Greetings from Wet, Wintery Waikato dearest friends & readers,
I have been on a trip down to my Mums . . . most certainly not a pleasure trip . . .
. . . more of a "pick mum up & put her back together again" kind of trip .
It is horrible when your elderly parents have falls & accidents
You feel so helpless & are left with all sorts of mixed emotions about them growing older & life in general . . .
It doesn't help when you live 4 hours away either .
Early last summer the Mr & I were cleaning out yet another shed at the farm
I happened across an old suitcase buried under some bags of prehistoric pinecones
The documents in the suitcase were old, yellowed & more or less in tatters
But I thought the suitcase showed definate potential underneath all that dirt & grime & rat droppings
Though I forgot to photograph the actual suitcase it was identical to this one above - which I use for display in my Cottage.
It doesn't help when you live 4 hours away either .
Early last summer the Mr & I were cleaning out yet another shed at the farm
I happened across an old suitcase buried under some bags of prehistoric pinecones
The documents in the suitcase were old, yellowed & more or less in tatters
But I thought the suitcase showed definate potential underneath all that dirt & grime & rat droppings
I am annoyed at myself for not photographing it upon my return from the farm but quite honestly, it went directly from my car boot to the hose & got a good waterblasting & a scrub . . .
. . . before it was shoved in the woodshed & promptly forgotten about for several months !!
Around the time I was experimenting with chalk paint, I decided to give it a couple of coats of the pale blue testpot I had recently purchased
Once again, it sat for several months in its unfinished state .... just prior to my trip to Mums I decided to line the interior.
I had earmarked this lovely Tilda fabric "blue doilies" as I thought it complimented the paint colour so well
. . . before it was shoved in the woodshed & promptly forgotten about for several months !!
Around the time I was experimenting with chalk paint, I decided to give it a couple of coats of the pale blue testpot I had recently purchased
Once again, it sat for several months in its unfinished state .... just prior to my trip to Mums I decided to line the interior.
I had earmarked this lovely Tilda fabric "blue doilies" as I thought it complimented the paint colour so well
It was very much a case of make it up as you go along - though I did find a really great tutorial *here*
I completed the bottom part & Pippi very generously tested it out for me for size, softness & squashy-ness, as well as checking that the suitcase clasps stilltasted nice worked okay !!
Upon my return from Mums I decided it was time to finish lining the suitcase .... otherwise I felt it was in danger of becoming yet another cat bed !!!!
I completed the bottom part & Pippi very generously tested it out for me for size, softness & squashy-ness, as well as checking that the suitcase clasps still
Upon my return from Mums I decided it was time to finish lining the suitcase .... otherwise I felt it was in danger of becoming yet another cat bed !!!!
Lining the lid was a little fiddlier but I did complete it . . .
hmmmm . . . . . still I felt it lacked something . . . . . ? ? ?
I added a fine cord to the top & pegged some Tilda Sewing cards onto it with miniature heart pegs . . .
. . . . then I tied a length of lace to the handle & a Tilda luggage tag . . .
As the lid kept falling backwards, I added a length of braid to secure the lid when up
I was lucky enough to spend some time on the weekend looking after my favourite blue eyed boy - my grandson Alec
My friend Sally is one of the cleverest, craftiest, creative folk I know . . . she has recently opened an on-line vintage shop & it is a lovely place to pop by for a looksy
* Here * is the link
I love browsing the "shelves" of Sal's store & look forward to the day she opens her own bricks-&-mortar store.
I hope the week ahead is good & kind to you all dear friends & readers,
I am off to brew a pot of tea & delve into this great book which arrived in the post today . . .
Thanks so much for stopping by to visit today,
with much love & friendship,
Julie & the furry ones
x0x0x0
I hope you find lots of useful things to fill your suitcase (seed packets?) it's very pretty. Lovely picture of your grandson, he has huge eyes! It's raining here too and gone a bit prematurely Autumnal, I had to wash my (musty) rain coat and dry it ready for work today as it's pouring out there. Your new book looks interesting. Betty
ReplyDeleteYour so lucky Julie having such a clever
ReplyDeleteand professional inspector of suitcases! :).
I think Pippi is marvelled at your work!
And l must say, l think it looks 'great'.
The inside especially looks lovely! Dare l
say it...looks to nice to put luggage into
it..! :).
And goodness..Young Alec is certainly shooting
up, l expect he's chasing Pippi and Blackie by
now! Love the scooter!
And...Growing old...Oh! Dear!
Another little saying...
"Life is like cooking..All the ingredients are
there..you just hope it all comes out o.k.
That suitcase is stunning! all it needs now is a few clothes and you are ready for your holiday with me! Tell Alec I had a bike just like that when I was little, apparently I rode it so much I wore it out.
ReplyDeleteWow! What a transformation! You have sure make the suitcase look beautiful! It inspires me to think of heading to the op shop for an old suitcase to try it out. It is a fantastic idea! I can understand how a cat might think it is a gorgeous new bed just for them!!! hee...hee....
ReplyDeleteHaving the same problems with my Mum at the moment so I can empathise with you. We can't do better than our best.Your grandson is growing! I buy my grandkids things from the charity shops all the time.They hardly know the difference but my wallet does!! Beautiful little suitcase, Julie. Great job.xxx
ReplyDeleteHi Julie dear! Wow! Your suitcase is lovely and the process looks fun. Those silly kitties! So cute!
ReplyDeleteI hope your mum gets better. I'm flying back to Denver with my mama today.
Hi Julie, live love love your blue suitcase, would like to give one a go myself if I find one!
ReplyDeleteYes it's hard seeing our parents aging, I lost my Dad quite suddenly earlier this year, I definitely wasn't ready for that to happen. Hope your Mum is doing ok now,
Jillxx
Your suitcase is beautiful Julie, such a wonderful repurposing thing to do!! I am glad it has been quality checked by Pippi, kind of like having an on site supervisor isn't it!! I hope your Mum is ok now, it is hard when they are so far away and determined to be independent even though they rely on everyone else to do things for them...my mother I am referring to!!! I have that book too, so far it has been sitting on the book case!!
ReplyDeleteHi Julie, so hope your mum is ok, and didn't break anything, love the suitcase and your little grandson looks adorable on his scooter. Thanks for the link, will go check it out now, have a great one Julie. Chris xoxo.
ReplyDeleteI hope your mum is doing ok now Julie; yes, it is hard living a little ways away from family. Love the transformed suitcase - wow you have a talented touch, knowing what is needed and where! Little Alec is a cutie - lucky you getting to babysit!!
ReplyDeleteNo really....how do you do that girl? You turn an old something into a
ReplyDeleteprecious treasure. How? lol...You certainly have a talent my friend. Perhaps
your furry friends inspire you? lol I hope your trip was successful and I send
you heaps of hugs.
I do hope your dear mum is ok, she is such a sweet lady. Talking of sweet, that gorgeous little grandson of yours is certainly growing up fast, a real little cutie. You certainly transformed that old suit case in your very best Julie-ising style, looks fantastic. Hope you are enjoying this sunny day we are having today, fingers crossed for more to come!!
ReplyDeleteDear Julie, I have been inspired as always by your wonderful re-creating of dull into magnificent- the book stacks are so pretty. I often wonder at the fate of funny old books that sit in op-shops forever & nobody buys them, but a book stack gives them one last chance at usefulness. And your Tilda doll is truly lovely. Ooh isn't it the worst feeling when you get the cutting out even slightly wrong. Makes all the difference to the end result using just the right fabric, of course.
ReplyDeleteAlec is such a little darling. He looks like a happy chap- is he?
Just shown Rob your suitcase makeover & he was most impressed & spotted the ruffle inside at a glance. The pastel chalk paints really do give such a lovely result & yes the fabric was perfect with the paint. All your extra details certainly complete the picture beautifully.
I do hope that things have settled down a bit with your mum now; most worrying for you. Does she chat on the phone with you happily?
Take care & keep warm. Much love from an equally chilly place just now- thank goodness for a wood burner & a wet back, Catherine x0x0x
Hi Julie How's your Mum doing?
ReplyDeleteI love what you did with the suitcase! Amazing!!!
I hope you are getting some of the sunshine we are finally getting today... it even feels a little bit warm if you're out of the wind.
Take Care
Hugs xoxo
Ooh and I meant to say Alec is looking adorable!
ReplyDeleteOoh and I meant to say Alec is looking adorable!
ReplyDeleteHi Julie oh little Alec is adorable and growing up so fast.
ReplyDeleteThe case you have fixed up is so gorgeous you sure do have a talent my friend.
I have deleted my old blog and now have a new one Julie,if you would like to visit it is http://shez86.blogspot.com.au/
cheers shez xx
I do hope your mother's okay ♥
ReplyDeleteWhat a gorgeous suitcase, and what a fantastic job you've done of reviving it!
I do hope your mother's okay ♥
ReplyDeleteWhat a gorgeous suitcase, and what a fantastic job you've done of reviving it!
The suitcase and Alec...both simply adorable! Hope your sweet mum is recovering, Julie. xxxxxx
ReplyDeleteHow are you finding the new book? I preferred the first one (in my 50's stage of life), but this one had some good ideas too and would be great for wedding gifts . :-)