A Banner Day for Bargains (Yahoo!)

Today did not start well.

I was literally so exhausted from a busy week that I slept from 8 pm last night until 10:30 am this morning. What did we do this week? Swimming, library, hike, swimming, family pictures (which reminded me why I never get formal portraits done), father-daughter kickball game, candy factory tour (oooh, fresh taffy!), swimming, and lots of managing children to do their chores. Whew!

So Doug was in charge this morning. The kids seem to really push his buttons, and this week he is especially touchy (might have been the family pictures that set him off). By the time I had finally gotten up and showered (around 11:30 am), he was grunting instead of talking. Not a good sign. So I made him take me out for lunch. We both needed a serious break from children.

After lunch, we were a little more relaxed and ready to shop. Harbor Freight Tools was our first stop. There we found a kit that Doug needed and staples to further my reupholstering project (yes, I'm still working on it!). Better yet: on the way to lunch, I had found a 20% off coupon for Harbor Freight, so Doug's $90 kit (that was already on sale) was only $55! Ah, love a good deal.

Then we split up. He went to look at machinery. Just to look. At a store where most of the used stuff sells for near or at the price for new versions of The Same Thing. Why do stores do that? Because they can get away with it, I guess. Anyway, he found a gem tucked away in the back corner: a Rockwell joiner for $140. Then he talked the guy down to $125. Sweeeet!

Testing out the new joiner once we got home

Me? I was in Deseret Industries, sort of a Goodwill in the western states. Where I found...a couch in need of reupholstering. I know, I know. What am I, a glutton for punishment? Why, yes. Yes, I am. It has taken almost a year to get one chair almost finished. However! This is the perfect silhouette for the front room. For about six months now, I've been wondering where I could find a slightly rounded, smaller couch.

The behemoth that is currently in state in our front room really needs to be deep-sixed, but we'll leave that for another day.

So the couch I found fit the bill. Perfectly. Especially considering that it was only $25. Sold.

And there I sat, wondering when Doug was going to join me. Eventually, he did, and we paid for the new couch. And Doug gave me a tag for something else, which cost $30. Seriously, something that cost more than my couch? How were we going to fit the couch and this other thing in the car? Doug just gave me a sheepish look and refused to tell me what it was.

We pulled the car around to get the couch, and as I opened the back of the car, I was met by...the joiner. Doug gave me another sheepish look, and told me the story. After rejoicing with him, I said, "Okay, but I really don't know what a joiner does."

Bless him for not giving me any sort of look as he explained that a joiner makes a straight edge. When you buy boards from the store, they aren't necessarily straight. A table saw will perpetuate whatever edge it has - so if you want it straight, you either use a hand planer (lots of time and energy, especially on long boards) or a joiner (easy and perfect edges). Which means: Doug can make furniture much more easily now. Serious rejoicing ensued.

Back to the couch, we moved it on top of the joiner. They fit (amazingly enough) and I worriedly wondered about that other, $30 item. Doug went in to get it, leaving me to stew.

Finally, they came out with...lathe tools. Mind you, we don't actually own a lathe. However, these are professional-grade tools, a complete set, for...$30. Yes, I know I already said that. Doug was thrilled - because he didn't just grab them after we paid (which is what we were supposed to do), and waited until after the couch was loaded, one of the guys helping us remembered that there was another piece that was supposed to go with the set. The set Doug bought had six pieces, but we left with seven.

Ah, the gods of shopping were looking out for us today!


Anyone else have a fabulous shopping adventure lately? Share, share!

Removing (Yet Another) Eyesore

Today it's the mailbox. And we're not really removing the mailbox, just removing the eyesore portion of it. Although, to be honest, it probably needs a total replacement job. I'm just not up for it quite yet.

Granted, the mailbox is far enough away from the house, you might not even know it is our's. You could make someone lunch in the time it takes them to walk out and retrieve the day's mail. It is, however, the first mailbox you see as you drive down our street.

Next to our neighbor's pristine mailbox...

Closeup on the nastiness

One of the not-so-great benefits of living on a corner: everyone sees your home and your unsightly mailbox first. Not a fantastic impression, by any means.

I took a go at the mailbox a month or so ago with stickers. It transformed the mailbox, but not in a good way. I was hoping for "rusty to funky" and instead got "rusty to white trash". Not what I was going for, I promise.

This idea just didn't work

Enter spray paint. Again. I know, I know, I really got to get myself some other hobbies other than spray painting anything that annoys me. Well, almost anything that annoys me - none of my family members have yet to be spray painted (on purpose, anyway).

The other mailbox and even the tree needed masking, so I used our drop cloth. I highly recommend getting a nice canvas drop cloth if you paint on a regular basis - and by regular, I mean more than once a year. It comes in handy for many projects - for drywalling, painting, kid crafts, hiding Christmas presents...oh yes, it's a nice thing to have about the house. In addition to the drop cloth, I also used painter's tape on the flag (which probably still needs painting). And - voila! - a decent mailbox.

Ahhhh, crisp and white!

I'm still trying to decide what I'm going to put on it (other than our house numbers). Maybe I'll skip being creative, since it is really soooo far from the house. And just leave it respectable.

Oh. No. You. Didn't.

Oh, yes I did!

Spray paint, after all, is for more than just fixing up furniture and bikes and whatnot. It's also a great thing for refreshing flowers. Seriously!  After all, it's just like any girl getting her hair dyed or her nails painted. Maybe a little more unexpected, is all.

The globe alliums in my front yard were looking a little peckish:

So I splurged and bought a $5 can of purple spray paint. And now, voila!

They look pretty much like they did when they were in bloom:

Okay, the spray painted version is a little more vibrant. Which is totally okay with me! Unfortunately, the shriveled leaves around the base of the flower are going to remain brown (if the shape isn't holding up, why bother spray painting them?). Definitely need to plant some ground cover there to help with that. Next year.

Now what's in bloom? It is Monday, after all...and the Campanula Bells have opened:

I've got white and purple. This one looks like the bugs have been at it, but it's still really pretty...

The cilantro is in bloom, too! I know, these blooms need to be cut off so we can continue enjoying the herb itself. All of my cilantro was volunteer this year, though, because I didn't cut the flowers off last year. I love free seeds. So maybe I'll only cut about half of it back.

The white lavender is also blooming. I love the shape and flower of a lavender, but man, do I hate the smell. There are many, many people who love the smell (including many in my family), so I just plant it a little farther from the house and enjoy it from behind a camera.

My lilies also surprised me this week with a bright red flower.

Malena was complaining that we didn't have any blue flowers, so I pointed out that the forget-me-nots have also bloomed:

And although they are small, they did appease her. Doesn't she realize how rare a true blue flower is? Really.

Next week, we should have some black-eyed susans! Hope you have a good week (and that you stay cool!).