Thrift Stores | Tu-Na Quilts, Travels, and Eats

Tu-Na Helper and I spent a long weekend in Austin, Texas returning late on Monday. While there, we browsed through several thrift shops. Why? Because I love a good deal and one never knows what they might find.

I found 5 3/4 yards of this beautiful elephant fabric.

The colors are vibrant. It felt lovely and soft. Although it hadn’t been washed, it still smelled good telling me that whoever had it took good care of it.

The price tag read $5.00. But it wasn’t 50% off day.

The fabric is “Elephants” designed for Exclusively Quilters. Exclusively Quilters is known for producing fabric with realistic looking animals. Look at all those color dots on the selvedge!

Did I buy it? Need you ask.

5 3/4 yards is a lot of fabric but it still fit in my personal bag for the flight home.

What will I make with it? Not sure yet. What would you make with it?

What I Learned Today:

I enjoy a good find.
Good finds are getting harder to find.
Shopping at thrift shops is addicting.
I could be addicted to worse things.
Contrary to what Tu-Na Helper says, I don’t need to have a plan in order to buy something. My plan will eventually come.

Question: Would you have purchased it?

Thanks for stopping by and do come again.

Karen, Tu-Na Quilts

Linking to:

Friday Foto Fun at Powered by Quilting

Can I Get a Whoop Whoop? at Confessions of a Fabric Addict

I’m planning on linking each Thursday to the I Like Thursday Parties hosted by Lee Anna at Not Afraid of Color. There are so many things I like but I want to keep my posts shorter so I’ll focus on one thing that I really like for each of those posts. Look for my “I Like” posts each Thursday.

I like shopping at thrift stores!

I like—I mean I really like—to shop at thrift stores. I’ve outfitted most of my Arizona kitchen with quality finds from the many thrift stores around here. The Phoenix metro area has over 75 Goodwill stores alone. I haven’t been to all of them yet but I’m working on it.

Call me old-fashioned as I don’t use a computer for designing blocks or quilts but I got really excited when my husband found this new graph notebook for me. Since it was half-price day, I only paid 74 cents for it (they round down).

Besides, Goodwill, there are many other thrift stores, too. In fact, I live within 25 thrift stores in a 10 mile radius of my house.

Look at this wonderful TV tray table. My AZ sewing group is offering a class on turning these tables into portable ironing boards. Finding this one was a big plus. Cost: only $5.

At a whopping 15 1/4″ x 22 1/4″, it will give me a large surface to press blocks. Plus look at how the legs lock into place (see that black clip) creating a very sturdy pressing station that won’t collapse on me.

My husband shares my joy and we’d rather snoop around a thrift store than go to a movie.

Here’s three yards x 90″ wide each of 100% white (my cost was $1.98) and unbleached cotton muslin ($2.49). I’ll use the unbleached as backing for selvages for my sewing chair in my North Dakota house. I have no idea what I’ll use the white for yet but give me a moment it’ll come to me. The 100% cotton blue with white dots is 1 1/2 yards. Again, I have no specific use for it so I am open to suggestions. I did leave behind a black and white polka dot and have regretted it since.

He shops for Hawaiian shirts and I shop for things I need, some things I don’t, and that one thing that keeps eluding me—not sure what it is but as soon as I find it I’ll be able to stop shopping.

I saved the best for last. Here’s 2 1/4 yards of Holiday Magic designed for Exclusively Quilters ($2.44) and 1 yard of Alexander Henry in black and white (99 cents) .

Up until recently, I have never found any good quilting fabric at a thrift shop. And then it happened—all these quilty finds found all in one day. Now I can hardly wait to get out again.

What I Learned Today:

I love a good deal. I mean I REALLY LOVE A GOOD DEAL. That’s why I like half-price days.
I am still shopping for that one thing I really need/want but really don’t know what it is yet.
I make no distinction between what I need and what I want.
I even shop at thrift stores and regret not buying something even when I could have had it for half-price of practically nothing.

Question: Do you shop at thrift stores? What’s the best deal or item you found there?

Linking to Lee Anna at Not Afraid of Color for I Like Thursdays

Sarah at Confessions of a Fabric Addict for Can I Get a Whoop Whoop?

Caroline at Sew Can She for Show Off Saturday