Story Weekend: Garage Sale Find
Do you have a story about something you found at a garage sale or flea market? I bet you do! Hope you’ll share it with us.
If you’re new to Story Weekend, here’s how it works: I pick a theme and you share something from your life that relates to that theme, however you interpret it. Thanks to all of you who’ve contributed. As always, there are a few “rules”:
▪ The story must be true
▪ Try to keep it under 100 words. Embrace the challenge! That’s about six or seven lines in the comment form. I want others to read your story, and most people tend to skip if it’s too long. I know how tough it is to “write tight” but I hope you’ll accept this as a challenge.
Thirty or so years ago, a friend and I spent nearly every Saturday morning going to yard sales. We found many great treasures. One Saturday we found two large nude oil paintings. The funny thing was, one of them looked exactly like her and the other looked exactly like me!!! hahaha..yes we bought them!
But the very best thing I’ve ever found was a stainless steel griddle I got for 50 cents. I still use it!
Do you still have those paintings, Marsha? So funny about the stainless steel griddle. I’ve only bought one thing at a garage sale: a stainless steel griddle. Mine was $1. Strange coincidence!
I still have my painting. I’m not sure if my friend has hers.
I love my griddle!! I use it for grilled cheese more than anything…lol
when I got out of high I was introduced to tea,but the kind that you let sit and brew in a kettle, not just dunk your tea bag in a cup
. I loved it the flavor was so much more intense. I found this wonderful old tea pot at a garage sale for 25 cents !!! it reminded me of the old lad den’s lamp style stainless steel just the perfect gem to brew my tea .
I had that for well into my late 40’s before the handle broke. I miss the little pot not the same brewing my tea with out it.
what a great find. And don’t you hate autocorrect sometimes. Though “old lad den’s lamp” sounds interesting.
I’ve found quite a few good things. The one I love the most is a waffle iron from the 50’s. It makes perfect waffles not to thick or thin. I got it for 2.00 because it had a little black mark on the top which washed right off.,
My son at age 8 wanted to buy a blow up doll, that was a big no even though he wanted to practice karate on it.
I don’t go to yard sales often, but that is going to change this spring. My daughter is five and she loves yard sales. I usually overlook everything else and go for the box of books. I hit a bunch of thrift stores in Virginia Beach last month and the only thing that I looked at was the books. I had a great time. I found thirty books and spent the day with my cousin who is also a book lover. We want to make it our annual tradition to go shopping for used books.
I’ve gone to many garage sales throughout the years. I have several favorites I still use. About 10yrs ago I gave my son my microwave since he had gotten his first apartment. I happened to have stopped at a garage sale running errands and bought a brand-new microwave for $10. Still had the factory tape on it and the guide book never opened. I still use it!!! Looks and works like new.
My other 2 favorites I still use is a bread maker (never used) and my Oster blender. That looks brand new but not sure. No one seems to want the bread makers but I bake gluten free bread in it and it’s delicious!
My 10 year old daughter loves American Girl Dolls but as they are over $100 each, I try and find second hand ones for her. My friend’s husband was over one day who loves to garage sale, and I asked him to keep his eye out for me. Imagine my surprise when a few days later, he called and said he had bought some dolls but didn’t know what they were. Thinking they were going to be some generic doll, I went over to a dining room full of American Girl dolls, clothing and accessories probably worth over $1000! He paid $35 for all of it! Some were in need of TLC but my daughter and I had a lot of fun rehabbing them and they look like new now…she even gave one to her best friend for her birthday! What a find 🙂
At one garage sale, I spotted a set of Franciscanware dishes for $60. It was an unusual set in pristine condition, and I supplemented my income by selling on an internet auction site. I hesitated to invest that much, but took the chance. When the gavel came down, it sold for $675. Needless to say, I never drive by that house without checking for a sign that they’re having another sale!
What a steal! I love Franciscanware but don’t own any. Franciscanware features prominently in my latest novel, The Silent Sister and its introductory short story, The Broken String. Sometimes writing about a thing or a place lets me experience owning it or being there.
Christmas 2013 I saw this lovely pair of white porcelain reindeer. I picked one up and turned it over revealing the price tag. The frugal part of me revolted and demanded I run away. The price was outrageous.
Fast forward to August 2014 I had a free afternoon so I decided on a recon mission to this especially cluttered and chaotic thrift store. I was sleuthing trough the glassware when two familiar forms appeared. My heart went pitter pat as I turned over the doe and Yep! That obnoxiously expensive price tag was there! I paid $5.98 for the pair.