Thrifting For My Birthday!

Hey everyone!

Today is my birthday but I have to go to class for the biggest part of the day. Since I can't do anything really fun for most of the day, I thought I would just share a video of something I love to do...go thrifting! I recently hauled a bunch of awesome items for next to nothing at St. Vincent's thrift stores. I got something from Tastefully Simple, Build-A-Bear Workshop, Ikea, and a sweet little milk glass dish just to name a few. Feel free to watch my playlist of Budget Friendly Hauls!

Be sure to leave a comment. Hit the subscribe button on my channel if you haven't already done so, because I have a special giveaway coming up very soon! You won't want to miss it!

Thanks for watching and for hanging out with me today! Enjoy your holiday weekend. Most people get a three day weekend away from work, but I won't be one of them! Boohoo!!! Such is life! Check back in with me tomorrow when I share a special project I am enjoying to help me stay connected with my teenage daughter and nine year old son!

Hugs,

House of Aqua's Thrift Store Sweater Challenge

Hey everyone!

As many of you know I love to go shopping at thrift stores. It is something my mother and I enjoy doing from time to time and we always manage to find really nice things for next to nothing. I've been wanting some sweaters and maybe a couple flannel shirts but they are usually so expensive that I haven't wanted to spend that much money on a single piece of clothing...especially for myself. I had been looking around and found some really nice pieces at some different second hand places and I want to share those with you now.

This coat by St. John's Bay was only $3 at St. Vincent's Catholic store. It looked brand new and it is so soft. It feels like suede on the outside and the inside is so soft. I know my daughter will be super warm when she wears this coat this winter.

This short-sleeved denim jacket caught my mom's eye and she asked me if I liked it. I really do. It will be nice to have an extra layer for those fall days when it's still warm outside. The weather we have been having lately is perfect for that. It was only $2 at St. Vincent's Catholic store. I can wear a tank top or camisole underneath and one of my long skirts.

Another score for Kadesia! She loves purple so I thought she would really like this sweater. It was only $1 at St. Vincent's Catholic store. There is a cable-like weave pattern that I thought was so nice and it's light enough that she can wear this throughout the fall.

This striped shirt is bigger than I normally wear but I thought it was cute and I can always layer it. I was looking for some button-front tops since I don't own any ... until now! For only $1 at St. Vincent's I thought I would grab it!

Mom and I went to the Goodwill store in Bloomington. It's north of us about 40 miles (+/-) . It had been a while since either of us had gone up there and I just wanted to look at the sweaters. We got a lot of items for cheap and this sweater by Land's End was one of the great finds! It was $4.29. I really like the color and it still looked really good.

Mother bought this on a different thrift store trip we took to Jasper. I have a YouTube video about it that you might have watched. This was only $2 or $3 at St. Vincent's Catholic store down there. It is nice and big...super soft and oh so comfy! I love it!

When I saw this shirt hanging on the rack at Kara's Kloset I really liked the colors in it. It just looks so fallish to me and I really loved that it was short-sleeved. I have worn this a lot since getting it. My mom had taken some of my kids' clothing in and was given in-store credit for the items. So this shirt was totally FREE!

This is the last item I am sharing today. I really like how this has just the one big button and two small pockets on the front. The sleeves come about to my elbows and it's another great layering piece. I got this at Kara's Kloset also for FREE!

What do you guys like to find at the thrift stores? I usually like to get home decor items, storage solutions, strawberries, and clothing. I created a video featuring these clothes for the House of Aqua's Thrift Store Sweater Challenge. You can watch the video below.

Be sure you check out my contest video where I am giving away $100 in gift cards to 10 stores! You can see that video here.

Thanks for watching! Have a great day!

Hugs,

$5 Goodwill Challenge: Spring AND Summer Editions!

Hey, everyone!

I am so excited to share this with you all!! If you know me, you already know that I love to go thrift shopping. It is just so much fun to see what great finds I can pick up at second-hand stores and yard sales. Back in the spring I participated in a really fun YouTube challenge from Hilary at My So-Called Home. She issued a $5 Goodwill Challenge: Spring Edition. I took her challenge and was able to find something very cute for $5 and it was from an unexpected place! A lady was selling some items from homes that she had staged and they were really nice things for affordable prices. You can check out that video below, but there is even more to see!!

I emailed Hilary to see if she would possibly be issuing a new challenge for the summer like she had done in the spring. My mother and I had been thrifting and we found all kinds of amazing deals and I was eager to share. She said she was absolutely going to do the challenge again and let me know when she would be putting her video up. So, I created a video response to the $5 Goodwill Challenge: Summer Edition! You can check it out below.

If you haven't already done so, please go to my YouTube channel and click on the subscribe tab. You do not have to create videos on YouTube to subscribe. This will let you know every time I upload a new video to my channel.

I hope you like these videos. Please let me know in the comments below if you enjoy thrift store shopping. What is your best find? If you create a video response to this challenge, definitely let me know in the comments section and I will check it out!

Hugs,

Thrift Store Haul

Hey, everyone!

School is officially out here in my local school district. My children have grown up so much and it's been a really tough year for all of us with losing my dad. I am so very proud of my little guy graduating Kindergarten! He just brightens up my life!

He was given some money for graduation from his mamaw and papaw. He chose a Lego set from the Lego Movie. He will do a YouTube Lego review video later on. He loves to be in front of the camera. I wonder why? It must be all the videos and photographs I have taken of him since he was born! You know, when I was growing up we had those Kodak instant cameras or the 110 film and 35 mm film. You had to take the pictures and then drop them off at the store, wait a week or so and then pick them up. You never knew if any of the pictures were going to turn out or not! It's so different now with digital cameras!

My mom (Javan's Nana) took us to eat at McDonald's (Javan's favorite) and then on to Walmart to buy Javan's toy and pick up Mother's medication. Then the real fun began...we went thrifting! We have a store here called St. Vincent de Paul and it's wonderful! The prices are pretty good for the most part and they are always putting new things out so it makes it a fun place to shop. Javan wanted a bag of toys for $3 and here is what was inside: 

I have my make-up brushes in a small glass container but it isn't really working out that well for me. So when I saw this pretty milk glass dish for only $1 I knew I had to have it! Today I went back with my mom to see if they had anything new and they had this really nice milk glass dish that I am going to add my make up, too. I really don't wear a lot of make-up so it would easily fit into this dish.

I thought it would be fun to create another YouTube video with Javan. He is so sweet! Hope you will check it out:

I hope you enjoyed the video! It was a lot of fun to make. The house is quiet as I sit here and write this blog post. I miss my kiddos but I know they are having a lot of fun with their grandparents on their way to fun in the sun! I am so proud of my two beautiful blessings from God. Kadesia is going to be a seventh grader this fall and Javan will be a first grader. Time just continues to pass me by and I just hope and pray that I am doing everything I can do to give my two children the tools and skills they need to succeed in life. They both love the LORD with all of their heart so I can't ask for much more than that!

Mother's Day 2014

Thanks for hanging out with me today! Leave me a comment below letting me know about your fun thrift store finds!

Hugs,