Garage sale season is upon us! I must admit, I use to browse them more when the kids were younger looking for toys, clothes etc. Since they are older, it seems that I'm never out for a Sunday drive. There's always a mission that we are on and some place to be at a certain time, and I am not one for being late!
2 years ago I attended a Sewing Expo that was close to home & was Saturday & Sunday. This was a year after I started teaching myself how to sew. There were classes that were available & I spent all weekend, by myself, attending classes & taking notes. Totally overwhelming. But I wanted to learn so I threw myself in both feet first.
I attending a class on how to use a Serger. Please note, that the teacher had a serger & not the whole class. So it was not a hands on class. It was listen & take notes. BLAH! But the teacher was quite bedazzled & I had her for a few other workshops so she was quite entertaining to say the least.
I walked away wanting a Serger. So I looked at the floor models of the expo & according to the class I just attended it's very much a love/hate relationship! I found the beauty that I wanted for $2200 by Babylock. It blew the 4 threads in & it set the tension. All of which is really hard to do.
A few days later I was driving home from work & there was a garage sale. I knew the house, it was an Aunt to my Maid of Honor/Friend. So I stopped. I walked up the long driveway & what did I see on a round dining room table? A Serger. Seriously! I talked to the Aunt, I didn't introduce myself because I figured she wouldn't know me & I'm awesome like that. She said a girlfriend gave it to her and she had never used it, instead she was using another machine. I had told her what I was saving for & how much I was saving and she instantly labeled me as crazy in her mind. I was good with that though!
My new beauty came with a lovely leather case that was equivalent to a bowling bag. It got tossed. It also came with awesome VHS tapes, which I was unable to watch, no VCR available. Those got tossed too. I had 2 very thin manuals that I held tightly to and put hope into. I had to trust that these booklets held all the information I would need to at least thread the thing!
2 years ago I attended a Sewing Expo that was close to home & was Saturday & Sunday. This was a year after I started teaching myself how to sew. There were classes that were available & I spent all weekend, by myself, attending classes & taking notes. Totally overwhelming. But I wanted to learn so I threw myself in both feet first.
I attending a class on how to use a Serger. Please note, that the teacher had a serger & not the whole class. So it was not a hands on class. It was listen & take notes. BLAH! But the teacher was quite bedazzled & I had her for a few other workshops so she was quite entertaining to say the least.
I walked away wanting a Serger. So I looked at the floor models of the expo & according to the class I just attended it's very much a love/hate relationship! I found the beauty that I wanted for $2200 by Babylock. It blew the 4 threads in & it set the tension. All of which is really hard to do.
A few days later I was driving home from work & there was a garage sale. I knew the house, it was an Aunt to my Maid of Honor/Friend. So I stopped. I walked up the long driveway & what did I see on a round dining room table? A Serger. Seriously! I talked to the Aunt, I didn't introduce myself because I figured she wouldn't know me & I'm awesome like that. She said a girlfriend gave it to her and she had never used it, instead she was using another machine. I had told her what I was saving for & how much I was saving and she instantly labeled me as crazy in her mind. I was good with that though!
My new beauty came with a lovely leather case that was equivalent to a bowling bag. It got tossed. It also came with awesome VHS tapes, which I was unable to watch, no VCR available. Those got tossed too. I had 2 very thin manuals that I held tightly to and put hope into. I had to trust that these booklets held all the information I would need to at least thread the thing!
One of the tips I learned at the Serger seminar was to put 4 different colored threads in to set the tension. I actually had 4 different color spools of serger thread on hand that I inherited from Grandma Alice..... I am not kidding either! I took that as a wink from Grandma!
I ran home, jumped for joy, then immediately started reading the manuals and figuring out how to thread my *new* treasure! I figured it out within a few hours. By the end of the night I was sewing away and cutting down time on many of my lil' alice items.
I use to add binding to the bottom of my aprons instead of a folded hem. It added color & interest to the apron. I eliminated that by just serging the bottom of the apron and it gives it a finished edge! Amen!
My serger was $40...... can you say HUGE SAVINGS compared to what I was willing to spend on my ideal one!
What have been your best Garage Sale Bargains that you have com
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