Oops, I did it again! More Sewing Stuff Followed me Home

Oh dear goodness readers, more sewing stuff seems to have followed me home today. If you guessed that I visited another estate sale today, then you guessed correctly. The advertisement boasted that there would be "much, much fabric", and the quantity didn't disappoint. The problem lied in the fiber content of the fabric itself. There were hundreds, perhaps thousands, of yards of icky, itchy polyester double knit in lovely shades like Christmas tree green and blood red. I could have outfitted the entire sewing blog community in coordinating double knit outfits had I bought all of it. Luckily, I exercised serious restraint in the fabric department, despite the little voice in my head shouting, "but you can use it for muslins!" In the end I came away with two awesome pieces of vintage cottons and a few pieces of other fabric that isn't vintage. The vintage cottons were $5 each, which is generally more than I pay for secondhand fabric, but I fell in love and just couldn't resist. The non-vintage fabrics only cost 8 bucks total.

This is a knit, so I may make a cute and comfy summer sundress.

This is just plain pink cotton broadcloth, but there is about 8 yards of it. I want to make a vintage full skirted dress.

I think this is a poly blend but the pattern was so cute I couldn't resist. It's probably destined to be a skirt.

Striped cotton that I hope to be able to squeeze a top out of.

Another knit

One of the vintage fabrics which I hope to make a sundress from

Closeup of vintage fabric

My second vintage fabric which I already envision as a skirt.

I also added about 60 new patterns to my collection, most of which are mail order patterns. There were a few more patterns, but there was a man already digging through them when I found them. I attempted to give him my best evil glances, but he didn't seem to be intimidated by my death glares. In the end, he didn't end up buying too many patterns and I was able to scoop up the rest for $10. About 10 or 15 of the patterns have large bust sizes, ranging from 40" to 45". Since these sizes are really hard to find in vintage patterns, and they're a little larger than the size I need,  I may do a giveaway of a few of those patterns once I get a few more followers. I will probably post all of my pattern haul in the same manner I did last time, spacing the posts out over a few days.

I must write the next sentence while lowering my head in shame. I bought more zippers. I love zippers. I love knowing I have a couple hundred on hand. I love paying a nickel for a zipper when they cost a few bucks at Joann's. Perhaps I need to host a zipper giveaway? I also bought two jars of hem tape and bias tape for $2. On a tangent, I am not 100% sure how to apply hem tape. Does it's stretchiness eliminate the need to ease the hem on a full skirt?

Tracing paper that has been used to death, but the envelope is too cute to toss. It was a surprise in the bottom of my box of patterns.There was a perfectly usable tracing wheel in there though.

Some belt buckles

This seems to be individual strands of really thick thread.

Can anybody tell me exactly what this stuff is?

I also came away from the estate sale with a few pieces of vintage Tupperware. ( Thanks, mom!) I am going to use some of the pieces to organize sewing notions like buttons. Tupperware snack cups are relatively easy to find at estate sales and thrift shops, and they make wonderful sewing organizers. If you come across them, pick a few up, I promise they won't disappoint. Also, if you have a large quantity of buttons you want to organize, the divided vegetable/dip server makes a great storage container. I may know more about Tupperware than any other person on the underside of 25.

Happy Sewing!

P.S. If you like to buy fabric at estate sales of thrift shops and it smells musty, toss about 1/4 to 1/3 cup of baking soda into the wash with the detergent. It gets rid of the smell entirely. You can also do this if you wash secondhand zippers, just toss a little into the bucket with the detergent, swish around, and the odor will be gone.