Swap Meet Finds: Kitchen & Dining

This weekend hubby, JD and I took a little stroll through our local swap meet.  I haven’t visited the Rodium Swap Meet in a couple years, but now I may need to start visiting more often.  I came across a vendor selling Macy's kitchen and dining items.  Needless to say, this totally made my day!  For $30 I brought home an Acacia wood salad bowl and tongs by The Cellar and a 14 piece Martha Stewart cutlery set, both retail for over $70!

Sussex Double Tube Sconce

I'm a bargain shopper; I dislike paying full price for anything (well, almost anything).  So when searching for new lighting for the bathroom, my champagne taste on a beer budget kept getting in the way!  I came across Pottery Barn's Sussex Double Tube Sconce and immediately fell in love.  Unfortunately the sconce is priced at $189.00 plus $21 shipping.  That is more than our vanity and medicine cabinet combined.  I decided to Google “double tube sconce” in hopes that I would find a similar, less expensive one.  To my surprise I came across the exact Pottery Barn sconce on Ebay (Market For Quality Living) for $99 with free expedited shipping. It arrived yesterday and I can't wait to install it!

Home Office Decor from Target

Since we're focusing on one room at a time this year (hubby's idea) I'm on a mission to get the office done as soon as possible so we can move on to our next project! The office is really starting to come together, but it's definitely lacking in decor. Yesterday I made a quick stop at our local Target and came across a few decor pieces that are functional and stylish and I got them at an amazingly low price. Don't you just love Target!

Modern End Table

Retail: $69.99

Clearance Price: $20.00

Silver & Maple Task Lamp

Retail: $49.99

Clearance Price: $29.98

Target: Phineas and Ferb

JD loves Phineas and Ferb and this weekend I hit the jackpot when I came across all this awesome Phineas and Ferb stuff at Target. All these items can be found in the dollar section at Target!

Arlington Petra Toddler Bed

For a few weeks now I've been looking for a toddler bed for JD, hoping that getting rid of his crib would not only inspire me to start working on his big boy room, but would help him sleep in his own room on a regular basis! We wanted a modern bed that was low to the ground, sturdy, safe and would match with his robot themed decor. I came across the Arlington Petra Toddler Bed and got really excited but after seeing the price tag, a whopping $300 I was pretty bummed out.

Well, yesterday I started browsing on Craigslist for toddler beds and came across the listing "Designer Toddler Bed $150" I don't know what made me click on the link but can you believe it was actually the Petra toddler bed! I called the seller right away and asked if it was still available (it was) and if he would take $100 for it and he would, best of all the family lived about 5 minutes away from us. We brought the bed home cleaned it up and before we could even get it in the room, JD brought his whole bedding set out to the living room and laid in his new bed!

Last night I laid down with JD (the bed is very sturdy and supports over 300lb), watched cartoons and he actually fell asleep in his very own big boy bed for the very first time!

Roadmaster Trike

On Sunday after a very filling Father's Day dinner, we took a walk around the block and on the curb in front of our neighbors house we saw this little red tricycle, JD's eyes immediately lit up and he yelled "bicycle"! The trike was in pretty good shape (it's missing one pedal and a hubcap), so I wasn't sure if they were throwing it out, or if it was left behind by a forgetful child. I knocked on the neighbors door to ask if they were getting rid of it and luckily for us they were! We lugged the little trike home and JD loves it,  I'm hoping we can fix it this weekend and start showing JD how to ride it!

Cool and Colorful Supermarket Finds

On Saturday JD and I stopped by Albertsons to do a little grocery shopping and look what we found just in time for Summer and you'll never guess their prices!

Colorful Plastic Bowls

$1.50 set of 4

Colorful Plastic Cups

$1.50 set of 4

Colorful Plastic Kid Chairs

$2.99 each

Don't you just love cool supermarket finds!

TPPM: Mini Euro Suitcases

For months I've been seeing these paper board nesting suitcases popping up on blogs, websites and at children's boutiques and I have to admit I've become completely infatuated with them! I've purchased a few sets here and there when I find them at a good price and I actually plan on using a couple of them for JD's Robots & Rockets birthday party, just to add little retro feel to the party décor; but that will depend on whether or not I can get them back from JD, who thinks they're for carrying around his toys. Aren't they so cute!

Purchased from: The Land of Nod

Purchased from: Kate's Paperie

Eden Pendant Lamp

Lately I've become obsessed with home decor blogs and websites and have come across some really interesting ideas. Our living room and dining area are combined and we've been looking for a way to define the room and give each area its own personality. One of my favorite ideas has been to add a pendant light to the dining area, it's a great way to divide up the space in a large room; luckily we have recessed lighting and it looks like the previous owners may have considered adding a dining room fixture because there is already an electrical box with a wall plate in the dining area. So in my search for lighting (hubby left this one to me) I fell in love with drum shade pendants. After gasping at the prices of drum shades ($200-$400) for a couple of days, I was completely surprised when I came across the pendant shown below at CB2 for $49.95! I ordered the drum shade pendant about a week ago and it arrived today, I can't wait to install it!

 * Special thanks to Gaby for giving me a Crate & Barrel Giftcard for my birthday, I was able to use it at CB2.com also!

TPPM: Robot Table Settings

Today I stopped by Target and the moment I walked through the door I wound up in the $1 section and look what I found!

I purchased a bunch of sets for JD's Robots & Rockets birthday party and the kids will be able to take them home as souvenirs!

Habitat For Humanity ReStore: Pottery Barn Medicine Cabinet

For years I have driven by our local Habitat For Humanity building and had no clue it was a ReStore (picture a Goodwill that sells building and home improvement materials) and open to the public! So about a month ago the hubby and I finally stopped in to browse and we were pleasantly surprised, they have some really cool stuff; lighting fixtures, furniture, doors, sinks, toilets, appliances and so much more. While browsing I came across a medicine cabinet, but not just any medicine cabinet, it was the exact one I had been admiring online at Pottery Barn since the day we began escrow on the house. The medicine cabinet had a few scratches and was a bit dusty, but since I planned on refinishing it anyways I wasn't leaving without it, especially after seeing the Pottery Barn price tag on the back of it!

Pottery Barn Hotel Wall-Mounted Medicine Cabinet

Retail price: $249-$299

we paid: $25.00

What I hope it will look like when I'm done refinishing it!

About Habitat For Humanity ReStore:

Habitat’s ReStore resale outlets sell reusable and surplus building materials to the public. While every ReStore outlet is a little different, most focus on home improvement goods like furniture, home accessories, building materials and appliances.

ReStore resale outlets accept donated goods which are sold to the general public at a fraction of the retail price. The proceeds help local Habitat affiliates fund the construction of Habitat homes within their communities.

Promoting reuse and recycling. ReStore resale outlets provide an environmentally and socially responsible way to keep good, reusable materials out of the waste stream while providing funding for Habitat’s community improvement work.

30% off at Gap.com

Now that Fall is officially here I thought it was about time to get JD some warmer clothes, so this weekend I stopped by Gap Kids and finally used the Gap gift cards JD received for his 1st birthday. Gap.com also has tons of cute clothes on sale right now and for the next two days you can save 30% off your online purchase when you enter SAVEBIG at checkout! Here are a few of the things I bought JD on sale.

Contours Options 3 Wheeler Stroller II

For a couple of months now I've been thinking of buying JD a 3 wheel stroller, not necessarily a jogging stroller (although I probably should jog, I don't), but just a stroller that is easier to maneuver in crowds and on non-concrete terrains. If you've also been looking for one of these strollers then you've probably gasped at how much they cost; $299-$600, even on Craigslist! With our road trip coming up in a couple of weeks I decided to seriously start searching for a 3 wheel stroller and I told myself if I couldn't find one with good reviews for under $150, then I'd just give up my search. Well this weekend while the hubby drove to San Diego and back, I began researching 3 wheel strollers (on my handy-dandy iPhone) and was almost ready to give up when I came across Contours Options 3 Wheeler Stroller, this stroller has great reviews on every website I visited and the price ranged from $136-$199. Well, I purchased it for $136 on Amazon.com (with no taxes and free super saver shipping), I can't wait to stroll JD around in it, I'm just hoping the reviews are true!

Why I picked it:

• Reversible seat can face forward or face parent.
• 8" front single swivel & 12" rear never flat wheels.
• Easy trigger allows for quick fold and upright stand.
• New Easy-Reach parent tray has deeper, ventilated cup holders.
• Child cup holder and front bar removes quickly for in & out convenience.
• Height adjustable Sunrider canopy includes a peek-in window.
• Large basket for storage.
• Height adjustable 5-point harness for safety and padded sleeves for comfort.

Contours Options 3 Wheeler Stroller II

B & H Photo and Video

In my search for my first DSLR Camera I've been doing tons of research and driving my hubby crazy with all the photography lingo I've been using lately, so I decided to stop pestering him and talk to some of my friends who share my same love of photography and I'm so glad I did. My friend Edith's boyfriend is a professional photographer and when he heard that I was going to purchase my first DSLR camera he insisted I purchase it through a company named B&H located in New York and I can't thank him enough for his advice. B&H has an enormous selection of new, used and *factory refurbished photo, video and lighting equipment; their staff is friendly and knowledgeable, their return policies and warranties are reassuring (even on their used and refurbished equipment) and their prices are great. After spending some time on their website and speaking to their staff personally, I decided to purchase a refurbished Nikon and two refurbished lenses from B&H and in doing so I saved over $400, paid no taxes (because they're in New York) and was able to make my purchase two months earlier than I expected. My camera should arrive any day now and I'm hoping that my review of B&H will be even better when it does!

Photo courtesy of: "Scott Beale / Laughing Squid"

*If you get "factory refurbished" then that means a demo model, or one that was pulled from the production line for some reason (QC perhaps) and was inspected by factory service technicians, made like new (no marks or dings) and placed in a factory refurb box then sold to a reputable company like Adorama or B&H. - The Photo Forum