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Sunday, November 27, 2011

11/26/2011

ROBIN'S FINDS
This week C.J. did not come with me. He was out canoeing on the Colorado River with my dad and brothers.

11/26/2011
There were few garage sales out this week most likely due to Thanksgiving and the fact that most people still have family in town however I still found plenty of things to buy!

New shirt with tags still on it! Suggested retail is $36.00 on this shirt!
Pink lace vest
Black fringe vest. Not sure what I will do with this but I think it is such a fun vest.
The girl I bought these four pieces of clothing from wanted 8 dollars for the white shirt with tags and 3 on the pink vest which is a total of $12. In my opinion a little to high priced but I was able to talk her down to $15 for all four items! I got each one for about $3.75. Still a little bit high for me but one of the shirts was new and this white and pink one hasn't even been worn so I went for it.

Here is what I did with it!
My shoes are also from a garage sale!

I could't help myself with this one. I love old things! This is such a cool old book and I have a vintage room I am working on so I am sure I can find a spot for it in there. Maybe something like this...

DEAL OF THE DAY
I always try to pick these up when they are cheap because they make good gifts to friends who are having kids. I bought this one for $5 dollars. In stores these babies are expensive! I found the exact same one on the Target.com website for 36.99! I saved $32 on the next baby gift!
click here to see how much they are at Target!

LESSON LEARNED
I picked up this bumbo at a garage sale and was going to buy it but realized I only had $5 dollars left and a lot more garage sales to shop at. For that reason I put the bumbo down and left. As I was driving around and looking for signs I couldn't stop thinking about the bumbo so I went back to buy it with my last $5. When I got there a man had it in his hand. I was so disappointed but decided to watch him for a little while to see if he would put it down. After about 5 mins he put it down and walked off. Trying to keep my composure and not jump for joy I walked over, picked it up and paid for it. Lesson Learn: 1. Always bring enough cash. 2. if someone has something you are interested in hang around and see if they put it down. If they do that means they don't want it and it's all yours!

DEAL OF THE DAY #2!
Here's another great deal. I got these little swimmers for .50 cents. This is a bag of 11 and they are all there. I actually had no idea how expensive these are because I have never bought them in stores. I just always pick them up at garage sales and save them till the summer. Click Here to see how much they are in stores!

OTHER AWESOME DEALS

Cute patio set
Bench with a chair and two matching pots
This women only wanted $20 for this set. To be honest they were old sets that she just spray painted but why go through the trouble and time if you can find it this cheap!


Thursday, November 24, 2011

Garage Sale Guidelines-quick version

Garage Sale Guidelines- quick version

For the extensive version of my Garage Sale Guidelines click here

Here are some guidelines to help you be more effective when garage saleing
1. Always bring Cash.
2. Don't dress nicely. You may be quoted higher prices on items if you are dressed nice.
3. Be friendly. If the seller feels like you are their friend they will be more likely to give you a better price
4. Time is essential. The more garage sales you can hit in a shorter amount of time the more treasures you will find.
5. Be prepared. Make sure gas tank is full and bring water and snacks to limit your stops.
6. Don't judge a garage sale by its sign.
7. Don't judge a garage sale by doing a "drive by." A drive by is what you do when you just look at what the seller has from the seat of your car. You may miss something amazing.
8. If there is something you like or want, pick it up and carry it around with you before someone else does. You can always put it back down if you decide you don't want to buy it.
9. If you can, always ask if the seller will go down on their marked or stated price. This will save you lots of money!
10. Ask for a group price for all the items you want. Many times, if you are buying a large amount from a garage sale, the seller doesn’t mind giving you a discounted price on your total purchase. But remember you have to ask for it!
11. Be prepared to meet some very interesting and sometimes even rude people. I have learned there is not a limit to what someone will do to get what they want.
12. Unless you have someone that knows how to work on electronics I would suggest you don't buy them. If its something that can be plugged always ask to see if it works before you buy it.
13. Understand that you are shopping at a garage sale. Things are used and may not be perfect. Be creative! Sometimes you can still make these things work to your benefit!
14. Listen to how the seller deals with other customers. By doing this, you will be able to gauge whether the seller is pretty firm on their prices or if they would be willing to let things go for cheap.
15. Try not to offend the seller. Once you have offended them, they are less inclined to give you a good deal. If you don’t want to name a lower price because you aren’t sure if it would offend them simply ask if they would go down so that they name the lower price instead of you. Then you can bargain further if you wish.
16. Remember that you have no obligation to buy anything! If you are feeling obligated use an excuse. My favorite line is "let me talk to my husband."

Garage Sale Guidelines- extensive version

Garage Sale Guidelines-extensive version

For the quick version of my Garage Sale Guidelines click here

Here are some guidelines to help you be more effective when garage saleing

1. 1. Always bring cash. Bring a variety of bills. Not everyone has the right amount of cash to break your larger bills so make sure you have a good variety of smaller bills. There is nothing I hate more than asking if the seller will go down from 10 dollars to 7 and then handing them a 10 dollar bill to pay them because I didn’t have any smaller bills.

2. 2. Do not dress nicely to go garage saleing. Just wake up, brush your teeth and throw some sweats on. Whether it is consciously or subconsciously the person having the garage sale will judge you by how you look. If you’re all dressed up with your makeup on they may quote you a higher price.

3. 3. Be friendly. For example, ask the seller how they are doing today. This gives them a good first impression of you. Since first impressions are all you have when you’re garage saleing they become very important. With a good first impression the seller feels like you are their friend and will be more likely to give you a better deal.

4. 4. Time is essential. You want to be friendly but don’t have to become best friends with someone. Get in and get out. The good stuff goes quickly so the more garage sales you can hit in a short amount of time, the more treasures you will find.

5. 5. Be prepared. Bringing water and something to munch on is a good idea. Having to stop at a gas station to buy goodies slows you down. Having to gas up the morning of is also a big hassle and wastes time so try to have your gas tank full.

6. 6. Don’t judge a garage sale by its sign. A good sign does not mean anything! Just because the sign says the garage sale is HUGE doesn’t really mean it’s huge.

7. 7. Don’t judge a garage sale by doing a “drive by.” A drive by is what you do when you just look at what the seller has from the seat of your car. C.J. is a huge fan of the drive by. There have been times that I have stopped him from driving away and found something worthwhile that I would have missed.

8. 8. If there is something you like or want, pick it up and carry it around with you. I can’t tell you how many times C.J. and I have lost out on something because we haven’t done this! You can always put it back down if you decide not to buy it

· If the item you are interested in is too big to pick up, skim the rest of the items at the garage sale while standing next to your item to make sure there is nothing you are more interested in.

· If there are a lot of people at the sale or you notice someone else is interested in your item, stand guard! The second you leave the item it becomes fair game for them. If the item is not marked stand by your item and speak loud enough asking the seller how much they want for it.

· If the sale is one of those HUGE ones they have in a parking lot, try to find a helper to give you a price on the item. If you are positive you want to buy it, go straight to the payment station and ask the price before you continue shopping. While you are there pay for it and ask them to put a sold sign on your item.

· If it is a really good garage sale, your hands are full and there is still more you want to buy, ask the seller if you can start a little pile close to them and away from the other items they are selling. This will help ensure that no one starts digging through your pile. Keep an eye out though because I have had to tell people those are the items I am buying.

9. 9. If you can, always ask if the seller will go down on their marked or stated price. A lot of first timers are afraid to ask if the seller will go down on a price. In fact, my husband still makes me ask for him! Don’t be scared. This is totally normal. Every once in a while, you will find those individuals who haven’t had a garage sale before and say they are “firm on their prices” or you get those people who think their used items are worth a fortune. Then at the end of the day they wonder why they are left with almost everything they began the day with. In most of your situations, bargaining will be completely acceptable. If you remember to ask every time you buy something you could save yourself a lot of money!

10. 10. Ask for a group price for all the items you want. Many times, if you are buying a large amount from a garage sale, the seller doesn’t mind giving you a discounted price on your total purchase. For example. If you have 10 pieces of clothing you want at .50 cents a piece your total would be 5 dollars. Ask the seller if they would do 3 dollars for all of it. You are more likely to get a better deal if you do lot prices for multiple items than if you bargain out each item individually. The seller will get tired of the same person asking if they will go down. If you do a lot price of everything, you only have to ask once.

11. 11. Be prepared to meet some very interesting and sometimes even rude people. I have learned there is not a limit to what someone will do to get what they want.

12. 12. Personally, I don’t normally buy electronics from garage sales. This may also be due to the lack of someone in my home that knows how to work with these items. If you or your husband can work on these things go ahead! If you have a good feeling about the item and want to buy it anyway, ask them if they will plug it in so that you can see it works.

13. 13. Understand that you are shopping at a garage sale. Things are used and may not be perfect. Be creative! Sometimes you can still make these things work to your benefit!

14. 14. Listen to how the seller deals with other customers. By doing this, you will be able to gauge whether the seller is pretty firm on their prices or if they would be willing to let things go for cheap.

15. 15. Try not to offend the seller. Once you have offended them, they are less inclined to give you a good deal. If you don’t want to name a lower price because you aren’t sure if it would offend them simply ask if they would go down so that they name the lower price instead of you. Then you can bargain further if you wish.

16. 16. Remember that you have no obligation to buy anything! There are times when I feel bad about walking away without buying anything or have felt obligated to buy something. In these situations, it’s best to make an excuse. Tell them you have to see what your spouse thinks or that it’s for a friend and that you will call them and tell them about it. I have even blamed it on my husband and told the seller that I would be in trouble with my husband if I bought it.

Tuesday, November 22, 2011

Kids Clothes

BUYING KIDS CLOTHES AT GARAGE SALES
About 99.9 percent of my kids clothes come from garage sales and second hand stores. I hate paying store prices for my kids clothes because they grow out of them so fast! It's so unfair that we are expected to pay so much for something that our kids will grow out of in a few months. With garage sales you can still dress your kids cute for much less! When you think about buying clothes at garage sales the first picture to come into your mind might be a nasty grungy shirt with stains all over it and you will see some of those but not all clothes at garage sales are like that. Those cute outfits that just don't fit anymore are what people are selling and if you get out and garage sale you can find them and save yourself a lot of money! I usually don't pay more than .50 to $1 for a piece of clothing at a garage sale unless the item is in perfect shape and a must have for my child's wardrobe. So I save a lot when it come to dressing my kids! Another tip I would give you is to not worry too much about the size of the outfit. In some cases size doesn't really matter! I will show you what I mean.
What makes a cute dress on Paisley....
makes a cute shirt on Jaysa!

This 12 month dress fits 9 month old Paisley and almost 3 year old Jaysa! Now you probably can't do this with boys but if you have girls keep an open mind while shopping and you can make one outfit work for both kids! Paisley's little cardigan is also marked 3 months and she is still wearing it at 9 months. If you think it will fit and its cheap go ahead and buy it! If it doesn't fit you're only out .50 cents! I might also mention that EVERYTHING that my kids have on, including the bow in their hair, is from garage sales!

Saturday, November 19, 2011

11/19/2011


C.J.'S FINDS

I bought this shirt for $1.

Here is what I did with it.

ALMOST DEAL OF THE DAY
Work light for $10. My wife asked about this light and due to some bad communication, I thought she said it was $20 dollars not $10, I passed it up. I would have bought it for $10. Kinda mad now.

OTHER AWESOME DEALS

This is a really nice heavy duty fan pretty much brand new for only $10
Black and Decker edger for $15
Nice grill for $50 and I bet these guys would have gone down they were going down on everything else and it was later in the day.

11/19/2011

ROBIN'S FINDS
11/19/11
I did not buy much today. There wasn't much I needed or that I just couldn't live without. Things really begin to slow down during the winter months. I remember one cold Saturday in January I spent a grand total of .25 cents on a banana holder! I was not happy that day but don't let the slow pace keep you from getting out. You can still find great stuff if you are smart about how you plan your route. Click Here to see my "Getting Started in the Garage Sale World" to see how to plan your route!
I bought this roll of... burlapish stuff for 1.50

Here is what I did with it!
I wrapped a small piece around my hanging mason jar cactus garden (which I have yet to post about) and then wrapped some twine that I also got at a garage sale for .25 cents. It just adds a little character to my jars.

Jaysa has a birthday coming up so I bought her this for $3 dollars. Its still in the box!!!!! She loves playing with bubbles so she will have lots of fun with this.

DEAL OF THE DAY
I don't know if this is necessarily the best deal but it's my favorite thing I bought today. I paid $15 for this door. I am hoping that it will work as my front door. I will paint it and get new glass for it. I LOVE it! Once I get it done I will post before and after pictures!!!!


I have always loved these frames. Every time I go into Roberts I look at them. They are close to 40 dollars a piece at the store. $20 if you use a coupon. This was marked for $2!

Here is some really cute baby bedding. They were selling everything for 10 dollars. They had the comforter, bumper pads, dust ruffle, curtain, diaper hanger mobile and more

This set, which is very similar, was on sale for $150 and was only a 6 piece set. The one at the garage sale came with much more than 6 pieces.
Click HERE to see where I found this set.
I LOVED this bird cage but my husband would have killed me if I bought it. It's the last thing I need on this earth. When I asked the lady how much she wanted for it she said "I don't know 10 bucks? Make me an offer." Which in garage sale language means "I will take less."

I LOVED this dresser too, but again, the last thing I need. This would have been a cool redo for someone!! They wanted $20 dollars for it. I for sure would have tried to barter them down to $15


Thursday, November 17, 2011

SMART SHOPPER

SMART SHOPPER!
No I didn't find these at a garage sale but I got an AMAZING price on these and thought I would share. My husband and I are in the middle of a kitchen renovation and are working on the back splash at the moment. When I went out shopping for tile I was blown away at how expensive tile was. I first saw these tiles at LOWES and fell IN LOVE... then I saw the price tag... 26.60 PER TILE!!!!!!!!! My dreams were completely dashed. I continued looking around for something else hoping I could find something else I liked as much but with a much smaller price tag. My husband and I are here in Las Vegas visiting my parents and stopped by a tile store called Floor and Decor Outlets. Click HERE to go to their website. I didn't think we would find much but low and behold there was the EXACT same tile with a much MUCH smaller price tag.
Please compare the two. The tile above was 4.38 per tile
The tile below is 26.60 per tile

I saved 22.22 dollars per tile!!! We bought a total of 20 tiles so my total savings was $444.40!!! I cant believe it!!!! Thats a garage sale price!

I think the lesson to be learned here is that you can have what you want if you are smart about it and you shop around!!!

Tuesday, November 15, 2011

Getting Started in the Garage Sale World

GETTING STARTED IN THE GARAGE SALE WORLD

As it is with everything else in this life, getting started is the hardest part. Many of us are simply intimidated by the unknown and the fact that we may not be sure how to do something. I am here to tell you that there is no right way to garage sale! You can do it however you want! For myself, I have found a few different ways that are effective that just might work for you too!

The first way is to simply get out and start driving. Go down popular roads and neighborhoods looking for signs. When you see those garage sale signs, follow them! Simple, right? Pretty soon, you will be able to establish a route that fits you. When establishing your route, an important thing to keep in mind is economic status; wealthy people tend to have nice things. Therefore it makes sense to hit the areas of higher economic status first. Those are the places where you want to begin your search. But, be careful not to count out areas just because they’re not the Ritz. I have found some pretty interesting things in unsuspecting areas. However, you should prioritize your garage sales by affluence. Pay attention to areas that are of greater economic status that have the largest concentration of garage sales. These are the areas you want to hit first. If there are a few areas you like that are close to each other this is a golden area because there will be a good concentration of sales and you will limit your gas expense.

The second way to garage sale is to take a look on Craig’s List, the newspaper, and other websites such as http://www.atgaragesale.com/ to determine your route. These are great tools to find lists of the garage sales in your area. I especially like to do this on Friday mornings or in the winter months when garage sales aren’t as abundant. Because many people give a description or even pictures of what they are selling, this is a great way to garage sale if you’re looking for something in particular. There are also some websites you can find that will allow you to enter in the addresses of yard sales and will map out a route for you! I have not found one yet that I am in love with because many of them can be hard to use. Your GPS can be helpful but can sometimes take you to the wrong place. I will let you know when I find one I like though!

I personally suggest you do a combination of both of these. Take a look at these websites that list garage sales. Are there any community sales or major fundraising sales that provide a large concentration in a small area? Are there any that interest you and list what you are looking for? These would be good to head to first thing on your garage sale morning. Garage sales are all about first come first serve so if there is something you think you might want or it just sounds like an awesome garage sale you want to be there first! Remember the good stuff goes fast!

So there you have it! Now get out and get started! If this was at all over whelming then just get out and start driving. See what you can find! The possibilities are endless!

11/12/11

11/12/2011
C.J.'s Finds

Robin bought this tool box for $1. Little did she know that it was full of tools and hardware that would have been easily over $100 at full retail. There are drill bits, allen wrenches, and sockets of all sizes, along with a bunch of other tools like screw drivers, socket drivers, and a pipe threader. Granted, some of them look like they have been in that tool box for a while because they are all rusty but they will work just fine.

Total Cost: FREE!

DEAL OF THE DAY

This is an awesome little camping stove/griddle. On the recent deer hunt I went on we used a little stove like this a few times and I thought it was the easiest little camping stove that I had ever seen. Easy to use and easy to clean. I bought it for $5 and i literally cannot tell if it has been used at all cause it still has one of the tags on it. We found the exact same stove at Cabela's for $80! Click HERE to see it. Pretty excited for the next camping trip.

OTHER AWESOME DEALS

I didn't buy this lantern because I already have one but this was priced at $7.50 and came with the red plastic carry case to keep it from breaking. I have seen these al Walmart for as cheap as $30 but thats still great savings.

The Red plastic carrying case just hooks right on to the bottom.


Monday, November 14, 2011

11/12/11

11/12/2011
Robin's Finds
Here are some of the items we found this week!

FOR THE LOVE OF MY CHILDREN
Cute denim shoes for Paisley for 1 dollar


DEAL OF THE DAY
Robin's deal of the day was this dress. I bought this dress from a women in her 70's who never wore it! She only wanted 50 cents for it!

Here is what I did with it

This old rusty tool box is another deal of the day for me. I bought it for a dollar and can't wait to show you what I am going to do with it!


OTHER AWESOME DEALS
How about this file cabinet project? I found the black filing cabinet at a garage sale for 5 dollars! Needs some cleaning but still a great deal!

How about this cute project mod podging scrapbook paper to an old dresser. This lady was asking 10 dollars for her old dresser but said she would go down to 5!


Check back soon for my "Getting started in the Garage sale World" where I will give you some tips and tricks on how to become an effective garage seller!