I went to my first “community” garage sale this morning. It’s an annual event and involves an entire neighborhood, putting their goodies curbside by 6 a.m., then waiting for the circus to come to town. Which it does very shortly after.
By the time I arrived at 7:30 to sell the two items I was desperate to get out my garage (and that my friend who lives in this neighborhood said I could sell along with her stuff), the bargaining was already in full swing.
I sold my jog/bike stroller fairly quickly, which put $40 in my wallet. And so I strolled, driveway to driveway, looking for treasure.
What I found was salad spinners. And hard-boiled egg slicers. And tea cups.
Rescue Heroes, teddy bears and My Little Ponies.
Cookbooks. Danielle Steel books. And VHS tapes.
It made me wonder exactly how many salad spinners exist in the world right now, languishing in people’s kitchens, basements, garages. Waiting to be sold or landfilled.
I actually use my salad spinner, but I’m in the minority, it seems. Most people buy their lettuce washed and bagged. Spinning has become redundant. A quaint chore from the old days.
I also picked up a few tips from garage sale veterans. One driveway in particular resembled a mob scene. It held some great finds. I picked up a couple of gorgeous, older wicker chairs that need nothing more than a new coat of pant. What’s more, all funds supported the London Grands, a local group of grandmothers that fundraise to support the untold grannies in South Africa raising their grandchildren, as a result of the AIDS pandemic. The combination of true treasure and genuine charity proved impossible to resist…not just for me.
And so…I share their advice:
•Don’t offer junk. If something is broken, useless or redundant, fix it, donate it or trash it (depending on chances of repair) rather than make the rest of your goodies look equally lousy.
•Don’t make people dig. Display your wares with the eye of a window dresser.
•Price things reasonably. Most novices price things based on what they paid for them rather than what they’re worth now.
•Fund-raise: If there’s a charity you want to fund, let buyers know that some proceeds will support it (pick a figure and stick to it). Might convince the undecided to open their wallets.
•Offer food or refreshments. One packed driveway was selling back bacon sandwiches ($3) and drinks for a dollar. People are more generous on a full stomach.
•Here’s a tip from me: Think long and hard before you buy that must-have kitchen utensil. After leaving the garage sale, I stopped for milk on my way home. There at the checkout? You betcha – salad spinners for as cheap as they were being sold second-hand and hard-boiled egg slicers.