Yard Sale, Garage Sale. Potato, pot-ah-to It's all the same, right?
Where do I begin?
First of all, you have to go. I hear lots of, "I never find good things at yard sales." And I find myself just wanting to say, "because you never go, or when you do, it's on the way home from something at 2 p.m. when everything is gone!" It takes a little planning and effort.
So,
*Look in your newspaper's classified section (many are available online to look at for free
*check on Craigslist in your area under garage sales
*look in the little free newspapers that come out during the week
to see what's going on for the weekend. I check on Thursdays and Fridays.
*look in the little free newspapers that come out during the week
to see what's going on for the weekend. I check on Thursdays and Fridays.
If it looks like a promising weekend, make plans to go!
Do you just start driving around, or do you map it out beforehand?
pic source
I would say map out your route~I get frustrated very easily if I get lost on the way to yard sales because I think of all those great finds that are being snatched up because I'm LOST! So, I use Google maps~you can add as many destinations as you want and they give you turn by turn instructions from each place. This is well worth your time. Be mindful of the start times when they begin when making your "plan" so you don't have one beginning at 9 a.m. as your first stop if you're heading out at 7.
How do I know where to go??
I would just start going to areas near you. It won't take you long to figure out where your favorite neighborhoods are. You may have to drive a little ways to get to them and you'll have to determine if that's worth it for you. In the summer, when gas prices were crazy high, it wasn't for me. My favorite neighborhoods always seem to be mature areas with big trees and a good mix of older and younger families. Once you find your favorite areas and neighborhoods, you'll always gravitate there first. Pretty soon, you'll even become familiar with the street names and when a sale comes up on say..." 320 Sycamore" your heart will skip a little beat because you know that's a "good" street. :)
Are neighborhood yard sales always the best?
Hmmmm. Not always. Neighborhoods tend to have a preview night where they shop each other's stuff, and it seems everyone goes there, so it is crowded and gets picked over quickly. It's nice because you can hit a lot in not very much time, but some of my best finds have been skipping the neighborhood ones and hitting some others that are going on that same day. If you go to the neighborhood ones, head to the back first and work your way up, since people tend to hit the first houses they come to, and bring a bike or a stroller to quickly navigate from house to house. I have a friend who goes with her husband on bikes~one takes one end and the other takes another and they use their cell phones to keep each other up to speed on what they're finding.
What time should I go?
I like to go early. As I'm making my little route, I look at what time the first one I want to go to begins. Then, I plan on being there 1/2 hour early. Most people plan on early birds, and a half hour seems to work out well for me. So, if it's 8:00, I try to arrive around 7:30 and they are usually hauling their stuff out and don't mind if you start looking. April and May seem to be huge yard sale months and lots of people start at 7 a.m., and I head out about 6:45 then.
Of course there are exceptions, but this has worked well for me. If they haven't started bringing things out yet and there are plenty of other sales going on that day, I don't waste my time waiting. I'll come back if I have time at the end. There are also advantages to going at the end of the day~most people just want to get rid of everything and will practically give you things, but I love the selection first thing in the morning.
Do I need to get cash?
I would definitely take cash. A lot of people won't accept checks. I usually get a five, 4 ones, and 4 quarters and see how far I can make $10 stretch. This makes me really think about what I buy. If there is something for more than that and I really want it, I see if they will take a local check or hold it for me for a half an hour while I run get more. If you're on the hunt for big ticket items like furniture, of course you want to bring more.
Do you go by yourself or with a friend?
Either. It can be a ton of fun going with other people, but if I'm on limited time I like going by myself because I know what I'm looking for and can move quickly from one to the next. That being said, some of my favorite yard sale memories have been with friends and family~being lost, trying to contain our excitement when we find a treasure, or wondering how we're going to fit that bookself in our little car, or where we're going to hide our stuff from our husbands. :) It's always nice to have a driver and a navigator as well.
Either. It can be a ton of fun going with other people, but if I'm on limited time I like going by myself because I know what I'm looking for and can move quickly from one to the next. That being said, some of my favorite yard sale memories have been with friends and family~being lost, trying to contain our excitement when we find a treasure, or wondering how we're going to fit that bookself in our little car, or where we're going to hide our stuff from our husbands. :) It's always nice to have a driver and a navigator as well.
How often do you go and for how long?
It all depends on what is going on in our family life. Saturday mornings are usually "mine" to head out and have time for myself, so if it's yard sale season that is what I tend to choose to do. But if we have activities planned or soccer games in the morning, I can head early for an hour (it's amazing how many you can hit in an hour if you have them mapped out and they're not far) so I can be back for whatever we have going on.
Do you ever just sleep in on Saturday mornings??
Yes, but not many during prime "season." The thrill I get in finding good deals is so worth sacrificing a few minutes of extra sleep. If you can't do Saturdays, Friday mornings can be your best friend. I like to head right after I drop the kids off at school and there are wayyyy less people on Fridays. If I have good luck, I don't have to worry about heading out on Saturday.
Oh, this has been so much fun writing~can you tell I love yard sales?? I would love to hear your tips for "before heading out" and I know many of you are experts. What would you add?
Next, will be "at the sale..." Stay tuned!!
It's officially here...yea!
This week has flown with spring break~we've gotten some good cleaning in, with a few of these:
"no one else's mom makes them clean on spring break!"
"mom, it's supposed to be a break!",
and my personal favorite, "the only reason parents have kids is so they can work for them!"
“Shoot for the moon. Even if you miss, you'll land among the stars.” ~Brian Littrell
Okay, so I was a little ambitious yesterday. We only made it through the girls' room in our spring cleaning adventure and then we got kicked off the field by soccer practices when we were trying to fly our kites, but the weather was a perfect upper 70's and we still had fun.
We'll see if we can tackle the boys' room this morning...but for now, I'm joining Miss Rhoda's Spring Fluffing Party! Here are some more spring touches in my home:
a wreath from a little shop in Washington in the entry way:
Hello everyone! It is our spring break here. My husband is preparing for comps (anyone that has ever done a PhD want to cry with me??) so we aren't going anywhere, but guess what my kids and I have get to do??
Spring cleaning!
Spring cleaning!
photo from RealSimple
Mwooo ha ha ha~I am the meanest mom on Earth! But, before you call me Miss Hannigan we do have some fun in store as well. We've (okay, I've) decided each day we'll work until noon, and then the rest of the day is for fun. Our little house has had some neglect since the baby came, so we're taking the opportunity to catch up. Each day we're tackling different areas of the house. Yesterday morning was dentist appointments for everyone.
Ughhhh.
I'll take spring cleaning any day.
Here's what's shakin' down today:
Kids' Rooms!
music choice of the morning (take turns with who gets to pick): High School Musical
- strip all bedding, wash everything, including mattress pads and pillows.
- pull out beds and furniture, vacuum behind.
dust everything, including ceiling fans.
go through toys: put strays back where they belong, put ones we don't want in yard sale pile in shed, put fresh batteries in ones that have died.
go through art projects, coloring pages, crafts, and little treasures stashed in desk drawers.
switch out winter clothes, pajamas, shoes, coats for spring/summer. Donate, save for hand me downs, or add to yard sale pile.
go through, sort, and organize books
make list of any clothing items we need to be on the lookout for at yard sales.
Fun for the day:
pic source
Go fly kites down at the big church field
We'll see how it goes~wish us all luck! Oh, and Happy St. Patrick's Day!
Happy Friday the 13th!
Coming up for air from working on the bathroom...it's not coming as fast as I'd like, but we're making some progress!
I just wanted to show you something I completely copied from the Nester. I saw this picture forever ago of one of her beautiful tables and put it in my "awesome ideas I want to copy" folder on my computer.
So, thank you Nester for the inspiration. I hope you all have a wonderful weekend~ *maybe* I'll have some pictures to show you sometime next week of the bathroom?? We'll see...
** Side note: If you don't have one of these folders, they are a lifesaver when you're surfing and see something you love, you can right click on the picture, save it into your folder, and can go back for the inspiration when you need it. I've also found that it's helpful to change the name of the picture to where it came from so you don't forget. **
So, I adored the picture of the little framed nest in the middle and I used it for my inspiration. I got a little nest at Michaels (near their greenery in little hanging packages), a piece of scrapbook paper, and my frame that I got from Target, and just hot glued the nest on the paper. The eggs are little faux quail eggs I found a couple of years ago when we were visiting Utah, but I was thinking that you could even use little white speckled Cadbury mini eggs in your nest. (as I've been examining them closely before shoving them in my mouth by the dozens)
My bird friend came from the bathroom to be perched next to it~if you know me, you know that rarely do things stay in one place for long in my house.
So, thank you Nester for the inspiration. I hope you all have a wonderful weekend~ *maybe* I'll have some pictures to show you sometime next week of the bathroom?? We'll see...
I will always second guess our decision to go with granite countertops when we re-modeled our kitchen. I love them, but it was a big chunk of our allowance, and I often wonder if we should have gotten less expensive countertops and invested the money in another part of our home. I guess we will find out when we sell if it was worth it or not. Anyway! I love the Method brand countertop/granite cleaner, but it's a small bottle and at $4+ a pop, it would be pricey to keep up with. Soooo, about 6 month ago, I googled it and did a little research of what is in it and how to make your own, and here is what I've come up with that works for me:
Take a spray bottle,
Take a spray bottle,fill it about 1/8th full with rubbing alcohol,
add a drop of Dawn dishwashing soap,
a few drops of scented oil (optional, but makes it smell so good),
fill the rest of the way with water, shake together, and you're good to go! It makes your granite (or any countertop) shine and feel so smooth at a fraction of the price~I have loved it and use it on my appliances as well.
add a drop of Dawn dishwashing soap,
a few drops of scented oil (optional, but makes it smell so good),
fill the rest of the way with water, shake together, and you're good to go! It makes your granite (or any countertop) shine and feel so smooth at a fraction of the price~I have loved it and use it on my appliances as well.
Works for me...
I went to the mailbox on Friday and guess what was there?
Remember the free Martha Stewart subscription (sorry~promo is over)that we worried would never come~
it CAME!
Did yours??
Feb, March, and April all came together~yay! Such a fun surprise to get in the mail....
And then, today I found these sweet little gems in my mailbox~I won my very first giveaway! Yea!
Rachel over at Made with Love and Glue makes these pressed peony pins and they are the cutest things ever. I won one, and then couldn't decide on just one, so I had to buy 2 more. I love them~her color combinations are perfection and they're only$6.50 each, or three for $15. Here is the link to her Etsy shop You'll love her blog as well.
I put this one on my denim jacket:
One on my purse:
And my daughter stole one and put it on her jacket:
Don't you love them? Thanks, Rachel!
So, now I'm like Martha~finding good things, and sharing them. And now I have her magazine to give me more crazy ideas and pressed peonies to make me feel cute and springy. I love good mail days...
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