It doesn't hurt to ask! You just may need to chase out the bugs...

It doesn't hurt to ask!

My mother acted like every store she visited was the flea market.  Growing up this mortified me to no end.  She always haggled prices, or asked, “Is this the best you can do?”.  Shopping at the mall with my mother felt more like an episode of “Lets Make a Deal” than a simple shopping trip. While I agreed that at a garage sale this was perfectly acceptable behavior (although rarely did I try it), who went around asking the calendar kiosk if they could have a BOGO special? Nancy Marie did!

As I’ve grown up a little, got a lot more confident, and had to start stretching my money across more than retail excursions I too have become that person. After all, it doesn’t hurt to just ask, does it?!

While you don’t always get what you offer sometimes you can get even more than expected. My recent acquisition of packing crates proved that idea just this past week.

I’ve been eyeing old crates for a while but couldn’t accept the price tags on those found at the antique stores.  Working at a farm, we have lots of wooden packing crates.  For shipping, storage, decoration or just because! I began noticing they were everywhere, but being my first two weeks on the job I wasn’t quite confident enough to ask if I could buy them.

Finally, one bold morning I asked if they would consider selling any, or, if not, where they got them. “Buy them? There’s two in the lawn that we forgot about that have been rotting away- take those!”. I could have hugged that farmer (and told him so!). 

Alone, truly weathered by the elements were two wooden packing crates.  Maybe not vintage, but outside long enough to pass as! After using a very long stick to chase out some spiders and other creepy-crawlers I packed them into the truck, squealing with excitement the whole time.

Yes, that green bag was left by a dog's owner trying to hide the evidence behind my boxes!

I cleaned them up with some light sanding to get rid of dirt and debris.  While I’m not sure if they’re going to get painted, lined, or something else I’m pleased-as-punch to use them to display my treasures for now.  Remember, a project is never really finished…