Planters of Jade

I needed something green, something to chase away the grey that is all I see out the window. It's still too soon to be seeing the trees turn green but I made myself a virtual landscape on my table to brighten up my days. I have to admit, putting succulents on the table is so much easier than having fresh cut flowers, changing out the water often deters my choice of floral arrangements.

Hopefully these will flourish in the pots I put them in. Remember them from back in the summer, I got them from the thrift store for .50 a piece. They don't have any drainage holes but I figure if I water sparingly, they might do just fine.

What do you think, should I also paint them the same white that the vases are painted? Now they look yellowish sitting next to the vases. 

Sandwich Flea Market

Several weekends ago, I made plans with my girlfriend to go to an outdoor flea market downstate. It was the last one of the year and we had never been to Sandwich, so we said why not. We also goaded my mom and her sister to come along with us. The weekend was supposed to be all rain but we figured hell if anything we'll wear ponchos.  The drive was beautiful and picturesque so that alone was worth the trip. I wish I was able to take photos, but as I was the driver.

Unfortunately, the fair itself was a bust. Maybe it was the threat of rain that kept a lot of the venders away, there were supposed to be 500 but there was maybe 150? Also it was the last one of the year so I'm thinking that was why the pickings were pretty slim. We did find a handful of venders that had some cool stuff, but I swear their prices were so overblown that it was ridiculous.

The antlers were $20 a piece, downtown Chicago, my friend was able to get them for $5 a piece, kind of a ripoff huh? I thought that going downstate, the prices would be more reasonable?

So the vender that was selling the wooden bowls and troughs wanted $400 for the first bowl. Are you friggin kidding, for an old wooden bowl? I understand the value of antiques that took skill, but a wooden bowl that was probably used to bake bread in?!?!

Needless to say I did not buy anything, my friends sister did get a couple of things, but most of the stuff was either not my taste or more than I wanted to spend on said particular item. Maybe next summer when there is more of an opportunity for more buyers we'll try it again, maybe. 

Although the flea was a bust the time spent with my mom and girlfriend was worth the trip. Oh and on the way home we hit up a Marshalls and ended up getting a few things there instead. Go figure.

Craigs Easy is just that... EASY

Like my profile says I scour Craigslist almost religiously. Although I try and narrow it down to what I'm currently cruisin' for, but I hate narrowing it down, sometimes a gem can be unearthed and you didn't even know you were looking for it. But in order to do that you must click on a bunch of links. Not anymore. Not with CraigsEasy, this has made my  craig habit sooo much easier to get. I have used this several times a day, and I swear it's an addiction. I would say go get Craig Easy, and I am, but that means my secret weapon is out there for all of you to use.

Fine, I'll play nice and hope the fastest one gets the prize. Def. go check it out, I swear it will become one of your favorite tools to find new bargains on craig.

What I also want to point out that I love is the favorite button on CraigEasy, I can store all the things that I'm currently looking at and go back and forth without losing any. 

Junkin' Finds

I swore that I would go junkin' before the summer ended come hell or high water. So it was good for me that my friends mom had a garage sale and I scored on this huge wicker basket/hamper for $2.00.  I probably got the friend discount but everything counts. She had a ton of other stuff but I got there at 4 which for junkin' is like don't even bother. It's the perfect size for all of Ari's toys - we outgrew the small basket that was previously used for toys. A quick coat of white and silver spray paint makes it a bit less country.

I also picked up two ceramic planters and a bottle with a cork top. I will use the bottle for storing the loose sea salt that is currently sitting in a plastic bag. The planters,  at first I wanted to plant some moss in them but with winter coming and the air being very dry in our house it might be hard to keep moss green and fresh. Maybe some maidenhead ferns for the bathroom?

Planters $3.00 each, bottle .72¢, hamper $2.00, left over spray paint free. All in all I think I came away very well on my one junkin' trip.

Ohh here is a good tip, if you need to clean a bottle and don't have a bottle cleaner, fill it with dry rice some dish soap and water and shake it around. The rice will get in all the corners and edges and clean it. Works great on baby bottles with milk that is a bit stuck on.