Okay, so May was a really great month for yard sales and I had to wonder to myself if it would all go downhill in June after everyone pretty much cleared out all the good stuff already.So I hit the sales with a new ysale friend in toe, Jenn, and warned her that it might not be the best timing. I was wrong! It was a great weekend in sales, I got a few items I REALLLY have wanted and have had on my hit list for quite some time. I think there could be two scenarios working this weekend, one is that there were lots of yard sale procrastinators, who waited till June to clear out, or scenario two would be that June will also be an awesome month for yard sales. I’m hoping scenario two is correct!!!

New BYO Lunch Bag, $2

This lunch bag is SO flipping cute. I’ve always thought the ones made out of this material were sweet because the collapse small, look and feel fun. So when I saw a brand new one with the tags still on and a little sandwich tupperware to boot I didn’t think twice about dropping 8 quarters, or $200 pennies.

Strawberry Shortcake Tin

My cousin Jessie, who lives in Washington state, is a collector of all things Strawberry Shortcake. In fact when she read my blog, she made a point to let me know if I ever found SS goods, that I must purchase them without a second thought, and ship them to her for lots of smiles and happiness. I’ve been to hundreds of sales since she mentioned this, and this weekend I finally found a cute little vintage tin, perfect for her collection!

Japanese Maple, $1

MY FAVORITE TREE IN THE WORLD IS A JAPANESE MAPLE. Wait.. I just remembered that I love Dogwood trees more. But Japanese Maple a VERY close second. Yes, I love these trees, perhaps a bit too much. But I’ve never bit the bullet and purchased one for myself.. that is until I found one that was just the right price! $1 buck for a little baby sapling. I hope I can raise it to maturity and plant it in my front yard for the world to see and be jealous of my awesome tree.

Lemonade Jar, $4

You may remember my horror story about the pottery barn glass pitcher that was purchased for our wedding, that I sadly broke! You may also remember the white ones I purchased last year to replace my beautiful glass one. While I still love those, they are only really good if I’m having a LOT of beverage in them (2 gallons?), not for a small group, which is usually the scene at my house. So when I saw this beautiful glass one that holds less than a gallon, for $4 I didn’t even try to negotiate. It’s practical and beautiful and I wanted it, no questions asked.

New Mandolin Slicer, $2

You may also remember last year when I was obsessed with finding a food processor? It turns out they don’t do the various slicing that I was really looking for. Shredding, blending, pulsing, and one shaped disks yes. But if you want different sizes, widths, textures, you must invest in one of these. So I’ve had it on my list for some time. And this seller was looking for $2 for a whole set up with the protective tape still on all of the blades! If I ever think sleeping in is much better than going out hunting for a bargain, please remind me of my $2 mandolin.

And now it’s time for the YFOTW! The Yard Sale Find Of The Week might look like an odd one, but it really was the item that I was the most excited to find, at exactly the right time.

Graduation Bear, $3

A teddy bear? Whaat? It happens to be the most perfect teddy bear I have ever stumbled upon. This saturday, my cousin Hayley Graduated High School! Perhaps she was walking to get her diploma at the exact moment I purchased this bear?! Earlier in the day, I mentioned to Jenn while seeing a different teddy bear, gosh I hope I find a teddy bear with a little graduation cap for my cousin. Then at the second to last stop of the whole day, I find this perfect little bear that holds a little note. Then I get it home and unwrap it, and realize, it plays the graduation commencement march if you squeeze its left foot. And it also allows you to record a personalized message for playback! So of course I recorded, “Congrats Hayley, Class of 2011! We’re so proud of you!!”

I think after another successful day of sailing its safe to say, I LOVE MAY YARD SALES. Not only is the weather, spot on, but so are the gems out there waiting to be picked! I was soooo excited when I saw my favorite mid-century modern neighborhood in richmond, Highland Hills was having their neighborhood yard sale this weekend. I knew I couldn’t pass it up. And boy am I glad I didn’t, all my treasures this week could be YFOTW!!

Cowboy Boots, $1

Yehaw! What a kickin good deal!! I cant believe I got these awesome boots for just a buck. It helps boost my ego that they came from my super stylish pal, Melissa. Now I want to go back to Billy Bob’s and get my two step on.

Paper Towel TP Holder, $1

I love this rustic iron birdy paper towel holder so much! I originally bought it because I liked it more than our current paper towel holder, feeling silly about breaking my, “only if I need it rule.” And then I realized a new use for it, TP! It looks so cute in my bathroom, and for just $1 that always makes me smile.

Card File Cabinet, $5

What are the odds of finding aweome metal card filing cabinets two weeks in a row? I know!! Pretty slim to none. I know you’re wondering how could I possibly have another use for these, but I do! Its going to be a tool box for my husband. The first set was to organize my craft supplies and thread, my god I love mine! Now I know Travis isnt so much into organizing, but I think he will love his too.

Sweet Necklace, $1

This little gem was so neutral and beautiful. Just Carley’s style at just Carley’s price!

Okay now it’s time for the Yard Sale Find(s) of the week! Yes there are two, but they were a package deal.. And I love them both a lot.
Mid-Cetury Modern Metal Table & Chairs, $20

I cannot say how much I love these, because words do not even describe it. When the seller said $20, I made an executive decision without consulting my husband. Usually we decide together on furniture purchases, but these belong in our life. I know they are rusted and need a lot of work, but holy cow, they are so freaking cool! We plan on sanding them down and maybe painting them a vintage orange or seafoam green. I know when we have a sunny patio one day, they will be the perfect furniture accessory!

Clock, $0

So the seller threw in this awesome clock for free, when I asked really sweetly, if I could give her $20 for the lot. No this was not a find for me, we’ve got our fill of household clocks, it now lives at my neighbors home across the street, because she was in search of a new fun clock and this one fit the bill!

Gotta love cute pups and big bones!

A drizzly saturday forecast did not predict a successful day yard sailing. Or so we thought. It was my nifty sidekick Ashley’s first week back in action and it was a good weekend full of finds!

Let’s see the good’s!

Retro Lawn Chairs $2

Travis and I were saying just a couple weeks ago that we so wanted a set of these old lightweight practical lawn chairs. And the church across the street from our house must have been listening to our wishlist and granted us these beauties for a really great price!

Retro Lawn Lounger $2

Okay so the lounger we don’t reaaaally need especially since it’s not in a pair, but you know, now I am inspired to go tanning in my backyard!

Portable Cake Stand, $2

I’ve been wanting a travel cakestand for a while now, since it is something I will make use of since I like making cakes for friends special occasions. Well, the usual ones I find are either ugly tupperwear or too hard to get open. Then this beauty came in my life and future birthdays better watch out!

Egg costume, $1

This is going to make a cheesy halloween costume! I’m so stoked!

Enameled creamer, $.50 cents

I love all things enameled and so what If I only get to use this once every couple years. It will still look cute with my other cute tea collectibles.

Four Metal Card Filing Cabinets, $3

Wow, this was too good of a deal to pass up. I’ve always loved these babies for their style organizational powers, but to see four in a cute antiquey color for $.75 cents a piece.. Iets just say a little happy dance was made and an extra trip home just to make room for other goodies. In a world where I am the only awesome shopper, this would have been my YFOTW. However, this week’s yard sale find comes from my side kick, who managed to somehow bat her pretty little eyelashes and score incredible deals!!

And now for the Yard Sale Find Of The Week:

A MILLION Mason Jars, $3.25

Yes, Ashley managed to get over 30 mason jars for less than ten cents a piece on average! First she scored the box of tiny mason jars with handles for just a buck, then she scored the four glass ones with lids for a miraculous quarter. Then she used that awesome deal to talk down another seller from selling her valuable aqua bell jars for just $2 for the whole box!! (They sell in antique stores for $8-$12/ jar with the lid). She plans on using these treasures on her wedding centerpieces. Which are well on their way to being awesome and affordable! Just goes to show patience is always on your side!

I’ve got a double whammy of postings for this entry, yard sale finds & yard sale summary! I turned the tables and hosted my very first yard sale two weekends ago. That’s right instead of gathering stuff for my pad, I purged TONS of stuff, and I must say it felt good. Oh wait, who am I kidding I did gather a bunch of stuff for my pad from my fabulous friend Catie, and my awesome neighbors Jason & Lauren.. ah well, what can I say, purging feels just as good as scoring free goods from you’re awesome friends!

Let me go through the motions of our yard sale process, two weeks prior Catie and I mad a game plan and split up some duties including :
Signage,
Craigslist postings
Flyer Design & Posting.
I made a groovy flier with the little tare tags with our address and time of sale and Catie posted it in our favorite nearby coffee shops. I also put the signs in the most trafficked corners, complete with balloons for attention grabbing goodness. I gotta say it doesn’t hurt that I live three houses away from a major road, making it possible to gather a lot of drive by traffic.

We had a good amount of visitors, and even the early birds. Travis thought I was crazy to start our Sale at 7 AM but we had two customers waiting in our driveway before we even peeled out of bed at 6:45. Those first two buyers scored my portable record player and a few records that I’ve loved to look at for several years, but have only listened to just a couple times, ALL of my unwanted CD’s and DVD’s (Approx 30 cds and 20 dvd’s) for $70 bucks! I made the bulk of my cash in less than 10 minutes of opening my door. It was sweet! It definitely set the mood for the rest of the day, because in the end we scored nearly $200 profit on my unwanted junk. WAHOO! The way I see it, that’s a great budget to give myself for this summer’s yard sale season!

Let’s take a look at the set up shall we:

And my most notable sale belongs to:

My Life Size Victoria Secret Pink Dog for $7. The girl who bought it parked in the middle of the road, and got out of her car squeeling about being able to purchase this cherished item. I was almost hoping it didn’t sell because it’s been a part of my household for the past 6 or 7 years and has a special place in my heart. But in the end, Vickie needed to go, she doesn’t fit my decor, had a wobbly foot, and broken ear.

So while it was sad to see some of my items be rehomed, I was happy to clense my home of them and make some moolah while doing so. We still had what felt like 90% of the items we started with, and made two trips to For the Love of Jesus thrift store to donate the rest. Travis described donating to this thrift store as the best experience in thrift store donation to date. Several people unloaded our truck, we didn’t have to wait for them to unload and they were very gracious for the items we donated to them. Will be donating any other banned items to this store in the future.

Since I have had the big cleanse, I don’t know how this year’s season is going to go. I spent all saturday morning going to nearly 20 yard sales, and only purchasing one item! I KNOW! My blog is in danger of extinction. I think I realize I will not be purchasing items that I don’t see having a permanent (or semi permanent) place in my home moving forward. But don’t worry, I have a few other plans for ye blog that do not include my addiction to finding a good deal.

With that being said, let’s look at this weeks YFOTW

Rattan Hamper, $2

Ok so this is proof that I mean business with my new found consumerism declaration. Only buying things I really need in my life. A good sturdy attractive hamper, is definitely on that list. Especially with a $2 price tag! I’ve searched far and wide to find a hamper that meets my aesthetic, and budget, never being satisfied with either and sticking with the old white Rubbermaid basket for as long as I can remember. But I finally get to retire that as my bedroom hamper, in favor of this much more attractive and even more affordable laundress.