Unexpected finds in Oregon

Giddy with delight at yard sale finds
Originally uploaded by sassycrafter

I must be having a streak of good thrift karma. I recently traveled to Oregon to look at plants but somehow I stumbled across a few unexpected craft goodies.

I flew to Portland two weeks ago for the Garden Writers Association conference. Forgive me for the delay in blogging--I picked up a cold while traveling and it slowed me down.

As part of the conference, we went on tours of a number of private and public gardens. Little did I know that there would be a surprise waiting for me at the first stop on the first tour. A yard sale!

My traveling companions Erin and Emily knew I'd make a beeline for it once I spotted it. But I summoned up as much willpower as I could and walked right by the garage sale to tour the garden. I ended up with tons of great photos of that garden and many others (I'm the unofficial photographer for the office).

Of course, you can already tell from the photo that I also squeezed in a little time to stop at the yard sale. How could I resist? I have such a weakness for yard sales, especially if they hold the promise of wool sweaters. And since Portland is known for cool and wet winters, the forecast held a good chance of sweaters. Indeed! I scored two merino wool sweaters--my favorite types, second only to cashmere--which I'll use in upcoming craft projects.

Who knows what crafty goodness might be waiting for you around the next turn in the road!