I’m moving out in a little over a month, so I need to start collecting furniture and stuff. So this morning, me and my sister woke up early, and decided to hit the flea market in search of some bargains. Sadly there was no cheap anything there. This was some screwy kind of flea market, nothing was used…
So on the way home we found some yard sales, and at the last one we stopped at, I found this little table with SO MUCH POTENTIAL! It just screamed Buy ME!!, so of course I had to shell out the $3 for a table and chair set.The chairs were hideous, but the guy inssisted that I take them too. I figured I’d try to fix them up, make them salvagable at the least. I hit Walmart and Tru Value, picked up some paints, brushes, sandpaper, fabric, a staple gun, and cotton stuffing. For a grand total of maybe $25, I now own the most eclectic table I’ve seen in a long time. It’s a round table, with 2 wings on the side. The middle section is blue and black checkered, and the sides are purple with silver pokadots. It looks so awesome. I’m painting the chairs silver, and I restuffed the cusions and covered them with this yllow with white pokadotted fabric. Every time I walk in my room now, I smile, because I’m so proud of my handiwork. So, tell me about your yard sale bargains…
How about a $1200.00 American Optics stereomicroscope and the Bausch and Lomb illuminator (over $100 alone) for a total of $30.00?
Oh yeah, I had to have one of the objectives resecured for another $50.00.
Zenster :eek: Damn good deal there!
Me, I got a $450 mink stole for $20 (the lining had rotted out, so add $10 for some replacement material).
Some years back, I hit a sale by a woman who was divorcing and moving back home. Got me some Corningware for super-cheap - many small pieces that I’d never seen before and cannot do without now - for maybe a buck a piece, including lids. I’m not a big yardsale fanatic, but I’m so glad I made that stop.
I’m more likely to be the one selling stuff for a good deal - just to get the crap outta my house.
Last month, I got a humongous microwave (with rotating dish, too) for $20. It’s big enough to put an entire turkey in, too; none of that big-enough-for-one-hot dog stuff. Oh, and it works, too.
This week, I picked up two Monets for a total of $3. Okay, so maybe they’re not originals…
A 750w movie light (I think it’s a Mole) that will take a parger lamp. Two dollars! It just needs barndoors.
A mid-1960s vintage Coleman lantern for $8.
I didn’t buy it, but… A friend bought an army-surplus stretcher at a swap meet for $5, which I ended up with. It made a good cot for guests. (It’s actually rather comfortable.)
Uh… that’s “larger lamp”. It’s not even 05:00 and my fingers aren’t working yet…
for $0.05, I got a jeweler’s loop. Retails for about $60.00
For $0.10 each, I got all four KISS [sup]TM[/sup] Halloween masks (the original ones not the full face ones). worth more to some one, I’m sure.
You know what I’d like to know - what about yard sales (also known as garage sales, rummage sales, flea markets, etc etc etc) in other countries? Anyone?
I’m not a huge garage-saler. Sometimes, though, I get the bug and drive around to catch a few. More often than not, I find nothing remarkable. However, I have found a few little treasures:
I got a huge (over-the-sofa sized) framed and matted print for $2.00. It’s a very '50s looking view of Paris by an artist (“Souvinir de Paris” by Andre Panet). I don’t recognise the name and haven’t been able to find out anything about him. But, even if the print is absolutely worthless, the frame is in perfect condition, as is the glass – hell just that is worth 2 bucks! And I love the thing – it looks beautiful in my living room.
I also found a professional quality nail-dryer – the kind that dries your nails with UV light – for $1.00. It would have cost at least $50.00 new. Unfortunately, it found its way into my mother’s suitcase last time she visited me, so I’m on the lookout for another one.
When my sister sold her window air conditioner for $25 I was mad because I would have paid her $50. A year later I got a window air conditioner at a yard sale. He was closing up shop and wanted to get rid of it, so he told me I could take it for free. I made him take $5 for it. It still works.