Cool place

If you are regular reader of this blog you know I love thrift and junk stores.  Surgery has put a damper on doing much of anything this month, so for my first big out of town adventure we headed for the bigger city to one of my my favorite places.  It's called the IDEA Store, it is located in Champaign, Il.  The concept of the store is to provide a place for businesses or individuals to donate reusable materials which are then resold at great prices.  There are no clothes, dishes or electronics like regular thrift stores but what they do have is rack after rack of materials to stretch the imagination.  What I love best is that everyone who works there is a volunteer and all the money goes directly back into the local schools.  With an ever changing inventory of art materials. fabric, papers, game pieces, containers and recyclables they offer you the chance to to fill bag after bag with things you can use in the classroom, crafts or for your own art.  I have purchased yarn, fabric, jewelry, buttons, sewing supplies, containers for the business and many other items.  This time I had a bag full for just over $6.00.  If you are a teacher, a crafter, a junker or an artist I can't recommend this store high enough.  One caution I will include is if you don't like crowds, don't go on a Saturday afternoon. They offer birthday parties and the place was packed with little kids poking in every container to find the just right pieces for their projects, and loving every minute of it.  I love their enthusiasm but almost got knocked down a time or two.