I Had a Great Time!

Some garage saleing days are more fun than others.  Today was one of those days.  The kids and I went to the Shepherd of the Hills church rummage sale and found some nice things.  I found a needlepoint doily for $3, a Japanese miniature vase for 50 cents, a $2 nutcracker for Austin (he informed me that was his 86th), a pin for $1, a milk glass covered dish chicken for $1, 2 miniature glass paper weights for 50 cents each,  and the kids found a box full of a Nintendo Nes/games, a gameboy with games and a psp carrying case all for $10. 

We then went on to some garage sales and found some video games for $2 each.  In Woodstock, we hit some sales on S. Madison Street and found some nice things.  I found a Pam Duthrie garden book for $1 (she was the keynote speaker for the Master Gardener conference at MCC a few years ago and her books were $50 each), a metal stamp stand for $1 that I will use to hold pictures, and a Statue of Liberty plate for $1. 

Woodstock is having sidewalk sales that will continue on Saturday, so we walked around the square to see what we could find.  At my favorite store, Interiors Anew, I found a wonderful intricately carved coffee table for $38.  I loved it and decided to buy it without knowing exactly where I would put it.  Once I got it home, I put it into the guest room and it looks great.  Seasons by Peg also had some good deals and the upstairs room is 75% off. 

I redecorated the guest room by adding the coffee table that I just bought with a wrought iron stand that I spray painted white yesterday.  I had gotten it at a garage sale a while ago for $3 and finally had time to work on it.  It looks nice holding the metal stamp stand, McCoy planter and scale that I use to weigh my Ebay items up for auction.

Saturday and Sunday is the Gallery in the Garden in Woodstock where artists sell their goods in a garden setting.  It is a really nice event.   Since the weekend is supposed to have nice weather, it will be a perfect setting.  On August 9, Calvary Baptist Church on Rt 31 in Crystal Lake will have their rummage sale.  This is a nice large sale that we love to shop. 

Thursday Sales

Well, we decided to postpone our garage sale until next Friday.  (weather permitting).  The weathermen called for rain today and it only rained in the early morning and not the rest of the day.  It is a good thing that we postponed having our sale because I went through Austin's clothes again and filled up a garbage bag plus 1 winter coat, 2 snowsuits and 1 rain suit.  More to sell!

So instead, we went to a few sales and I found a McCoy pinecone planter for $2.  It has 2 small chips on the edges, but it is really nice anyway.  I found this at the McHenry County Defenders sale at the Algonquin Township office on Rt 14.  The boys found a lot of Pokemon toys 3 for 25 cents.  At another sale, Austin found a bag full of Donkey Kong figures for $3.  I had never seen them before. 

Tomorrow is the Shepherd of the Hills rummage sale in McHenry.  Elizabeth Ann Seton church rummage sale in Crystal Lake on McHenry Ave is Aug 8. 

Mukwonago Flea Market

We all went to the Mukwonago Flea Market today.  What a beautiful day it was!  Not too hot, but sunny.  There weren't a lot of vendors there, but of course, we found some things.  Or I should say, the kids found things.  Austin is taking an archery class, so he found a bow and Ethan negotiated the price down to $10.  The boys also found some books/magazines for $1, a Simpson comic book for $5 (Austin talked this one down) and I found a piece of fabric with chickens on it for 50 cents.  We ate way too many deep fried cheese curds, but enjoyed every minute of it.  You can't go to this flea market without getting them from C.O.W.  They are the best.

The boys just had to try a deep fried twinkie and deep fried oreo cookies.  I think we had our share of deep fried foods to last a lifetime.  There are 2 more flea markets in Mukwonago this season.  I'm sure we'll go to them.

Shepherd of the Hills Church on Green Street in McHenry is having a rummage sale on Friday at 8:30.  I have never been there for a rummage sale, so I'm looking forward to going there.  I am still planning on having my garage sale on Thursday, but I'm keeping a close look at the weather forecast and may have to postpone it until August.  I hope not because I'm ready to get rid of lots of things.

Friday Hunting

It is so nice to be back at home garage saleing in my area.  The kids and I hit some sales today.  Only found some things at one of the sales, but what fun that was.  I found doilies for $1 each, an old made in Japan miniature vase for $2, and an Arthur Armour casserole dish for $4.  I spotted the lid and when I picked it up and saw his hallmark I was thrilled.  It wasn't on the correct bottom so when I asked about it, the man said that he couldn't find it.  I looked around and found some more aluminum pieces that he was selling and spotted it with the wrong lid.  I solved the mystery for him and he gave it to me for $4.  That's 2 Arthur Armour pieces in a few days.  I hope I'm on a roll.    I spent most of the day soaking my doilies and tablecloths that I purchased recently.  I really got some nice ones.  More items have been added to my garage sale box.  I didn't think I had anything to sell until I really started looking at what I had.  The box is really full at this point and I still have things to go through.

The kids and I went to the Algonquin library sale and bought a bag full of books, dvd's and a video game.  Only spent $32 this time.  Their next sale is Nov 8-11.  We also had our free cookies and lemonade.  Always a nice way to end the sale.

Saturday is a kids sale on the square in Woodstock while the Farmer's Market is going on.  We usually find things there as it is a sale run by kids and only kids stuff is sold.

Saturday and Sunday is the Mukwonago Wisconsin flea market.  We really like this flea market.  We will be going on Sunday.  Can't wait to get the deep fried cheese curds.

Back Again

This has been a summer of travel.  The kids and I just got back from a trip to New Jersey and Pennsylvania to visit my parents.  My brother, who has the Ebay store, took us garage saleing/estate saleing on Friday.  It was fun to see how different estage sales are by him.  The people shopping were like vultures.  Clothes were thrown all over the place.  It was hard to look around.  I only managed to find a vintage white hinged bracelet for $1.  I didn't find much at the garage sales either, but it was fun spending time with him.  One of his finds was a vintage iron hand pump.  As he was bringing it to the truck, I noticed a huge yellow jacket nest inside of it.  Needless to say, it took us awhile to get it out with a hose and water and just pumping it.  It was kind of comical. 

He also took us to a thrift store, Unique.  I found some vintage Howdy Doody hankies for 69 cents.  The Goodwill turned up a blue milk glass compote for $3.99.  My mom gave me a huge bin full of stuff.  Mostly milk glass and aluminum pieces.  It was fun looking at them, but harder to find a place to put them once I got home.  My collection has outgrown my places to put them.

The kids and I went to the Saylorsburg flea market 2 times, separate weekends.  I found an aluminum ice bucket with ships on it for $3, a milk glass bowl for $1 (a woman had picked it up and after she found out it was $1, she put it down.  I then grabbed it), fabric for $1 each and the best item, a card table with leather top and 4 chairs for $30.  All of it folds down.  Good thing since I needed to fit it into my trunk with everything else that I was bringing back.  After I have a garage sale, I will take a picture of it in my basement.    Ethan negotiated the price.  He has become great at negotiating.  The man wanted $35 and said that he originally had it priced at $45.  Ethan offered him $30 and waited.  The man finally threw his hands into the air and said, "Fine, $30."  I was proud of him and of both boys for carrying the chairs to the car.  I also found some doilies for $6 that were hand embroidered by her mother.

My parents went with us treasure hunting in the Poconos and stopped at a few local sales in parking lots.  I found a vintage ceramic Santa for 10 cents, and 2 vintage tablecloths for $2 each.  We also went to the Blakeslee flea market that is on Saturday and Sunday and held inside and outside.  I found an aluminum tray by Arthur Armour for $20.  I splurged because his stuff is hard to find.  Funny how I found another piece by him last year in New Jersey at Unique.  This tray is great because it is golden and has the world map on it. 

We stopped by the Salvation Army on 940 and I found a milk glass chicken for $2.99 and a milk glass spoon rest for $2.99 and a knittin book for 89 cents.  They remodeled the store and it was easier to shop and much neater.  There was a lot more stuff then in the past.  We had always wanted to go to the used book store on 940 and finally did.  Their prices were 65% off and I found a 3 books for a total of $5. 

We had a lot of fun, but it is good to be home after traveling for about half of the summer.  I spent the day cleaning and putting away things and adding to my garage sale pile.  Even though I still need to find places to display my new items, I'll be going treasure hunting tomorrow.  There are a lot of sales listed in the paper and the Algonquin library is having their book sale.  Can't miss it!

Loose Ends

I spent today and the past week finishing up projects and just cleaning up/organizing around the house.  I finished another knitted felted purse in off white.  I had made a brown one and didn't like how it turned out, so I used that one to cut out flowers to use on the off white bag.  I love how it turned out!  I used 2 vintage buttons on the flowers and as usual, used a handle from a bag I bought at a rummage sale.    I have a red one to finish also, but, I don't have a handle for it.  Guess I have to go to more sales to find the right color.

The shells I found in Florida are finally put away.  I found a clear vase that I put away in the basement to hold the coral.  It now sits on the green wicker table with the other shells.  I reorganized the shell collection and it looks good.  The rest of the large shells are sitting on my fireplace mantle until Fall. 

We stopped in at Savers in Crystal Lake today, but didn't find any treasures.  I'm hoping that there are some garage sales tomorrow.  Austin and I finished going through the toys in the basement and have a box ready for a garage sale.  I'm selling my candle making supplies this time.  I haven't made any candles in a long time and don't think I will be needing the supplies.  I have 2 large slabs of wax to sell also.  I'm hoping to have the sale either July 26 or 27.  I'm not sure yet if I'll have a one or two day sale.  I still have a lot of stuff to go through.

A Stop at Interiors Anew

After seeing Madagascar 3 at the movies in Woodstock, we walked around the corner to Interiors Anew.  I haven't been there for over 1 month.  The store was packed with so much stuff at really good prices.  I hope I didn't miss too much.  I went through the store a few times to make sure that I saw everything.

I bought a flower shaped basket for $4, an aluminum miniature pitcher for $3 and a covered container for $4 to hold all of the coral pieces that I brought back from Florida.  It is a good idea to go to the store at least once a week since the items come and go really quickly.  I almost always find something that I can't live without.  If you go on a Tuesday or Saturday, the farmer's market is going on.  It makes for a nice day trip.   

I spent some time this morning going through my clothes.  I would like to have a garage sale in August and want to get a head start.  I now have a few bags of clothes and some furniture to sell and will definitely have a lot more in the next month.

Thrift Store Treasures Plus Ice Cream

We made a stop at the Goodwill in Huntley today and found some nice items.  The past few times we left empty handed.  Not today.  I found a pink flower with gold trim painted pitcher for $4.99, 2 carnival glass bowls for $1.99 each and the kids found some card game for 99 cents for each pack/action figure.  Then we stopped at Sweet Repeats and I found a cute apron for $4, 4 yards of Raggedy Ann and Andy fabric for $4, a duck planter for $1 and a Donald Duck hankie for 50 cents.

Since the kids were such good sports, we bought ice cream at the Dairy Mart.  They have the best cookie dough "blizzard like" ice cream (say the kids) and I love their peanut butter milk shake.  The place always has a crowd. 

Elkhorn Flea Market

It was another beautiful day at the Elkhorn Flea Market.  Last year it rained for every one.  So far this year it has been sunny and warm for both.  It is fun to just walk around eating a donut and looking at all of the treasures for sale.  We did buy our share of food, as usual.  Ethan always gets a pickle on the stick for $1 for his breakfast at 7:30am.  The cheaper donuts are at the booth under the grand stand.  The donuts are only $1. 

I only spent $1 on a nice pink vase with gold trim and leaves on the sides.  Austin bought a dragon piece for $3 and a Digimon action figure for $3.  We didn't buy anything else today.  I did price some items that I have at home.  I always like to see what my things are worth.  Austin bought a Wolverine telephone at the last flea market for $5.  Today he saw the same thing for $18.  As we were walking away, the guy went down to $10.  Sometimes you don't even need to bargain.  The dealers will bargain for you.  Austin was excited that he got a good deal.

I'm so glad that the boys are learning the value of the dollar and how much they are willing to spend for an item.  The best part is that they are getting to be really good negotiators. 

Woodstock Garage Sales

We had a blast today!  There were a lot of sales in Woodstock that we went to.  We had stopped at one on Lily Pond Road and found so many things.  I found a milk glass pedestal cake plate for $2, fabric for 50 cents each, new in the package Bayblade toys for the kids at $1 each, brand new t'shirts for the boys of video games that they play for $2 each and a Dolce and Gabbana handbag brand new for $2.  I was so excited about the handbag.  It is brown patent leather.  What a find!

I found a glass covered container at another sale for $2 and I put my seashells into it.  I found a lot of shells when I was in Florida and needed another container for them.  Ethan found a handmade wooden turtle for 50 cents to add to his turtle collection.  I also found a vintage Christmas hankie and a Felix the Cat hankie for 50 cents each.  The kids found a Pokemon plush for 50 cents.  Sometimes you have to go to a lot of sales before you find something good.  In the afternoon, we went to some sales in Crystal Lake, but didn't find anything.  That's how it is.

I'm happy with my finds today.  Sunday I will be at the Elkhorn Flea market having more fun.    

St. Mary's/Montini Rummage Sale Today

We had so much fun!  We saw many friends and even made a few new ones.  We did the whole sale in 1 hour and 15 minutes.  Probably a new record.  Each classroom was filled with stuff.  Austin found some Bionicle things for $1 each and a Star Wars toy for $1.  Ethan found some computer games for $1 each and a Nintendo DS game for $1.  I found some needlepoint doilies for 50 cents to $1 and a needlepoint tablecloth for $3, a vintage Santa for 50 cents, decorative trim for $1.50, a book on gnomes for 50 cents and a really nice jacket for $2.  (Even though the kids didn't think the jacket was that great.  I did!)  Before the sale, we had stopped at a garage sale across the street.  We bought a whole box of Pokemon cards (hundreds) for $8, a Nerf gun and bags of bullets for $8, and a vintage light up plastic very large Santa for $4 that will go to my mom.    We had lots of fun even though we bought less than previous years.  You never know what you will find.

We stopped at quite a few sales on the way home.  Austin found another Nerf gun with bullets for $4.  (Notice his obsession with Nerf guns).  Since the Nerf guns are so expensive, this is the way to buy them.  Two of the garage sales were at the homes of people we know either from other sales or from Pokemon.  It is such a small world.  Running into people I know makes the day so much more fun. 

I still have to look in the paper for tomorrow's garage sales to map out our hunt.  I love garage sale days.  Sunday is the Elkhorn Wisconsin Flea Market at the Fairgrounds.  I always look forward to those flea markets.  They don't have one in July and then resume in August and September.

Thrift Store Stops

We took a few detours on our way home from Mount Prospect today.  We stopped at the Goodwill, but only Ethan found a computer game for $3.  Then, we stopped at the Sparrows Nest in Palatine on Route 14.  That is the only Sparrows Nest that I hadn't been to yet.  It is a nice store with a great selection.  Unfortunately, I didn't find anything there either.  Next to Barrington.  I hadn't been to the House of Hope (Rt 59 right off of the downtown) in a while.  Blue tickets were 1/2 off.  I found 2 items, but without blue tags.  I found a seashell box for $6 and an Everlast bamboo aluminum round tray for $4.  Austin found a Nerf gun for 50 cents.  I was happy that our treasure hunt turned up something.  Our last stop was at CatchaPenny in downtown Barrington.  It is around the corner from the House of Hope.  Everything was half off.  But, nothing for us.

We had fun exploring a few new thrift stores.  You never know what you will find.  I can't wait for tomorrow and the St. Mary/Montini rummage sale on Route 31 in McHenry.  We each have our bags ready!

Back From Vacation in Florida

I am back from my 2 week vacation in sunny Florida.  We were in Palm Beach for about 1 week then a few days at Disney and Universal Studios. 

The first day there, we went to the last day of the Palm Beach Flea Market.  Wow, was it expensive.  I was afraid to walk around and bump something.  Austin found the only deal of the day.  He got a Swiss movement Star Trek Spock watch for $20.  It is in great condition and the dealer gave him a deal because he was a kid.  There were a lot of thrift stores in Palm Beach on Dixie Highway, but I have to tell you, the prices were way too high from what I usually find.  The stores were pretty crowded, and I came home empty handed except for a Pokemon juice glass that I found at Netties on Dixie Highway.  It was surprising to find a great garden area out back with wonderful iron furniture and great pottery.  But again, the prices were too high compared to the thrift stores here in Illinois.  I was pretty disappointed.  I did find a great import store in Lake Worth that had nice jewelry and scarves for reasonable prices, so I did buy some things from there.  A few doors away is a consignment thrift store and I found a nice starfish pin for $4.  The prices there were a lot more reasonable.  It is a nice area to walk around and they have a Kilwins ice cream parlor and a Starbucks. 

On Saturday, after I took the boys to Pokemon, I stopped at a parking lot sale in a park in Cary.  I found 2 video games for $5 each and 2 red doilies and 2 great vintage Mammy aprons for a total of $5.  I was so happy to get back to garage saleing.  I was starting to have withdrawals.

Thursday June 21 is the rummage sale at St. Mary's/Montini School in McHenry.  I love this sale and will definitely be waiting on line.  Come by to say hi and to find some great treasures!

Another Chair!

Since Ethan was off of school yesterday, we went to the Goodwill in Lake Zurich.  We found a great vintage chair for $6.99.  How could anyone pass up a chair for that price?  It has great wooden carved legs with claw feet.  It just needed to have a few spots treated.  I washed those areas and it all came out.  I then let it soak up the sun and heat all day.  It is now Austin's basement chair to sit in while playing the Xbox.  It was Ethan's idea to buy it and I'm glad that we did.  I need to have my own garage sale soon since I have some chairs and bigger items that I need to sell to make room in the basement.  I'm shooting to have a sale in July. 

Today/Thursday:  It has been raining all day and it is only 47 degrees.  But, that didn't stop us from garage saleing before picking up Austin from his last day of school.  We stopped at an estate sale in McHenry and found some turtles and frogs for 50 cents each for the garden.  Then, we tried to do a neighborhood garage sale in McHenry (a yearly sale that I love to go to).  We went to as many as we could before freezing and getting really wet.  We found lots of video games on average of $2-3 each, Star Wars toys for 10 cents to $1, a super soaker for $1, nerf like machine gun with bullets for $3, some more frogs for the garden at 10 cents each, video game accessories, a great silver/turquoise belt buckle with leather belt for $1, a white beaded purse for $2, and lots of vintage jewelry for 50 cents to $3 each.  The jewelry and purse belonged to this women's mother in law so they had to be at least 40 years old.  I love finding this kind of stuff.  I wish the weather was better because there were a lot of houses to still go to and some that were closed and will open tomorrow. 

There are a few good sales this weekend and a rummage sale at St Johns Church in Woodstock on Friday.   Happy treasure hunting!

Savers Thrift Store in Crystal Lake

Well, we were bored this afternoon.  After flea marketing and garage saleing all weekend, we needed something to do.  So, we all went to Savers since they were having a 50% off sale on clothes and accessories.  Only Caldwell bought some clothes.  He bought 3 silk hawaiian like shirts for $9.  Pretty good price. 

I found 2 Wilton aluminum platters.  One has a grape pattern for $5 and the other is a smaller tray for $4.  I also found an Everlast candy dish for $4.  The lid has a fruit pattern on it and the handle is a pear.  The glass dish is extremely heavy with 3 sections.  I also found a sea shell box for $2 that has a fish and seaside scene in the front lid and a blue checked fabric piece for 50 cents.  Austin found 2 Transformers toys for $7 each.  He said the one was at the Cedarburg flea market yesterday for $25.  Ethan only found a Pokemon video for 50 cents. 

It was a lot of fun.  It was crowded with long lines to use the fitting rooms. The kids saw Savannah and Jordan from school.  It's always so much more fun when you see people you know.

Vintage Watering Cans

The stair stand that I just bought the other day is the perfect place to rest my vintage watering cans.  I love how it looks. 

Cedarburg Wisconsin Flea Market

We drove 2 hours today to shop the Cedarburg Wisconsin flea market.  And boy did we have fun!  We did have to park over 1 mile away on a side street because the parking area was under construction and there was no parking for the flea market.  The good part is that we didn't have to pay $4 to park and the entry was free.  We had to walk along a path, over fields and construction mud to get to the flea market, so we got our workout today.  It was extremely crowded.  It may have had something to do with it being the first flea market of the season and the temperature was great.  It started out at 63 degrees and when we left it was 74 degrees.  Perfect flea market weather.

We usually spend too much money on food, which we did today too.  We specifically went to get deep fried cheese curds and we found them.  Delicious!  The food was reasonably priced.  Donuts were $1, hot dogs $2 and french fries were $2.  A nice nutritious breakfast and lunch. 

A good deal of the vendors sell also at the Mukwanago and Elkhorn flea markets.  We found our friend that sells toys, specifically Pokemon.  We found her later in the day so she didn't have a lot of Pokemon items left.  But, the boys managed to find a few things anyway.  She always has a great selection of toys.  She is located in the white barn.  There were quite a few vendors selling toys at this flea market. 

I thought that prices were a little high, higher than at Elkhorn.  I did manage to find 2 vintage tablecloths for $1 each, a pink shell planter for $1 and a milk glass shell planter for $3.  The boys found some video games and Star Wars toys.  Those prices were reasonable. 

We stopped at the downtown historic area on the way out and found garage sales along the road.  We bought a plastic light up Santa (for my mom) for $3.   We walked around the downtown area for a while and got some really good ice cream.  Not many places were open, since it was Sunday.  If you go to the flea market, you may want to just walk around the downtown area.  It has some interesting places to eat, a winery and a nice garden store. 

We didn't hit any traffic going either way.  We may try to go back to the October flea market.  The other dates are: July 15, Sept. 2 and Oct 7.

More Memorial Day Weekend Sales

There were not a lot of sales today, but there were good ones.  I stopped at an estate sale in McHenry and found an Everlast aluminum handled tray for $3.  I stopped at my neighbor's garage sale and spent at least an hour going through all of the stuff.  There are 5 families selling at her sale.  I found the kids Pokemon stuff, and old video games and systems for $2.  I will take them back tomorrow morning to look for more things. 

I went to a few garage sales in Woodstock and found a Rodney Kent aluminum bowl for $1, a vintage rubber rabbit kids toy for 10 cents, and a Vera scarf for 50 cents.  Now I am finding more Vera scarfs since I'm on the lookout for them.  I went to Lois's barn sale on Garden Valley Road.  She always has such cool stuff.  I went home with a box full.  I found linens for 25 cents each, a lighthouse watercolor painting for $3, a Shawnee pottery piece for $4, a blue pedestal glass dish for $4, a milk glass covered piece for $2, a seashell pottery piece for $4, and a Star Wars stuffed animal for 50 cents.  The next Autumn Drive will be on Oct 19-21 on Garden Valley Rd and Franklinville Road in Woodstock/Marengo.   Rain or shine.  I have been there through both and even bitter cold, but it is well worth it.  It is already on my calendar. 

Happy Memorial Day weekend!  Hope you get to go treasure hunting.

A Few Memorial Day Weekend Sales

Only a few sales today.  I did find  for $5, a staircase plant stand.  I have always wanted one and the price was right today.  Yesterday, I stopped in at Interiors Anew in Woodstock and found a vintage wire bicycle basket for $12.  I have been looking for one to use on my Schwin bicycle.  That may be the most exciting item I find all summer.

There is a barn sale on Garden Valley Road in Woodstock that I like to stop in every Memorial Day weekend.  She is on the Autumn Drive, which is in October, and cleans out her barn this weekend.   I always find something.

Vera Neumann Scarfs

I stopped at the Goodwill in McHenry yesterday.  Lately, they haven't had a lot of items.  I was pleasantly surprised to see the store overflowing with items.  It seems that they have gotten a lot of donations, even some estate sales have donated items.  I found a miniature green lady figure for 49 cents and 3 Vera Neumann scarfs for $1.99 each.  I love finding Vera items. I usually look for her tablecloths or napkins.  They will have her name, Vera, on it followed by a ladybug.  I haven't looked for her scarfs, but found these 3 while just walking past the rack holding them.  I caught her name out of the corner of my eye.  It was a nice surprise!    The company is no longer in business.  Her designs are usually bright and eye catching.

I worked on getting the bed in my guest room ready for the summer weather.  I found a chenille hand embroidered coverlet at a garage sale a few years back for $3, and finally put it on the bed.  I always use hand embroidered pillowcases on the bed that I change with the seasons.  The 2 pillows on the bed, I made with vintage fabric and one is from an old chenille bedspread that had holes in it.  I made the bedskirt many years ago using a flat sheet and then sewed on vintage handkerchiefs.  It turned out nicely and it's a great way to display my handkerchief collection.

Elkhorn Flea Market

Today was the long awaited opening day of the Elkhorn Flea Market at the Fair Grounds in Elkhorn Wisconsin.  The admission is $5 per person with kids under 12 admitted for free.  Ethan is older than 12, but the girl at the gate didn't make us pay for him.  The weather was beautiful!  Usually we are wearing heavy coats and it's raining.  Today, no coats and the sun was shining.  The place was packed, but that was to be expected.  We found so many fun things.  I hope I can remember them all.  I found a musical piano at the booth that my friend Chris has.  It was $5.  I usually give the kids 1 every year at their piano recital.  So, I'm always on the lookout for them.  It was a nice gold metal one.  I bought 2-1950's silk scarves of Chicago for $3 each, one green and one red, a kids hankie with a squirrel on it for $2, a great sterling ring with gems designed as a flower for $20, a concrete gnome riding on a swan for my garden for $15 (all other gnomes I saw were priced from $30-$45), 4 new knitting needles for 25 cents, an African wood sculpture for $1, a Star Wars toy for $5, a vintage Wolverine telephone in the original box for $5, 4 doilies for 50 cents each, a sword for $4, Pokemon fabric for $2, and the best deal of the day was a rabbit fur coat for $5.  I saw the rack of vintage clothes with the sign:  All Clothes $5.  How could I resist?  I tried on the coat and it was love at first sight.  The lining was in great condition, so I was sold. 

We always end up buying lots of food to keep us going.  We arrived at 7am and left by 11:30am.  Nothing like having a pickle on a stick for $1 at 7:30 in the morning.  I saw a really nice vintage Coach purse in powder blue for $50.  She was willing to give it to me for $42, but my wallet didn't fit into it.  I liked it a lot, but it was a lot smaller then I like my purses to be.  Someone else got a great deal today.  It was in like new condition.  The dealers were willing to make lots of deals today.  It was a great day to be there.

Next Sunday is the flea market in Cedarburg Wisconsin.  I have never been to that one.  Our favorite dealer of toys/Pokemon toys is doing that show now.  We are going to try to get there.

Book Sale Plus More

The Cary Library book sale was a good sale again.  I was only a little disappointed that I didn't find more knitting books.  I think I bought them out at the last sale.  We did find a lot of Pokemon books and comic books.  The kids were happy.  Kids books were only 25 cents each so they bought whatever they wanted.  I did manage to find a few gardening books.  The library was packed with bargain hunters.

I managed to go to an estate sale in Cary after I took the kids to Pokemon.  I found an aluminum tray with a pinecone pattern on it from Everlast.  It was $5.  The tray was in very good condition.  After I picked them up from Pokemon, we stopped at a yard sale that was a few blocks down the street.  Ethan has been looking for the Men in Black 2 DVD and guess what?  We found it there for $1.  We also found the Incredible Hulk movies (with Bill Bixby) and a few other DVD's for $1 each.  We also found a Luke Skywalker large action figure for 50 cents.  It happened to be a good sale.  You never know what you will find unless you stop.  I always tell the kids that if there is something that you want to buy, just to be patient and we will find it sooner or later at a sale for much less.  Just like with the Men in Black 2 DVD.

Yesterday, I bought some Xbox 360 video games for $1 each.  I knew that we had the one, but for $1, I couldn't resist.  So today, we went to Gamestop to preorder a video game coming out on Tuesday, and they gave us $21 for that game to be used towards the one that we are preordering.  Ethan was so excited.  Not bad for $1.  Those kinds of finds make my day. 

I am really looking forward to the Elkhorn Flea Market tomorrow.  Hope you can make it there also.  You will have a really good time and will leave with a full trunk.  Happy treasure hunting!

Fun Treasures!

Another fun, fun day.  I stopped at the Christian Fellowship church rummage sale on Walkup in Crystal Lake today.  They had a lot of stuff inside and out.  I found 2 books for $1, 3 Halloween costumes for a total of $3.50 even with the ball and chain, a Nerflike gun for $1, a silver cuff bracelet for $3, a Christmas doily for 50 cents, 2 purses for $1 each so I can use the handles for my felted purses, and quite a few action figures for $1.50.  See, no matter what time I go to a rummage sale, I always find something.  I was a half hour late after opening at this one.  After that, I went to the Caring Transitions estate sale in Lakewood and found 2 old Nintendo video games for the kids.  They were $5 each which is a good price for vintage games.  I didn't find anything at the Caring Transitions estate sale in McHenry.  I stopped at a garage sale in McHenry and found a neat pair of red leather gloves with fur trim for $2.  There was also a neighborhood sale in Martin Woods in McHenry where I found Xbox and Xbox 360 games for $1 each so I bought the ones that I hope my kids don't have.  How can you go wrong for $1 each.   If they already have the games, we will trade them in for credit at Gamestop or sell them at our next garage sale.

One thing that I love about going around to garage/rummage sales, is the people that you meet.  I saw some friends at the rummage sale today.  One is a new friend that I met when she was having her garage sale 2 weeks ago.  I didn't know her before her sale, but since her sale, I have been running into her at so many other sales.  We may start garage saleing together.  It was neat to find out that she was originally from Philadelphia.  She said that she was spending time at the Jersey shore this summer.  How cool is that.  Since I was born and raised in New Jersey, I thought that was so wonderful.

I put the seashell collection that I bought yesterday on my fireplace mantle.  It looks so nice and summery there.

The St Mary's/Montini church rummage sale in McHenry will start on June 21.  This is one that I look forward to all year.  There is always so much stuff well priced.  Last year, we made 3 trips to the car to unload.  Hope this year is as much fun.

Remember, tomorrow is the Cary Library book sale and on Sunday is the Elkhorn Wisconsin flea market in Elkhorn at the fair grounds.  Enjoy the weather and find some treasures!

Fun Day of Treasure Hunting

Today was so much fun.  There were quite a few garage sales in McHenry, Crystal Lake and Woodstock that I stopped at.  I found 3 great concrete planters and a black wrought iron beverage cart for a total of $30.  I was so excited since I have been wanting a beverage cart for a long time now.  It is a nice one and I already have many uses for it in mind.  I also went to the neighborhood sale in Crystal Lake by the lake.  I found some great vintage/some not vintage jewelry pieces at 2 different sales.  They were priced from $2-$5.  I just love finding jewelry.  It made my day!   I also found a concrete frog planter ($3) for the garden.

The kids and I stopped at the Grace Lutheran church rummage sale in Woodstock an hour after the sale started.  They were pretty cleaned out, but we managed to find a few things.  I found 3 vintage linen/doily pieces (the smaller pieces were 10 cents each and the larger one was $1),  a wonderful large seashell filled with unique shells for $2, 2 books, a Pokemon stuffed animal and in the FREE box, a troll doll.  Another addition to my mother's collection.  I just couldn't pass up a FREE item.  So, even though you may get to a rummage sale a little late, you can always find a treasure.  I seem to. 

Tomorrow I will be getting to the Christian Fellowship sale a little late, but I'm not worried.  I'm sure I will find a treasure.  Caring Traditions is having 2 estate sales tomorrow.  One is in McHenry and the other is in Lakewood.  Not to mention that there are a lot of garage sales and neighborhood sales.  Happy hunting!

Gardening

I spent a good part of yesterday planting my tomato and pepper plants.  The kohlrabi and swiss chard are starting to take off and I harvested all of the lettuce.  We used the lettuce in our tacos at dinner.  Once again, I rearranged some of my garden art.  I'm sure I will do that numerous times this summer.

We saw twin fawns this morning in the woods.  They had to have been born in the early part of the morning since they were still "wet" and couldn't really stand.  Momma doe was close by, but she was resting.   It was so beautiful to see up close.  We see twins about every other year.  I can't wait to see them when they are playing and jumping in my yard.  It is a really magical experience to see them up close.

Garbage Picking

The town of McHenry started their curbside garbage throw out days.  I don't know how long it goes on for.  But, I was riding around today, as were others, looking for stuff.  I found 3 windows in good condition.  I am saving them for when I finally build my garden shed.  I also found a framed cork board bulletin board. It is in great condition with brown paper on the back and the hangers.  I have been wanting to make one, but now I don't have to.  I can't wait to see what else I will find this week.  The best part is that it is FREE!

I stopped at the Goodwill in McHenry and found 3 Tazmanian Devil drinking glasses for 99 cents each and a made in Japan bowl for $1.99.  I will be giving the glasses to my father who collects Tazmanian Devil things.

Friday is the Christian Fellowship Church rummage sale on Walkup in Crystal Lake.  It starts at 8am.  On Saturday is the Cary Library Book sale at 9am.  This is a really good book sale. 

Happy garbage picking!