Cleaning Out

When my husband was decluttering the basement during the winter he pulled a box out the "closet" under the stairs that had been there for ohgodwhoknowshowlong a while. It had some sewing things in it, including quite a few old patterns and a box of fabric I was given in the 80s by an elderly cousin of my mother's. I appreciated the gift, but didn't know quite what to do with it.

For those with screen readers or who cannot read cursive:

"Dear Angela, At last I'm sending the materials I mentioned. Thought you might want to know the origins. Two pieces of French silk (1.5 yd by 1 yd) Bought in Paris, 1961. Polyester sari (3.5 yds by 1 yd) bought in Nadi, Fiji Islands, 1978. Block print cotton (2 yd by 1 yd) bought in Papeete, Tahiti 1987. Native girls wrap it around their bodies sans pins, etc. as a dress. With your hair and skin, these colors will be becoming. We enjoyed our visit in May. My regards to you, Julia C, and Jan. Love, Mary Catherine."

Other than the cotton print, which I did use to make a very nice skirt, I just didn't know what to do with these. They have been in a box all these years. The pretty aqua print is the sari, the cobalt blue and the questionable blue-yellow-brown print are the silk. It love the idea of them - just don't know how to use them for anything. Which, unfortunately, describes a whole LOT of the things I have inherited from family members. French silk from Paris! So cool! But WHAT do I DO with smallish pieces of very odd and dated patterns?

Vintage velvet

I have a vintage black velvet jacket of my mother's that dates to the 60s. While dusty, of course, it is in fine condition and could be worn without any 'fixing' other than cleaning it well. However, Mom was petite with narrow shoulders and I have broader ones, plus where the heck would I ever wear black velvet? My daughter has the right build, but she isn't interested in it. There is no place I could sell vintage clothing without making a lengthy car trip. So I decided to clean it, deconstruct it, and use the velvet to make back panels for shadow boxes.

I am, however, open for suggestions. I can't show you a photo, because it photographs just like a black cat. IE it looks like a jacket-shaded void in reality.