Baker's Twine Obsession

This red and white candy cane like thread is so whimsical! I love it, and I use it for everything!

Here are a few examples of some of the things I use it for.

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And here are a few of my favorite items on etsy with baker's twine


Small Treasures Handmade Bag $10 from Kimber M. (kimberm.etsy.com)


Boxes and Bows Moving Announcements $1.50 from Peach and Pearl (PeachandPearl.etsy.com)


Mini Wooden Spool Pushpins $4.75 The Cupcake Girls (TheCupcakeGirls.etsy.com)


Do Not Open Until Christmas Tags $3 low Fidelity (lowfidelity.etsy.com)


svelte woodgrain gift tags $7.00 Cutiepie Company (cutiepiecompany.etsy.com)

I sell spools of baker's twine in my shop (TheMissingThread.etsy.com) for you to use, and create with. The sky is the limit!

Eye Candy

I have been working on developing packaging for my new store, and I thought I would share. The packaging for my new store will look something like this...



I'm in love with the red and white baker's twine with this subtle aqua color!









I love the idea of using vintage sewing patterns for packaging. The pattern pieces combined with whimsical red and white candy like baker's twine (you can find some in my shop http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=31774574), and a soft aqua embroidery thread make a lovely package. I have designed business bookmarks to go inside the packages, and I always include a handwritten note. I am still perfecting this, but it's getting there.

The Loop

Well, it's been a long time. I have gotten so far behind, and so out of the loop. I have decided that there is no use in trying to catch up, so to speak. You must jump back on the loop, and hold on for dear life. No way to catch up, just get back on. So here I am. I have finally opened my new Etsy store, TheMissingThread.etsy.com.
I was going to have three seperate stores, but I decided that would have been too much to keep track of. My new store will have everything from vintage items to supplies to jewelry. I'm so excited about this shop, and I hope you will come visit. I only have five items in my new shop at the moment, but will have more soon. I am also having a moving sale in my old shop, so go check that out too at OldFashionedButGood.etsy.com. Everything in my old shop is on sale! I have 15 items in my old shop. Here are a few of the items on sale.



The Age of Steam Necklace SOLD



Large Scrap pack no longer listed



Everyday Beauty Necklace SOLD


And here are the items in my new shop.



Anatomy of a Bird gift tags SOLD



Antique Vintage Music Book SOLD



Personalized Button Doily Brooch/pin/badge SOLD (this item can be made custom with any letter or color embroidery thread)



Vintage Antique Latin for Beginners book SOLD



Antique Vintage French Grammer/Reader Book $7.50


If you are interested in items from both shops, then I will combine shipping. Just contact me for prices.

The Tea Party Brooch

My friend Hollie, over at blueberryshoes.etsy.com, is having a great giveaway on her blog. You can find the giveaway, and the rules here http://mermaidscloset.blogspot.com/2009/06/my-first-blog-giveaway.html.

The item featured in the giveaway is a lovely pink rosette brooch with elegant sparkly details. I admired this brooch from the moment I saw it. It is so sweet, and pretty, just perfect to wear on a summer picnic, or anywhere really.

An Afternoon Drive in the Country

Sights, Sounds, And scents...

My musings from our drive in the country yesterday afternoon.

The country roads twist, and turn, and wind their way through the hills and valleys of east TN. These roads pass by lovely old farmhouses, some neatly kept, and others grown over, in bad need of a fresh coat of paint, and in some cases falling down all together. It makes me so sad to see people neglect such lovely houses. These country houses, and buildings are worth saving, and it makes me sad because I know most of them will not be saved, taken care of, or enjoyed ever again. The roads twist through little nooks and pass by even tinier roads that go up into small hidden valleys. The road follows cool clear streams on occasion, and sometimes the air is thick with the sweet smell of honeysuckle vines. Clothes hanging on lines, kitchen gardens, rolling pasture land, grazing livestock, old barns , Signs for fresh farm eggs or pick your own strawberries. All these things may be commonplace, dull, and ordinary sounding to most people, but I find them simply lovely and charming. The roads also go through towns with old brick buildings housing cute little shops, and restaurants with living space above. I love driving through old well kept down towns. I love stopping and glancing in the shops even more, but yesterday was a Sunday, and everything was closed.

It was simply a lovely afternoon.











It is the sweet, simple things of life which are the real ones after all.
~Laura Ingalls Wilder

Lovely Things

Last Tuesday I went shopping at some craft stores, and some thrift stores. Here are a few of the things I found.



A beautiful costume jewelry brooch.



A cute miniature glass, and a little vintage mirror.



A charming little tin that originally came with mints inside. I think it was from American Eagle, or someplace like that. I already have a similar tin with a little boy and girl on it. My sister bought the tin with the mints, and when she didn't want the tin anymore, then she gave it to me.



A Real Simple magazine, and the wooden piano bench I mentioned in my last post.




Some fabric, and a doily from Joanne's.





And last, but certainly not least, a beachy, flowy lace skirt. The skirt came with a lace jacket, but the jacket looks awful with the skirt. I had to buy both though because they keep the sets together. I will probably just cut the jacket up for lace. The skirt was the best find of the day. I love that it's so soft, and feminine. The lace is not stiff or scratchy at all, and it's so comfy, and looks lovely on me. It's just such a charming, flowy, beachy, vintage looking skirt. It will be just perfect for our coming vacation.

Spring Cleaning

I have been so busy lately trying to declutter, and clean out, and rearrange. We are planning to have a yard sale Saturday. I think whatever does not sell we will just donate to the thrift store, and be done with it. I'm trying to make room, and fix things up. My style and taste have been slowly evolving, and changing over the past few years. My finding Etsy has had alot to do with these style changes I suspect.

Anyway, I have also been working on getting rust off of the metal couch my mom gave me, After I get the rust off I can paint it. I have been working on sanding the wooden chairs my mom gave me, so I can paint those as well. I'm planning to have a nice cozy, light, airy space on the back deck with the small table, two chairs, and the couch with cushions, and pillows. I bought an old wooden piano bench at a thrift store the other day to serve as a kind of coffee table out on the deck. I can't wait to get it all put together. Right now the deck is a complete and total mess, as is the spare bedroom, and the hall. I'll take pictures once I complete the deck, the hall, and the spare bedroom. I'm wanting to get them semi done before we leave for vacation in mid june. On top of everything else I have been trying to get done, I have also been trying to shop for skirts dresses, and shoes at thirft stores before I go on vacation. It's been hard to find exactly what I'm looking for, but I have found a few things.


Here are a few projects I have gotten pretty much done. About a week ago I did some simple makeovers in the kitchen, and our bedroom. They were simple, but made a big difference, and all the stuff I used I already had, so Brian was happy about that.

Our bedroom went from this...





to this...









I am much more happy with it now. It feels so light, and airy, and cozy. The comforter and sheets are still the same, I just turned the comforter to the dark blue side, and covered it with an old white throw blanket. I borrowed two pillows from the spare bedroom, and pillowcases, and I covered our old pillows with some white pillowcases with dark green and light green leaves on them. I bought the pillowcases at a thrift store awhile back along with matching sheets, and they were just sitting in my sewing stuff waiting for me to find a home for them. I sewed some dioly-like thin cream lace trim on the end of one of the pillowcases. I did not have enough of it to do the other one, so I will be buying some more tomorrow. The sky blue down alternative blanket was also from a thrift store, and I was using it to cover a chair before I moved it to the bed. The small pillow with the blue leaf pattern was a placemat I made into a pillow a long time ago, and the dark blue pillow was on the bed before. All I had to do with the blue pillow was add a bit of doily-like wide white lace trim, and it was perfectly charming. And the cherry on top, a beutiful vintage blue glass ball jar with pretty flowers.



I think Annie approves...



I don't have any before pictures from the kitchen shelves, but trust me, they were a wreck.

Here's what they look like now...













Much more organized, and clean. I sorted through all the stuff on the shelves, and decluttered. I also took snacks, and dry goods, and put them in old clear canning jars that my mother-in-law gave to me. The old blue canning jars were from my mom,some from my sister, and some I have found myself. I had a hard time cleaning those jars out. I can normally fit my hand in a canning jar to clean it out, but after about doing 10 of those my hand started hurting, and swelling a little bit. Anyway, I got the jars cleaned, and with the food in them they make a nice display, pretty, and useful. The old metal crate on one of the lower shelves also came from my mother-in-law. Some of the canning jars were stored in the crate. I made a lining for the crate from half of a vintage floral pillowcase I found at a thrift store. The lining wasn't finished when I took most of the pictures. The other half of the pillowcase I plan to make a tote bag/purse from. I made the apron hanging on the shelves from a towel I got on clerance at target after Christmas year before last.

I have been planning some big changes for my Etsy shop for awhile now. I will be opening a vintage shop, and moving my current shop (OldFashionedButGood) to a new location. I will be turning OldFashionedButGood into a vintage inspired supply shop. Unfortunatly I have been so busy(I still have so much more to do), and stressing myself out trying to get too much done before we leave for vacation in mid June, so sadly the opening of my new shops will not take place until we get back from vacation. Hopefully I will be relaxed, recharged, and destressed once we get back, so I can focus on opening my new stores. Stay tuned...

A Fun Project

Brian and I went to K-Mart the other day, and found some things for our vacation to Florida that we will be taking in mid June. One of the things I got was some new sunglasses. I didn't have a pair to my name, and I'm sure I'll be needing them. Well, I was thinking "I'll need a case for these". I thought I had a case somewhere, but I couldn't find it. The next day I saw a sunglasses case in someones etsy shop, and I thought "Hey! I can make a case". And that's just what I did. The nice thing about making something instead of buying, is that you get to make it exactly how you want. The case I saw in the etsy shop was plain, and nothing like the one I made, but it did give me the idea in the first place. Here's how it turned out.









The case is made from a piece of gray linen fabric, some soft cream lace-like ribbon trim, vintage buttons from my collection, a fabric covered button that I embroidered with a J in light green and made into a brooch, some metal snaps, and some green fabric as the liner. I made the case a little to big, so I made a roll up kind of pouch out of some white fabric for the glasses to go in. I am really happy with the outcome! It is just what I wanted!