The Apple Street Cottage

  Hello again!  It's time to catch-up.  Pour your favorite beverage and let me tell you what's been going on around the Cottage.  Since the last time we chatted it's been Winter...not my favorite season.  It's been cold and icy, except last week we had a little glimpse of Spring. I was actually able to sit outside and read a book without wearing a jacket.  So far, I've read 28 books in 2025.  If you need any recommendations, let me know! That little glimpse of Spring was short-lived. This week I need my winter coat and I actually woke up to some snow one morning. Fortunately it melted by the afternoon!   This post may contain affiliate links. So, what do you do when it's cold outside?  You go to the museum!  They had three exhibits I wanted to see.   First, there was a lovely Sally Mavor exhibit and it did not disappoint.    Sally Mavor is a self-taught fiber artist.  Her work is featured in several books an...

It's December. The holidays are here and so is my last This & That for the year.  The last one was sooo long that I thought I'd better catch you up before the year ended.    This post may contain affiliate links. Thanksgiving was lovely with lots of laughter, food, wine, and Moscow Mules !  This time they were Cranberry Mules.  Just like the Apple Cider Mule I shared about a month ago, except substitute cranberry juice for the cider.  Delish! Rosie decided on a more sophisticated look for the holiday and was thrilled to be wearing her new hat - a yard sale find! Rosie has been pretty quiet lately and if you don't know about her, she has her own page at the top of the blog.   October and November were unusually mild this year.  The leaves on the trees really didn't know what to do and since the weather was warm, there was a fabulous estate sale nearby.  The property was large and included a house and an old hair salon.  Bot...

  Two weeks ago there was an estate sale that I'm still recovering from...that's right, recovering !  Pour yourself your favorite beverage and sit back for the story. It all started on a Saturday, and actually there were 2 estate sales.  The first one was a quick 'in & out' and resulted in this pretty little ring for $7. It was a good start to the day! When The Enabler - I mean, my husband and I arrived at the second one, the driveway was full, the garage was full, as was the 3 season room off the garage, and the house!  This was going to be a good one! Right away, I spotted these: There was no price on them, but the woman (let's call her Kathy) holding the sale came out of the house and said I could have them both for $8.  Sold!  She set them aside for me and invited me to keep shopping.   As we shopped, we chatted with her and she told us the story of this sale.  Her Auntie B and uncle lived in the house and she had been working on cle...

This post may contain affiliate links. I created this post last year and I've brought it back again with updates.  Happy Reading!  Yes, it's that time of year again.  Yard Sale, Estate Sale, and Flea Market season is upon us and, if you're like me, you can't wait to start searching for treasures!  In my area many towns have a 'Community Wide' yard sale where you can spend the better part of the day shopping.  That is why I've collated this list of items that every Yard-Saler (that's a word, right?) should have at their fingertips.     Here's my list: Money.   That's right, cold, hard cash.  No checks (does anyone use those anymore?).  Unless you're shopping for something big, keep the bills small - singles, 5's, 10's and don't forget the quarters either.  You can still pick up smalls for a quarter or 50¢!   T he people running the sales have change, but they don't want to give it all up first thing in the morning, so ...