It's Raining, It's Pouring, The Thrifts Are Overflowing

I keep waiting for the thrifting dry spell to hit, but so far, it's raining finds. I'm not complaining, although The Breadman should. The house is getting full. But, as long as I continue to find sweet deals that I can either work into the house or sell, they will be coming home with me.

Yesterday I went to the Salvation Army for the first time in about two months. when I walked in, it was a completely different store. Entirely rearranged and different. They now have a vintage corner, but it is reasonably priced. I expected things to be double what they used to be, but some were actually less. I even found a vintage item, which is completely unheard of at the Salvation Army.

I spotted this sweet little toy tin litho high chair across the room, but I almost didn't even look at the price. In the past, this would have been $25.00. But, it was only $5.00! I got a lot of comments on it as I schleped it around the store. It wound up being my only purchase, but it was a good one. Lovin' that sweet puppy!

Today I went to another thrift that has recently undergone some drastic changes. This is the thrift that I always referred to as the $8.00 Store". Everything was always eight dollars. Jeans? Eight dollars. Vase? Eight dollars. Cheap figurine from Dollar General? Eight dollars. *Sigh. I rarely ever went there because of the crazy eight dollar pricing structure. But, the old manger is GONE and everything is different. Cheaper by far and cool stuff everywhere.

Case in point - This great old jar with handpainted cherries for $1.00. The jar is vintage, but the cherries are most likely a Donna Dewberry inspired project. Normally, I would scrub off any paint, but I am loving the cherries. I think a bunch of my old tin cookie cutters will be perfect in it.

This sweet Japan jewelry box is also a music box. It is wound too tightly to work, but I have had good luck repairing those in the past. If I get it working (and even if I don't) I will put it on Etsy. It is really sweet.A 50¢ Goodie Bag netted a bunch of junk to be re-donated. But, it also netted a wee teeny knitted doiley, a Washington DC Souvenir tray and a wee souvenir replica of the Washington Capitol. I like kitchy Washington DC souvenirs in my 4th of July decorations.
I spotted these teeny little crocheted watermelon slice earrings for 50¢ on the way to check out. I won't be wearing them, but for the owner of almost 60 different crocheted watermelon potholders, don't you think I just had to buy them?!?

And now...THE FIND OF THE DAY. A quilt. And not just any quilt. A baby quilt. A cute baby quilt for $5.00. Here you see it unwashed as I found it.

It's pretty darned cute with it's minty green and white squares. Yes, it's a cutie. It couldn't be any cuter.

Oooooooor could it? Ker-pow! Look at the back! Embroidered animals is all sorts of cute ways.

May I present, Mr. and Mrs. Bunny. All dressed up and no where to go.

Baby Bunny off to fish.
A Scottie dog girl with a flower for Mama.

Cute Mr. Elephant (although I just took a second look at this, and he looks a bit lewd....)


And a cute little hat wearin' bear.

I am in an absolute state of euphoria waiting for the thrifts to roll out the Christmas items. I can dig through fifteen thousand ornaments, but if I am lucky to find one indented ornament or one precious spun cotton head Santa, then it was completely worth it.

*Leilani of Thriftaholic guessed that I paid 50¢ for all those glorious cupcake pics. Leilani lives in Chicago, but she's from right here where I live and visits the very same thrifts that I do when she is home at the holidays. Small world, right?

Sparkling Winter WhiteSwap

The Goodness Girls have a fun swap in the works - all things white, clear and silver - think silvery moonlight on a freshly fallen snow.

Join us! It's going to be FUN!

Take the Time

One lesson I have tried to instill in The Bean is to enjoy what you can when you can. On the exact day that the leaves turn glorious orange, go look at them. Don't wait until tomorrow or the weekend. Go THEN. Go NOW. Because tomorrow it might rain or the winds might come on strong and blow all those beautiful leaves off the branches. Don't wait. You might miss it.

We are big fans of the sky and sunsets. I must admit, we don't see a whole lot of sunrises at our house, but we love our sunsets. Yesterday afternoon, it looked like this moments before dusk started to fall. I snapped this photo and we went in the house. A few minutes later I looked out the window to see this:

We stopped what we were doing that very minute to go out and enjoy the beauty of the sunset.

You can't wait five minutes. Because if you do, you will miss it.

If you would have waited ten minutes, this is all you would have seen.

And, if you were The Breadman and watched the sports before you came out - you would have missed the whole thing.

Don't miss out - do things NOW!

This Weekend Was a Very Good Weekend

This weekend was another great weekend for sales. It is November 6th and 7th - there shouldn't even be sales, but there have been plenty and it has been warm and sunshiny. So, bring 'em on, I say!

I won't do a play by play, but I will say that when I spotted this vintage Las Vegas Souvenir tablecloth in a box, my heart did a pitter-pat. And, when I asked how much and heard, "25¢," my heart went PITTER PAT - PITTER PAT. And, when I discovered fine more tablecloths in the box (less exciting but still - a quarter, you gotta be crazy not to buy them!), my heart was going BOOM BOOM BOOM.

Look at all the goodies I bought! Lots of STUFF! Nearly all bound for Etsy or ebay. I set this up for a nice photo, but with the time change, the sun is lower and all sorts of new shadows crept into my shot. If you click on it, you can see it better.
Four Gurley Pilgrim candles. And for only 10¢ each! These have been high on my Wishlist this year. They are a bit dark from age and what I suspect might be nicotine. But, for 10¢ each, that's okay by me.

And, THE find of the day - a vintage kitchen cupboard. I see these every once in awhile, but always for at least $100.00. Today, this one was only $25.00 so it came home with me. After the Holidays, I will show you what I did to it (after I actually do it). Let's just say, a coat of white paint, red knobs and vintage wallpaper backing are certainly not out of the question!
And, an item worthy of it's own post later in the week - a metric ton of vintage cupcake and cake decorating picks, toppers, etc. for every single holiday EVER! Such fun! First person to guess how much I paid for this entire container, wins a tulle apron that I bought today. Go ahead, GUESS!

Thursday's Thrifty Finds

Today is November 5th, which usually means that Garage Sale Season is pretty much over. But, we are experiencing some lovely summer like weather here in Arkansas, so the sales are still going. The promise of a few sales and the Super Cheap Thrift being open today lured me out of the house.
A nice artsy owl on a Lucite stone. I'm not an owl person, but I see them in plenty of blogs lately. He is Etsy bound.
This sign reminded me of the sign on Kate Go ss el in 's table that says "Plan Ahead" with the little "D" at the end. THINk means - think about what you are doing before you do it so it will all work out in the end. Also Etsy Bound.

I have a Santa mouse like the cheerleader mouse. She is marked 1970 on her foot. She is in need of a cleaning. I know she is a cheerleader with pompoms, but I am hoping I can slide her in the cabinet next to Santa and she will pass as Mrs. Claus. What do you think? She was 75¢. The Dream Pet was in the free bin, the Slinky is an old one for 50¢ and that's an old plastic bolos slide of Mayor McCheese in front for 10¢.

I spotted a box full of Christmas ornaments at one yard sale, which I proceeded to dig through carefully. Sometimes at the bottom of a box of junk, I find one indented ornament or one angel with a spun head and that makes it worth the time. Today I found several ticky-tacky plasticky churches, a nativity scene, a strange angel snowman sort of thing and this:

Santa and his sleigh! For a quarter! I know he is slightly tacky, but I still like him.

Ticky-tacky plasticky stuff seemed to be the theme of the day as I discovered this bag of plasticky goodness at the SCT for 75¢. It is a long chain garland with tons of holly and bells on it. I'm not sure if I will repurpose it or sell it.

And now for THE DEAL OF THE DAY.

The Bean spotted this Hoover Outdoor Sweeper at the thrift. It looked brand new and like something we could actually use to keep our driveway and sidewalks clean. I couldn't find a price, so I asked one of the ladies. She said she thought it was $10.00. I said I would think about it. She left to go back in the backroom and then she came right back out. "You can have it for $5.00 since you are such a good customer." SOLD!

I looked it up on Amazon and they sell for about $90.00! And, more importantly, it works really well. I walked up an down the driveway like I was mowing and it swept up all the leaves, sticks and everything else in the way. I never knew this thing existed, but I love it! Good find, Bean!

I'm hoping to find a few more sales this weekend. It is supposed to be nearly 80 on Saturday, which is unheard of this time of year. I'm hoping people will see that it is a nice day and through their junk out on the lawn to make Christmas shopping money. I have my eye on an auction ad too. I'm junking while I can before the cold takes over soon. It's coming, I know it.

But wait! Call now and we'll send you....

Saturday I went to The Super Cheap Thrift. All the Halloween items were FREE on Saturday, so I picked up a few old blowmold Trick or Treat pumpkins. But, something told me to go to the thrift that day, even though when I left the house all my errands were the opposite way of the Super Cheap Thrift. But, when I found this item, I knew that was the reason I had veered to the right at the corner and not to the left.

A suh-weet vintage tablecloth with pink clover on it. Sarah found the exact same tablecloth back in July and I admired it then. And now, I have my own! And for only 75¢!

(Photo taken before I washed it and soaked it and washed it again.)

Since I don't have photos of The Bean in a Halloween costume to share, I will share this:

The Bean in a SNUGGIE! hahahahahahahahaha I think Snuggie's are an absolute crack up. It's just a blanket with sleeves which is so funny to me. But, my Grandmother is in a wheelchair and she has problems putting on sweaters and such. So, I think she is the perfect candidate for a Snuggie. She can be warm, but still eat or open her mail or whatever she needs to do.

*Ignore the STUFF in the background. My house always looks junky when I don't properly stage the photos.

**If you have a Snuggie and love your Snuggie - more power to you. I imagine they are warm and all. it's just a very funny concept to me!

This is so funny. Some sort of bad language, but still funny!

Happy Halloween!

Happy Halloween!

Come Trick or Treating at my house tonight....You will get Twinkies and Ding Dongs if you do!
Come on in and look at my decorations. The Jack O' Lantern on the pedestal was an impulse buy this year at Hobby Lobby (50% off!). I try to only buy vintage stuff, but he looks vintage, so that is close enough for me! I've hd that huge rocking cat in the back for years and never quite found a spot for him. I love him up high. I was sitting him on the floor in the past. The bookshelf packed full of Halloween goodness. I incorporated my Orange Fire King Mixing Bowl into my decorations since orange so does not go in my kitchen. It holds my collection of teeny candy cups.

My favorite creation this year - I made the pumpkin one day and the witch another and put them together on a whim a different day.

Hope you have a terrific Halloween. Make it a safe one!

Friday Estate Sale Finds

There was an Estate Sale not too far from me today. I generally don't go to Estate sales that are run by companies, because things are just priced too high. But, there is a local guy in town that runs an Estate Sale Business and his sales are better than the others. His prices are more reasonable, but still a bit more than I usually pay for things. I found five vintage tablecloths there today, but they ranged from $6.00 to $18.00. Ouch. I usually just go to get into neat old houses and see other people's stuff. Of course, I usually find a treasure to two.

Here's a photo of the wallpaper that lined the hallways. It was a neat old house - four bathrooms, five bedrooms and a maid's quarters like Alice had in The Brady Bunch - off to the side of the kitchen. it had an attic and a basement. There are no basements in Arkansas, so that was neat to see. Although I didn't go down there. I cannot walk down backless stairs. The boogie man will get my ankles! Here's the website for the Estate Sale - See anything you want?
Estate Sale

My finds:
An old box of Cotton buds with non splintering wooden stems for 50¢. Ouch wooden Q-tips!

I remember these silly plastic figures from Ben Franklin when I was a kid. At 25¢ a piece, I grabbed them up for nostalgia's sake.

I bought this box of old paper for $1.00 mostly because I liked the wonderful old lithographed label.

And, when I got it home, I found this package under it with this old lithographed label. Two for one!

There was a Rubbermaid tote with some old junky toys in it for $5.00. I dug out the wooden blocks and asked if I could just buy them. I think he charged me $1.00. I've never heard of a few of those Disney Characters. Practical Pig? Piper Pig?
Hi! This neat old banner was $3.00. I really thought it said "Happy New Year" when I bought it (it was folded up in a box). But, when I hung it up I saw that it said "Happy Anniversary". It is neat with its crepe paper fringe and gold glittery letters. I happen to know that you can make "SHARA" out of those letters, so I may reconfigure it and hang it in my office.

The real reason I went - My quest for Vintage Christmas. Which I need like a hole in the head. This is a door sign from a store. "Come in and Browse". LOVE IT!

Lots of pretty sparkle-y vintage-y Christmas goodness. I adore the little ornaments when I find them in their original boxes. I paid $4.00 for everything.
Loooong strands of Mercury Beads. I have only found one string ever, so this was an exciting find for me. The things that make me happy.....

After the Estate Sale we went to one of my thrifts because I still had a hankering to dig and I really needed to use the bathroom! There are only a few thrifts where I will use the bathroom. The Salvation Army is a BIG NO NO. NEVER.

I saw the lady pushing a cart of things to put out and noticed there were a few baggies of what appeared to be old sewing items. So, what did I do? I followed her!

I bought five baggies full of things and found the old sewing basket on the way to check out. Then the lady came and found me and offered me another baggie full for $1.50. I paid $5.50 total for the sewing basket, several old wooden spools of thread, old pincushion, various trims, four wooden needle shuttles, a STERLING thimble, a bunch of bone or ivory crochet or tatting needles and several other very old nice items. I am happy that I found it all and put it back together. I don't know why they pieced it all out like that anyway.

Lastly, for 50¢, a bag full of old wooden puzzle pieces. I think the states would make interesting pins.

It's Baaaaaaack!

It's Baaaaaaaaaaaaack!

The traveling monkeybox Junk Box has made it full circle back to Arkansas.

Here comes the box! Delivered to the door by my mail lady.

Thanks mail lady!

We were honestly walking out the door to go to the movies when it arrived, but I had to have a dig in that box! The Breadman and The Bean gathered around to see what was inside too. The Bean scored a bunch of keychains for his collection and a rubber bracelet.

I opened it to find the instruction pack right on top. I picked a great group of ladies that packed everything properly and followed all the so-called rules. The whole thing went very well (except one address mistake on my part that caused a package to be returned. But, never fear, problem solved and the package was delivered a few days later).

The box weighed 12 pounds when I got it back. I had mailed out 9 pounds initially. So, it was STUFFED.

Since the box ended with me, I got to keep anything and everything. Anyone could keep as much as they wanted once it arrived at their doorstep. But, since it stopped with me, I will find a home for everything.

What did I keep?

Three watermelon potholders put in by Chris, a box of "Tutsie Roll" chocolate scented candles (for my birthday candle collection), a stack of neat old photographs of vintage planes and a metal clip for holding notes. (To get an idea of what I initially put in the box, check out Chris's blog.)

Various Christmas items including light reflectors, cupcake picks from Elizabeth and vintage ornaments.

Loving that silly bird in a hat! I have a pretty good feeling that most of the Christmas, and especially this bird, came from Laurie.

Lots of teeny gizmos, destined for the craft bin. Tiny hand-painted buttons of all sorts, picks for crafting, some old jewelry items, a sweet flower pin, vintage necklace, birdie clips, a toadstool pendant and a couple mini pumpkins.

A sweet apron, old lace belt, trim and appliques, a 1964 Workbasket, Canning labels and a sweet old book (that I may or may not have actually put in myself. I know I put in a book like this one - but not sure if this is it? Oh, getting old is so not fun...)

A chippy wooden molding mirror, pig planter and shoe - all from Carol, a funny old pincushion and three tiny bottles. I collect these bottles - I used to win them in the claw machine at the fair. I always pick them up when I see them.

A bunch of seashells and sea glass that I think must be from Sue since I know she is quite beachcomber. Sue and Laurie didn't post what they sent so they next person would be surprised, so I am guessing on a few of the items.

This all that came back to me that I had originally put in he big old box of junk. I was surprised to see the old telephone book come back. I though that would get snapped up. I've seen them used in junky crafting, so I it will go back into my stash.

I had fun doing this and from the excitement on everyone's posts, I think everyone else enjoyed it too. Thank you ladies for playing along!

I had a lot of emails and comments from people asking me how to do their own Junk Swap. Easy! Fill up a Flat Rate box (Costs $13.95 to mail no matter how heavy it is) with miscellaneous things. I call it junk, but I mean stuff that you don't want or need anymore, but that is still good stuff.

Find a small group of loyal good people to play along. I went with five plus me. The box traveled around the USA in about a month before it came back to me. Any more people than five and the longer it would have taken to come back. I added an envelope with all the pre-addressed address labels so that each person just had to find their name on the return address and stick it on the box so that it would go to the next person. Each person emailed me to say that it had been mailed and alerted the next person on the list that it was enroute. (Much excitement ensued as it was in transit!) They way we did it worked great. I think, am I right ladies? Just remember to make the box go back to the original sender since they started the whole thing in the first place.

Pink Cadillac

When I was growing up, we had a lot of cars. My Dad would buy one and we would drive it awhile. A few weeks, a few months, maybe even a year and then he would sell it. Sometimes he would buy one and sell it a few days later. Sometimes my Mom couldn't find her car at the grocery store because she couldn't remember what she had driven there.

This is only a small part of the ones that I actually remember us owning....

Red Cadillac

White Cadillac

Green Cadillac

Black Cadillac

1937 Oldsmobile

Red Volkswagen Beetle

White Volkswagen Beetle (painted with Daisies!)

Blue Volkswagen Bus

Red Volkswagen Bus
Gray Thunderbird

Blue 1973 Mustang

Brown Mustang

White Subaru

MG Sprite

MG

These are just the ones I can remember. There were more. Many more. One time when I was just a baby we were living in Kansas. We had this very long driveway and I think the story was that he had six cars parked one behind the other. He went out to leave for work and the back one wouldn't start. He had to call a cab (or ride his bike, I can't remember) to take him to work. This was very unsettling to my to mother who was not happy about having six cars in the first place.

My dad got off work at 3:00 in the afternoon, so he often picked me up from school. I never knew what he would be driving, so I picked a parking spot across the street at a Church for him to wait for me. That way I could always find him now matter what he was driving. One day he picked me up in an old chippy peeling paint pickup. My crush was walking with me and I was mortified that he saw me getting into that truck. Ack! I begged my Dad not to ever pick me up in that again! The next day he picked me up in our cherry red 1963 Split Window Corvette. Much better. The crush was impressed! (Sadly, only with the car.....)

So, with all these strange cars coming and going, I never knew quite what to expect to see in our driveway on any given day. You can imagine my horror when I got off the bus one day and saw this in the driveway.

A hearse! A real honest to goodness hearse complete with a million little doors and pockets in the back that we never, ever ever opened the entire time we owned it. Ever. My dad was under strict orders to never, never, ever, ever pick me up from school in the hearse. Ever. I don't remember him ever doing it, so he either didn't do it or I have blocked it out and it will come out in therapy one day. I do remember that he would load up his buddies and they would go through the drive up window at the local donut shop and order through the driver's window and then pull up a bit so the guys in the back could order too. They found it hysterical. The donut lady? Not so much.

And, after all these years, I still never know what my Dad will be driving when I see him pull in my driveway. As long as it isn't a hearse - that's fine by me.

*All photos gleaned from the Internet but are exactly what we had. The Hearse photo is our actual car. Why I only have a photo of that one, is beyond me!

**I was going to title this "Little Red Corvette" by Prince, but that song is so totally not about a car. Oh my! We never actually had a pink Cadillac, but man, that would have been so cool!

Thank You Junking Gods

Oh, Dear Junking Gods,

Thank you for this beautiful sunshine-y day after weekend after weekend of rain, cold and gloom. Thank you for the beautiful trees and the blue sky. Thank you for having the Golf Course Community Wide Garage Sales today. Thank you for letting me go to almost twenty yard sales and the Super Cheap Thrift, all in one day. Thank you for letting everything be affordable and thank you for that sweet little lottery win last weekend to pad my garage sale-ing pocket. Thank you for the ladies that were as nice to me when I spent 45¢ as when I spent $10.00. Thank you to the lady that cut $3.50 off a price when I asked to buy all of something. I know she was tired of hagglers (as represented by the lady at the last sale practically screaming, "NO, I will NOT take $3.00 for those boots. They are $5.00. They cost $50.00 and he wore them one time. They are FIVE DOLLARS!" Me thinks she might have needed a nap.) but she still cut me a deal.

Thank you for allowing my travel buddy to find a new Playstation Game, a framed piece of art with his name written in Japanese, a VooDoo Doll kit and a Game boy Game all in his price range. It does so make for a happy yard sale-ing day when everyone is a happy camper.

Thank you again, Dear Junking Gods. I appreciate you. You can bring on Winter now. I have fulfilled my yearn to Junk, one last time. (Although there is a nifty estate Sale next weekend, so I am not completely done!)

Shara

Junker Extraordinaire

P.S. I won't mention the lady with the dreadlocks that swooped in behind me as I dug in the linen box and scooped up a sweet vintage strawberry tablecloth for 50¢. I am a bit sick over that one since I was actually digging in the box as she reached over me to get it. That is not good yard sale etiquette in my book. But, I will let it go........*sniff*.

A "Cyclopedia" of Knowledge - everything from cookery to memory skills, a vintage magazine all in Japanese and two old POGO Books, (Whom I have never heard of and the lady having the sale was quite offended to hear. The books are from 1954- when my MOM was ten years old. So, I have never heard of POGO. Sorry lady.) $1.00 for all the books.
A book that I had to buy just for the title alone. *Snicker*
A wee hen on a nest and a wee basket. Itty. Bitty. 35¢ total.

An old Beechnut Gum box for $1.00, a West Germany tin for 50¢, sweet birdie figurine for 50¢, bakelite steak fork/knife thingamabob I'm a vegetarian, bear with me...) for 50¢, a wee rubber chicken for 25¢ and a vintage deer pin for 50¢.

The tin is also a bank. I have several West Germany tins, but I've never seen one like this.

Halloween Goods - two cute glittery vintage inspired boxes (50¢ each) , a huge crow (10¢) and a glittery Scaredy Cat box ($1.00).

A nice heavy old rabbit. He is over a foot tall and deeevine. Love him! He was 75¢ at the Super Cheap Thrift.

1964 Miller Studio horses for 50¢ each. Etsy bound.

An old primitive ladder for $2.00. I'm thinking tablecloths or aprons would look good on it.

A vintage aqua ball pitcher for 35¢. It's plastic - hard to tell in the photo.

One of my two favorite finds of the day - an old Ford 1¢ Gumball Machine. One just like it just sold on ebay for $145.00! That would be a big old Woohoo. Except I am going to keep it. I only paid $10.00 for it and it is sooooo cool. Besides, it will only get more valuable, right? The Bean can sell it someday.

*Note to self - buy gumballs.

And, my other favorite find of the day?

BIG Printers Blocks. BIG ones. I usually see these for $3.00 and up. These were 50¢ each (which is good....), but she let me have them all for $10.00. I should sell them, but they are so me. I will put them on a shelf, use them in pottery or an old locker basket. I love them.

Thank you Junking Gods!

Joli Paquet Halloween Swap

I participated in the Trick or Treat Swap at Joli-Paquet this year. If you've never visited Joli Paquet, I highly recommend it - lots of wonderful decorating ideas, tutorials and even kits you can order if you desire.

My partner was the sweet Aimee-Suzanne over at m-verdi.com. You won't believe this after you see the goodies that she made and sent me, but this was her very first swap. I know! She did a great job - very creative and lots and lots of goodies.


As with all swaps - there were guidelines. #1: Embellish a Halloween tote.

Check!

#2: Fill it up with Goodies!

Check! Check! Check!

A big black glittery spider.

Old Apothecary bottles for my Spooky Halloween vignette and then *poof* off they go into my Rx Collection.

A divine "HAUNTED" banner complete with vintage graphics, crepe paper trim and tintype lettering.

Two Halloween Embellishment Kits for creating fun.A fabulous old Cribbage board with lots of patina and character converted into Halloween Art!

Check these out - old metal measuring cups converted into Dioramas.
Now, isn't that a great idea?

A jar of Beans....for The Bean. Clever, yes? Not shown an orange glitter-y "The Witch is In" plaque. That will most likely stay out year round. Sort of a "warning" for The Breadman, if you get my drift.

What's this? Butter not touch?

A silver butter dish encrusted in German Glass Glitter. Butter not touch!
Clever, clever, clever!

Thank you Miss Aimee and welcome to the wonderful world of swapping. You will be very welcome in this world with all your cleverness and creativity!

Pottery & Pie

Saturday I was in the car about to back up to head towards the Super Cheap Thrift, when The Breadman pulled in the driveway with the new dryer. So, instead of a bit of thrift therapy, I had to get out of the car and start unloading it. That, compiled with the cleaning I accomplished this weekend (that resulted in a carload of donations), meant that a trip to the Super Cheap Thrift was definitely on my plate today.

The thrift was packed full of new things, but I recognized a lot of them from my previous donations. I picked up several things thinking, "I have one like these at home. No, wait, I donated it. And this is it! Put it down and walk away!" As usual, I managed to find a few things.

A funny old figurine from JAPAN priced 19¢ on the bottom. I paid 25¢. That's not bad inflation for about 50 years. I thought her face was a cute when I picked her up. Then, when I got her home, I analyzed it a bit. Cute angel girl holding a book with a lamb and they are on a ....sled? Not sure. She's still cute though.

This blue glass dish is marked FireKing and Oven Proof. I can't imagine putting anything like this in the oven though. The pretty blue color caught my eye but the FireKing name sold it. It was only 50¢.

This piece of pottery was $1.00. It is tall - about 10 inches tall and heavy. It has a shiny glaze, which I normally don't find attractive. But, I kept looking at it every time I passed by. I finally picked it up and saw this:

Red Wing! My first piece of Red Wing. I keep all my pottery in one big cabinet, so I try to keep it all pastel and matte finish. But, this one is different, so there goes that idea out the window. But, it was Red Wing and it was a dollar, so it is mine.
This afternoon, I made an Apple Pie. I always thought making a pie was this magical thing that only Grandma's could do. But, then I found out that it really isn't that hard. I'm still amazed when I make a pie that looks like an actual pie! And, even better - it tastes like an apple pie!

Weekend Wrap Up

Friday morning started off with the dryer quitting. *Sigh* A quick trip to Lowe's and my trusty No Interest/No Payments for 12 months coupon and I have a new dryer. Saturday, The Breadman picked it up and, with help from The Bean, they got the new one put together (cord put on the back) and I got the old one out of the house. Thank goodness it did quit, it was absolutely packed with lint in the back and the dryer hose was full too. I fear we might have had a fire eventually if it wouldn't have needed replaced. Our utility room is in an interior room, so the duct work goes up the wall, across the floor of the attic and then outside. It is really wonky and hard to keep cleaned out. The new rule is, every three months we will move the dryer out , clean the back out and clean out the entire dryer duct.

With a new dryer and part of the utility room clean, I decided it was time to clean out the shelving above and get it completely organized. We have a small house, so I have to make use of any and all storage space that I can find. A few weeks ago I bought a label maker at a yard sale and it is my new BFF.

For on top of the dryer - new containers one for Fabric Softner, one for Lint and one for Lottery Money* - That's the spare change I scrounge up in pockets and in the washer. The Breadman asked, "Why are we saving the lint?" We aren't saving it - I just toss it in there and dump it every few days. (I don't have a trash can in there.)

*Arkansas just got the lottery this month. Year after year the citizens voted and it never passed. But, it finally passed this year and TA-DA it is here! Woo-Hoo. Now, I'm not a big gambler, but it is fun every once in awhile. Yesterday as we were going to buy some handy storage containers for my cleaning frenzy, I decided that since I hadn't been to a garage sale all weekend, that I would spend my $10.00 on lottery tickets. I bought five tickets and I won $10.00, so I got two more. Then I won $15.00. So, I kept $10.00 and got one more ticket. Then I won $40.00! So, I kept $30.00 and go two more tickets. Then I won $15.00 and got $10.00 and one more ticket. Then, I think I won $20.00. I kind of lost track of it after awhile. But I know I had $10.00 in my wallet when I got there and I left with $60.00. So, I made fifty bucks in about thirty minutes. Not bad!

I only went to one thrift last week - so they are meager finds.

A dainty 14kt cup with "Forapresent" on it for 50¢. It's something political or official - I'm trying to Google it, but having trouble finding out exactly what it means.

This butterfly caught my attention in the jewelry case. It was heavy, well made and signed, so for $1.00, I bought it.
When I found the Rebecca Collins jewelry website, I got really excited, because nearly everything was several hundreds of dollars. Then, I spotted the butterfly. I anxiously scrolled down to see the price........ten bucks. Come on! All those $500 and $800 items and I found the ten dollar one? Apparently, it was mass produced for Neimen Marcus in 2000. Oh well, I still like it. (But, I would have lurved it for $800.00!)

A piece of my beloved matte white pottery for $1.00. (It's Royal Haeger, Sue!) It was high on a shelf by the front door. When I took it down, it had the doorstops and a bunch of screwdrivers in it. I threw $1.00 at them and ran out the door before they realized I took their storage container! I haven't found piece of pottery in months and months. It's funny, because I just boxed it all up for the winter too.

Today, The Breadman left to run an errand and when he got home, the door wouldn't open from the outside. Or the inside! We finally got it open, but I am so glad that we were both in and out so we could get it open. We had a brand new lock set in the garage that someone hadn't gotten around to putting on the door yet *cough*cough.* But, it's on now.

Hoping for a calmer week, some thrifting and lots more organizing. And maybe a few more lottery tickets.....Wish me luck.

Thank You Mother Nature!

Dear Mother Nature,

In a recent blog post I moaned and groaned about the non stop rain you were pelting down on us. I whined and I fussed. And, I wasn't very happy about the impending cold temperatures that are coming this weekend.

But today, you let the sun come out and shine all day long. That allowed me to finally get out of the house and see what you had done.

Yellow.

Orange.

Red.

Thank you Mother Nature for all the rain and even the cold. I understand now it all had a purpose. I promise I won't complain about the rain or the col again. It was all worth it!

*PS. I still don't understand that terrible awful ice storm last year though!*

Rain, Rain, Go AWAY!

It's been raining for over a week now. Every single stinking day. We finally left the house yesterday to go pick up some groceries, but other than that, home has been the place to be. We had torrential rain last week which caused flooding at the end of the street. People got stuck in the flood in their cars and houses were flooded. Luckily, we sit up on top of the hill, so our house was fine. I so could not bear my junk getting wet and icky.

In addition to the flooding, the city is putting in all new sewer lines which has finally arrived to our neighborhood. We had a flyer in our mailbox alerting us that they would have to dig up the street, so we would need to go around the back way (about 3/4 of a mile) for a day or possibly two. Today was Day Number Eight. It's not that big of a deal, but it is hard to remember to go this way when I have been going that way for 15 years. One more fun thing - twice a day, they do something to the sewer lines and our entire house shakes and emits a hue fart-like sound. It is really scary and surprises us every time.

So, between the rain, the flooding and the rerouting of traffic, I haven't been thrifting or yard saling. No new treasures to share. No stories to report. Boo hoo for me. :D

I have been able to drag out all the Halloween decorations. Here's another "new to me" kind of display that I made.

I found the crows at The Dollar Tree this year. I bought about ten of them, but I have ideas for them throughout the year. Notice the one on the top shelf is wearing a silver crown. The honeycomb pumpkins all came from the Dollar Tree too. Four in a pack or one buck. Sarah showed these fun Silhouettes on her blog not long ago. I printed all three of them and framed them in some black frames that I had picked up about a month ago at.....you guessed it.....The Dollar Tree. (You gotta love The Dollar Tree!) The Bean had picked out the orange Christmas ornaments after Christmas at Hobby Lobby last year. I couldn't figure out how on earth I was going to incorporate ORANGE into my vintage pink-ish Christmas motif. I remembered them when I was making this display and added them in. I like the pop of color and shine they add.

One last thing - it's not a great photo, but I took it without a flash so the lights would show. I got these Martha Stewart paper globes at Big Lots for $2.00. I didn't know how I would use them, so I threw them in the garage for "someday". I hate light cords running up walls, so I never add lights on my old windows. These globes are great - they have LED lights, so they are pretty bright and they run on two AA Batteries. I have a feeling these will be making their way into much of my future holiday and non-holiday decor.

I'll be back with more Halloween decor and *cross your fingers* some thrifty finds. Rain, rain, GO AWAY!

***More rain forecasted for three more days. Then, it gets sunny......and FREEZING COLD. Where, oh where, did Fall GO?

Not My Usual Decor

Every year at Christmas time, I box up my entire living room except for the furniture pieces. (Actually, I even take some of the furniture out of the room too.) It's a huge job, but I do it because I love my Christmas stuff soooo much. This year I decided to get an early start of it and stat boxing things up this weekend. Don't worry, I'm not putting the tree up.....yet. Ha.

I decided to go all out with my Halloween decorating this year. I usually just put a few things out in a few areas, but this year I am making the entire living room a Halloween Wonderland. I've participated in a number of Halloween Swaps in the past few years and received some lovely handmade items from my partners. I've also been gifted some lovely items from my blog buddies, so I am excited to get it all out and have a look at it again this year.

This is the only area that I completed today. It really isn't my usual sort of decor - but I've seen similar things on different blogs and decided to give it a try. I incorporated all my creepy-ish cabinet photos (doesn't that lady on the left look like a witch?), old clocks, flower frogs, a quickly made bottle of poison and a sign that says, "It's Time for Halloween!" to make a different sort of vignette than I usually do. But, really do like it.

The rest of the room will be full of orange and black glitter-y goodness. Because that is what I truly like! More photos to come...

Saturday's Stuff

Yesterday was another rainy, gloomy day. Hence, no Friday yard sales. Today's forecast called for warmer temperatures (!) and sunny skies (!!), so I decided to check out Craigslist for any local sales. I found a Church Sale that was only about a mile away. This morning it was still cool, but it was finally dry, so we decided to head out.

First stop was the Church Sale - lots and lots of stuff scattered from one end of the parking lot to the other. As I went from table to table, I noticed that things either weren't marked or they were randomly marked with stickers, masking tape, magic marker - a little bit of everything. I decided I better inquire about the prices before I started picking things up. When I did ask, the ladies told me to gather up what I wanted and to just make a "love offering" of what I felt was appropriate and what I could afford. Now, normally, I hate sales where things aren't priced, or they ask for donations. But, I felt I could gather up what I wanted and pay a decent amount that I was comfortable with and not feel cheap for offering too little or like I got taken advantage of since it was "a donation".

So, what did I get? And, what did I pay? Let's see...

Useful things like two giant spools of curling ribbon, several colors of grosgrain ribbon and two packages of 60 sheets of tie dyed paper for crafting.

A hand made knitted doll - her fingers are amazing - tiny and well made.

Three old dolls - probably made from a kit - tiny purses, hats, wee shoes and gloves - very cute.

An older Empire blow mold Trick or Treat pumpkin and a old child's witches broom. I think I had one of those brooms for Halloween when I was a kid.


A giant fishing lure - see my finger? It's HUGH! (I know how to spell HUGE, but I see it all the time - HUGH SALE!) Back to the lure - not sure what on earth it is - a store display? I know one thing, that giant hook is SHARP.

Old Photo album with black pages, old jelly jar, slide rule, small book, milk glass vase, Emu Egg, small feathery bird, two handkerchiefs, lots of old binder clips with a bit o' rust on them and a box of Dennison labels. I normally don't "do" milk glass, but this is a nice vase and I am always needing a vase for my Zinnia's that I cut in the backyard.This old metal dustpan brought back a childhood memory the instant I saw it. I don't think I've ever seen one at a sale before, but when I saw this one, I remembered that my Mom used on like it when I was kid. I'll probably use it when I sweep the porch.
Not pictured are 42 pieces of jewelry still in their original packages - necklaces, earrings, bracelets - nice stuff. Each one had a $9.99 price tag on it. There were probably two hundred packages, and I am slightly kicking myself for not getting them all.

Now, here's where it gets interesting. I walked past a cardboard box many, many times and saw a garish brass light fixture sticking out. But, one more walk past and the sunlight hit inside just right, and I saw a crystal. So, I looked all the way in.

A chandelier! A good one - a very old one too - one with lots of crystals and drops. Someone had rewired it with a new cord and fixture, thus the garish bright brassy top. When I got it home, I discovered that the glass curvy parts that covered the metal parts were all broken, but the crystals, drops, flower shaped glass discs and all the crystal pieces were in great condition. So, I dismantled the entire thing and now I have a HUGH (ha) bag of crystals.

The old watering can was the first thing I picked up when we got there. The "Cream City" can was sitting in between two PODS that they were using for storage. When I went to pay, I asked the lady if the can was for sale. She said she really didn't know, but surely it must be since it was there. I decided I better see what my "Love Offering" was going to be before I got the milk can or anything else. I decided I would offer $20.00 and see what they countered with - but the lady said, "Oh, my goodness, that is more than generous!" Then I said, "Can I grab the milk can too?" And she said, "I thought you were including that already."
When I went to grab the milk can I spotted this funny concrete poodle too. I offered more money, but she wouldn't hear of it. I'm not really a Poodle kind of gal, but I think she will look just dandy sitting by my retro pink glider.

So, how did I do for $20.00?

I Am Soooo Ready For Next Week

I believe I mentioned that I had plans to work The Breadman like a Pack Mule this week since he was on vacation. Hmmm.....Let's see how that is going, okay?

Sunday, he returns from Dallas from seeing the Arkansas Razorbacks play in the new Dallas Cowboy Stadium. He unpacks, fills the laundry basket with dirty clothes, hands me my broken digital camera (that he dropped from the second story balcony), sits on the couch and falls asleep. Day One: Down the tubes.

*Two sweet hankies, one from Alaska - each 50¢. Cute vintage-y girl - 25¢.

Monday: I get up early to do my usual chores so that we have the rest of the day to get crackin' on my Honey-Do list. About noon I walk out into the driveway and open the garage door to start unloading it to make several trips to the Salvation Army with donations. About noon o' five - The Breadman rubs his stomach and announces, "My stomach hurts." Ten minutes later, vommitting ensues. Ten minutes after that, he is in bed for the rest of the day. Day two: Down the tubes (Although I did get a lot of sorting and cleaning done - just no help).

*Set of kitschy plates - must research. Cucumbers and mushrooms - 25¢.

Tuesday: The Breadman arises, feeling better, but it is cold and rainy - no day to work in the garage or the shed. We do make it to The Super Cheap Thrift to donate what I culled out on Monday. (Meager finds sprinkled throughout post.) With promises of a meal at TGIFriday's, I lure the boys into town and a stop at Hobby Lobby where I buy a completely fantastic Halloween decoration that I am crazy about. He continue on to TGIFriday's where I present my FREE Jack Daniels Chicken Sandwich coupon for becoming Woody's Friend on Facebook. Not only is it happily accepted, but the manager comes over to specially THANK ME for using the coupon. The Bean can't find anything that appeals to him on the menu, so the waitress and the cook prepare him Fettucini Alfredo with Blackened Chicken which is not even on the menu and he devours it. Great service at TGIF's! Day Two: No work done at home, but fun out in the real world.

Crudite plate - radishes, carrot sticks and caulifloer - 25¢.

Wednesday: We meet my Mom and Grandmother to help my Grandmother purchase a new refrigerator. She is an exasperating woman and produces a full on migraine - for me, my Mom and The Bean. Day three: No work done at home, stressful day out in the real world.

*Green Olives and Cherry Tomato Plate - 25¢.

Thursday: I work really hard in the garage, despite another rainy day. I get a lot of organizing and culling out done. The Bean has a stomach ache, so he reads most of the day, trying not to vomit. Apparently, today is National "Sit in your chair, listen to the sports radio station and fall half asleep most of the day" Day. Applicable only to Breadmen. Who knew? Day Four: I got a lot of work done. Anger is a great motivator, eh?

Friday: Who knows? 100 percent chance of heavy rain all day.

Saturday: Hurrah! The first sunny bee-u-tiful day in the entire week forecast. Yea! We can work in the shed, or do something fun as a family. No! Wait! There's another Razorback Game. Oye. An all day affair.

Week is GONE. Bah humbug!

*Yes, yes, I know. He works hard, it's his vacation, he deserves time off, he was sick on Monday, he needed to rest, he is a good provider, blah, blah, blah, yadda, yadda, yadda. Whatever.

P.S. If you are related to me and you are reading this: Do not tell The Breadman about this post, please. Thank you kindly!

Moi?

Every once in a awhile, some lovely "stranger" will contact me and ask for my address. Each one wears they are not a stalker and say they want to send me something. Usually they say they saw something while they were thrifting and thought of me. I always think it is sweet that someone somewhere thought of me when they don't even really know me. I have been the recipient of watermelon potholders, watermelon stickers, cupcake picks, Shiny Brite ornaments and a variety of other items that I have mentioned liking or loving or coveting.

Flash forward (or would that be Flash Backward....)to last Friday - A sweet girl from Kansas City emailed me to say that she had something for me that made her think of me and would I mind if she sent it to me. Now, Amy has never left a comment (That I know of. Amy?) and has never emailed me before, so I wondered what she had found that made her think of me. And, more importantly, why did it make her think of me?

Today, a box arrived on my door step and the answer became all too clear.

A book! A book called "Shara Tiara!" OH MY GOD! Now, my name is not common, I never see it anywhere or hear of another Shara ( have met a few online but never in person). It certainly isn't a name you except to see on the cover of a BOOK! "Shara Tiara." Squeeeeeeeal!

"Shara Tiara was no ordinary Princess." On no, she wasn't. You go, Girl!

Amy works for Hallmark and this is a new Hallmark book. She knew about it and had been waiting for it to be ready for sale to send it to me. I am beyond stunned to see my name on a book and to have received such a sweet thoughtful gift! In all years, I had never realized that Shara rhymed with Tiara either. Doh!

She also sent The Bean a huge pile of Hallmark Sound Cards. He loves the Greeting Card department. When he was little he would have me read all the cards to him. And, I do mean all the cards. I was beyond happy when he learned to read and he could read them all himself. Now he is obsessed with the Sound Cards - I usually leave him in the card aisle at Walgreen's while I shop. I always know where he is because I can hear all the different cards talking and singing. (I'm fairly sure that the Walgreen's employees hate us.)

So, thank you Sweet Amy for such a thoughtful, thoughtful, wonderful gift. It really made my day. Heck, it made my year!

Weekend Loot

Yesterday I said that I had a car full of things from garage sales. After I unpacked it all, there wasn't exactly a carload. There were the two new bowling balls, four pumpkins, a gallon of cider, a Walgeen's purchase, Redbox movies and some garden tomatoes in the car too. Today, it's all in the house, sorted and photographed. Last step - the old bloggity blog. So, here goes.

These two gumdrop trees were sitting on a table at one sale. I commented on the "cute gumdrop trees" and the ladies said that they had no idea that they were - so please take them. Okey dokey. They were very nice ladies - I will be talking about them again later.

For 50¢ - A big paper mache egg candy box complete with old green grass inside. This was my only purchase at one biiiiig sale that looked really good from the steet, but not so good up close. But, when I saw that big egg, I knew that was the reason I stopped.

I saw one of my beloved picnic baskets sitting by a table at a sale as I was driving by. Screeech! This was at the Gumdrop Tree ladies house. I asked, "How much for the picnic basket?" "Uhmmm...how about...uhm....a quarter?" "A quarter," I said "Would you take a dime?" Then we all laughed and they said it had been that kind of day. Everyone wanted something for less. I even offered to pay more than a quarter for it, but they would have nothing of it.

Four funny vintage-y Halloween masks for 25¢ each and a funny black cat candle for 25¢. Anyone recognize any of those masks?

Christmas, Christmas, oh my loverly vintage Christmas. So, all this stuff was on the table above the picnic basket at the Gumdrop Tree ladies house. Nothing was marked. I had my eye on the loverly blue ornaments, but they weren't priced. "How much for the Christmas-y things?" I asked. "Uhm...well....How about you take all of it and put in that picnic basket and give us 50¢." Okey Dokey. That's when I actually looked and saw there was more than the blue ornaments. A glittery reindeer, a silvered plastic reindeer, an old tin, PINK Christmas lights, an angel chime, a vintage card box and other silly sweet fun vintage items. ALL FOR A QUARTER!

Love, love, LOVE those glass grape clusters in gorgeous blue and silver. They all still have thier paper JAPAN stickers on them.

Things I am keeping (besides the above): Plastic flower "frog" arranger, vintage chenille stem insects, a tea strainer (I have quite a collection of different tea strainers. I don't even drink tea. Why do I collect these?) and a very sweet old eraser with a Blue jay on it.

Hey! There's that card box again. Wasn't it in the previous photo too? Why yes, yes it was. Wanna know why? 'Cause there was stuff in it. Treasures, I tell you. Treasures!

See? Treasures! Teeny tiny mercury ball on a gold gilded pinecone tiny felt bells, a wee Holly leaf, a teeny plastic Poinsettia, lots of garrish pink holly berries and what's that in the center?

Happy, happy, joy, joy. Too adorable. Everything in the box including little Mister "Too stinking cute for his own good makes me too stinking happy for my own good" was a part of the 25¢ Christmas score. Yahoooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!

Everything here is headed to Etsy. Brass owl, lipstick holder, Japanese themed wall pocket, a squirrel Scherenschnitte and two sets of handmade bookends.

More for Etsy: An old book, a piece of pottery, two turkeys, two different Daily Prayer/Blessing card sets, a glass globe with roses, a vintage retro plastic tray and a set of old celluloid-ish dolls. I actually found eight sets of those dolls. The book under it is a really nice old, old Encyclopedia. I see old encyclopedias all the time, usually a book is missing and they are priced 25¢ each or so. This is the first to one of my new collections. (I know, I know, I don't need another collection.) I decided to start buying only the "S" book from old encyclopedias. "S" is my first and last initial, so it is fitting. (I won't break up complete sets, but if a set is missing a book and the "S" is there - it's mine!)

So, there you have it - my weekend in JUNK.

The Breadman is on vacation this week and I plan on working him like a pack mule. We'll be cleaning out the shed, the garage, the bedroom, installing new ceiling fans (I do the electrical work, but I can't reach the ceiling) and lots of other household chores. I more excited about this vacatinon than I ever am about going somewhere. Finally, we will get some work DONE!

Obligatory Pumpkin Photos

It's officially October, so it must be time to go to Apple Town.

Once upon a time, the apples were picked in the orchard behind Apple Town. They were brought in on tractors in big wooden boxes, washed and bagged right here. Now, they don't even grow apples. They just bring them in trucks. (The junker in me is loving those old wooden stools, the chippy aqua tables and the shabby red floors.)

You can buy bags of "freshly picked" red apples.

Or Golden Delicious apples. They are insanely expensive. You can buy the same apples at the grocery store. But, I'm a local and I know that. The touristy folk that come, don't. We don't buy apples. We do buy Apple Cider though. Yum-O.

October means pumpkins, so they bring in a truckload of pumpkins too. I love this orange photo. It goes well with my blue photo earlier this week. (I'm working on a rainbow.)

al+10-03-09+010.JPG" border=0> They have pumpkins of all sizes. Small, Medium, Large, Honkin' and Holey Mackaroley. (I have no idea what that blue gibberish is or where it came from....)

These big warty ones were my favorites. But, not at $12.50 a pumpkin. No thanks.

Instead, we visited the Self-Serve Pumpkin Stand up the road. Small are $1.00, Medium $2.00, Large $3.00, etc. We bought four pumpkins for $6.00. I know all the deals. 'Cause I'm a local. We scored ahuge warty one for $3.00. Take THAT Apple Town!

Now, we all know the real reason I went to Apple Town today.

I turned here at the corner.

Only to be greeted by this sign at the end of the driveway. I bought two bowling balls and four vintage Halloween Masks.

And, I went here. I bought some books. Four encyclopedias from 1910 chock full of color plates.

I bought a lot of cool vintage things today, all destined for my Etsy Shop. But, that might not happen for awhile. Explanation: I use a different cheaper Digital Camera for my Etsy Shop photos because the higher quality ones are too large. The Breadman in in Dallas tonight at the new Cowboy Stadium. I let him take my other camera so he could take a few photos. He has never taken a digital photo so I gave him a couple of lessons. I kid you not, he was in Dallas about ten minutes when he dropped the camera and broke it. Seriously.

Come back next time for complete run down of my CARLOAD of stuff including a 25¢ picnic basket, a slew of vintage Christmas for 25¢ total, some pottery, the world's longest tablecloth for $1.00, a vintage German Egg and, and, and, and.......

Travelling Box O' Junk

Last week I mentioned having a Junk Swap. I had five people respond almost immediately, so I filled up a box with nine pounds of JUNK and sent it to Chris in Mississippi.

Chris already got it (Check out her blog to see what she kept), took her goodies and added some more and sent it to Beth in Virginia. (Check out Beth's blog to see what she kept and what she added. I cannot wait to get that box back to see what I get! I spy a lot of things I LOVE with my little eye...)

Now it's headed to Sue in New York, then over to Carol in Illinois, then it takes a long trip to Oregon to Laurie's before it comes back to me in Arkansas.

I just mailed it a week ago today and it's on teh way to the fourth person. Thanks ladies for picking and adding your junk so quickly!

Now, don't you wish you would have played along? I know you do!

A Tisket, A Tasket, My 17th Picnic Basket

The Thrift Gods have not been smiling down on me lately. I have been to a few thrifts, but left empty-handed. I haven't even been to a garage sale in two weeks. I've been de-cluttering a bit, crafting and doing school, so no time for much else. Looking through the old blog, I see that I have only bought two things in the past two weeks!

Today, on the way to the grocery store, I managed to run into one of my thrifts. I only bought one thing.

A Travel Scrabble Game which had these itty bitty wooden tiles in it. Those are regular Scrabble tiles on to, the tiny Travel tiles are on the bottom. I only wanted the tiles for projects and such.

As we were leaving the thrift, I spotted an OPEN sign on an old Mechanic's Shop and I could see what appeared to be a big garage sale inside the doors. When I got inside, I saw a huge amount of STUFF - piled to the ceiling and stacked everywhere. There was a lady pricing things ad she told me to "Come on in", so I did. I found a lot of things that interested me, but the prices were a bit more than I am accustomed to paying. Let's face it, I am cheap. I did see two pieces of McCoy Pottery for $8.00 each that I really, really wish I would have gotten. But, I only have $20.00 in my yard sale budget this weekend and I didn't want to spend it all. The lady told me they would be there for a few months, so I will be going back. And, if no one beats me to it - those McCoy vases will be mine. I spotted these boxes of Shiny Brites and Coby ornaments up high on a shelf. I asked the magic question - "How much?" and the lady told me 50¢ a box. So, $2.00 for everything pictured. The big teardrop green one and the red lantern shaped one are plastic, but I still think they are neat. None of them are overly special, but they will make a great wreath base. It's funny - this morning I had been emailing back and forth with a sweet girl that contacted me through my blog (Hi Amy!) - I had told her that I hadn't found any vintage Christmas yet this year and I was due to find some. Low and behold, within the hour I had found these ornaments. (Maybe is a taste of what is yet to come). I found the JAPAN Elf head behind the ornaments, so the lady threw it in too.

And, lurking under a table, what did I spy?

A picnic basket. Another picnic basket. Not a red one, but still a good one. It was $7.50, which is a bit more than I usually pay, but still cheaper than an old Rubbermaid Tote. When I mentioned wanting a red picnic basket, the lady said she thought she might have one at home.

Oh, yes, I will be going back.....

I'd Love To Blog Today

But, I can't.

Because, there's not a cloud in the sky.

And, the leaves are beginning to change.

Because there's places to go.

And people to see.

Things to observe.

And fossils to find.
Spider webs to investigate.

And lessons to learn.

No, I'm sorry. I cannot blog today.

Maybe tomorrow will be a better worse day.

But, we'll cross that bridge when we come to it.