I'm about ready to pull up the sign and close the garage door. Nobody has come for over an hour and it's almost 5:00.
I opened at 1:00 and between 1:30 and 2:30 it was a mad house. Almost everyone bought something and it was a great way to start the day. There's still an awful lot of stuff here, though. Fortunately, the weather is cooperating since the sun finally came out.
I don't know how much I've made yet but that's almost secondary to getting rid of stuff. I thought about that statement and if that were the case then I would have just given it to Goodwill or Salvation Army. So I guess I do want to make some money.
It's been interesting talking to most of the people who have stopped by. One gentleman, on a BMW motorcycle, said that at one time he'd lived in a 5,000 sq ft house and moved to a 1,500 sq ft condo and got rid of everything. Apparently, he gave most of it away and now he's replacing it all. He bought a number of small things from me, which was a good thing.
Some of my friends from Silver Sneakers have dropped by and I've been very generous with them. I've either given them what they want or dropped the price considerably.
I've gotten lots of positive comments about my bowling ball yard art but I haven't sold any, so far.
My mom was a self-taught painter...a prolific painter and I have the pictures to show for it. I have 30 oil paintings she painted and I don't know what to do with them. I wish they were my style but they aren't. I've gotten past the guilt of wanting to get rid of them, I just don't know how. Any suggestions?
I didn't know a moving sale could be so exhausting. Wait, it's the end of six days of preparation so I take that back. Now that I'm not frantically getting it all together and have relaxed, I've really relaxed. Not quite coma, but I'm getting there. That'll come after I shut the garage door.
No pictures today...sorry. And on that note, I'll close this post.
Loving the sunshine,
Jeana
P.S. I read this morning where Seattle is probably going to have another rotten winter so my decision to go to Tucson is sounding better and better.
Glad you had a good first day of your sale. About the paintings...do you have a local auction house that might take them? Kate (from Cholula Red blog) has been taking lots of stuff to an auction house and it seems to be working. Hope you have nice weather for the rest of your sale.
ReplyDeleteHave a glass of wine, relax, and then go to bed so you'll be prepared for tomorrow. I remember those sale days, and it is exhausting! :)
ReplyDeleteI have had a couple of huge yard sales also...it actually was kind of a way to make some good money for me. Think of all the traveling money you will have..Hope you can stop by on your way to Tucson ..
ReplyDeleteYard sales are a lot of work..... hope things go well tomorrow and you make lots of travelling money!
ReplyDeleteI did two flea markets last year. I put the money in an envelope in my drawer. Every once in awhile I take some out and I feel like it is free money!
ReplyDeleteI do not miss anything I sold. Ys, I wish I could have gotten more for some of it, but it is gone and that is good.
You had a great first day. As for the paintings I don't know, are there any family members that might like to have some? My dad was also a self taught painter and some he carved in wood and then painted them. My home in Tucson is loaded. Good luck for the rest of the sale then get some much needed rest.
ReplyDeleteI recently had a sale, too. Yes, we would like to get some money for our stuff, and like you, I was making deals and letting things go cheap because I didn't want to take it back into the house.
ReplyDeletesounds like day one was a huge success!..the name of the game is to rid yourself of the possessions you don't want!..try not to think to much!..just think of that free feeling with only a few much needed items!!
ReplyDeleteYards sales, (well, we call them "garage sales", which really makes no sense, but whatever) are not something I'm that keen on. We usually gather all the "stuff" from both daughters, along with our own "stuff", and put it out. In our neighbourhood (this is back in Canada), some folks will show up the night before! Or, really early on the day of. Also something I'm not keen on. The rule is, if it doesn't sell, it CANNOT go back in the house, and has to go to the Goodwill or some other place. We also have something called the "Re-use-it Centre", and they'll take a certain amount of "stuff". Don't we love our "stuff"?
ReplyDeleteWhen I had my yard sale last May, I had all kinds of small tools and nuts and bolts etc that I put in a box, put a cheap price on it to get rid of it. It worked! GONE quickly. The object was to get rid of it. No reasonable offer refused, GONE!
ReplyDeleteNow I can't remember what I had. My painting, another story, they are going with me to drop off at the kids'.
You may want to approach the local library about the possibility of them displaying your mother's paintings. Sometimes they like to decorate their place with local art. You could write a brief peice about how your mother learned to paint, etc. You could loan the peices to them and pick them up later on in the future (free storage?). Just a thought.
ReplyDeletedarrell