KK’s Surprise

Did you see that golf cart?” I said, as KK made a U-turn so she could park near the estate sale.

“No, what about it?”

I led her to the back of the small vehicle parked in front of the house with the sale.

“Isn’t that nice,” said KK. “Someone brought me a truck!”

Which was about the most exciting thing we saw all morning. Three estate sales: first one was in the country club neighborhood down by the river. Overpriced and nothing either of us wanted. Then the one with the cart, then one on the east side that was also overpriced and had nothing I wanted.

I did manage to spend a quarter, on a little music box that has seen better days. It didn’t turn and the figures were all loose, but it was a quarter – and a challenge. I wanted to see if I could make it go.

I did this once before, with the wonderful vintage Steinbach piece featuring woodcutter elves playing the zither and doing the foot slapping dance. That one was stuck, stuck, stuck and took quite a bit of tinkering. This one was less stuck than simply broken – two of the three figures were broken off under the platform, and the tree was no longer anchored.

I worked on it for an hour or so. Took a while just to figure out what the problems were. Then several more minutes to heat up the hot glue gun! Yes, I may be retired and no longer a children’s librarian, but I still rock that hot glue gun. 

I got all the pieces back in place and the music mechanism going. Originally the figures turned as well as going around the tree, but only the unbroken one still does that. But hey, it plays! Okay, not terribly well or for very long, but what do you want for a quarter? I figure the figures are not of children holding those green apples, but rather of three little old ladies who see no need to go rushing around that tree.

The box is now among my Funny Little People collection where it looks quite at home.

We passed the Goodwill bins on the way home, and I had better luck there. Found the king size sheet I was needing (and hopefully will be able to remove the rest of the infernal smell of &(*#^&!$%@ dryer sheets after a few more washings) (don’t get me started on those things), as well as some art. Isn’t this print adorable?

Apparently the artist, John Knowles Hare, did a lot of magazine covers and advertising work back around the 1920s. This print was tucked inside a vintage picture book and is in pretty good shape. I've added a frame for it to my search list.

I also brought home two of the vintage picture books, oversized and printed on that heavy paper that feels almost like linen. I may frame some of the pages from Baby Animals.

And I have a plan for the Sleepy Time Book. 

I've been wanting a long runner or some such for the wall over my king-size bed. I'm going to stitch some of these pages in a row to black cloth and hang it there. Easier than making a quilt! And lest you be fretting over my dismantling of books, I made sure that these are not rare or in perfect condition. They’ll get a lot more love and attention on my walls than in the Goodwill bins, for sure!

I also picked up a big piece of tulle at the bins, where you pay by the pound. Exactly the place you want to buy diaphanous fabric - yards and yards for pretty much nothing. A tiny bit has already been put to use in my latest project. Many years ago I picked up a fused glass bunny pin (from a yard sale, natch) that I love but rarely wear. So I decided to make him a series of fabric backdrops so I can wear him as a necklace, and finished the first one yesterday. The tulle became his wings.

Let’s fly away! (Bunnies have the best ideas, don’t they?)