LOL...My first thought also is "that is so cool - I wonder where I can stash it till I think of something ". My next thought is how can I sneak it in so DH won't see it ...
I usually don't think about what someone else thinks of me for retrieving things from the trash.
Sometimes I feel a little embarrassed, but not enough to stop me from stopping and picking things up, I hate the feeling of I should have more then the feeling of embarrassment.

I saw a perfectly good work bench on the street yesterday.
Called DW to tell her I needed help getting it in the truck.
She tells me we don't need it and that she thinks I'm addicted to curb shopping.
She may have a point, but I still think we could have used that workbench.

Man is usually, "Oh, gosh! That is so neat! Now, what am I gonna do with it and where am I gonna put it until I do!?" LOL

All I think is can I fit it in the van and can I get it in there all by myself.?LOL!!!

hi
well although I do not get he chance to curb shop much
I still am addicted to scrounging what I can.
I have 3 sheds (that I built for almost free) filled with free lumber that I,m sure I looked at before I put it there and imagined some project to make with it.
I also have huge amounts of hardware screws nails,hinges, knobs, pipe, electrical stuff, plumbing stuff etc etc. in the 100,s and even thousands of $$$ and have caught some serious flack over the yrs for just thinking about bringing more home AND I have several friends that are curb shoppers that call and ask me if I need something.
BUT the first shed I built is nice 12 +8 and the only thing I paid for was the roll roofing. my deck is 18by12 and is real nice I built the entire frame for free and the total including the stains I bought was around 550$
my kitchen counters are tile almost free stuff the sink was new for free I have like 75 gals of paint that I either got for free or bought discount for a dollar a gal at sears
so I,m not sure what I think always when I see a free item but I do think !!! hey you know that may not be the exact thing I may have wanted but when it come s time to build this or that or paint or replace a door or ,or, or,
I just love the fact we allready have it .
just need to get busy to use up some of those ideas Rick

Well, one thing I never worry about is what other people think. Some people have no taste, no vision, and no sense of fun...and I can't do anything about that.

I only pick up something if I know what I am going to do with it...or it "speaks" to me. For example, I will pass up a new
plastic chair and take home a rusted out old iron one.

We just bought one of those 40' containers...like the SeaLand kind...part was to be for my feed room and part for storing my husband's nets, tools, etc., but my junk has taken over the end that is mind for feed, and I have the feed in my husband's part and some of my junk too. Plus, I have two junk storage buildings...full to the gills. It's all really good junk too....it speaks to me every time I open the door and look in. ;))

I never worry what my husband will think. He has been married to me long enough to know that I am going to do what I want to do. In fact, he brings home junk to me too. He
has found some really cool stuff for me.

I usually think that it's really neat and I wish DH would stop or I had the truck or I had the time to stop :( One of these days!

I keep seeing things and Dh says "Don't even think about it." My family has tons of junk that my grandparents bought and stored. They are taking it to the dump by the truckful. At some point it becomes a burden. (3 houses and 5 garages piled up full) I try to keep that in mind and keep my stashes smaller. Once in a while, I go through and clean it out. I'm full of ideas on stuff and don't have the time or skill to carry it all out.

right now I have so much stuff and so little time I promised I wouldn't do any curb shopping until I get the sheds and garage cleaned out and the waiting for time projects finished. So for NOW what goes thru my mind is "WOW that is so cool I hope someone who can use it gets to it." If it is something on my list for finishing a project and the DH isn't with me (because he will grumble) I usually grab it with no embarassament.

Sometimes when I see something, it clicks in my mind about what I'm going to do with it. Sometimes whatever I'm looking at is so cool that I have to get it and I'll store it in the garage (or somewhere else) until I figure it out. I've still got an old Duncan Phyfe table I found for $60.00 at a thrift store in the garage, waiting for that whiff of inspiration. I think I'm going to use the two pedestal legs as side tables for our in-the-works new deck.

Does anyone wish they'd kept a record of which friends are looking for what stuff, for referrals?

Including phone numbers?

ole joyful

When I see really good junk on the curb...DH usually just puts his hand on the top of my head and shakes my head side to side......I think he is saying no, you don't need it...but if it's really GOOD, I usually go back for it PDGQ!!

Hi... I'm usually on the garden junk Forum but have been lurking and couldn't resist this post even if it is an oldie....
If I see something I like I tell DH to pull over and if I can't lug the thing I make him get it for me! I don't think twice about picking trash up cuz I've lost out on too much great stuff in the past. At first DH grumbled but now he's so used to it he's not phased at all. He even now looks out for stuff!
I finally figured out what I could do with something I curb shopped two years ago! DH thought he could get rid of it when we moved cuz he hated it but I wouldn't let it go... and now that I've said what I'm doing with it he likes it! I say go for it!
Cait

I caught my Hubby throwing stuff out and burning wood!!!!! Oh did he hear about it!!! He is obsessive about clutter and it's my way of life!!! He looks at all my junk as junk and I say to him, if I brought it home and stored it away, don't you think I WANT IT!?!?? Heellooo. Toomuchglass hit it verbatum on the head!!! That is exactly me!!

ALL of the above, except leave the DH out and add 'grown children'. LOL

patty_cakes

Who is DH?

DH is in most cases Dear Husband or in other instances dastardly hubby, dumber half, dispicable heathen, dead head, darling helper, and other such names for the fellow we are espoused to. As DH works in so many applications of how we feel about the fine guy and his attitude about our passion for junking.

Only thought in my mind is "Is that car behind me following too close, or can I just swerve over and slam on my brakes?"
I had to fight DH for about the first 10 years. Now, he has the truck stopped before I even see what we're stopping for.

Red

I just think, "can I get it in the car?"!

Oh wow what can I do with it, will DH say something stupid or roll his eyes, can I lift it myself then I weigh embarassment with desire. Desire wins out cause I wouldnt have stopped in the first place if I didnt want it or couldnt pass it on. My car is ALWAYS ready for a pickup back seat is down, blankets, bungee cord, flashlight and handywipes AND finally figured out to turn off interior lights when the doors or hatch open. Too many times lights were blazing and I was pushing and people were looking out there windows!

Oh, what a fun thread!

You know, I often sit and think of all the wonders
this world is missing out on because most people
belittle, laugh and snark at creativity. Those with
ideas often keep them under covers for fear other
people will respond negatively. I raise my hand first
in line for being guilty of covering some of my work.

My gosh, look at some of the stunning creations most
folks scoff about. Tressa Prisbrey's Bottle Village
is a prime example. It may not be for everyone, but
the lady used what she had, what she found. She made
something which may not appeal to many, but landed a place
in history with national recognition and so much more.

Books, movies, more from a little old lady's creative
whims. No training, no college, no money. Pure
imagination.

Another hero of mine - Raymond Isidore. One stone at
a time. One pebble. Folks laughed and called him names,
teased him and shunned him. Yet look what he did.

Learning about these wonderful people has prompted my
creative streak like never before. When I was younger
and didn't give a rat's banana what people thought, I
was always coming up with something. And while today
I still do interesting things, I see my projects
limited by societal restrictions and expectations. Of
course, I've allowed this to happen.

No more. :-)

IT'S ONLY TOO LATE IF YOU DON'T START NOW - LIFE AFTER 40
by Barbara Sher. Get it. Read it. Do it. Your way.

Also available - It's Only Too Late If You Don't
Start Now: How to Create Your Second Life at Any Age

Glue paper clips to the ceiling if you want to.
Paint the bathroom yellow with polka dots. Ideas
come into our heads for a reason, and only we can
give them life.

You go!

hi
liked your response.
thats why I said
"PAINT IT PINK"
Rick happy 4th

Love it! Indeed!

I am bumping this wonderful thread. Very thought provoking. Though I am the point where I not only try to see the potential I limit my collecting unless I am actually going to make the result. Dreaming is good and action is also! Gotta do both. (Can you tell I'm working on completing projects!)
Kathy

I'm always looking at what others are throwing out and thinking, "What can I do with that?!" When it's too big for me to bring home, because I have no storage, it irritates me to no end. I hate passing up a good "deal."

I usually have an idea for it about a block down the road after my mind is racing.....scrambling to think up the perfect project. So then, I just whip the car around and go back for it. If I don't have an idea for it, I usually pass. Although sometimes I will pick it up for a future project. It just depends on if I have the room to store it until I can do something with it.

As for DH, he can't see the treasure in anything. As soon as he sees things sitting out and me looking, he immediately says (as he smirks), "No, we're not stopping. Don't even think about it."

So the next day I go back and get it (if it's still there!) while he's at work and sneak it down into my storage room. LOL That's why it has to be smaller items too. I think he'd notice an entertainment center or table sitting in my living room.
:(

But this all comes from a man that never throws away a piece of plumbing, a screw, or piece of wood away because "maybe someday I'll need it." The wood is fine, or even the screws, but the plumbing junk needs to go! One of these days I'm gonna take it and make some sort of conglomeration out of it and stick it above his desk in the office!

Any time he's doing plumbing, I say, "Will any of that stuff work that's in that box?" And he'll say, "Ah, no. I need to go buy a special fitting." Argh!

Thanks for bumping the thread, Kathy. Now I've got the itch to go looking for trash!

Alicia

Really loved this thread. I have carried "curb-purchased" chairs home with me while on a walk. I didn't care how odd I looked walking and carrying that chair. I'm always on the lookout for good curb finds or thrift store finds. Some of my best treasures began as such.