{mason jar lamps}

I teased you, months ago, with the promise of more from the vintage boxes that Justin's grandma gave me last December. You saw the linen tea towels, and the quilt scraps which became a giant patchwork basket. Now, after a bit of rummaging through a cupboard, I've got another little something to show you.

Three beautiful old mason jars that have been wired up, through the lids, to work as lamps.

Even more exciting, perhaps, than the jars themselves are the scraps and notions that were screwed inside. More quilt scraps, sections of lace and trim, old buttons, a wooden doo-dah -- all things, I imagine, that were cut off or left over from somebody's sewing, back when nothing was too small to save.



Only one of the three actually lights up a bulb when plugged in, but I'm hopeful that a combination of Justin, Lowe's and a few hours with a pair of pliers might fix the others. Meanwhile, I'll be getting to work on a lampshade worthy of these special jars -- watch this space!

Giant Quilted Basket

Ever since I got my hands on Kajsa's book, "Scandinavian Stitches", I've had my eye on her quilted baskets. With a little wire as the secret ingredient, her simple design means that you can make very large fabric baskets that still they hold their shape pretty well.

Yes, I knew I wouldn't be able to resist those quilt scraps for long! This is the seventy-four year old quilt, reincarnated as a lovely large, nice soft basket to hold whatever we need it too. At the moment, it is Tilly's toys that are taking over the living room -- so, into the basket they go!

Of course, once all of her toys were inside, Tilly wanted to get into the basket as well...

How lovely to have something so old, and with so much history, not only on display, but being useful. And, in case you're wondering just how big our big basket is, I made it 13 x 13 inches, which is the perfect size to fit into an IKEA Expedit bookcase!

Scrapwork Quilts

We go to so much effort to make our gifts look pretty, but as I discovered last weekend, the best presents can come in old cardboard boxes labelled "Frying Chickens".

When I opened just such a box last weekend, I found bags and bags of fabric scraps -- remnants of six different quilts, all beautifully hand-stitched, with amazing designs, such as the red and blue spools above. Some pieces are cut into strips, some into squares, but most are rough and random and full of personality.

Made by Justin's Great-Grandmother Razor, these quilts were rescued from attics and basements and lives as mattress pads by Justin's Grandma Thies, who later decided to reuse them, and make them into patchwork teddy bears and lampshade covers, among other things. And now here they are, ready for more cutting and stitching -- ready for a whole new life.

I love looking at all the fabrics used. The quilt below seems to be made up of scraps itself -- hundreds of different prints and colours, cut perhaps from worn-out clothes and even older quilts!

On one corner, I can make out initials and a date: M. E. Hollis, 1936. It's amazingly fresh and intact for a seventy-four year-old!

So, watch this space to see what becomes of these beauties. I'm sure my needles won't be able to wait too long before digging in!