At the weekend, I went on a very satisfying shopping jaunt with a friend of mine. I did actually need to go to the fabric shop to hunt for suitable fabrics for some wedding favours I have been asked to make but fabulous fabric finds weren't actually there. I love hunting through antique shops and there is a great antiques centre where we were shopping with lots of dealers.One of them is a vintage clothing dealer and it was on her stall that I found a really bright piece of 1960's fabric. It was 2.8m long, although not as wide as most fabrics these days, and very reasonably priced at £12. For some reason I toyed with buying the fabric as I thought it was quite a lot to pay but then I realised it was only around £4 a metre which is far cheaper than decent fabrics in the shops. In the end I offered the dealer £10 which she happily accepted, so I was really pleased.
As well as rummaging in antique shops, I also love to sift through the local charity shops. In one I found a really striking skirt in a retro black and white print. Although quite a short skirt, there should be enough to make a shoulder bag out of it. At £3.49 the skirt was another bargain.
In a second charity shop I found a basket of table linens hidden on a low shelf. Amongst the items I found a vintage embroidered tablecloth. It has a mark which hopefully will wash out and also has an old repair but at only £1.50 it was well worth buying. It will be perfect for a peg bag or two. Hopefully I will get some new items made soon rather than relegating my finds to the fabric pile - again!
