pomona when they have their car swap meet. There are hundreds of miles of car parts so I'm going to try and think of a way out of that one. Don't tell. I'm hoping he'll forget!

So, this is the Rose Bowl entrance. This picture is from their website. I didn't think of taking a picture until we were about ready to leave! DOH!

This picture is from the parking lot where we parked.....using the zoom lens!

And this next picture is without the zoom. This was the FREE parking! The bad news is far from the entrance. The good news is it's close to the exit! :o) Can you see that itty bitty Rose Bowl sign? lol

Again, by the time I thought to take pictures, we were in the junk aisles. I like those film reels though. Those would be cute if you had a home theatre room.

My hubby liked this furry hat. We didn't buy it.....thank God!

But I did get these cute little egg cups.

Their marked Pacific and Made in USA. I doubt they're worth much because they're chipped around the base but I liked the colors. Reminds me of Fiestaware. I actually thought I might use them with 30's fabrics and make some pincushions out of them for the upcoming swap I'm in but I'm not sure if they'll work. If I do that and they're cute, I'll share a picture. If they're ugly, I won't. LOL

They sure are cute stacked up like this. Hmmm, I think I need to boil some eggs.

And I got these jello molds thinking about that same pincushion swap. Stay tuned.

And I walked by one vendor who had what looked like a vintage wine carrier filled with these knitting needles. The container is probably worth more than the needles!

My sister knits and I can knit and purl but that's it. I was curious about the price so I asked the vendor how much? He said eight dollars. Hmmm, I wasn't willing to give up eight dollars on those. I told him I would think about it. We walked by him again because me and my hubby got separated and he wanted to show me something on that aisle. I walked by and asked the vendor if he'd take five dollars. He said, "How `bout six?" He was a cute little old guy so I said okay. I guess I should've looked for a vendor selling yarn to make this a worthwhile deal! LOL I put them in a little pitcher. They're kind of cool. And actually, out of all of these, there were only three that didn't have a match. And there were some cool looking plastic ones that look like they might be from the 50's and the little metal tops have neat old numbers on them. My sister is coming over Friday so I'll let her take some if there are sizes she doesn't have but I'm going to watch her. She tries to take the good stuff!

The weather was perfect and though I didn't "need" anything that I bought, it was fun to walk around and people watch. There were all kinds out there. One guy dropped his drawers at one vendors space to try on some jeans! I didn't have the nerve to take a picture. Believe me when I say there wasn't 'much' to see. LOL Just kidding. I was too embarrassed to look!