i heart graffiti...

when it's cute...
& there's a sweet girl standing next to it...

:)

creative shopping...

today i'm finishing up
on some projects
for a holiday sale at the creative boutique...


i love having some time to play...
it's so energizing!
gives me a little pep in my step :)

if you are a local friend
come on over & see what we've got going on!
click over to the creative boutique blog
for info & directions
hope we get to see you there :)

i heart costco...

& i find hearts at costco...

:)

school houses rock...

finally!**
my school house finds
first let me say
i could have bought everything there
& figured out how to use it
(preschool table as coffee table? yes!)
if only we had a 5000 square foot house...

thankfully both kiddos needed a desk
(yes, NEEDED! :)
& there were so many different choices
from tiny little things
to the high school 'chair with small desk board attached' type...
miss m (after much contemplation) chose
this little sweetie:



i got to go to two school closing sales
that week
(& sadly i think there will be more to come
in the next few years
it's bittersweet, really...
i love school sales
it's just sad that a school has to
close in order to have them)

the first was a preschool closing
it was a little school my sister actually went to
so that was kind-of sweet
that also means it was over 30 years old
& believe me
they kept everything...
as i walked in there were two sets of cubbies coming out
(one was teal & chippy & perfect!)
darn!
Q was with me so my time was limited
but i did get to go through
& find some fun stuff...
a set of road & traffic sign flash cards
(not exactly sure why you would be testing
preschoolers on 'no right turn' but, okay)
some of them i knew Q would love
& oh, he did:

(danger: legos underfoot!)

(detour to the closet!)

& the desk he chose
(with no contemplation at all)
is exactly the same as the one he has at school
(he knows what he likes :)
he added it to his lego mega-desk
(mega desk! dwight shrute!)

(poison sign was in that flash card set too)

& the chair
*sigh*
the chair...
if i could have bought them all
(tons & $2 each!)
i would have...

i loooove the base so much...
wouldn't it be cool to have these all around
a dining room table?


& now my desk!
when i was in high school
my parents got me a drafting table
a real live(ish) one!
& i loved it
& have used it since then
in every room i've ever had...
but every year it has gotten
less & less sturdy...
when you would put something remotely heavy on it
it would shake & things would fall over...
so when i saw these at the elementary school sale
i was so excited...

(my high style garage art space :)

they are drafting tables too
but so super sturdy...
i am in love with them!
& the surfaces are a dream to clean up
considering they have probably been scrubbed
of grime for 30 years
& still look amazing
i'm thinking i will have them for a few years, too :)

my estate/tag sale friend, lisa
(we have never gone to a sale together
but we run into each other all the time...
it's pretty funny)
got one (maybe two?) also
(how are you liking yours, lisa?)
they are so great
& at $3 each
more than a bargain...

back to the preschool sale
this was my favorite find there:


individual little chalkboards...
can you stand it?
& 'beacon boards'
i have googled those words & descriptions
in so many different ways
& configurations but still can't exactly figure out what they are
they have a glossy finish on them
& aren't magnetic...
anyway
it doesn't really matter what they were originally
(or what works on them... chalk? dry erase markers?)
i have already made some things with them :)


they are just the cutest!

& books were 15 for $1

& stuck in with the books
i found this envelope:


full of these sweeties:


aren't they so cute?
just classic :)


this last saturday
brian said
'why don't you check out the paper
& make a garage sale plan'
(he's pretty cool :)
& the preschool sale was in the paper
again!
i will share what we got
in yet another post
(maybe i should rename this blog:
i go to school sales sometimes
or all the time)
but let me just say this:
if we got a pinball machine
we could open our own arcade...

here's to sales & schools
& hoping that neither ever go out of style...

:)

** you guys just have to know
how many blog posts happen in my head...
when i say
'i'll post tomorrow'
i really mean to!
& i have it all written in my brain
& then life happens
& i do more 'brain blogging'
& i'm just trying to figure this out...
should i just throw something up
even if it didn't take much thought?
or be crazy random blogger?
i don't know...
but thanks for sticking around while i figure it out :)

have a fab day!

:)

magazine monday: lucky, december 2010

lucky is a magazine that i have subscribed to on & off...
i always love it
but sometimes i'm more interested in fashion
& sometimes i just hope there's something
in my closet that doesn't make me want to
step on my own foot repeatedly (?)
anyway
this issue celebrates their 10 year anniversary...
time to party!

i simply adore this dress...


inspiration boards are something i just love to see
there's a blog with different people's boards
(maybe i will try to dig it out)
this one is so sweet
the yellow
& rachel bilson
& that little building down on the bottom?
you turn that top over & it's a serving dish
& the bottom part is bowls stacked on top of each other...
(talk about 'build a meal' :)
really fun!


& they did a timeline
of their last 10 years...
i am such a sucker for a timeline!
so great to see all of the fashions through the years


i also always fall for the
'10 must have pieces'
every time,
no matter what they are in reference to
('10 must have pieces for stage diving'
'10 must have pieces for ice dancing')
but this one might be more handy than most...


i think i've got 8 of the 10
anybody have some size 10 motorcycle boots
they would like to get rid of?

this next page was fun...


i loooove this skirt...
not sure if i'm brave enough to wear it
but it's just so cute!

& this outfit...
or maybe it's her pose...
either way
i'm liking it


another one i loooove
but probably won't be wearing :)


then they just started this new column
at the end of the magazine
(i'm a sucker for a good last page, too)
it's all about celebrating different girl's style icons
you can even send in your story
about a friend or relative...
what a neat idea...

happy anniversary lucky!
i'll always take a gamble with you :)

wonderfinds: denim & top-stiching

i'll be back later (today? tomorrow?)
with my school house purchases...
i did take pictures last week
but then the kids cleaned their rooms
& so i am going to retake them
keep up the illusion that the floor is always clear of
legos
babies
& undies

anyway...

i have been finding such great stuff lately at
the thrift stores
(& one particularly awesome garage sale):
a couple of cute coats
some shoes
& a dress or two...

i found these shoes & a dress yesterday
& took pictures before they were welcomed in
to my happy little closet
NEVER TO BE HEARD FROM AGAIN!
(i am learning)

these shoes
are just what i need for fall
brown!
cute little buckle!
top-stitching!
i love how the ends of the belt-like thing (?)
stick out a little bit...
will it hit things as i walk?
brush against other's ankles?
they are very unpredictable...
always living on the edge.

i wasn't so sure about the cut-outs
still not
but it's not like they are showing something inappropriate...
like my heels (gasp!)
so again i'm a risk taker with my footwear...
yep.

(brown school shoes, goodwill, $4.99)

this dress reminds me just enough of a
back to school jumper
that i get a little nostalgic
but not so much that i want to do anything crazy
like actually go to school...

(denim dress, goodwill, $5.99)

'Q's mom, why are you hanging that dress in a tree?'
(Q & miss m were not fazed at all, of course)


i love the little ruffled arms
& again with the top-stitching...


makes me want to go buy school supplies...

:)

school's out...

be still my heart!
my love of school related paraphernalia
is no secret
so when i saw this sale in the classifieds
i was so there...

(locker baskets were not for sale...
or we would have had to find a new place for our bed)

(i grew up with this encylopedia set...
ah, pre-google!)

all of the text book essentials...

cutest dictionary cover ever...

the things that made me long for a school house of my own
were all of the desks & chairs!
& these tables...

*sigh*

cute little cubbies
that i stared at for ages...
the lady kept coming down on the price

it wasn't the price
it was the 'where would i put this'?
in the end (after a text or two)
i bought it for jill
& i paid full price
($5 :)



even the bathroom was cute...


& my assistant had lots of fun too :)

(adorable puppet stage!)

this sale
(& another closing pre-school sale)
just made me more sure that someday
an old school
is in my future :)

ps next i'll show what i actually bought...

:)