Old-Fashioned Charms...

If my sister had the same ecstatic fondness that I have for vintage and costume jewelry, I'm pretty sure she'd wear these darlings more often. My sister  owns them but she rarely ever uses them at all. And because I can't bear to see them rotting away in the same corner of our ever sturdy dresser, I willingly take them out for dinner dates and lazy Sundays once in a while. They're pretty heavy and the locks are unusual. You have to turn the screw to fasten them in place. I don't really know if the stones are real or not. But heck, these babies look adorable either way! 

They're so adorable they inspired me to create my own recycled vintage-y accessories! Bits of fabric fillings, different colored-ribbons, some beads, a broken metal chain and my very basic sewing powers... and I'm traveling back in time again! This bracelet can double as a necklace when the ribbons are extended and the small round pillows can be filled with anything you have lying about.  

  

I'm sure that by now, you have begun to realize that I am nothing without my favorite polka dots and stripes!  This orange dotted fabric came from an old blouse of mine. And since I can't be 16 forever, for some weird reason, it just won't fit me anymore! So I decided to lovingly cut it into bits and pieces for my new, old-ish bracelet that's featured right here! :-)

Old shirts can turn into your latest treasures too! Here's a rosy beauty. Who ever had the right to limit green color to leaves, and grass and hairy garden pests anyway?

You don't have to travel back in time to wear genuine vintage jewelry. Time travel is a feat that is best left in the movies. But just in case you do succeed, would you mind saving some Victorian flounced petticoats for me? :-)

Recycling Medicine Vials!

Recycling has always been one of my many quirky passions. I'm a rat and I don't really throw anything away- except when they're biodegradable and rotting to the heavens! A trip back to the hospital for volunteer work had me pumping out antibiotics and what-nots for the patients of my beloved ortho-surgical ward, and in the middle of those 8-hour shifts and the many rubber ports I had to disinfect, discontinue and inject, a bright brilliant, almost ---ok so I'm probably exaggerating by now---- But you do get the picture, right? I'm not known for being the neat and tidy type. I like seeing my things cluttered about in this sea of colors and age-old dust from my rickety cupboards and drawers. I like looking at them and knowing I'd have to bring them to some form of order someday, when I have the time. But who does have the time right?  In my entire crafting existence, I have accumulated quite a pile of beads, buttons, metal pendants, plastic amulets, sequins and shells. So I took some of these medicine vials home, submerged them in a bath of bleach, laundry soap and water and hoped for the best. 

 And because I did not explore scrubbing as a possible option, I simply left these guys in the bath for about 3 days. It's a good thing I did not totally forget about them. When I took them out, the medicine labels simply fell off, tada! I rinsed them and let them dry out for a while and then...

 Voila! My beaded glories in these little glass heavens!

 Aside from my beads, and seeds and sequins, I had lace trimmings, fabric scraps, old zippers and other usable sewing odds and ends, so I took some of these tin cans, ate all of the goodies inside and cleaned them up!

 And by the way, just so you know, I don't throw old books away too! I even buy old leather-bound books from the local library sale once in a while. Cheapness.

 I got some glue, tore out a page or two and made a mache for my tin biscuit container. I love how the yellowed edges pile up against each other! I did not need any paint or coffee stain for this one. The pages are authentically old. Authentically. hahaha

Turn your junk into spanking new tidy-up buddies! Or simply love the colorful clutters of life!