"My name is Ashley, and I'm addicted to thrifting."

A-D-D-I-C-T-E-D. Oh, Lord. I really think I am. I find myself getting excited about the one day a week I take my lunch hour and go shopping. I can't get enough of finding a good deal on something I can't live without.

I do realize it could be a lot worse (and remind myself & Zach of this everytime I bring something home). I know he would much rather me go to the thrift store and spend $6.00 on 5 items than spend the same $6.00 at Kirklands (or *insert another store name here*) for 1 (small) item. He's so good about me buying things. He always, always has been. He has things that he likes to spend money on, and I have mine. He just seems to buy one BIG item every now & then (usually an Apple product, and we all know 'that ain't free'), while I buy MANY small items here & there. Everytime I buy something- anything- I always try to reason out the purchase to him, but he always says the same thing- "You don't have to explain it. I don't mind." Bless his sweet heart! :)

I do keep in mind that even if each single purchase is small, it could always add up to a large amount. I HAVE to keep this in mind, or I will get into trouble.

Right now, I just like to think of it as a hobby. It gives me a little something to look forward to during the week, a break during my lunch, and a project to work on later at home. The only problem I've found is that I can't find a place for everything in the house, so I will eventually have to start either putting my existing knick-knacks in a yard sale, or turning these things right around in a yard sale. Wouldn't hurt to do a little flipping on some of these things I can't find a place for, would it? I know that my crafting skills aren't anywhere near good enough to sell anything I've made, so yard selling without crafting it would just about be my only option. I don't like some of these blogs I see where the "designer" is trying to sell their crappy piece of furniture that they've paid $2.00 for, slapped a few coats of paint on, sanded/antiqued it, called it a masterpiece, and asked $50-$100 for it. Not my thing. I'm not that enamored with myself. :)

I am, however, enamored with these bargains. Just wanted to show off some loot I have purchased in my recent trips.

These are from a few trips, so please don't think I go hog-wild and buy 10 things every time I go. :)

I am planning on changing up most of these things,

so I might post on some of those projects later. Sorry for the crappy pictures. Zach was going to get me a new camera for Christmas, but he knew I wanted an iPhone instead.
I'm still happy with my decision, but I may put a new camera on my list for this year.

I picked these up after I had picked out the next item, thinking they would go beautifully together...

...and I think they go together rather well. Not too shabby for a quick throw-together in the store. The red will really bring out the color in our living room, and the brown in the planter ties it all together. Now I just have to find a place for it. :)

I have seen countless pictures of frames just like this one on many different blogs. I am planning on painting it, I just haven't decided on a color yet. And, I will definitely replace the picture. Ha!

This little jar just needs a good cleaning, and it's good to go. I loved the fleur de lis pattern, and have a few things in the house with the design already. I'll probably use this somewhere in the kitchen.

I bought this charger a while back, with the idea in mind to paint it, and possibly put our "J" initial in the center... I have come to the conclusion that I'm not only addicted to thrifting, but monogramming also. Not a good combination. :)

This little cutie was $1.00. I had read about using Mod Podge (a decoupage great for gluing & sealing) to cover all kinds of things (plastics & wood- including furniture pieces, ceramics, etc.) with material. You can use scrapbooking paper, wrapping paper, or cloth material to cover just about anything with this stuff. I am hoping to transform it soon, because I really need one of these on my desk in the living room. The Mod Podge is placed in the guest room as I type, just waiting to be used. 

Also, I am putting my foot down (on myself), and getting outside tomorrow to finish painting the magazine rack/table. I know it will be hot, but it looks like it's going to be hot for a while now, so I might as well get used to it. I am going to experiment with an old scrap of wood to test some glaze. I am hoping I will be able to formulate some with materials I already have, but we'll see. I'll never know unless I try. My plan is to sand the edges of the table a little more, then paint some antiquing glaze on it to amp up the look. I'll post pics hopefully next week- unless it ends up being a total disaster, which I am not counting out. Wish me luck!