Jammin' !

I didn't search for yardsales last weekend on our trip to DC, just focused on sightseeing and spending time with my husband. Married 29 years on Monday, the 15th. The weather in DC was just beautiful; the same as the weekend we were married. Fall is a great time for a wedding!

This Saturday I was flying solo and with only one sale listed at 6am, "I slept in" until 6:15. Glad I did. They had a nice set up, using the wrap around porch to display their items and since it was still dark out, the lights on the porch helped. Not much for me which is why I am glad I waited to come later. I found a box of children's books, picking up the American Girl paperbacks below. All were in very good condition, and for 50 cents each, I purchased them all. I plan to resell these. Later that morning, I looked more closely and found a couple had stains on the covers. Some had pencil markings as well. Those came out with a gentle scrub with the Magic Eraser. The ones with stains, not so much. I will sell as a lot. There is one Meet Kirsten, 4 of the Josefina series, and 5 of the Samantha series. None of the sets are complete but hopefully will still sell.

Headed on down the road to a church sale. Lots of things to peruse. This lamp caught my eye and I picked it up just before another buyer was walking toward me. Yes, she wanted it too. None of the items were priced so I found a worker to inquire price for it. $2! Hello!! I am not keeping it, my lamp/shade addiction problem is somwhat under control. It is not my style but I do know it will appeal to someone. Heck, the shade still has the plastic wrap and a sticker price of $14.95. I will pause here and admit when I plugged it in later I discovered 1) it works, 2) the knob that turns it on and off is missing. No problem, I thought. I went around the house unscrewing other knobs from my lamps but alas, not one would screw in. Agh! This means I will have to buy a new socket kit ($4) because I can't buy just a knob. Changing out a socket isn't that hard to do but I had hoped to post this quickly and sell it. Quick turn around not happening. Sigh. 

After finding a portable cd player for my brother, Sonny, I realized I need one too. Have been keeping an eye out to no avail. But lo and behold, I found one at the church sale for $1.50. Works just fine. 

Portable cd player $1.50

You may be scratching your head wondering why I would purchase this oversized paperback book. Brenna, my kindergarten teaching daughter has picked up lots of Dick and Jane books at yard sales and so have I to add to her collection. So this one called to me. Excellent condition still containing the cut out dolls unperforated inside the back cover pocket as well as a small paperback collection of stories. It gives background information about the history of the books, as well as discriptions of the era they were published. Not sure she is thrilled about it but, hey, I just couldn't pass by.

50 cents

 Not sure if you remember that I buy pregnancy and the first year books to donate to the local pregnance center. They have a free box where these go. A couple of weeks ago I neglected to photograph 4 pregnacy books I found for 10 cents each. I dropped those off last week and now have these two to deliver.

50 cents each

Bought these books also at the church sale except for the puzzle set. That was found at a later sale. The books go to  my neice Lindsey except for the 2 copies of Junie B Jones series. I am sending them to a public school where my son-in-law teaches. He passes them on to any teacher who is building her library or has a "take home a book" basket. Love to encourage children to read!

25 cents each except for puzzle. $2 for the puzzle set.

 These stay at my house for the "Grandma stash"

25 cents each

Moving on from the church sale I checked out a nicer subdivision where 3 sales were listed. I appreciate not having to drive around alot. Gas is still pretty pricey. The goods at the first sale were very nice but very pricey. And the ladies were not willing to come down. But I have found when you get small ticket items, folks are more willing to give your the bargain. 

I needed a wreath hanger for my fall wreath (yes, I did purchase one last year at a yard sale but can I find it? No! This one was new in the package with the original $2.99 price tag. I can always use tissue paper and gift bags. These were better quality than Dollar Tree.  

All for $2

Now I can tell you the story of my title to this post. My husband has a desire to set up a stereo system so he can listen to his old records. I promised to look out for his wish list items: turntable, reciever, and speakers when I was out at the sales. I have seen these items frequently at sales so I know they can be found for ridiculously cheap prices. There was a big  sale Saturday, inside a downtown  church. I just knew that would be a great place to look since they get tonage of electronic items and dirt cheap prices. However, to get a good selection I would have to go at the start of the sale. This I refuse to do. The area is relatively small where the sale is held and the crowd is huge. Not a good combination. People are given boxes when they walk in and the combination of the close quarters, boxes bumping into you as you try to walk past  narrow rows of tables is something I just can't handle. And I am not searching for anything that would warrent putting up with that kind of experience. But Steve, on the other hand, does have great desire for his music system. 

So I told him to go early and see what he could find. And to text me if he found what he wanted so I wouldn't purchase anything he no longer needed. And he did. Did he take my advise and go early, get in line before the opening of the doors. No. He arrived at 7:15 and missed buying a complete setup including a glass enclosed stereo cabinet for $30. Everything he wanted was in that cabinet. So he settled for  a cheaper all in one system for $10. 

I will cut this story short by telling you at the next sale I went to I found this pair of Aiwa subwoofer speakers for $5 and the JVC digital synchronizer reciever for $10. Sadly, no turntable. I sent these pictures to Steve on my cell phone (yay for technology!) and he said BUY THEM!! So I did. Amazing sound at our home now. He will hang on to the cheap system until we can locate a turntable. At least he can listen to the albums. But when he gets a turntable...the neighbors may be complaining! Jammin!

Aiwa speakers pair for $5

The receiver had the all the paper work with it. Manual, receipt and warranty. Amazing!

JVC receiver $1

Here is a brief shot of the church sale where Steve was too late to find his mega deal. I went much later in the morning when the crowds had died down. Still had an incredible amount of stuff. This is just one section  of the "big" area.

I may have been later but deal were still to be found. These are 180 ear warmers. 

10 cents

I know, these shoes/sandles look sketchy, right? That's what I thought when I first pulled them out. But, when I looked closely I realized they were very similiar to a pair I found this spring that are so comfortable and looked fabulous on my feet. The silver tones look much better in the light and on your feet. I love them!

 I checked out the Rebels brand when I came home and this is a very good one. Bargain. 

What caught my attention was they had never been worn! Absolutely no wear on the soles!

 This stool had a $9 price sticker on it. I wasn't willing to pay that much that late in the morning. So I asked a worker if the prices were lower to move merchandise out. "Yes" was the reply.

 The nieces and Brenna like "longalls" and "shortalls" for the boys. Not sure if any of them want this one and if not I can sell it on the FB online yardsale group. It is a 2T and I may wait until spring to sell.

Also bought but didn't photograph were some baby/toddler socks and t-shirts. These are for the dog training group at the Humane Society. I have written about them in earlier posts, but will refresh your memory. This group of teens under the direction of a veterinarian (I work for her) meets on Wednesdays at the Humane Society and trains dogs and puppies to help make them more adoptable. They use the kids clothes on the puppies to help the pups get used to being handled. 

I also picked up an open package of disposable diapers for Nate. Missing maybe 10 from the package. 

So my total at the last church sale and final sale of the day was $9. That included the shoes, the stool (which I have used already: love it!), the outfit, some books I didn't photograph, the children's socks and shirts, the "shortfall outfit, diapers,  and the ear warmers. I was happy.

I spent part of Sunday posting and selling the American Girl books. Success! I bought the books for $4 and sold them all for $14. The lamp project hit a bump when I couldn't find my wire stripper. So I am borrowing one from Johanna and hope to finish that on Weds. I hope to sell that quickly too.

I have decided to donate the profits of my transactions to Half the Sky projects. I was so impressed with the documentary and look forward to reading the book. Please take tim to check out the incredible work going on around the world for women in need. http://www.halftheskymovement.org

Although I was on my own, which is never my preference, I still enjoyed the beautiful morning, the nice people I met and dealt with and of course the deals I found. I love Fall!! I hope you too found some deals or enjoyed the weekend too. Have a great week.

Thrifty Christy

Posted with Blogsy

Split level

With a hot cup of coffee on a cool Sunday morning I begin my post with a sense of well being. I had an enjoyable morning yesterday with my friend Carolyn M. who  doesn't join me  often on the yard sale circuit, really has a great time when she does. And she manages to finds fabulous deals every time. Hmmm, perhaps I too should follow that path, cutting back on my addiction passion for bargains. Perhaps I could make room for other activities on early Saturday mornings....Nahhhh. Forget about it! 

Above is the trunk shot which I love taking especially when it is full of booty. Now to clarify, the wicker box thing, and the pile on the far right is Carolyn's stuff that wasn't purchased at the yard sales. We just didn't feel like moving it out of the way for the picture. However, the wicker box thing was purchased on a Facebook group called Pitt County, NC OnlineYard sale. It is a coffee table with a clear glass top. Carolyn is taking to her beach house and will place shells in it. Carolyn, I want a photo once you have it in place and shell selection complete. My readers and I love to see final projects.

On my way to Carolyn's I was stopped by an incredibly long train. So we didn't get started until 6:15. And yes, the long train had some part in the delay as did me coming inside for to fill a to go mug of coffee and to see  the chair Carolyn bought the week prior at her kitchen table. Looks really good. $5. What a bargain. And Carolyn, I still say, don't refinish it!

The first sale on our list started at 6am at an address that didn't show up on Google maps because it was a newly built home in a new subdivision. Agghhh. We had the right neighborhood but her signs weren't easily visible at 0'dark thirty. Fortunately we found one sale starting at 7am and they were ok with us "early birds" since we were stopping to ask for directions. Carolyn walked away with the candles in the photo below along with the candle holder. I didn't find anything I needed.

However, I do have a news update. The adjustable headlamp I picked up last week for $4 is a wonderful tool for these pre-sunlit morning adventures. I love it! I can adjust the beam and it lights up the area I am looking at and is quite comfortable over my baseball cap. I found Carolyn following closely, taking advantage of my lighting effect even though she opted not to grab her flashlight. They did have relatively good lighting from the garage but when it is still dark, you need a flashlight to get a good look around. 

Mr. Coffee 24 cup machine- $10. Candles plus holder-1.75. 5 plastic plates-$1 total. Glass fish plate-$1 and the rug itself: $1!

.

Armed with advice from these sellers as to where to turn to find the 6am sale, we headed off and around the corner, and then another, we found 3 sales! The 6am sale was down the street but 2 other neighbors were bring out their wares too. Carolyn picked up the Mr. Coffee 24 cup coffee maker: new in original box and all the instructions tucked inside. Perfect for her Sunday morning church group. She was beaming. Next sale she found the plastic, colorful, plates, as well as the glass fish shaped plate and the rug. All for the beach house. The candles too go Atlantic Beach. I am looking forward to joining her there and seeing all these treasures in place.

Had to show a close up of the deal of the day. Price on sticker: $12. Carolyn bought it for $10.

Moving along, we came to a sale I had great hopes of finding fabulous things. Well, the early birds had done a number and I found nothing to buy. However Carolyn zeroed in on a patio set. 4 chairs and a table in great condition and a nice style. $50 asking price. The seller had posted this on Craigslist and a buyer had expressed interest, said they were coming to look at it. But as you may know with Craigslist, or really any private sale, you can not absolutely count on buyers showing up. So to hedge her bets, she had it out for the yard sale. As Carolyn approached the seller, a gentleman was already discussing the set offering $40. Carolyn was unsure if she should pipe up and say she would take it at the asking price. So here is the art of the deal at yard sales, dear readers. Since the buyer had come in low, and the seller was saying, no, she had a possible buyer at $50, I felt ok chiming in and saying "she'll (Carolyn) take it for $50". And that was that.

Here is the "controversial" set on Carolyn's back deck. Looks pretty nice to me.

Wondering later if I was rude or underhanded by coming in like that, I discussed the situation with Brenna. We concluded I made an appropriate move. It would not have been appropriate for me or Carolyn to come in with the $50 offer if the seller had already accepted the lower price. So I felt better and Carolyn picked up her purchase this afternoon when her husband returned to Greenville with the truck. Which brings us to another subject. Often we find things too large for our vehicle. So check with the seller if it is ok to return later that day or the next day for pick up. Pay for your purchase, exchange phone numbers and the ADDRESS!

$3 and I didn't quibble about the price. Tried them on and they fit nicely

I recently discovered a hole in the toe of my sneakers. I need a new pair. I found them at a yard sale this weekend in "EUC" which I recently learned means excellent used condition. Except for some dust bunnies, these look great. And more importantly feel great on. Happy me. My holey pair are in the trash can. I have moved on. Best of all, the old pair were made by Saucony and I loved the fit. New pair: Saucony. Yay!

Paid $1 for each. And unfortunately the stain on the bottom one didn't come out.

These bath mats for my friend Lisa's beach house and I believe she is good to go for a long while on rugs/mats. Lisa, I will refrain from purchasing any more until you give me the green light. The pretty blue one at the top is a cotton rug, heavy and well made. The gray has a rubber backing and not the better quality as the all cotton one. Still very functional for a bathroom that gets a lot of use.

Top two are hardbacks for $1 each. The paperbacks were 25 cents and one for 10cent

Paid 50c each

I picked up the books for Brenna and Lindsey's classrooms but I will hold on to the Curious George for my "Grandma stash of books". They varied in price from 10 cents to 50cts. The top two in the top picture are hardbacks and the bottom picture contains all hardbacks. Bottom ones go to Brenna's home library for Nate. Lindsey, I will continue searching for your classroom and Early Readers.

The chairs were like this one, not in excellent condition but definitely usable

Items I didn't take a photo of were 3 bag chairs like the one above (stock photo, thank you Google images). This purchase was a request from Brenna. She needs a couple for sporting events. Friends of Carolyn and mine had a sale and I was delighted to find 3. Brenna didn't tell me how many she wanted and I had figured two would be a good start. But at the price of $1 each and the offer to load them all in my car, I went for all three. They can always give the least wanted away. Thanks Caroline and Jeff!

Tubing raft: $2

For my niece Kelley and her family I bought this tubing raft. Kelley had put in a search request for this a year ago. Well, here is one a year later. It is small, for a single person use. But I think perfect for Hugh to float around in. She ended up buying one but it is the doughnut design and Hugh doesn't like it very much. Hopefully this one will make my grand nephew happy.

We checked out a few more sales before Carolyn called it quits at 8am. She was heading to Morehead City and the annual Seafood Festival. I was still in the search mode, it was still relatively early so after I transferred my finds to my car and took pics of her finds, I headed back out.

This started at the end of the driveway...it kept going farther and farther and different sections. I neglected to crop my shadow out!

I stopped at this sale after circumnavigating the neighborhood trying to get to it. I was dealing with road work detours and a road race to boot. Avoiding runners and walkers, I made it finally. And it was a big one. Did I purchase anything? No. But I did chat up the seller who told me how she wanted to get rid of old inventory from a former business she had and also makes wreathes. After telling her about the Facebook yard sale group, we became "friends" so I could add her name to the closed group. Hopefully she will start listing stuff and get it sold.

I like the way she displayed the clothing

 

These are some of the wreaths she makes and sells. Just beautiful. Good luck!

I use one of these for my gps device. Paid $1 and sold it to Carolyn the next day for $5. Best price besides mine is Target sells for $10. No more suction cup mount on windshield.

I was ready to wrap up the morning but still had 2 more sales to check out on my way home. This one was fairly close to my home and still had quite a bit for sale. It was the not cleanest, most organized sale I've attended but I soon realized how much stuff had come out of this person's home and garage. It was not a "multi family" sale. The seller had become overwhelmed by the accumulation of stuff through the years and fortunately her relative had come to help her pitch declutter. I quickly learned to ask the relative prices because she was anxious to move out the inventory! 

Paid $1 for all of the balls and $1 for the set of lights.

I love these giant plastic ornaments for my outside trees at Christmas. The smaller ones pictured I can barely get my hand around. The two gold ones are ginormous. Last year when I was frantically searching the last week before Christmas for a string of white lights with green wire, I couldn't find any. Anywhere! So this year, I am ready with a new in the box set. Folks, now is the time to stock up on Christmas lights at yard sales. Trust me on this one. 

$2 for the lot. I did go through later and gave away a set of bowls to Goodwill.

Our cat, Prudence, has developed a compulsive licking problem called barbering. It seems to be a medical issue since an initial treatment of steroids helped, but as soon returned after treatment ended and may be allergy related. I have tried changing her litter to perfume free, better quality food, and though those changes may help, she is still barbering. So it may be she needs more intense play time and hence the reason why I purchased the large selection of cat toys in the above photo. I sure hope so. Her sides look like someone took a razor to Pru. Never a dull moment.

Pru, the barbering cat.

She is watching me through the window taking pictures of her new toys, hoping I will bring them back inside when I finish. She especially likes the ones with feathers.

$1(still had $8.95 price tag on the back)

And we come to the last purchase of the morning. Another item for Lisa's beach house is this metal towel, robe, whatever holder. The fish are detachable with magnets on the backs so they can be moved around or hold up a note. Cute and beachy.

 Lisa said anything with hooks is appreciated. 

$1 for each.

On Friday I went to a sale and found these two frames for Ellie. She asked me to look for embellished frames she plans to paint and put artwork in. The left one is for a 4x6 picture and the other is for a 8x10. Nice quality with velvet backing. And no, those holes showing on the larger of the two are not defects. Looking forward to seeing what she'll do with them and what color she'll choose.

So ends my accounting of the bargain weekend. Johanna is in Pittsburgh visiting with her brothers and nieces attending a Steelers game. Babs had visitors coming Saturday morning. A number of teens and adults from St. Peter's youth group came to help her with the overgrown garden that has been neglected the months of Uncle Tim's hospitalization. They worked hard and made a dramatic difference. I have seen the before and after photos. Babs, you must feel better not seeing all of that overgrowth now.

Next weekend I will be away in Washington DC with my husband celebrating our 29th wedding anniversary. No blog post next week unless we find yard sales  while sightseeing. You never know.

Hope you have a fabulous week and found bargain treasures of your own.

Thrifty Christy

Posted with Blogsy