Vintage Cloths for Vintage Swap

So I've been waiting and waiting and waiting since Halima posted she sent her vintage swap package. Really, it's only been a few days but I was really looking forward to it after reading her blog about all the great thrift store finds she comes across, and today when the package arrived it did not disappoint. That lady really knows how to thrift. Look at all the lovelies!

An amazing crewel kit of flowers that I'm itching to try. I love crewel work, now I can make some! I should have shot the back of the kit to show the pretty wool yarns for it. Yay! I love the red embroidered piece. It is on super-thick linen toweling, like an old flour sack, I love it. I'm not sure where it is going to hang yet but there are several options. There is a pretty antique embroidery hoop of metal, with a cork lining and a wee little spring - I love it. And a bunch of floss, of course.

My absolute favorite is the book of Swedish cross-stitch, mostly flowers and borders, what a fantastic little book. And from the era before the internet - all the patterns instruct you to write to a PO box in Sweden if you have any questions at all on how to finish the work. Isn't that the coolest?! Perhaps the embroidery society that maintained the PO Box is still around, perhaps it isn't - in a weird coincidence I'm just finishing the third of the Larsson "Girl who ..." Swedish thrillers (my guilty summer pleasure this year) - as thrillers they are only so-so but the exotic locale is fascinating, and Stockholm cafe-culture seems so sophisticated. ... And their handcrafts are so awesome. I could read this little book all day.

While I'm reading, I may have to take a break to make my own clotted cream. Our area of Virginia is crazy about England, so you can find Flake bars and scones in all the tea-rooms around - all the little towns seem to have them. I had no idea clotted cream was make-able, although now that I think about it a little more, duh. And, yum. Halima sent me a tea-towel with four Cornish recipes on it, I aim to try them all.


And I can finally show you what I sent Halima!! I found all of these at antique stores in Amish country during our trip - it was a fun rainy day shopping and exploring with my sister and brother-in-law. The building at the first place was deceptively stepped back into a warehouse I thought was a whole 'nother shop. Seriously, it was one of those places where there are rooms and rooms and rooms of stuff, where I met my brother-in-law coming the other way when I could've sworn I was in a culdesac. A great day.

Now I will say, there was LOTS of pyrex. Not knowing anything about pyrex, I just looked and wondered but knew I didn't want to commit to something heavy to ship, especially when I would say I'm something less than an amateur in that area. But the fun thing about this swap is now I am interested in something I never even thought about before - of course there are websites devoted to the different patterns and styles, of course people like them - I mean, Halima is not alone. But she didn't get a pyrex from me. Just as well, look at this.

Love love love the red table cloth. It was so hard to let it go. Thick linen, and vibrant. When I saw the napkin rings Halima found thrifting the week before I found this, I knew it was only biding its time in PA waiting to be sent to WA. May it host many a feast. Thank you thank you thank you Halima!

Vintage Swaps was absolutely awesome to be a part of, I'm looking forward to the next round.