Another hidden treasure.

So I never intended for this to become a Do-It-Yourself blog or an ongoing tribute to thrifting (though these are some of my favorite topics).

But I had to share something else.

Yesterday after church, Shawn and I were with Mama and Papa Newby and decided to stop by a thrift store nearby. We rummaged through some dishes and didn't really see anything, so we headed downstairs to the "clearance" section. It reminded us of going into someone's garage. Low ceilings, tons of dusty furniture, golf clubs, mattresses, and beat up chairs.

We've been looking for a side table for a new couch we just bought, and I found one I really liked, but it was sitting under two other pieces of furniture. I called Shawn over and he took the other furniture off of it so we could take a look. It had so much potential, in my optimistic opinion.

Shawn saw a cord hanging from it and as we opened the lid of the table, we discovered a sewing machine! What?!

We called over an employee to ask the price, and he looked at the table with the machine out and said, "I'll take 35."

I'm sure the look on my face was sheer joy. Shawn tried to play it cool and said, "Ok, we'll think about it." Turns out, Papa and Shawn worked him down to $27 and the "sold" sticker was promptly placed on our new piece.


When we brought it home and took a closer look, we realized that the sewing machine is in perfect working order. Even the light inside the machine works!

These were all taken pre-cleanup. I'll be sure to post the "after" photos soon.

We pulled out some dusty papers and saw the 1978 original receipts, a full manual for the machine, about 15 unopened sewing machine needles, 10 or 15 bobbins with different colored thread, extra feet for the machine, an unopened sewing machine cover, and some tools. It's a Brother, which is apparently a pretty good brand.



I cleaned it up a bit, threaded the machine, changed the needle and the foot, and began to sew a scrap piece of fabric. It worked flawlessly! So far, I have already sewed a pillow, and can't wait to do more!

One of my favorite parts is that it folds back into the table and you can't even tell there's a full sewing machine inside.

Last summer, I spent a few days with my Grandma (a career seamstress and sewing genius) to learn to sew. I learned so much from her and really enjoyed sewing, but didn't have a machine, or a place for one.

So when we went into the thrift store looking for a table, God chose to fulfill a desire I hadn't even expressed. I had, all along, wanted a sewing machine too and He knew that. I just had no idea I'd get the perfect table and the machine for $27!

I plan to sand and paint the table either white or light blue and change the knobs, and it will look as good as new! I'll be sure to post photos when it's done.

If you're not a believer in thrift store shopping, I hope this encourages you to give it a try. For whatever reason, people discard perfectly good items and with a little love, they can be redeemed. Ok, now I'm using theological terms about thrift store finds. I should go sew something now.