simple things - {cheap} treasure hunting

one of the simple things in life that i love to do is to rummage around charity shops and car boot sales. what i love about  thrifting is that it costs next to nothing to find really cool stuff for the home and to wear. i shop a lot in charity shops and it's nice to know that what i do spend is going to charity. i feel so satisfied when i find something i really love for a fraction of the price and for a lot of people, myself included -  it is becoming a necessity to be more thrifty with the pennies. 


my mum and sister also love thrifting and my husband has also started to enjoy visiting the local car boots. once he had gone and seen all the gadgets on offer - that was it! my sister recently found some teal (i think they are teal - or turquoise) linen palazzo trousers that were still wearing thier French (get me ;) )boutique price tag of 95 euros. my sister paid 50p for them but they weren't quite right for her so she gave them to me - i was thrilled - they fit me perfectly and are just what i was looking for to wear for a party. 

    WE HEART IT

this weekend i found a cute dried flower locket from a local charity shop, it's really sweet and only cost me £2.50. i wouldn't find anything like it on the high street - let alone for £2.50. it reminds me a lot of the picture i found on one of my other treasure hunting expeditions.

two of my most treasured possessions is an my old treadle sewing machine from the 1850's and my gorgeous vintage 1930's  typewriter that my mum picked up for me from a 'reuse and recycle' shop and a vintage shop nearby. it's so great when my family are into second hand things too - we look out for things we know each other will like. 

  THOUGHTFUL DAY BLOG

my three thrifty shopping tips


1. if you really like it - get it. if you don't you can be sure that next time you look for it it will be gone.


2. if it isn't the right size (too big) don't worry. if the material is of good quality then it is well worth taking it to a tailor to be taken in for you.


3. make sure to visit the fabrics/home section. they will often have curtains, duvets and pillow covers at amazing prices. i bought a Laura Ashley cushion for a few pounds and a beautiful new cotton duvet set for about the same price. if you are clever with a sewing machine (or have a relative or friend that is) you can even have them make things for you to wear or for the home at a fraction of the price. you can spend a fortune in a fabric store for material that you didn't even really like.

               ALL VINTAGE SHOP                                                  NORTH BROOKLYN DRY GOOD


some links to give you some ideas and tips for your own treasure hunting - 


- Mary Portas (Queen of Shops) top tips for charity chic here 
- thrifting tips for travellers
- Alexa Chung goes thrifting
- a chic apartment featuring lots of flea market/vintage finds


my favourite vintage loving blogs


- rubyellen's adorable blog cakies 
- this lady is vintage through and through
- this lady made a career of thrifting or as she calls it 'junking'
- cool american vintage finds with miss modish
- these guys sell thier finds via an little vintage shop on wheels
- mixing second hand with new sfgirlbybay

PINTEREST

for those of you seasoned {cheap} treasure hunters - do you have any tips for bargain hunting for second hand things?
what's your best bargain to date? 
what is the most unusual thing that you have come across or purchased? 




R x

in process

hello - hope you all have had a lovely weekend? i was able to get started on some new card designs that will be available to buy in the shop by early September along with some other cards and 'paper goods' style stuff for you to peruse - will keep you posted on those.

i am so glad that autumn is coming soon. i have enjoyed the summer but for some reason i don't ever have much inspiration during the summer months and i can feel it coming back now - phew!

Rx

simple things : flowers

sometimes in this ever more materialistic world we inhabit it's hard not to get obsessed with success and money and having more and being more..sometimes it's overwhelming and hard not to feel that things are lacking. so, i have decided that i am going to try to focus more on the simpler (sometimes free - but always inexpensive) things.

flowers are one of those things. simple. beautiful. ethereal. and always here for us to enjoy. they don't ask for much - just a bit of water and sunlight and they will grow happily and abundantly. they don't need anything else to survive in this world.

flowers are not just lovely to look at - they have amazing healing properties too, from aromatherapy and use in medicines and body products to even healing the mind.

for some flower inspiration take a look at one of my favourite websites and some stunning wedding flowers and styling at Amy Merrick here.

find out more about the healing properties of flower remedies for all kinds of emotional states here - i often use them and they work wonders.

photo credits
collage 1 -
left style me pretty right a well travelled woman

collage 2
amy merrick

collage 3
top the sweetest occasion bottom haven vintage

collage 4
left naturalist collection right edward bach

p.s hello new readers - thank you so much for visiting x

fellow brit handmade seller - primchick

 if you are a fan of well made handmade accessories, jewellery and paper goods with a vintage whimsy feel you must go and take a look at my blog friend Marion's shop PrimChick.
i ordered this yummy lip balm locket from her recently and i just had to take some pictures to show you how lovely the packaging and detailing was.  the locket lip balm is such a good idea - i'm going to pop mine on a  vintage style chain and wear it constantly - i am addicted to lip balm but it always goes missing so, now it wont!

some more of Marion's handmade goodness -

Marion also has a wonderful blog - tales from our cottage where she shares updates on her shop, car boot finds (love those posts) creative inspiration and more. please be sure to stop by and say hi!

Rx

wedding decor ideas - table numbers

hello everybody, hope you are all doing great.

i am doing a bit of research on details for my wedding range (it's small but i'm getting there) and found these really unique ideas for table numbers. sometimes i am simply astounded by the level of creativity people have when it comes to wedding details and decor aren't you?!

here are some more ideas -

- display in frames - either an empty frame with the label strung from the top of the frame and then positioned leaning against a decorative item such as a vase or prop (ie. just the frame alone with no glass etc.inside) or, you could have a normal frame with the backing still in place (but no glass) and decorate the back of the frame with nice wallpaper or doilies and then stick the label into the centre of the frame.
for the frames you can get lots of cheap frames from flea markets and charity shops etc.. you could also paint the frames to match your theme.

-hang the table numbers from a wine bottle or vase


- wrap, tie or stick your table number onto a selection of vintage books. if you want to tie the number on then some nice bakers twine or velvet ribbon looks really good for this.


- use photo stands to display them with - the ones that have those clips that you clip the photo onto


- underneath a glass cloche or dome either on it's own or with a selection of decorative props


- or simply leaning against something in a prominent position on the table ie the centrepiece area or at the end of the table

do you have any other unique ideas for table numbers that i could add to the list?

Rx

PHOTO CREDITS

1. MARTHA STEWART WEDDINGS
2. LOVE WITHIN LIFE
3. STYLE ME PRETTY
4. STYLE ME PRETTY
5. PALE AND INTERESTING
6. SEPIA SMILES
7. RUFFLED BLOG

strung picture frames

 source unknown

     country living

      funky vintage kitchen

    pottery barn

      simply seleta

hey you! how have you been? today i wanted to show you these lovely picture hanging ideas - aren't they unique. i love the use of ribbon and string to hang picture frames - the one with the colourful picture frames with the clever use of string and mini pegs to hand the photos inside. i think the colours of the frames really works well with the colour photos. i have never been too keen on colour photos but they look really good this way.
i adore the top and last pictures the most - just my style. which is your favourite?

Rx

shoppe update

i have just added some new scrapbook cards here and here. if you have not seen these before, they are greetings cards with a scrapbook album feel as they have vintage pages sewn in and have a library pocket too so they are that extra little bit special - more like a gift than a card. i can also add a personalised message to them for you with my vintage typewriter at no extra cost.

you may have noticed that i have put some of the images in my last post to good use (i can't get enough of the phrenology head diagram!)i am now a regular visitor to the graphics fairy. i also used some images i bought from piddix too. an awesomely succesful etsy seller - unsurprisingly with all of her beautiful images for us to make and sell things with. this seller is really friendly and helpful too.

i will be adding additional scrapbook cards soon along with some of my 'i love you' library cards and vintage paper packs. i must create a tutorial for these scrapbooks one day for you - they are such fun to make and there are so many possibilities with them too.

Rx

p.s hello new readers - i hope you find my posts useful and interesting!