Tailgate Treasurers

These are a few of my purchases over the last few weekends.  Before I headed to the quilt retreat I hit an estate sale.  More glass for possible garden whimseys and items to resell at the flea market.  The variable stars are going to get together and try their hand at making garden whimseys. 

Got this small metal folding chair at GR sale.  It's perfect for setting a pot on on my deck.

Lessons from Ben Franklin

Recently I printed out a list of 14 lessons from Benjamin Franklin from http://www.businessinsider.com/.  They seemed worth repeating

"Well done is better than well said."
"Never leave that till tomorrow which you can do today."
"By faling to prepare, you are preparing to fail."
"When you're finished changing, you're finished."
"All mankind is divided into three classes, those that are immovable, those that are movable, and those that move."
"Never confuse motion with action."
"Do not fear mistakes.  You will know failure.  Continue to reach out."
"To succeed, jump as quickly at opportunities as you do at conclusions."
"Be at war with your vices, at peace with your neighbors, and let every new year find you a better man."
"Diligence is the mother of good luck."
"There are three things extremely hard: steel, a diamond, and to know one's self."
"Who had deceived thee so often as thyself?"
"Energy and persistence conquer all things."
and
"Life's tragedy is that we get old too soon and wise too late."

When I started this post 2 years ago, I didn't think I would reach this point, but this is my 100th post. Yea!

First day of vacation, and I got to have my eyes checked and then found out my mom was admitted to the hospital overnight, so I got to spend the day with her.  Fortunately by 7 pm she was feeling much better and will probably go home tomorrow.

Hankerd Quilt Retreat

This was the weekend of our Variable Star Quilt Retreat at Pleasant Lake.  These are always so much fun.  Time to get some serious sewing done, no cooking, no cleaning, no interruptions.  I went with 4 projects: Darryl's quilt, Molly's quilt, our current mystery quilt and a mondo bag project.

Working steadily I finally finished Darryl's top except for the final border.  I stopped at a couple of shops on the way home but didn't find what I was looking for so I ordered my border and backing fabric when I got home.  I have some adjustment to make on one border that doesn't want to lay flat, I think my edge setting triangles are too big, but all in all it is good to have it this far.

Wendy introduced us to these mondo bags.  They are built on a gridded fusible web.  I think there were four of us, Carol S., Melanie, Barb and I, who were working on our bags.  I actually got mine done by Saturday night.  It is a little tricky, but if you take your time, it's not too hard.  But that meant that I didn't get any farther on poor Miss Molly's quilt.  Next week I'm on staycation so I will try to get some time in on her quilt as well as the challenge and the mystery.

Little Honey from the Fleamarket

The day of the flea market my mother and her sister, Gen, came over to give me a bit of relief.  I think they got there about 1 so while they watched my booth, I went and got something to eat.  As I strolled around the market looking to see what else was there I saw a gentleman adjusting items on his table and I caught sight of this little honey.

Junior Miss, with both clamps, original box and instructions.  I didn't dicker too hard and she came home with me.  Someone asked the other night how many of these toy and small machines I have now.  I think I counted 8 tonight.

It just so happens that the day before at the LAP show in their "garage sale" area I bought this book. Along with some reference books and some wonderful Japanese quilt magazines/  Maybe Junior Miss was sending my vibes already the day before?!!

Lansing Area Patchers Quilt Show

There are 2 major quilt guilds here in Lansing.  Capitol City Quilt Guild which I belong to with about 200 members and Lansing Area Patchers which has a membership I think of about 70.  We put quilt shows on on alternating years and this year was LAP's turn.  I went to their show on Saturday and then was at the flea market all day the next day.  I worked in the morning from 9-11 selling raffle tickets on our guild's raffle quilt.  Then I went through the show.  It's always nice to see friends work that maybe you haven't seen at our small meeting.  Or maybe that you have seen  but not in a while.  Here were a few favorites:

Feathered Stars by Pam Marcis

Cathedral Star by Carol Schon

Flower Box by Lennie Rathbun

Foster Street Garden Tour by Pam Marcis

Edyta Sitar quilt by Georgiana Viele

Goose on the puddle by Carolyn Babcock

Hour glass by Georgiana Viele

Me, myself and I by Pam Marcis

My Favorite Things by Pam Marcis

Pavement from Friends by Carol Schon

Oh, Mz. Scarlett by Pam Marcis

Study in Red by Georgiana Viele

The Happy Quilt by Carolyn Babcock
I also saw this quilt at the Shipshewana quilt show last year and recently came across in on the cover of a 2005 Quilter's Newsletter Magazine.  I have been saving bright and polka dots, but still am not sure I'm up to this.  Great job Carolyn.

Warm Wishes by Georgiana Viele

Well, these were a few of the quilts at the LAP Show.  Can you tell my favorites are traditional quilts?  Even so, I don't remember seeing a lot of "art quilts" at the show.  But that's fine by me.  I take inspiration where ever I find it.

Great show ladies.  Thanks for your hard work.

Sorry for Absence

Blogger has changed and after reading everyone elses complaints I was leery about trying to get in and write again.  But I'm giving it the old college try.  I have been going to lots of estates sales on the weekends, sometimes as many as 3.  I used to buy items at my brothers estate sales on the last day of the sales.  Items are usually 1/2 price and there always seemed to be great items left that didn't get bought.  I hated to see them just to go the landfil or some other sad fate.  So I would buy them and they resell them at the fleamarket.  After getting a few really bad sunburns.  And spending a few really hot days on an asphalt parking lot I had decided to give it up. 

I gave my inventory to my mom for her garage sale to support her hospice work.  And what she had left she gave to the Knights of Columbus for their sale.  But after some sales over the winter, I decided to do it again this next season.  Missed the first sale in April (rainy), but am planning to go the next sale this Sunday 10-3 at the Mega Mall on old 27.  So I have been buying, cleaning, and packing items.  So I will share some pictures if items recently bought.  I try to pick up items that would be of interest to collectors as well as crafters.  Most lately have been antiques.  Some will stay with me to enjoy for a while and others will immediately go to the flea. And some I will always hold onto like a ladies collection of quilt pattern advertisements clipped out of the Lansing State Journal in 1929 and 1930.  There are some duplicates and I may let them go but that's no rush.
These were a few of my latest finds.

Four little pie pans and a donut/biscuit cutter

And this was my set up for the first fleamarket of the season for me.

It's funny that some of my best selling items were the designer fabric samples that I had for $1 each.  My "first up tent" came with no side panels.  Luckily I found some for $19 each on Walmart.com.  They shipped to the store and I picked them up there.  Only used one this first time but it was a big help with the sun.  I was the only person on my row who had a shade and I was probably 20 degrees cooler than anyone else.  Next time I think I need to add bottles of water in an ice cooler and I can clean up.

Following is a photo of the weekly newspaper pattern cuts out that I got a couple of sales ago.  These definitely would have gone to the dump had I not picked them up.

Thanks for visiting.

Estate Sales

Oh boy, oh boy, oh boy, estate sale season is back again and in full swing.  The last couple of months have been rough as I was ill with an unknown ailment that affected my hands.  Now I finally have a diagnoses, rheumatoid arthritis.  Still learning about this but finally have some answers.  To get over the depression this has brought on I have started estate saling again. 

This weekend there were 3 good sales.  A number of gals I work with have never been to an estate sale and seem intrigued that I will sometimes take lunch time to run to one if it close.  So Friday I inducted a new gal, Beth, into estate sales.  I went mainly to look at a blue and white china coffee pot that matches some china I got the first time I went to England.

I still need to do some research into the marks on it.  It's not Royal Copenhagen, but close enough.

 There were other items I wanted but wasn't willing to pay full price so Saturday morning I got up and went back and then to 2 other sales.  These are a few of the items I picked up.

The crates will be used for set up at fleamarkets, which I'm going to try again this summer.  Vases, poker chip carrier, candy dish, red handled spatula and books will go into my fleamarket inventory.

One other item I got on the trip so South Carolina was another vintage tape measure to add to my collection.

Missed being ready for today's flea market at Mega Mall but will be ready for next one in 3 weeks.