Yard sale season has cranked into full gear in NC, and for the first time in awhile, I don’t necessarily have to set a strict yard sale budget, but I do have to be careful not to replace all the “great stuff” I just cleared during my spontaneous yard sale, for more great stuff.
My yard sale shopping is really a key aspect of our low monthly budget. It’s my main source for our wardrobe, so it’s included in our clothing expenses, but it also covers household, and even entertainment. Yes, it’s a lot of my entertainment budget.  I shop ahead for the kids, so I don’t think “seasonally” when buying.
My fun find today was something I have been pondering buying new for awhile, but just couldn’t get myself to pull the trigger. I love to search for the perfect bedding, and I do swap mine out each winter and summer. I painted our bedroom too long ago with a $5 Oops paint that I purchased at Home Depot without much regard for a long term look. It’s needed an update for years, but I have prioritized other projects. I’ve been looking at some new bedding now, and came to the decision I would splurge a little for something I loved, and paint the room a more neutral color so that I can have fun swapping accessories. Today though, I found bedding I love at a price a treasure hunter dreams about.
The seller had the above bedding priced at a mere $30 for the comforter, four shams, and three throw pillows (pictured above.) She mentioned it had never been used (and since it was found in a really nice neighborhood, I am sure it’s true.) I found a small water mark on two shams, and asked if she’d come down at all due to that, and she graciously said, “Sure, how about $15?”
$15? SOLD! I was thinking $25.
I am THRILLED! It’s even prettier in real life, but now the dilemma is what color to pain the walls?? Do I go with a soft gray? I am a bit stumped on this one, since my winter comforter has red in it. I may be sticking with this one.

These like-new throw pillows were only $0.50/piece. Again, never used. She had about ten, and I was tempted to get them all, but the colors didn’t match any of my other rooms.

American Girl items have been a staple in our home for awhile, but my oldest daughter doesn’t play with them anymore, so in the big splurge, I spontaneously sold many of my AG furniture pieces last week. Of course that would happen one week before I found a yard sale where they were selling TEN American Girl dolls, and hundreds of pieces of clothing. I have never seen anything like it at a yard sale before, and so we snatched up Kit for only $10 (yes, $10 because their daughter had given her a little hair cut). All other AG dolls were only $20, and now I wish I would have bought some to share with you all because that is a collectors dream.
We have quite a few AG clothes already that I am saving to pass down to grand children, but like a good frugal fashionista my daughter wanted to get a few more shoes, clothes, Kit’s doll, and these fun crutches and cast at just $1/piece.
Rainbows have been on my 11 year old daughter’s wish list since Christmas, but I explained I will not pay full price for a “label,” and that we’d wait patiently to find them at a yard sale. Today was her day, and for a mere $1.
A few of our other finds included some fun books, 5 Hanes Tshirts – (never been opened in package) for my hubby ($2), and three pair of Gymboree shorts for $1/piece. Yes, I really did stick with more “needs” than wants. 😉
One tip with yard sale shopping is to use it as a life learning lesson for your kids. Including your children in the buying process is a wonderful way to help train them in some important skills like learning how to negotiate. When my daughter brought her stack of clothes to me, and inquired if we could buy them, I was in a conversation at another yard sale. I asked her how much they wanted. She went and asked herself and found out they were 3 for $5. Since I won’t pay more than $1 for her clothes, I told her to offer 3 for $3. It  was a deal, and my 7 year old negotiated the entire purchase. I never even made it to that yard sale. 😉 It’s a great skill to learn at an early age.
So, my yard sale purchases were small in number, but huge in treasure quality.
Did you find any yard sale treasures this week?