How to Have and Organized and $uccessful Garage/Yard Sale

So this summer I had a huge baby/kid/come buy all my shit garage sale.

I have had some sales in the past and none of them have been very successful. I made a lot of mistakes with the first few sales that resulted in low turn out. Low turn out means less money for me and more things I have to store for the next sale or donate. But this sale was a smash success and it was due to several things I did differently.

1. PICK A GOOD DATE

Picking a good date is important to drive foot traffic. Our city has subdivision yard sales on certain dates through the year. Since we aren't part of any subdivision, my best bet was holding my sale the same weekend of the closest subdivision sale near me. It would ensure I would have a lot of traffic passing by my street. Which leads me to my next point;

2. GET THE WORD OUT

Advertise! Advertise! Advertise! 

Getting the word out is the way to get people to your sale. Use every medium you can think of to spread the word. Since I knew the subdivision a few streets over was holding their annual sale (see point 1.) I placed the bulk of my signs in that area. I made sure to have a sign on every corner leading to my street with arrows pointing the way. I also placed signs on the main road through town, listing the times and place for my sale. Since I had my sale on a Friday and Saturday, I placed the signs the Tuesday before. If you get sturdy signs (mine were just poster board and a stake, so that when it rained on Friday, they didn't hold up too well) you can have your sign out for a week or more ahead.

Also, think outside the box! I am member of a few Facebook Buy/Sell/Trade groups. I followed their rules for posting and posted the time and date of my sale two weeks before the sale. The week of, as I had everything set up, I took photos and posted them to the site, as a preview. I also posted to Craigslist as well, two weeks before and then a few days before with photos. 

3. BE SPECIFIC

Let everyone know what you have. On all my signs and all my postings online, I made sure to list the sale as a kid/baby sale. I listed the sex and sizes for the clothes I had, listed the bigger ticket items, like a play kitchen and easel, as well as specific items that might be harder to find at a sale - baby carriers, breastfeeding supplies, bottles, etc. I also had a lot of brand name clothes, so I made sure to note that on my listings as well.

4. USE YOUR DRIVEWAY

I like the comfort that having a garage sale provides - some shelter from the weather, a place to organize - but if you have everything in your garage, it might not invite people to come and take a look. So utilize your garage to highlight your stuff. I placed bigger ticket items outside and gave people a glimpse of my sale. It also gave people a safe distance to look at the sale in case they didn't want to come into the garage right away.

This is also a great way to have kids get interested. Having toys at kid level helped keep them occupied while their parents shopped. I priced them low enough that it would encourage kids to leave with a few as well.

5. HAVE A PRICE LIST

Instead of pricing everything individually, have a master price list. I tried to streamline the list as much as possible: tops, bottoms, swimsuits, dresses and PJ separates were one price, while jeans, jackets/hoodies, outfits and footed PJs were a different price. Also try and keep your prices even dollars so you don't have to deal with change.

Display the sign where everyone can see.

6. HAVE A FREE BIN
Clothes that were just a little too worn all went into the free bin. I tried to have clothes that were just slightly stained in the bin. Clothes that I might pay a quarter or .$50 for at another sale went in the bin and I encouraged everyone to look and take something.

7. ORGANIZE
The biggest compliment I got was how organized I was. Seriously, everyone that came to my sale complimented me on my organization. One woman even took a photo to show her daughter just how to set up. lolz

I sorted each table into boy or girl clothes, then into sizes and then seasons. I made sure to post signs telling people what sizes were where. I separated the clothes into winter and summer to make it easy. I also grouped outfits together, pairing tops with bottoms so that when you bought two, you ended up saving money. I did the same for the PJs, keeping the sets together but marking down the price.

I also had the smallest sizes on the tables in the front, working up to the bigger sizes on the tables in the back.

9. GROUP SIMILAR ITEMS
As you can see in the driveway photo, I tried to group items together. Toys were grouped in a separate bin, as was stuffed animals and baby dolls. I also grouped onesie sets together and put them in a ziplock bag with a flat price. I did the same for burp cloths and receiving blankets. I also had bags of play food and a bag of play pots and pans grouped next to the play kitchen.

10. USE YOUR SPACE
Have a hanging rod for clothes that can't be folded. It will take space off your tables, giving you more room for outfits and it will allow more people in your sale to look both at the tables and the rack.

11. BE PREPARED FOR EARLY BIDS OR NOT
Since I had put signs up around town, people knew I was having a sale. When I was setting up on Thursday, I had more than one person drive by "just to look." When people wanted to buy something, I told them that was fine but I didn't have much change. I didn't want to discourage anyone from buying but I also wasn't planning on having my sale until the next morning. I sold half my big ticket items the night before my sale even "started."

Also know that people WILL COME EARLY. If you really don't want anyone at your sale at, say 7 am, then advertise that your sale starts at 8 am and be prepared for people to show up at 7:30. You can always post on your signs and online postings that you prefer no early sales but people might not honor it.

12. PRICE TO SELL (OR DONATE)
There are two main reasons to have a sale - make money or get rid of your stuff. I would say that my sale was 50/50. I wanted to get rid of all the baby and kid things I had but I didn't want to price things so low that people would be turned off. If you price too low, people might think that all you have is junk and they won't buy anything. But if you price a little higher, people are more interested and want to make you an offer. It is up to you to accept their offer or not. I am not a fan of negotiating, so if someone offered me a price that seemed fair, it was more likely that I would accept.

13. MARK DOWN YOUR PRICES
I had a busy day the first day of my sale. By the afternoon on the second day, things had slowed down and the idea of packing everything up seemed daunting. So I slashed prices, updated my posts online to let everyone know everything was 50% off and made deals left and right.

14. HELP YOUR SHOPPERS
I had paper sacks ready to go for people to use. I also gave away more than one hanger. It was a great way to get rid of all the plastic hangers you get when you buy an outfit in the store.

15. GIVE YOURSELF MORE TIME AND TABLES THAN YOU THINK YOU NEED
This is probably the biggest tip. I dedicated the entire week before my sale to set up. By having it in the garage, I was able to set up the tables and keep them that way until the sale was over. Every night, after the kids were in bed, I would sort and organize clothes. I was also able to guess how many tables I needed but in the end, I could have used two more. I was also able to call someone on Tuesday to ask to borrow a table instead of Thursday night.

I also washed every.single.bit.of.clothes before I sorted and organized them but you can probably skip that step if your clothes haven't been in storage for long. Thursday night did end up being a bit long for me, I went to bed too late, setting up still, so never underestimate just how much time you need. Give yourself just one more day to set up.


~OTHER TIPS~DONATE OR STORE THE DAY AFTER - as you are breaking down tables and packing up, sort your clothes to donate or to store as you go. Take the donate bin to the donation spot that day.

HAVE MUSIC - it seems to set the tone for a pleasant day and helps the time pass. I just wouldn't play death metal.

HAVE DRINKS OR FOOD - if the kids were older, I would totally let them set up a lemonade stand and let them go. But since TGD can't read or math yet, it wasn't an option this time.

START WITH LOTS OF CHANGE - you will get more as the day goes on, so you might want to only get a few bills in each denomination to start, but I would get at least $150 in change ($60 in $20, $50 in $10, $20 in $5 and $20 in $1)

BE FRIENDLY BUT GIVE PEOPLE SPACE - as an extrovert, I want to be welcoming and chat up everyone but I never wanted to give people a hard sale for a 9 month footie PJ. Mostly I just followed the lead of the other shoppers and had a great day. I met some people that were totally cool chatting me up for a while and it was nice.

Hopefully following all these tips, you will have the best and most organized sale ever. With just a little planning, you can maximize your sales and get rid of all your stuff.

~FREE PRINTABLE~ Summer Planner

Oh, I don't know why, but I've always loved the idea of summer, and sun, and all things hot... 

Winter's a good time to stay in and cuddle but put me in summer and I'll be a ... happy snowman!!

If you are a mom of young kids, you just said that above in Olaf's voice. And now that song is stuck in your head. You're welcome.

Just like with my Winter, Spring, and Fall Planners, you can use this planner to keep track of everything you want to do or make in the summer.

Get it HERE!

You can check out my Pinterest boards to get ideas for Independence Day/summer activities.

Our summer is actually kind of crazy this year. Having two kids' birthdays back to back and kindy starting this fall, I am in DO ALL THE THINGS!!!!! mode and this has been a great way for me to stay on top of everything. And thanks to global warming, the weather has been abnormally cool, so we can do things instead of just stay in the house watching movies all day.

How is your summer going?

~FREE PRINTABLE~ Spring Planner

A lovely reader was kind enough to remind me that I hadn't posted my Spring Planner yet. She was very kind when really she she had every right to call my out as the lazy, forgetful bitch that I am. 

That said, here is the Spring Planner. Spring is a wonderful time for me. The weather gets warm, activities start up around town and we can get out of the house. And my anniversary is in May.
 

So it helps me to keep track of all the nice, spring things I want to do. Recipes I want to try, things I want to do and make. Everything is right here to help me enjoy the season to the fullest.

You can download your very own Spring Planner for free. 

You can also check out my Fall Planner and Winter Planner. 

Get some spring ideas on my Pinterest board and also get ideas for Earth Day, Mari Gras, St. Patrick's Day and more.

Visual Spring Cleaning Guide - The Kitchen

By far the most labor intensive part of Spring Cleaning is the damn kitchen. There is just.so.much.shit in here.

It can be overwhelming. But remember, you don't have to do it all at once. You can break up tasks over the course of a week. It also helps to have a clean kitchen as a baseline. That's why weekly cleaning maintenance is important. This task would seem Herculean without a good baseline.

Let's do this, shall we?! 

1. Dust ceiling and corners of walls
2. Dust and clean the light fixtures
3. Wipe down walls, minding spots behind the stove and counter top appliances
4. Remove and clean all art and photographs from wall.
5. Remove all draperies, curtains, and blinds and wash or have cleaned
6. Wash all windows
7. Dust and clean the tops of the cabinets
8. Clean the inside of the oven  
~TIP: Use a natural cleaner like the one I have here.~

9. Remove knobs, burners, and burner covers and wash
10. Clean the fridge 
11. Wipe down and clean the small appliances 
12. Wipe off the shelves inside the cabinets
13. Dust and polish the outside of the cabinets
14. Wipe down and clean out any drawers
15. Clean the switch plates and outlet covers

16. Dust and polish the outside of the drawers
17. Clean the dishwasher by running an empty cycle
18. Wash the counter tops in your kitchen
19. Wash the sink
20. Clean the microwave
21. Dust and wash the baseboards
22. Sweep and mop the floors
23. Empty and wash out the trash can

Now don't you feel all better?

Visual Spring Cleaning Guide - The Dining Room

1. Dust the ceiling and corners
2. Dust the vents and fans
3. Wipe down walls
4. Remove and clean all art and photographs from wall
5. Take down draperies, curtains, blinds, etc, to wash or have cleaned
6. Wash all windows
7. Dust and clean all lamps and knickknacks
8. Dust down all furniture
9. Remove and clean all china and serving pieces, looking for chips and cracks that need repair
~TIP: With Easter and Passover right around the corner, now is a great time to wash and care for your silver and china. Remember to store china carefully, wrapped in paper or bubble wrap. You can also use felt rounds between each plate. Never stack more than 5 plates together and take care when storing glasses. 
To clean light tarnish from silver, fill an aluminum pan (or one lined with aluminum foil) with hot water, add salt and baking soda, and stir to dissolve. Add the silver and a chemical reaction should remove the tarnish. Please note, the good tarnish (a desirable patina and the dark crevices in a pattern) may be removed as well, and pitting may result.~
10. Clean any mirrors
11. Clean the switchplates
12. Clean the outlet covers
13. Dust and wash the baseboards
14. Clean flooring 

Visual Spring Cleaning Guide - The Bedroom

Now that we have cleaned the living room, let's move on to the bedroom! Let's take a look where the magic hasn't happened in about seven months.

Since The Good Son is in his own room now, along with taking out his co-sleeper, we thought it would be a good thing to deep clean in here as well. What we did:

1. Dust the ceiling and corners
2. Dust the vents and fans
3. Wipe down walls
4. Remove and clean all art and photographs from wall
5. Take down draperies, curtains, blinds, etc, to wash or have cleaned
~TIP: Keep blinds clean by dusting often, with a dry cloth or a vacuum attachment. To clean wooden and faux wood, use a gentle wood cleaner on a nearly dry rag and wipe gently. To clean metal, rinse with water either outside or in a bathtub. Allow to air dry before hanging.~
6. Wash all windows
7. Wash all bedding, comforters, mattress pads, pillows, etc.
8. Vacuum and flip your mattress
9. Clean under your bed
10. Dust and clean all lamps and knickknacks (Don't forget to dust the light bulbs!)
~When cleaning a kid's room, now is a great time to check all toys and books and games to make sure everything has working parts and batteries.~
11. Dust down all furniture
12. Clean any mirrors
13. Clean the switchplates
14. Clean the outlet covers
15. Dust and wash the baseboards
16. Clean flooring
17. Sort through your closet using the Keep, Toss, Donate or Store method

I have found that kid's rooms are actually the easiest to clean. Since they play in them every day, nothing tends to gather that much dust. And the little shits outgrow clothes so fast, I don't find any shirts that should have seen the donation bin awhile ago.

Visual Spring Cleaning Guide - The Living Room

It's Spring! And you know what that means? We get to fucking clean shit!

WOO-HOOOO!!

I know everyone is excited as can be. But really this is once a year, so let's all bitch together about how much it sucks, pull our big girl panties on and snort a whole bunch of meth* to be the most productive spring cleaners ever. 

*actual meth use optional

Let's take a look at what we will be cleaning in the living room, shall we?

The Good Husband and I spent one Saturday morning cleaning a rearranging the living room. We were able to dust every fucking surface and reorganize in a way that made the living room look awesome.

If you recall the TV and entertainment center were on the wall to the right of this photo. And it was horrible for flow. All the traffic had to walk in front of the TV to get to the dining room and kitchen or the bedrooms and bathroom. When we moved in, we actually had the TV on the wall where the couch is now and that was a stupid idea. With the TV on the wall on the left of this photo, it helps to create a space for viewing the TV and for the kids to play on the floor and the wall where the TV once was will become a sitting area with a bookcase, chair, lamp and small table and chairs for the kids (once we finish our debt snowball and have money sometime next year.)

So rearranging the living room was a great excuse to clean everything from top to bottom. Here is what we did:

1. Dust the ceiling and corners
2. Dust the vents and fans
3. Wipe down walls
4. Remove and clean all art and photographs from wall
5. Take down draperies, curtains, blinds, etc, to wash or have cleaned 
~TIP: Prolong the life of your curtains by spot cleaning immediately when dirty. Vacuum weekly with a brush attachment on your vacuum cleaner or shake outside for delicate fabrics. Follow the instructions on the tag for machine washing or dry cleaning.~
6. Wash all windows
7. Dust and clean all lamps and knickknacks (Don't forget to dust the light bulbs!)
8. Dust down and clean all furniture
~TIP: Consider having your upholstery dry cleaned. The couch was the first thing TGH and I bought when we moved in together 12 years ago. It is holding up really well for what we paid for it. We have never had it dry cleaned but this year was the year. Having dirty, sticky little fingers all over it and a dog that sleeps on it all day justified the professional cleaning. They even repaired a small rip in one of the cushions. It was well worth the money spent and will be able to go a few more years until we need to do it again. If you cannot remove your covers, spot clean immediately when dirty, vacuum weekly and consider buying or using fabric protectors like scotchgard.~
9. Remove and dust all books from bookshelves
10. Remove and dust all movies and cds ~See how I organize mine here~
11. Clean any mirrors (N/A)
12. Clean the switchplates
13. Clean the outlet covers
14. Dust and wash the baseboards
15. Clean flooring
~TIP: In addition to vacuuming daily and spot cleaning when needed, spring is the time I like to shampoo the carpets. Just don't do this more than once a year with a professional cleaner or you run the risk of ruining your carpet.~

That wasn't so bad, right? 


Bask in your hard earned clean living room and remember that you are fucking awesome!

How to Organize Card Games

Way back when I talked about how I organize toys and games, they looked like this:

Board and card games live in our entertainment center in our living room. That hasn't changed.

But kids are destructive little a-holes and in the years we have been playing card games, the boxes when from nice and pretty as seen above to shitty and torn.

So I needed a way to organize them. Originally I wanted individual cases to hold each game. But I couldn't find any that were large enough. And I am cheap. I really didn't want to buy 5+ cases for a couple bucks each, when I could just buy one and be done with it.

So off to Target I went. And I picked up this storage box. 

It was just the right width to fit the cards.

So I cut the boxes to help keep each game separate.

Games that need the directions, I cut out and taped to the heavy cardboard that was inside of each box.

Then I stacked them neatly inside.

And I shut that baby up.

Now all the games are in one place. I will probably use some rubber bands to secure each game so they don't get all higgly piggly in the box. But for now they are happy in there.

And they live all nice and neat in the entertainment center again.

~FREE~ Winter Planner

It is my least season of all time and only partly b/c it contains my least favorite holiday - Christmas - but that doesn't mean there are plenty of fun things to do in winter. The nights are longer, lending perfectly to snuggling up inside and staying cozy. 

Since there are so many things to do and eat and craft and drink, I decided to make this Winter Planner. It's a great way to track everything you want to do. It has a Winter Bucket List, space for parties you want to host or attend, decorations you want, recipes you want to try, activities to do and crafts to make. Everything is all in one spot.

Download your free Winter Printable here!

And as a way to track what new fall recipes you want to try out, I have made some recipe cards for you. Just print and fill out!

HAPPY WINTER Y'ALL!!

NEW Halloween Printables in my Etsy Shop!!

Ain't no shame in my game! I LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE Halloween. It's like my Christmas. I love all the Halloween things (169 pins and counting)!!!! 

I love to try and watch a scary movie, only to puss out. I love all the candy and I love dressing up. Now I have kids and I can dress them up too. I have almost as many Halloween decorations as I do Christmas. 

So I decided that I should spread my anal retentive, OCD-ness to the bestest holiday there is. I designed these printables to help take the stress and worry out of Halloween and b/c I am an organizational freak. We all knew that, yes? Good. 

Let's take a look at the new printables, shall we? 

This calendar will help you stay on top of all the Halloweenie things - decorations, candy, costumes. 

This checklist allows you to see what decorations you have and where they are stored.

These labels work together with the inventory list to know what box contains what decorations. The labels are formatted to print on Avery US Labels 6578

This two page party planner has everything you need to throw on hell of a Halloween party.

This expanded guest list helps you track who is coming and what they are bringing.

This planner helps you know what food will be served at the party.

To help you stay on budget -a planner to track food and drink costs.

For all the great recipes you want to try, a planner with three per sheet. 

Hop on over to my Etsy Shop to get this pack for yourself.

Fall Planner ~FREE PRINTABLE~

Despite what my drunk ass thought last week, this Friday is actually the first Friday of Fall.

It is my favorite season of all time and only partly b/c it contains my super, duper, most favoritest holiday ever - Halloween. Fall is the time you can snuggle inside with some hot apple cider but also enjoy the crisp air.

Since there are so many things to do and eat and craft and drink, I decided to make this Fall Planner. It's a great way to track everything you want to do. It has a Fall Bucket List, space for parties you want to host or attend, decorations you want, recipes you want to try, activities to do and crafts to make. Everything is all in one spot.

Download your free Fall Printable here!

And as a way to track what new fall recipes you want to try out, I have made some recipe cards for you. Just print and fill out!

HAPPY FALL Y'ALL!!

But remember; if you say 'pumpkin spice latte' three times in a mirror, a white girl in yoga pants will appear and tell you all the things she loves about fall.

You've been warned.

New Cleaning Printables and COUPON

A while back,  I expanded my Budget Pack in my Etsy shop and made sure to post all about it.

Now I am happy to say my most popular pack - The Cleaning Pack - has been expanded as well. What are the new printables?

I have redesigned the original Weekly Cleaning Checklist! The original is still included in the pack, so don't worry. I have just updated it now to include a lighter cleaning schedule. Now cleaning the major rooms is no longer linked to a specific day. There are less daily cleaning tasks as well but also room to add more.

For those that only have time once a week to clean, there is now a Once A Week Cleaning Checklist to help with those tasks. 14 weekly cleaning tasks with space for seven more will help to keep your house sparkling clean with only one day of cleaning per week (or month).

Created from another popular post on the blog, I now have recipe cards for all the green cleaners PLUS TWO BONUS RECIPES never before seen on the blog. Now you will never look up a recipe again. Simply print and you will never again have to guess the recipe for glass cleaner.

And to make sure you always have the ingredients you need for green cleaners or to make sure you never run out of bleach again, I have created four Cleaning Supply Checklists. One for green cleaning, one for traditional cleaning, one for both and one blank for you to customized just how you want.

So now you have seen all the new cleaning printables I have designed that are included in the new *expanded* Cleaning Pack in my Etsy shop.  
 
Buy this pack, or anything else in my shop, and take 15% off your order! Use coupon code NEW15 at checkout.