The Longest Yard Sale - Day 1

Well, Well Ladies...

How do I even begin to write about my first experience at the Longest Yard Sale in America??!!! What....What....incredible!!!

To begin....Me and my vintage junkin' lovin' bestie (Ashley Burke) headed out from Louisiana on Wednesday afternoon and began the road trip to our first destination and also the beginning of The Longest Yard Sale in America - Gadsden, Alabama.

We stopped a few times on the way up to North Alabama, but the drive was pretty much interstate the entire way, so total drive time was about 8 hours (only due to a major rain storm right before we got into Gadsden, Alabama.

Gadsden is known as the officially starting place of The Longest Yard Sale and we started the sale off at 7am at the very first stop in Gadsden - Noccalula Falls Park at the top of Lookout Mountain! It was beautiful and to kick off the morning of our first day right....we met an incredible little man named Paul (from Kentucky)....as we were getting out our truck...he yells "Ya'll ready Ladies!" and we are like "Of Course!" and he states "I collect Vintage Pyrex!" and we say "Oh yeah...well we do too!" Well by this point Paul was pumped!! He next takes out an organized binder from his truck with pictures of every single Pyrex dish every made!! He has an organized system for keeping up with which pieces he has and which ones he doesn't have...but he is quite the collector and has been collecting since the early 70s! He is currently the owner of over 1,100 pieces of vintage Pyrex!! I would say that he is considered an expert in the field of Vintage Pyrex to say the least!!

To say we knew what to expect is completely wrong...although I was the obsessed researcher (that I usually am before a trip...especially a junkin trip!) we really didn't know what we were walking into...we could only imagine and hope the junkin' God would pour out vintage treasures from the sky!!

Well let me just tell you....that is pretty much what happened...and don't think me and Ash didn't pray on the way...and I tell you...God didn't let us down!!

Here are the cities that we covered on Day #1...(there is an official highway that The Longest Yard Sale is on...through Alabama it is Hwy 176 or also known as Lookout Mountain Parkway...Once you cross into Georgia it is Hwy 157...and then into Tennessee it is Hwy 127 all the way into Michigan!

We covered a ton of ground and went through hundreds of yard sales, antique deals, and my fave...estate sales!!

Here are some of my favorite memories from today and some beautiful sites that we saw!

Junk, Junk, and more junk! For all your picking' needs!!

The beautiful Desoto State Park on Hwy 176! Be prepared for curvy roads for miles!

I love the tiny city of Mentone, AL...beautiful and also home of many famous girls/boys summer camps!

Wildflower Cafe is amazing and located right on the route of the Longest Yard Sale in Mentone, AL (just 6 miles from the Georgia State Line).

So for the final question....what did we find today? Me and Ashley definitely walked away with some steals! Here are the things I found today (sorry for the bad pic...I am posting this from my iPhone and hotel rooms lighting/tacky carpet can just about kill any picture!)

Here is a break down of what I got!! Can I say cheap??

Longest Yard Sale Finds...Day #1:

1. Metal wire basket $10
2. White distressed shelf for wall or can be free standing $10
3. (2) Wire Metal Baskets $2
4. Bama Vintage  Tin Can $2
5. Large wooden Spool $5
6. Vintage Pillow $1
7. Large Chalk Board $2
8. Large Tin Water Pale $12
9. Crochet White Sweater $1
10. Large Tomato Basket $3
11. Glass jar with red top $1
12. Small Bama Apple butter jar $1
13. Spool of Lace Ribbon $2
14. Clutch Purse $1
15. Large wooden Frame $15
16. Baby bed spring $15
17. Bag of Lace Trim $1
18. Bag of Vintage Lace $.50
19. Bag of Vintage Papers $1
20. Vintage Material $.50
Total for  Day #1: $86.00

Ash had a great junkin' day too and only spent $86 bucks...you can check out her finds here.
She found some great things and even snagged some precious vintage Christmas decor for way too cheap!

Well tomorrow we will both post recaps of Day #2...we are starting in Chattanooga (where we are laying to rest tonight!)

Happy junkie' to all!

Vera

My upcoming Craft / Garage Sale...

Hey Blogger Friends-

Just wanted to share that I will be having a craft / garage sale Saturday, Sept. 22, 2012 @ my home beginning @ 7:00 am - 12:00 noon!

<<< Here are the details >>>

1. Between owning a scrapbook store in the past, being obsessed with paper and everything else that goes along with it, teaching scrap classes, and antiquing/flea marketing often....I have acquired alot of stuff!! So, I have cleaned out...got organized...and have been planning on having a little sale...because I want to see my goodies in other scrappers hands! Alot of the stuff I really like, but the reality that I will use it...is very small...because I continue to buy the latest scrapbook lines or for scrappers "the new stuff" and never really get around to using the "old stuff"!!!

2. This garage sale will not just be crafty / scrapbook items....I will also have vintage papers and embellishments (lace, dollies, hankies, stamps, etc)

3. I will also have other items for sale besides the crafty / vintage things...our little family moved into our new house last nov. 2011....so I have stuff that I haven't used since moving into the new house....so that stuff is being sold too!

4. I will have free coffee for all the shoppers and a little open house! So, feel free to grab a cup of coffee and walk around my house if you would like...I will have it decorated for fall time...and maybe something will inspire you.

5. Really hope to see you Saturday, Sept. 22nd!!

<<< My House >>>

Address: 300 Ridgefield Rd.
              Thibodaux, LA 70301

(the corner of Ridgefield Rd. & West 7th)
You will see signs....I plan on posting some!

(This was our house last Nov. before any landscaping!)

<<< Garage Sales in the area >>>

If you want to make it a day of garage sales...here are few things to check out that might help you!

First...if you are a garage sale lover then you need to make sure to download the app Garage Sale Rover....it will map out a route for you...and connect to your GPS on your iphone...really cool!!

Second...check the local newspaper....or check it online...Daily Comet or Houma Courier

Third....come prepared...large vehicle!!!

Hope to see ya'll!! If you have any questions please feel free to email me @
veraholloway@gmail.com

Also one more thing...to kick off Fall... since it is my favorite season and time of the year...found this on pinterest....hope you emjoy!

A Vintage Bridal Shower

I recently hosted a bridal shower at my house for a friend...the entire bridal shower was vintage inspired...I mean would you expected anything else...I guess if you are reading this blog...you have kinda of picked up on the theme of my life!

Any ways, I wanted to share some pictures with you from the bridal shower. This was so simple to decorate for and quite easy to put on! The bridesmaids did most of the hard work...I just decorated and did all the flowers!

 This is the sun room / my craft room...when you enter through the back of my house...this is a fold down table that was built into the wall (my house is 75 years old)...so this is original to the house...on the table we placed wedding shower favors...with a chalkboard sign that stated "Take a favor for planting and Let happiness grow". We put small seeds into craft paper envelopes and sealed with a small button. I used old vintage books and milk glass jars to display flowers and pictures of the bride and groom.

 Here was the cupcake display and one of the flower arrangements I put in an old mason jar. The flowers I used for the shower were various roses, carnations, succulents, and greenery from my garden. The roses and carnations I purchased from a local grocery.

I have a friend at work that makes awesome cupcakes - Lainey Toups - if you live in my area (Thibodaux/ Houma) and ever need a cake or cupcakes - she does great work!! I used mini chalkboard sticks that I bought from the dollar bin at Michael's...wish I would have bought a ton more...because I use them all the time!

Of course we have to serve coffee...I just displayed what was being served on a green vintage chalkboard and put it on a vintage scale that I recently got during a trip to Denham Springs!

So we were able to acquire enough small mason jars for drinking before the shower...so I put this old dresser drawer on the corner of my bar and stacked all the mason jars in the drawer....it was perfect for grabbing!

Of course you need paper straws...right? Where do I order them from...well my favorite two places to shop for party supplies are....Shop Sweet Lulu and The TomKat Studio

The fruit bar...with lots of different dips

Flowers...and I put the little chalkboard sticks in the flower arrangements (bride and groom is Kira & Wes...so you will see I use the K+W alot!!)

Drink station! 

Hope you enjoyed...I will be following up with a post about the wedding that just took place!!

Vera

Juliette's Vintage Candy Shoppe Party...

Oh wow.....ummm I wonder why I never got around to this post of Miss Juliette's 2nd Birthday party...I am sure any mom could relate...way too much going on!! But, any ways...Juliette (we call her Juju) turned 2 at the end of April and I spent a good bit of time creating a little Vintage Candy Shoppe for my little momma!!

I previously posted about the invitations I made and where you can purchase some awesome DIY invitations on etsy!

I also made a post about finding great birthday products and where I got my inspiration! The color scheme was aqua, red, and pink!

Photo from TomKatStudio


So here are a few collages I created of her special day!

I wanted to try out different filters on my pictures...so please excuse the variation in pictures! 

So I have broken down this post into a few categories...

1. Cupcakes & Candy (which includes the food/cake/candy of the party)
2. Decor (all the details and decorations)
3. Party Details (games, goodie bags, invites, etc)

So one of my most favorite things about her party was her ladder display of cupcakes!! I decided to use an old vintage 12 foot ladder that I have acquired since moving into our new house! I put wood planks across the ladder horizontally for the cupcakes to be displayed on!  I have a friend at work who makes the best cupcakes...Lainey can bake like no body's business!!! She is super talented and I always tell her I am ready to invest in her business because I know she would be a huge hit!! Here is a picture of the Cotton Candy Cupcakes (complete with individually wrapped cotton candy on a stick!!) I found little mini chalkboard planter sticks at Michael's a while back and they really came in handy for the party!!

We had three types of cupcake flavors:

1. Cotton Candy

2. Pink Lemonade

3. Strawberry Cream Cheese

The party was of course complete with a Vintage Candy Bar...

We had blue, red, and pink candy of course...blue and pink jelly beans, gummies, rock candy pops, sour cherries, pink malt balls, and strawberry wafers to name a few.

 We also had a fruit bar with various dips! The food was a success...it was truly the first party I threw in which I didn't have tons left over...I like the idea of simple party foods...stick to a small menu, but foods that everyone loves and you can't go wrong!! I mean who doesn't like cupcakes, candy, and fruit...prefect for your sweet tooth!!

The small cake in the middle was also made by my friend Lainey! It came out precious + it was delicious!!

I created banners by taring fabric and knotting it to twine...and then voila...I hung it up!!  I also created Dollie banners and draped them from side to side. I created a cluster of tissue balls and hung them from the center of the ceiling!

 Here are some pictures I took with my iphone too...

 of the tissue balls, garland, and Dollie banners

They were so super easy to make...you can find a ton of tutorials on pinterest helping you with this task!!

I decorated old wine bottles and also spray painted mason jars...and put flowers in them for added touches!

With the help of the hubby...I spray painted a large plank of wood with chalkboard paint and created a large chalkboard for all the kids to use (and a large place to display "Happy Birthday Juliette!") Plus...the kids are still using this chalkboard!!

I also set up a spot in which the kids could take a quick Polaroid using my instax camera...I made sure to include props and lots of jewelery for the kids to put on when taking pictures! It was the home made version of a photo booth!!

I set up a section at the party for family members and friends to leave a birthday wish for her! Some of the notes were so sweet and I will save them for years to come...and look forward to the day she can read them!!

After the note was complete they were able to use a clothes pin to clip the little birthday note to the old screen window!

Here is the birthday girl!  I bought her birthday dress from the etsy shop called Rock-n-Baby Boutique

From Rockn Baby Boutique

Lastly, the kids favors....what else other than toothbrushes...right?? Couldn't think of anything better!

 It was alot of work, but thanks to Juliette's Nannie for helping me out with all the set up and after looking at this video again...it makes everything all worth it!!

Thanks for stopping by!