Adventures in Thrifting in the Pacific Northwest

Ephemera and tins full of secrets.

The tins stayed at my parents as I ran out of room

and technically the flower tin is my mother's find.

Last Saturday we flew home from nearly three weeks holidaying in Northern Idaho visiting my parents. We all had a grand time despite some rather wild weather. True the weather is always wild and unpredictable in the mountains, or between the mountain ranges. The trip started off Sunday morning with a three hour drive to Heathrow then a ten hour flight to Seattle, a few hours sleep in the holiday in before waking at some inhumane hour to repack and stumble across to the Denny's down the street for bacon, terrible diner coffee (You should all know we are coffee snobs), and pancakes drowning in syrupy goodness.

Vintage Washington State tray $1.49

Last year I saw and Idaho one and wished I had bought it.

Um, cake. Not at all thrifty but it was damn nice.

From Chaps Cake in Spokane.

It was still dark when we hit the Cascades Mountains. Dark, freezing cold, and soon the car was pelted with snow, sleet, hail, and we travelled trough patches of thick fog all across Washington state. A couple of stops were made on the 5 hour drive to refuel on coffee, snacks and stretch our legs. The Cle Elum Safeway is freaking terrifying at 5 am when you step through the back doors to find the toilets. I half expected zombies to come shuffling through and I didn't have a baseball bat or any decent zombie killing weapon. We found a little coffee shop and fed H various things to keep him happy while he played on his DS, ipod, our phones and the ipad.

Starry fabric, book, buttons, and a child's silver bracelet.

I can't wait to turn this lot into dolls.

The foul weather chased us into Idaho where it settled into snow and we collapsed at my parents home amid a pile of overly excited pugs. The weather for the rest of the holiday was just as wild but the last week there was mostly sunshine and we were so happy to see it. Last year when we visited it snowed everyday, not proper snow mind you it was something they call grapple which looks exactly like little styrofoam balls. It was so good to be home...be in my other home, because no matter how long I live in England and have made a home here, America is still my home too. Not just because my dad is a wonderful cook and makes all my favourite foods but because culturally I will always be an outsider here no matter how blurred my accent becomes. The states always feel like home and after a year away I missed being in my parents home curled up with a little dog or two listing to H chatter on about whatever interests eight year old boys.

Pearl buttons and a rusty apple shaped cookie cutter.

A few vintage keys.

My mother found for me at an Estate Sale before we arrived.

We went out every day that we were there, going for coffee, breakfast, coffee, shopping, thrifting, and coffee. Did I mention coffee? You really can't go anywhere in the Pacific Northwest without being inundated with coffee everywhere, coffee shops, coffee sheds, Starbucks in most of the grocery stores. Coffee is everywhere. And coffee shops all have free wifi so I could happily instagram all the pictures I took and tinkered with.

Vintage wooden handled cookie cutter

(this has been on my list forever)

Vintage Montana license plate.

Bought on a day trip to Montana for authenticity.

Thrifting was the theme of this trip, along with coffee and candy. But mostly it was thrifting. On the weekends we went to Estate Sales and Garage Sales and in the week we went to thrift stores and junk stores. I didn't buy a ton of things though I did want to buy more than we did. It's a good thing I'm fussy about the things I buy, fussy and cheap that's me. I bought a lot of vintage buttons, which probably isn't a lot to some button addicts I know but is enough to keep me crafting for a long while.

k*nex

Matt only grumbled a few times at all the thrift shops I made him take us. And H? Well H occasionally grumbled at the thrift shops but he was more than happy to rummage around Estate Sales and find a absolutely bargain box of lego, a bag of k*nex and a few other bits and bobs to occupy him for the rest of our trip.

Brass belt buckle and tiny glass vial from an antique/thrift shop in Wallace, Idaho.

Both items were .50 cents, and will be perfect for doll making.

Pearl buttons.

Most were from a junk shop in a mixed bag of buttons for two bucks.

Even Matt had fun finding some CDs in a huge Goodwill store in Spokane, and H found a skater jacket and a green shirt to his liking. Most of what I bought and brought back is craft related, buttons, vintage junk, a 1979 copy of the Sears & Roebuck catalogue, old keys, tins and books. Most of the toys H found we left at my parents home so he can build lego cities and k*nex contraptions next trip.

Sissy the pug is not amused.

So I'm a bad blogger...again

You have probably figured that out already by the lack of any frequent posts for pretty much all of winter. Spring is coming and in two and a half weeks time we all go on holiday to visit my parents in the wilds of northern Idaho. I am so looking forward to getting away and seeing my folks and running around drinking too much coffee and buying tons of candy, Old Navy clothes and roaming around yard and estate sales. In the mean time I have a hell of a lot of organizing to do and for some reason the next few weeks are ridiculously busy.

I haven't been crafting though I have been routing through my craft supplies and have set out some fabric for a couple of dolls. I plan on sorting out a craft kit to take with me for crafting on the plane and in the car. Hopefully after our little vacation I will find my crafty mojo again and actually do a proper amount of crafting. One can hope anyway. Today I get my hair cut short so I best hustle and get some tidying done before the afternoon is over with. I may need more coffee to get me through it....I definitely need coffee to get me through tidying the house.. So this is me mooching to the kitchen to put the coffee machine on and I'm going to drink my coffee and go play with the buttons and fabric sitting on my desk. Can't get much better than coffee and vintage buttons can you?

I'm packing for the wilds of northern idaho

running around like a mad thing today packing for our trip to visit my parents in Idaho. I'm sure I will a) over pack b) forget something essential c) have a hissy fit at the laundry or the dishes or d) melt down as that cat had climbed into one of the suitcases to be packed!!!!

I have a few blog posts that I need to finish writing up later when I have a break for my lunch, Right now I'm checking on the tracking number for a parcel of biscuits that is being delivered today. *runs around in circles*

where are all the damn chargers?

To Idaho and Beyond

he is drinking hot cocoa by the way...

he is too young to start knocking back the espresso

Now that the jetlag has nearly worn off I shall tell you the tale of an Autumnal trip to Idaho. It began with an early morning (5am) jaunt down to Heathrow (3 hour drive) with stops for coffee and to a Tesco Extra, due to me realizing I left the house in my tatty slipper boots with a hole in them. Tesco had sod all in the shoe department so I bought a new pair of black booty slippers that were actually comfortable. Away we went to Heathrow to check in and be told that H's carset (which you have to have your child in by law here and in the states) is considered check-in luggage and you are only allowed one suitcase each (it used to be two each up to a few months ago...bastards). Luckily I'm a most excellent suitcase packer and had put one case into another suitcase matroyska style so we squeaked through with 3 check-in bags and no outlandish extra baggage fees.

Moses Lake (view from outside Starbucks) Halfway-ish to Idaho

So we went through security and spent an age and a half poddling about the airport drinking coffee and shuffled aboard the old flying tin can and locked in for the next gazillion hours with H in motor mouth mode most of the time when he wasn't watching the start of the same 3 movies over and over again. Harrison and Matt managed to sleep a few hours on the flight but I tend to nod out then freak out when I nod out and wake again. I chose to watch a bunch of forgettable movies that may have been comedies, I have my doubts though.

listening to Smoke on the Water or Nightmare Before Christmas

We arrived at Sea-tac (seattle) airport in the afternoon did the customs shuffle, collected our baggage then surrendered it again to get on a train to get to the main terminal to collect our baggage, find the bus to the rental car place, swiped some wifi from the hotel across the road to tell everyone we arrived safe. The we went to the hotel were we spent the next few hours trying to get Harrison off the ceiling and feed him before we all slept like the dead until about 1 am. When we gave up all hope of sleeping any more and packed up and drove three doors down to have breakfast at Denny's at 2 am.

on the road...still

After breakfast we set out on the 5 1/2 hour trip across Washington State to reach my parents home in Northern Idaho. A few hours later we stopped at the Safeway in Cle Elum to stumble around giddy at various American snack items, the politeness of the shelf stockers and how the walk to the bathrooms in the back of the store was a walk into a horror movie and we waited for zombies to shuffle around the corner to nosh on our addled brains. We sought refuge in the coffee hut across the road and with a supply of caffeine and snack we hit the road again, stopping a few hours later in Moses Lake for coffee at Matthew's favourite Starbucks. I uploaded photos to flickr and Facebook on Starbucks free wi-fi and then we were on the road again.

Hello Idaho

After another stop for a Cinnabun and American Mall Air we finally crossed the state line into Idaho and drove the last leg around Lake Coeur d'Alene to my parents home where we were mauled by a pack of well meaning pugs and collapsed in a puddle of jet-lag and went for a nap. We shambled out of our room for food stuffs, and to be mauled by happy doggies while Harrison played with all the things he has stockpiled at my parents house. My parents told us all about the three pugs they rescued over the summer while we adjusted to the ticking of my dad's antique clock collection.

way too early to be that happy

The next morning we awoke at stupid o'clock and drove down to town so Harrison could have a monstrosity of a pancake from IHOP for his breakfast. After breakfast we had coffee wandered around town and went to shuffle around Target overdosing on the Halloween section of the store and letting H play with every damn toy in the shop.

Assorted pugs

It took most of the week for us to stay awake past 6pm at night... I think it has something to do with the clean Idaho air, the soothing sound of the ticking clocks (unless you are trying to watch a movie when they all chime) and the happiness of having a small pug (or several) snuggle up next to you.

somewhere in downtown CDA (sorry I became addicted to lo-mob iphone app)

Hasting's Bookstore

to be continued.....

shhhh I'm reading...

Moon Called by Patricia Briggs
Blurb at the back of the book: 'I didn't realize he was a werewolf at first. My nose isn't at its best when surrounded by axle grease and burnt oil ...' Mercedes Thompson runs a garage in the Tri-Cities. She's a mechanic, and a damn good one, who spends her spare time karate training and tinkering with a VW bus that happens to belong to a vampire. Her next-door neighbour is an alpha werewolf - literally, the leader of the pack. And Mercy herself is a shapeshifter, sister to coyotes. As such, she's tolerated by the 'wolves but definitely down the pecking order. As long as she keeps her eyes down and remembers her place, the pack will leave her in peace. Hardly a normal situation, but then, Mercy Thompson is not exactly normal herself...and her connection to the world of things that go bump in the night is about to get her into a whole lot of trouble.

Last Book Read before going on holiday I have a weakness for Urban Fantasy, and this was a great book. My friend Marina loaned it to me and the next two after it as well.

Book taken on holiday: Neil Gaiman's Fragile Things: Short Fictions and Wonders. I started reading in the car on the way to our hotel near Heathrow (obviously Matt was driving if you are worried about such things) I finished the book at my parents' house in Idaho. I enjoyed reading some of the stories, a few real gems that made you stop and think about the possibilities of things and the magic in the everyday. A few were a bit clunky but it was still an interesting walk around Gaiman's mind and I enjoyed reading the introduction and the brief blurbs about where the stories began.


Monster by A. Lee Martinez
cover blurb: Meet Monster. Meet Judy. Two humans who don't like each other much, but together must fight dragons, fire-breathing felines, trolls, Inuit walrus dogs, and a crazy cat lady - for the future of the universe.

Monster runs a pest control agency. He's overworked and has domestic troubles - like having the girlfriend from hell.

Judy works the night shift at the local Food Plus Mart. Not the most glamorous life, but Judy is happy. No one bothers her and if she has to spell things out for the night-manager every now and again, so be it.

But when Judy finds a Yeti in the freezer aisle eating all the Rocky Road, her life collides with Monster's in a rather alarming fashion. Because Monster doesn't catch raccoons; he catches the things that go bump in the night. Things like ogres, trolls, and dragons.

Oh, and his girlfriend from Hell? She actually is from Hell.

Read while in Idaho, at my parents, in coffee shops, on the way to yard sales and misnomered Estate Sales. I loved the book, just the right mix of humor, fantasy, a fast paced, light read. I left the book for my dad to read as we alread had a ton of goodies to bring back with us.

A Lee Martinez's Too Many Curses

blurb: A magical castle, an utterly wicked wizard named Margle, and Nessy, a kobold who tends the castle, lead the way in this diabolical story of good triumphing over evil. The many residents, all of whom have been cursed by Margle, include a hanged man in the library, Decapitated Dan, unmanned armor, chatty gargoyles, a loyal fruit bat, a silver-polishing gnome, and the very important Door at the End of the Hall. Soon after the wizard dies when one of his curses goes awry, Nessy realizes that the castle is falling apart, and it is her job to bring about order.

Read at the airport while waiting to see how much longer our return flight would be delayed (6 hours) but we did get home on the day we were meant to. Finished the book a few days ago, it was a fast paced, geekily enjoyable book.



Vampire a Go Go by Victor Gischler

next book on the pile on my nightstand.. technically I started reading it before we went on holiday but as Marina lent it to me I didn't want to take it for fear of damaging it or forgetting it in Idaho.







Pride Prejudice and Zombies by Sethe Grahame-Smith

the next next book on my stack of books to read is Pride Prejudice and Zombies, which was my Christmas present from Matt but I just haven't gotten around to starting it just yet.







other books bought while away Wreck this Journal (bought from the Barns and Noble in Santa Rosa, my old stomping ground while hanging out with Meg my best friend from my school day).. I had wanted this journal a year ago but put it back on the shelf as I bought a bunch of sci-fi/fantasy/urban fantasy/horror type books already and was getting too short on space. Matt has flicked through it and shook his head at me, I think it will be a fun exercise in creativity and doing things I would not normally do with a book.. like cracking the spine *winces*.

Flea Market Style Magazine- yes I know it's a magazine not a book but I found it very inspirational and have flicked through it twice (once at Spokane Airport and once as SFO )

I love Patchwork: 25 Irrestistable Zakka Projects to sew by Rashida Coleman-Hale --I haven't read through it properly but I bought the book at the The Kinokuniya Bookstore in Japan Town Mall in San Francisco. I was going to buy a Japanese book but decided on this one as it would be a good read instead of just something to look at.

what are you reading?

p.s. I will update with some holiday photos and babble on about what we did on our three weeks away in California and Idaho but Matt is still messing about editing the pictures and we are still a bit jetlagged... and in dire need of vast quantities of coffee and sugar to keep functioning at a semi-normal level.

Also I have no idea why this is italicized it just is and I cant change it and am too rusty at html to even try. *glares at blogger*

Idaho and Seattle April 09

Seattle Space Needle

Random photos taken from our trip, these are only a few of what was taken, M hasn't finished editing them all yet. Most of the photos this time were taken of H and various dogs, but especially the latest addition of little Frankie to the pack. My dad found Frankie abandoned in the snow a few months ago. She was tiny and half frozen, had he not have brought her in warmed her and fed her by the fire she would not have made it through the night. If the snow and freezing temperatures didn't get her than most likely the predators would have. lynx, wolves, eagles, owls, coyotes, and other predators roam the woods, and deer and moose which can kill smaller animals.

Frankie

Frankie and H soon bonded and were inseparable most of the trip, when we weren't gallivanting about town to Starbucks, coffee huts, Old Navy and the cinema. The only crafting I got on the trip was knitting a headband to match a red shirt that I had brought with me. Little did I know that H would decide it was a Headband of Power and that it was actually meant to be for him and him alone...hmmm still not so sure about that but the daffodil tutu shot is priceless.

H with Headband of Power and Daffodil tutu

H on the top of the Space Needle (I was not present, i was in Barns and Nobles looking at books and journals)

Coffee Shack in Sand Point, they are everywhere I just adore the coffee junkie culture everywhere.

a little coffee hut in Cle Elum

The little coffee shop in Cle Elum we didn't stop at having been slightly jittery from the coffee at Denny's already.. this picture was taken on the first day as we were driving across Washington to get to Idaho. It was miserable and freezing and our anniversary too.

me

H and Frankie

Nico the pug being patriotic

craft goodies from the States and some lavender sachets

little lavender sachets

First before I get into the pile of crafty things I brought back from the states I would like to show off two little lavender sachets I made yesterday morning. The little owl is my favourite made with linen mix fabric, with onxy bead eyes, and "Owl" stamped on the back with my lovely alphabet stamps.I adore my abc stamp set

metal embroidery hoops

I don't know if you followed my twitter feed or not while I was away, it did tell more than drinking vast quantities of coffee, honest. While in Idaho we went to a few yard and estate sales, at the first one we visited in the "free" box by the door I found two metal embroidery hoops. They were in excellent conditio, I would have happily paid for them, but as they were free that was even better.

fabrics from Bear Paw

Near Fred Meyer's grocery store there was a quilt shop, Bear Paw Quilting and Bernina, I only got to go in for half an hour but I had a fab time. I don't quilt, I'm sure Katy or Leah will say I should add "yet" to that statement, but I had fun looking at fabrics and bought two fat quarters one with little numbers and a retro-y one with children and toys (I know I'm bad at descriptions today). There were some really fantastic fabrics and quilt patterns, and classes too, I may have the chance to visit my parents in summer and it would be fun to take a class or just buy a few more pieces of fabric.

vintage button assortment

My mother found these vintage buttons at a few yard sales she visit last summer and kept them for me. I don't know what I will be making with them but they are very pretty, the mother of pearl ones I found in Wiggits antiques in Coeur d Alene and as they were only small and cheap I treated myself to them, before going to get an iced latte, from Starbucks naturally. I also visited a Michael's crafts and bought some lowercase alphabet stamps that were on sale and some embroidery floss, I attempted to do some embrodiery while at my parents house but it didn't work out.

pretty little fabrics

My last stop for craft things was to Esther's Fabrics on Bainbridge Island, Wa. We met up with Selena of Apron Thrift Girl on the Island after meeting her and her husband for lunch the day before in the University District of Seattle. Selena lives on the island and we met for coffee and pastries at the lovely Blackbird Bakery and She showed us around the little town and then took me to Esther's Fabrics for a nose around all the pretty fabrics, I was spoiled for choice, especially with the cute selection of japanese fabrics.

Alexander Henry Tattoo fabric

After heming and hawing for an indeterminate time I bought a small selection of pretty fabrics to play with, under the guise of them being an birthday present. I have ideas for the tattoo fabric, a very belated birthday present for a friend because what I made for her just wasn't quite right, the rest I don't know butI'm happy just looking at them.

vintage copy of the Wizard of Oz

One last item, Selena gave me this fantastic abused vintage copy of the Wizard of Oz, its great I never read the book so I'm going to read it then take it apart for my art as its in very poor condition which is exactly what I have been serching for for months. You just can't find a copy around here anywhere. I read the first few pages aloud to H on the ferry back to Seattle so I will see if he wants me to read him any more. Though if he likes it I will probably have trouble taking it apart for my art. Selena also found a art neveau book in Polish that should though would look pretty painted on. I'll be dragging my paints out in the next week I think, though I still have pleny of pages from a vintage copy of Alice in Wonderland to work with first.

random chapter

On Holiday

apples, antiques and a coffee stop
after the mountains before a long stretch of nothing much

Off on our trip to visit my parents in Idaho, hotel by the airport tonight then a very long flight, followed by a hotel in seattle, walking up at stupid o' clock and having breakfast at Denny's followed by copious amounts of coffee. After fueling up its a 5 1/2 hour drive accross Washington state to get to my parents house in North Idaho. As this is my 350th blogpost I will do a give away when we return in a few weeks time.

if you wish to follow me on twitter I will be tweeting on my phone while we travel and the durration of the holiday, connection willing. you can find me here:

http://twitter.com/meridianariel

or just read the twitterfeed over there -------------->

you can email me too.. at meridianariel @ hotmail . com but I can't guarantee I will get a chance to reply to everything but I will try, but I will answer any direct tweets if you send them to me!

see you soon Mother and Daddy!

p.s. sorry I couldn't get hold of any packets of Oaties!

Candy Apples and Holidays

red carnelian bracelet with apple toggle clasp

I made this bracelet last night while M and I watched Torchwood and Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles. And as usual the sun has only made an appearance after I took the pictures. We are off on our trip to San Francisco and Idaho tomorrow, well down to H's favourite hotel and flying out on Monday. Thank god we aren't flying with BA this time, though M says he wants to have a look around the new terminal 5.

We will be back at the end of the month, the day before my birthday, so my present will be jet lag! Thank you all for reading my blog, if I get the chance I will update while we are away, so check back from time to time. And of course I will post lots of pictures when we return.

San Francisco here we come.

And Idaho too.