Finders Keepers #1

Hello everyone and welcome to a new series I've been wanting to create! I had so much fun writing about my Top 5 Thrifting Finds that I figured I would keep you all up to date with everything I come across! Therefore let me introduce Finders Keepers, a monthly (or weekly depending how often I find items) post of all my thrifted treasures! I'm super excited to finally get this post out, and just want to let you all know that the items shown here were all found between the end of December 2017 and January of this year. So let's get started!

The first item I want to show is this adorable Kate Spade cupcake tote bag! I actually came across 2 of these bags at the same time, priced at $10 each. They did not have their original KS tags on them but were in like new condition (and included a small green Kate Spade "Care Card") and I'm actually not sure if they were ever even used since they are in such great condition! There was not an ounce of wear or rips on them. Unfortunately though, Goodwill does mark the price of their purses with a Sharpie marker on the inside of liner. So after a quick google search and about 30 minutes later, I was able to remove the sharpie completely making these purses even better! We actually ended up selling one of the bags, and I kept the other for myself! I can't wait for the warmer weather to get here because this is definitely a Summer bag!



Next we have this triangular salt lamp, which I scored for only $4! I already own a natural salt lamp that Zachary bought me as a gift and I normally see them priced around $10-$20 (or more depending on the shape) since you can find salt lamps anywhere these days! But for $4 I couldn't pass it up, it's an absolute gorgeous piece and I love it on my shelf.



These next small figurines are some of my favorite finds! First, we have this Target exclusive Lightning McQueen Funko Pop! which unfortunately didn't come with the box but it's an exclusive Pop! so I had to pick up. I can't remember the exact price but I think I paid $4. Normally these go for $10-$12 retail, so regardless of the missing box it was still a good deal! Second, we have a Olaf figure from the Disney Traditions by Jim Shore and it was only $1! I am obsessed with the Disney Traditions by Jim Shore, and my love for these pieces all started when I found a Princess Aurora one at a Flea Market. These Disney figurines are so unique, beautiful and really bring my bookshelves to life! So when I found Olaf (brand new still with the tags on!!!) I literally jumped for joy. Lastly, a Harry Potter snow globe, which is a little broken but it was only $2 and it's Harry Potter... I really can't say no to any HP merchandise. If you look closely you can see that Hermione's wand is broken off but it's an easy fix! I plan to buy some wire and brown clay to make her wand myself. It obviously won't be as good as the original but it'll be good enough for me!



Let the HP merchandise continue, I also found a brand new Hogwarts mug still in the package for $3!



Lastly, would it be a thrifting trip if I didn't look for books? Nope, definitely not. These are all the books, including some brand new coloring books, that I bought all priced $2 or less! My favorite thing about Goodwill is that I find newly released books all.the.time! Therefore I cannot stop looking for them, and after seeing the books I found, can you blame me? I really need to start reading some of these soon :)



So again, these were all the things I thrifted at Goodwill in December and January! I hope you all enjoyed my first Finders Keepers post! If there is anything else you'd like to read or know about my thrifting adventures please let me know in the comments! I'm already working on my February finds since February is already almost over, seriously where is the time going?! Make sure to keep an eye out for that post soon! Thank you for reading, take care!

Instructions for a Secondhand Heart Review

My rating: 4 out of 5 stars!

I won an Advanced Readers Copy of Instructions for a Secondhand Heart by Tamsyn Murray from NOVL in a Twitter giveaway, so I definitely want to thank them for the opportunity to read this! The Goodreads summary as follows:

Jonny knows better than anyone that life is full of cruel ironies. He's spent every day in a hospital hooked up to machines to keep his heart ticking. Then when a donor match is found for Jonny's heart, that turns out to be the cruelest irony of all. Because for Jonny's life to finally start, someone else's had to end.
That someone turns out to be Neve's twin brother, Leo. When Leo was alive, all Neve wanted was for him (and all his glorious, overshadowing perfection) to leave. Now that Leo's actually gone forever, Neve has no idea how to move forward. Then Jonny walks into her life looking for answers, her brother's heart beating in his chest, and everything starts to change.
Together, Neve and Jonny will have to face the future, no matter how frightening it is, while also learning to heal their hearts, no matter how much it hurts.



Our main characters are Neve, whose twin brother Leo, dies in a tragic accident and Jonny who receives Leo’s heart as a organ transplant. Jonny, who never had the chance to live a real life due to his heart diagnosis, takes his second chance to track down the name of his heart donor. In the process of finding out this information, Jonny finds Neve, a young girl who is trying to cope and mend her own heart without her twin brother. Jonny hides a big secret and his secret is another reason why I had to keep reading, to see how it all played out. After only reading 2 chapters I knew I was going to finish this in one sitting. You are immediately hit with an intense rush of emotion and it is hard to not feel for these characters, I had to continue reading because I needed to see them succeed. This is a story about life, loss and second chances. Your heart will break & you will shed tears (I honestly lost track of how much I cried) but it’s beautifully written and I was left needing more. However, there are some things I felt this story lacked and at times I felt the plot was too rushed. It's an easy read so naturally the chapters do flow pretty quickly but I would have definitely liked a little more build up to the plot and time spent before the characters met. If I am not mistaken this entire story takes place over 4 months or so and a lot happens in these 4 months. Did Leo's outgoing personality rub off on Neve now that he's passed? Did she enter any school activities in his honor? How did Jonny learn the limits for his heart? Was he able to try out for any sport teams? I personally would have loved to see this story take place within the course of a year so maybe these questions could have been answered. Of course this is my opinion. Regardless of the time frame this story still works and I truly enjoyed reading. I rated it 4 out of 5 stars! The back of this book states this is a fan for lovers of All the Bright Places, one of my personal favorites, and Everything, Everything, another book that I loved so I absolutely agree that if you liked one or both of these other books, please give this one a chance! The release date for Instructions for a Secondhand Heart was December 5, 2017, so you can grab your own copy now!

Please find my Goodreads review for Instructions of a Secondhand Heart, here.

Top 5 Thrifting Finds

As you may have already read my Top 5 *50 off* Thrifting Finds post I decided to share my all around Top 5 Thrifting Finds! Now these finds are not limited to strictly Goodwill like my other post was. These are my absolute favorite, once in a lifetime, never will forget top 5 thrifting items I've gotten throughout the past 4 years! Whether it be from a tag sale, flea market, Savers, Goodwill or just a local thrift store, here are my Top 5 favorite thrifting finds!

5. Chicago Roller Skates, $20 ($19 after my 5% discount!) Soooo can we talk about nostalgia? Because these actually scream it. I used to roller blade almost everyday when I was younger, though I wasn't very good at it. Regardless, I was dying to find a pair of retro skates to remember my childhood and I've actually seen them making a comeback. Now, these are much more easier to skate in than blades and since my clumsiness hasn't gotten any better over the years, when I came across these BRAND NEW skates they had my name written all over them. I haven't skated with them yet but I will be come Spring!



4. Sleeping Beauty snow globe and Princess Aurora "Jim Shore" figurine. These were found over the summer and the snow globe was the first Sleeping Beauty item I've ever found thrifting and in perfect shape nonetheless! No bubbles or discoloration in the water, no chips or breaks in the ceramic. I couldn't put it down once it was in my hands so I knew it was coming home with me! The Princess Aurora figurine was found at our local monthly flea market, right up the street from our house. I've seen these hand crafted Disney figurines by Jim Shore before and knew I wanted one for my collection so for $2 I immediately said "I'll take it"! I love every Disney Princess so the more merchandise the better! Since this Princess Aurora Jim Shore piece I've added a Belle and Elsa one to my collection as well. I'm now asking for more of these as Christmas gifts because they are so beautiful and I love seeing them on my bookcase shelves!



3. Olive Green Rain Jacket, the story behind this still amazes me to this day. So as I talked about in my Thrifting Tips post, Target donates their clearance items to Goodwill. Now obviously I still actually go to Target every chance I can because their stuff is amazing, but one day I decided to try on this super cute rain jacket and it fit perfectly. The length fell at just the right spot on my hips, I had room to move around and layer clothes so I fell in love... until I saw that price sticker, $39.99! Sometimes I just cannot fathom spending retail so I had to put this jacket back on the hanger and walk away. But don't get your hopes up yet because about 3 weeks later I FOUND THE SAME JACKET AT GOODWILL IN MY SIZE... FOR ONLY $6!!! YES $6!!! My heart dropped, I was ecstatic, I grabbed that jacket and literally ran to Zachary to show him (He was standing right next to me at Target and knew how much I loved it) and we both couldn't believe it. I wore that jacket so much last year that I already have a hole in the arm, but I sewed it up so it's ready for Fall and Winter! I just can't let it go yet! Here's a photo of Zachary and I Christmas Tree shopping last year, I'm wearing the coat!



2. Harry Potter Collector's Edition Books. 2 of these books were bought at the same time and the other was actually found in Pennsylvania while on our way to a mini weekend vacation, but since they are all Harry Potter related I included them as one awesome find. I came across the Harry Potter Film Screen for $10 at a thrift store in Pennsylvania! I was hesitant to get it because there is a rip on the spine but deep down I knew this was a one in a million find (and if I did end up coming across another having 2 isn't a big deal right?). Zach convinced me to buy it and I'm so happy I did. I held that book like a baby walking out of Goodwill that day and now when I see it on my shelf I not only remember the deal I got, but also the fun weekend vacation we had. The other 2 books were found at one of our local stores, and Zach actually grabbed these for me. He walked by the book section right as an employee was putting these on the shelf. They were only available for about 30 seconds before they were in his hands. Want to know the price? They were $2 each! How incredible is that?!



1. What could my top thrifting find be? It couldn't possibly be a book could it? Yup, it definitely is a book! Here we have The Wrath & the Dawn by Renee Ahdieh. Now every single one of the books I've thrifted should be on this list but to keep matters short I narrowed it down to my all time, absolute favorite book. I actually read this first on my kindle when it was on sale for $1.99 and immediately fell in love on the first page. The story has so much depth with an intense plot, interesting characters and it was so hard to put down. I recommend it to everyone and my review for it can be found here! However, since I had a Ebook my heart was set on finding a hardcover copy for my collection, and the day eventually came when I found it in perfect condition sitting on the shelf of a Goodwill for only $2! I left with the biggest smile on my face that day and it still remains just thinking about this book. A few months later I found the paperback copy at a different GW for $1! You better believe I snatched it up quick, because I obviously need more than 1 edition of my favorite.



So there's my Top 5 favorite finds! It was so hard for me to choose only 5 because we find so many awesome things a week! I actually had to rewrite this original post because my Top 5 changed. With that being said I decided to start a weekly blog post of everything I thrift each week, launching within the month or so. The days I post will vary because sometimes we come home empty handed, but right now I plan to get one out every Friday! I'm looking forward to writing these and this way I won't have to think of my top favorite finds because I'll be sharing them as I find them! So please stay tuned for these upcoming posts! Thank you and take care!

Uppercase Box - August

It's that time of the month again for my favorite book mail! Although it saddens me to say that this will be the last time I get to see this package waiting for me on our doorstep. Unfortunately, I had to cancel my Uppercase Box subscription due to financial issues (ugh!) so this will be my last unboxing post until further notice. I plan on subscribing again in the future I am just unsure of when! Now, let's get into what was included in August's box!



The book this month was a signed copy of Everything All At Once by Katrina Leno! Included with matching Post-it notes! I read the summary on Goodreads a few months back so I was familiar with this book upon receiving it.



The summary for Everything All At Once as follows:
Lottie Reeves has always struggled with anxiety, and when her beloved Aunt Helen dies, Lottie begins to fear that her own unexpected death might be waiting around every corner. Aunt Helen wasn’t a typical aunt. She was the author of the best–selling Alvin Hatter series, about siblings who discover the elixir of immortality. Her writing inspired a generation of readers. In her will, she leaves one last writing project—just for Lottie. It’s a series of letters, each containing mysterious instructions designed to push Lottie out of her comfort zone. Soon, Lottie’s trying some writing of her own, leaping off cliffs, and even falling for a boy she’s only just met. Then the letters reveal an extraordinary secret about the inspiration for the Alvin Hatter series. Lottie finds herself faced with an impossible choice, one that will force her to confront her greatest fear once and for all.

This sounds like a sweet "coming of age" contemporary about a girl facing her fears and learning about herself. These types of stories are always ones I'm drawn too. Not only are they interesting to read about how characters surpass life changing events but it can also help you or someone you know get through a similar situation. Sometimes books are the reason we overcome. We fall in love with these characters and hold them so close to our hearts that we think about how they would react if a real life event that is happening to us, happens to them. Since anxiety is a big part of my life and I have a hard time facing my fears I'm looking forward to reading this to see how Lottie takes her Aunts advice!

The bookish items this month were a "Bibliophile" stainless steel bracelet, a set of 5 bookmarks inspired by The Golden Compass, and as I already mentioned Post-it notes! I really love the Bibliophile bracelet. A Bibliophile is a person who loves or collects books, so you know that's definitely me! The bracelet is a little big for me though so I'll probably only be able to use it for photo ops as I don't want to lose it while wearing it out. I'm always in need of a good bookmark too, usually I just use whatever receipt is closest to me so I know these will come in handy. Also included were matching Post-It notes based off the cover of Everything All At Once. Being the big note taker that I am I know I can use these sticky notes to jot down some of my favorite quotes or moments while reading.



So that's it for August's box! Like I said, I'm sad to have had to cancel after subscribing for almost 2 full years. The thrill of finding out what book and items were included will be something I'll miss until I'm able to resubscribe. For now, I'll just stalk the Uppercase Box hashtag on Instagram while admiring all the contents. Definitely check out Uppercase Box if you have not already! The plan that I was receiving every month was the Expert Plan, which included a signed book and 2-3 bookish items. There are other ones so you will be able to subscribe to the plan that best suits you! As always, thanks for reading! I plan on getting my reviews up for some of my Uppercase Box books fairly soon (including ones from last year) so please stay tuned until then and take care!

Top 5 *50% Off* Thrifting Finds

As I mentioned in my Thrifting Tips post, every week Goodwill has a "color of the week" sale. The 4 colors that rotate are red, yellow, green and blue. After 3 weeks certain colored items are marked down to help sell and make way for new merchandise. That means these items have been sitting in Goodwill for over 3 weeks just waiting to be found... 3 weeks!! That may not seem like a long time but with avid thrift shoppers like Zachary and I who constantly look for the best deals, it can be hard to find that must have item at 50% off. However, once and a while I get lucky so here are my Top 5 50% off Thrifting Finds found at Goodwill!



5. Wall-e Blu-ray movie - Originally $6, bought for $3. Zach and I are huge Blu-ray collectors, we own over 200+ Blu-rays and most are courtesy of thrifting. Many of our movies are Disney because...DISNEY, need I say more? $3-5 for Blu-rays are our happy number, which means we don't normally like spending any more than that unless it's a new release we absolutely must have. Most Goodwill's price Blu-rays $5 or less but sometimes they get greedy. We've seen them priced at $15 before while the same movie is at Walmart for $5! So when I saw Wall-e priced at $6 my heart sank a little. Do I spend the extra $1 over "happy price" or just walk away? Well, I decided to walk away and every time I walked into that GW for the next 3 weeks Wall-e stared me in the face. Once it was priced down I grabbed it before anyone else could!



4. Black booties - Originally $15, bought for $7.50. Scored these super cute brand new booties at a Goodwill that was closing down! This deal is actually an exception to the weekly 50% off because this was found when the entire store was on sale! As a promotion to try and sell merchandise before their move to a new store built up the street, my local GW had everything discounted at 50% off! Pickings were slim so I was pretty excited to get these in my size!



3. Harry Potter tank top - Originally $4, bought for $2. Hufflepuff pride here! Anything HP draws my attention regardless of what it is, so this tank top immediately caught my eye and once I saw it was marked down I went right to the checkout! Layer it with a cardigan, leggings and sneakers and I have a new thrifting Fall outfit!



2. Holding up the Universe by Jennifer Niven ARC - Originally $1, bought for 50 cents. This book by Jennifer Niven was released in October 2016 but I actually found this ARC (Advance Reader's Copy) in July of 2016! So it was a special surprise to have this book before release date! I didn't end up reading it until June of this year though. Jennifer Niven is a favorite author of mine, her book All the Bright Places was one of the most beautiful books I've ever read. It's a definite must read so I recommend both of these books to anyone who loves YA contemporaries!



1. 3 Batman statues - Originally $113, bought for $53.50. So this find is for Zach and since we found these Batman related items all at once I am counting it as one. Now when we go thrifting we have our usual weekly spots but there are quite a few stores about 1 hour away from us, in each direction, so once in a while we'll pick a different town to go and take the drive. This was our 2nd time at this particular Goodwill and it was a Sunday, a new week, therefore a new 50% off tag color. Almost immediately upon walking in we both notice these huge Batman statues above the glass case. Zach was on a Batman statue kick at the time so he was bouncing off the walls with excitement... and then we realized the color of the week matched the price stickers on these statues! Total they were supposed to run us $113 but with 50% off (PLUS the additional 5% off since we spent more than $20 and used our GW membership perks) he only paid about $53.50! After some research we found that one of these statues alone sells for over $70! Now he can add these 3 to his collection for a great price! It was definitely worth it and we were so excited we chose that Sunday to go because these statues wouldn't have been there for much longer!

So that concludes my Top 5 50% off Thrifting Finds! Please follow my blog to stay updated with my posts as I'll be sharing my all time favorite Top 5 Thrifting Finds very soon! Thanks for reading, take care and happy hunting!

Uppercase Box - July

Another month so you know what that means? Another Uppercase Box! Let's see what was included this time shall we?

The book this month was Words on Bathroom Walls by Julia Walton, and was as usual, signed! I actually did not hear of this book until I had it in my hands so I was intrigued to read the summary on Goodreads:
Adam has just been diagnosed with schizophrenia. He sees and hears people who aren’t there: Rebecca, a beautiful girl who understands him; the Mob Boss, who harasses him; and Jason, the naked guy who’s unfailingly polite. It should be easy to separate the real from the not real, but Adam can't. Still, there’s hope. As Adam starts fresh at a new school, he begins a drug trial that helps him ignore his visions. Suddenly everything seems possible, even love. When he meets Maya, a fiercely intelligent girl, he desperately wants to be the great guy that she thinks he is. But then the miracle drug begins to fail, and Adam will do anything to keep Maya from discovering his secret.

Definitely sounds like a contemporary I'm interested in and plus it has 4.2/5 stars! I've also read about 40 pages so far and am really enjoying it! It has a light and quick feel to it so I'll probably be able to finish it fairly soon.



The items that were included this month were an art print of a quote by Stephen King, "Books are a uniquely portable magic", Cheshire Cat socks, a cat sticker (I'm definitely a crazy cat lady so give me all the cat merchandise you can!) and a postcard with a quote from Words in Deep Blue "We are the books we read and the things we love".

All and all another great box! One of the main reasons I love Uppercase is because it allows me to be introduced to a variety of books that I've never heard of, and usually these books end of being a personal favorite so I'm really excited to continue with Words on Bathroom Walls!

Thanks for reading, until next time, take care!

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