Road Trip, Part 2

When we last left our happy travelers, they had arrived in Indianapolis for the annual Coffee Break Design warehouse sale. The rush was on to get some fine, unique items to take home. There are all kinds of things there... old games, old fuses, unique labels, lots of great graphic arts magazines for collage projects, test tubes of all kinds, EKG machine paper (every time I think I have all the varieties offered, he has something different!)

(Is it just me, or do other people wonder if the local hospitals have Mike's picture up in the Security Department???)

They also had some of their regular products at a discount. I needed another two ATC boxes. After all, I'm going to be making 500 Fortune cards, you know. (I crack myself up sometimes)

And check out these little zip lock bags. The one on the right is 1x1 inches. The one on the left is even tinier at 1/2 inch square. It is so tiny, there is nothing to grasp enough to open it. I used the pointed end of a small paintbrush to open it. People always say "What are you going to do with That?" In my head, I am seeing tiny Evidence bags for journaling, or something along those lines. These fall into the category of 'maybe you don't need it right now, but when you Do need it, it will be good to have on hand'!!! And since Mike sells everything in quantities of a bazillion for only $1, it was too good to pass up....(okay, maybe I exaggerate)...

Then there are all things laser cut. I love the new little pennants. You know, if you turn them upside down, you can make a crown.... or a dunce cap for that head there.....

Last year I bought a bunch of test tubes that had no stoppers. I always thought they would make good trades for a convention. Fill them with words and some beads, then put a fabric stopper in the top, and voila!
I also got a couple of the white magnifying glasses. Seemed like they would work well in a book. Later that day, I also picked up a little brass magnifying glass. (I can use those to find the teeny zip lock bags).

After our shopping, we had fun visiting with friends. Ginny and husband John were there from the Cleveland area. It was great seeing them. She carries a lot of Mike's products in her Small Studios online store, plus other very interesting and cool things. We joked that we would both be blogging about this trip! Mike has fascinating things in his warehouse. One is a very large, old perforating machine. I took a picture of it, but I like Ginny's picture better, which is on her blog here.

At one point, I saw a group of ladies standing just outside the warehouse and there seemed to be a lot of commotion. When I checked to see what was going on, it was Gaye's purse that had them so excited. She recently made a new purse using designer labels, buttons, and other art.

One lady offered to hold the purse so everyone could take a picture of it. It was the funniest thing I ever saw.

Until .....I.... saw....this.............

Yes, Gaye brought Mike a gift, the Answer Me Jesus. It is like those old Eight Ball toys, where you ask a yes/no question, turn it over, and the answer is on a floating thing in a little window. It provided some wonderful entertainment.

So, after my one hour drive to Louisville, then our two hour drive to Indianapolis, a couple of hours of shopping and visiting, was our day winding down? Noooo.... because, you see, there was a community-wide yard sale just up the street from where we were. Off we went!

That was where I got the brass magnifying glass. I also got this large safety pin for a nickel.

And this large dictionary for $1. I got it for the embossed cover. And check out that spine. It is large enough to make a book cover all by itself! The book was held together with screw posts, so it should be easy enough to remove the covers.

We eventually got back on the road for the two hour drive south. The drive went pretty fast, and we were back at Gaye's house in no time. We went inside and divided up the goods, then it was time for me to leave. Was the day winding down? Noooo... I still had a work function to go to in Louisville, a going away party for my boss. It was a surprise party, and we had a good turnout and a great meal at a local restaurant. Two or three hours later, I had that one last hour drive ahead of me. I had to stop and get paper for my printer on the way home, but I eventually pulled in the driveway after a very long day. I spread out all my goodies to admire, but by then I could barely hold my eyes open. I slept like a rock, then was up early for work today. Looking forward to the next adventure, and to coming up with ideas for using all these unique items!