Pink Saturday Finds!

I'm trying to get my blog going again and can't think of a better way than linking to Beverly's Pink Saturday event! Her blog was one of the first I visited, and I linked to quite a few Pink Saturday events!

I'm still going to estate sales! This pic is of a sale I went to today! The kind of sale all junkers love! Everything was really clean, neat and cheap! Not sure what I will do with the chenille fabric scraps, but the frame will probably become a chalkboard. Under the pink are two cool vintage lamps!

Thanks Beverly for hosting this event! Please stop by and visit Beverly and the other Pink Saturday participants!

2nd Time Around: Opinions Needed!

Welcome to 2nd Time Around. Please join us by linking a post that features something that is a 2nd Time Around to you…something from a garage sale, flea market, thrift store, estate sale, etc. Please link your post rather than your blog, and link back to this blog. Thank you for participating.

Sometimes I buy things that end up being more trouble than they are worth. I’m afraid this chair may be one of those things! A fellow vendor was closing her booth, and I got caught up in the ‘get a bargain’ mode and bought this chair really cheap!

I don’t have anything against the Saints, in fact I love them and was thrilled when they won the Super Bowl. But I think this chair needs a make over! So, I’m asking for your help. What color do you think I should paint it? I already have white and black spray paint, and I know those are neutral colors that many people like. So, should I paint it black or white? Or a bright retro color like lime green? Or leave it as it is and sell it CHEAP?

Help me out….I’m having a hard time making a decision! LOL Or maybe I’m just lazy! So, leave me a comment…one word will do. What color would ‘speak’ to you if you had  this chair?

Thanks for stopping by and hope you will join in!

2nd Time Around: Getting Lucky at the Sales!

Welcome to 2nd Time Around. Please join us by linking a post that features something that is a 2nd Time Around to you…something from a garage sale, flea market, thrift store, estate sale, etc. Please link your post rather than your blog, and link back to this blog. Thank you for participating.

Most of the time it takes me the first 10 days of the month to sell enough to pay my rent in my booths at the Antique Mall and Flea Markets. Not this month! This past Saturday I went garage selling with Kelli, and ran across these great leather chairs at a fantastic price! Since we were in her large SUV, we had room for them so we loaded them and took them straight to my largest booth. The same day, I had an offer on them, and they were picked up the next day! So, by the third day of the month I made my rent! I really like the chairs, but they just don’t go with my house! Its funny how some things sell so quickly and other things have to wait for that right buyer! The lace screen in the background is one of those items! I have had it almost 6 months, and I’m wondering if it will ever sell! I knew the leather chairs were a great purchase, but had no idea they would sell that quickly!

Wish I could lucky like this at least once a month! LOL

Thanks for stopping by, and hope you will link your 2nd Time Around post below!

Trash to Treasure: Thrift shop pillows

Due to a head cold and being busy with other activities, I've let Trash to Treasure creep up on me! I haven't been to the Thrift Store or a garage sale in over a week!

So, I looked in my 'drafts' folder and found a post I started and didn't finish. Even though I've had these little treasures awhile, I thought would it would be appropriate to share today! I am so ready for a little warmer weather so I can enjoy my porch again!

This two little pillows were bought on the same day at the Hope Village Thrift Store. They both have a home on my screened porch on the wicker lounger. I really love the garden message on both of them! I think I paid one dollar each for the pillows.

I hope to continue adding to my porch when the weather gets warmer by shopping the Thrift Stores.

Please link your Trash to Treasure below so we can all visit you! Thanks for stopping by!

Trash to Treasure: A tiny lamp and birdhouse

Welcome to Trash to Treasure. If you have something that is a treasure to you that someone else didn't want, please link that specific post to Mr. Linky below.

To do this, you need to click on the title of the post, and copy and paste the direct link into Mr. Linky. You can to this by right clicking on the address of the post and selecting 'copy'. The come back here and right click 'paste' into the URL space. Lots of people have just been posting their blog address without a Trash to Treasure post. Thanks for your understanding on this.

This week I went to the Hope Village Thrift Store and found these two little 'Treasures' I would like to share.

First, I found this little pineapple lamp. The large pineapple in the picture is one I showed a while back. The little lamp cost $3.00 and really brightens up the space.
I have a real love for birdhouses, and found this one the same day. It has a place in the bottom to attach it to a dowel, so I may use it outside later, but for now it is on a bookcase in my home. I paid $2.00 for it! Thanks for stopping by! Be sure to visit the other Trash to Treasure participants!

Trash to Treasure: Finials

Welcome to Trash to Treasure! Please add your link to a post that features a treasure you've gotten that someone else didn't want. I look forward to visiting you!

This week I'd like to show you two finials I've gotten recently-one at a thrift store, and the other at a garage sale. This pineapple finial came from the Hope Village Thrift store and cost $4.00. It has a $39.99 price tag on the bottom. There is a small piece broken off about the size of a fingernail on one side. You have to be really looking for it to find the flaw. I think it was part of a donation made to the thrift store from a furniture company that also sells accessories. I'm using it on our staircase now, but may use it in the garden later.
This finial is used as a bookend on my library table. It came from a garage sale and cost $3.00. I really love the coloring and style of this one.
Which one do you like best? Thanks for coming by, and please consider posting a link to a post on your blog.

Trash to Treasure: Storing my pictures

Welcome to Trash to Treasure on Tuesday!

I hope Mr. Linky works...it wasn't as easy as I thought. LOL

As the old saying goes, "One man's trash in another man's treasure."

In my opinion, a Trash to Treasure is anything that you've bought or had given to you that someone else didn't want and you really like! It could be from a garage sale, thrift store, or a bargain from a retail store. In other words-a thrifty purchase-just use your imagination! If you don't have anything new to share, feel free to link an old post!

I'm going to keep my first post really simple... so here is my Trash to Treasure for this week:
I bought this cute little suit case this past weekend at a yard sale. Since I've started blogging, I have been thinking of different ways to use things. I love the shape of the box and the size, but didn't really care for the car on the front.

So using scrapbook paper, the computer to print a title, and Mod Podge, I redid the top of the suitcase and plan to use it for family photos. The inside is lined with black felt, and large enough for 2 rows of 4 by 6 photos.I am going to cut cardboard for the inside to divide it into two sections. I think it's much cuter than the photo boxes that you buy for photos. Now if I could just run across a few more of these! I need more than one to hold all my pictures!

For those that are new to linking to Mr. Linky, here are the directions:

1. Create your post and publish it. Please include a link back to my blog by typing in my blog address http://diane1876.blogspot.com You can type in the name of my blog, and highlight the words by a right click, then click on the paper clip to type in the blog address.

2. After you have your post ready and published, click on the title of your post. Then right click on the address in the address bar at the top of your browser. It should turn blue, then right click 'copy.'

3. Go to my blog and type your name in on Mr. Linky and right click on the http space and click 'paste'.

4. If you have problems, just email me or leave a comment, and I'll try to help fix it. Thanks for visiting and for participating!

Look what was waiting when I returned!

My daughter has some pictures of their wedding vow renewal on her blog. Be sure to stop in at Sassy Southern Mom and take a peek! I love the pictures that she selected and hope you will visit her to see them.

After returning from Gulf Shores this past weekend, I have been really busy! I brought Cooper and Connor home with me when I left, and Cooper spent the night at my house while Connor spent the night with Chad's mom. We wanted them to have at least one day to themselves!

So late Sunday night I began unpacking and dividing up the stuff that my guests bought at my Southern Living Party. My orders totaled over 600 dollars and filled up 5 boxes. I earned lots of free and half price merchandise which I'll show you a little at a time after I figure out how I'm going to use it. I'm glad I had the party, but I'm not sure if I'll do it again! For one thing the products are a little pricey especially after adding the shipping charges. And I'm sure I ended up spending too much myself just to get some 'free' stuff~

This picture below is a Southern Living product that I found recently at a garage sale. I'm not sure what the exact retail price was, but it was probably around 50 dollars. The handle was missing, but I still bought it for 4 dollars. I think this piece has been discontinued, but I really like the classic look of it!
And here is how I'm using it now-with a candle in the middle, small pumpkins and gourds from the grocery and small votives on each side. I think it would look great used lots of ways-maybe plants, guest towels in the bath, etc! I've also seen a suggestion that it be used as a serving piece-bread for example with dipping sauces in the votive holders.
Some of you mentioned before not having heard of a Southern Living at Home party. You can visit their website here, and browse the catalog. One other tip-lots of the merchandise is available on Ebay!

Thanks for stopping by, and I hope you have a wonderful day!

A Great Looking Chair!

I wanted to show you what my cousin Amber did with the throw that she bought at the estate sale on Saturday. Click here to look at the post. Amber has great taste, and I wish she would start a blog. All of you ladies who are interested in home decor would LOVE her ideas and taste.

This picture is from her screened porch which is on the second level of her home overlooking a beautiful lake. I really like the rustic look of Amber's porch. Note the little fairy garden on top of the barrel next to the chair.
Below the picture, I copied and pasted what she told me about the chair through an email.

From Amber:
I also wanted to show you what I did with the blanket. During Antique Alley, I bought this Amish rocker from Ben. Vickie got one like it a couple of years ago that was in perfect condition and I have been so envious ever since. The one I got from Ben had been painted forest green and burgundy! Yuck! I thought I would have the patience to strip it, but after I got started, I discovered why the Strip Shop charges what they do. That's when I decided to get out the trusty black spray paint. It's not the same as Vickie's, but it is so comfy and I think the blanket just sets it off! I paid $50 for it and most of the ones I've seen are in the $600 range, so I think I can live with it. It's on the screened porch, as is the table I bought at the other sale. I'll send you a picture of it when I have a chance. Also, I found some precious brown/ivory zebra fabric to cover the cushion of the bamboo chair. When it's finished I'll send you a pic of it, too. We had a really good time Saturday, too. It was a perfect day, especially to ride around in Vick's car...I'm glad y'all had fun, too.

Thanks Amber for sharing your chair and porch with us!

Can't you tell that she has excellent taste?

Thanks for stopping by and please leave Amber a comment! She checks my blog on a regular basis, and I know she would like to hear from you all! Maybe we'll make a blogger out of her afterall! LOL

A New Home for a Bargain Table!

I bought this little iron table for 10 dollars this past weekend at a yard sale. It has a brownish tan antique finish. I really thought it was cute, and couldn't pass it up. Of course I have nowhere to put it and really didn't need it, so......
I took it to my daughter's house! Here it is on her screened porch with Cooper soaking it all in! Kelli loves the table, but is not happy with the decor! Guess we'll have to work on that. Do you recognize the candle holder on the top shelf? That was one of my Hope Village finds that I blogged about awhile back. It ended up at her house too! I can only use so much stuff, but when I see something I really like, I can't resist!

It gives me pleasure to buy for my kids and grandkids! The nice thing about this is that Kelli and I can trade stuff back and forth whenever we want to!

Of course this post wouldn't be complete if I didn't include Connor. Here's a pic of him holding baby brother!

Thanks for dropping by today!
Diane

How I spent almost a $

It seems that the more I go to garage sales, the cheaper I get! I love getting things really dirt cheap....maybe it's because I really don't need the things I'm buying, but if they are priced really low, it makes it okay! Right??

Actually, I spent more than 95 cents at the garage sales this weekend, but I'm only going to include the things in this post that added up to 95 cents!

In this first picture, I got these little tea cup bird feeders made from Fiestaware free! (Okay, I did buy a bookcase at an estate sale, and they threw these in with the deal!)
So they were still free right???
These two little magnetic picture frames were 15 cents for both! I took them right in and found a picture of Connor and Cooper that would fit. Since I'm working, it is great to find things that don't need anything done to them! If my "to be done" project list wasn't so long already, I might recover them with some other scrapbook paper.
There's something about a brand new price tag with a garage sale sticker of 5 cents over it that makes me really happy!
It was attached to this brand new little scarecrow from the dollar store. I actually thought about buying a couple of these the other day, so I saved 95 cents! So now we're up to a total of 20 cents for the items.
Then I bought this ceramic pumpkin candle holder for 25 cents. I really struggled with this...the price seemed a little high after the other bargains I got! But since it is so close to Halloween, I bought it. I'll put it out the night trick or treaters come by. Now I'm up to 45 cents.
And, here is a stem of fall foliage that still had the 5.99 price tag on it. I paid 50 cents for this. I stuck it in a vase, and put it in front of the mirror on the sideboard. Looks like lots more that way! LOL
Now my total is 95 cents for all the items pictured in this post.
It is fun to see how far I can stretch a dollar! As I said before, I really spent more than a dollar, and I'll blog about some of those things later. I had fun shopping with my sister and mother. There were so many sales this weekend, that we couldn't get around to them all. It seems like the first Sat. of the month is a popular day for sales!

We ran into these two ladies in the picture below at the estate sale. This is Amber, my cousin, and Vickie. Don't you just love the car they ride around to the sales in? Vickie bought some great barrel planters, and Amber bought a bamboo chair and pretty little blanket at the estate sale.
Thanks for stopping by, and have a great day!

A Versatile Thrift Shop Find:Show and Tell Friday

Recently while in Hope Village Thrift store, I found this little wire basket for a dollar. I think the original use was as a napkin holder. I carried it around for a few minutes, then thought about putting it down since there was nothing else I found to buy. I guess I was too lazy to dig a dollar out of my purse, and I really didn't need it anyway!

But I talked myself out of putting it down and brought it home. I like the color which is kinda of bronzy looking, and the shape.
When I got it home, I tried using it several ways. In this first pic, it holds my Daisy Chain napkin holder, with salt and pepper shakers in front. I really like using it for this...makes it easy to move this stuff so I clean the counter top.
Here it is as a caddy for the dishwashing and hand soap by the sink.
And with 4 little clay pots planted with houseplants.....
With chocolates wrapped in seasonal paper... (This one could spell trouble for me-LOL)
As a holder for seasonal napkins....
As a perch for my dollar tree pumpkins and votives....
And finally as a container for fall leaves, berries, and a candle!
I don't know what it is about getting something so cheap and finding different ways to use it, but I really enjoyed playing around with it! Maybe it is the uncertain economic times. Going to the thrift store and finding something for almost nothing and really liking it keeps me out of the stores and saves money...right???? LOL
Or maybe it just gives me something to blog about!
Which way do you like it? I don't know which way I like it best- I think I like them all! As I write this post, it is on the kitchen counter holding the Daisy Chain napkin holder and salt and pepper shakers.

If you want to find Thrift Shops near you, visit the ThiftyShopper. You just enter your zip code or city and state, and this site will list them and rate them. The Hope Village shop that I enjoy going to is the only one is our area with 5 stars!

For more Show and Tell projects, visit Kelli at There's No Place Like Home.
Thanks for stopping by, and have a great day.

A Free Arrangement (Almost)!

When browsing through blogs the other day, I noticed that Melissa from The Inspired Room used canning jars to make arrangements for fall. I really liked the casual, informal look she created with the jars.

I decided to 'shop' my cabinets and see if I had any and I ran across this wire container and milk jug looking containers I hadn't used in years.
My original plan was to buy some fresh flowers in fall colors to put in the vases, but I saw somewhere (sorry I can't remember-probably on someone's blog) a suggestion for using Nandina berries in fall arrangements. I have Nandina shrubs, but the berries aren't ready yet.

So when visiting my mom on Sunday, we went in the back yard and checked out her Pyracanthia shrubs. They were loaded with these reddish orange berries! So I cut a few and used them in my fall arrangement.

The arrangement was almost free! I already had all the materials on hand except the mini Tiger Pumpkins I bought from Walmart, and they had been purchased a few days before. The only cost occured at the time would be the gas to drive to Mom's house, and I would have visited her anyway!

I really liked the way the arrangement turned out. Thanks Mama!

Hope you have a great day, and thanks for stopping by!
For more Fall decor visit lemonannie!

My Bargain Clothes!

This weekend I hit the 75% off sales at 2 local department stores and got 16 pieces of summery clothing for $72.00 dollars! That is an average price of $4.50 per item. This isn't garage sale prices, but the stuff is all brand new! Besides, I usually don't have much luck at garage sales on clothing.

The highest original price on one of the tops was $59.00 and the lowest original price on some shorts was $13.00. You may be wondering why on earth I'm buying so many summer clothes when it will turn cool really soon.

Next summer, we are going on a trip! When I work extra like I'm doing this semester, we try to use the money for extras and not rely on it for day to day expenses. So one of our 'extras' will be to travel! Can you guess from these pictures where we will be going?


Did you guess Greece? If you did, you are right! We will travel to Venice for two days, cruise around the Greek islands for 7 days, and then spend 2 nights in Paris before coming home!
Half of the fun of a trip is the planning...and I'm going to enjoy planning for this trip!
Have a great day, and thanks for stopping by.