Saturday, April 30, 2011

Made out like a bandit…or at least I hope!

I’m not sure if anyone else noticed, but it was garage sale season today! There were so many signs I passed it was unbelievable! I first went to my Pastor’s neighborhood where I knew there was a neighborhood garage sale, then I hit up a nearby small town that had a city wide g-sale…boy I love both of those kind because it is mostly full of people just getting rid of stuff!
I got this metal Tonka truck for $1.75! All metal and at least 40 years old. At least that is how old they said the kid who used to play with it is now!
101_0005 Ebay sells these from between 99 cents and $75. I will have to do some checking to see which kind I got. I’m like to make a good $10 on it at least, or I might let my kid play with it! I like some ideas that justsomethingImade.com did with hers!
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Cute huh?

I found something I NEVER find at G-sales! Cigar boxes! They are written on but I’m pretty excited. Haven’t decided if I’m going to keep them or sell them. If I can get the writing off I might just try to list them, though once again they sell between 99 cents and about $15. =)
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Now these Ked’s I am excited about! These were the 2nd pair I saw and I didn’t even know they were Ked’s at first. I thought they’d be cute for my daughter, who needs to grow into a size 7 fast because all g-sale girl shoes are ONLY a size 7 and bigger. I’m not kidding! There must have been a girl baby boom that year or something!
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I would love to keep these but I really need to sell some of these things I bought. So I’m going to post them and if they don’t sell I will keep them. Win win! They had $3 on them but one lady said, “Oh, those have gone down right, how much on those?” to a friend to which I said, “will you take $1?” They agreed. Score!

I also got these Puma for $1.00
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See the dark smudge on the right toe. Not sure what that is. I will wash them and see. They are a size 8 but very small so right now  fit my daughter but when she is done with them I plan to at least try to sell them. That smudge worries me though!

Now these bottoms have a funny story! I saw the jeans. Size 10 American Eagle Long. Long pants sell VERY well on eBay, as does American Eagle. They didn’t have a price so I offered $1. They lady looked at me and said they were 50 cents. Yay!
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Then my sis pointed out the American Eagle shorts and since they had $3 marked on them I offered $1 for them. She once again stated they were 50 cents. So excited to resale these!

I got these boy XXL Gap shorts for 50 cents and the American Eagle skirt for $1.
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I also was given a breast pump. Haven’t opened it up yet to see what is in it but she said it was missing like 2 bottles and that is it. I think it is new due to the fact she had two.
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My first thought is to give it to my sis-in-law who is due before me but I could only get it to her about 1 month after the baby, and I think she probably wouldn’t need it by then or would have found one. (they live overseas) and so I might Craigslist it and see what happens.

Ok, so I know I won’t be the stylish mom and might look more like a teen while out shopping with this bag:
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But check out the pockets on this baby!
Front                             Back                     Inside
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He had $2 on it but after realizing Mudd bags DON’t resale well: thank you eBay app! I wanted it under a dollar. I offered 75 cents which he excepted but when I gave him the 2 quarter’s 2 dimes and was about to hand him 5 penny’s he said don’t worry and take it for 70 cents….hmmm, maybe I will start g-selling with pennies! Just kidding!
This bag is soo much what I’ve been needing. Right now I have such a hard time finding my keys/phone/billfold/hand sanitizer in this bag:
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I think I might have to wait ‘til we have another garage sale to pawn off this purse and get my money back. But it was a nice bag while I used it. I just need more pockets! Plus the black one cost me $2.50.

After much thought and talking her down to a $1 I got this gallon size water dispenser with out a lid. The lady told me it had a glass lid and I realized it was one of those large ugly ones. Kinda like what is on a Yankee candle. No way it would fit in my fridge with that on it. I probably would have passed it by if it had that on it.
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We don’t have an ice maker so this fits wonderfully in my fridge so we can have cold water. I can pull it out for get-togethers as well and put lemonade in it. Yay!
Or I could go to Pottery Barn and pay $69 for this one:
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No thanks! I will take my lidless one thank you!

Ever tire of your crayons breaking? I saw this box of crayons, paper, markers, and scissors and asked how much. She said, “Do you have kids? Just take them!” Always need good crayons! 101_0034
Now I can take all the broken one’s and melt them down into cool shapes like this:
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Which will make even more coloring crayons!

I got these shoes for $1. Of course they are a size 7 because that is all that garages sales sell around here!
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And my fabulous buy was these maternity clothes and seat protector. I spent $7 on all you see here:
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I added up all the tag prices as I was pulling them off and it would have been $21 for the lot! Yay for people wanting to get rid of things!
Right now I have 2 seat protectors in our van that I got for $7 each on Ebay. This one seems nicer and only cost about 85 cents! Just in time for the baby!
Check out the little stool I got for $.50! Perfect height for my growing boy to use to get to the toilet. 101_0022
I might paint it to match his handmade other one!
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Yes, John Deere Green to match our bathroom!
Well, now I have my work cut out for me! Lots of listing to do. I will probably do a lot tomorrow since today is the last day of 50 free and I just used the last of my 50 up by relisting.
I do want to get the Ked’s up before I decide to keep them though!

Linking to:
Reason's to skip housework
Coastal Charm
Thriftshare Mondays

Friday, April 29, 2011

Patchwork shorts Wal-mart brand.

A few weeks ago I picked up these Wal-mart brand shorts because I remembered something about patchwork shorts selling well. They were a junior size 9 and they finally sold for $2 plus shipping on eBay. I didn’t make a ton but a seed was planted.

NOBO 9 JR WOMENS PLAID PATCHWORK BERMUDA SHORTS

Last Saturday I found these shorts for .99 cents at the same thrift store. Size 11 junior. I threw them in my cart knowing I could at least make a buck off these Wal-mart shorts.

Woman's No Boundaries Size 11 Girl's Patchwork Shorts

I priced them at $4.99 plus shipping and was shocked then they got a bid on the 1st day! With my shipping cost that means someone will pay at least $9.94 for these shorts, and wait for them to come in the mail!

They are cute but I didn’t figure someone would pay much for Wal-mart brand shorts. Guess I was wrong!

I will definatly be looking for these type of shorts at garage sales this summer. If I can get them for 50 cents I just might be able to squeeze a few more penny profit out of these no-brand shorts!

Plus I think people will go crazy over these shorts in a name brand. Good to know. And they sell boy or girl from the looks of things!

Here is a link to Mommy’s Paycheck where she wrote about the shorts, calling them Madras shorts. I’m not sure if they would sell more under which name but always good to know what to call things! I remember reading someone would put Jean and Denim under the title when posting blue jeans. So it pulls it up no matter what the person is searching for!

What is the oddest thing you’ve sold on eBay?

 

Thursday, April 28, 2011

Traveling

traveling

This week we are in Dallas area on a business trip…no, not for me…I already checked for some Goodwill outlet around us. Nada. Probably better, now the kids and I can do 100% relaxing while the hubby does his work.

Our hotel was provided by the company and is very nice. Not quite warm enough this morning to use the outside pool, which I haven’t found yet, but nice enough to offer free breakfast. My son (above) said, “They made all this food for us?” Lol! Yes, yes son, they did!

We are about to head out to explore this town, Grand Prairie, Texas. I looked on line and their downtown area looks neat, but maybe not for ages 3 and under.=)

One thing I will say is it isn’t raining…so we are going to try to get out while we can! This is a good illustration of what it was doing back home.

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Can never have too good of a pair of rubber boots! And yes, that “boulder” is on top of my son’s front loader. Not sure what game he was playing but I think the rocks were winning!

That’s our golf course out behind the fence…well, not ‘ours’ exactly but after hours we can enjoy it as much as we want! It is like having a huge manicured yard that you don’t have to pay for!

Tuesday, April 26, 2011

Making your own gift wrap box

So I saw this idea somewhere and had to try it for myself. I think I will get better at it with time! But it is a great idea! I am looking forward to giving these out with birthday presents in them!
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For this one I used an Oatmeal box. I american-ocean-spray-instant-oatmeal-strong-cranberries-strong-344g-box-73-pused the packets from it and cut the loose flaps off with scissors. I didn’t have any newspaper so I used my almost used-up Real Simple magazine! Boy, I am getting my money’s worth out of that baby!
I also didn’t have any tissue paper for the pictures so I grabbed a cloth I use for decorating! The effect is awesome and I’m thinking of pulling out scraps to wrap presents in! WAY easer to keep that then a lot of wrapping paper that has been taped and re-taped and wrinkled!
The handles are made out of some rope that came with curtains I got a garage sale. I like the look of them but I won’t use them again due to the bulky knots.
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I was watching the kids play with a jump rope this morning and realized that would make some great looking handles!
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And since I got this jumprope from a garage sale last year for about 10 cents it will be perfect! The handles are broken, but the kids will probably get yet more fun out of it…but I could just cut of what I want and let them play with the rest of it. I need another cereal box first though! Lol!
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And this is what I love. Taking what I have and changing it to be something else. No cost other than glue and I found a neat way to avoid using costly tissue wrap as well! 

Linking to:
http://todayscreativeblog.net/ 

Monday, April 25, 2011

Thrifting for this today!

My thrifting of the day!

I usually avoid the thrift store on Monday’s due to the fact that everything is 1/2 off and I end up buying more things for me than to resell! Well, today was no different!

I got a pair of slip on shoes for my daughter (a little too big right now) for $1.48. They are Airwalk so nothing fancy, but they are in great shape and kinda cute!

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Did you every play with Cootie’s? I have a vague memory of these toys. Anyway the store had 2 boxes, one was “The Original” and was was a newer version. The newer box was $2.99 and this one was 99cents (price on the upper left corner, under the MB.) I got this for my kids to play with on a trip we are about to take. It is the perfect age for them and they will have a lot of fun!

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So, all my time reading other blogs is starting to pay off! At least I hope. These Ked’s are in the washer right now getting cleaned up They are a little worn but if they don’t sell they will fit my daughter some day. (really liking slip on’s for her with this baby belly I have right now!)

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I can say I haven’t ever heard of Ked’s…guess I never gave much attention to shoe brands. That was until I saw this post on Mommy’s Paycheck. She talks about how Ked’s were a great seller, so when these were only a little over $1 I decided to risk it! You’ll see how it turns out! The thing going against me the most seems to be how worn they are. But we will see how they look after we wash them! The bottoms have little wear and the material is good.

 

Here was another interesting buy. I brought this home then had to email my friend at Cathrine’s Peacock to see if it even worth even the 25 cents I put into it. She gave me hope to sell it for around $5. I was impressed that it is dishwasher/oven/freezer & microwave safe! It is an England made cup est. in 1810 and is a Pearsons of Christerfield.

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These jars I’ve been collecting for my new pantry. I pay usually around $2 each for them but I won’t pay more, these was no exception. I paid full price (wasn’t on sale) of $1.98 for this jar. The seal is a little cracked but I think I can replace it.

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The last thing I picked up was this vintage slide kit. It was 99 cents and I’m going to try to get a few dollars out of it, thought I’m not sure anyone uses slides anymore. They just plain don’t really exist on eBay so this should be interesting! Lol! I will letcha know what becomes of them!

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Linking to:

Nifty Thrifty Tuesdays

I am an awful person!

Saks Fifth Ave Cashmere shirt

I sold this shirt and went to pull it out only to find I didn’t have it any more! I thought maybe I donated it to a local charity and I felt so terrible for not realizing it before someone bid on it! I refunded their money right away with a beat-my-self-up-letter of remorse.

And then I found it. Yes indeed. I think someone up above is shaking their head at me! If I would have waited 2 more minutes before refunding and emailing everything would be fine…but no! I had to be rash.

So the lady got a whale of a great deal and I emailed her that I was so embarrassed that I would ship it to her for free. Makes me take a loss but since it was all my fault anyway I decided to stop embarrassing myself! Now I’m rid of the shirt I now despise and she will hopefully be very happy with it! She only paid $5.24 with shipping and everything so it wasn’t a big lose. But a lose non-the-less!

And life continues!

Round up!

You never know with ebay! I thought this Old Navy skirt would fly out of my ebay…but it more or less crawled out for $4! LOL!

Old Navy size 4 Black and off white skirt.

Old Navy size 4 Black and off white skirt.- $4

 

I heard that cashmere sells really well. Well, not a hot item for me! I finally got rid of it for $2.24!

Saks Fifth Ave Cashmere shirt

Saks Fifth Ave Cashmere shirt= $2.24

 

I’ve found I have to keep my eyes open for ideas to sell that I never would have thought of! Coupons are one of those! I used to throw these away if I didn’t have anyone to give them too, now I make a great deal with someone one eBay. Everyone wins! $3.52= not bad for something I would have thrown away!

$10 worth of  Similac Coupons

$10 worth of Similac Coupons=$3.52

These shorts always sell, even though they are walmart brand. Keep your eyes open!

Woman's No Boundaries Size 11 Girl's Patchwork Shorts

Woman's No Boundaries Size 11 Girl's Patchwork Shorts= $4.99

 

And the only clothing that sold at 1st listing price this week:

Woman's aeropostale size 00 cargo shorts Brown

Woman's Aeropostale size 00 cargo shorts Brown=$7

I sold about $20 worth of clothing this week, a very small week for me, but I made up for it with 2 books I sold on Amazon. One for $19 and one for $48. Made out just fine all in all! I’m loving the 50 free listing on eBay! I know they are changing all their fees but it is really nice to list a bunch and realize it didn’t cost me anything!

Sunday, April 24, 2011

Mother’s day Gift idea

I saw this idea on a blog and copied it for my mom for her birthday. However, I haven’t seen my mom since her February birthday so now it will probably be a mother’s day present! Lol!

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It is as simple as it looks! Just chicken wire, I got that from my parents farm, a wooden fence post frame, got that from my bro-in-law, and little clothes pins, which I got from my sister. It was truly a group effort!

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Last time I saw this done it was with a black frame. So you could make this elegant rather than rustic. Or, you could even use barb wire with a wooden frame if you wanted more rustic!

This was also the way we were going to tell my mom we are expecting. But when it snowed and they couldn’t come visit we just emailed everyone picture showing them! That’s us on the left side holding our ultrasound picture.

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So the only cost for this was the cost of the pictures! Which are just about to need replaced considering there 2 little one’s on their way!

If you were able to get everyone together for pictures and get better shots then I did it would turn out even better! I had to use everything from Facebook to email to get these shots!

Just passing along a good idea! Enjoy!

Cherished Bliss