Saturday Treasure Hunts & Knitting

I have a three day weekend. This is such a pleasure. I meant to get up early and go thrifting. Of course I slept in and then had lazy Saturday am coffees at home.  The happy result of this was getting to an Estate sale late at the half way point. This is when they throw everyone out of the house and make you line up all over again. Then when they allow you back in everything is half off. 

Lining up at 1 pm in the Hot Florida Sunshine!

I think they really use this time while we are broiling outside to run to the bathroom and eat their lunches.  Running a busy Estate Sale is a lot of hard work.  

The wait was well worth it.  I went home with a full trunk of goodies.

 I hope tomorrow is a nice sunny day so I can take pictures on the lanai. 

~Knitting Right Brain vs Left Brain...my thoughts~
After a fun day of shopping I am ready to sit and relax with my knitting.
I have planned to try and make a lace scarf for well decades. I have started so many lace projects only to have them land in the frog pond.  I am going to blame it on my right brain vs left brain thought process.  Knitting is a visual pleasure (right brain). Counting lace patterns and looking at charts is analytic (left brain).  I have discovered I have no left brain. Ha! 

No Fuss Shade Loving Shawl

I also have a very hard time seeing that tiny itty bitty thread of lace weight yarn. I found a very simple pattern No Fuss Shade Loving Shawl I think despite all my problems I will be able to pull this one off. I hope so as the yarn Silky Alpaca Lace that I bought on Webs summer sale is really soft and lovely. 

Shade Loving Shawl

So stay tuned in and if you want a little shawl in your Christmas stocking you just might get one.

Anne/Lambie

A Sigh When Finished

That happy contented sigh when socks are finished.

Simple and straight forward basic socks. Great easy pattern to follow.  If you're a beginner sock maker like me you will appreciate this pattern by Susan B. Anderson How I Make My Socks
I love making these. I can see why socks are always the go to knit for traveling. 
The simple wool sock. It is a delight to wear, to hold, to give, to make.  
I have my treasured Misti Alpaca out and ready to cast on for my next pair. Can't wait to get started.
Anne

Florida Back Roads Antiquing

Road trip to Arcadia, FL today. It takes about 3 seconds after heading east off I75 on State Road 72 from Sarasota County to Arcadia to find the other Florida. The real Florida. Vast expanses of cattle ranches, live oaks, streams, and endless views of an every changing sky. 
Antiquing in Arcadia! Arcadia FL info.

Arcadia, FL

We headed for the Opera House up on the right side of the street. Climbing up a huge flight of creaking oak stairs to the second floor you find yourself in the Old Opera House of Arcadia.  It is jam packed with antiques and collectibles. 

Inside the 2nd floor of Opera House

A huge expanse with lots of side rooms and hallways all crammed full of displays. While thunder rolled outside I hurried around trying to see everything. Husband did not want to get "stuck in Arcadia in the rain." 

The Opera's Stage with an old carriage on it.

It always helps in these situations to have some one thing in mind to search for. If you don't you will loose your mind focusing on everything. With rain and hubby hovering over my every move I quickly found I was looking for old glass bottles.  

Checking out

My hands were shaking and I couldn't hold the camera still to take a picture of them lined up on the little check out counter.  Such is my ridiculous excitement during the hunt for treasures. I found ten old bottles I loved and that was worth the trip.

We made it back to the car just before the heavens opened and the rains began in earnest.

Knitting in the car

I got a lot of knitting done in the car. Sock knitting is road trip knitting.  I had to set the socks down when the rain was so hard I couldn't see the road. Husband loves it when I help him drive by saying, "I can't see the road slow down".

Once home I unloaded my new glass collection.

It was a quick trip, but that is okay. I will be going back in 4 weeks.  I found out every last Saturday of every month they have an Antique Festival set up by the Depot. I was promised lots of vendors and lots of fun. Now to hook my Etsy Vintage buddies in Florida into meeting up there with me.

Anne/weelambie

Making A Button Garland

How to crochet a button garland.

The buttons on the thread.

Playing with buttons, loosing buttons, stringing buttons and finally making a button garland.

Washing and sorting vintage buttons.

Okay I will say it again, " I love buttons". It would be nice if buttons were currency. They are fun to carry around in your pocket and the variety would make any sales clerk smile.

Stringing buttons.

I had lots of white and cream colored buttons of various sizes.  The vintage spool of Clark's silver thread was part of a bag of goodies I had found in an estate sale.  I threaded the buttons on to the thread while it was still attached to the spool. This allowed me to pull the thread through the buttons as one by one I chain crocheted a garland.

Simple chain crochet.

I eyeballed it and decided to chain about ten between each addition of a button. 

Adding the next button.

Each button was pulled up from the string of buttons one by one and chain stitched in place. I continued this way until I ran out of thread. That didn't take very long!  My crochet hook is one from a frosting hair dye kit!  I still have lots of the white buttons and want to make the chain longer so a trip to Joann's will be in order to find a similar thread. When I get more strung I'll take another picture.

This red button garland was my first attempt at making a garland.

The string I used is a bit to limp and it fuzzes something awful so I will be looking for a sturdier cotton string.  This string is a man made fiber of unknown origin. I won't use it again. I do like the bright reds against the white string but next time I will move the buttons closer together. They are about 1" to far apart for my liking. 

There are some green buttons mixed in.

It is at least ten feet long.

To get the string through the eyes on the buttons I made a tiny hook out of wire to pull the string through. I used some of that green floral wire that is always wrapping itself around everything in my kitchen junk drawer.

These things are tangle demons.  I need to find a nice heavy stock white card to wind this around for storage til Christmas time.

If you see my house festooned in buttons you will know I have gone to far and you may want to stage an intervention.... or join me.

Draping the fence!

buttons.. the new currency~

Anne/weelambie

Just Sit and Just Knit

Wouldn't it be lovely
to just sit and knit? 

This sweet old woman is doing just that while her dear husband reads. 
I found this photograph in a box of my mother's things.  
I think she is a little overdressed for knitting.
Anne