Garage Sale Finds

Last weekend the Mister and I went garage saleing around Hamilton. We were pretty late to the game because we felt like sleeping in. That's pretty much bad news when it comes to garage sales, but this time we struck gold!



I found these pretty matching vintage flat sheets that are in EXCELLENT condition. I plan on using the fabric to make something pretty, but I can't decide what I'll use it for just yet.

I love using vintage sheets for making quilts and dresses. We'll just have to see what the sheet wants to be made into!

... AND THEN ...



We got these little beauties.

A little fact for you: The first thing I do when I'm at a garage sale is run to see if they have any little vintage trinkets or figurines. I'm obsessed with little owls, deer, and cats. Unfortunately, I can never find them.


When we got to this particular sale I, like always, ran to the trinkets area. There were figurines... but no deer. No owls. I sort of forgot my manners and made a sad face stating that I was looking for deer or owls. "Deer or owls you say?" the little British lady (who was having the garage sale) said, "Hold on". And then she ran inside her house! She came out a minute later, panting for breath and handed me the deer and the littler owl. She said she didn't need them. They were just sitting ona shelf collecting dust. I almost died right there! She sold us the figurines and some sort of wrench or tool for Phil (Sorry, Phil, I forgot what it is called) for 4 dollars. SO STOKED!!!


The larger owl figurine was a present from Phil while I was in the States. He found it at a market. I love it so much! It's actually a salt shaker.
Best. Salt shaker. Ever. (Best husband ever)


Sigh. Garage sale happiness.

xoxo
Talia Christine

Ngatea Monster Markets

This Saturday the mister took me to Ngatea to shop the town's annual monster markets. Basically the whole town sets up stalls and has yard sales. It's incredible. There was so much stuff it was overwhelming. We found some amazing stuff at incredible prices and I can't wait to go next year!!

We got these gorgeous school atlases dated from around 1940. We plan to keep them for our coffee table. They have such character and are fun to look through.



They belonged to a Richard and Albert Dick. I assume they were brothers. We purchased the pair for $2.50. Not bad!

We scored two grocery bags full of leather scraps of different sizes and colors for 5 bucks. I plan to try my hand at making some leather wallets, cuffs, and moccasins. I can't wait!



I found this gorgeous vintage sheet for a dollar. I plan to either cut it up for quilting squares or use it as a backing for a quilt. It's sooo so soft. I love how it feels.



One of my absolutely favorite finds are these two vintage tins with cats on them. AHH!! They are soooo funny! They make me giggle so much.



We paid $5.00 for the pair which is a lot compared to what we spent on the other things but they are my favorite! So worth it. Me and Phil call them the "Cattins". I have no idea what I'm going to do with them yet, other than love them to pieces.



We also managed to snag an entire junior's bookset (17 books in all I think?) for $2.00. I love that all the books match in the same theme. There are a lot of classics in the mix and a few I'm not familiar with.
I love how they smell. It was a great find!

And now, here is my find of the century. We found a gorgeous handmade New Zealand spinning wheel for... get this... 20 dollars! It's in excellent condition! AHH!!




We did a little googling and found that the wheel is worth around $250-$300. The bobbins are gigantic and are easily 3x the size of my Ashford traditional bobbins. YAY! It's really a little beauty. I can't believe we found her and at such a great price. Also, the seller threw in a bag of wool from their own sheep. It's really great stuff too! Sigh.

Lastly we got a brand new still-in-the-box juicer for $25.00. The box still had a price sticker of $165.00.



Phil started juicing as soon as we got home. He's been dying to see if you can juice kiwifruit. The answer is yes, you totally can. We had to water down the juice a bit because it was a bit intense, but after that it was really yum!

We also purchased some tools for Phil: a sander, a skill saw, and a chain saw (Not pictured, because I was distracted by my new spinning wheel and forgot to photograph them.)

Yes, we made like bandits. Like I said, I can't wait for next year!!

xoxo
Talia Christine

Yard Sale: Conquered!!

Dear Yard Sale,
We powered through. You have been conquered.



This weekend was so hectic and the outcome so rewarding! I love yard sales and really had no idea how much work went into putting a yard sale together. We were out from morning till evening on Friday and Saturday and it was a complete success!! It was hard at first to go through all my things and prepare to let them go, but in the end it was good to let things go and mentally prepare for our new lives in New Zealand.

Our preparations began the week before as we made tons of trips back and forth from my storage unit pulling out my things and sorting through them. Phil and the boys loaded all the furniture up and out. Phil and I tagged and put prices on everything. Our work was cut out for us and we were ready to get the garage sale going and behind us. We put up signs. We put up ads. We put up a listing on Craig's list and started to cross our fingers.


Day 1: Feeling optimistic and ready to go!

We woke up bright and early and lugged out all of my worldly possessions onto the lawn. Before we could even finish pulling stuff out onto the lawn people were already swarming in! And let me tell you people... yard-salers are animals. Yikes. I had no idea! Nobody warned me!!




The lovely Miss Ashtin Paige stopped by too! She brought us slushies and hugs and bought a few things too! Thanks, Ashtin! Those slushies were a life saver! YOU ARE THE BEST!



In the end we sold almost everything. The only big items that were left were some large bookshelves, which we may keep here at my mom's house. It was incredible! I was blown away by the success of the yard sale. We were truly blessed. This was a huge answer to prayer.



Here are my two favorite pictures of the day. My two favorite helper boys!!
Boots and Phil:



We made it through! We are still recovering.

Hope your weekend was wonderful!!

xoxo
Talia Christine