Vacuum Cleaners

Having the recycle center in the neighbourhood brings trash picking to a new dimension for me. Where before I looked for saleables, or stuff I need for me, now I can pick up a lot more and get rid of it straight away for cash, allbeit not much. And get rid of unsold stuff without much effort.

So today I went with two bags of textiles, cleared out of banana boxes in my bedroom. Most were cloths and I'm not even sure any more where from. Only two I remember buying at a discount over 30 years ago and if I hadn't used them by now I am not going to anymore. Pity, but.

The rest were mainly curtain coupons. Most likely my friend gave them to me and if she did, she found them on the curbs in her part of town. A few forgotten pieces of clothing I didn't care to keep.

The fun is that on the way to the shop, at a 100 yards or so, I found a (cordless) stick vacuum cleaner, of which the interesting electric part just fitted in my back bicycle bag, together wit a media box (digital tv-receiver). But there was also a printer that I couldn't take, so I decided to come back for it. Then I was in the shop and after cashing the textiles, before doing the e-waste I said, wait, I'm going for the printer around the corner, can you hold my stuff for a moment? As they tend to round down the weight it's more lucrative to have it all together and pay out at once. They are all very nice there so no problem.

So on top of €0,95 fot the textiles I had an additional 0,89 for trash that had never even seen my house!

Here's another vacuum cleaner that is going there soon. Found across the street years ago. It's a bagless model and it works, so I wanted to keep it as an extra to my still perfectly working AEG that was given to me. However, though being a Philips it may be an early model or so, getting any dust in I need to turn it to full power, which makes a terrible noise and scares me of the thing exploding or cause a power short cut. Otherwise dust seems to not want to pass the filter. I could take that out but then? To say simply I don't like it and maybe the previous owners for the same reason.

Fixing My Curb Found Jeans Over Again

Please note this is not a real tutorial, just showing some basic technique and if you're handy you get how I do it. I used to do this the same way by machine, which is quicker but harder to avoid folds and of course a home device doesn't go sideways which is sometimes needed. Workarounds possible but not easy. I now do this all by hand in front of tv to keep the Man company but spend my time usefully while he watches what I don't care about. I also found that the repairs last as long as. Pics from phone, so not the usual quality.

Pair of jeans here that I most likely found in 2015, but I don't remember exactly which lot. Vaguely remember a suitcase with four or more pairs that were a perfect fit, and being my tiny size that is special. I think this is one of them. I just love it so much I keep mending it. Others as well, but one of them, a stretchy one had to go because cuts in the bum area so wide they were beyond repair. Otherwise it's hard to find affordable pairs second hand that fit so well, and new ones I really can't afford.

Patches go on the back or inside with me and often in a different colour. Kind of creates a look of fashionable pre-cuts worn with dark stockings underneath.

Old patch over the knee has a whole in the middle and there's a new cut below. First action roughly put stitches over the new cut to keep it straight together. Instead of the arm of sewing machine I slide a large glass bottle into the leg.

Roughly cut new patch to fit over cut. Sew from bottom alongside seam, then left and right. And then cut off surplus fabric to fit on top side and stitch close to seam other side. Turn pants over and stitch alongside the cut to fix fabric onto the patch below.

Final result, with a smaller patch to fill the hole in the middle of the first patch. Barely visible! Left side below the fixing of the new cut.

This is the other already mended knee that is still okay. Cuts may become bigger and show more fabric underneath. If needed I will reattach.

Now who wants to spend over €200 for a Hugo Boss pre-cut?

Philips D 5420 Direct Drive Turntable

I found this over a year ago in front of my door, still looking for a working record player to replace my other, found in front of door, but that has a broken belt. Which I sewed together with some stitches! Image that, it works but it's not ideal. 

However, this machine, which is a direct drive, has a hick-up, the disk kind of jumps up every second or so. Besides that it's some special system that has an amplifier inside and I never tried out if that would work for me. End of story tried to sell it for parts or repair, but after 16 weeks no success. At the time I found one for sale on line in mint condition abroad. Probably the model has never been a big success. I decided it will go to recycling. Now that we have the Droppie shop in my neighbourhood it will make me a 20 cents or so. Still better than retrash it.

Brandnew Cat Litter Box

Don't look at the dirty floor: it's the Man's apartment upstairs. But the litter box is clean. So clean our Marie wanted to show her gratitude by sleeping almost a whole day in it!

Found in front of the door not long after Man's darling Pepe passed away. Pepe hated the roof so we got rid of that. But my new girls, coming upstairs more often after that spreaded the stones from the open box all over the kitchen floor. Soon I found this practically unused luxury model in front of the door. It even had a sort of grid on the bottom but we don't need it because we use the clump-forming litter. They don't even mind the door and I like the flip open half top. Helps to see quickly if cleaning is needed.

For reference here's Pepe, proudly sitting on the cat stairs from years ago. By now retrashed. The wood had become too rotten. You can see one step is outt already. My darlihgs of the time, Oskar and Cézar, long gone. But this brings back good memories. In the background here on the shed roof, Thomas, now 14 but still around.

Leonard Cohen Poems

 

Somewhere late 2017 I was lazy to take photo's and or wheather was too bad to go outside for it. I scanned the covers and backs or title pages of books conveniently at my desk that because of age could't be listed on the books website I used at the time.

Here's one example, there are more but currently I can't find the photo's as they are not in the normal camera list. Dear Leonard, I love his music, and I was happy to be able to save this old old copy for another fan at €2,50.

Isabel Marant 'Bobby' Sneakers

Only three weeks ago or so I came cycling home from an errand I saw a pair of shoes, not even in the trash, but neatly placed on the edge of the sidewalk a few streets away from home saying take us! I passed at first thinking, selling shoes can be iffy, but stopped in my tracks, went back and just dropped them in my bag for further inspection at home. Because they did look nice and could always be good for the thrift shop.

Big surprise to find Isabel Marant printed inside. A luxury shop that I work for sometimes to do their stocktake.

I found the model, still available in other colours easily by searching for heeled sneakers. My colour in limited sizes only available by a reseller at new price. And that is... €475! Only sign of wear on my pair was on one of the shoelaces.

I listed them €100, got 90 and quickly. I'm quite happy. What do you think? Mind you, the first owner could have bought them outlet which can be up to 40 % discount.

Anyway in all my years of selling curb find this is my best ever. After the lamp foot at €75 years ago.

Hema Christmas Tree

I posted about the box a while ago, decided to sell the content, a small christmas tree, after all. Because this time of year sure fire money for me. Listed November 10, sold today €5, quarter of new price. Forgot when I found it, but it was in front of my door somewhere earlier this year. See new product here.