Friday Finds And Gift Wrapping Idea...

Let me quickly share with you some of my finds from the week.

  Doesn't seem to be much of a theme here does there?

(but it still seems to  look good together...)

Some of these items made it to the shop.  The red photo album is here, 

the Good Shepherd plate is here, and that sweet vintage 

painted Bathroom sign is here.

The glass painted motto is also vintage and available here.  

Isn't it precious?  Pretty sure many of us that grew up in 

Christian homes had this saying somewhere...

If I collect anything personally - it is decorating books.  

So I was excited to find this one I had never seen before.

The shirt will be a sweet closet addition - loved the fabric...

...and these metal tags for 50 cents each were too cute to pass up.

  How cute for package adornments?

The paint brush - well I needed one...

And last - there are some faux impatiens in the first photo.  

They'll work great on the porch of our summer cottage since 

we can't always be there to water real plants.

And speaking of package adornments... I put together this little

 ensemble to showcase the novelty note cards I have listed on Etsy.

  I'm happy with how it turned out.

Save trims of all kinds - they come in handy!

I enjoy the treasure hunt each week.  

And soon yard sale season will be in full swing - what fun!   

Have a blessed evening!  ~Joyce

Thrifty Thursday - How to Buy Part II...

A few weeks ago - I shared a post on how to buy - or rather what all 

you can buy 'used' to avoid the expense of buying 'new'.   

Here are a few more things that I buy 'used' - except many are 'new'.  

Confused yet?    

1.  Candles 

These are easy to find unburned.  And I often don't mind if 

they've been burned a little... I'll just be lighting them anyway.  

I look for white pillars to burn in my fireplace.  

 And I always pick up the new still packaged ones when they are pretty.  

A brand new candle for $1?  Why not?

2.  Gifts

I keep a gift drawer just stuffed with new treasures that I found on

 the secondary market.   It's great to have something on hand when

 I need a hostess, thank you, mailman, new neighbor or unexpected

 birthday gift.  I pick up generic gifts that are not person specific.

  ie - lotions, bath salts, greeting cards, pretty soaps, candles etc.  

The blue box below is a gift set of sweet greeting cards that 

anyone would like to receive and give. 

3.  Books and Magazines

I don't subscribe to any magazines.  I find plenty of current reads

 on the cheap!  And pretty hardback books that are or are 'like' new?

  Yep - find them too.  Cookbooks are especially plentiful and 

they often go into my gift drawer.

This particular magazine I picked up today for 40 cents.  

The 'sale' subscription rate per an inner mailer card is $19.95/year.

Did you notice the key word on the cover?  'Budget'!  

Many magazines are covering thrift and budget topics.  

Saving money is in vogue.  

It doesn't mean we're poor.... it means we're smart!  

Buy well - & save!  And with your savings - Share!  ~Joyce

How To Buy Part I

Don't Be A Yard Sale Snob...

What's a yard sale snob you ask?  Well - it could be several things -

 but for the sake of this post -  it's someone who doesn't stop at a

 yard sale cause it doesn't look 'good' enough or they don't see

 anything they want.  Such was my case with this particular yard sale today.  

But because I was parked right at the end of the driveway to visit

 other sales in the development - I sauntered in to be polite.

To the left (and not in the picture) was a table with a few apparent

 less-than-desirable things.  But when I got closer - I noticed maybe 3 linens. 
 And underneath them - this darling coral pink satin damask vintage tablecloth.  
Yippee skippy!

It even retains its tag!  (oooh - a 'crown' tag)...

Among my other finds of the day were these shell encrusted

 miniature shoes... (more pink)

Shoes and tablecloth will be in my Etsy shop shortly.

And I treated myself to a bit of great smelling perfume for 50 cents.

Okay - it's really body mist.  But still - it's from Victoria's Secret 

and even at half a bottle - worth every penny.  And ya can't put a

 price tag on the pick-me-up some new nice smelly stuff gives a gal!

But what really tickled me today - was a pile of baskets.. for free!

I chose 3 to use for gift baskets.  And look - I found some flower

sprigs and an almost new candle too -  totaling just 75 cents.  

Turns out they make a pretty nice instant fall grouping... 

It won't stay a grouping long... 

gonna be filling & gifting one of those baskets shortly.  

How I love weekends...~Joyce

Pinterest Inspired - Flower Delivery - Yard Sale Morning...

What a fun morning I've had!   

 First I gathered a stash to take with me then headed out...

 ...to replicate a little Pinterest inspiration I found.

This lovely kraft paper wrapped bouquet by Brewed Together

just spoke to me and I had to do it - today!

So with supplies in hand - I picked up said bouquet.  

But first - a little detour to the first 'yard sale' of the season.

It was an indoor yard sale - but turned out to be at a newly opened store...ughh...

I don't call store sales - yard sales - and wasn't even sure I wanted to go in...

I did.  

But back to the flowers cause next stop is 'delivery'.

So in the back of my trusty little HHR (that's a car) - I got to work...

 

And then headed to my destination. The recipient? 

I recently discovered that My Love likes brown kraft paper - 

(a fun little fact I'm enjoying) - so off to his work I went...

 He was quite proud to put those tulips up there

with his precious bicycle for all his coworkers to see.

He's happens to be a fairly avid hobby bicyclist - so flowers, bicycle - it's all good!

 And the indoor 'yard sale'?  I'm glad I went in.   

Nothing fancy but prices were good and they had a $1 room.  

Everything I found was indeed $1!  Even the spaghetti santa...

And while this potpourri packaging shows some signs of storage -

 it still smells wonderful and I've been looking for something 

to fill a glass container I have. Yep - $1 - not $20!

Something for me (spring chicks) and something for my gift drawer...

 Cause tied with a pretty ribbon the cards are definitely gift worthy.

Yeah - it's been a fun morning -

all thanks to a little Pinterest inspiration.

And there's even a little bit more from my morning -

but I'll share that in another post.  

Till then!  ~Joyce

New Neighbor Gift...

We live in a good neighborhood - but not necessarily tight-knit.  

Still - I try to welcome newcomers in some way. 

 Homemade baked goods are my 'go-to' gift. 

 And then I pray they don't have food allergies. 

(I always figure there's probably at least somebody in the family that can eat them.)

 

I don't often make chocolate chip cookies cause My Love 

doesn't like chocolate - but the rest of the world does right?

So I whipped up a batch using chocolate and peanut butter chips -

(it's what was on hand) and guess what - hubby loves them!  

Good thing they didn't all fit in the basket.

 

Speaking of baskets - I keep a lookout for cute

 containers and pick them up for such occasions.

  This one was 'free'.  I lined it with a scrap of denim fabric - 

added the plastic bag of cookies and finished it off with a bow.

I like to include a card with our name and contact information,  

just 'cause I think it's good to know how to get hold

 of your neighbors if you need to.

 Then I hand delivered our little gift when I saw 

they were home so we could have a face-to-face meet.

 

Now here's hoping they'll think of the cookies when

 they become annoyed with our barking dog! ~Joyce 

Special Delivery...

Today 2 sweet little girls and their mother knocked

 on my door and handed me this tiny sweet bouquet...

Miniature Irises

... freshly picked right from their garden!  Really?

  Flowers are blooming? Apparently I'd better check my own flower beds.

What a pick-me-up!  I am blessed.

Spring arrives tomorrow... and I have a special day after that...

 & again after that. 

Even at this old age - feeling excited! ~Joyce

Hostess Gift Idea...

We are blessed to be invited to a friend's home tonight for a light supper.   

I love to take hostess gifts... but sometimes struggle to know 

what to give when I don't know the hostess very well. 

 I scoured my 'gift drawer'... but just wasn't seeing anything 

I thought may be appreciated except possibly some sweet note paper. 

 So I'm opting for fresh flowers & grasses from my garden.

A pickle jar with the label removed makes a nice

 Mason jar look-alike vase.  

Brown craft paper and a sunflower tag wrap up that note paper.

Looking forward to a wonderful evening of getting to know 

someone better and no cooking!

Romance In the Office...

The other day I walked into my cubicle at work and found this 

handpicked wildflower bouquet.  It made my day!!!

 I happen to work for the same company that My Love does.  

On his bicycle ride to work - he spotted some flowers

 and took the time to pick them...

...AND then arranged them in a lunchroom cup in such a way 

that they would stay standing.  I was most impressed.

Normally I work from home and he goes to work.

But a thunderstorm took out my computer equipment

 so I'm needing to work at the office while it is fixed.

Apparently working with your spouse has its benefits!   

(Yes - that's a decorating magazine in my temporary cubicle...)

Gift From the Garden...

What did you think of with that blog title?  Jam?  Produce?  

Handpicked berries?  They would all make wonderful gifts!  

But alas, my vegetable garden is a bit slim...  

just too much shade here in this little property.

I needed a simple birthday gift for a friend and I 

didn't want to give 'stuff' (we all have plenty of that right?)

So to my perennial flower beds I went...

A few fabric wraps around the reused pickle jar and 

I called this simple bouquet done...

I like to include fuzzy Lamb's Ears for texture.  

 

What are your favorites?

Last Minute Easy $1 Christmas Gift Project...

Need a last minute gift that has a little bit of 'you' in it?  

Head to Dollar Tree and pick up their cylinder jar candles...

 Cut some sheet music (or tear) to width you desire 

and wrap around jar with jute or twine.  

(No need to glue in place and book pages would also work.)  

I added a jingle bell - you could add a pretty

 button or other trinket or ornament. 

 Lastly - I clipped a few skinny twigs from my

 dogwood tree and slid them behind the twine. 

Since I'm assuming we all have some version of everything

 already on hand except perhaps the jar candle -

 total cost for these cute gifts?  One dollar each.
Want lots more ideas? - Visit Funky Junk's link party.

 

Neighbor Gifts (And A Cheeseball Recipe)...

I like to give gifts to my close neighbors but some of them are diabetic.  

So in lieu of my usual cookies and quick breads... 

I went for cheese and crackers this year.

 

  Kinda a sticky mess - but refrigerate it a bit and it will be OK...

 This is my favorite cheese ball recipe - tastes great and 

there are no fancy special ingredients to buy...

   Then (thanks to Pinterest ) I rolled spoonfuls into small balls - 

rolling again in paprika, Parmesan cheese, and chives or parsley.   

Tip: Instead of literally rolling the balls in my hands - I just plopped a generous 

spoonful into the dish of paprika, etc. and rolled it around till a ball formed.  

Much less messy!

 I found these wonderful wheat crackers already sealed 

into smaller packs - perfect for gift giving.

  Tomorrow its expected to snow like crazy -

  but I'll be out walking in it... delivering these packages.  

Brrrr.....