Here is another of my recent finds. These wooden cotton reels-69 in all- were languishing in an old cardboard box in a backyard shed.
Tomorrow I plan on checking out our local thrift shop. Haven't been there for a while. I once scored some lovely vintage hankies for 10 cents each and two heavy shot satin evening dresses ideal for CQ. All sorts of interesting things there. Just have to be there at the right time.

MY CRAFT CUPBOARD
This cupboard had been left for years in an old barn and was about to be taken to the rubbish tip by a neighbour when I saw it's future potential and rescued it ( much to my Husband's disgust).
Along with it's battered appearance,it also had quite a few coats of paint on it, so rather than spend heaps of money and time stripping off the many layers, I decided to just give it a good clean up and repaint it. I slapped on a couple of coats of some leftover paint and when dry, gave it the Midas Touch. This was achieved by spraying inexpensive gold aerosol paint onto some old newspaper and using a dry brush to pick it up and splotch it randomly over the cupboard. I then found an old handle for the door and a key ( in my Husband's shed ) which I gave the finishing touch of a small gold tassel. The 2 cherubs were a later find from a thriftshop ( they are only made of plastic, but co-incidentally happened to match the cupboard colours) and were so easy to attach, having holes for hanging on their bases. They cost me a whole 20 cents. I now have a very useful and I think quite attractive cupboard to store just some of my crafting supplies and at very little cost. I do hope I still have a little of that paint left, as I need to touch up the inside of that left-hand door.
I get so much satisfaction from recycling items that others might see as rubbish. As the old saying goes "One man's junk is another man's treasure" or should that now be in these politically correct times, "One person's junk is another person's treasure".

Early last year, I found this tablecloth at our local Refuse Tip. Would you believe someone had actually been using it as a grease rag. I so wish now that I'd taken pics of it in it's sorry state. It was absolutely covered in black grease. Well, with the help of some Morning Fresh washing up liquid, Sunlight laundry soap and a final soaking in some Napisan, I finally managed to remove all the grime with very little fading to the colours of the embroidery.
It has a little damage to the lace on the top right, in a couple of spots the cloth has come adrift from the edging and is very slightly frayed and a few stitches here and there may need replacing ( Maybe I really shouldn't be attempting any repairs - any advice would be most welcome.) Made of a very good quality linen, I am just so pleased that it can now be preserved as a very small part of Australia's Sewing History. I love vintage linen and now have a small collection, mostly bought from thrift shops or flea markets. Stained or damaged linen can often be utilised in Crazy Quilting or other sewing projects instead of being discarded as is too often the case.