Rummage Sale Nirvana

Today was the annual St. Peter's Episcopal Church rummage sale and...well... "WOOHOO"! I had to be up a little early to drop my son off to take the SAT's. ***An aside from an educator and a mother: why do they schedule the most important test of a high school student's "career" at 7 a.m.? Is there some valid reason the tests can't be given a few hours later when the kids are actually awake enough to think? Back to the rummage sale: I arrived at 8:50, knowing the doors wouldn't budge until exactly 9:00 a.m., and managed to snag a respectable fifth place in line. I exited the church 27 minutes later, my arms laden with treasures and my wallet a paltry $20 lighter ($5 of which was my donation to the church as "penance" for the amazing "steals" I acquired).
Hubby is not an early riser on weekends, so he didn't accompany me on the first part of my shopping spree. The finale of this particular rummage sale is not to be missed, so John was ready & rarin' to go when we headed back to the church at noon for one hour of heavenly shove-everything-you-can-in-a-shopping-bag for $5 per bag. An hour later we bid a final adieu to St. Peter's and loaded our 6 bags into the back of my car. My favorite part: spreading everything out on the dining room table so I can absorb the full picture of the day's thrifting. There is something infinitely more satisfying about spending $50 for all of these goodies than there is filling my tank with gas. Agreed?

***Not pictured: 2 huge bags of fabric/ quilting squares, 2 pairs of curtains that match our bedroom decor perfectly (freshly washed & drying outside on the pool fence), 4 wool sweaters for hubby (washed and drying in the laundry room) and 2 full loads of "new" clothes (one in the washer & one in the dryer).

Seven baskets & a large batch of gorgeous dyed mohair

Six boxes of hand-dipped, "flower tapers" candles & eight boxes of "slim" candles

Fleece, felt & quilting squares

Brand new Ann Taylor patent leather wedge sandals, Softt clogs (one of my favorite brands) and 4 beautiful leather belts (in a cute tin container)

My FAVORITE find of the day: 4 pairs of vintage gloves in a sweet flowered box