The Suitcase

So, mom is recuperating at home and everyone is pitching in to help her each day.  It is so great to have siblings in the same town to work together in a crisis. 

As promised, I want to share more about our estate sale finds on our road trip.  My favorite find became a project for the wedding. 


Suitcases and birdcages have been on our radar for a while.  Either would be great for collecting cards at the reception.  This suitcase is the answer! 
The lovely woman who sold it to me said it belonged to her father and it's probably about 75 years old.  I love the crackled black leather exterior and the gold fabric lining.  The interior has lots of pockets and fasteners for holding toiletries.  It has so much potential! 

I began  by wiping the exterior and carefully vacuuming the lining.   The pockets were a mess because the elastic was all stretched out.  I opened up the casing just a bit and threaded new elastic through each pocket.  Then I glued down any loose parts of the lining.



That's when I remembered the men's bake lite grooming kit I had just purchased at the same estate sale.  The toothbrush holder and soap holder both fit perfectly on the left side.  I searched my old bottles and found three that fit on the right.  Each of the little holders now had an object.  I really like how it turned out.  

This old gentleman will collect all the congratulatory cards at the wedding reception.  Yay!