some recent thrifty finds

Lately all of my thrifty finds seem to fall into the category of glass. Most of them are containers of some sort, which I love!  My neighbor had a yard sale last weekend and I picked up two jars there. He had over 30 of these aqua mason jars in varying sizes. I paid $2 for this one which seemed like a good price since I had recently seen them on etsy for $15 or more per jar. I probably should have snagged a few more but I don't really need more so I refrained. 

I added the aqua jar to a shelf I have hanging above our bed.  I was trying to bring in different shades of blue to play off of our bedding.  This shelf holds our framed wedding invite {which was designed by moi} and our favorite wedding picture.  If only I still had my bouquet from our wedding to place in my new aqua jar. 

I also picked up a square glass jar at my neighbors sale {pictured on the left}.  I instantly fell in love with all of the detail on the sides.  And look there is even lots of detail on the  bottom corners of the jar. These pictures really don't do this jar justice. I'm learning it's a little tricky to photograph glass objects.  I have no idea what I am going to use this jar for but I just couldn't pass it up.

I'm in love with the rusty old metal lids on these jars.  Talk about character!

I found this small glass apothecary jar a few weeks ago at a thrift store run by a local hospital.  I had just seen the same jar over at the party perfect blog so I was excited when I found a jar of my own.  I paid a whoppin $.50 for it and then the following week I saw the same jar at Goodwill for two dollars.  Apparently it pays to comparison shop even at thrift stores ya'll. :)

Last week while I was having our car serviced I ran into Goodwill to waste some time.  I stumbled across a glass dome that fit perfectly on my new {to me} thrifted cake stand.  I wasn't sure if it would fit but for $3.50 I was willing to gamble. Now I just need a yummy cake to place on my completed cake stand.


p.s. I'm linking my thrifty finds over at the Shabby Nest, Southern Hospitality, and Finding Fabulous.

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a thrifted cake stand

I'm always on the lookout for pretty cake stands when I visit my local thrift stores.  Recently I happened upon one that was worthy of coming home with me.  I love the pattern on the top and the simplicity of the base.



The cakestand you will find is the  most cherished piece in your entertaining arsenal. -Matthew Mead



*I'm linking this post over at Southern Hospitality.

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antiques and some more goodwill hunting

I feel like Georgia has Antique stores galore {or maybe that is the case with all of the South?}  Either way I feel like there are so many fun antique stores around our area to go to from time to time.  A few weeks ago we went to one of the larger antique markets called Queen of Hearts Antiques that my friend Beth had introduced me to.  As we were leaving I spotted these wire baskets.  I have been searching for something similar to these for a while now.  Right now I am using them under our coffee table to hold books and magazines.  Later down the line I plan to use one basket for each of the boys for homeschooling.  I figure it might be nice for each child to have a place to put there papers and the stuff they are working on.

We have a fun little antique store literally down the road from our house.  I pop in there from time to time  since it's so close to us.  We have had our eye out for a drop leaf side table for our living room but everything we had seen was more than we wanted to pay.  Last fall I found this table and loved it right away. I came home and told Hubby about it but we decided to wait on it.  A few months later they had marked it down 25% but we still decided to hold off.  Then we were in the same store about a month ago and they had "my" table at 65% off and as is.  There was a small piece of the mahogany veener that had come off so that was the reason for the "as is".  Hubs said he could fix it so we loaded our new table up and brought her on home.  And guess what?  The little part of veener that had come off was inside the little drawer.  A little wood glue and nobody ever knew the difference! 

I love that drop leaf tables are so versatile.  We could have both sides up if we had a bigger space or put them down for a smaller table.  Now please ignore the fact that our rug doesn't extend out past the table.  What?  You didn't notice that until I just pointed it out?  Great! Moving right along...

The sun finally came out last week {it was sure gloom and doom there for a while} so I was able to snap a few shots of some more of my recent goodwill finds.  I found this small silver cup for 99 cents and I love the detail at the top and bottom of the cup.  I had some hydrangeas from my friend Darien so I put some in my silver cup and set them in our master bath.  

Look I found the long lost baby sister to the christmas topiary that I found and gave a makeover to a while back.  A little moss and the topiary was looking a little more presentable.  I ran out of hot glue sticks one night as I was attaching the moss so I improvised and used my craft spray adhesive.  And you know what?  It worked awesome and NO hot glue gun burns ladies!!  Try it for yourself next time.

I'm thinking we may have reached our topiary limit in this household.  I don't want Hubby to think he lives in a little forest or something. :)

This wooden beaded necklace I found at Goodwill a while ago but I kept forgetting to post a picture of it.   Sorry you are stuck with an Iphone photo but at least I finally remembered.  Don't pass by the jewelry counter at your local thrift stores with out taking a quick look under the glass.  I have seen some really fun stuff at our stores!

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a few thrifting tips

 A while back I shared some thrifting tips over at make happy. In case you missed it I thought I would share a variation of my guest post today.

Last year out of the blue I started shopping at thrift stores.  At first I felt a little out of place but soon I got over that and started to have some fun.  Often I come up empty handed but it's all worth it for that occasional trip when I come home with some amazing finds.  I love the thrill of thrift store shopping and also the fact that I often save our family some serious money too.  For example I have started finding some great name brand clothing for the boys in excellent condition at our local thrift stores for less than two or three dollars per item.  You can beat that!

I am by no means a thrifting expert but I have learned a few things over time {often the hard way}.  Today I am going to share a few simple guidelines and tips for you to keep in mind the next time you visit your local thrift store.  These tips can also come in handy for shopping at yard sales and antique stores too!!

:If you are looking for a particular item be patient.  I am the worlds worst at being patient so I have to really try hard to enforce this one for myself.  Sometimes there is something particular I am searching for at thrift stores or yard sales. This past year I really wanted a new lamp for our bedroom and a globe for the boys room.   I took me a while to find both but I did eventually find them. Several times I almost bought a lamp I kind of liked but I held out though and eventually found a lamp that I REALLY loved.  I brought it home and gave it a new look with some silver leaf.   

If you are looking for a specific piece of furniture for a space in your house it might be wise to know the exact dimensions of the piece you want.  That way if you find a dresser that you love you don't have to try and eye ball wether it will fit in your room or not.  You can measure it {if you keep a trusty tape measure in your purse or car} and know right then and there if it will work in your house before you load it up and take it home.

::If you have extra storage space you might consider buying items you don't necessarily need now but could use down the line.  Sometimes I come across something at a thrift store that I don't need right at that exact moment but know that I could maybe use in the near future{within a year or less}.  If the item is a good deal, on the small side, and easy for me to store then I will usually go ahead and buy it.

A while back I found a set of four plate hangers for $1.51.  If you have ever bought these at your local craft store then you know that just one of these alone would cost more than what I paid for all four.  I would like to hang some plates and platters on one of our walls someday soon so I bought these plate hangers to save for that particular decorating project.

::Use your imagination!!  As you can probably imagine, you are going to run across a lot of outdated and ugly stuff at thrift stores.  Most of the time you may find something you like but maybe it's not the right color or finish.  Now everyone repeat after me, "Spray paint can transform ANYTHING!! "

I found the bunny on the left at a thrift store but didn't love the purple flowers.  Of course this was nothing that a few coats of spray paint couldn't change.


When I first started thrifting it was hard to look beyond the uglyness and old school factor of everything in the store.  Then being inspired by thrift store makeovers on other blogs I slowly was able to use my imagination more and more to see the potential in thrift store "treasures".

Obviously a little bit of imagination was needed to look beyond the hideousness of the topiary I found at Goodwill for 99 cents.  


::Don't buy an item just because it's inexpensive.  There have been many times that I kind of liked something at the thrift store so I went ahead and bought it because it didn't cost very much.  Most of the items that I did this with are now sitting in my closet untouched.  Make sure the items you buy are things you really like or that you can makeover easily.  Sometimes it seems silly to leave something behind at Goodwill because it only would have cost me 99 cents.  But seriously that is a dollar you could have spent on something else and you may not realize it but it's all those little purchases that we make that really add up!


::If you love something you come across and it won't break your budget then by all means buy it all ready!!  If you spot an item from an aisle away and your heart starts going pitter patter from the excitement of finding something amazing then snatch that item up and run directly to the cash register.  There have been a few times where I was really in love with something but I didn't buy it for one reason or another.  Sometimes I don't know where I would put an item in my house so I talk myself out of buying it.  That's OK and all but I have kicked myself for doing this when I was really in love with something.  I've actually gone back to the store a day later to find an item again because I had decided I really couldn't live without.  And I'm sure you can guess where this is going. The item I loved wasn't there anymore.  Thrift store merchandise generally moves fast so you can't guarantee the same stuff will be there the next day.

This past Spring I purchased two white milk glass planters.  I loved both of them right away but I sat there and debated about getting them because I wasn't sure they would go with my existing home decor.  Then I decided it was silly I was hemming and hawing over something that cost a dollar and that I really liked!  In the end I was able to find a spot for them in my kitchen and whenever I see them they make me smile.  I am so glad I didn't pass them up!

:: Ask for a discount and pay attention to the specials that your thrift stores have.  Our local Goodwill has a deal every week where a certain colored tag is 50% off all week long.  Of course every item I want has the wrong colored tag.  Another local thrift store always has yellow tags at 70% off, green tags at 50% off, c.  Also, don't be afraid to ask the cashier for a discount, especially if an item is slightly damaged. It never hurts to ask! {Definitely ALWAYS ask for a discount at antique stores!! They will usually  give you one.}

{image source}

Well there you have it.  Some simple things to remember and think about the next time you go thrifting or find yourself at a yard sale!  These tips weren't meant to overwhelm you so keep them in mind but don't stress over them.  Just have fun and of course enjoy the thrill the of the hunt!!

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a little gardening and lawn mowers

A few months ago Noah and I planted some tomatoes together.  Luckily I had my phone handy because I couldn't pass up capturing this moment. Publix had just sent him a chef's hat in the mail that day in case you were wondering about that.  He was eager to help so I put him in charge of filling our containers with potting soil.  What little boy doesn't like to play in the dirt?

  

We also planted some basil and rosemary.  Every time Noah walks near the rosemary he says, "Mmmmm, smells like mashed tatoes."  { I occasionally put fresh rosemary in our mashed potatoes so I guess that is what he is referring to.} I love walking out my door and having the smell of fresh rosemary and basil hit me every morning.  We have lots of maters popping up but I am still patiently waiting for them to turn from green to red.  I'm liable to eat them like an apple the instant they look good and ripe!

Usually while I water our plants Noah busies himself on the porch with chalk, his cars or animals.  Apparently elephants like to dine on azaleas with their dinosaurs buddies.  Who knew?

  

Remember the little tykes mower I got for $2 at a yard sale last fall?  We are definitely getting our monies worth out of that.  At least several times a week Noah likes to push it around the backyard.  Surprisingly, he will "mow" the yard for upwards of twenty minutes straight.  If only his mower actually cut the grass!

A while back when Daddy was mowing the yard for reals Noah of course had to break out his mower and follow in his foot steps.  I couldn't resist taking a picture of Noah trying to imitate his daddy.  I grabbed my camera and hurried outside to capture the moment.

I left Grammy inside the kitchen {don't worry I could see him the whole time and I was only outside for a second}.  He was watching us outside the whole time with his little face pressed up to the glass.

Grammy just started walking a month ago and it's so cute to see him tottle around. He loves to take the mower for a spin around the yard.  It has always been a little too heavy for him to push but now that he can walk he can manage.  My, my can it be possible that I have two toddlers on my hands?

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yard sales and goodwill hunting

 I was pretty excited to find a set of moss balls for a $1 recently at a city wide thrift sale.  I liked that they are wrapped in raffia to add a little bit of a different texture.  {These would be so easy to recreate}  I put one in the small silver cup I have on the glass shelf in our bathroom.  And a few on a black tray I have on our entry way table.  I noticed at Michael's the other day that a set of six moss very similar to these were priced at $4.99.

There for a few weeks I was noticing a recurring theme with most of my yard sale finds: yellow!

Noah and I found this yellow fireman jacket and hat for less than $2 at yard sale.  Noah is having a fireman birthday party at the end of the month so this was a great find.  Plus I figure one or both the boys could wear it for halloween and/or use it for dress up. {This was the best attempt to photograph him in his jacket.  Why do kids have to be in constant motion?}

We have also found several yellow tonka trucks for $2 or less a pop.  These trucks are perfect for driving through the dirt and that is just what our boys do with them.  Usually first thing in the morning after breakfast we'll head outside to beat the heat and play for a little while.

After literally buying nothing at Goodwill for months I was starting to think my thrifting luck had run out.  Last week I had a few minutes to spare so I decided to pop in Goodwill and it turned out to be a very fruitful shopping trip!

I got this glass vase for 99 cents.  I loved the shape of it!!  It kind of reminds me of a pinneapple which reminds me of my blog friend Tiffanie over at Pineapples-n-Pickles.

I also found this brown wicker basket with a navy and white gingam liner.  It was brand new ya'll with the Michael's tag still on it {$19.99 brand new by the way}!!   As you can see right now I am using it to hold diapers in Grammy's room but I could totally see swapping the liner for something more neutral and using it in another room in the house later on.

I always do a quick stroll through the toy aisle.  I am VERY picky about buying toys and they have to be easy to for me to get clean. On this particular trip we found a Mr. Potato head still in it's original case with all forty parts/accessories at our local Goodwill.  We snatched that up for $2.50.  I can't believe all of the pieces were in the case with the potato head.  We already have one potato head but I figure with two little guys close in age it might be nice to have two of certain toys.  Most of the pieces that came with the set are duplicates of the ones we already have but it came with a few we didn't have.  Noah was excited that the new {to us} set had a construction hard hat and a fireman hat.  And I was excited that there were even a few Mrs. Potato head parts.  No one else seemed excited about that.  I don't why?

And last but not least we found Noah another "Bow Tie" {neck tie}.  Little Mr. Business Casual was really excited that he now has two "Bow Tie's"  I'm glad he is so easy to please! :)


I found lots more goodies at Goodwill but haven't had a chance to photograph them.  Hopefully I will soon.  Plus I have a few recent antique deals steals to share with you too!

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