Spoon River Drive 2017

Well it sort of feels like Fall in Illinois. This week the 80 degree temps finally dipped a bit and allowed for boots and a light cardigan. With leaves changing comes pumpkin spice lattes, chunky sweaters, boots, apple cider, pumpkin-patching, plaid...you get the point. But maybe best of all, my most favorite weekend to kick off all things Fall: Spoon River Drive flea market weekend. 

Every year this event is on our calendar. My mom, sister and I load up in my dad's work van and travel the Spoon River Route popping in and out of vendors booths, antique shops, and flea markets. We typically fill every inch of the vehicle with treasures.
We usually follow about the same route every year, sometimes changing it up--sometimes not.

2016 Route:
Hannah City
Farmington
Canton

Hannah City: Go to Hannah City for the junk vendors. This town is typically filled with vendors on the side of the road, in parking lots and front yards. It's the first town on our route and a pretty good warm up. The can't-miss-it-stop is a guy selling antiques and junk in someone else's garage and driveway. Last year he told us it was his last year. We sincerely hope he lied to us.

I bought two of these tiny little school chairs for Ben for $5 each from the Hannah City garage man. He had a bunch of them, I should've snagged them all. Flea market regrets, sigh.

Off the Beaten Path: After Hannah City, we headed towards the next stop on our tour which is Farmington. Last year, we ventured away from the actual route a tad. We randomly followed signs for a 'BIG BIG SALE' to a sort of scary one lane gravel road into the woods. We were a tad nervous that we were being fooled into a kidnapping plot.

Quick side story: a few years back, we followed the random signs that said things like 'BIG BIG SALE' and 'TURN HERE FOR DEALS' and we did, and it was a bust. A super bust.
So why we decided to take another chance, I do not really know, but we were glad we did.  We were not kidnapped. We had actually hit the jackpot of junk stops. We ended up at an old farm house in the woods with a few barns---completely filled with junk. I mean filled. The new owners had bought the property completely full and were trying to make it through the stuff.
They were practically giving stuff away.  I can't even tell you what we all bought but this is what our vehicle looked like when we left.

What I do know is that I got this bar cart for $10. It was a rough looking golden beauty.

I cleaned it up and spray painted it ORB for my basement wine nook.

So basically the moral of my story is, if you see a bunch of random signs on Spoon River Drive telling you about a BIG BIG SALE, it may be the jackpot of all junk spots--or it may be a trick. May the odds ever be in your favor.


Farmington: I suggest you plan to spend some time in this town.

First, take a pit stop at the Moose Lodge's pancake breakfast for a quick bite. The food is very good and quick. Get the biscuits and gravy and a cinnamon roll to go! Plus, clean bathrooms. The parking lot all around the Moose is full of good vendors. Junk, antiques, crafts. We typically find a few good booths here.
There is pretty good sized craft show at the park in Farmington. We've skipped it the past few years. Mostly crafty stuff, less junk/antique stuff. But if crafts are your thing, go. Be sure to visit booth with the ladies who sell homemade breads and pastries, they have really delicious baked goods. Take home some raisin bread for the week.

Next, and most important, head to the fairgrounds. You have one goal for the Farmington Fairgrounds. One goal. Get the apple fritters. I mean it. If you do anything in Farmington, stop at the fairgrounds flea market and wait in the line for the apple fritters. The line looks sort of long, and it is long.  I promise after you take a bite of the warm apple fritters your only regret will be that you placed one order, and not two.
There are vendors all along the way to the fairground in town. Stop and see what they have to offer too. Then after you get your fill of fritters, take a walk around the flea market at the fairgrounds. Several rows of fun booths, plus tents fills with cheap socks and kitchen strainers.

Then turn around, and head towards Canton.

Canton: Again, go for the junk vendors. Junk vendors are everywhere along the Spoon River Drive. Stop when something catches your eye. Buy all the junk.

My mom bought these random drum things from one of our favorite vendors and I don't even know why...but my sister is lucky they didn't have more or she'd be calling herself an Uber.




That's it folks. I will try to post a recap of our weekend and flea market finds before Spoon River 2018, but don't count on it. If you want to find your own Spoon River Treasures, see below for info.


What: Spoon River Scenic Valley Drive
When: First two weekends in October; 7-8 and 14-15
Where: Fulton County, Illinois
More Info: http://www.spoonriverdrive.org/
2015 Let's Just Build a House Spoon River Recap: Spoon River Drive 2015

source

Spoon River Drive 2015: A Recap and Flea Market Finds

How does 100 miles of flea markets, antique, junk and craft vendors sound to you? It's the flea market lovers dream.
Spoon River Drive is the first two full weekends of October every year. It's a festival in Fulton County, Illinois with several flea markets, craft shows, festivals, and junk, craft, and antique vendors set up along the Spoon River Drive Route. There are vendors setting up shop in yards, parking lots, barns, churches, just everywhere.  My mom, sister and I make a day out of it and hit a few towns each year searching for goodies and deals.

This year, I hardly spent 20 bucks, but did not come home empty handed.

My favorite buy was this giant screen drawer thing for a whole 2 dollars. I have the perfect spot for it. I love the tag holder on the end too.

Do you know what this is?

This $5 beauty will find it's new home in our basement...

my vintage carrom board

A few items I passed on, but caught my eye.

Brass horse and apples.

I already have a flipping awesome old metal bed. Believe me when I say, I super wanted this one too. I refused to ask how much they were asking otherwise it would have probably been in the car.

This old metal bed is everything. 

 More cool horses. Neigh.

Who wants this retro orange sofa?

A few years ago, I scored this fantastic old radio for less than 20 bucks. It does still turn on, but we haven't gotten it to work. Would have been pretty neat to listen to the Cubbies win on it last night though huh? We should probably work on this.

Philco Radio from the 40's

2015 route:
Hannah City
Farmington
Canton
Smithfield 

Hannah City: Go for the junk vendors. Our first stop is usually a guy selling antiques and junk in someone's garage/driveway. Great deals and usually we make our first purchase here.
Farmington: Go for the apple fritters, stay for the flea market at the fair grounds. Farmington has vendors on the sides of the roads too, along with 3 large vendor filled stops; one flea market/antique stop at the antique mall parking lot,  one fairground flea market, and one craft show at the park. We skipped the craft show at the park this year and opted for more time at the flea market.

GET THE APPLE FRITTERS at the fairground. They are worth standing in line for. I seriously am not kidding. Go.

Best apple fritters in the Midwest.

Canton: Again, go for the junk vendors. Junk vendors are everywhere along the Spoon River Drive. Stop when something catches your eye. Buy all the junk.
Smithfield: My opinion; this one is skippable. We heard good things, we drove, we walked around...and questioned why we heard such good things. Then we left. This town had very few vendors (maybe 20) but the town was bustling with people. We weren't sure why they were all there for only 20 vendors. We had high hopes but will not return on this stop next year.

Next year we plan to change it up again, while still hitting our favorite towns & vendors. And of course, get our favorite apple fritters.

Source

Have you ever been to Spoon River Drive? Share your route and tips!
Check back later this week. I'm sharing what I did with that $2 screen.

Flea Market Flips, Steals & Deals: Tufted Pair

Since flea market season has started, and I try to hit a flea market or an estate sale each month, I'm going to share a few bargains and deals with you. Some of the items will be purchased and go right in the house as is....and some of them will be getting a makeover!

Like this sweet pair:

I snapped these two babies up at the Third Sunday Market flea market this past weekend in Bloomington-Normal, IL.

This flea market is by far, my very favorite flea market of all time. It's the best one. THE BEST ONE.
If you are within a few hours of Bloomington-Normal, and you like bargains, you need to go. If you need a shopping buddy, let me know. I'm always up for a flea market. Really.

Ok, so guess how much I paid for the pair? Go ahead, guess..............
.............................................................................................
If you guessed 12 dollars, then you are right. But you probably didn't guess that, let's be honest.

When I walked into the booth and saw these--the dealer told me $15 and my jaw dropped. $15 bucks for the set, not each! She obviously was not fooling around because then she told me I could have them for $12. So....out came my wallet.

They need work. The fabric has a small hole on the back. They are dirty. One of the feet is missing it's caster and the wood is cracked on the leg. I have no idea how to reupholster a chair, let alone a tufted chair. But for $12. How could I say no?

These chairs are going to get some sort of makeover, and they will find a new home in our master bedroom.

The bedroom is still in the works. We already ordered a new bedding set, and am on the hunt for two new nightstands to makeover. Don't forget my mission for the summer: Hang Stuff on Walls. See part 1; plan for a plate wall and the golden gallery wall; part 2 which also applies to the master bedroom.

So, since I'm not sure I could do the reupholster myself without having a DIY breakdown and crying about it, I have a call into a local upholstery to get a quote. I figure if I can get these chairs custom upholstered for less than it would cost to buy brand new I am winning!

P.S. The dresser we used to make a custom vintage bathroom vanity in our powder room came from the same flea market! 

Have you ever been to the 3rd Sunday Market?
Would you attempt to reupholster these chairs yourself?

The Great Furniture Debate: Is NOT over. Crap.

Hey guys remember this post when I was SOSO excited I ordered a couch and I was in love with it and couldn’t wait to get the gorgeous furniture delivered…

WELL you are not even going to believe this…the furniture gods were like LOLNO. 
Because I got a call that my couch is no longer being manufactured!

Me right now...

I'm not kidding--this is how my conversation with the furniture store went:

Furniture salesman: Sorry to tell you this Trina, but the couch you ordered is not being manufactured by Lane anymore. Lane canceled the order we placed.

Me: *Puts the phone on mute, screams...unmute* Are you serious? Why?

Salesman: Well Lane has laid-off a lot of employees. They are downsizing quite a bit.

Me: Well, ok…what else can you suggest that is similar to this style that I can look at tomorrow?

Salesman: Hm well, we get new stuff in all the time! Check back in a few months!

Um hello? I have money to spend on a very nice couch. I even have cash. You have couches. Can you sell me a couch please?…that they still manufacture. Preferably.

Seriously. Back to square one…for the third time. I am on the couch hunt. Again. 
This is getting exhausting.

Read more about this furniture shopping series (REALLY! This has become a series)

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Have you ever heard someone have such bad couch karma? 
Someone sell me a couch! 

The Great Furniture Debate: IS OVER.

It happened. It finally happened. I walked into one of the local furniture stores..which I had visited only 800 times in the past 3 months. And what do you know…the (almost) perfect couch was sitting there right in front of me.

I tested it with a plop onto the couch. And the results were a win!
It was comfy...
It was oversized...
My extra tall husband could comfortably relax on this couch, with me on it too...
It wasn’t overly casual...
It had traditional arms...
Bonus: Bun feet and nailhead trim to match our fabulous chairs...
Double triple bonus: It was in our price range!

I have two of these beauties just waiting for a couch companion!

The only thing I didn’t love about it was the fabric on the showroom floor. Luckily for me, there were over 500 fabrics to choose from.

I asked about cushions and springs and everything in between and on top. I asked them no less than a dozen questions about each fabric, such as durability, wear over time…what happens when we spill a diet coke on it? Or Scout thinks no one is looking at jumps up to look out the window or play king of the castle....

Scout is king.

 Or just take a snooze...

Cat dog?

After all my questions were answered and fabric samples were brought home to compare, I decided on a color and fabric choice…(hint: not leather! Which is what I originally wanted!)  
Done. Now the waiting game. Special orders take approximately 4 weeks. Which now seems like forever to wait for my dreamy couch.

Swatch comparing...

There is the only photo I am sharing today. Now you know what the arms look like and what brand I chose. No more details or even final fabric choice pictures until it comes in. You get to wait the dreadful 4ish weeks with me. Cue evil laugh…*MUAHAHAHA*
But, that will give me time to shop for a few other things from the living room wish list!


Living Room Wish List:
Area rug: I’m thinking something with shag!
Coffee table: Maybe a craigslist or thrift shop one to redo, or maybe even a DIY build!
Extra-long buffet or dresser: to go behind the couch.

I doubt I will be able to get all of those things on my wish list in the next 4 weeks. But one of them would sure be nice!


Does your dog have catlike behaviors?
Do you stress over things like spilling diet cokes and couch surfing pets when you make big furniture purchases?

Kane County Flea Market shopping experience

Last weekend I took a day trip to the Kane County Flea Market with my mom to see what kind of deals & steals we could bring home. Although we are flea market queens, we hadn’t made it to the Kane County Flea market in years. We weren’t sure what to expect.

We arrived right at noon (Saturday it’s only open 12-5) and it was already packed. A majority of the fairgrounds was filled with vendors, even most of the barns.  We started outside thinking we would save the indoor vendors for when we needed to cool down. It was about 90 degrees and sunny. So we anticipated needing a break from the sun.

goodies at July Kane County Flea Market

My mom and I guessed there were approximately 500ish vendors this weekend. Maybe more, maybe less. Booths were filled with beautiful furniture, vintage treasures, fun junk-type finds, jewelry, food…really anything you can imagine.  We spent the first two hours trying to navigate the layout and going in and out of booths. We were able to make a few purchases and the dealers gave us great deals without too much haggling required.

We both seriously considered taking a few of these home with us...maybe next time!

stacked rock fountains!

Double gorgeous ombre dressers

old tables at Kane County Flea Market, July 2013

We took a late lunch snack break at one of the food stands then finished walking the fairgrounds.  After we thought we had walked the entire flea market we went back for the items we couldn’t decide on earlier. We made a few deals and then pulled the car in to load up our treasures.


Where: Kane County Flea Market, located at the fairgrounds in St. Charles, IL 
When: It's always the first Sunday of each month and the Saturday before, March-December.

Want to see my loot?

Large wicker basket, old green file box, Globe & stand, vintage school map.

 Want to know how much I spent?

$45 bucks for all of it. Yep. Deals!
The globe/stand and the vintage school map are both getting some makeovers before they find their spots in the house. But the basket and tin file box just need to be cleaned up.

Been to any flea markets lately?
Have you ever been to Kane County Flea Market?

The great furniture debate: update!

We have been on the search for months for new living room furniture. I explained in this post what we were looking for, although at that time I was still trying to decide if we were going matchy matchy or mixing it up.

We decided to go wild and mix it up with a leather couch, and two chairs maybe in a print fabric instead of matching leather. 

Adam and I took the hour drive to St. Louis area to do some shopping on a Saturday morning.
The first store we went to, we saw the couch we wanted almost immediately. It was the perfect color of dark brown leather. It had nail head trim. It had the turned traditional arms we both loved. The couch was huge. It was a foot longer than our current couch and oversized, but not at all poofy. It also had the “lodge” look we both wanted for our living room.

It was comfy. Adam thought maybe a little too comfy. But we loved it, and too comfy is way better than not comfy enough. And best of all it was a really amazing price. We bought it and set up the delivery.

We couldn’t believe it, the very first store, we found the couch we both loved! 

Now to find the perfect chairs to complete the room...
The first store where we had found the couch of our dreams had none that I really loved.  We headed out to the greater St Louis area and shopped for 6 hours, all for accent chairs. We were all over the place, hit every store we could think of or google. Some were too much money. Or too bulky, or Adam hated the ones I liked and vice versa.

I will tell you a little secret about my husband: Adam is not a good shopper in the first place. 6 hours shopping for the perfect accent chairs was not his favorite way to spend a Saturday.

I tricked him into thinking it was a fun filled day with a stop at our favorite brewery Schlafly for lunch and a beer. Then it was back to business!

Just when we were ready to give up and consider purchasing chairs online instead, we came across another branch of the same store where we had bought the couch that morning. So we figured we’d stop in and see if we missed anything (it was a big store!) 
And sure enough, on display were the chairs of Adam’s dreams. I liked them, Adam loved them. He took it off the display and pushed it over to the couch we had just purchased.
....

OK he was right, it did look good. Same turned arms, nailhead trim. Different fabric and style, but still looked great together. I sat down, they were formal-ish, but comfy.  They were not what I thought I wanted, but I love loved the way they looked next to the big dark leather couch. And knew they would look even better in the living room up against our stone and woodwork.

Sold. We took 2 home with us. Excited that the couch would be delivered in a week or so and we would have a gorgeous new living room!

Or so we thought, the day before sofa delivery we got a call with some bad news.
Bad news: our couch was not being manufactured anymore. 
Worse news: the only ones left were damaged. 
Would we like to come back to the store and pick out a different couch?
what.the.crap.

Well, needless to say, I threw a mini tantrum then called for my refund. 

Now don't forget...we already brought home the chairs we had found to go perfectly with the couch that was no longer available!
Well, we thought about it, and still loved the chairs enough to keep them. We figured that every couch we liked had the same style, color scheme, and shape. So the chairs would most likely go great with any couch we decide on.

End of story: back to the couch drawing board. But we do have 2 really gorgeous chairs in our living room just waiting for a big beautiful couch to come home to them! I will keep you updated on our couch saga!

Are you surprised by our chair choice as much as I am?
Is your spouse a good shopper?

Friday Show & Tell: Introducing my favorite thrift store purchase EVER.

I've already told you about our DIY Pinterest inspired projects  (Easy Wreaths here & DIY Mercury Glass here) we worked on during my "weekend of dreams" with friends in Peoria Illinois. We pretty much acted like old grannies, crafting, drinking wine, eating, gossipping... and one of my favorite pastimes...thrifting!

Today I will share some of my favorite thrifted goodies from that weekend.

First off, this sweet jute-like rug. Actually, this rug was not even for sale...it was kinda sorta rolled up (aka thrown in a corner) of dinky little thrift store--they must have been moving stuff around and threw it aside for the day...but I wanted it. 

the colors are perfect.

I made one of my friends carry it to the counter for me and wink at the young man behind the counter (I couldn't do it...I'm MARRIED YA'LL) Her winking worked because he sold it to us for $4.99. Yep under 5 bucks. And it's pretty big too. It will go on the back deck I think...after I spray it with the hose to get the thrift store dust and dirt off it.

And another find for under 5 bucks. This big old basket. It was only $4.99.
I don't have a plan for it. The lady at the counter asked me if I would put apples in it...Apples? Hm.. I said no, not apples. She then asked if it was for a dog? No, I said. My dog is too fat for this basket.

So what it will be used for I'm still not sure. But I have a thing for baskets and this one called my name.



So what is under that 5 dolla rug and 5 dolla basket you ask? Only my most expensive thrift store purchase EVER. You see, not only am I cheap, but I am a cheap thrifter. I usually spend about 15 bucks tops in a thrift shop...and come out with a handfull of items.

Well, this beauty was $35. Which to me is a lot to spend at a thrift store. But I just couldn't pass it up. Just couldn't...It is my favorite find, ever.

Let's take a quick look at the bottom of this beauty...

Do you know what is is yet?

How about now?

The insides...

It's a sweet-ace old radio. They didn't know if it still worked or not but I didn't care. I love the look of it.

With ends up and down both.

Adam is going to tinker with it a little to see if he can get it going.
But for now, I am cleaning it up and it will be a new nightstand in our bedroom. Perfect size!

So all in all it was an amazing weekend full of friends, crafting, shopping, and lots of other old granny fun...and I got to bring home some awesome finds from the weekend of dreams!


Been thrifting lately? 
Are you a cheapo thrifter like me and have trouble spending $35 bucks at a Goodwill?

Estate Auction Deals

We are getting old. We were in bed before 10 p.m. on Friday night, and then woke up before 7 a.m. Saturday to do housework. By 9 a.m. it was time to stop the housework and get ready to go to an auction. And not just any auction. An Estate auction. This is where to get the deals around here.

On our short 20 minute drive, we went over a pretty covered bridge...

inside..

Adam and I arrived right as it started and they had wagons full of goodies. Old dishes, antique crates, christmas decor, frames, bar signs and beer advertisements...lots of stuff.
The driveway was lined with old antique furniture. I had my eye on a few pieces.

When we arrived I immediately said:

"I'm getting this door" 

and adam responded with: "there are two old doors still in the garage from the last auction..."

snow on the pretty door...

I didn't get the door.

a hodge podge of mismatched chairs.

and some old frames.

One of the auctioneers showing off this sweet chandy that I also did not buy.

old frames.

cool stuff. weird stuff.

Ready to see what we took home?!

7 dolla each!

Two of the many many chairs...I wanted more...

 Scout inspected them when we brought them in and OK'd them for use.

Inspector La Rue

We were the winning bid on this junky old dresser for 20 bucks. It needs some a lot of work. But I have a plan...

old and falling apart...ready for a makeover!

And our favorite deal of the day, this beauty.

we love her. yes, her.

and she came with a matching mirror.

She needs a little cleaning but that's it. She only has a tiny bit of rough spots, but I think it adds to the charm. The hardware is all original and it sits on cute little casters.
This is my favorite item to date I have purchased from an estate sale or auction. In my next post I will show you where her new home is in the house.

NOT PICTURED: Adam was the winning bidder at $15 on a 85 Bears Superbowl bar mirror. IDK. To me it was not blog worthy but he was thrilled. He also won a few other things bar items

We stood out in the COLD and SNOW from 10 a.m. until about 1:30 to get these deals. But they were worth it! We had fun. I'm so nosy so to me it was interesting to see what some of the stuff went for.

Have you ever gone to an Estate Auction?
Would you stand out in the cold and snow for over 3 hours for deals?
Who else things I should have gotten that door?!