This past weekend we had our first yard sale to try to get rid of as much as possible in order to have less to move and more money for the move. We did better than we expected. In 3 days we made $700 and then on Sunday some friends came over and want to see what we had left. They bought another $80 worth. We were hoping to make around $500 so we were very happy when we made more.
I think some of the things we did to advertise the yard sale is what helped us so much. I made up flyers and we placed them in all the stores in town. I also made up 10 signs which hubby and son placed all around town. On the flyers and signs I listed some of the things we were selling like tools, household items, DVD's and antiques.
Since we had to have two different sales in one because there was not enough room in the garage for it all I placed signs in front of the house telling of the sale in the garage and the sell inside the house. There were only 3 of us handling the two sales, my husband, my son and myself. Having my son help us made things a lot easier because he ran back and forth relieving us for bathroom breaks and to help move the big items that sold.
Another thing that made things easier on me and my son was the fact that I made our lunches the night before each night and I just put them in small coolers along with ice tea each morning so I didn't have to stop and fix lunch each day.
For lunch on the first day I made Chicken Pasta Salad which is just cooked chicken, cooked macaroni, chopped green peppers, onions, celery and thawed frozen green peas all mixed together with Mircle Whip and a little salt and pepper and some cups of home canned apple sauce and ice tea.
Day 2 - I made ham sandwiches, packed some chips, ice tea and cups of canned peaches.
Day 3 - I made pasta salad, Summer sausage slices and cheese cubes, some cups of fruit cocktail and some sugar free cookies along with ice tea.
Having the meals made up ahead sure made life easier. :)
One thing I noticed during the yard sale is that most people seem to be going for items that had a purpose instead of things that just looked pretty. The biggest selling items were hubby's tools. They were flying out the door. One guy bought almost $200 worth. Another fast seller was cooking utensils. I had a set of old pans I no longer need and they sold quick. I had a lot of people looking for canning jars and canning equipment but that is all going with me. Another thing people were asking for was old hand operated kitchen tools which tells me there are more people turning towards prepping. I have some of those items but I am not about to sell them. I use then even now almost every day. I am the type of person who doesn't want to take time to drag out the mixer to make mashed potatoes when I can grab a potato masher to do the same job. I even still use an old fashion egg beater to make scrambled eggs. I like the way they mix the egg yolks and whites up better than a whisk.
Some times I can understand why our grandmothers got more done in a day then we do now. They didn't waste time pulling out this fancy item or that one that have only a single use to make a meal then have to clean it up and put it back where it belongs. They also didn't need as much storage space for their cooking supplies because they kept it simple. I can wash a frying pan and lid faster than cleaning a George Forman grill. Oh well that is just my opinion and I am not knocking any one who likes all those new fangled kitchen items that are suppose to make our lives easier. I just find for me they don't but that does not mean they might not make other peoples life easier.
Prepping Granny
I think some of the things we did to advertise the yard sale is what helped us so much. I made up flyers and we placed them in all the stores in town. I also made up 10 signs which hubby and son placed all around town. On the flyers and signs I listed some of the things we were selling like tools, household items, DVD's and antiques.
Since we had to have two different sales in one because there was not enough room in the garage for it all I placed signs in front of the house telling of the sale in the garage and the sell inside the house. There were only 3 of us handling the two sales, my husband, my son and myself. Having my son help us made things a lot easier because he ran back and forth relieving us for bathroom breaks and to help move the big items that sold.
Another thing that made things easier on me and my son was the fact that I made our lunches the night before each night and I just put them in small coolers along with ice tea each morning so I didn't have to stop and fix lunch each day.
For lunch on the first day I made Chicken Pasta Salad which is just cooked chicken, cooked macaroni, chopped green peppers, onions, celery and thawed frozen green peas all mixed together with Mircle Whip and a little salt and pepper and some cups of home canned apple sauce and ice tea.
Day 2 - I made ham sandwiches, packed some chips, ice tea and cups of canned peaches.
Day 3 - I made pasta salad, Summer sausage slices and cheese cubes, some cups of fruit cocktail and some sugar free cookies along with ice tea.
Having the meals made up ahead sure made life easier. :)
One thing I noticed during the yard sale is that most people seem to be going for items that had a purpose instead of things that just looked pretty. The biggest selling items were hubby's tools. They were flying out the door. One guy bought almost $200 worth. Another fast seller was cooking utensils. I had a set of old pans I no longer need and they sold quick. I had a lot of people looking for canning jars and canning equipment but that is all going with me. Another thing people were asking for was old hand operated kitchen tools which tells me there are more people turning towards prepping. I have some of those items but I am not about to sell them. I use then even now almost every day. I am the type of person who doesn't want to take time to drag out the mixer to make mashed potatoes when I can grab a potato masher to do the same job. I even still use an old fashion egg beater to make scrambled eggs. I like the way they mix the egg yolks and whites up better than a whisk.
Some times I can understand why our grandmothers got more done in a day then we do now. They didn't waste time pulling out this fancy item or that one that have only a single use to make a meal then have to clean it up and put it back where it belongs. They also didn't need as much storage space for their cooking supplies because they kept it simple. I can wash a frying pan and lid faster than cleaning a George Forman grill. Oh well that is just my opinion and I am not knocking any one who likes all those new fangled kitchen items that are suppose to make our lives easier. I just find for me they don't but that does not mean they might not make other peoples life easier.
Prepping Granny