Business in the front, completely f*ed up in the back

Shawn is currently in school five days a week in addition to working a 40 hour/week job at the airport like me. Its not very often that we get a whole day together, and its even more uncommon for that day to be a Saturday. Last weekend, we hit the jackpot. Neither of us had to work, and the weather was perfect. We decided to hit up the flea market to enjoy the sunshine and the company.

After paying the whopping six bucks to get in (seriously? when did they raise the prices!?!) we got down to business. We started at one end and slowly worked our way to the other. I haven't been to the flea market in at least a year, and I was kind of disappointed.  Not only did we have to pay more to get in, but the market was more of a farmer's market than a big yard sale.

I love a good farmer's market, but that's not exactly what we came for. We were hoping to get good deals on used tools, some home decor, possibly furniture... but what we found was moldy mangoes, brand new cell phones, and lots of interesting style choices among shoppers. We didn't hit the jackpot in terms of purchases, but I'd say seeing this guy and his mullet/rat tail was worth the admission price for sure.

It's almost got a Davey Crockett feel to it.

We also saw this kid. Well, we saw his hair, and then we realized it was attached to a person.

I think he was going for the Pauly D look....

But ended up looking more like Beakman...

After walking around for an hour, making fun of hair styles, we needed a little refreshment break. Time for the wonderful world of flea market barbecue. If I was smart, I would have gone with a simple BBQ turkey leg. At least we could see those cooking, and therefore, knew what we were getting into. Instead, we were adventurous and ordered the unseen. Shawn's "Philly Steak Sandwich"... (which he proceeded to smother in hot sauce)

And this was supposed to be a simple "Turkey Sausage Sandwich"....they forgot to mention the cheese...

There were at least two cups of cheese piled on this bad boy. I kindly scraped it all off. Luckily, the beer was just as we expected, and delicious on a hot day.

After our little lunch break, we hit the pavement again in search of deals. We found none. We did however find a graveyard of electrical cords.

And phone chargers.

There didn't seem to be any organization to them, so if you were in search of a specific brand or something, I think you'd have to just cross your fingers and dive in. Kind of strange.

We did find a cute little store nestled in the middle of the flea market. The prices were too high for my taste, mostly because I could see that the guy was finding cute stuff at thrift shops, refinishing them, and selling them for 10x the price at the flea market. But it was full of super cute furniture, none the less. It made me anxious to refinish that desk I bought a while back.

I'm kind of in love with that chair. I think it would look amazing with my desk (which looks awfully similar to the one in the picture). Its definitely going on my list of things to search for when thrifting.

So after drooling over expensive used furniture, we headed over to a jeweler/craftsman's shop to pick up my mom's Mother's Day present (and no mom, its not jewelry). We also picked up a gift for my sister that will stay hidden until her birthday...which is a long time...but the items were too perfectly meant for her, to pass up. I'd post pictures but, ya know, it would kind of spoil the surprise.

So I officially went to the flea market and didn't purchase a single thing for myself. (Aside from booze). I compiled a wish list of things to look for at shops, including French furniture and amazing over sized cookware.

We knocked a few gifts off the list, and Shawn picked up a new belt, but for some reason didn't want one with creepy dolls on it...

Don't worry, he didn't get any of the other super craptastic ones either...his isn't pictured :)

He also got a work light for the garage. So all in all, it was nothing super exciting. But, we got to spend the day together and laugh a lot, so it was pretty perfect if you ask me. Now off to another two weeks without a single day together.... boo on that.

The glasses make the man

Years ago, I listened to Oprah, shelled out a few bones, and bought the movie "The Secret". I wasn't interested enough to buy the book, but I figured I could spare an hour in front of the tv if it would change my life around. I got cozy on the couch, popcorn in hand, and prepared my mind to be blown. It wasn't. I mean, I suppose I took a few pointers here and there, and overall I can see how it could help you improve your mindset with positive thinking...but....I don't believe that great things happen to you as long as you ask the universe to send them your way. Too many people bought a book, read it over and over, and then proceeded to be lazy as hell and demand that the universe send them a winning lottery ticket. I believe in kharma, and I believe in fate to a degree, but The Secret just pushed it too far. I don't believe my little store will ever see the light of day if I don't get off my ass and make it happen. Its going to take a lot of hard work, plenty of preparation and planning, a chunk of change, and some serious drive.

In an effort to get the ball rolling, I've decided to check off that "chunk of change" portion of my to-do list. So I'm picking up shifts at the restaurant and working later hours every chance I can get. Unfortunately, that doesn't leave much time for anything else. I'm still getting to thrift stores whenever I can but I haven't had much time in the last week to blog about it. I'll try to be better, I promise.

I suppose one thing I did take away from that ridiculous movie (or maybe I learned this more from my short lived real estate career), was that wording is pretty important. When anyone inquires, I tell them about my plans to open a thrift store. That is immediately followed with a lengthy explanation of how its not really a thrift store, more of a cute little clothing store, with nice clean stuff, that are all just slightly used but still amazing, and don't smell anything like old ladies or moth balls, or old ladies that smell like moth balls, and other stuff too like furniture and decor, so I guess its not really a clothing store, more of an everything store, but its going to have style and all that jazz, with good music playing while you shop, and recessed lighting, and slate floors, and HOLY HELL THATS A LONG EXPLANATION!!!! Wording is everything and the fact that I feel the need to describe every detail of my dream store, in hopes that no one will be confused and think I'm opening a Goodwill, well...that's a sign that my wording is a bit off. I'm not opening a thrift store, or a thrift shop, or a used clothing store. Its not an antique store, or a consignment shop, or even a second hand stand. Its got style, variety, and class. Its a boutique of the finest sort with items that anyone can afford, and it doesn't need to be justified. I'm fairly confident that "resale boutique" says it all. So there it is.

On to the finds...

Last week, Shawn and I went to the Arc on Washington between 88th and 92nd Ave. I found two shirts that were on sale for $1.50 a piece. One is just a cute yellow tee with fish on it...more of a lounging around being a bum, kinda shirt. The other is a super cute cream colored shirt with tiny wooden beads embroidered on it. I would share pictures, but the tee is in the laundry and the other shirt is not exactly photogenic. Its adorable on, but on the hanger it looks like it belonged to some hippy art teacher in Boulder. I promise to take a picture next time I'm wearing it, and in the mean time, you'll just have to settle for a few pictures of Shawn's finds.

I found him this Hurley tee for $2.  I don't think he's thrilled about it because, well, I haven't seen him wear it yet. I can't win them all. :(

He found this hemp belt and was pretty excited.

Not nearly as excited as he was to find these safety glasses, however. I laughed for at least three whole minutes before I could steady my hands long enough to take this picture. (The grinder was put back in the housewares department not long after this one was snapped).

Those glasses are now being used every day in his school, either by him or his classmates with equally awesome taste.

The only other thing we got at this shop was a glass jar. I already have two smaller ones (courtesy of yard sales), and this one matches perfectly so... Now I just have to find something to put in it.

Before I go, I thought I'd share our WTF of the day...

In case you can't tell. They are flip flops. And they are priced at $3.99. Yeah. Umm. Just yeah.

Mumus and Naughty Tees

I got off work a few hours early yesterday, so I decided to stop by a few thrift shops on my way home. Both were having sales but I couldn't seem to match the sales to anything I was interested in. At the first shop, (Salvation Army at 120th and Colorado) the cashier told me that blue tags were half price...

But when I tried to purchase this cute serving dish, I was informed that the sale only includes blue tagged clothing items. Kind of a bummer, but I bought the dish anyway.

I almost bought this little trinket box. I'm not sure what it was made of...if anyone out there has an idea, I'd love to know. It was pretty heavy and had a very smooth finish. Felt like a cross between a metal and a stone. I decided not to buy it because it was $10 but I'm kind of regretting it now. There was also a matching hand mirror for sale. I took a picture of it too, but it magically disappeared from my phone.

My next stop was the Goodwill near 96th and Grant. This shop had a 50% sale for all green tags....of which I found none. There were a few clerks removing massive amounts of clothing from the racks and I assumed these were all of the left over green tagged items. Somehow, I never managed to get in front of them so I didn't get any discounts. I did, however, find two really cute dresses for $4.99 each.

Old Navy...

Roxy...

The Roxy one has a slight mumu vibe to it but its super short and cute on so whatever.

Today, I had big plans to get a lot accomplished and run a bunch of errands.  That sort of happened...but I got a little distracted at a Goodwill in Arvada. Shawn went with me and actually seemed slightly entertained...even picking up a new CD.  I got this adorable serving bowl for $4.99. 

The price was kind of high, especially for a Target bowl.  But earlier in the day, Shawn was scanning my new West Elm catalogue and commented on these dishes. Totally a different pattern, but in the same category, I'd say...

I always drool over the West Elm catalogues but I very rarely buy anything from them. I've only been to the store once and it was only because my catalogue came with a $25 gift card. In general, they are just too pricey. (Although they have awesome clearances online...got a great duvet cover for under $50 this year) I love the style of the store though, and the mags give amazing inspiration. I love to scroll through it to get design ideas and then try to put them together using thrift finds. Where were we?

Oh yeah...I also found this little picture frame and thought it might add a little more mild green to our office...in hopes of slightly down playing that awesome (although extremely loud) green filing cabinet I just got. (99 cents)

My only clothing purchase was this Hollister tee. Its brand new and made me giggle so...

And it was only $1.99. 

I was bummed that I didn't get any other tops. They had tons of clothes, many brand new, but all the ones I liked were size Extra Small. Not happening...

Alright folks, I'm out. Perhaps I'll have more to share tomorrow...or I'll actually get my errands done. We'll see. :)

Oh snap...3 posts in a row

Soooo, its Saturday which means "yard sale day", except Colorado's skies decided to open up yesterday and vomit all over us. Rain, snow, hail, thunder, grossness. Its cold and soggy out and therefor, I could only find 2 out of the 20 or so garage sales I had on pinged on my little map. The first was decent, although slightly over priced. It was a cute bungalow across from a beautiful park. The home was also for sale (for just over $400k or I would have bought it too) and the yard sale turned into a living room sale due to the crappy weather.

Side note....free advice from a Realtor. If you have a home that is super awesome inside, but you are struggling to get buyers to stop by...hold an indoor yard sale.  Get signs, balloons, etc. and advertise online and on the busy streets nearby. The key here is product placement. Don't hold the entire sale in the living room. Have items in the living room, kitchen, and garage. Explain to the shoppers that there are more items out back, and point them in the right direction. Have plenty of flyer's ready with your home's details and place them in all the major rooms. At a typical open house, you are lucky to have a handful of people stop by. An indoor yard sale, however, can easily bring in 50 or so people. It wouldn't hurt to have your Realtor on hand to answer any questions. Just another way to advertise your home and get rid of your old junk at the same time.

Ok, back to the important stuff here. So the house was super cute and so was the stuff they were selling. I picked up a bunch of vegan cookbooks, but at $2 a piece, I ended up putting them back. I realize I'm a total cheapy, but I'm a total cheapy with a library card and access to lots of free reads soooo... I did end up buying the DVD "Misery" because Shawn and I were just talking about it the other day. It was brand new and only $1. I also got a 3 piece set of clear glass mixing bowls. They are in great shape so I sucked it up and forked over a whopping $5 for them.

I also got this little gravy boat that matches all of my serving dishes. ($2)

The next 15 sales I tried to find apparently got cancelled due to the rain (even though their Craigslist ads were still up and many said "rain or shine"). I ended up driving too far south and the only yard sale I came across had the dirtiest inventory I've ever seen. It looked like everything had been sitting on the front lawn for weeks. It was kind of a shame because they had quite a few very large bookcases (like 6 feet across) but the wood was getting all warped from the rain. They would have worked well in the store, but there wasn't anyone outside to tell me prices. If you ever hold a yard sale....please stay outside with your sale. Simple idea but people forget this all the time and it drives me crazy. 

By this point, I was getting pretty cold and my stomach was growling, so I made a pit stop at Whole Foods for some pancakes before moving on to a few thrift shops. The first was the same DAV on Alameda I've mentioned before. I wasn't able to find any boots today, but I did snag a picture of some interesting shoes. This DAV has a lot of umm...well....really really high heeled, sometimes see through plastic, perhaps pair well with a pole of some sort....shoes. I just took a picture of one of these gems to give you an idea.

These ones were actually the more modest of the group. I tried to get a picture of the ones with the lights in the see through heels but the man behind the counter started eyeing me in an uncomfortable way. Moving right along....

I picked up these little plates. I'm really not into the cheesy food decor, but these were really cute (and only a dollar).

I also snagged my most exciting find of the day. As soon as I saw it I knew I needed it for the store. Since it was half price day, it only set me back $10. I brought it upstairs (well, Shawn brought it upstairs) to clean it up, and it magically ended up in my little home office. It brightens up the room so well that it just might have to stay until I open up shop.

This picture makes the color seem a little minty, which its not. Its bright as hell and a little deeper green than this. And just awesome.

While I was browsing this store, I saw a few other things I thought I'd share. This three piece furniture set has been in the store for quite some time. Its priced at $699, so if you stop in on Saturday, its only $350 and its in amazing condition. It definitely doesn't fit in with the decor in my home, but if you have a cabin-like feel to your house, this would be perfect. I can't believe its been here for so long.

Another piece that's been in the store for far too long is this bed. Granted, its priced at $3999, but half price day makes it under $2000 and its absolutely gorgeous. Its totally out of my price range, but I'm sure its worth at least ten grand. It looks like it should be in a castle (maybe it was at one point). I drool over it ever time I'm there.

(BTW...its a king size if anyone is interested in snagging this one)

I also saw about 5 of these Qdoba t-shirts and they caught my attention.

Does anyone have the lowdown on these? Were there "Burritos for Obama" shirts as well, or have I been unknowingly donating all my hard earned nacho money to the Republican party?

Anyway...The only other shop I stopped by was the Family Thrift off Wadsworth (near 64th). I didn't find anything too great, although I was too tired to search through the clothing. I did find this pair of shoes, that seemed a little strange. Since when do shoes come in ages rather than sizes? And since when do all 10 year olds have the same size feet? (Not to even mention the fact that these shoes were clunky high heels...not really fit for a 10 year old)

Alright, that's it for today. I'm going to spend my afternoon reorganizing my office and filing everything away in my new awesome file cabinet. Have a good one!!

Yard sale treasures

Alright, we're almost done playing catch up...

Last Saturday, my mom, Shawn, and I hit up a neighborhood yard sale. It was in the Highlands area, which, to those who aren't familiar with Denver, is a fairly trendy neighborhood just west of downtown. It is full of cute brick bungalows and lots of mature trees. The people who live there tend to be mid twenties to mid thirties and have a wide array of careers. You can find doctors and lawyers living next to artists and musicians. Its a very neighbor friendly and dog friendly area. I would love to have a shop here someday....

So, in our search for good yard sales last weekend, I used my handy dandy yard sale app and discovered that a small area in the Highlands would be housing over 25 sales in a six block radius. Ummm....awesome!?

I was pretty stoked about our first sale because I picked up this marble mortar and pestle for $2.00. I've been wanting one for a while to make fresh hummus and pesto in. Woohoo!

I also found these awesome belts and the crazy woman only charged me fifty cents a piece!!! Seriously. She must have been nuts. And no, I don't plan on wearing them together...just figured I'd save you an extra picture. (Please forgive the dirty bathroom mirror)

At another sale, I got this cute purple bottle that has found a home on my dining room wall. I believe it was fifty cents.  (FYI, the yellow pitcher on the left was a thrift find for a dollar or two way back when).

Shawn found these wooden salad spoons that I can't bring myself to use in a salad. They're just too cute. ($1)

Shawn also picked up a cocktail shaker, a brand new camping shovel for a dollar, and a wire cleaning brush for free (yes, free!!!). Mom snagged quite a few boxes of assorted greeting cards for a quarter a piece as well as some gardening tools and silver beachy salad spoons with little starfish on them. All in all, it was a pretty amazing day for good finds. Hopefully this Saturday will be just as great.

Although I don't have any pictures, or any great scores, to share, I thought I'd let you know that we also went to a couple storage unit auctions on Tuesday.  I didn't purchase a unit but it was still a lot of fun. There were lots of carpenter tools, appliances, and furniture. Nothing was really priced right for my taste, but it was still a good way to spend our morning. I will be going back many times in the future and I plan to take lots of pictures to give you a better idea of how these auctions work and just how much money can be made at them.

Alright, I'm off to enjoy some couch potato time on my day off. See ya soon!

Oh hello, stranger

Damn, I was so excited about this new blog and then I went and abandoned it for an entire month. I'm sorry. In my defense, I've been kind of busy and the thrifting was at a minimum for a bit. Shawn's truck was broken into, I went out of town, and my mom came to Denver for a visit. So, for the last few weeks, posting pictures online hasn't been my top priority. I also feel a little guilty because I have yet to sign up for any business classes like I'd planned. I think I might postpone that goal until the fall semester, and focus on working more hours and saving more money over the summer. I'm still super eager to go back to school, I'm just worried about the cost and I missed the deadline for the FAFSA. I need to just get off my ass and go talk to an advisor.

Although school isn't going exactly as planned, I have been focusing on my overall goal of opening a thrift store. I've been sifting through Craigslist ads just to get an idea of what it might cost to rent a retail space in the Denver area. I'm not even pretending that I could afford to open a store downtown, but there are plenty of awesome locations nearby that are within my price range. I've been focusing on "olde town" areas that have cute store fronts on busy streets, in fairly trendy neighborhoods. I need a location that has plenty of foot traffic but it also needs to be in a neighborhood that houses people who buy stylish duds but aren't too uppity to shop resale. This is a bit tricky but I think I've narrowed it down to a few areas that would be pretty perfect. I have no intention of renting a retail space anytime soon, but its nice to know what I'll be getting into. And just looking at the ads gets me excited and motivates me to work extra hard toward this goal. I don't want to open a store and instantly fall into debt. I think that would just make this new business venture a million times more stressful (which is the exact opposite of why I'm doing this!). So, I've decided to set aside enough money to cover business expenses (including rent and inventory) for six months, plus six months of living expensive (car, mortgage, food, etc). Once I have this money in the bank, I'm giving myself the green light. Knowing this, and taunting myself with possible "perfect" retail locations, is awesome encouragement to work my butt off and make as much money as possible!

Ok, ok, enough with the boring business talk. Now for the thrift finds of the past month.

A few weeks back, I stopped by a local thrift shop. I'd post the name and address but its been so long that I can't remember (promise to be a better blogger in the future). I picked up a few odds and ends but this was my fav of the day. Just a simple, cute little jug that was the perfect size for the empty shelf on the dining room wall.

I'm sure I had some great purchases since this little gem but I just can't remember..so...moving right along :)

Last week, I flew out to Missouri to surprise my dad for his birthday. He's a retired soldier but he still works on an Army post doing government work. While I was visiting, mom and I stopped at the Waynesville Goodwill. If you live near Ft. Leonard Wood, I highly recommend this shop. Its fairly organized, jam packed with clothes, and doesn't smell like moth balls (a HUGE plus in my book). Also, its next to the base, so the majority of the goods are being donated by military and their families which means there's a variety of clothes from all over the world. I found a few tops...

Shawn says this one is very 'retro' with its little owl-like flowers and embroidered border. I say its just cute.

This one is just a Target shirt, but it was only a few dollars and the sheer material will make it a good summer shirt.

I like this one because the scoop neck is in the back.

I'm not positive but I believe the tops were around $2.50 a piece. I also picked up a practically brand new LRG tee for Shawn (tried to photograph it but it is currently MIA) for $4.00.

My fav from this Goodwill is this big purse for $3.00. I think this purse is telling me to pack it and take it to the beach this summer. I might need to listen to it.

We stopped by another thrift store that is closer to my parents house but I only purchased one top. I can't remember the name of the store, but its in a big warehouse with poor lighting and not much in the way of organization. Also, the cashier was extremely rude to me when I questioned the price of the top. Apparently this is a blouse and not a tee. According to her, tees don't have sleeves.  (All in all...made this shirt a whopping $1.75 instead of $0.75..haha) And all this time I've been calling them tanks. Silly me.

Instead of flying back to Denver, Mom and I drove. We stopped in Lawrence, Kansas (an adorable college town) and took a stroll through their local Goodwill. I was on a time crunch so I didn't get a chance to really dig through the shelves, but that store holds a ton of potential. I picked up this little Aero top with the tags still on for $3.00.

I also got a cream colored cardigan that is currently in the bottom of my hamper (hence the lack of pictures). I am definitely stopping at this store the next time I drive through Kansas. There were tons of name brand clothing, many brand new, and lots of home decor items. I found two HUGE cardboard posters in the back that looked like they came straight off the Abercrombie wall. (You know, black and white photo of some dudes giving 'sexy face'). They were in great condition and marked at $5.00. I personally wouldn't have a use for them, but I'm sure someone out there would love to wake up to those boys.

Alright, I've posted too many pictures in an attempt to compensate for my month long hiatus. I'll end this post here, before you get so bored you fall asleep. Come back tomorrow to see what I picked up at a string of Highlands yard sales last weekend. :)