Vintage Thingies Thursday… bakelite obsession

Yes, I have to admit it… my passion for bakelite has become an(other) obsession! Especially when its two colours… laminated together… red and yellow for instance….

I don’t usually collect butter knives, but how could I resist? Opaque yellow bakelite coupled with transparent red bakelite (prystal). But it’s the holder that makes the set so worthwhile – it’s not just another set of knives in a box, it’s a fabulous deco display!

And so is this one:

This fabulous belt buckle arrived the other day.  The workmanship is amazing. The long red and yellow linked buckle is just so stylish – I want to turn it into a bracelet, but I’ll have to put my thinking cap on as it’s just a tad short, and the pointy bits stick up.

For lots more vintage goodies, and I daresay a peek at other’s obsessions, visit Coloradolady’s blog!

Back to blogging….

Hi everyone. Hope you had a great Christmas / New Year break. It’s funny how you can cope with having a heap of things ‘on your plate’ throughout the year, but as soon as the holidays come, everything falls to pieces. That’s kind of what happened to me over the last few weeks. I did a little crash and burn as soon as I went on hols, and blogging was just too much trouble for a few weeks. Thanks to all who wrote and asked if I was OK – yes, just renewing my energy!

Anyhoo, I did make time for some serious op-shopping, and found myself coming home with some seriously great vintage and retro fabric:

 

This is the most wonderful retro curtain – must be at least 14 usable metres of fabric in it!

 

Vintage polished cotton and strawcloth.

And some other goodies:

And I’ve been prompted to go back to a vocation I had many years ago – I used to be dressmaker. I had my own business for about 10 years, but as soon as I started making wedding / bridesmaids dresses, I got so bored with making the same things over and over again.  So I changed careers, but I’ve always got a bit of a sewing bug laying dormant, waiting for the right project to come along. I made a few quilts when my kids were little (might write a post about that one day), but now I’m into upcycling. It’s amazing how much great fabric you can find in a curtain, sheet or tablecloth! So I bought some great old apron patterns from the 1940s and 50s, and I’ve been sewing up a storm:

A cute little 1950s flared number in vintage polished cotton.

A petal apron from some quilting fabric leftovers.

A fab little 1950s circular number – lime green check with that huge black rick rack. The check used to be a cot valance.

A very retro yellow/orange/brown apron with acid yellow rick rack – this used to be a curtain.

And a more demure style, again an ex-curtain.

I’m going to add some vintage buttons for a bit of extra oomph. I’ve also got lots more ideas for re-purposing napkins, doilies, cloths etc. Just need to keep going with the old sewing machine!