recent reads - American Wasteland

In honor of Earth Day this past Monday ...

I'm usually one to fly through a book in a day or two, but this one took at least a week. It's full of good info, but chock full of stats and information, it's a bit sluggish.

However, I'm glad I read it and have taken several things from it.

First, I am more aware of my waste - even though I have been careful, there are some things I've just been lazy about. It's nice to have a heightened awareness without feeling guilty. Creating a "game" out of using up leftovers or making new creations (heard of "ketchup soup" from the Depression era?) is motivating to me. 

Second, I feel more willing to ask for things that might go wasted (heard of reclaiming food before??).

And finally, he includes intriguing research on anaerobic digesters - machines that actually "digest" food waste and provide natural gas to live (cook/heat) on! How cool is that!?


Have a great weekend!

Pet peeve: Cashiers talking about customers behind their backs

I was recently very annoyed by a couple of cashiers at a mainstream retailer. Within a few days of each other, I heard both speaking negatively about WIC customers to the customer behind them.

Not familiar with WIC? It is a "special supplemental nutrition program for women, infants, and children (WIC)" - essentially, WIC is a federal/state supplement program for low-income families. My family has benefited from WIC since I was first pregnant and lost my job. It has saved us up to $80/mo on groceries and now provides us about $50/mo on basics like milk, eggs, bread, juice and fresh produce.

I'm not really shy in sharing this information with you ... my husband is a student with two part time jobs and while I could be working outside the home full-time, we've chosen to have be stay home and be a mom to our girl. This drastically reduces our income but substantially benefits our family. We don't plan to be low-income forever, nor live off the system forever, but while we are in this place at this time, we are taking advantage of this help that is available.

There are some who take advantage of the system, yes. But there are also hard-working, educated people like us who need some supplement and are willing to use it for a time.

That said, back to my story.

__________________________

Cashier 1, annoyed that WIC mom accidentally picked up medium sized eggs instead of large, says: "WIC customers, seriously, every time I help one they get something wrong."

(It's like they have to insult you behind your back to make the next customer in line feel better?)

What I wanted to say: "Actually, I pretty much get the same stuff every time, but the last TWO times, the cashier has made a mistake ... " Everyone makes mistakes with WIC - cashiers and customers - it takes a while to get used to the system, but once you have it, it's fine. Give people a break.

What I actually said: nothing. 

________________________

Cashier 2: "Ugh, they use their coupons and then they pay for the rest of their groceries with a $100 bill. That just makes me so mad."

What I wanted to say: "Seriously? What if they just got paid? What if that's all they had and needed to break it? And besides that, WIC is solely income based, it doesn't matter if I have a $1 or a $100, and why is it your business anyway?"

What I actually said: nothing.

_______________________

So annoying. Very unprofessional (although I don't really expect this retailer's cashiers to be professional).

Next time, should I say anything? What do you think?


P.S. I had my favorite cashier yesterday and told her so. :-) 

new legs! {hairpin table legs, that is}

A little project last weekend made me VERY happy. I'll admit up front that it's not earth-shattering or extremely shocking and beautiful. But for me, it's amazing.

Backstory: I've tried to be content with my kitchen table for the last 5 years and for the most part I have been. Jeremy got it for free before we got married and we've used it ever since. I've been thankful to have a table. Really.

But honestly, I've hated how it looks. Even with paint and recovering, the chairs and table legs would just be ugly. I have worked hard to see any redeeming decorative qualities, and/or ways to make it prettier, but I just can't.

So maybe a year ago I realized that I liked the top just fine (it was easy to clean!!), so maybe I could change out the legs. Then, I saw these legs sticking out of the dumpster and got excited.

It ended up that those legs weren't easily removable, so I traded that whole table in for my other craft table. But, we were back to square one with our kitchen table.

Then I recently ran into leg inspiration found here, here and here. And after letting hairpin legs grow on me, I was sold. Those I could do this!

So this weekend, I did.

Before:

After! 

It looks cleaner, simpler, more modern with a little bit of industrial. Love! 
(Hairpin legs found here.)

With a few #10 screws and a few drill recharges, it was Lisa's oh happy day! I am working to replace all of the chairs with mismatched, thrifted chairs and will update when that is finished, but for now, REJOICE!

:-)

little handsome man - onesie vest and bowtie diy

Lately I've been honing my sewing skills by upcycling an old pair of my dad's dress pants into a cute little size 18 month onesie vest and bowtie complete with little shorts! My nephew needed something to wear to a family wedding, and my sister found THIS inspiration. I offered to try. And it worked!

There was no tutorial, but I pretty much copied it exactly from the picture... with a green polka dot bowtie and pocket square and three buttons instead of two. But pretty much the same.

I drew out my own rough pattern on old packing paper so I'd at least get both sides of the vest symmetrical - and the rest came together so quickly! I found a thrifted napkin (seen here) that would work perfectly and hoped that polka dots wouldn't be too feminine.

Um, how baby manly can you get?! :-)

Then I tried my hand at little shorts - mostly using Dana's pant tutorial and a pair of Ladybug's old jeans. I used the old waistband from the pants and had a few trial and error/imperfections to work out, but on the whole I'm pleased. My favorite parts are the little faux front pockets and the little coordinating fabric in the back.

front:

back:

Now we just have to wait and see if they fit this little guy for his uncle's wedding. I'll update and get pictures of it on this sweet guy after the wedding in June!

Update: With the exception of rolling up the shorts, it fit! See it on him HERE. 

Thrifting score! {Irish Coffee Mugs}

I've been looking for some Irish coffee mugs since before Christmas - Jeremy even got me some clear glass mugs for Christmas, but all of the rims weren't cast smoothly, and I really didn't like drinking out of them. So back they went.

{Irish coffee mugs remind me of my favorite cafe in Schaffhausen, Switzerland - they are fun to drink from and they make for great pictures!}

So we searched online and all of the new clear tea/coffee mugs were either very expensive or very fragile (neither one good for me). I just gave it up for then.

To my surprise, the other day I saw these sitting at a thrift store - 2 for $1.98.

I'll take those, yes please.

These two are replacing a set of 4 I thrifted - which have joined the garage sale pile.

Pretty!

Tea pictured: Organic Herbal Berry Tea from Grandpa's Cheesebarn in Ohio. YUM!

DIY Mason Jar Gift Idea - Fill with Dried Fruit

Pretty, fun and yummy, don't you think? (Bottom up: cranberries, kiwi, strawberries and pineapple)

Happy Wednesday!

Garage sale score! - plant stand makeover

I spotted this little guy driving by a neighborhood garage sale last weekend. I immediately had visions of yellow paint and a pretty plant for our stairwell.

$1 score!

BEFORE:

 And AFTER!

I had to use a little wood filler on a one leg because of some stray dog bites (if you remember this!), sanded and painted it yarrow root yellow. I put two coats of polycrylic to seal the top where a little water may spill. Then I placed it in our teeny tiny stair-landing.

Then, I did a little plant research to see what plant might be good for a very low light area - and I loved this one! It's called a "snake plant" or a "mother-in-law's tongue" (haha), stands straight up, and tolerates extreme neglect. Sold.

I searched for the closest nursery to our home and we took a little trip to snag this baby. And I love it! (Now I just need to find the right pot to put it in - I'm hoping to thrift something else - so for now it's resting on a salad plate.)

Can't wait to share a few more furniture transformations as well as a new vegetable gardening approach - I just can't seem to give it up!

Before and After: Garage sale chair

I've been collecting items for this year's Market - but before I really dig into those projects, I have a few items sitting around from last year that really need attention. I also need the space in our basement.

Remember the post about this lovely garage sale find last February? Incredibly enough, it is finished!! Finally.

Here is the BEFORE:

And the AFTER!! can you tell I'm excited?

After I stripped 'er down, I painted it with Annie Sloan chalk paint in Old White. My paint was a little bit thick, so I'm happy it distresses and sands so well. 

I put a coat of clear wax on top and it is super smooth to touch. 

Then, with the help of my amazing dad and his air compressor stapler, we upholstered this baby with hardware store drop cloth. I love the nuances and imperfections in the fabric. Plus, it's really sturdy fabric and easy to use in upholstering.

After a couple of hours, a few wrong cuts and learn-as-you-go mistakes from amateur (first time!) upholsterers, we were satisfied with the result.

Then this weekend I finished up with natural colored gimp trim and my trusty mini hot glue gun (and yes! it's totally legal in upholstery). 

I am slightly enamored to have finished this project. And I kind of love the result. {Ahem.}

a *new* old Junior tricycle

Our little someone is obsessed with bikes (she can spot one from a mile away!) and got a vintage trike for Christmas from my parents. They waited until spring to bring it down to her and it's already gotten a lot of use.

She loves her "'wed' bike!" She's not able to get momentum going to be able to actually ride it yet, but she makes do and gets around just fine. It won't be long before she's zooming away!

I would probably date it to the 70s - it's a sturdy piece of metal with only a few rust spots on the handle bars. It even has white and red tassels! Woot!

Have a great weekend!

a few vintage dresses for me - part 3

This mustardy gold dress may not be the best color for my skin tone, but it's my first thrifted dress find that dates pre-70s! (Most of the time it's gross 90s dresses at the thrift store with lots of fabric, big shoulder pads and bad prints. If you are lucky there may be a 70s gem in the bunch, but not very often...)

The zipper is metal and chunky like my 50s dresses but I'd guess by the style that this dress is 60s. Upside: the fabric is stretchy and is very comfortable, downside: the neck is so tight it almost chokes! I have to have good posture wearing this dress - or maybe I just have a big neck? :-)

I paired this thrifted dress with a bright red Harold's cape coat - Lawrence Antique Mall (Lawrence, KS), gold scarf - from my sister's stash, brown woven belt - Target, patterned brown tights - Target and Tsubo ankle boots like these. 

 *****************************************************************

And finally, my "fancy" dress. (I just need somewhere to wear this to... someone, quick, get married!)

Isn't the waistline gorgeous?! I'm guessing 60s because of the fitted skirt although I just ran across a bunch of mid-50s dresses with a very similar bodice. What do you think?

dress: Wild Man Vintage, vintage cream/gold scarf: sister hand-me-down, beaded vintage Belgian clutch: gift, bronze strappy heels (not shown): Germany

 Isn't the clutch gorgeous?! Look at all that beading! And to think it came from a garage sale... (thanks S)!


That wraps up my vintage dress posts this week - thanks for following along! I had fun.

See vintage dress intro, part 1, part 2.

a few vintage dresses for me - part 2

This black and white dress is made from a material that is hard to describe (polyester? swishy? rayon? viscose?) ... and even harder to iron. I thought I might've ruined it after I washed it, but I did end up ironing the wrinkles out (and I won't be washing it again anytime soon!).

My book club had a Night Circus discussion in January and Jeremy snapped a few pictures of my outfit before I left. I went all out (black, grey or white with a touch of red for the rêveurs - followers of the Night Circus) and finally found a use for my crazy feather clip.

Super fun.  

dress: Wild Man Vintage clearance, sweater and belt: LOFT, scarf: scarlet knit scrap, red tights, and boots: Nine West.

******************************************************************

And you've seen this dress before. Probably my favorite of the bunch - it's super comfortable, fits well and can go dressy or casual.

After seeing construct of my grandma's veggie dress (exact same side zipper), I think this one falls into the same 5-10 years, so I'm calling it my 50s housewife dress. And it looks handmade. And I love it.

Stay tuned for 2 more dresses tomorrow!

See vintage dress intro, part 1.