Come one, come all!
We decided we wanted to have people over this weekend. Lots of people. In fact, we invited the entire community. We put an ad in the paper, posted on www.craigslist.org and put signs up all around the area. Then, we threw a nice big yard sale.
Not everyone came, of course, but we had quite a few folks stop in. Traffic was 'steady'.
We were very happy to have some of our no-longer-needed things find new homes, and most everyone that stopped by went some with something. Lots of neat stuff will get used again, and those people won't need to buy new...so fewer things will have to be manufactured. To me, that's win-win, for us and the environment.
I tried something a bit unusual, too. I sold new stuff. Remember all those posts a while back when I was so (over)excited about couponing? I decided to put some of the excess items out in the yard sale.
I have to admit, I wasn't sure how people would react. Would they think it's weird that I have a mini-store on a section of old kitchen counter? Would they worry about things being counterfeit? Would they think things were black market?
Despite my uncertainties, I decided to give it a try. I could reduce the excess supply in my home, I could give some non-couponers some good deals, and if nothing was purchased, I could just put the stuff back in my house.
As folks came in (we held the sale in the storage mobile we have on our property), we told them a few things (baby stuff is down the hall, clothing is in that room, etc.), and I told them that the stuff on a certain counter was all new. I explained that I 'do couponing' and these were items I'd purchased recently, locally, and I just had more of these items than we needed on hand.
Some people barely glanced at them, others snapped up candles, cleaning supplies, razors, soap, shampoo and scented oils. They were happy to get such good prices, I was happy to reduce my stash, and we put the money we earned from those items back into our grocery/household budget. I may have found a way to turn soap and razors into grass-fed beef (or some other thing I can never get that 'sweet deal' for).
Still, I wonder. How do YOU feel about someone selling new stuff at a yard sale? Would you buy something at 25% (or less) of retail, if it's new, clean, in original sealed packaging? Are there things you would buy, and things you would avoid? Does it strike you as cool (yay, I got great prices) or tacky (what is up with this chick - why does she have so much Buddy Soap?)
Leave a comment, and let me know what you think.
Not everyone came, of course, but we had quite a few folks stop in. Traffic was 'steady'.
We were very happy to have some of our no-longer-needed things find new homes, and most everyone that stopped by went some with something. Lots of neat stuff will get used again, and those people won't need to buy new...so fewer things will have to be manufactured. To me, that's win-win, for us and the environment.
I tried something a bit unusual, too. I sold new stuff. Remember all those posts a while back when I was so (over)excited about couponing? I decided to put some of the excess items out in the yard sale.
I have to admit, I wasn't sure how people would react. Would they think it's weird that I have a mini-store on a section of old kitchen counter? Would they worry about things being counterfeit? Would they think things were black market?
Despite my uncertainties, I decided to give it a try. I could reduce the excess supply in my home, I could give some non-couponers some good deals, and if nothing was purchased, I could just put the stuff back in my house.
As folks came in (we held the sale in the storage mobile we have on our property), we told them a few things (baby stuff is down the hall, clothing is in that room, etc.), and I told them that the stuff on a certain counter was all new. I explained that I 'do couponing' and these were items I'd purchased recently, locally, and I just had more of these items than we needed on hand.
Some people barely glanced at them, others snapped up candles, cleaning supplies, razors, soap, shampoo and scented oils. They were happy to get such good prices, I was happy to reduce my stash, and we put the money we earned from those items back into our grocery/household budget. I may have found a way to turn soap and razors into grass-fed beef (or some other thing I can never get that 'sweet deal' for).
Still, I wonder. How do YOU feel about someone selling new stuff at a yard sale? Would you buy something at 25% (or less) of retail, if it's new, clean, in original sealed packaging? Are there things you would buy, and things you would avoid? Does it strike you as cool (yay, I got great prices) or tacky (what is up with this chick - why does she have so much Buddy Soap?)
Leave a comment, and let me know what you think.
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