Flea Market Find... in Blue

I saw a cute idea on Pinterest.  Really unique, and about as simple as simple can be.

Place a favorite photo in a canning jar as a means of "framing" the photo. And if you can find a blue canning jar?  Even better.

So, I've been keeping my eyes open.  I'd heard the blue jars were hard to find.  Ideally, I wanted an old one.  One with a worn zinc lid.

The other day, we were at a local flea market, and it seemed these blue jars were jumping out at me from every side.  Many of them had no lids. That seems to be typical.  They're old, and matching lids are lost through the years.

Then, I saw some jars with lids... for about $4 each, but I didn't bite just yet.  It seemed like a terrific price, but I wasn't sure what others were charging... so, I waited.

Another booth, and a really large blue jar with a lid.  Also, a large price tag!  $23!  That seemed like a pretty big jump from the $4 jars that I had seen.  I kept walking.

There's such a difference in some of the booths. I'm sure you've experienced it too if you've ever been to a flea market.

Some are set up all neat and pretty, and you can tell the booth-owner takes pride in what they are selling... whether they handcrafted it, or just used to use the items in their home.

Others are set up randomly, seemingly without much care --and the owners are busily spouting off advantages and prices of each item to passersby.

Well, just a few booths down the row, I spotted a few more blue jars.  They were sitting atop a table of well-loved glass items of various sorts.  Only one jar had a lid.  I sauntered over to the booth, while the lady tending the booth sat on the tailgate of her truck silently.

Blue jar.  Zinc lid.  THREE DOLLARS!  That was about all I could take.  I took it over to the silent lady and told her that her prices were good.  I'd seen higher, and much higher.  She said, "Oh, I'm just trying to sell all my mom's old stuff."  I paid.  We chatted, and then parted ways.

I walked away thinking that I was glad I had waited to purchase from her.

She was probably thinking, "There goes a crazy lady who really wanted my mama's blue canning jar!"  And truthfully, I don't care if she thought I was crazy -- as long as she knew I wanted the jar.