Care for a Cuppa?

Growing up in a very Scottish family, I always heard the word "cuppa" (referring to a cup of tea), and was surprised to find recently that many people have no earthly idea what that means and will give you strange looks if you happen to use it in regular conversation.

As a tea-lover, I was so happy to find these lovely little japanese-style teacups at Goodwill the other week. They are a wee bit bigger than most, and have the sweetest design of some type of winged creature. I can't tell if it's a peacock or a stylized chicken or something else entirely. Can you?

Either way, they match my new tetsubin to perfection. Josh bought this cast-iron teapot for me for Christmas this year! It weighs a ton but it pours tea better than any teapot I've ever used! 

My other latest "find" was this sweet little table. It's very mid-century mod! It's solid wood, but it looks like someone covered the top with a layer of faux-woodgrain drawer liner or something. So, it needs a bit of work but I think when it's done it will be adorable!

Josh and I went for a walk the other day, and noticed that our neighbors were getting rid of a couch for FREE. And it was kinda cool looking. So, being the weirdos that we are, we of course nabbed the couch and brought it home to our garage. I'm not really sure what we'll do with it. Best case scenario: I will successfully reupholster it and find a great space for it in our (tiny) townhome. Worst case: it will end up in the "free" section of Craigslist. =)

So that's the extent of my thriftiness lately- have you stumbled upon any great finds?

P.S. I want to say a big WELCOME to my new friends from the blog hop! I was pleasantly surprised to see that I was listed as the guest host, and it's soooo fun to meet some new blog friends. I really look forward to getting to know you all better!

Thrifty Finds

I come bringing tidings of yet another great thrifting experience! Every once in a while, I just seem to hit the jackpot! Have any of you other thrifters out there noticed this phenomenon? You can go 50 times and only find one thing, then suddenly you find yourself actually looking for a shopping cart... Gotta love it!

The blue mason jar was actually found this Summer at a garage-sale, but I just had to post a picture of it's prettiness. It was in a big collection of canning supplies that my MIL stumbled upon, and of course when I saw this I couldn't hide my envy, so she gave it to me. I have the best Mother-In-Law ever! =)

But ahem, on to the thrifting finds. First up, I found another tile-trivet to add to my growing collection. I have 2 smaller ones that are similar colors, and they are really versatile! I use them for setting plants on, for decoration, hot pans, so many things!

Next, I finally found a chair for the desk in our 2nd bedroom. I've been waiting for the perfect one, and I finally found this for only $3.99. Yup. I think it may be from IKEA. I plan to paint it and the desk someday for a matching pair.

I also found this interesting painting- it is hand-painted on a wooden plaque, with a cool, scrolly metal hanger at the top. I can't decide where to put it quite yet, but I think it would work in pretty much any room of our house!

Finally, I found a fun hounds-tooth skirt that I plan to refashion soon... Hopefully by the end of the week.

I also found a couple of sweaters, but I may be returning them. I think I was a little too greedy in my thrifting... Have you found any fun things while thrifting lately? I would love to hear all about it!

Why I Love Bargain Grocery Shopping

Like many people, I grew up in the US as somewhat of a food snob. My parent's weren't rich and didn't shop at the nicest grocery stores or anything like that, but we always shopped at one specific place. Because of that, when I first married Josh I was a little bit of a snob and stuck my nose up in the air at the thought of going to other grocery stores.

However, over a year and a half into our marriage, that has all changed. Now, this bargain-hunting girl can definitely see the pluses of shopping at a discounted grocery store! Enter: Aldi's.

Just to give you a little hint at how much you can save by shopping for most of your groceries there, all this food cost me under $100 bucks.

Yup, all those delicious groceries for only $99.86.

In most cases, I noticed a savings of over 50%. For instance, the tortilla chips were only $1.19 for a family-sized bag, compared to upwards of $3 at most grocery stores. Yowza!   

Now, for a quick disclaimer, there are SOME things that I just don't buy at Aldi's. I don't buy meat, tuna, or most of our produce there. But for other things, like cereal, pasta sauce, chips, bottled water (24 pack for under $3!!), and such, Aldi's is the place to go! 

Of course, I need to mention that Aldi's did not compensate me in any way for mentioning their store. I just love finding great bargains and sharing ways to save with others! It's so important to be good stewards with the money that God has given each of us, for our good and the good of our families. 

Here's a couple quick tips if you want to try your hand shopping at Aldi's:

• Bring a quarter for the shopping cart. Yup, you need one if you don't want to lug your groceries around yourself! They keep the carts outside the store, and you just put the quarter in a slot near the handle and then you  get it back when the cart is returned. Voila!
• Bring your own grocery bags! Otherwise, you will have to purchase them from Aldi's. I use the "reusable" bags that are all over the place these days, they are perfect for groceries since they are a little bigger! 
• If you're not sure about something, give it a try anyway! I have been pleasantly surprised how the "off-brand" foods taste exactly like what I would purchase from a name-brand store! Like Craisins- they are $4 a bag at Cub but the Aldi version is cheaper and taste just the same. 
• Bring cash or a check-card. For some reason unknown to me, they DO NOT accept credit cards. It has to be an actual bank card or cash. 
• When you get up to the register, the cashier will swipe your groceries through the scanner and into a waiting cart. They try to be as efficient as possible, so you'll notice the bar codes are really big on the products for the quickest swipe!

Have you ever shopped at Aldi's or another discount grocery? Do you have any tips to share?


*Due to an anonymous comment I received, I feel it's pertinent to mention that you CAN save much more if you decide to clip coupons and shop that way. I did try that for a while, but found that it was way too time consuming and frustrating for me. If you want to spend hours researching what groceries you will buy and where, and have the pantry space to stock up, then go for it! But my experience was that it was the equivalent of a part-time job and kind of made me go insane. For those of us who choose to not buy every single grocery item with a coupon, shopping at a discount grocery store is a great option. My husband and I have a very moderate grocery budget and I'm really happy with the $$ we save by shopping at Aldi. Also, Anon mentioned that it's ALDI not Aldi's. I stand corrected. 

Thrifty Finds

 

Sadly, I haven't been thrifting as much as I would like to lately! It's the end of our budget, and it's also been a busy couple of weeks (this past weekend we had TWO family weddings, one day apart! Yikes!). However, I do have a couple of treasures to share with you!  

I found this tray at GW for only 49 cents. It's tiny, but it's definitely vintage and has the cutest gold print on it. It will be perfect for serving drinks on the porch! 

I actually found this cow creamer from good ol' Target, but on clearance! It was around $3 I think. Target can be pretty thrifty sometimes! I'm always on the lookout for fun new kitchen items, and this has definitely gotten a few comments since I've started using it. He made an appearance at a tea party with my cousins just last week!

Alas, that's about all I have for now! However, I will leave you with a little giggle-inducing picture of what our kitty has been up to lately:

This is what happens when a kitty decides to be overly curious and explore the space between the sliding glass door and the screen, and when her owners are cruel enough to actually shut the door for a moment in order to get a good picture of it. 

Don't worry, she was only there for about 10 seconds. Maybe 15.

Friday Finds!

Is anyone else getting bitten by the thrifting bug lately? With Spring pretty much here to stay, all I can think about are picnics in the park, wearing dresses everyday, and tall, icy glasses of homemade lemonade. Yum.

So as you can see... my thrifting obsessions lately have been leaning that way too!


I finally found one of these amazing glass lemon juicers that I've been wanting. It's different from the one I grew up using at my parents house- theirs is made from metal. Has anyone else used a glass one before, do they work just as well? Just curious.


Then, I found a set of 4 of these glasses. They are so pretty, and I can just imagine them filled with all kinds of delicious beverages. You will probably see lots of pictures of these pretties throughout the warm months.


Finally, I stumbled upon this little crockery pot that was only $0.49! I couldn't believe the price tag, these types of salt-glazed pottery usually go for a lot more than that (and usually GW puts at least a $4.99 tag on these things). So I definitely had to snatch it up for that price. I'm not sure what I'll do with it yet, but for now it looks awfully cute sitting on the stove next to our owl fondue sticks.

Well folks, that's about it for me. I hope you all have a lovely weekend!

Thrifty Finds

So sometimes, I just get so excited about thrifting that I have to share! I love finding good deals and keeping my home stylish at the same time! So here's a few items that I've purchased recently:


Cute orange vase from JoAnnes (not really a thrift store, I know, but it was 70% off!).


A velvety pillow for the love seat, GW, $4.99.


2 Paper star garlands for all those parties we will be throwing in the near future! The package said they were made in Bangladesh too! GW $1.00 each.



And finally, the piece de resistance, this lovely frock! Savers, $9.99.

Don't worry too much, I plan to work some sewing magic on it and transform it into something fun and flirty for a ball that we are attending soon. A ball! Eeeee!


So there you have it. A few of the latest thrifty finds around the Marx household. Have you found anything awesome lately? I'd love to hear all about it!

Some More Thrifty Stuff!

Chippy vase: $2.00


Cute Owl-Head fondue sticks: $1.00 (too kitschy to pass up!)


And finally... the piece de resistance...

Vintage side table: $10.00

I need some input on this! I know that I want to paint it for sure, but I can't decide what color! I was thinking something fun and punchy, like goldenrod-yellow, but I would love to hear some other ideas too!

a makeover waiting to happen

Sometimes I find something that catches my eye...


(picture from Craigslist)


Then I scour the internets for something similar, waiting, hoping. Will it be in my price range (which my husband prefers to be zero dollars)?


For 2 months I have looked for a chair like this.

Yesterday, I walked into GW and guess what was waiting for me?



For 9.99.

I think I may have heard an angel choir singing. Or something.


I have seen quite a few of these chairs being redone- with paint and new upholstery fabric I think it could be stunning!

It is just begging for a makeover, don't you think?


P.S. It is Friday, I just got home from work, and I am making myself some coffee. In short? Life is good.

thrifty tips

A few people have been asking me about thrifting lately, so instead of just posting pictures of my latest items, I thought I would also share some things I've learned about thrifting along the way. I'm no expert, but I have found (through trial and error!) some good things to keep in mind when thrifting.




1. Don't have any expectations. Seriously, don't go to a thrift store expecting to find exactly what you want because you will leave empty-handed and depressed (been there, done that. Where is my mid-century heather-gray couch?).



2. Instead, keep an ongoing list of items you need/want, and just keep an eye out for them when you go thrifting. Sometimes I end up finding exactly what I want, just not right away.



3. Try to go to the same place, and go often. I go to GW about once a week. I divide my time between two stores, and I have mapped out a comprehensive browsing technique for both of them (I know, it sounds crazy. But sometimes you have to think like a Marine when you are thrifting).




4. One dirty little trick I learned? If I don't have a lot of time, I go straight to the clothes hanger outside the dressing room, which can contain some of the choicest garments. It's like letting everyone else do the work for you!




5. Try to think outside the box. If you are creative/crafty, you might just find something that is considered "trash" and turn it into treasure. This post from way long ago is something I found and refurbished.




6. Along that line- a lot of the items of clothing I have found (about 40% of my wardrobe is from GW) have been too big/too short/just needed TLC. With a few quick stitches you can fix a lot of those problems, so don't overlook the items that aren't your exact size or in perfect condition.




7. Don't be afraid to go home empty-handed. I am a weirdo and I just love thrifting for the experience, but it can be a little disheartening to leave without finding any treasures. I try to be really honest with myself when I buy anything. Will I really use it/wear it? If not, then I just don't buy it. My bank account and my hubby are thankful for that.

8. Remember, you will get dirty. Thrift stores are notorious for being gross. Just bring your hand sanitizer and a kleenex (in case it's dusty!), and dig in!

How about you? Do you have any great tips for thrifting that you would like to share?

Some good finds

A few years ago, I found this bowl at GW. The unique pattern caught my eye right away. I wasn't sure where I would put it, what I would do with it, but I took it home anyway.

My other new favorite GW find are these candle-holders.

Love!

They are originally from Target, but were found at GW for a fraction of the price. I got the pair for $6. It's amazing how little things like this can add so much visual interest!

I am still thinking of ways to improve what I now affectionately refer to as the "armpit" of my living room. I'm thinking maybe a chair for another reading nook? I also have seen a few home-made entertainment centers that looked really nice. Maybe it's time to replace the faux-finish hand-me-down from Grandma.

Does anyone else enjoy thrifting? Where are your favorite places to go?

Also, do you know where I can find a cute chair for like 20 bucks?

Oh Goodwill... How I Love Thee

Oh, Goodwill. I love thy aisles filled with junk. I love the crackly loudspeakers that the employees use to announce the sales. I love sighting a Banana Republic top from afar and clawing my way through the crowds of elderly women in polyester pantsuits to reach it.

I love paying 4.99 for an Ellen Tracy purse that normally cost over $200. (Sorry for the garbage bin in the background. I refuse to edit those things out though, they are a part of life!).



I love my new sweater with little beaded flowers.



But I think most of all, I LOVE the hand-appliqued picture of chickens that I found. Josh (my dear sweet Hubby) may not agree, but I think it will look great in our kitchen once we paint. Who knew chickens could be so, well, cute? I certainly did not.





The frame definitely needs a little TLC, but I think it will look great over our sink! And nothing says "kitchen" like a bunch of colorful chickens pecking at each other. Nothing.

Now that Christmas is over, and the sky is still turning it's lights out at 5 pm, I think I am going to need a LOT of Goodwill therapy. The next three months will be... interesting. Sometimes I wonder why I still live in Minne(snow)ta!