Foggy with a chance of rain

The day began as usual at 0'dark thirty only compounded by heavy fog. Last week we were a group of 5(Sophie the dog is always counted) but today I flew solo. Sigh. I knew the pickings would be few because we had a rainy day Friday and the forecast for Saturday was the same. It is one thing setting up for a yard/garage sale when the weather the day before the sale is nice, quite another when you are dealing with rain. So I was grateful for the ones who perservered and especially glad for the two  inside church buildings. Hopefully next week's weather will be kinder.

So I reheated my coffee from yesterday, yes, I do that, and headed out the door fingers crossed  I wouldn't wish I had slept in. There were 3 listed starting at 6am and all but one were open for business. Didn't buy anything but at least they were a go. 

 I was grateful to have my trusty head light shown below. Both sales didn't have adequate lighting, really most of the area was quite dark. This has been so nice to have even though Brenna, my daughter is always embarrassed to be near me when I use it. I was waiting once in front of the house for her to pick me up one dark morning and put it on flashing mode...she continued to drive past me until I turned it off and promised not to use it again!

 It allows me to have my hands free to pick stuff up, root around in boxes, you know, no fumbling with a flashlight in my hand. Most folks who are at these early sales seldom come prepared with a light. Johanna and I always keep our lights in our "yard sale" bag so we are never caught without. It can be a little annoying at times when I am looking at things and people start gathering closer to me so they can see because I have light. Sorry folks, back off a little, you're crowding me. There is a fine line called personal space I am adamant about!

Headlight that makes me look dorky but practical

At a church rummage sale I found this basket of vases for 10 cents each. These I buy for the Flower Shuttle in Raleigh. The Flower Shuttle volunteers use flowers donated from florists, weddings, funerals, etc, to make arrangements for folks in retirement communities, hospitals, shut ins, all for free. The vases don't always come back so I when I find small ones like these, I donate them to the Shuttle. My sister Cee, who lives in Raleigh helps out there and delivers them for me. If I see another sister, Fran, who also lives in Raleigh, I pass them on to her for delivery. It works.

Hilary, Waylon's mom, still had $10 in her "account" leftover from the highchair fund. By the way, they are loving that $10 chair. Apparently it lowers, raises, reclines, features I had no clue were present. Anyway, Waylon is crawling everywhere and needs a few more toys. Found these for 50 cents each at the same church sale. Not much to choose from, the offerings were pretty poor quality but these two toys met my high standards. Noisy, colorful and durable. Hey, I don't live with him!

At the same sale I found 9 Junie B. Jones paperbacks for Lindsey's first grade classroom, 2 Dick and Janes for Brenna and a paperback Franklin book for Mindy's daughter. Did I mention I love turtles and Franklin is precious. All for 10cents. Deal!!!

So now I have a quandry. I really like reed diffusers, but the ones I have bought lately haven't "diffused" much. So when I was at the last sale of the day I found this unopened Yankee Candle Lavendar Vanilla diffuser. $4. I priced this same item on Amazon later and they sell for $19. My quandry is my thrifty nature. This would make an excellent gift...Christmas will be here before I know it. But I know it is probably going to smell wonderful and much better than the disappointing ones I have had. 

Keep or give. I still haven't made up my mind. 

Same sale I bought the deluxe edition Across the Universe cd. Excellent condition and I enjoyed that movie and the music so much. I put in in my cd player immediately when I got back in the car and cranked up the volume. Nice!

The cd was $3. More than I usually pay. However, today I was a soft touch; the couple having the sale are trying to raise money to go on a mission trip and I really hadn't spent much this morning for myself. 

I chatted with them and once they realized I go to yard sales often(understatement) they asked how theirs was. I told them they should lower their prices immediately(it was already 8:30 and rain looking imminent) but they had things nicely displayed, and nothing laying all over the ground. I also told them I would have offered $5 for both these items but I was feeling generous, slow day and the charity aspect. But so many people wouldn't be that way. I suggested they lower prices unless they want to do this again next week! They definitely didn't want a repeat performance. Seemed appreciative of my opinion and I hope they get rid of their goods and raise their needed funds.

diffuser, great cd, pencils, embarrassing clip-ons and crayons

The pencils are for my son-in-law's 4th grade classroom and the crayons for Lindsey's 1st graders, 25 cents each. These two public school teachers have found often the children can't afford school supplies or can't afford school supplies later on in the year. Mom used to give me extra money to buy items like these to donate to public school teachers.

 The clip-on shades (my daughters are dying, knowing I have been seen at the beach sporting these) I bought for 50cents. Actually 2 in the case. Summer will be here before we know it, AGH!

So a slow day indeed, and I used the sanitizer a lot today. I think all total I went to 7 sales and only bought things at 3 of them. Some weeks it is like that. Another reason it is nice to have a shopping list for others so even though there wasn't much I could use, it wasn't a total waste of a morning. Hoping next week the improved weather will inspire folks to clean out their closets. 

Hilary needs toys for Waylon, Mindy needs 4T pants, sneakers and books for her daughter and Hugh needs a snowsuit and a winter jacket. And for me? I still have to decide on that darn diffuser!! Any opinions on that decision?!! Comments are always welcome!

Misty Moisty Morn

I started out mid week thrifting at Goodwill. I always stop in when I am dropping items off. I spotted this white, glass Fire King bowl circa 1950 for $1.69 and picked it up faster than a jack rabbit on a date. It is approximately 8 1/2 inches across and 6 inches deep. Nice little mixing bowl. I confess I love using items that have some history to them. Why, I don't know, but I just love the connection to another time and using a little piece of the past. Keeping as a "collection" doesn't work for me. I have a small house...need to be able to USE these things!

I also found this Feltman Brothers boys, 3 months size smocked one piece for $1.39. All baby clothes at Goodwill are that price. It is in immaculate condition and I will list it on Craigslist. Folks are bidding on these on Ebay so I hope Craigslist will do as well.

I hadn't checked the calendar but apparently Saturday was a Blue Moon since my daughter Brenna said she wanted to come along. Getting up so early on a Saturday is especially hard for her but I love it when she comes. Since Babs and Sophie were on board, we needed 2 cars. Brenna and I drove together and Johanna drove with Babs and Sophie. 

The morning promised to be a wash. A drizzly, misty rain falling made us doubt if any of the sales would be a go. But not one cancelled! All were located in garages or inside homes or an empty building. We were amazed. Each time we pulled up to a house we were gratified to see a garage and lights!

I found one childrens book, SkippyJon Jones and the Great Bean Caper. I didn't take a picture of it so the image below is from the internet. My copy is just the story book, does not have the teaching tools the one below has. I gave it to my sister Cee to read but said I wanted it back. It is hysterical! I have found a new wonderfully funny series of books. Cee called me today laughing and crying as she read excerps from it. I reminded her I want it back. 25 cents for the paperback...priceless to hear my sister laugh that way!

My friend, Carolyn, has been furnishing her beach house in wicker so I am always on the lookout for her. I picked this wastebasket up for $3. Needs spray painting and that is all. Well constructed and I think it will last for quite sometime. She said she had wanted one for a bedroom.

Hugh has asked for winter hats. So I found this polar fleece cap and matching mittens for $1. He was a real sport and modeled them for my blog pictures. Instant satisfacation for me!

This Body Glove Life Vest for infants is brand new, still has all tags attached. My great nephew soon to be born in December will get this for a baby shower gift. $3! Yay! Summer will be here before we know it! 

I bought 6 of these stocking hangers for 10cents each. I took a chance because my mantle is thick. Well, it was too thick for these. They work the same as purse hangers. I think I will use them to hang ornaments or decorations at Christmas. I can get creative!

Underneath the hangers are 3 large, almost softball size ball ornaments: 3 for 25cents. I already have several this size and larger I use for the outside tree decorations at Christmas. I used the nail polish for size reference, oh, yes, I bought that a yard sale a few months ago too:)

Soccer goalie gloves, brand new 50cents! Husband has already taken them to school for the team.

I found these two salt and pepper shaker sets at an estate sale...all for $1. I confess I have a thing for salt and pepper shakers. 

The following photos are of Brenna's amazing loot this Saturday. She had one of those whoo hoo yard sale experiences...the ones that keep us thrilled long after the Saturday morning has passed, and justifies getting up at 5:15am! Well, not everyone would look at the photos below and want to get up at 0'dark thirty but we Thrifters do!

She has her own blog which is really neat. Mostly to do with her teaching experiences, filled with great ideas and unlike her mom, she is definitely NOT craft challenged. Check her out:

http://sothentherewere2.blogspot.com/

She did blog about her yard sale experiences and all of these are featured in the latest post. I asked her to send me the pics since we wrapped up late and I needed to head off to visit my brother. So if you visit her blog, I apologize for the duplications.

Brenna's booty:

Brand new markers and binders 10cents and 25 cents

Lighted Christmas village all for $10. Brenna found these in one big box at an estate/yard sale. All were in original boxes marked $20- $34. She is off to a great start for her Christmas scened.

Purses were $1 each, vintage glass candlestick holders, 50cents, books (hardbacks) $1 each

All books were 25 cents! Great additions for her classroom

 I loved the Dick and Jane ones. 

 The snowmen and terra cotta pots were 25 cents each and she picked up 5 of the stocking hangers for 10cents.

Everything below she bought for $1.25! Total!  I am so proud! 2 Halloween doormats, a Halloween stencil, Easter doormat and a little Chrismas tree for the village scene.

I didn't bring my camera with me this time so I don't have any shots of Johanna and Babs' loot. Next time, I promise. Have a great week and wish me luck for the next time around. 

Road Side finds

So, I don't always find everything at yard sales and thrift stores. I have become perfectly comfortable taking home articles left on the side of the road. My 2 wood, front porch rockers were pulled from a dump pile roadside, brought home, and painted with my favorite oil paint purchased from Habitat For Humanity ReStore several years ago. Those rockers are my favorite finds. Johanna and I always slow down when passing by the house I spied them, lying abandoned in the mud. The skid marks have faded from that road, but our warm fuzzy feelings haven't :)

Two weeks ago, I found a bike in my work neighborhood on a dump pile. I checked it out and brought it home thinking I would need to take to bike shop for servicing. There was a lot of dried mud on the frame; it had been lying in the rain for a while before the owners had put it out for garbage pick up and the gel seat was nasty.  My old bike is not in good repair and I never did like the gears on it but it does have a very comfortable Schwinn gel seat cover I found at a yard sale years ago.

I pumped the tires and noted with relief they stayed inflated. Good sign! Husband Steve took a look at it over the weekend, made adjustments, switched out the seat, gave it a test ride and voila! Christina has a working bike for FREE!

This week's find was a Step 2 Froggy Sandbox with sand toys and sand still in it. The wet sand made it heavy but I was able to dump most of it out before loading it. It looked pretty nice and I thought I could sell on Craigslist. I thought briefly of my great nephew Hugh, but he is at the beach almost every other day and has the biggest sandbox around....The Beach!

In my eagerness for a quick turnaround, I posted the sandbox on Craigslist for $25 after researching other listings for this item. Before I really checked out the condition thoroughly. The same day I had an offer and I was quite happy with the fast response. However, when I started to dump the remaining sand out and looked more carefully, I found stains from the sand residue and small discolorations. I hoped a good scrub with bleach water would do the trick but alas, no. Not all the stains came out. Now I am not talking nasty stains, just enough that I no longer felt comfortable with the $25 price tag. Johanna gave it a look and agreed $25 was too much. We agreed on $15 and I contacted the buyer with the reduction. 

When the buyer arrived she and her husband still wanted the sandbox and were happy I had included the sand toys I found in it. However they just had a twenty dollar bill. I had no change and neither did Steve. They gave me the $20 anyway and happily loaded the box saying how much their 2 and 4 year olds would enjoy. Let this be a lesson. When buying on Craigslist, bring the exact amount you agreed on! 

The Fast and the Furious

Today Johanna and I were on a time limit. We both had a retreat that began at 9am and when we saw the first sale started at 6am, we knew we had at least 2 1/2 hours to hit as many sales as possible. We also realized it would be a "power shop" day. No lingering, dithering, slow perusing,  backtracking, and hopefully, not too many wrong turns. I picked Johanna up at 5:45 and we were at the first sale which was up and running.  I found a beautiful shirt and the bike rack. The shirt fits great and it has met with Husband's approval. The bike rack I bought  for  $5 and will sell on Craigslist. I believe I can get at least $20 for it. It is absolute in pristine condition; was never used.  

I bought the step stool and Johanna discovered a set of brand new towels. The stool is in shrink wrap, never opened and I will be selling it on Craigslist. Johanna's towels were also brand new, beautiful quality (8 washcloths, 10 hand towels, and 7 bath towels for $15); she plans on giving these as Christmas presents. We were off to a good start.

After the first sale, I realized I had left my camera behind so no shots of the actual sales today. But really, there weren't any exceptional sights. We did go to one where the family seemed to be selling almost  everything in the house. I have never seen so much for sale in one house sale. It started in the garage and ran through the downstairs. Not much furniture, but the furniture they were selling was REALLY nice! Ond upholseterd chair was marked $50 and wow, if I only had the spot for it! Now is when I wish I had the camera! 


I bought the vintage tray from England, circa 1950, the candles, Lenox Christmas ornament (Nativity scene), brand new extra large white tablecloth, chef's knife, 2 large towels $1 each for Veterinary clinic,  a new 10 inch lamp harp, 75 cents. I like to have lamp harps handy when I need to change shades. I used the last extra tall harp for my mom's old lamp Ellie inherited. It needed a new shade....and a harp adjustment.

Tray $2, candles each 25 cents including the box set of scented votives,   and Lenox Nativity ornament, 10 cents

Johanna noticed the Christmas ornaments were only 10cents and swiftly picked up these Willow Tree angels, and other ornaments. the pink round thing is a set of coasters in the original unopened package and all the items are in a clear acrylic organizer I believe she paid 50cents for.

Johanna's additional stash from the big sale: electric candle warmer, 50 cents, candle 25 cents and cute glittery turtle for 25 cents. the turtle is flat and can be hung on a wall.

We took a short cut through a subdivision and when we thought we had taken a wrong turn, there were 2 yard sales next to each other. Serendipity! I bought this small pet bed for the Vet. clinic. They use this kind to wrap the kitties or small dogs in during recovery. Very soft and easy to wash. 

Now you just need a dog who can read!

Pet bed $1


Johanna picked up 2 ceramic dog dishes(50 cents each) and  2 litter box filters (25 cents each)

Books each 50cents

I found quite a few wonderful, hardback books today. Some are old favorites and some I haven't read before. All is excellent condition and a real bargain at 50cents each. I will let Brenna go through and she will be able to determine which would be good for her Kindergarten class and Lindsey's 1st grade.

So as I am driving to what became the last sale of the day, I mentioned to Johanna I was on the lookout for  a cake holder for Brenna. The one she had bought at a yard sale a couple of years ago had broken a couple of weeks ago at my house. The dropper of said pedestal cake holder will remain nameless, but rest assured it wasn't yours truely! So what is the first thing Johanna notices as we walk up? A cake holder in the orginal box! I eagerly walked up to check it out and was taken aback by the $15 price tag. Ouch! 

Ready for punch!

Ready for cake!

 So then I notice the great pack and play with changing area and cradle attachments. $20. I am dithering on this one. It is the nicest I have seen. 

And yes, I bought it. I will ask my niece, Lindsey if her mom may want this for her own house when she keeps the baby for Lindsey and Jon when Lindsey goes back to work. If not, I will probably store in the attic for a grandchild, when one happens to appear in our lives. I was quite impressed at how deftly and quickly  the husband/father took it down, showing me how the attachments come apart and how to pack it up and put in the bag ( I did check the play yard online later this afternoon and learned there was a recall on this model.  the cradle apparently is the culprit and I have written the company for the retrofit strap that will make this safe.)

The wife/mother came out as we were heading to the car and I mentioned the cake pan. She ended up selling  it to me for $8 and also pointed out that it can convert to a punch bowl by turning the top upside down (see above picture). I think Brenna will like it.

And folks, that was literally took the last of  my money. I had been looking for wintery clothes for Hugh but no luck.

 So we called an end to the sale morning and headed back to my place for breakfast and a shower for me. Johanna had wisely taken her shower before I picked her up so was ready for the retreat which took place conveniently across the street from my home. Was nice to have time to accomplish those tasks without too much hurry and I liked that Johnna left her stuff in my car so I could photograph later today. Most of the time I can only take photos of my own loot in detail, not hers. I also liked smelling her candle...it was a hot day and it had partially melted in my car. Thankfully, it was in a glass container!

Hope your week is fabulous and safe. Next week I will be headed for Morehead City to visit my brother so will check out the sales down there.

Keep in touch!

Labor Day Weekend

{A note to those of you who receive these posts via email. The video I refer to in the previous post does not show up on the email version. You click the highlighted title of the post to see it. That will take you to the actual blog}

I was absolutely delighted yesterday morning to travel the roads of Pitt County, NC with Johanna, Babs and Sophie! The Gang of Four was together again! Whoot whoot! Sophie's little face was peering at me through the window when I came out at 0'dark thirty; what a great sight in the pre-dawn morning.

Sophie with her shy, over the shoulder look.

There were two sales listed for a 6am start so we headed to the one neighborhood which has usually offered nicer goods. Upscale and lots to offer was what the ad spoke to us. Imagine our disappointment when we pull up and the house is dark and not a creature is stirring. We put on our game face and hoped in 5 minutes a light would turn on and then the garage door 

would pull up but, no. None of the above. 

So we tucked away our disappointment and moved on to another just down the road. Here was the most organized sale I have ever been to. A lady and her mom who have been crafting for years were getting rid of stuff. The seller said she had been workig on this sale for 4 weeks because she hated going to sales that were messy! Well her efforts paid off when it came to being the best in organization. I only hope she made some $$$$! Not being crafty I left with a CD (White Christmas, one of my faves) and that was it. I looked around hoping to find something for the teachers in my life but the items for sale were in the sewing line. Somehow I missed the huge selection of dolls when I took pictures.  Not one item wasn't priced and if there was anything stained or missing a part, she had marked that next to the price. 

I had time to talk to her while Johanna and Babs were thoroughly looking through the goods. They, unlike myself, are quite crafty and Johanna is involved with a craft group who meets weekly. She called one lady to let her know about this sale! So I sat in one of the very comfortable chairs with Tweety Bird and some huge stuffed animal while I waited and talked to the seller. It was very early, still rather dark outside and nice and cool. Their place was tiny, her mom was in assisted living now, and just couldn't continue their sewing, doll clothes making, etc.. any longer. She did say there was another room filled with more stuff for projects they can work on. I felt crowded just thinking about it! This is a very small condo, lots of stuff...I would go crazy!

Anything and everything, and then more!

just the tip of the iceberg when it came to "kitchy". Trust me, there were more bookcases and tables filled with items.

Comfortable chairs lined the walkway at Craft Sale

Johanna's haul from Craft sale

After leaving the craft sale, we returned hopefully to "dark house" but no, still no signs of life. Always remember to set your alarm clocks!! We did hope it was just that and not a more serious reason the sale was cancelled. We dusted off our disappointment and hit several more sales. As always on a holiday weekend, the sales were pretty small and rather disappointing and several gave us the incentive to sanitize before we returned to the car. Over priced and dirty items are not a good combination. We did realize Irene's impact was long reaching, even to yardsales. I mean, really, when you have been without power for a few days, possible damage to your home, who wants to organize a sale?! 

When we were searching for one sale, I saw this hippo statuary and made Johanna stop and back up. This is something I have been looking for since my sister, Julie, passed away several years ago. She collected hippos and I have a small one on my kitchen window sill I greet each day. Julie loved the Potato Queen series by Jill Conner Brown and our other sisters enjoyed them just as much. There was one time Jill wrote about someone in her neighborhood who purchased a cement monkey statue and Jill was over the top jealous about this monkey. You have to read the bit to appreciate it but Julie and I laughed til we cried and or wet our pants when reading these books. So after Julie died, I thought, wow, I would love to have a cement hippo in my yard in memory of Julie. I haven't discussed this with my husband, Steve, but I just know he would be thrilled at the prospect. 

I plan to go back to the house sometime soon, maybe tomorrow, and find out where they bought that hippo. So here is a picture of the beast and my heart's desire. 

Isn't she just lovely? About two feet tall and so much to love! I can see her decorated for each holiday; even beads for Mardi Gras! headed to the new McDonalds for breakfast and chat. Was so good to be with my friends again! Sophie slept in the car, as always, patient and just happy to be with the Peeps.

Johanna's haul

Johanna bought this platter, $1, which goes with her dinnerware. The Mini tool box is her find too...50 cents.

Babs' loot

How politically incorrect is the subtitle?! Only a 1958 book could have that on the cover!!
Couldn't resist!

See, I told you I didn't find much! 

These are the books on the backside of the two books,  Flip and the Three Little Horses.  You turn the book over, and upside down and you have another book. Two in one...I like the vintage ones. And note, Veronica is a HIPPO!!

The hardback Junie B Jones will go to Lindsey's  1st grade, and the two other books, Flip/ Veronica, the Three Little Horses/I'm tired of Lions (copywrite 1958) will be saved for future grandkids. 
That's caught me up on the Saturday morn's activities. Hope you have a great week and I will check in again soon.