Local Color - Summer Church Fairs

Every summer in New Hampshire, we visit the local church auctions/flea markets/fairs.  Often we find items to use in the studio for dyeing and surface design at bargain prices.  Sometimes we find unexpected goodies; today was one of those days.  We started off this rainy morning at the Melvin Village church auction/flea market along with other anxious shoppers at 9 AM, waiting for the tables to be uncovered.

We quickly collected some finds for the studio and other odds & ends - Elizabeth also looks for things she can use at school.  Our collection from today includes some pots (one is a steamer), kitchen utensils, a drying rack, doilies for dyeing, even an old paper cutter.

The auction was due to start at 10, and though we had no previous plans to stay for it, Elizabeth spotted a kayak that was to be auctioned off.  So we stuck around.  To our surprise, an item came up for bid that we decided on the spur of the moment we could use - a laser printer, brand new in the box, never opened.  We need a laser printer to make our copies for thermofax screens, and since we don't have one here at the lake, we have been going to the local library to make our copies.  No more!  We bought the brand new printer for $30!

The auction continued as Elizabeth waited for the kayak to come up for bid (near the end of course), but it was her lucky day, she got it for a great price and the 13 year old daughter of a friend paddled it home.

But the day was not over yet.  There was another church fair in Wolfeboro, so after unloading our morning purchases, off we went!  We got to the All Saints church fair just 15 minutes before it was due to close, and got some great bargains - needless to say, they just wanted to get rid of stuff!

At this point, they were giving a lot away for free (including hot dogs and sausage sandwiches).  We got all these plastic items for the studio for free.

Sue's find of the day was 3 sock darners to add to her collection; two had prices marked but the third didn't, and when she asked about the price, it ended up being a whopping $2.50 for all 3!

To finish off the day's adventure we stopped at The Front Porch for ice cream - a great way to spend a rainy/cloudy day!