It’s an idea whose time has come.
Do you swap clothes with your friends? Do you swap kids’ stuff? How about CDs, DVDs, books, exercise equipment, etc? BUT. Do you ever have those items you’d like to get rid of, but they cost you a pretty penny? And idea of just giving them away (even to your fellow sisters) without getting back some small monetary token doesn’t sit with you? Plus, let’s face it, we’re all kind of broke nowadays, and giving stuff away instead of selling it seems almost frivolous, am I right?
Now, you could sell your stuff on Craigslist, eBay, or at a traditional garage sale. Or, you could pack up the portable items in your car and bring it to your next get-together, and sell them to your friends.
My buddy, Princess, came up with this idea last fall. At one of our weekly sewing meetings (every Wednesday, our costuming group – the Wench Posse – gathers at Chez Larue), she lugged in a huge bin full of clothes, etc. We called it her traveling garage sale, and many of us bought her lovely things at a huge discount.
It was a real win-win situation. Princess cleaned out her closets and made some spending dough, and the rest of us got some really cute clothes, accessories and costuming pieces for way cheap (Princess, in case you didn’t know, played the princess at the MN Ren Fest).
Since that first sale, Princess has brought over other items to our weekly meetings. I’m her main buyer (we’re the same size and have the same taste), and she’s like my own personal thrift/consignment store. Yesterday, at dinner (Snuffy’s Malt Shop, good eats for cheap) I bought a dress, a Jimmy’Z t-shirt, a lace tank top from Express, a Ralph Lauren hoodie sweater, and a tunic sweater from Express. All for just $30. SCORE!
Here are a few basic rules if you’d like to have a traveling garage sale with your friends:
1. Make sure the items you’re selling are actually WORTH selling. Princess only sells her nice, mint-condition, name-brand clothes or good-quality costuming pieces. Don’t try to get cash for a Target T-shirt.
2. Charge reasonable prices. If you’re selling basics, think garage sale pricing, like 50 cent to a buck. If you have one-of-a-kind items, come up with a dollar amount you’d be willing to let them go for, and then negotiate prices with your friends.
3. Make sure the items a. work, b. have all their parts, c. are clean, and d. aren’t damaged.
Now let me ask you – would you consider doing a traveling garage sale? Or is swapping for free too deeply ingrained your circle of friends?
7 Comments
I wish I had it in me to sell things to my friends, but I don’t. I give them to them with my love & hope they will be able to use them………I know they will do the same for me.
“Yes” to both ideas, actually. I figure, whatever gets rid of the unwanted stuff.
Nope. I think it’s a nice idea, but I can’t sell stuff to friends. We all give stuff to each other when we can’t use it anymore – even big stuff. I got three dressers from a friend last year, passing on a different huge dresser to a different friend this weekend. What goes around comes around, sooner or later.
It helps to have friends who are around the same size. For awhile I was the end of the line for clothing swaps in our group. Luckily we have expanded and there are more options! But you could consider doing a jewelry swap too. We really need to do that one of these days…
I would love to do this, but I have few In Real Life friends since I moved to MN, and those I do know aren’t around my size(s) (you know, I fluctuate like Oprah). If anyone wants to do a straight up swap with someone who has sized 10-16, get in touch with me!
Stunt Girl – you should come to a Posse meeting sometime! And I have several items in the 14-16 category I would love to find homes for!
Wow. That’s a great idea to swap clothes with friends. Unfortunately I am far away in NJ, otherwise I would have come to one of your meetings with a few tops I am not using any more. BTW, you can also sell your stuff on http://www.privategaragesale.com. It’s totally cool and free.