LIONS & TIGERS & BEARS, Oh! MY

On occasion, I have been known to frequent a thrift store or two. I know, a few of you are probably feeling your skin crawl right about now. I'm not one to go looking through racks of used clothing, hey, I don't even like to look through racks of new clothing - I admit that I really don't like to shop at all. On the other hand, if I drive by a thrift store, Goodwill, flea market or estate sale, you'll hear my brakes squeal! It's so much FUN! I usually head straight for the glassware department because my favorite finds are vintage tea cups, and I have found quite a few beauties in the past. But on this one particular day, the sight of my all-time favorite color, robin's egg blue, caught the corner of my eye and when I turned, I did a little gasp because what I spotted was a beautiful pair of brand-spanking new designer shoes in just my size. I quick grabbed those beauties before anyone else could get their hands on them. I slipped one foot in and felt like Cinderella because it fit like a glove. I turned over the other shoe to see the price and lo and behold only a mere $8.00! Woohoo! Sold!

If you like vintage, wait until you see what I found at an estate sale this past weekend.

S.W.A.K.

WALK THIS WAY

Someone couldn't wait until Halloween to show off her new shoes. And this is all it took to make them:

A pair of cast off shoes found at our local thrift shop. These had a pretty good shape and a just right heel. They were brown suede, but I wasn't too worried about that. Frannie's not wearing adult shoes just yet, but these were only a size 5-1/2 - Perfect!

These other supplies I already had on hand. Mod Podge (my very favorite tool - next to the glue gun, of course), red glitter, Folk Art Cardinal Red paint, some sparkly crystal-like things, some vintage red sequins (doesn't everyone have some of those laying around the house?), and an old paintbrush. Oh, yes, I almost forgot about the cardboard. From what Frannie tells me, the original ruby slippers had bows made out of cardboard. So, if it's good enough for MGM, then it's good enough for me.

Frannie wanted to make sure you could see the bow detail.

So let's see - shoes from the thrift shop - $5
Supplies from around the house - $0
The look on Frannie's face when she saw the finished ruby slippers - Priceless!

So, are you a good witch or a bad witch?

S.W.A.K.

DRUMROLL PLEASE...

...ratatat-tatatat-tatatat-tat...
...and the winner is... Jen? Hey, look everyone, it's Jen! Jen, you won! It just goes to show that persistence pays off. :) There were only two correct guesses as to what Frannie was going to be this Halloween. Deb of Cucaroo made the other correct guess. Great try Deb!

The correct answer is Glinda from "The Wizard Of Oz". I am using Simplicity pattern #4139. Here are most of the components for the costume. I didn't include the interfacing, thread, wooden dowel or cardboard. Now I just have to get started. It has to be completed by October 24th as that is the evening of the school's annual Halloween party. The part I like least is cutting out, not to mention how I feel about tulle! Does anyone like working with tulle?!! But that crown - OH, how I love to make crowns! And this one is so sparkly, and how about Glenda's magic wand - I'm looking forward to that too! Progress reports to follow.

Have You Seen These?

Mother-To-Be Crowns

I want to thank everyone who entered the contest. I'm going to do another giveaway (a quickie) - probably starting tomorrow or Friday and going over the weekend - winner to be picked on Monday, 10/6. It will be very short and "sweet" - hint, hint. So, please, please, please come back and sign up for a holiday surprise - my "treat"!

S.W.A.K.