Why would ANYONE want to do this??

There are people out there who wonder how anyone could want to buy other people's "cast offs" or "junk" and put them in their homes. I know a few myself - they look down their noses and scoff. Well, I'm not talking to you, and this site extolls the virtues and values of garaging - so beat it. :) No, you don't have to leave, but don't be so quick to judge. This hobby can be an art form.

Garagesales do indeed yield their share of junk - truly garbage. Those are not the types of sales you want to hit. You know what you're looking for, and most people know the difference between garbage and objects of interest. AND you know the saying "One man's trash is another man's treasure", right? It's so true. These are hardly filthy pieces we are considering bringing home and displaying, after all.

You can make a game of it, or have it become a serious hobby or business! I know of many people who spend every saturday combing garagesales for antiques and collectables, who return to home or shop with their findings, and then clean and/or repair them and turn them around for a very decent profit. As a matter of fact, quite often these items are sold to the very people mentioned in the first paragraph - those who turn their collective noses up at our beloved pursuit.

Many a dorm room, start up business or budget conscious new home has been decked out nicely with almost 100% garagesale findings. Special pieces are often found for that classic "put together" home! Collectibles can be found in the darndest places too! The point, gentle reader, is that you don't have a CLUE what you're going to find when you set out on an early morning saling adventure.

And adventure it is! Meet new people, enjoy fresh air, and experience excitement as you discover something sitting casually on a table that you simply can't go home without. For far less than you could ever find it for in a retail store, I might add.

In this age of reduce, reuse and recycle, the garagesale makes the most sense. And cents too...

Why do I do it personally?

Well, I generally work 12 hour days, almost every day. No, I'm not a slave - I'm involved in a struggling business with HUGE potential, and I set my own hours. This means that while I have time to spend with Bratling, I have to almost schedule that time. Saturday mornings are MY time - my time to get outside, do something I find personally exciting and at the same time relaxing, and have a little fun with my daughter.

Sure, it sometimes sets my husband's teeth on edge, since he never knows what I might bring home (Remember my first journal post in 1998 about the knitting machine? I have 4 now... and yes I learned to use them!!), but he is a wonderful man, and can get over it quite easily. I have a note somewhere that he wrote me one early morning that said something to this effect:

Babe,
We don't need any flower pots, tables, cribs, gates, books, carpets, chairs, (he went on for half a page, so I'll cut it short) so please just come back to bed!!

Isn't he funny? He wrote that when Bratling was a baby, in early 1995.

No, I'll never get tired of garagesaling, it's something that I absolutely need to do - whether I come home with anything or not.

"Garage Sale Seminar" Š1998 - 2008 Garagesale Guru