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Tag Archives: handbags

abstract magnolias

My new tote with my latest finds from the charity shop…
lovely new green handbag and violet skirt…brand new with label attached!

Abstract magnolia started after I made a few blocks for a quilt and realised that less is definitely more where some fabrics are concerned.

I chain stitched the seams on the front and added random quilted circles on the back. The bag is lined with the same lilac fabric as the straps.

I find it interesting that the bag appears rectangular yet it is a true square.

Its dimensions are 42cm x 42 cm.

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This is my handbag bought last year during the winter sales. It is an Oriental print in vinyl, which I prefer to leather as vinyl is a lot lighter to carry. The bag by Cellini originally was $99 and I paid $69 for it. I love the handbag but hate the way the top collapses down if its not held or stuffed with lots of goodies.

The stunning purple suede shoes are by Diana Ferrari and were $69 instead of $99 and I bought them last     week on sale.

This week I found a really lovely powder compact, think I had one given to me for my 18th birthday by my parents. This is in good condition with some kind of a bird on it, maybe a pheasant. Also was lucky today to find a pair of flat shoes…after returning those high heels last week I was in need of a replacement…..and these were a great colour too in suede.

The earrings are very 80s and go well against the shoes….I am trying to stop matching everything up but old habits die really really hard. My husband found me the lovely butterfly mirrored compact and it has a magnifying mirror as well, as if a normal one isn’t torture to the over 50 woman. Actually it is a godsend as I don’t have to put my glasses on to apply mascara….never figured out how to do that.

The oriental dressing gown is from last year but a lot of people have been asking about it as I wore it to commemorate my first blog post. Also found a Vera Wang formal skirt with the label still attached and $900 on it!!! It is an American size 4 or Australian size12 which are really popular sizes so don’t know whether to sell it or keep it for one of my son’s friend’s eventual weddings, was thinking of making a hand beaded bustier to go with it. I looked on EBay and I had no idea that her clothes are so popular for weddings.

Saving the best for last…..today the local charity shop was getting rid of two lots of fabric, probably cause it stank so much and think it may be barkcloth from the 60s or 70s. Cannot believe it because it is a fabric Kara loves to use in her hand made bags. There is about two metres of each piece of fabric and after I emailed Kara to tell her about it I washed it as it gave me a headache and a runny nose! But it will be worth it if the smell will eventually come out, hard to describe the smell, not mothballs, more like something dusty magnified by ten thousand…if that makes sense.

Okay now for the bit that one normally does not discuss as it is just well, not done, in polite circles. Of course thrift is different everyone wants to know the price and if you haggled etc. I don’t haggle as it is for charity but I do hold my breath when I discover a real bargain. The Vera Wang was an exception as I felt morally obligated to tell the manager that I thought their price was too low. He however had not heard of Vera Wang and so the price remained. I gave them until the next day and as it was still that price I bought it.

So the powder compact was $8, the shoes also $8, then the earrings were $6, the dressing gown was $10 and the Vera Wang was……$12.00 [remember it had $900.00 on the label]

The fabric was a freebie…although I started itching while I was writing that!

By the way I have an update on my Hillary on Kaffe scoop, felt like a real journalist when I researched this, found out through Liza that the quilt was from a Kaffe kit and was made by the mother of a doctor at the Child Study Centre Yale
where Hillary used to do volunteer work when she was young. The doctor has it on the wall in his/her office and the CBS people asked if they could use the room for filming. So it was not orchestrated, she was in that suit and the television people obviously thought, wow, and the rest is history. Can you imagine the pride of that mother, apparently she adored sewing it and was so excited and then one day this happened. So you never know where your quilts might end up or the joy they may bring to others than the intended recipient. Thank you so much Liza for being so kind as to let me know and it was a real joy for me to be involved in “the search for the quilt!”

Jewellery

Earlier this week I re-donated some shoes[stunning avocado green suede sandals and one pair of leather sandals in sage green] that were heavenly to look at but absolutely hell to wear as they were 10cm heels. I don’t know what I was thinking as I am on the waiting list for two, yes two knee replacements. Well actually I was actually thinking they would go nicely with my green tapestry handbag while conveniently forgetting my age and surgical status. Imagine my delight the next day when I found this gorgeous pair of rust coloured Spanish strappy sandals that still look kind of cute and are comfortable to boot.

shoe addiction

shoe addiction

Jewellery Jewellery

On Tuesday I found a beautiful necklace and bracelet set by Pilgrim. Love the name, and after googling found out that they are quite reasonably priced new and that Myer sells them, as well as a lot of boutique stores, including this shop in Paddington. I wore the set today and what I really love about it is that my neck didn’t go green! Copper based jewellery has a horrible affect on my skin but Pilgrim is sterling silver or real gold so although this looked like copper it didn’t have that result, whew!

The other jewellery pictured is from late last year from the same store, and no I am not telling you which one! That was a few months in the collecting, although all the Aurora were found within a week of each other. Not totally sure where the Aurora is made, it is signed AURORA, and on ebay they have it as being from the 50′s…does anyone know anything about AURORA?

Other wonderful news was that my dear Janey’s parcel arrived, a gorgeous handbag that she crafted herself. More of that next time, I’ll make sure I have it out well before my husband’s bedtime so that I can photograph it. She also made a lovely pink hearts tablerunner for Valentines Day today for her home and hubby said “but it is pink”. You can see it here. I have also found a wonderful young designer of handbags, Kara Smith, and she is hopefully going to help relieve me of some of my vintage fabrics. I am so happy they are going to such a talented designer. You can find her here.

Happy Valentine’s Day everyone!

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