Feeding my addiction

Some call it addiction. Some call it a good use of time & money or perhaps even smart. Either way, I've been feeding mine lately by attending a few estate sales. You'd be surprised at how often they have them. I've signed up to receive notices through estatesales.net.

Why estate sales all of a sudden? Unlike yard sales, these are items that people still wanted and are in good condition. Usually they are held when someone dies and the family wants to sell the remainder of the home's content.

Plus I'm nosy. I like looking at people's stuff.

So over the past two weekends, I've hit two estate sales with my  partner-in-crime friend, Anna. (Yes there are two of us. It's scary.)

My first purchase? A beautiful antique wardrobe. It's not a full wardrobe, which is why I fell in love with it. I actually saw it on Saturday morning and didn't buy it. Then I dreamed of it all night, which is why I knew I should go back on Sunday. I had already asked if they would be putting it 50% off.

Oh, side tip...usually the first day (often a Friday) is full price; day 2 (Saturday) is 25% off; and day 3 (Sunday) is 50% off. Not always, but this is generally how they go.

Unfortunately my piece was one the family almost didn't put up for sale so it was only going to be reduced by $50 (down from $300 to $250). I didn't care. I still loved it.

 

This is one of those very versatile pieces that can be used in any room. I didn't have room for it in a bedroom (the most logical place) but I thought it'd be perfect in our dining room. I know it's great quality not only because it was solid wood and in great condition but also because it has what's called dovetailing.

 

 

 

No, it doesn't have bird feathers in it. Dovetailing is a type of craftsmanship common in older, higher-end pieces of furniture. These days we like to nail, glue or otherwise slap it together. Not back then.

 

Typically you see this in drawers. At least that's the easiest spot to find it. That's one of the ways I judge if the piece is worth a higher price.

 

Now that the history lesson is over, let's get back to what I did with my new piece of furniture. As I said, I put it in the dining room. Inside I've put all my table linens (tablecloths, napkins, placemats, etc.) and my tall platters that don't fit in a typical cabinet.

 

 

This ended up being my anniversary gift since it was, as I mentioned, $250. Some ladies love jewelry. I love furniture.

 

The following weekend I stopped by another estate sale, this time on my own (Anna was out of town and slightly jealous). I went on a late Sunday afternoon so they were pretty cleared out but everything was 50% off. I didn't see much and then it hit me. What was I standing on?

 

Why it was a 10x12' rug that happened to possibly match my house. Could it be?

 

I snapped a picture and sent it to my friend, Cecelia, to make sure I wasn't suffering from FOMO (fear of missing out) and it did indeed match. The navy was throwing me off a little, I'm not going to lie.

 

Sure enough she agreed. And just to be sure, I did look underneath for stains...and then might have crawled on my hands and knees (much to many people's shock, awe and perhaps thoughts of "there's a crazy lady in the living room") to ensure it didn't smell. Anna purchased a cute rug from an estate sale and it turns out it had the smell of cigarettes buried in it and it took her forever to get rid of the smell. Nope, mine was all clear.

 

Home it came with me. (And for those of you wondering, Daniel was a rock star and took it in stride. He's either numb to my shenanigans or given up. No sure which.)

 

 

Disregard the mismatched chairs and some of the artwork. Those are currently a work-in-progress.

 

It's hard to tell but the rug has orange, macadamia (color of the walls), navy and duck egg blue. This lighting doesn't do the colors justice but here's a slightly better picture:

 

There are several things I love about it...

 

1) it was only $150 for a 10x12'. For that price, if the kids toss their food down, I won't go psycho on them care.

 

2) the size. It makes me wish I had this size in our other rooms.

 

3) it brings in another color to the room (navy) that adds an extra dimension while still pulling in the duck egg blue and orange from the curtains.

 

Here's a picture of the room as it's come together over the last few weeks unexpectedly:

 

And now the view from our couch is much more "put together" versus "slapped it together". I love that our dining room, where we eat all of our meals, is so cozy.

 

Who else is addicted to estate sales or found any good steals and deals at one? I've already marked my calendar for another one coming up after Turkey Day. I'm on the hunt for twin beds, a bigger desk or storage for my office and chunky lamps for our bedroom.

 

Anyone want to come to the one Dec 6, 7 & 8 with me? I hear it's a big one!