Junk Day, 4-30-21

Look at my new couch! Free on the curb in Garner on Junk Day! Not dirty, not worn – in perfect condition! Likely belonged to an old lady – obviously without pets. After it gets dirty, I’ll have it reupholstered in giant red check! Connie helped me carry it to my van and then INTO my van! Frick and Frack carry a couch! Haha! What a sight we were! We hope nobody was watching!

I love staging quilts – this is one of my all time favorites even though it’s now faded. I’ll put it on my list to make again in new fabrics. Available in the online store – Old Glory Farm.

My garage is clean – very clean! Now I can move the marked stuff into the garage and then into Connie’s garage and when it’s all said and done, I’ll end up with a clean garage. Sweet!

Tomorrow is May 1 – MAY DAY! Do you remember delivering May baskets? I sure do. It’s a tradition I’d like to see renewed. First thing tomorrow morning I’ll pull the Dirty Dozen number for May. You should then have only one project left for June and then we’ll start again July 1 with 12 unfinished projects called the Dirty Dozen. If you didn’t join this group last year, try it this year! It’s pretty fun to finish up 12 UFO’s!

It’s lawn mowing day tomorrow!

21 thoughts on “Junk Day, 4-30-21

  1. Gloria Y.

    We were introduced to the tradition of leaving May Baskets on door handles when we moved to Cedar Rapids, Iowa in 1967. I will ask my daughters if they remember. We moved from Iowa in 1979.

  2. B. J. Berlo

    I remember making May Baskets with my mother when I was a little girl in the 40’s. It was a long time ago and it involved crepe paper and pipe cleaners and something for the basket. My mother made fudge , we put a few pieces in each little basket and then we would deliver to our neighbors. It was such fun to wait for some May Baskets to be delivered to our house!

  3. Gwen

    Exchanging May baskets in elementary school was a really big thing. I remember it well.

  4. Jean E.

    I do remember May Day…they don’t do it here in Wisconsin..my kids missed it when we moved here. I wish I could have been there for Junk Day! I’ll be there Monday for a week so will make the all city rummage sales!
    Score on the sofa!

  5. Jo in Wyoming

    Great find…I’m glad you had new knees and wasn’t using your walker to retrieve such a prize!!!
    Gorgeous today, about 80. All kinds of greens coming up and out in the yard. Plus 2 big Jack rabbits were in the yard this afternoon. Normally we have cotton tails. After all the rain, I heard a lot of frogs or maybe toads tonight. Spring may be on the calendar, but winter isn’t done just yet out here.

    We made May baskets with wallpaper samples. It was fun.
    Have a great weekend everyone.

  6. Linda Schluchter

    That’s a beautiful sofa, a very lovely find! The things I see at the curb no one would ever think of re-using, only junk around here. My sister in Kentucky take their house and yard waste to a dump and she finds great things to repurpose, she refinished a claw foot turned leg oak table that would be super pricey at an antique store, she was tempted by lily bulbs but did get clumps of monkey grasses for edging. She was broken hearted yesterday because someone had dumped two perfect concrete round planters that would be amazing at her driveway but they were impossible for her to even move and with her husband out of state and no men around she had to leave them. Don’t feel bad about carrying off a perfectly beautiful sofa, you are just giving it a new life!

  7. Joyce from NY

    Love the new sofa, will be great for you! No mowing here today, it snowed last night & oh how the wind blew 34degrees here this morning, just like winter!

  8. Pat Smith

    I remember May Day so well and the fun of making May baskets to fill with candies and flowers. We’d hang them on our friends doorknobs, ring the bell, and run and hide. Such fun in my Iowa youth. Other commenter’s memories brought it all back. Although your new sofa doesn’t look all that comfortable, it certainly is attractive, and I think will eventually look great in the red check. I think it was a real find!

    1. Mary Etherington Post author

      Pat Smith – the sofa seat is not deep so it actually fits me – my feet can touch the floor!

  9. Kathy in western NY

    Nothing like a good find on the curb! A neighbor put out a child’s artist easel and marked it free and it was gone within 15 minutes. Better to repurpose than be crushed in the landfills. It was icy on the patio deck this morning but sun is melting it now. Don’t forget to snatch a picture of garage sale set up so we can drool from afar.

    1. Mary Etherington Post author

      Kathy in western NY – we will definitely take pictures!

  10. Marie Fibelstad

    Yes remember very well the May basket exchange by hanging them on the door and running so they couldn’t give you a Kiss as May 1 is my birthday, so did gets lots of treats!
    Love the couch. Marie

  11. Launa

    Made many May Day baskets full of flowers for the neighbors. Most were my grandma’s age so I think they looked forward to receiving one!
    Not certain why, but I didn’t receive the pictures this morning.
    Will wait to see new big, red check finished sofa!
    41o outside with strong winds last night. Can see much green now showing where bare ground was.
    Sun is trying here.

  12. NancyTD

    Great couch. You and Connie have some great adventures. May Day was always a big deal when my kids were growing up. Many kids in the neighborhood and I had them make one for everyone.
    Thanks to you and Connie for the DD idea. Completing 2 years and easy to find 12 more for next year. Have quite a few Xmas gifts finished for this year. It is a great feeling.
    Have a great weekend.

  13. Susy Boyer

    We live next door to an Elementary school, and every May Day the kindergarten classes walk our neighborhood with hand made May Baskets. I always hurry outside to say thank you and the kids get so excited to talk about it. Well, not this year, but hopefully the tradition will continue next May Day 2022!

  14. Teresa

    Your sofa was a great find and how nice it comes aired out! An acquaintance of ours once picked up a whole bunch of vintage black iron fence that someone set out for large item pick up day! Last week I helped my son set out a large dresser and a chair with ottoman. The dresser was gone the next morning and the chair was gone when he got home from work. I think it’s wonderful that people repurpose these items.

    Mary, who do you use to do reupholstering for you?

    1. Mary Etherington Post author

      Teresa – I don’t currently know anyone but will look around North Iowa.

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