Lightening the Load
This past weekend we had a garage sale with our friends. Since we live in a community with a front gate and restricted access, we had the garage sale at their house in town. There’s nothing like having a garage sale to make you realize how much stuff you really have that you don’t need.
Since we had our basement waterproofed this summer, we carried everything up the attic. Before putting it back down into the basement, we’ve been sorting through stuff and getting rid of all those unnecessary things you accumulate over time.
It’s kind of funny because this is our 3rd garage sale and we’ve gotten a reputation in town for having great stuff. Everything is nicely organized by genre, we have a kitchen table, holiday table, housewares table, electronic section, etc. It’s perhaps the most organized garage sale you’ve ever seen.
Having a garage sale is a great way to remind yourself that you have too much stuff already and don’t need more! I find that it really keeps me from buying things I don’t need throughout the year. We’ve just about exhausted our supply of “stuff” though so I don’t know if we’ll have enough for another garage sale any time soon. Since we’re not buying new things we aren’t accumulating things to sell later.
All-in-all it was a successful sale. I took 3 car loads of stuff to their house and only brought home a few boxes (and those all went to the Goodwill the next day). So my house is much lighter, as is my mind, after getting rid of a lot of things I didn’t need.
What about you, do you have garage/yard sales or do you just like to go to them?
Filed under About Me, Miscellaneus | Comments (17)
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I’ve never had a garage sale, but I do tend to donate and go through my stuff fairly regularly to make sure I don’t pile up the clutter (or try to anyway). It feels good to have a cleaner place, and the feeling that instead of sitting there, whoever bought or received it can put it to good use. And sometimes I’ll find something that *I* can use but had forgotten about :-)
Mangochild´s last blog ..Preserving Time: Exhausted – and where should the jars go now?
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I’ve cleaned things out but never had a garage sale. Usually my friends get first dibs if they want anything then I freecycle it. Nowadays I just don’t buy a lot of stuff so I have a lot less stuff to get rid of.
Daphne´s last blog ..Garden Bloggers Bloom Day September 2009
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Neither. We have too much stuff in our house as it is, so I don’t go to them. But we don’t have them, either, because I can’t tell the junk from the actual antiques, and in our house, something is just as likely to be worth $1,000 as $10.
I need to have a whole “Antiques Roadshow” show at my house.
kristin @ going country´s last blog ..In Which I Justify My Laziness
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Luckily we are not really shoppers or buyers. We just never have.
We did have a garage sale last summer and unloaded a lot of baby furniture and clothes we didn’t need.
Chicago Mike´s last blog ..Late Garden Still Going!
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I’m a packrat and can’t ever seem to let go of things! We’re slowly getting rid of the junk but we really just have too much stuff we don’t use.
Dave´s last blog ..The Miscanthus and the Big, Big Sky
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I regularly have garage sales (annually and I get people stopping by in May to find out when it it). I do it with a couple of girl friends, so we have everything imaginable under the sun. I have always found the cleaner the items (no dust) and the more organized the more that sells. I however am hoping to have had my last garage sale. I am attempting to declutter my house. In doing so I am listing the top notch items on Craigslist and everything else on Freecycle. It is my intention to simply clean out and not accumulate. The girls are into the clothing stage where they can swap their clothes at the end of the year with friends and cut down on that, and we are reusing all imaginable fabric for starting a Mother Daughters Craft Business.
I DO LOVE GARAGE SALES so I will probably have one next year with my Girlfriends and just put out our crafties and enjoy the lemonade and friends.
It is nice to bring 30+ boxes and bags out of the house and have none of it come back in the house.
What doesn’t sell gets put to the curb where my neighborhood makes fast work of it. I have only the cardboard to recycle when trash day comes around.
Tree´s last blog ..Bread
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It is more fun with several people. We have fun setting up the night before and the day of. We each pick an “item of the day” that we think won’t sell, it’s usually something really weird & random. We also put “free” on a few items scattered throughout the sale and see how long it takes for people to find them.
to Susy's comment
It’s been years since I had a garage sale and while I like to go to them once in a while – I rarely do because most of the interesting things are put out on Friday morning and I am never free to go “garage saleing” on a work day. I do regularly donate items to others and other organizations to keep my house clutter free. I have a rule that if I purchase a new clothing or shoe item… that one for one… another item must go. I used to accumulate clothes and shoes and it was really too much. With this rule, it keeps the wardrobe fresh and restrains the “build up” syndrome.
to KitsapFG's comment
I love yardsales but I am forbidden…my wife is afraid I will bring more junk home to clutter our place. We never have yardsales…we just haul everything to goodwill and get a receipt for taxes…
warren´s last blog ..My sunny disposition
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Too funny. I do remember though that you found that nice claw-foot bathtub at a yard sale didn’t you?
to Susy's comment
Neither. I have a wonderful charity that calls me regularly for Thursday pickups. They save the hassle of selling plus they benefit. Works out great for everyone.
MAYBELLINE´s last blog ..Sweet Peas
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That’s a great idea for a charity to do that.
to Susy's comment
I have a pile growing in the basement for a yard sale. Maybe next month..
Beegirl´s last blog ..Jewel of a Weed
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Rarely go and live to far in the boonies for anyone to come to ours. Our church has a community service center that gives things away to those in need so I take my things there. Kim
the inadvertent farmer´s last blog ..Mending Fences…Yet again!
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We recently moved to a new state for my husband’s job. Moving is an experience fraught with waste… things you must leave behind, new things to buy, so much money to lawyers and real estate agents. Alas we did pass on some things that have found great new homes at a garage sale we held shortly before our move.
I wrote about it here on my blog.
http://escleali.blogspot.com/2009/05/garage-sale-profits.html
Mine wasn’t nearly as organized as yours.
Andrea´s last blog ..Entering a Fairy World
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Garage Sales are a wonderful way to purge all that extra stuff. We are getting ready for one and I can’t wait!!
Milkmaid´s last blog ..Piggie Kisses!!
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I love the feeling of clearing things out, disorderly stuff really eats at me! We us a local auction service to get ride of stuff every few years. You pretty much get the same prices as a garage sale without all the work. Just pack it up, drop it off and wait for the money in the mail.
Dan´s last blog ..Garden Blogger Bloom Day
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