yard sale

Yard Sales

yard saleSelling what you no longer want or need is one way of bringing in a bit of extra cash, so long as you know what you’re in for.  Yard Sales are a lot of work.  If you want to give it a try here are my top 5 tips:

1.   Spread the Word – if no one comes, you won’t be selling a thing.  List your sale locally, both on line and in print.  Share the date with friends, family, neighbors, and coworkers.
2.  Price to sell – remember people are looking for bargains.  Group things together by price and have a colored sticker code.  This beats having to print up or write up price tickets.
3.   Get a permit – some towns require a yard sale permit.  You don’t want to have to pay a fine, if your town requires a permit, and you don’t have one.  Check with your town hall before you plan a yard sale.
4.  Donate after the sale – establish the rule that nothing from the sale goes back into the house or garage.  Instead pick a donation location before the sale and set up a pick up date or drop off date.
5.   Have cash on hand – make a trip to the bank before your sale so you’re prepared.  Only accept cash as payment, and have plenty of change and singles to make for smoother transactions.

© June 2013 Janine Cavanaugh, Certified Professional Organizer® All rights reserved.

NAPO

Proud member of NAPO

Donation Challenge – Part 4

donationsWe all tend to hold on to things for a variety of reasons, for example, it was a gift, it was passed on to me, it was expensive, etc.  In the end if we don’t use and value the items in our possession there is no valid reason to keep them.  I’ve summarized the items we donated to this worthy cause (H.O.P.E. Program of Boston Children’s Hospital) in the hope that it may motivate you to let go of things, or at the very least prompt you to look at the items in your space from a different perspective.

Summary of Items:

Origin:
Number of items donated that we originally received as a gift:  37
Number of items donated that were originally used by someone else:  18
Number of items donated that were originally purchased by us:  46

Usage:
Number of items donated that were never used by us:  41
Number of items donated that were used within the past five years:  28
Number of items donated that were not used within the past five years:  32

Reason:
Number of items donated that were given to us but we never used:  26
Number of items donated that were intended as gifts but never given:  7
Number of items donated that were purchased by us for our use, but never used:  13
Number of items donated that were used, but are no longer wanted or used:  55

© June 2013, Janine Cavanaugh, Certified Professional Organizer® All rights reserved

NAPO

Proud member of NAPO

Donation Challenge – Part 3

101#I was so energized and motivated from the removal of 50 unwanted, unneeded and unused items from our space, I wanted to challenge myself even more.  Could I reach the 100 item mark?  Yes, I decided to go for it.  Maybe, just maybe, I was getting carried away, but I will admit, I was having fun with it.  It was very liberating, allowing myself to donate items to a worthy cause (H.O.P.E. Program of Boston Children’s Hospital) while purging our space of items that were no longer important in our current lives.
Our list of donated items is printed below. It may prompt you to think of items that you have in your household that you could donate.  If that is the case, please share those items with me.

Items 51 & 52 =  two racket ball rackets, admitted we’d never use again
Item 53 =  new kids puzzle, decided not to wait to give as gift
Items 54 – 58 =  five new kids games, decided not to wait to give as gift
Item 59 =  travel size tweezer kit, never used
Item 60 =  small gravy boat, decided 2 is too many
Item 61 =  mini cookie cutters, gift, never used
Item 62 =  manual aerator tool, never used
Items 63 & 64 =  two large hooks, never used
Item 65 =  snowman table runner
Items 66 & 67 =  2 sets of cloth napkins & place-mats, gift, never used
Items 68 -71 =  four demitasse cups and saucers, already donated espresso maker
Items 72 =  soap dish, not being used
Item 73 =  container with pour spout, never used
Item 74 =  Holiday bowl, admitted we’d never use again
Item 75 & 76 =  Set of two holiday glasses, admitted we’d never use again
Item 77 =  LP albums, no player to listen to them
Item 78 =  set of 10 luau leis, admitted we’d never use again
Item 79 =  grass skirt, admitted I’d never use again
Item 80 =  set of 10 paper lanterns, admitted we’d never use again
Item 81 =  Aloha sign, admitted we’d never use again
Item 82 =  orange and black basket, not being used
Item 83 =  travel coffee mug, decided 5 is enough
Item 84 =  purple ice bucket,  decided 2 is enough
Item 85 =  bed dust ruffle, admitted we’d never use again
Item 86 7 87 =  small bowls, never used
Item 88 =  pewter milk pitcher, gift, never used
Item 89 =  pewter sugar bowl, gift, never used
Item 90 =  RedSox key chain bottle opener, decided 3 is enough
Item 92 & 93 =  two spreader knives, decided 4 is enough
Item 94 =  set of snowman stirrers, never used
Item 95 =  set of wine tags, gift, never used
Item 96 =  timer, decided 3 is enough
Item 97 =  rolling pin, admitted we’d never use again
Item 98 =  tiny whisk, too small
Item 99 =  bread knife, decided one is enough
Item 100 =  small sock coin purse, decided 3 is enough
Item 101 =  bag of Duplo toys

© June 2013, Janine Cavanaugh, Certified Professional Organizer®  All rights reserved

NAPO

Proud member of NAPO

Yard Sale Details:  Saturday, June 22, 2013, 8:00AM to 2:00PM
North Attleboro, MA 02670
All Proceeds go to H.O.P.E Program at Boston Children’s Hospital

Donation Challenge – Part 2

putting donations in carBeing pleased with myself for not giving into the temptation to donate items that belonged to my husband, I shared my mini triumph with my him.  I asked him if he thought he could do it, get rid of 10 things.  He said, “Easily!”  So, he went through his CD collection and picked out 15 CDs to donate.  Humm!  Was that an easy way out?
Easy or not, I was pleased.  I wanted to capitalize on his generous state.  I wanted to test our limits.  I started asking about particular items that I knew we haven’t used in several years, like the 3 tennis rackets that we made a specific home for in the garage.  Would we be willing to part with them, especially since this fundraiser is for such a good cause (H.O.P.E. Program of Boston Children’s Hospital)?  Yes!  What I’ve learned from my clients is, that, it’s easier to part with something when you know it’s for a good cause.
Once I realized his willingness to donate, we quickly thought of more items of which we could let go.  I was careful to get his approval on anything that I considered joint property.  Our pile soon grew to 50 denote-able items, listed below.

Item 11 – 25 =  fifteen CDs, moved all music wanted to save to computer
Item 26 – 28 =  three tennis rackets, admitted we’d never play again
Item 29 – 32 =  four pot holders, decided 10 is too many
Item 33 & 34 =  two canisters not being used
Item 35 =  small two wheel cart, only used once
Item 36 & 37 =  two large round green candles that are too big for my holders
Item 38 =  collapsable bag, received as gift more than 5 years ago, never used
Item 39 =  small stuffed bunny was going to give as gift, but didn’t
Item 40 =  Bread maker, admitted we’d never use again
Item 41 =  Apple baker, new, never used
Item 42 =  Expresso machine, admitted we’d never use again
Item 43 =  Seed spreader, admitted we’d never use again
Items 44 & 45 =  2 pairs of binoculars that we were given, but never used
Item 46 =  oval serving bowl, new, never used
Item 47 =  tin bucket that a gift came in, never used
Item 48 =  hanging rod for closet, admitted we’d never use
Items 49 & 50 =  two piece slide projector, decided 2 is too many

© May 2013, Janine Cavanaugh, Certified Professional Organizer®  All rights reserved

NAPO

Proud member of NAPO

Yard Sale Details:  Saturday, June 22, 2013, 8:00AM to 2:00PM
North Attleboro, MA 02670
All Proceeds go to H.O.P.E Program at Boston Children’s Hospital

Janine with donation box

Donation Challenge – Part 1

donationsA client of mine hosts an annual yard sale fundraiser for the H.O.P.E. Program at Boston Children’s Hospital.  She asks for donations from all her neighbors, friends, and family, and 100% of the proceeds support this program.  In the past I’ve given her items that I’ve collected from my clients.  This year I had my car packed with items ready to bring to her, and suddenly thought, what could I donate?  Me?  Personally?  Not things from the house or my husbands stuff, although I must admit, it was easy to think of items that belonged to him that I wanted to remove from the house.  You will probably agree, it’s much easier to get rid of someone else’s belongings than your own.  So, I challenged myself to find 10 items that belonged to me, to donate to this worthy cause.
My list of donated items is printed below. It may prompt you to think of items that you have in your household that you could donate.  If that is the case, please share those items with me.

List of Donations:
Items 1 & 2 =  two used camera parts that I was given, but never used
Items 3 & 4 =  two picture frames, one empty for three or more years,
the second emptied to move photo to scrapbook
Item 5 =  one computer chair, decided 3 is too many to have for 2 people
Items 6 & 7 =  two clip boards – decided 4 is too many to have for 2 people
Item 8 =  new Calphalon potato masher received as grab bag gift, never
used, like the one I have
Items 9 & 10 =  two water bottles received as gift more than 5 years ago,
used once, but didn’t like

© May 2013, Janine Cavanaugh, Certified Professional Organizer®  All rights reserved

NAPO

Proud member of NAPO

 

Yard Sale Details:  Saturday, June 22, 2013, 8:00AM to 2:00PM
North Attleboro, MA 02670
All Proceeds go to H.O.P.E Program at Boston Children’s Hospital