While we were at the beach I got bitten by the thrift bug and wanted to find some local thrift stores. We had to drive in to Delaware but found a pretty good one. We passed several cute little shops and we stopped along the way. Lots of them were not open mid week. The thrift stores closed at 3pm and were not open on Saturday! So it was hit or miss.
We happened to drive by this tent sale and I asked my husband to stop.
These cute little ball jars were full of shells and sea glass. They were $30.00!
This great doll house was nailed shut and not even usable. The inside was just spray painted white. It reminded me very much of the one Sue gave me that someone found and left on her porch.
I still have not started on the makeover, but that all white beach house at the tent sale was certainly some inspiration. Oh, did I mention that it was $200.00? (Sue, do you want your house back?!)
I loved the color on this mirror!

this little yard conservatory was made from cabinet doors and old windows. It was $150.00.
I thought this little child's chair was cute with the "cottage" sign screwed into it.
We went to another shop
which was so cute. It was full of cottage style and shabby decor. The prices at both the tent sale and this little shop were super high I thought. I walked away with nothing. I complained to my husband that the prices were just too steep. He said "You want a junk store!" so guess what? we found one!
my husband doesn't like to do these kind of things...so he waited patiently in the car. This is where I found these frames

Then we found a HUGE church rummage sale....and again my husband waited in the car. They had it broken down by rooms...kitchen.....linens...etc....it was very organized inside this wonderful church.
That's where I found this beauty that I showed you before
and I just loved those glass ball jars with shells so I found my own! For PENNIES compared to what they were charging at the tent sale.

when the flowers are gone, I have plans to put shells and sea glass in these just like the display I saw. We found a HUGE store called seashell city......it had every shell imaginable.

this place was so amazing. I've been there before but never really appreciated all the beauty. It probably deserves it's own blog post at some point because I took so many pictures in here. I also laughed my head off because my husband was putting HUGE sea sponges on his head as if it was a hat.....and smelling the shells to see if they stink (they DO).
One vendor at the tent sale had made these mirrors....so pretty...but so time consuming and expensive!

ok, back to my thrifty finds
The one thing I've been looking for FOREVER is a small chandelier for the hallway....it was the first item I spotted at the church rummage sale outside in a box.

I will shab this up and paint it. It's tiny enough that we won't bang our heads every time we walk down the hall.
I hope you enjoyed seeing my thrifty deals from the beach! The next time we go I'll do my homework ahead of time and dedicate more time to searching for junk.
Have a great weekend!