Old Thrifts and A New Surprise!

Hello, there!

It has been about two weeks since I moved back

into my safe haven.

<3

Every time it's kind of a shock,

going from always having somebody around,

even when I am "alone" in my room,

to having a living space all to myself.

It's lonely and blissful at the same time,

solitude.

I adore it, though.

All of my Christmas decorations are still up,

so my room is about the same as when I left.

I decided to keep the Christmas spirit around

until January was over.

It seems like everyone is always in a rush

to pack up the Holidays right after they end...

I prefer letting them sink in a bit.

I know how much I'll miss them when they're all packed away.

I made sure to take plenty of pictures of my

Christmassy room to look back to...

Even the not Christmassy parts.

^.^

On our way back to the dorms,

Mum and I stopped at all our favorite junking places!

We made a huge day out of it.

I got so many good deals

that I won't be able to put everything in just one picture

like I normally do.

I just took pictures of my finds at each stop...

... Alright, so before I share my amazing finds,

I am going to share with you why I keep finding finds.

It's not like I have a whole house to fill,

so there isn't any need to thrift SO often...

but now there is.

Mum and I have a shop!

Tadaa!

That is the big surprise!

My parents are closing on it on Tuesday,

then we start cleaning it out and sorting through it-

the previous owners left behind all of their antiques-

and making it our own!

It's my Mom's baby-

I only have one room to decorate and sell from out of seven-

but I'm leaving the country for a year,

so one is all I will be able to handle!

>.<

My mom is so excited-

I have never seen her so giddy over anything.

So this is the plan-

The shop is going to be called My Fabulous Junk,

named after the blog my Mom wanted to start when I started mine.

I am going to be changing her personal blog into the shop blog

and doing both that and Musical Blueberry.

At least until I leave the country.

:P

So that will be coming up soon.

Pictures of the building, before and afters,

and Mum's junking trips and refinishing projects

will all be on My Fabulous Junk.

My own personal room in the shop,

and what goes there with my own projects and finds

will remain here,
along with what is already here, of course.

(X

--

Okie dokie!

At the first out of six junk shops Mum and I went to,

my total was $3.

The pretty bowl with the lid

(that came with a tray that I'm not crazy about)

was originally $5.

When they said it was five, I put it back,

and a sweet old lady looked at me and said,

"You're right. $5 is too much...

How about two?"

I just smiled and nodded.

I love old ladies.

The two doilies, two amber colored vases

and Avon jar amounted to $1,

and the old Bible was free.

(X

I also got this mirror there

in with the stuff that added up to $1.

I like decorating on top of these- so fun!

The next stop wasn't one where I found a whole lot,

but where there is a vintage Avon bottle for cheap,

there is success.

This one was 50 cents

from the same place I found the one

I showed in the last post.

The owner went ahead and threw in

these sparkly autumn leaves for free.

^.^

The next stop was great!

I had to haggle a bit- I'm not a huge haggler,

but when it's a resale barn,

I want to get a good deal.

This darling little velvet purse was originally $10-

the owner came down to five. (YES!)

The old bowl was marked $1, and this awesome

side table was marked $7.

I asked if she would just sell the whole Kit & Kaboodle

for $10. She hesitated, but I guess she just couldn't say no to this face.

Another "YES!"

XD

After that barn, we stopped at another one.

This is where my favorite finds came from!

These two absolutely perfect teacuppy shelves

are absolutely perfect teacuppy shelves!

AAAH!

So, I've shopped here before,

only once, but I figured out what tactic to use:

No matter how much something is marked,

just take it up to the front and make a pile,

then ask, "How much for all of this?"

I got such a good deal!

Both of the shelves were marked $8 a piece,

but I got the whole pile for only $10:

The shelves, an old gold picture frame,

a glass gallon jug to use as a donation jar,

and an antique cameo pendant

that's shown at the beginning of this post.

I am so excited to use those shelves in my shop room, guys!

Teacups, teacups, teacups!

I'm definately making that place a regular stop

from now on.

XD <3

Next, Mum and I went to our favorite place-

the place I got Cinderella's pumpkin carriage...

... Also where I get a great percentage of my flowers! >.<

This old Victorian lamp

(which I imagined right away lighting up my room

in the shop)

was the first thing I picked up.

I also found a couple of autumn flower sprigs, a rose,

a picture frame, a lyre decoration and an "ice twig fruit garland".

That's what it said on the tag.

XP

The garland was untouched

and still in it's original packaging, tags and all.

It's got such a whimsical look to it.

^.^

Finally, at the last stop,

I rummaged through all of the books, and found

a bagful!

I took a picture of all of them together,

but it got deleted somehow...

At the top of this post,

there is a picture with the cameo pendant

on top of an old Webster's Dictionary-

That is one of the books I found with this stack.

The total on the books was $2.50.

(:

I already have another thrift haul for you,

can you believe it?!

But that will have to wait

until the next post.

Have an amazing day,

Berries!

Don't forget to find something beautiful today.

I will make a new post soon,

and I will get My Fabulous Junk

up and running soon also!

I am so excited!

<3

Until next time,

Lots of Love,

Over the Holiday Break...

Hello again, Berries! :D

Over the holiday break, as you would expect,

I went on many a thrifting venture...

(:

And I redecorated my room about 20 times.

For my fellow decoraters,

you know that something as small as a doily

can make you rearrange everything.

But I'm not complaining!

I think that's the fun of it. ;)

For the amount of trips to the thrift shops I went on,

I wasn't the best on taking pictures.

My room was overwhelming as it was
(with things I brought back from school and
bags to take to the thrift stores and such),

so most of my finds got hidden away in my closet

until I felt like decorating with them.

My apologies on that, Berries. >.<

I did snap a couple of pictures, however...

For the finds in this picture,

I spent $2 total on the doilies, the tray and the antique, French-looking picture.

The salt shaker, flowers and records

(Nat King Cole Christmas, Stranger on the Shore, Firestone Christmas Vol. II

and Perry Como sings Just for You)

were from Goodwill at $1 a piece, or less.

The 1960s encyclopedias (I think I have eight in all)

were free from the town library.

My mom and I split them.

(:

And above

is a salt cellar with lions on it

that my mom got for me for $2 at an antique shop.

It reminded me of Aslan when I saw it... <3

This small bar of hand made soap

was $1 at a boutique.

(:

This mirror below
is a hand-me-down that I got from Mum
a while back.

Daddy finally hung it up on the wall. >.<

And here is the piece de resistance!

Just look at this lamp.

Just behold it.

The first time I saw it, I took a picture,

because I thought I would never see it again...

Considering how pretty it is,

I was positive some wealthy person

would get it before I came back.

It sure is a beauty,

but I wouldn't pay $45 for a lamp at a thrift store.

Each time I visited that stop after that,

the first thing I'd do was check to see if the lamp was still there,

and then ask whoever was working

if they would lower the price.

The owner went down to $35,

but that still wasn't low enough.

Not for me, anyway.

I practically got down on my knees when I asked a worker

if she would take $20.

And she said yes!

(I sound like I'm telling a proposal story. lol)

I was so happy, I hugged that stranger!

I still can't believe it's mine now!

I call it Cinderella's pumpkin carriage,

for obvious reasons...

It's just SO beautiful!

xD

Okay, enough on the lamp... ^.^

This is the second Christmas break
that I've had the privilege to blog about.

All the Christmas breaks are pretty much the same-

Lots of sweet treats...

... Lots of TV watching...

... Lots of kitty company...

...Lots of writing and doodling and

planning and dreaming...

... And, of course,
our family's annual day-after-Christmas
shopping trip.

It's kind of a tradition in our little family
to get money for Christmas instead of a pile of gifts,
so we can go get our presents together.

I love it; it's a blast.

With that money,
I did get a new record player
(And a bunch of records! Yay!)
(:

It's a Crosley 5-in-1:

record player, AM, FM radio,

CD player, tape player and line-in.

Even though I have a new baby,

I have not let the cuteness of my old one

go to waste.

Here, it still adorns my room.

This pink vinyl player is the most special

and sentimental object I own,

so there ain't no way I'm gettin' rid of that.

(There's some southern talk for ya.)

The one thing I have done the past two Christmases

that I didn't do this year

is read.

Last year and the year before last,

I would sit in my room in my chair with some candles going

and some coco

and read for hours.

I didn't do that this year.

Maybe because it's a different house.

Or maybe because I don't own any fiction books

or have a library card for this town...

Or maybe it has something to do with my sudden

inability to be still

with all that's coming in the future...

*shrugs*

Oh, well.

I am still enjoying being at home...

(Though you all know the attachment I have to my dorm home.)

Here, you can see how I'm decorating with some of my new pretty things...

Well, new to me, anyway.

(:

On top of these encyclopedias

is an Avon perfume/ cologne bottle I snagged for 50 cents.

I'm starting to collect them- they are so cute!

This one is an iridescent orange.

That opal-esque quality is one that keeps

making appearances in my thrift finds.

I love the way it looks-

like dragonfly wings...

On the bottom shelf, in the picture below,

are some sprigs I blogged about a couple posts ago

and the doily I showed at the beginning of this post.

Have I mentioned these Italian replica paintings before?

I don't think so...

I got them at the fill-a-bag shop!

Can you believe it? Gorgeous.

As for non- thrifted items,

the decorative box on the top shelf is from

a symphony gift shop,

and the macaroon/ trinket box on the bottom shelf

is a cute little find from Hobby Lobby,

AKA, Heaven on earth.

^.^

I'm not going to go into detail on the shelf above,

considering I change it almost every day.

I want to make it different,

but I can't seem to pinpoint what it is

that isn't working for me...

On the wicker stool, though,

are three vintage paper doll books from my doll of a dorm director.

I love you, Mrs. Barb! <3

I may show them more closely

in a post to come...

Here, above, is another Avon collectible!

A gorgeous mermaid bottle... <3

... And the bottle cap is her crown. How precious! >.<

It was dirt cheap at a local thrift store,

probably 50 cents.

I am in LOVE! xD

Below are a couple more new finds,

a Corrie Ten Boom book, and a little globe calendar.

^.^

I've never seen anything like that before.

These two finds were in a little pile that I got for $1.

I know, I know, these prices sound too good to be true.

But, they're not!

:D

I kept this sparkly feather ornament out,

even after Christmas.

It's not so obvious

that you can look at and label it "Christmas".

So, I just kept it out.

(:

I like the extra sparkle.

This candle ring, above, is also new.

It was either 25 or 50 cents.

One of the shops I go to has ridiculously cheap prices

on flowers and such, even if they are great quality.

Thus, I do a lot of foliage hunting there.

That's where I got the sparkly berry sprig,

the velvet holly and ivy,

the pine needle sprigs,

the pink berries with the gold dusting...

and now this!

(:

The cream and sugar set above is also kind of new.
My mum gave it to me.
Thanks, Mum!

 

Oh, aside from my record player,

I loaded up at Bath and Body Works for Christmas!

I purchased a lotion and body spray set of

twisted peppermint, pumpkin cupcake and lemon pomegranate cream.

Now I have a Christmasy set (yay!),

another autumny set (which are my favorite scents)

and a set for the spring/ summer time.

It was hard to restrain myself when it came to the

hand soaps and plug-ins,

but I held it together

(because Wal-Mart has great

hand soaps and plug-ins for a third of the price).

The silver tray that my smell goods are on

was purchased with two plates,

for a total of $2.

The sparkly, gold berries in the milk jar

are also new.

I found them in Kirkland's on the floor

(I'm guessing they broke off of something bigger),

so the cashier just let me have them.

--

Well, y'all,

those are all the fun pictures I have for now.

(:

Pretty soon,

I'll be spilling the beans

on that special secret.

xo

I hope this blog made your day

a little brighter.

I know it did mine.

;)

Until next time,

Lots of Love,