Oakleigh Lions Op Shop

Having a job interview just down the road from the Oakleigh Lions Op Shop (in Neerim Road, Murrumbeena, just outside Murrumbeena Railway Station) was too great an opportunity to miss a visit. These Grosby shoes were just the ticket for my clodhoppers, particularly after a disappointing experience a few weeks ago with a pair of shoes (from a chain I won't mention by name) which turned into sieves in the rain. A mere $4 for these black beauties, and I think they've hardly been worn.

A good sized red handbag from a rack all priced at $4. I'm not sure if I'll use this myself, or use it as a canvas and paint on it.

A cute little wooden bowl, for the grand price of a dollar. Destined to be a canvas for ink drawing or perhaps some practice with the wood burning tool.

Buffy, balls and batik

Another happy trip to Dandenong Savers yielded three Buffy novels I hadn't read (though that state of affairs did not last and I finished all three in a glorious reading binge - they're like chocolate, I can't leave them alone until they're done). Ah, how I miss Buffy! They had twenty or so of  these novels and about a dozen Angel ones but I limited myself to three, though it was tough choosing. $1.99 each.

A bag of assorted eyelash-ish yarn for $2.99. There are eight untouched balls, and two part-balls to add to my burgeoning yarn stash.

Approximately two metres of a really pretty cotton batik fabric, destined to become a skirt. I think. At $3.99, it was impossible for me not to buy this, even though I really don't need more fabric!

Huntin', shootin' 'n' fishin'

I'm not really into the whole huntin', shootin', fishin' thing as such, but I find myself strangely attracted to images from that (probably) imaginary world that I loved so much in novels of the early twentieth century, that seemingly quintessentially English world of grand houses and weekend parties that always featured a hunt. Or Agatha Christie's stories of English drawing rooms and high body counts. This tablecloth came from Dandenong Savers for the princely sum of $4 (after Sunday student discount). I think it's printed damask, a nice weight.

I'm not sure if I'll keep it as a tablecloth, or treat it as fabric (as I do many of my op shop treasures - I gravitate instantly towards the textiles, and then the books) and transform it into a garment. It would make a great skirt or blouse, if I can creatively cut it to use as much of the pattern as possible.

One sheet to the wind

An unexpected op shop visit to the Red Cross Shop in the mall in Oakleigh yielded this pretty floral sheet for $5. I'm going to use it for fabric - I've already created a lined wrap skirt for my Etsy shop, and there's still quite a bit left to make something else.




Vinnies in Crewe Street, Oakleigh, is great for books. Au Revoir by Mary Moody (once a presenter on Gardening Australia) made me want to run away to France, too (mind you, I'd run away to almost anywhere I'm so keen to go travelling again!). The red book is a great basic guide to knitting, in the Pelham Craft Series (I have another of these on soft toy making) and published in 1973. It might actually encourage me to learn a couple of new stitches and make something other than socks and scarves! Each of these was a mere $1.

Frankson Op Shopping

These finds are from a trip to Frankston in December, to take advantage of one of Saver's half price garment Mondays. Above are a jumper and cardigan which I intend to deconstruct for the yarn. You can't ever have too much yarn :)

The purple one has giant snaps down the front, which I'll also reclaim and repurpose. I'd priced snaps about this size in the haberdashery section a while back and they retail for at least $1 each, and I have six of them now. Both knits were two or three dollars each.

A large scarf featuring a gorgeous print of horses. I tried to convince the checkout operator that scarves are apparel, but apparently they're considered accessories and not included in the half price offer. Still a bargain at $3.95, I think. I may turn this one into a halter top, if I can bear to cut it.

A cowboy motif doona cover that I'll use as fabric. I couldn't resist the cute print. Enough here to make a shirt, a skirt and still have some left over. Can't remember the price exactly, but it was
about $5.
A gorgeous green caftan, for me to wear in the heat. Cool and comfortable now that I've altered it to my satisfaction: it was a little tight over the Rack of Doom, so I let it out at the side seams only to find that this rendered it rather shapeless in other areas. So I added a couple of waist ties to tie at the back and now I love it. $9 at Savers.

An "Eight Wives of Henry the VIII" tea towel, to be refashioned into a tote bag. $1.95.
(Edited: Obviously that was meant to be "Six Wives of Henry VIII" - I think Melbourne's hot and muggy spell has damaged my brain)

An Isle of Wight tea towel, also to be refashioned into a tote bag. Also $1.95. Both tea towels from Savers.

On the same trip, I also bought ten balls of black mohair yarn, at $1 a ball in St Vinnies, plus a
set of dominoes for $2 in another op shop (can't remember which, memory failure due to hot weather). Like I wrote earlier, can't have too much yarn! The dominoes are intended for a jewellery project I have in mind, and they came in a little wooden box that I'll use for something else. A good day.

Oakleigh Oppy

These were my finds on a trip the op shop in Station Street, Oakleigh in December. Above is a photograph album, $3. On my next visit, I may mention that masking tape does not make a great substitute for sticky labels - despite my best efforts the tape pulled off a chunk of the cover and made an unsightly mark. Sigh.

A set of gouache paints from China, barely used, $5. I'd say maybe three of the tubes have been opened. Gouache makes lovely colours :)

And lastly, a batik square from the 50 cent box. I'm not sure if it's a very small tablecloth or a scarf, but its intended purpose in my hands is fabric yardage - it will be part of a tunic top, I think.

Brighton opping

I went to meet friends for morning coffee in Brighton, just opposite the St Andrews Church Op Shop - just too hard to resist popping in before time on my carpark ran out. A Scientific American, 1982, from the free basket, just because I like the fish. May be used in a collage. There are some great images of brains inside, too.

Continuing my enjoyment of Richard Gordon's Doctor... series with two I haven't read before, $1 each. A red covered novel for my ongoing art project, 50c, and "Cornet of Dragoons" because I loved the cover, also 50c. I may use the Dragoon dustjacket for collage or drawing over, and the book also goes into my stash of books for the mysterious project.

Two brooches, bear and bub and Mr. Moose, $1 each. Matchbox for scale. There was a basketful of these brooches on the counter.

Upcycling

This is what I made from the op shopped circular tablecloth from a few posts ago: a circular skirt with a drawstring waist, now for sale in my Etsy shop (link on top right of page).

August loot

I ventured to a slightly different suburb this week on an errand and decided to check out some new-to-me ops. This painted metal tray is from an op shop in Sandringham, opposite the pub. The back says: "Chatsworth, Derbyshire. Home of the Dukes of Devonshire". A bargain at $1, and the kind lady behind the counter threw in a pair of green knitting needles for free. I was going to use it as a painting surface, but I may keep it as is - it's growing on me.

A round batik table cloth, $4 from an op shop near Moorabbin station. Destined to be refashioned into a full circle skirt.

Background is a black and white sarong, $3 from the op shop in Bay Road, Sandringham (to be refashioned into a skirt or possibly a tunic). Purple flats with gold bows, $2, same shop. The book is Arthur Mee's Book of One Thousand Beautiful Things, $1, same shop (will become an altered book, I think). Black leather handbag, lable inside says Made In Italy, $3, same shop. Two leather belts, $2 each, from the Moorabbin op shop (for an art project/experiment).

Egyptian Mythology, $2 from Vinnies in Crewe St, Oakleigh. Sculpture book, $3.99; Old Macdonald, 99 cents (love the illustrations, I may adapt some for applique); The Wonder Book of Kittens, 99 cents (too cute to leave behind) - all from the Salvos in Atherton Road, Oakleigh.

Free knitting needles from Sandringham op shop, resting on folded Liz Claibourne skirt - a linen/cotton mix, feels lovely and soft - $3, from op shop in Bay Road, Sandringham (destined for embellishing/upcycling with pen, fabric paint and thread). Barbie clock, $1.99 from Salvos in Oakleigh. The lady behind the counter suggested that some lucky little girl would be thrilled to have a Barbie clock - I thought, but refrained from voicing, "Not when I've finished with it!". The clock is intended for, um, refashioning of a sort...

Quite a lovely haul! I did hit another Salvos and a fabric store (no purchases to report), after which I was pretty much op shopped-out. I must make an effort to range a little bit wider than my local oppies in future, that trip was fun.

Socks and scores

I scored The Needlworker's Dictionary at the Dandenong Savers for $5.99. It's a lovely book, great illustrations, and a few pages of private correspondence tucked into the back as a bonus. I especially like the squirrel and bird pictured below.


Discovering Needlecraft came from an op shop in Sandringham a year or two ago. It is (or was) a monthly magazine on stitching, and came with a little project of aida cloth, threads, needle and pattern. There are 40-some issues here, most with their stitching project intact. Some day I'll tackle them! It didn't have a price on it, and when the lady at the counter said fifty cents an issue or the lot for $5, I couldn't get my money out fast enough :)

Three white/off white cotton socks, knitted from op-shopped or trash'n'treasure market yarn (can't quite recall where it came from). I have a little yarn left, but not enough for a fourth sock. If two socks is a pair, is this a trio? Triad? I plan to dye these, perhaps green and purple. It won't matter if they don't match, then I can wear any two of the three together. Unless I find more cotton yarn, then I can knit another sock (or two) - would five socks in a set be quins? Or just weird?

Before and After

Before: a 99 cent tea towel from Savers.
Don't you love the colour and those polka dots? I'm obsessed with this lime green.

After: a new tote bag for me. Materials other than the tea towel were from my stash - interfacing, thread, one long and one short zipper, lime green with white polka dots lining fabric, scrap of batting. I winged the pattern, using the shape of the tea towel to dictate the dimensions. It's basically a rectangle with the two bottom corners sewn at right angles to form the base of the bag. There is one large zippered pocket inside (handy for keys and the mobile, which always sink to the bottom otherwise), and another pocket on the other side with an open top. I put a scrap of quilt batting into the handles to make it more comfortable on my shoulder. I even shortened the long zipper to make it fit the opening (a process I've only tried once before with limited success, but it worked well this time. Voila, custom sized zipper). The sewing in of the zip in the top is a bit wonky, but it works!

I needed a new tote to carry my sewing project to work, and this fits the bill.

I'd show you a photo of the lovely spotted interior with my custom zipper, but the camera's memory card is refusing to give up the photo, despite me turning the air blue with swearing and jamming the card in and out of the reader about ten times. Pooh!

World War 3

Drawing 164

Drawing 165

Drawing 166

The Bloke brought me a green velvet recliner from the op shop and it's prompted something
approaching WW3. The cats think it belongs to them. They are sadly mistaken. Whenever I get up, there's a bitch fight as the felines battle for possession of the vacated territory. If I'm in residence there's a black cat perched on the right armrest while the grey cat perches on the left armrest, waiting like vultures for the opportunity to occupy my (prewarmed) spot.

It IS a very comfy chair, and there's a danger that I will just sink into it and be planted for the duration (especially with the recliner feature engaged - good for napping!) with my knitting, book and the tv remote in easy reach. I have some sewing to do, but I hear the green velvet siren calling me...

La la la

Drawing 159

Drawing 160

Drawing 161

Haven't made a found poem for a while, felt like one today.

Spent a very windy day in the city centre, visiting an artists' books exhibition. Came away with lots more ideas. Lunch at Crossways with the Hare Krishnas - Wednesday's menu is chickpea and potato, with the standard halvah and custard dessert. Yum! A visit to a couple of secondhand books shops (didn't buy anything) and a quick trip to St Vinnies in Crewe Street Oakleigh on the way home. I did buy at Vinnies: an animal lotto game for $1, a book on South American art for $3 - lots of lovely inspirational photos, a length of batik fabric for $2, and a pair of salt and pepper shakers for $1. I've been looking for a set of shakers with not-too-big holes, and for a buck these will likely fit the bill.

Op Shop Treasures

Here are my op shop finds from the other day - the light is finally cooperating, in between downpours there is a little sun :)
I bought these 'How and Why Wonder Books with the idea of taking them apart and using them as found paper, but I'm getting kind of attached to 'Winning of the West' and 'Mathematics'. The maths one has some interesting facts and explanations (including googol!), which for a definitely maths-averse me is saying something! And the western one is getting cuter and cuter. Perhaps only 'Caves to Skyscrapers' will fulfill it's destiny to become art...

And these FABULOUS boots I had to have. Blame it on acquisitive lust and retail therapy deprivation, because I have no idea what I'm going to do with them! I saw them on Friday when I bought the books and tshirt, thought "Wow!", and managed to leave the shop without them. But I thought about them all night, wishing I'd given in to temptation. I dreamed about them. I woke up Saturday morning and said "I'm going back to the Salvos, and if those boots are still there and less than $20, they are MINE." They were still there, priced at $14.75, and they ARE mine :)
And they even fit, except around my chubby calves, but I don't care. I didn't plan to wear them. I just needed to have them. Perhaps they'll turn up in an art piece. Perhaps I will just get a pieces of shiny red satin and mount the boots on it on top of a plinth, and call them found art.

Shoes make me happy.

Ahhh...holidays :)

Drawing 154

Drawing 155

Drawing 156

Had my last class a couple of days ago, now it's holiday time! Three weeks with no homework and no pressure, lovely :)

Went out for lunch with some classmates today, paid some bills on the way home, did a little op shopping (the Salvos is just a few doors from the bank, so hey, convenient!), visited the library to change my books since I now have more time to read, and now I need a nana nap after all that fun. I made some interesting finds at the Salvos: Simplicity's Simply the Best Sewing Book for $2.75, three "The How and Why Wonder Books" (Caves to Skyscrapers, Mathematics, and Winning the West) at 75 cents each, and a plain white t-shirt (looks like it was never worn) to tie dye, for the grand price of $2.35 because blue tags were halfprice today. The "How and Why Wonder Books" will become part of my found paper for printmaking. Well, maybe not Winning the West - it's kinda too cute to tear apart. No photos of my haul because it's turned rainy and the artificial light is flaring on the covers; maybe tomorrow.