Stuffed Animal Jackpot!

Yes! This was my Flea Market find from last weekend! Well, there was a lot more, but this was what I came home with and took pics of. The rest was a bunch of great clothes that someone gave me and they are in my storage, ready to sort and hang. I can hardly wait to go through them!

I got really excited about the stuffed animal and toy clearance I came upon. It was all you could stuff into a kitchen garbage bag for a super small price. I know I can really stuff a bag, but I still can't believe I got all of that in that kitchen bag!

The baby bathtub was pretty dirty, but it won't matter for what I will be using it for. It was only a buck and had a drain in the bottom! It will either end up being a litter box, or a mini salad garden. I think I am going to go with planting a mini salad garden in it first.

The shirt on the far left was in a trash stack at another vendor's, so it cost nothing. It was a sweatshirt that someone had made into a jacket. The stitching was coming loose in a spot on the facing inside, but will be easy to put back in only a minute or two. It also had a slight fade spot where it had been folded. but you can hardly tell. It is a little small for me, so I will probably give it to one of my gardening friends/relative to use out in the yard when they want a jacket but don't want to have to worry about messing it up.

The one in the middle was my size *smile*. It is a sweater set... tank top and over sweater. It, too, was in that trash pile. So, what was wrong with it? Someone had dripped their drink or something in about a 1-inch diameter spot! Looks like it will be easy to wash out. Oh, the things people throw away for the silliest reasons! Just makes you want to smack some sense into them.

The brown shirt on the far right is corduroy. It is my size, too! It is the Looney Tunes brand with Tweety on the pocket and looks brand new. I don't think it has even ever been worn! Actually, it is one size too big, which is what I had been looking for for an overshirt. Can you believe it was only a buck, too!

That white thing to the right of the brown shirt is a single, fitted flannel sheet. It had definitely been well used, but didn't have any holes in it. It was all worn in and soft, which is perfect for what I am going to make with it . . . reusable tissues! I will show them to you when I get them finished. I almost have them done.

As for all of those stuffed critters and toys, there are a couple I may keep, a few I will put aside for gifts through the year, a few of the slightly damaged ones will be dog toys, and the rest, I will be posting here and there online to sell.

Whew! Going to be a lot of work, but it will be so much fun! Have you found anything new and exciting lately, during your flea marketing adventures? Or do you have any ideas what you think I should do with some of these items? If so, let me know in the comments.

                                                Happy Flea Marketing!!! 

Facebook Group to Match

As some of you know, this blog started out as a blog that posted about one of our local Flea Markets. Recently, that Flea Market decided that they no longer wanted to use this blog nor my services. Instead of deleting this blog, I changed it up a bit, including the name, and decided to really have some fun with it!

Right after that, amazingly enough, Facebook asked me to admin a Flea Market group that had sat idle for nearly 5 months without an admin. I jumped on the opportunity because I thought it would really enhance this blog, and this blog could enhance that group. I also changed that group name to the same as this blog, Flea Market Fun.

It got off to kind of a rough start. With no admin for nearly 5 months, it kind of went wild and was getting used for all kinds of posting. Then in comes me, new kid on the block, in authority position, cleaning up the place, and several people got mad and left. I guess that was to be expected, but I always hate seeing people leave, even if it is just a few. But it is running smoothly, now, many people have joined us, and we are having so much fun!

I would LOVE to simply post the link over to that group right here, but, unfortunately, just before the last admin left, she changed the settings of the group to "private" and I am not able to change that one setting back. What this means is, no one can see the group unless they are IN the group. Bummer!!!! It does not come up in the Facebook searches. There are a couple of ways around this, though, if you would like to join us.

First, if you have a friend already in that group, you can simply have them add you to the group. You have to be on a member's friends' list before they can add you to the group. Second, you can 'friend request' me and send me a message on on my page to let me know that you are doing so so that I can add you to the group. This is all kind of a round about way, but it does work and at least it keeps out all the scammers and spammers. The Flea Market Fun group is over 2000 members strong and we are having lots of fun playing "show & tell" with our Flea Market, thrift store, and dumpster diving finds, along with sharing ideas of how we can repurpose so much of that stuff.
Here is my Facebook page link: https://www.facebook.com/tentfire 

We are having lots of fun in our Flea Market Fun facebook group, and we would love for you to join us. But please, be sure and keep coming back here, too!

                                                    Happy Flea Marketing!!!

Warm Enough to Flea Market!

 Yay!!! It is finally warm enough to go out to the Flea Market for a day! It has been way to long. The past few weeks have been far too cold. Then before that, for at least a month before that, it seemed it picked all the weekends to rain. I enjoy the rain, especially when my garden is growing, but I don't like it when it always comes on flea market days. Guess no matter what the weather does, we are going to find something to complain that it doesn't match up with.

I'm not sure which I am more excited about, getting to finally set up, or getting to go walk around the other vendors a bit and see what bargains they have that I can't live without! I remember last time I was there, I saw several things I was wishing I could get, and since then, I have realized that some of the things I saw but didn't look at too closely, I have since thought of something I needed them for.

One woman had some wigs for sale. I looked at them, even played around with one, but thought. "I certainly don't need one of those!" But then, one of my girls had me make her a headband. Now she thinks I could sell a lot of them. I was trying to figure out what I could display them on. I have seen, at our local hobby shop, that they have those cheap, styrofoam heads that you can display things on. Those things look creepy! Then I remembered the wigs and thought that one of them might make one of those cheap white heads look a lot better. Would be even better if I could find something round, tomorrow, that is unique and head-size, that I could use! What do you think I should look for that might work?

Are you going flea marketing this weekend? or garage or yard sale shopping? or checking out the thrift stores? Will you be looking for anything in particular or will you be just enjoying the day as you randomly look around and browse? I would love to hear about your flea marketing plans for the weekend. Feel free to tell us in the comments.

HAPPY FLEA MARKETING!!!

Flea Market Yarn & a Granny Square Afghan

   There is an endless number and variety of items you can find at a flea market. One of my favorite finds, one that I can never find enough of, is YARN! Usually the yarn I find around flea markets averages about 50 cents a skein. But every now and then I hit the jackpot and get a huge bag for just a few dollars!

Awhile back I did just that. I found a huge bag of yarn for only 2 dollars! I made several afghans for gifts out of that bag, along with several little projects. I especially enjoyed making my Granny Square Afghans and Lapghans out of it.

For you crocheters, the little afghans pictured are simply a Granny Square that you just keep making bigger and bigger. I used acrylic, worsted weight yarn and either an H hook or an I hook, which ever gives you the result you are looking for.

I laid out my colors in advance, so they would kind of blend into each other, or coordinate with each other. I did 3 rounds of each color with the H hook (2 rounds for the first color), and 2 rounds of each color with the I hook.

To finish, I single crocheted around with whatever color I had enough left of. I like to use the same color I started with when I can, or finish with the same color as the last round.

These are so fun to make, and fast, too! So now, I am once again on the hunt for another great yarn find at a flea market! I really need some more yarn! 

HAPPY FLEA MARKETING!!!

New Name - New Style!!!

Hello, Everyone!!!

As many of you know, I have been running this blog for quite awhile for a local Flea Market. That Flea Market has decided that they no longer want/need to use this blog in their advertising platform. SO . . . .

Rather than just totally delete this blog, I decided to change and update it into my own blog. Now, rather than discussions about that local Flea Market, I will be discussing Flea Market Fun in general!

Over time, my fiance and I will be visiting flea markets all over and posting about our adventures and fun finds. I will also be posting tips and pointers for flea marketing and fun you can have at flea markets.

I will be posting what unusual and clever things you can do with your flea market finds, refurbishing ideas, repurposing ideas, repairing tips, and a host of other topics that center around Fun at Flea Markets in general.

So stay tuned and come back often. I look forward to interacting with all of you, sharing our ideas with you, and hearing all of your ideas as well. PLEASE don't be bashful about commenting. WE LOVE COMMENTS! And we LOVE to hear your ideas, too!

We truly look forward to this new adventure and are glad to be sharing it with you, our valued readers!

~ HAPPY FLEA MARKETING ~