this and that

We're rounding out the week with winner #6 from my give-away!

Mackenzie Snader! You are the sixth winner with this comment:

"Oh man, those look fabulous. I've been wondering what my next cast on should be!"

Please email me at romi(at)designsbyromi(dot)com! Congratulations!

(As I noted before...I will post the winners each day, and I will try to get in contact with each winner as best I can. If I cannot, and I don't hear anything within two weeks of my posting a winner's name, I will draw another name. As the list of winners progresses, it will be completely first come, first serve. In other words, if you are the third winner, but contact me first, you get first choice. :) As of right now: one eBook, the Penny Farthing Sock and Spark Lace are taken, but the other prizes are still there!) There are a couple of winners MIA at the moment, so if you know Nidhi or Judith, please let them know they won!

One of the fun things about this area is the number of antique stores. There's a very cool one in town, and it inhabits an old fashioned yellow house. I love going through there! Here's the latest treasure I've found.

It was marked as a picnic basket, but I don't think so! That fabric heart on top is cushioned underneath with foam and I'd say it's meant for sewing pins. And the whole inside of this old fruit basket is lined carefully with fabric.

On the top are leather hinges, and the heart handle looks hand finished.

I love it. :)

And on to my other great find! I bought these some months ago and have been using them ever since. Can you guess what they are?

No? Dryer balls made of locally raised wool! How cool is that??? I just happened to be at the lys at the exact right time when the lady who makes them brought them in. They are felted balls of wool from her sheep, and you can still feel a little lanolin in them. Apparently they fly out the door as soon as they come in and I can see why! No need for dryer sheets or fabric softener. There is no static and no harsh feeling to the fabric when your clothes come out of the dryer. These are the coolest thing ever!

Signing off now; please keep my poor iPhone in your thoughts. It's still packed in rice, and I'm not going to touch it until Monday (the first day of school!), at which time I may burn a few candles in offering to the iPhone gods.