My hubby creaked open the bedroom door this morning and quietly asked if I was awake? I said “yes” and then he asked, “Are you going to go back to sleep… or do you want to go to St. Louis?” Now that’s a great way to wake up! I threw off the covers and sat up in bed and wanted to know more. It wasn’t exactly all the way to St. Louis…just right before you get there… to a place called Fairview Heights. That’s where we go most of the time… there is a great thrift store called Savers and a Joann Fabric’s and another wonderful fabric store called Jackman’s and a Harbor Freight.
We were off by 9:15 and making plans of where we’d go first. We stopped at a feed store on the way that my hubby found out about and picked up some bags of feed for his Old German Owls… We hit Savers first as it’s a big huge place and you never know what you’ll find there. My hubby found some nice pants and shirts. I looked but didn’t see any clothes or furniture or “home thingies” for me. I searched this big long “trinket” wall and found 2 bags that caught my eye. They have them stapled shut so you can’t really see all that’s in them, but for $1.99 and $2.99 I thought I’d take a chance. They looked they might make cute props for my tiny dolls.
When I got home, this is what I discovered in the baggie:
They are all little resin pieces and are pretty cute.
I sat Navi down so you could see the size of them.
I always like to look at the baby things to see if there are any new or like new onesies in the tiny little knit prints. I did find 3 in excellent condition and can use them for things for my dolls…
After we left Saver’s I went to Joann Fabrics. The store in Fairview Heights was MUCH bigger than the one we have here in town. I wandered around in there while my hubby wandered around in Harbor Freight (tools if you didn’t know). I saw lots of pretty fabrics but I only ended up getting 3 pieces of a new kind of felt… it’s supposedly made from recycled plastics. I love the feel of it and hope to make some dolly shoes from it.
I was thrilled to go to a very nice fabric store called Jackman’s and found a few things there… some wool felt…
…a piece of black Ultrasuede… for doll shoes… (I didn’t have any black)
…and my favorite find was a fun fur that was so incredibly soft, I just had to get a half yard and try it out. Ten Ping is supposed to be up next and I was wondering about making her a coat from it. It’s so flexible in my hand… I just might!
We had a nice lunch during the day and it was fun to get away.
I did get some work finished on Felicity’s dress but will save it for tomorrow… :o)
See you tomorrow,
Blessings, Jeanne
Oooh, what wonderful finds!! Those miniature resin pieces look just right with your smaller dolls!! That kitty lying by Navi….it looks like she’s about to pet it! The tiny tea set is just perfect for her, too! SCORE!!!
The onesies and fabrics are terrific, also. Ten Ping is sleeping right now, but she’ll be very excited to see what you will make next for “her”!!! It’s gotten chilly out here in the Seattle area, so I’m sure she would like the idea of a coat!
I’m so glad you had such a nice outing with George!! One does need that every now and then!
HI Charlotte,
I’m glad you liked,my tiny treasures…so did Navi. That little stretched out kitty is the cutest thing…
I found my tiny little coat pattern I had drafted for Ten Ping and wondered if I could make her a coat out of it… it really is nice fabric…
We must have really exerted ourselves yesterday because we both slept like babies last night!!! :o)
Thanks Charlotte,
Blessings, Jeanne
Cute finds, Jeanne! Of course I do know Fairview Heights, but don’t really go there often, since we do have most of the same stores down here where I am. But Jackman’s, I loved that store when I did way more sewing! They had the nicest materials and the most knowledgeable sales persons. The one by my closed years ago, but it was always my favorite of all the many fabric stores we used to have. It seems that even regular department stores had a fabric section!
What cute little finds that you bought! They will be perfect for your tiniest dolls! Isn’t a relief to find that you have the perfect accessory in hand, instead of having to go out and look for something?
I hope you took the little trip in an air conditioned car! Looks like another hot one today!
HI Linda,
The lady at Jackman’s gave me a map to the store that’s over on Lindberg. Maybe someday I’ll make it there.
Little props always help me come up with the storyline for my dolls. They will be fun to use…
Yes, we had AC yesterday…and today is nothing short of HOT!!!
Thanks Linda,
Blessings, Jeanne
Oh how fun! My kind of trip that doesn’t happen around here much. Those rows of baggies filled with goodies would be my downfall. After enlarging the photo, I was grabbing lots of bags for myself. Besides spotting a pair of hobnail milk glass salts (I think I have four or five pair as my mother collected hobnail) and I think a fan shaped milk glass vase too, my basket was overflowing. Next time I’m in Fairview, I’ll have to stop there. I’ve never even visited the home state of my mother, grandmother, and many others going back, so I have no idea when or even if that would ever happen. Fun for the imagination though.
Love your felt choices. So hard to find the wool kind. And that fur looks so interesting. I think Ten Ping would love a short jacket and a pair of leggings to wear to a special fall event.
Thanks for sharing your finds. 🙂
HI Joy, you are too funny with your talk about the bags. Most of the time I just scan over them but yesterday I went through them pretty carefully….looking at the ones behind too.
It wasn’t anything I necessarily needed but they will be used….maybe I’ll even include the props with the outfits…that way I can always “replenish” with new stuff! :o)
I’m anxious to give this felt a try too…it would,make great hats for the AG dolls as its thicker and has lots of body…we’ll see…
Thanks so much,
Blessings, Jeanne
Dear Jeanne, what a lovely way to wake up. Your hubby is certainly a keeper!
You found all kinds of treasures.
I can’t wait to see what you make for Ten Ping.
HI Dorothy,
Yes, My hubby certainly is a keeper!!!
We had a lot of fun and brought home a few treasures…
I am finishing up Felicity”s dress set but already I’m thinking about what to make for Ten Ping.
Thanks Dorothy,
Blessings, Jeanne
Joy has such a good idea if the fabric is flat enough — a coat and leggings? Are you old enough to have worn them and know how miserable they were to get on and off. Cute, but I’ll bet teachers were thrilled when leggings disappeared.
What a lovely get-away day. I’m so glad you had the free time to enjoy mostly together.
HI Marilyn,
I think I’m going to have to give the coat a try for Ten Ping…maybe I’ll just make her some corduroy pants…I have a great small print leopard corduroy that might be cute.
We always have fun together and yesterday was no exception!!!
I’m going to share that pumpkin blog post with everyone…that was so beautiful and I bet it tasted incredible. ..
Thanks for sending it my way…
Blessings, Jeanne
What fun! There’s nothing like an unexpected trip out of down to get you out of bed and moving, is there? I like the looks of all those little trinket bags at Savers. I’m sure I could spend a lot of time just looking. I often wish we had more thrift stores where I could shop, but we only have a few and they are iffy at best, and the prices tend to be on the high side. I will be looking forward to seeing Ten Ping’s coat.
HI Carolyn,
After all this talk about Ten Ping’s coat… I’m going to HAVE to make it for her! :o)
Thanks so much!
Blessings, Jeanne
I am about 15 minutes from Fairview Heights but I’ve never heard of Saver’s. Can you tell me where it’s located? I haven’t been to Jackman’s for a while. Need to go there soon. Have you ever been to Hobby Lobby? You would love it. My husband always drops me off at Joann’s while he goes to Harbor Freight too. Can’t wait to see what you make for Ten Ping. She is one of my favorites.
HI Lori,
Oh, you’ll love Savers and if you’ve been to Joann’s and Harbor Freight, you were right beside Savers.
I don’t know the street name but Savers is on the same street…first you’ll pass Harbor Freight on your left, then Joann’s sets kind of far off the road on the road…and then Savers is next on your left. It is within walking distance of Joann”s.it has a big red sign with white letters and the parking lot is out front…
Happy shopping,
Blessings, Jeanne
This sounds like a trip to town for my husband and myself. Home Depot and a Joann store are almost next to each other so he drops me off at Joann’s and then proceeds to Home Depot. He calls me when he’s heading back to pick me up but is willing to sit in the parking lot waiting if I’m not finished. This past Sunday we had to go back to Home Depot after he picked me up so I could see all the wonderful Halloween things they had. We bought an Eerie Tree and a “Boo” sign. I can relate to your shopping experience. It’s what I call a truly fun day. I would love to have a place like Savers. It would be fun to buy some of the packages and later see what is in them. I have a lot of wonderful coat patterns for my dolls, but I’ve never made them because I’m lucky if I can get my dolly children’s clothes changed seasonally and I’d hate to cover up their clothes with a coat that never came off until spring. Mostly they get their clothes changed when a new outfit comes their way.
HI Barbara,
I think we both have our hubby’s trained…we get fabric and dolls and they get tools and more tools!!!
My hubby has done his fair share of sitting out in the car while I “finished up” in Joanns.
Once I got on a roll and made 7 coats in one day…I did them like assembly line sewing and it went pretty fast!
Thanks so much for sharing,
Blessings, Jeanne
That was a fun day! Your cute little figurines will be just what some of your tiny dresses need too. I have a box of felt I bought but I can’t tell if it is poly or wool…any easy way to tell? The felt hats and jackets you make are what make your ensembles so wonderful.
Interested in what Pumpkin ideas Marilyn sent you too!
Yesterday was 93…windy all night and today barely 65..Crazy weather.
HI Kathie,
If you take a match to a scrap of your felt you will be able to tell the difference…
Test it over your sink or a bowl of water…just in case it gets out of control…
The wool felt will burn faster and turn ash like.
The acrylic felt will look burned and turn hard or crispy…
There are lots of other tests in water, by twisting the threads, by looking at how hairy the felt is… but the burn test is the easiest and fastest…
We can definitely see the weather is changing around here…I even saw lots of leaves falling today…
Thanks Kathie,
Blessings, Jeanne