Yaaard Sales (Bangor, Unity: for sale, appliances, home)

[Maineah]

I've been cleaning out the barn the past couple of days tossin' stuff in a section dedicated to a yaaard sale we're going to have sometime around Memorial Day.If you're new to Maine you should know you have to draw out the word yard to something like yaaard if you want people to think you're from around here. Anyway I got more stuff than you can shake a stick at. All of the items are precious family heirlooms of course that will demand top dollar at the yaaaard sale! I got a home made arrow shaft cutting rig that must be worth at least five bucks...an old clay whiskey jug ,missin' the handle with just a few cracks in it that's probably worth another five bucks...
a bunch of big old picture frames of various types that must be worth a few bucks a piece, before you know it you've made enough to buy a case of beer or maybe a jug of that everclear stuff that forest is so fond of!
Do you have yaaard sales? Do you go to yaaard sales? What's the best thing you ever found at a yaaard sale? I once found a small hand plane that was worth about $500.00.

[island mermaid]

Great idea! I think everyone should have one at least once a yr just to get rid of that clutter we all seem to accumulate. I've found some pretty decent stuff at yard sales and gotten rid of some pretty decent junk too!

[Northern Maine Land Man]

In my experience, most yard sales are an annual chance to air out the old children's clothes from the last few generations. Once i a while there is a good one where a family is moving to Florida and there is some good winter gear for sale.

[bringselpup]

Unity Farmers Market opening day May 3rd is going to have a number of things going on. One is a yard sale and they are offering free tables if you want to sell. I signed up and told them I have my own tables so they could offer what I might have used to someone else. I'm sure I can put together a pile of stuff we trucked up here for no good reason. Plus I'll spend some time between now and then and make up some local specific product to sell and do a little shameless business promotion at the same time.

[peachie_in_maine]

I am a "sailor".. to the yard sale sea. Nothing like the open road, parking dangerously, and peeking at past treasures to make my heart sing.
( I think this sounds a bit like " Indiana Jones". ~adjusts brim of hat.

I find having a yard sale wears me OUT. All that hauling out.. and taggin' and hauling back in or covering up... just so draining.

I salute those who provide me with that weekend activity of peeking at there things.
"Salute
Tami~peachie

[mollysmiles]

now that theme song is running through my head!

I agree....the whole thing is a ton of work! I know we've got to have one....we've got soooo much stuff, I wish it were throw away stuff but it isn't.....I've put it off since we moved here--I have clothes out there from when Katy was in 1st grade for crying out loud--yes, Katy, the freshman in high school. And it's stuff like jeans and fleece that doesn't go out of "style"....I wish Good Will were closer!! When we lived in Bangor I'd just take things over and drop them off a bit at a time.

When the kids were little I'd stop at yard sales a lot! I know it saved me a lot of money, and I met some great people too. I don't make it a point to head out on Saturdays now, but if I'm driving by and something catches my eye I'll stop. Darn, I just realized that I'm going to have to start carrying cash again.....yard sales don't do debit!

[vter]

Yes! Yard sale season! Big "tradition" here in VT as well. I like looking for old books and magazines (specifically ones New England related - VT Life, Downeast, etc.) and old maps. You never know what you might find and you meet some neat people in the process!

[Boomerang]

Don't get me started! I'm a 2nd generation yard sale hunter. My folks frequently stopped at them, and my mother used to scan the papers each week and map out likely routes. It's a lot of fun, and you can get things at yard sales that you would never pay full store-price for.

I agree with Peachie that it's more fun to go to sales, than to have one, although it's also fun to sit and talk to everyone. I'm useless with the haggling, as I have the inclination to just give stuff away when people start looking wistfully at things they shouldn't buy but obviously want. But people have also been very generous to me, so it all works out in the end!

It's hard to even think of all the great stuff I've gotten at yard sales, there's so much. Books. Furniture. Appliances. Lamps. Chatchkies (lots of chatchkies....). Jewelry. Some clothes. Camera accessories. Oh, and nearly a whole shedful of farm tools once! Really great stuff.

[corgis]

Yard Sales! - Oh, be still my heart - I love them, I go into withdrawal every winter cause there are no tables with books, old glassware, little ceramic treasures, clothes, Christmas and Halloween decorations, sometimes Easter too. Old boxes full of stuff, treasures abound for me every Spring and right through late Fall, when I take my $20. and set off on Saturday mornings for Yard Sales. I have found some of the most unusual things, weird, bizarre, funny and touching things at yard sales. Next to yard sales, I love church rummage sales and have found some wonderful stuff at those too. Third on my list are library book sales - I've been known to spend hours finding just the right books to put away for winter reading. I've learned to bring a good sturdy tote bag to library book sales cause they get heavy as you keep adding to them.

Hooray! - Spring is here and it's yard saleing time - I'll probably see some of you this summer while I quest for just the right yard sale and treasure.

[Elcarim]

I purposely do NOT carry cash! If I see a yard sale that looks like it's worth stopping at, I'll see if there is anything worth an extra trip to the ATM. It keeps my impulse spending in check.

My latest great yard sale find was this desk I'm sitting at. It's huge corner thing with a bookshelf. Not terribly fancy, but I only paid $40 for it! I looked it up online and retail at Office Depot was $599! THAT was worth the ATM trip!