Garage Sale Treasures

I am a true blue garage sale junkie and proud of it. I would much rather find someone else's junk, CHEAP, and turn it into something wonderful than pay full price for something brand new that looks like everybody else's stuff. Which explains why my house is full of mismatched antiques instead of looking all matchy-matchy like a Pottery Barn salesfloor. Oh, and also because I'm broke. There is that.

So today mom and I set out bright and early to find some junk. Well, not too bright and early because Dan and the kids and I stayed out until one in the morning playing at the Maloney's house. LeeAnn and I had an almost perfect score on Karaoke Revolution singing Blondie's "Call Me." If I hadn't gone high instead of low at the very end, we'd have had a 100%. Instead, she got 100% and I only got 95%.

But I digress. Back to the junk.

Here's a list of all the treasures I scored today for my new house:

• a brown and beige area rug...FREE
  
• three sets of chocolate brown wooden shelves with tan and brown canvas bins for storage...$25


• an antique iron pole lamp for my reading nook in the living room (which was green and rusty and needs to be rewired, but I've already cleaned and primed it and it's going to be gorgeous)...$5


• a chandelier for my dining room (which came with six mini lampshades that sell for $4.15 each at Lowe's and was ugly, shiny brass but I've already painted it hammered bronze and it's SO pretty)...$2.50
  
• a red, white, and blue crocheted afghan for one of the boys' rooms made of some kind of REALLY soft yarn (you can't even buy the yarn for this price)...$1.50
  
• a Shop Vac for Dan's new workshop...$10.00
  
• a Star Wars Battlefront CD-Rom for the boys...$1.00
  
• a mini Transformer for Aaron...$0.10
  
• and a COUCH (which, okay, it's off-white so it's a little dirty and I didn't really need it, but I couldn't resist the price so I brought it home and shampooed it with mom's steam cleaner. If it doesn't come clean it'll go in the garage and be Lily's couch.)...$10.00

Mom and I set out to find outdoor furniture for my new patio or a gazebo, but didn't find any of that. Instead, I bought $30 worth of Rustoleum and I'm going to refinish mom and dad's old metal lawn chairs that have been sitting out behind their garage rusting for a few years. They look a little bit rough right now, but when I'm finished they will look like these.

I love me some vintage stuff. Must be why I'm still lovin' on Dan after all these years.