Garage Sale Finds

I managed to find a few garage sales on this gorgeous November morning!

I am already starting to have garage sale withdraws. I have been asked what I do when there aren't garage sales. Well....I save money and finish all of my garage sale "projects".I gave $2 for this frame and art work. I think that I am going to embroider something to fit inside this interesting frame.
I gave $1 for these adorable white bowls. I only wish that there would have been a fourth.

I gave $1 for each of these games. We are teaching the children at church about the Armor of God. I can't wait to play the game with A! He could also use a little help with short and long vowels which is what Max's Attic reviews.

I gave $2 for the 2 large pieces of fleece. My mother-in-law loves to make blankets and pillows and give them away. I am sure that she will find the perfect home for this "girly" material. I plan to paint the box pink with polka dots.

Celebrating 12 Years at the Nashville Flea Market

To celebrate anniversaries, some men buy their ladies nice jewelry or flowers.
How lucky am I?
I buy a bunch of junk for her and make her day.

For once, I had all the attention a man can dream of from the local chicks (ladies)
As I carried this special find (chicken feeder) back to the truck, I was getting
an abundance of attention. I even overheard one lady say, "wow, that's cute."
I was on top of the world.
She was talking about me, right????

Michelle, thanks for letting me write about our special weekend.
SAH

Five Thrifty Ideas

I have been asked by several people to share a few "thrifty" ideas that work for my family.

It is all common sense, and probably most of you are doing most of them already. I am going to start with a few basic ones, and I will add other ideas later.

1.) Shop for the bulk of your groceries at Aldi or Save-A-Lot. Of course, you have to bag your own groceries and nothing is name-brand, but it will save you a lot of money guaranteed. Our family actually prefers a number of the Aldi brand products.

2.) GARAGE SALE and become familiar with your local thrift stores. I very seldom purchase anything new!

3.) Be more creative. Before buying anything, think about if you can reuse something that you already have. For example, I wanted new curtains. I rummaged through my linens and found an antique tablecloth that worked perfectly.

4.) Budget EVERYTHING.

5.) Learn to value and be content with what you already have.....difficult, but true.

Yard Sale Finds

This Saturday, I managed to get out of my warm, snugly bed, and garage sale in the cold rain.

Here are a few of my finds which made it all worth it!

I just fell in love with this old, rusty yellow shelf which is in fact missing the shelves. The nice owner of this treasure gave it to me....

I am pretty sure that no one had even given it a second look, and he wasn't about to take it back into his garage. Yeah for me! I payed $4.00 for this mini wagon. It will be perfect for photos. In fact, I just might use it this afternoon!

I already own 2 great old scales. I paid $1.00 for each of these beauties...now I officially have a collection.
I read a "thrifty" mom's blog a month or so ago. She referenced this book A LOT! I actually searched for it on Amazon, but it was $15. So...I decided to pass.
Scott found it in a box of books for $.50. I have read it front to back, and let's just say that I will NEVER refer to myself as a "Tightwad". This is HARD-CORE...let me say that again.....HARD-CORE money saving strategies! I am obviously not HARD-CORE! I am just a novice. However, I did find a few ideas that just might fit our lifestyle.

I think that I am going to come up with my own "idea" list for saving money.

Strategies that work for our family.....yet wouldn't make it into this book.

Maybe tomorrow's post.....?

Garage Sale Finds

Hitting a few garage sales was a family affair this morning. Yep....the kids were miserable. However, they did find a few "free" boxes. That brightened their day a little! They kept saying, "Can you believe that this was FREE?" Anyhoo....I found a lot of great deals!This birdcage was $1. I am going to spray paint it black. I might just have to experiment with chalkboard paint. I think that it could make for a cute way to wrap a gift!
I paid $1 for this white metal bowl. I just love the way that these look on my wall. This one will soon join the collection.

This antique glass jar was $2. LOVE it!

These 6 aprons have now joined my apron collection. Six old aprons for $1....

I paid $1 for each of these adorable dresses for O. She is ready for spring!

Well, I bought a few more things, but these were my favorites.

I can't think of a better way to spend my Saturday morning....kiddos in the backseat, chocolate donuts, great deals, and a cool/cold fall morning. It was DELIGHTFUL!

Family Store

Every week my children have the option to earn a little bit of money. We use Dave Ramsey's Financial Peace Jr plan. It is working great in our house. However, I was really tired of watching my children spend their dollars on junk. I decided to start a family store. It is stocked with garage sale, clearance, and craft items. The store opens every Sunday evening which just so happens to be pay day. The items on the top shelf cost $.50; the items on the middle shelf cost $1; the items on the bottom shelf cost $2. My kiddos really look forward to shopping in my store because they can get more for their dollars, and it is stuff that is chosen with them in mind.It was interesting the other day when Andrew found something labeled $.50 on the $1 shelf. It was a great way to educate him on how the retail stores make money. They buy something at $1, and then charge us $2.

The Family Store is a hit at our house!

This Week's Thrifty Finds

I managed to get up early enough on Saturday to hit a few sales.

Of course, I always manage to find a few hidden treasures.I found this 3 tiered shelf which works perfectly for our family store-$2. I LOVE old linens, and I just had to have the Mr. and Mrs. towels. I have already found a place for them. The bag on the bottom left of the photo is an old ballot bag. I also found the game, JENGA, for $1 which A is bound to love!
I found all of this CHEAP stuff to go in our family store. The kiddos were thrilled!
I needed a lamp for the office, and this black lamp was only $1. I really don't like the shade, but I have plans. I am going to let A make a "harvest sign" out of the wooden sign, and I just love Americana decorations. This basket was only $.50.

I found these 3 adorable outfits for $6.00. I have been looking for a brown and turquoise dress for O. That is the color scheme for our family photos this year.

I bought these Christmas items for $4. I love the vintage Santa sign, and I am collecting fun stockings to make a Christmas Countdown for A and O. Two down.....23 more to go!
I also collect red handled kitchen utensils. When at antique stores, I always point them out to Scott, and we have decided that is how we are going to pay for A to go to college. Don't laugh....I have A LOT of red handled utensils. However, I think that this mixer would look great as a decoration on a Christmas gift. I bought the lifesaver tin because it would be fun to fill it with lifesavers and give it as a teacher gift with a card saying something about being a "lifesaver".

This Week's Thrifty Finds

Here are a few of the treasures that I found this weekend!I don't use candles since I now have an understanding of the consequences of open flames in our home. So, I fell in love with these antique lamps. I paid $8 for the set. I have already spray painted them black, and now I am waiting for my honey to rewire one. I can't wait to use them for extra lighting this winter.
I found these glass candle holders for $1. I filled them with sea shells that I already had in storage.

I gave $5.50 for all 4 pieces of dragonfly art work. They have already found the perfect spot in our master bath. It is amazing what that $5.50 did for my plain old boring bathroom.

This Week's Trash to Treasure

Remember this boring valance from yesterday's post.

Well....I decided to dress it up a little!I wanted the valance to match this shower curtain in our master bath.
So, I made a similar leaf stencil out of card stock using my Xacto knife.
Here is the finished product!

I think that it is a step up from where it started.

Now, I want to stencil leaves around the top of my bathroom walls.

One thing always leads to another....

On to the leaf candle dishes.....

I bought 2 autumn harvest votive candles at Hobby Lobby today. They were on sale for $.50 each. I then used a piece of scrap fabric and tied them together. I want to add a tag that says, "I am so glad that I have "fallen" into your kindergarten/pre-school class."

My little man saw them when he got home from school.

He said, "Mom, these are CUTE!"

He wants to take the one that is less "pointy" to his teacher!

Gotta love this $1 teacher gift!

Thrifty Finds

It is no secret that I LOVE a great deal! I thought that I would share a few of my favorites from this week!

I am needing a new valance for my bathroom window. I liked the color and texture of this one, and it was only $2. I plan on painting some leaves that will match my current shower curtain.This chair was $2 at a new thrift store in my community. It is REALLY dated, but I have plans! I think that I will paint it black and replace the orange material with a beautiful print. I also think that it would be beautiful painted white. What do you think that I should do?

I found these leaf candle holders at a local thrift store for $.50 each.

I can see them with a beautiful candle tied on top with rustic fabric.

Teacher appreciation gifts?

I found this adorable shelf today for $5 at a local thrift store. The little bird is just darling, but I am thinking about spray painting it off-white. I would love to replace the current shelf in my master bathroom with this one. Honey....what do you think?I found this gorgeous candle holder at a garage sale this weekend for $1!

That is a deal!

I love lunch boxes, and this one is full of personality.

It was only $1.

I am not really sure what I am going to do with it, but it would make a fabulous gift box.

So....I spent a total of $12. Well, I actually spent $15 because I bought a prom dress for $3. I am certain that there will be a blog about that soon.

I can't wait to show you the finished products. What am I saying....I can't wait to see the finished products. I better get started!

The Shelf

Today I decided to tackle the room that has been driving me C-R-A-Z-Y!

It is teeny tiny-9'X10', and stuffed to the gills.

I woke up this morning wanting a white shelf that would accommodate baskets of toys. However, I am on a budget, not to mention trying to save for Disney. So, I decided to check at a local thrift store, and this is what I found for $16.99.

I have plans to dress it up a little.

With the shelf purchased, I jumped head first into the chaos!How can a room filled with such adorable things look so awful?

After 2 hours of intense labor, this is how it looked at 2:16 on Wednesday afternoon. I wanted to pass out in the middle of the room and take a nap!

How sweet is this purple and pink room?

I have read countless articles about labeling toy baskets with photos.

Well, I will let you know how that works out at our home.

The photos are printed and ready to go on the baskets.

Can you read the sarcasm?

Vintage Window

I don't know about you, but I LOVE to see before and after pictures...especially when they involve turning trash into treasure. Last fall, my brother gave me several old windows that his neighbor was going to throw away.

I was thrilled!

I love the weathered look!

I decided to use some scraps of material to make a folk art flag.

I ended up making several for Christmas gifts.

My flag in the old window is now considered treasure!
I still have countless ideas on how to use the remainder of the old windows!
Hopefully, I will get around to those this winter!

A Thrifty Swimming Pool

If you know me well, you know how much I love to save a dollar! A trip to the city swimming pool is $11.....storage tub full of water is FREE! I think that I may have crossed the line (from thrifty to cheap) this time!?! I do think that I am going to have to invest in a bigger storage tub for next year...there goes $7!