It Pays to be Thrifty!!

Keep the above in mind, I will get back to it later..................

Like everyone these days, I am trying to be thrifty and spend my dollars and time wisely. In my "former life with a two person income" I was fortunate to be able to afford to buy upscale and name brand clothes for my nieces and nephews and would fill my car with bags of jeans, khakis, t-shirts, underwear, pajamas etc. when I went shopping at the outlet malls. I considered this one of the joyful duties of an Aunt. After my life changed, I thought I wouldn't be able to go shopping any longer and it really bothered me. I had to make difficult decisions on what I needed and could afford and what I had to live without. I know I am not alone and I know I am very fortunate.

The last several months or so I have started shopping at the local "thrift" stores. I think of it as a one stop garage sale. I don't have to drive from garage sale to garage sale and I can shop when it is convenient for me. I have found lots of great deals on clothes for my nieces and nephews and a few things for myself. For a mere fraction of the original cost, you can find great jeans that are hardly worn, t-shirts that are almost like new, and once pricey jackets, coats, shirts and sweaters that have never or hardly ever been worn. I'm not going to reveal my favorite places.....you can seek them out on your own.

Here are some of the great deals I found on my latest thrift shopping trip. Madeline was the big winner this time. She gets the really cute denim jumper, brand new Disney Lion King t-shirt, boots for next winter, a cute fleece jacket suitable for her upcoming trip to Orlando and more.

This is not all that I bought yesterday what's missing is the Detroit Red Wings shirts, athletic pants, fleece jacket, brand new Tommy Hilfiger shirt, and box of dominoes. I try to stick with good quality brands like Ralph Lauren, Chaps, Old Navy, Gymboree, The Children's Place, Osh Kosh, Carters etc. You have to spend the time and really look through lots of junk to find the deals but it is worth the effort.
What I found were Croc want-to-be's, cute tops and pants for Madeline, MSU/Detroit Red Wings tops for Carl, John and Sam, U of M shirts for Jackson (he says he just doesn't like the "State" part of Michigan State), Khaki's for Jackson and Ben, Ralph Lauren jeans for Ben, a Ralph Lauren shirt for Carl and a Ralph Lauren polo shirt for Sam. I even got four t-shirts for me to wear around the house and for gardening.

Once in a while I like to stop at Marshall's or T J Maxx and see what kind of deals I can find. I found this pink snow jacket and snow pants while at Marshall's last week and a quick call to my sister let me know that Madeline needed it for next year. Terri said it was the best deal she knew of and she had been looking for these for Madeline. Here the snow suit is pictured with the boots I bought while thrifting. The pink belted sweater and brown turtle neck I also bought for Madeline at Marshall's and they go perfectly with the pink leggings and pink corduroy pants and Crocs from my thrift shopping.

Isn't this pink belted sweater just too cute??? Madeline is going to be so stylish.

There is more "thrifting" coming up but let's get back to the five dollar bill pictured at the beginning. Well, I washed all the clothes I bought and guess what, I opened the dryer after one load and VOILA!!!! Yup a five dollar bill must have been folded up in the pocket of one pair of pants. See...............IT PAYS TO BE THRIFTY!!!!!

I love to shop at garage sales and here are some of the great finds I have discovered in the past year or so. I spent some of my 11 day "staycation" from Christmas to New Years painting and transforming some of my finds.

This is a doll bed I bought for Madeline and Jessica to play with at Grandma Dee's. I didn't have to paint it as it was in excellent condition. I did make a mattress from a pillow and extra stuffing. I made a cover for the mattress from antique pillow ticking I had on hand. I also made a small flannel covered pillow and small flannel blanket sized just right for a doll.

I purchased this chest of drawers last summer and it was a dirty tan color. Now it is shiny white and will be used in my soon to be redone "Guest Room". The chair got a fresh coat of white too. I bought it years ago at a garage sale.

This table was purchased at the Habitat Lansing Restore for $6. It is made of mahogany but was really nicked up and so I painted it white. I wanted to add rollers to the legs but can't find any small enough. I might add a piece of glass to the top. I plan to use it in the guest room.

The mirror, I have had for some time. It was a gold or brass color and now it is white. I like the improvement. The barrister bookcase came from a past neighbor who was selling many of her antiques. I love it. The dishes all came from garage sales. This is the southeast corner of my dining room next to the french doors that lead to the patio. I purchased this antique cabinet from my friend Bonnie many years ago. I have my white/ivory McCoy and Haeger pottery displayed inside but some of the pots are cheap ones that started out as another color. I just painted them with cheap white acrylic paint. I like the textures in the different shapes and designs of the pots. The wall mirror was purchased at a garage sale and was originally a picture frame. I added mirrors, cleaned up the wood and it just seems this space was perfect. The dried hydrangeas are from my garden. If you leave the Annabelle hydrangea blossoms on the plant long enough, they turn lime green and stay that color when dried...much more pleasing than the pale brown color you get when you cut the flowers too early. Unfortunately, Muffin cannot stop climbing up on this cabinet and checking out the dried flowers. I came home the other day and all the dried hydrangeas were on the floor. I don't know how he has avoided breaking the teapot on the top. This is the west wall of my family room. I painted the paneling and the window trim on this wall last winter. The room is much brighter now. I added roman shades to insulate and update the window. The love seat has become an exclusive lounge for the kitties. I use fleece remnants from Jo-Ann's to keep cat fur off of the upholstery and quilts. The two "coffee tables" were a steal at a garage sale. They were stained a dark mahogany. I painted them and added drapery rod finials to the legs for a little whimsy and added height.

I recently painted this green end table to match the one on the other side of the love seat. It was an old sewing table that I acquired from my sister years ago. I was using it in the basement to hold the cat food container. I sawed the legs off myself so the table would match the height of the other table. Paint hides lots of flaws.

I bought this original table at a garage sale and repainted it this dark lime green last year. I like the matching pair now. The matching brass lamps are looking dated so they will be refurbished or replaced in the near future.

This lamp was purchased this past summer at a thrift store in Ludington. It was originally a dirty white with gold stripes. I rewired it, painted it with cheap acrylic paint, added a $7 lampshade, and trimmed the lamp shade with beaded trimming from Jo-Ann's. I call it my "I Dream of Jeannie Lamp". It's from that era too.

The new old lamp looks good in my living room.

This is the first lamp I painted. It was a pale yellow originally and I bought it and the shade at separate garage sales. Again, rewiring and cheap acrylic paint did the trick. I custom mixed this color.

This is a lamp I bought from Pottery Barn. It was way too expensive but I liked it. I soon wised up and now I paint old lamps.

The green lamps look good in my family room along with two oak chairs from garage sales, a painted table in the corner from a garage sale, and a white chair and table from antique stores. I painted the tables and chair last year.

This walnut stool had a grungy fabric on the seat. I cleaned up the wood finish and reupholstered the seat in a neutral fabric I already owned.

Last fall Marty did some repair to this window. It was leaking and the dry wall was damaged and the wood trim had rotted. Marty made the repair and primed the wall and trim. I stared at it for months dredding the inevitable....I did not have any matching wall paint and did not want to have to repaint the wall or whole room. The original paint is the Sears Martha Stewart in "Travertine". That paint is no longer available and so I had to take a risk.

I went to a local paint manufacturer, O'Leary Paint, and they custom mixed an exact match. The trick is they do not use a computer. The computer matches never get it exact. O'Leary Paint color matches by eye. Luckily I always keep the paint swatches for all the rooms in my home and so they were able to make an exact match. After I painted the wall, I cannot tell any difference in the paint. The repair was in an area about 8" around the corner of this window. I am thrilled and will forever use O'Leary Paint.

What have you been doing to be thrifty? Tell me in your comments.

Muffin looks good with lime green don't you think? It brings out his green eyes.