Sunday, October 22, 2006

well, hi there!

my first garment sewing attempt
this is me, leslie keating, a canadian married to an aussie and living in melbourne, australia. i've followed this blog for a long while now so when jenny put the call out for writers i was quick to put in my application and am so thankful that she's invited me to be join up. i am a certified thrift shopping addict. there is somthing about the search, the hunt, the high that comes with finding something beautiful, unique, something that has so obviously been loved before or maybe hasn't yet found the love it deserves... i just can't get enough. starting at the age of 15 i was a frequent visitor of the value villages and goodwills in my canadian hometown of edmonton, alberta (used to tag along with my sister and then plotted huge, citywide, daylong thrifting escapades on my own once i could drive) and kept the traditional alive when i moved to the great city of vancouver in 2002. now in melbourne i try to explore as many different "op shops", as they are called here, as possible, searching far and wide, driving up to 35km out of the city regularly for a few REALLY good ones. i also try to hit garage sales when i can and love a classic auction, although i haven't had as much time lately to explore these last two. i'm currently collecting ceramics, fabric, patterns, glassware but am always on the look out for anything that speaks to me. i have some of my thrift goods in a flickr set here but still have many that i haven't photographed yet (but will!). i'm looking forward to sharing my finds and experiences with vintage and thrift on the other side of the world and can't wait to see what the other contributors have to share!

ps. in the photo above i'm wearing a shirt i made from a huge, beautiful, vintage, embroidered linen tablecloth, found for only $3.99 and still keeps a smile on my face to this day.

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

Your shirt is brilliant and absolutely stunning! Welcome to TST! I look forward to reading more!

Anonymous said...

Yes, welcome! I adore your shirt as well. Did you work from a pattern or just whip it up?

Looking forward to reading more!
Holly

Liquid Sky Arts said...

I love your blouse, it's so wonderfully inventive!
:)

j. vorwaller said...

oh welcome, welcome! what a wonderful introduction! (and yes, how great is this blouse?! :)))

Anonymous said...

yay! thanks everyone for the lovely welcome!

the top is made from a shirt i bought at Zara many years ago, it was a bit stained so i pulled it apart to use as a pattern and it worked great.

Tongue in Cheek Antiques said...

I will never look at another linen the same way! The color of the thread and style of linen reminds me of those from Portugal.
Simply lovely!!

Anonymous said...

that's a beautiful top!! so clever use of a tablecloth!! ^^