Flea Market Fabrics!

The exclamation mark in the title is to convey my excitement.  :)
It seems like F O R E V E R since I've been to the Lawrenceburg (antique and vintage only) flea market.  Many of the scheduled weekends last year were rained out or conflicted with family events and I was sick for the first one of this year.  But Mom and I finally made it there this past Sunday.
It was a beautiful day and I was able to find several pretty fabrics.
Let's start with the one that did not make the group picture above.

It's a mid century modern rayon dress fabric with orange poppies...and there is over 7 yards! Love it!

I also found a couple of cute border print fabrics in pink.

And what I really like about these is that the pretty floral border is mirrored along the other selvage, too.

A couple of aqua quilt fabrics also came home with me.

And last but not least, a few rolls of pastel blanket binding...just because they were so pretty.  :)

So , although it wasn't the largest haul of fabrics, it was a nice start to flea market season for me.  What about you? Any good flea market finds lately?

Vintage Novelty Fabric ~ In the Garden

Spring offically began last week (yea!), so for many of us that means gardening. I thought it would be fun to hunt through the stash and archives for some garden related vintage fabrics. Here's what I found... a variety of cute novelty prints with gardening related themes. Patio print from the 1950's. Children's fabric from the 1970-80's. Cute border print. And a couple in the "formal gardens" category; a striking black barkcloth. And a lovely scenic cotton fabric from the early 1900's. What about you, any garden themed fabrics in your sewing room?

Last Weekend's Flea Market Finds

Sorry for such a late post on these newest vintage fabric finds, but I was having a devil of a time with uploading pictures to blogger. I finally figured out the problem after a few days of searching help threads. :-)

Anyway...Last weekend Mom and I headed to Springfield, Ohio for the big Springfield Antique Show and FleaMarket Extravaganza. A big turn out of dealers and great weather for Friday and Saturday (Sunday was a bit rainy for them, I think). There were some great prices on furniture pieces, but sadly, my house is too full as it is, so I had to walk away from the lovely tables and cabinets.

I, of course, focused my attention on the fabrics. This cute 50's pink and grey leaf print was the first purchase of the day.Then, I spotted this awesome orange leaf feedsack. HAD to have this one!A couple of fun 35" width geo-floral prints from the 1950's...these always remind me of snowflakes.

I don't buy linens as often because I have so many already, but I couldn't pass up this pretty pink dogwood linen towel.A couple more 36" width fabrics; I think these both date to around the 1960-70's. One with with pink roses and the other shows off brown and tan leaves and apples. What a perfect fabric for fall projects!
And then this last piece was just too cute!Its a happy turtle border print and looks to be from the 1970's, but since one selvage is missing and there are so many retro prints in this same style, I can't say for sure.
Some of these are on the website and others may make their way on to Etsy in the coming week.

I hope everyone is enjoying the begining of fall!

Vintage Border Print Fabrics ~Love Them!

I'm not sure what it is about these border prints, but I just love them! The designs are so fun to use in projects because its like having two or more fabrics in one, depending on where and how you cut it.
Vintage border prints came in a variety of designs including floral, novelty, geometric, Penn-Dutch, and even scenic. Here's an example of a cowboy/western scenic one...

There were also a number of border print feedsacks made. These were often used to make pillowcases, curtains, and aprons. But, as you can probably tell from my collection, my favorites are the florals. I almost didn't recognize this lovely Lily of the Valley fabric as a border print, but then noticed the small row of roses along the one edge. I was thrilled to find it in both a yellow and a pink colorway! Love this Poppy and daisy print.

Aaaahhhh, this one is special, I have plans for it. :)
I love the contrast of the black leaves against the white and the way they trail off towards the other selvage. One day I hope to make a skirt based on this vintage pattern...I think its genius! Although you would normally think of the border going along the bottom of a skirt, here they've turned it the other way and created a circle skirt. LOVE it!

And I can't help but notice how many border prints are being used in today's fashions...from skirts and dresses, to tunics, to children's wear. A very welcome comeback. :)