I admit it, I am a yard sale junkie.  I love getting up early on Saturday mornings (just about the only time I actually enjoy getting out early!) and hitting all of the sales in our area.  Once in a while one of the girls tags along, but usually it's just "my time".  I pride myself in coming home with a  car full of things and spending less than $20 each week (of course I take more just incase I find that perfect antique or piece of furniture!). 

Whenever I go out there are a few things I always take with me:

**My small wallet in my big purse.  I love my great big purse for everything except lugging around at yard sales.  I take my little wallet with me to carry around while my big purse (which works great as a tote to store the little purchases!) hangs out in the trunk.

**My premarked newspaper.  I get the paper on Friday afternoons and put it by my bed.  That evening I curl up with the classifieds and a highlighter while hubby reads the rest.  I highlight all of the sales I plan on attending the next day and then figure out the first four or five stops.  Our paper does a wonderful thing, it lists all yard sales by location (all northeast, northwest, southeast and southwest sales are grouped together and labeled accordingly).  I number the sales by starting time so that I don't miss out on any (I'm on the road by 7 am, as few open before then around here).  After the first four or five, it's 8 am and all of the sales are open by then so I just follow the route laid out in the paper.  Another good idea is to use a map site like www.randmacnally.com if you are unfamiliar with your town or some of the addresses.

**Lots of small bills and change.  It's much easier than waiting for change for your purchases and you can always use it as a bargaining tool.  It's harder to say your bottom dollar is $5 when you are holding a $20. (c;

**Something cold to drink, especially in the summer.  I keep a bottle of water in my freezer then throw it in the car on Saturday mornings.  As the ice melts, I have cold water.

**Comfortable shoes!  I spend a lot of time on my feet going from sale to sale and I wouldn't be without my comfy sneakers (sandals have a way of getting your feet wet and I steer clear of them when going to yard sales).

**Batteries, yes batteries.  When thinking about purchasing a radio or such it helps to know that it works.  The old batteries might be worn out or missing so keeping sets of several sizes with me is a plus (these hang out in the trunk with my huge purse incase I need them).

When visiting a yard sale there are a few things I always pick up if they are reasonably priced:

**Vintage glassware; this has to be my number one collectable.  I love the stuff and so many people get rid of something valuable without realizing it.

**Baskets; they make great storage and can be used for a wide variety of things.  My favorite find was a huge picnic basic that needed nothing more than a good cleaning.  I got it for a dollar, and now it functions as a beautiful magazine rack and goodie caddy in our guest room.

**Well built older furniture.  This is not necessarily something that everyone would pick out as a must have, but I love decorative painting and will get the furniture, let my mother in law have a go at it (she rebuilds drawers, repairs legs, sands, paints, refinishes, whatever) then I dress the piece up with decorative knobs and hand painting.  A $5 quickly multiplies in value and gives a chance to get creative.

**Fabric, especially vintage.  I'm not much of a seamstress myself, but my mom and mother in law both are and will gladly barter stitching something up for me in exchange for some extra fabric or sewing notions.

**Out of season holiday items.  These are sooo cheap and I keep all of my holiday decor in easy access storage so I can add it to the correct box.  I love decorating for the holidays, but now I can spend my decorating budget on extra special touches like fresh flowers.

**Old books; another passion of mine.  If the copyright date is prior to 1950, it's a must have to me.

**Vintage kitchen utensils.  Some of these I use to decorate, others I pass on to friends and family who also have country decor homes.  Many are collectable and people don't even know it.

So there you have it, a bit about one of my greatest passions.  (c:

Graphics are from Emily's Graphics from Scratch which has long since closed,
visit Deb's new site at Pollyanna Graphics