random garage sales.

Published on by Quandie

Normally I stick with the big community wide garage sales on a Saturday.  It’s a great way to fit in 50 – 60 sales in just a few hours.  The reality of garage saling is that you’ll find great vintage stuff at about one out of 10 sales (I totally made up that stat, but you get my point, right?).

This past Saturday my sister and I had planned to go to the Cannon Falls community wide sales.  We were going to make a day of it and also visit the winery in town.  I was picturing a beautiful, crisp fall day when we made these plans.  In years past I’ve had to wear a jacket and a hat for the Cannon Falls sales because we usually get a cold snap right about now.  However, it was 92 and humid here on Saturday and I just didn’t have it in me to get up at 7 a.m. and drive the 40 minutes to Cannon Falls.

So instead my sister and I decided to hop in my convertible and drive into the city stopping at random sales along the way.  It was the perfect day to buzz around with the top down on the car.  My sister was in charge of sign spotting, although she still needs to work on those skills.  I definitely needed one of those bumper stickers that say “I brake for garage sales” because she never saw the signs until the last possible second.  We only got cursed at once, and that time we weren’t even stopping at a sale, I was turning off to let a very impatient driver get ahead of me.

My sister and I are really very compatible garage salers.  Neither of us wants to spend time looking at clothes or toys and other kid stuff, so we pass those sales right on by.  My sister is only looking for things to use in her own home whereas I am looking for cool vintage stuff to re-purpose and ultimately sell, so we tend to not pick the same stuff most of the time.  And my sister is a Disney fanatic.  So you can imagine the fun we had when one of the first sales we stopped at had tables full of Disney collectibles.

Debbie bought some pieces for herself, and I bought some pieces to wrap up for her for Christmas.  That sale had a nice selection of vintage stuff too, including quite a few vintage suitcases.  I just bought one, although in hindsight I don’t know why I didn’t buy more.  Garage sale regret strikes again.

Another sale we stopped at also had some great vintage pieces.  I grabbed the red oil can and talked my sister into the copper one.

She has always admired the oil cans I painted and turned into photo holders …

So now is her chance to make her own.  We later stopped off at Hobby Lobby for some of the little clips I used to hold the photos in place, plus a small jar of dark blue chalk paint for Debbie to use to paint hers.

When the garage sales started to dry up, and the day started to really heat up, we stopped off at a huge, very nicely air conditioned, thrift store.  Debbie has been looking for vintage plaid Faribo wool throws for her patio.

I just love that their tags say “purveyors of warmth and comfort since 1865”.  So far she has only found one genuine Faribo, and several no-name wool throws.  But the no-name versions will do until she has a Faribo for every chair.

I found a cute pair of bowls at the thrift store.

I’d been looking for some new dishes for my cat.  This is embarrassing to admit, but she has been eating out of the old dog dishes that we’ve had since we had a dog … um, like five years ago.  It’s about time I got her some pretty cat sized dishes!

Now Lucy can dine in style.

For me the find of the day was this old photo of a farmstead that someone enlarged and put on a canvas.

I don’t know what it is that I find so appealing about it, but I’m just drawn to it.

Check out the back …

It definitely has some age to it.

I wish I had realized how fragile the front was before I put it in the trunk of the car.  I ended up cracking the photo in several places and I’m very bummed about that.  But I still think it’s going to look awesome just as soon as I find the perfect spot for it in my home.

In general, the prices were lower at these random sales than they tend to be at neighborhood sales.  But we also came home with fewer items overall.  It’s a trade-off.  We had a fun time just driving around following the signs where they took us though.  We’d definitely do it again!

Oh, and I almost forgot, the winners of the hello fall banners were Barbara and Laura.  I know I have more than one Barbara and Laura among my readers, but I sent an email to the correct ones, so if you didn’t get an email, I’m sorry to say it’s not you.  Thanks so much to everyone who took the time to leave a comment last Friday though, and if you didn’t win one, I promise they are quite easy to make so just follow my directions from Friday and give it a go.

22 thoughts on “random garage sales.”

  1. I realize you waited a long time to have your sister live locally. But I have to admit I have garage sale partner envy! Now that my shopping partner (daughter) is living in Charleston I obviously need to enlist a new recruit. Much more fun to go with someone don’t you think? I am considering my husband but that may require bribery. I am a wool throw/blanket wannabe collector myself. So far my collection is limited to two. I snagged one to go with an inherited one from my husband’s grandfather. I purchased a lovely “looking one” last year @ Kirklands because it was perfect for Christmas. Instead of wool it’s acrylic, but with use, it unfortunately pills badly. Word to the wise wool is the ticket. And even nicer if they are vintage. Love the one Deb picked up nice find.

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    1. It is so much more fun to garage sale with someone else! Especially someone who just enjoys coming along for the ride like my sister does. I’m afraid my husband would not be a viable option even with bribery. I can just picture it now, ‘are we done yet?’ And you’re so right about the difference between the wool and acrylic. Last night Debbie and I were comparing the two and it’s an obvious difference. Hopefully we’ll find more of the real Faribo’s for Debbie’s collection.

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    2. The colors are really nice on the name brand one and it is really soft. The other four are nice but not quite the same. We have been finding them really cheap in the thrift stores. It is a lot of fun going to garage sales together with my sister.

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  2. So fun to read your garage sale posts. I am curious…how much would you pay for the Lard Silverleaf tin can-bucket in the background of your oil can photo? Thanks again.Love your blog!

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      1. Thank you. I found a few here at a store but they are $32. I thought that was a bit steep. I love them. So Cute for an indoor kitchen plant. I will keep looking. 😊

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      2. Well, $32 does sound steep. Especially when compared to $2! And so funny, that’s exactly what I told my sister, that it would be cute with a plant in it!

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  3. Love that you can do the sister garage sailing together! My sister lives somewhat close, (ha, it’s an hour away) but garage sailing is not her cup of tea. So I recruit my husband which is fine but he spends a lot of money on tools! Love the blanket, I have some old cotton woven pattern ones, but the are getting a little threadbare. Thanks for the Monday morning pick me up!

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  4. Congrats on your garage and thrift store finds and also to Barbara & Laura for their win of your adorable banners. You are so fortunate to have such a fun and loving sister and garage sale partner! A day with you two sounds like a dream come true for me. Thanks for sharing your finds. I especially love the idea of the photo holder oil can. I had never seen that before and it’s precious.

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  5. Don’t ya just love those random garage sale finds! One of my favs from this summer was a 1976 Fall/Winter JC Penney catalog. I just had to have it to prove to my girls (born in the 70s) why I dressed them the way I did and that what they now think was ‘dorky’ was actually cool back then. 🙂

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  6. You have found some wonderful finds. I to love going to garage sales. My husband sometimes goes with me to the sales. We also attend estate sales sometimes to. I love it when he goes with me. Thanks for your wonderful post sharing your wonderful finds

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  8. I love to go to garage sales. “One man’s trash is another man’s treasure.” Boy can you find some treasures! I love the treasures that you found. I love, love the canvas! What a great find.I had forgotten about the oil cans that you did. Perfect size instead of a frame for a desk. I am on the hunt now! Thanks.

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    1. Those are Tim Holtz rub-on’s. You can sometimes find his stuff at craft stores like Michaels or Hobby Lobby, or you can search for them online.

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