Happy New Year! And What is a Bin Store? And What Do They Have For Dolls?

   Well happy new year! Let's hope this year is better and this horrible virus can be stamped out. I'm vaccinated and still wearing a mask and sanitizing my hands after touching anything in a public place.

  One thing I want to mention for this year: if you leave a comment saying you want someone, (me, or the general  public), to contact you about something, you have to leave some contact information. If you want me to contact you, I won't post your information. If you want just anyone to contact you, I will. But you have to leave a way to be contacted!

  Another thing, I'm wondering why I'm not getting many comments. Are the posts not interesting enough? I've seen comments on some pretty boring posts by other people, so that can't be it. Comment just to say hi, so I know I'm not just talking to myself. It gets depressing if it feels like nobody is reading. 

  You may have read me say a few times that Ken is obsessed with 'bin stores'. Bin stores are stores that get pallets full of stuff from various places, like Amazon (returns or overstocks), stores, (like Target clearance items), etc. The stuff is put in huge bins, in no particular order, and the price changes from day to day. For example, on the first day after the bins are restocked, everything is $6. The next day the store is open, everything is $4, or $3. The next day it's $2, and the next day everything is $1. Most of the stores we go to are only open three days a week, for $6, $3, and $1 days. There are even some stores that have 50 cent days. (Not days celebrating that guy. Everything costs 50 cents.) There are some things that are pulled out of the pallets and sold for higher, but still cheap, set prices. Sometimes the stores will get a load of clothing that they will sell for a set price per piece, but it's still pretty cheap. 

  The great appeal to Ken is, you never know what you're going to find. We got a cover for his outdoor grill for $1. Ivy loves clothes from Target, and there were huge bins of them for $2 each. My sister started going because we were finding some pretty great things sometimes. She recently got an Adrianna Papell dress worth over $300, for $7. I've gotten shoes for the girls, (Emma loves her white vinyl 60's style boots.), and Ken got a $160 pair of tennis shoes for $1! Anyway, the point of this post is, there are also doll and miniature related things to be found in the bins. Here are some of the finds I've made in the last year.

  There have been a bunch of paint by numbers kits for $1. The paints alone are worth it. But you also sometimes get a picture of what your painting will look like that would work in a 1/6 scale dollhouse as wall art.

I was so excited the day I found an actual Rement set for $1! I found the empty box and had to root around and find the contents elsewhere in the bin. But I found it!

There was this somewhat cheap looking 1/6 scale couch one day.

I got this pack of 4 mini potted plants for $1. They're about 8 or 9 inches tall.

 

I thought these little black boards could be useful for something. They would make good restaurant boards for a 1/6 scale diorama, or, without the legs, school slates for 18" dolls.

 

I found some little houses from one of these light strings on one trip. I thought they'd look cute in the window of a 1/6 scale dollhouse with a little button light inside. .

Then I found an entire set later on.

Ken found a tiny box he thought was sewing supplies. Wake up Ken! It's a dollhouse sized sewing machine!

Ken spots some great stuff for me sometimes. He found these two 1/6 scale folding chairs, in a pack together. Two for $1!

The black thing that looks like a hockey puck was in the box too, but I'm not sure it was supposed to be.

Another day we each spotted one of these articulated bodies! They aren't as nice as the ones I've bought online, but they were only $2 each!

Ken and I both found some of these dollhouse chairs. They were in boxes of two. 

I found these other wooden dollhouse things on different days.

The bed was from $1 day, but the fridge was on $3 day.

These little real flowers are nail decorations. But they are real flowers and I'll use them with my dollhouse somehow.

Another sewing machine?! Yes, but this one is 1/6 scale, and musical! For $1! 

The treadle moves as it plays.

This mouse pad will make a great rug.

As will these placemats. Six for $1.

This moss can be used for a lot of dollhouse things, in plant pots, in yards, etc.

One day I found a bag of Baby Annabell clothes. All for $1.

I don't have a Baby Annabell, but I'm sure they'll fit somebody.

More nail art stuff that may be useful somehow. These could be used in making mini Christmas ornaments. (I just thought of that!) These are leaves.

I don't like things made with yarn and plastic canvas, but this black plastic canvas might be used as something. There are several sheets.

 

I know these are some kind of electric related do dads, but...

... is anybody else seeing miniature spice jars?

This whole stack of sombreros were at a bin store one day. They're doll sized, but...

...they are attached to head bands! Whaaa?!

This bag of tiny, coloured styrofoam balls was probably out of some kind of set, but they'll make great doll sized gum balls or candy. 

 

I got hopping excited when I found this. 'Turntable'?!

It was a mini record player! But what was it for?

It's an air freshener for your car! The scent things are little 'records'. You clip the 'record player' to your vent, and when you turn the air conditioner or heat on, the record spins!

I'd show you the 'records', but I got two of these and put all the 'records' in one box, and I'm giving that one to Emma in her Christmas stocking. I don't do scented things. They bother my nose and give me a sore throat and/or headache.

This little chest was cute in itself.

But when I opened it I found it contained jewelry making supplies.

This lady appeared suddenly in a bin I'd already scoured. Someone rejected her from their bag.

Does anybody know what the little wooden thing is for?

These are paint markers.

I have also gotten Barbie sized clothes, water colours, paint brush sets, water colour paper, stretched canvases,  picture frames of various sizes, (including some that are the perfect size for movie lobby cards), sewing supplies for Ivy, cooking gadgets Ken couldn't resist, DVD players that plug in to the computer, (which is good because my current computer can't play discs.), photo albums for those new Polaroid type instant pictures the girls take, treats for my sister's dog, boxes of snacks like Lara Bars, squeezy fruit pouches, granola bars, and cookies, (which Ken and I keep in the car for Fun Days, in case we need something between meals.), cases of that icky coconut water Ken likes, Cadbury hot chocolate, a full size heavy duty plastic floor mat, wooden hangers, and loads of other things. Most of the stuff, except the cases of coconut water, were $1, (because Ken doesn't like to go on the higher priced days!).  So, I'm just saying. If you have a bin store near you, it's worth checking out. 

Birthday Stuff: Disney Store Doll, World's Smallest, and Mini Brands Toys

   The weather is absolutely crazy. We had some warmish weather last week. (Not this past week.) I went around without a jacket. The snow had melted, except for where it had been snow plowed into piles the size of glaciers. That takes ages to finally melt. We had rain that melted a bit more snow. Then it got really cold again. We had snow Monday! I was freezing all day and I put my electric blanket on again.  Then we had weather in the 50's Fahrenheit again. Friday night it was 38! My daffodils must be so confused.

  Last week, as I said, it was pretty warm, and Ken and I took one of our 'fun day's, and went to a  nice state park to do some walking, since my doctor says I should do 150 minutes of exercise a week. It was really nice, and I had to take my sweater off. But the melting snow had made it so muddy that our shoes were caked with mud. We tried to walk in the woods, and to the sides of the path when we could, but there was still a lot of slipping and sliding going on, and our shoes and ankles were a mess. 

We walked about two miles. I thought I would be sore because I have done so little for quite a while, but I was fine.

  Since it was my 'birthday week' I celebrated a bit and ate a few things my LPR diet doesn't allow. We had the most delicious lasagna and eggplant parmesan, which we shared so we could both try each of them. I hadn't had tomato sauce in so long! It was WONDERFUL!

   As I said, it was my birthday that week. Ken and Emma got their wires crossed and they BOTH made me a cake! They were both good though, so no harm done. There's still some left. Ken, as usual, spoiled me. I got a new lens for my camera, so no more having to focus manually. Thank goodness! And no more blurred pictures, which you will all appreciate! He also got me a couple of DVD sets and a special edition magazine, which I picked out. He hates that. He thinks everything should be a surprise. I'm just glad I get the things I wanted! He had already given me the Katherine Johnson doll, but on my birthday he treated me to a couple of dolls from The Disney store. I collect Alice things, and had been wanting the doll from the Disney Store. Once I was there, and seeing the dolls in person, I wasn't sure I didn't like the Wendy, (From "Peter Pan".), more. They were on sale if you bought two, so he insisted I get both. That's one Alice down. Someday I hope to get the full sized Animator's Collection Alice. (You can see my mini Animator's Alice HERE.)

  Of the other gifts I got, the others that would interest you all would include the World's Smallest Slinky Dog that Emma got me...

... and with the money Fuzz gifted me with I bought a couple of the new-ish Mini Brands Toys balls. I was excited about these when I saw that they existed, at Hot Topic, on my birthday. (Don't buy them there though. They cost twice as much there as they do at Target or Walmart.) The things I wanted most out of the balls were the carded Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles figures and the Turtles mask. I got lucky and got the mask!

  But in retrospect I think I won't buy any more of the balls. Not that there aren't some really cute things in there. 

Here are the other things I got.

I would love to have a lot of the things. If a person had the money to spare and had the urge to make a 1/6 scale toy store, these would be great.

 But they're about $7 per ball, a ball which contains 5 things. Every ball uses one of the spaces to give you a shelf, which is too small for a lot of the toys, or a shopping cart, which is not in scale with the toys. (I guess you could use it as a toy too.) 

The shelf.

The cart.

A lot of the toys are actual plastic toys on card, or in little boxes. Those are nice. But far too often you get stuck with something like the JoJo Siwa hair bow,

... or some of the 'toys' that are just a reproduction box with nothing in it, like the 'Ready to Roll', above. While that was one thing with regular Mini Brands, where you might get a product that was basically an empty cardboard box, but usually it was an empty box you couldn't replicate easily with just a home printer because the package was unique,(like with the Breyer's ice cream), with these I just feel like it's not enough for the price.

  I have a bunch of the three items that are on the display boxes. If anybody wants to trade a carded Ninja Turtle figure or a Fingerling for a Rubik's cube, a Rainbocorns egg, or a box of Crayola crayons, let me know.

  One of my other presents was from my sister. She got me something I've been wanting: a DNA test kit. I am anxious to get it sent in! I'll let you know what the results say when I get them back.