It came stocked with old polyester thread of Styrofoam spools, a bag of ribbon snippets and various old notions--bias tape, yellowing elastic, ancient zippers.
There were a few wooden spools, though, and a velvet strawberry (a friend of mine tells me these are stuffed with emery, for sharpening dull needles),
and these little "cotton mushrooms," made in West Germany, which tells you how old they are. I don't know what one does with cotton mushrooms, but they're pretty darn cute anyway.
I cleaned it up with some strong black tea (I rarely listen to advice from my mother-in-law, but she tells me she learned this trick from the Antiques Road Show, and it seemed to work well--I could smell years' worth of Lemon Pledge lifting away), and replaced this mess:
With this:
Don't you think it looks especially classy next to the giant Rubbermaid container of fabric? Oh well, baby steps.
oohhh...I love the way that curved drawer functions. it seems like a very practical piece to have. I hadn't heard about the tea trick.
ReplyDeleteGorgeousness.
ReplyDeleteYour blog inspires me. There is an element of forgiveness that it touches in me. Because of my chronic illness, I have gone from being a no-big box store shopping, recycling, car free mama to being a woman who takes the easy way out. And you, my friend, through your energy and your words, make me feel like it is really okay to do what I can. Baby steps one day, tossing the recyclable cap into the trash the next day.
ReplyDelete<3
formerly the mom at carfreefamily.wordpress.com
Tillingmama--
ReplyDeleteYet one more reason why the RIGHT thing to do should not be the most difficult/impossible thing to do. Can't we find a way to make the healthy, natural, kind to living beings way of being also a convenient way of being?