Thriving To Thrift

So it's been a longggggg time since I've gone to a thrift store. When I first got back into the hobby I at least made it to a thrift store once a month. Now I haven't been to one in about two years or so. * sad face * If I wasn't feeling well then there was something going on with family and there was never a good time go. However, this year I am actively taking steps to take my life back and with that I want to get back all the things I used to do, one big thing being thrifting. :-)

At first when I went to thrift stores it was to purchase dolls. I wanted dolls to practice customizing with, and then when I saw posers there I started to go to collect them. I could also get a few new outfits from thrifting for dolls. After a while I found a small fabric section at one store and then started getting items for their fabric. I stuck to mostly Halloween costumes, since I didn't want to ruin actual clothing. But I have seen dropped that feeling, and now I am ready to go hunt down some clothing for doll clothes.

See I figure that the fabric you can find in clothing is a bit more unique and you can also find period fabrics that you just can't find on regular store shelves. I am looking for certain patterns and fabrics for the clothes I want to sew. Now logically I can get a lot more fabric if I go to a fabric store and buy a yard, but those fabrics won't be as unique. Don't get me wrong, I will use fabric store fabric, but I want to see if I can come up with a unique combination of fabric store and thrift store fabrics. I hope to hit a thrift store in the coming weeks. I'm super excited for my “return to thrifting”. I hope I come across actual vintage fabric, but that's hard to find here, which is why vintage clothing is the next best thing. Something tells me an 80s prom dress is in my future. Which is super funny since I never went to prom, but I'll at least have a prom dress. :-)

Another thing about using fabric from clothing is that the clothes I make will be more limited. I want to have some pieces that can be replicated, but I want a good majority of the stuff I create to be more ooak pieces to make them a little more special. Can't wait to get started. Sadly, I'll have to start slow in the beginning because I have a ton of fabric, fabric store and old clothing fabric, that I need to start using up first. I have some vintage clothes I am able to use for fabric scraps, so that's a good start. One day I will have to pile up all my fabric and take a picture of it to show you guys. I have a big stash, not big by some people's means, but big for me. I remember seeing the fabric stash of a popular doll person who does photostories and sews clothes for all her dolls, and I was impressed. Filled closets, filled bookcases, and there was fabric in another room she didn't take a picture of. Was I jealous? Heck yeah! I hope to be able to have a similar stash some day. Another popular doll person who just sells dolls clothes she makes and makes a living at it, has another impressive fabric stash I admire. She has strictly store bought fabrics and they are all nicely piled in color coordinated stacks. It's like eye candy looking at them. I drool now just thinking about it. ;-)

I can't wait to get back to sewing again. It was relaxing and I was in “the zone”. I'd work for hours on one item just to get it right. I hope to speed up with my sewing so I can produce more in a day, but either way I know it will be relaxing to do and possibly help me deal with some stuff going on in life right now. Oh, speaking of sewing, I will be showing some pictures of items I have made already. I believe they are Blythe dresses I made back in 2010 around Thanksgiving-Christmas time. Seeing them years later, I see how they weren't bad for a first serious attempt. I'm eager to make them again, even though I hate sewing them up because they can be tricky to sew with the lining, but you need lining with Blythe dresses because they arms and legs will sap up dye like it is nobody's business. I'll try to get some pictures of those items this weekend. I wasn't proud of them when I first made them, I thought they were crap, but now looking at them with fresh eyes I see that they weren't that bad. Wish I would have stuck with sewing, who knows where I'd be by now. :-) Oh well, I'll get it all back, one day at a time. Until then, I'll start planning out the new fashions I want to sew. Now if I could only get my hands on that prom dress. ;-)

Deciding which thrift store to hit first,
Michelle

Image By Mod As Hell From Flickr