DIY Lace Pocket

On a very rare Saturday morning off last weekend, I left the house early and wound my way up along the coast to the Carpinteria flea market. It's held the last Saturday of every month in the parking lot of the museum right in the heart of the small, cute, surfer town just a mere 15 minutes away from us. It is just so adorable there. I showed up early and wandered around for a while trying to finish my coffee before browsing the market. Walking among quaint houses with over-sized doors, exposed brick and spacious porches left me wondering if I had somehow stepped outside of California.


The flea market was small, with only 15 booths, but all of them had really great stuff. With great self control, I wandered past the racks of vintage aprons and trays of old silverware that would make perfect fork rings and stuck to my list.

Drip coffee maker
Vintage hankerchiefs
Anything copper
Scrap fabric 
Glass votives

I did pretty well, actually! I found two huge candle holders for our fireplace which is now crowded with mismatched sized pillar candles, an old copper strainer, a fabulous and unused drip coffee maker, an Alabama sweatshirt (what are the chances?!) and an old white bed liner. I always get the strangest looks when I'm thumbing through used sheets (understandably so), but it makes great scrap fabric.

I love the scalloped edging on this and it inspired me to finish a project that's been on my list for a while: altering a thrifted, gray sweatshirt that needed a little sprucing up.

The sweatshirt is incredibly comfortable with a great fit, but the neck was much too tight. I cut the collar into more of a boat neck shape and then added a little lace embellishment. All I did was cut out a pocket-shaped scrap and hand sew it on, using a whip stitch.

Ta-da. Cute, comfy sweatshirt that no longer slightly strangles me.