This Saturday was about 20 degrees cooler than last week, but that didn't dampen the yard sales. They will rage until the snow flies I think, and as long as they keep going, Would You Buy This or Not will be there to pose the question.
Janie didn't have to work until 11, so we folded up her power wheelchair into the trunk, and headed out. We got in a full hour and 45 minutes before I dropped her off, and then took off on my own.
Find of the day
Political memorabilia
price - 50 cents
sold
I love this idea of handing out hot-pads with political propaganda on them. Apparently, Congressman Campbell was from San Jose, though - not the Twin Cities.
Thing that interested us least
Holy Land souvenir
price - 50 cents
no sale
Though I would not buy this, I've sometimes thought what it would be like to have a worn stone from the streets of Jerico - one that could talk and tell of the things it's seen and all the times it was thrown in anger.
Other things we did and did not buy
Dried flower arrangement
price - 50 cents
no sale
The first place Janie and I stopped was a community center for Danish Americans. The previous two, and the next 5 items were all encountered at that sale.
I don't need this, but I admired the work that went into it. I also appreciate the fact that it's real, unlike its distant cousin the silk flower arrangement.
Knit scarf
price - 50 cents
no sale
Another thing I admired, but we already have more scarves than we could possibly use. I particularly liked the obviously genuine ethnic designs.
Pop bottle
price - more or less free (part of a package deal)
sold
Superior Beverages lead me to think this was from the Duluth/Superior area, but when I got it home, it clearly said Saint Paul.
Women's clothing
price - 50 cents each
sold
All were apparently new. Nice shopping Janie.
Warm shirt (also new)
price - 50 cents
sold
I won't be wearing this, but I can pretty much guarantee some construction worker or hunter in Colorado is going to dig it.
Deer? Dog? Mask
price - $1
no sale
It wasn't distictive enough.
Queen mask
price - $1
no sale
I thought this was cool, but it needed to go to someone who could relate on a more personal level.
Bullwinkle horns
price - $1
sold
This is more me. Are they on straight?
Mirror
price - $7
no sale
You're wondering I assume how I could pass that up. Well, our flat is clutter central, and there's no room for a free-standing anything. This is exactly why the sellers were getting rid of it - thoroughly impractical. This was enormous though - I left the ladder in the picture so you could get a sense of scale.
Bike
price - $25
no sale
Yes, another bike. Man, if you want a bike, go to some yard sales!
no sale
Size six? Check that bride's ID (or maybe someone did).
Stone sphere
price - $2
sold
This carved rock is headed to my mom's shop, and it actually cost 80 cents, because the brass stand is headed for the scrap yard.
Aluminum scrap
price - free
sold
If you've seen many of these posts, you'll know I loathe aluminum cookware and do my part to see it gets turned into car parts and such.
Brass things (speaking of scrap)
price - $3 for large; $2 for small
no sale
Because these are priced above the market price for brass, they will live to see another day.
Book for Janie
price - 50 cents
sold
Book for Ron
price - 50 cents
sold
I have a Rolling Stone history of rock and roll from the early 80s that says, among other things, that heavy metal "will be a passing fad". Let's hope this is a bit more insightful.
Digging tool
price - $3
sold
This was a stretch, but I like the narrow positioning of the tines. It will be good for digging up old bottles. The handle is beyond worthless; I bought this for the business end.
Picture frames made of glass, lead and dried flowers
price - $13 for 5
sold
All have the price tags still on - $17 each for the three larger; 13 each for the two smaller. Return customers at my mom's shop will snap these up, I'm sure. My markup will be nonexistent, but sometimes you can't pass something up. There have "wow" factor, even if I wouldn't have them in my own home.
Ornament
price - 50 cents
sold
It will work good for our vine that runs around the ceiling. Rather than having a Christmas tree, we hang ornaments on the vine. The more secular ornaments stay up there all year long.
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Would You Buy This or Not will continue as long as there are things for sale noteworthy for their value or lack thereof. To see earlier posts of this sort (and Janie and I have put up nearly 100), do a tag search for "garage sale". Sort by "most discussed" and then scroll down looking for those written by "erroneous" (Ron for short).
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Comments: 37
And "One Hundred Years of Solitude": one can never have too many copies. Especially when you have so many books you can't find any of them.
Marianne, I wonder what sort of housing scheme would allow a mirror to take up that much space. I suppose it would be a vanity thing.
Sue, our house is so dusty - mea culpa solamente - that the decomposition of a few flowers wouldn't make any appreciable difference.
M M, I fully understand the need to make things for tourists to buy. Mixing it with religion seems a little strange, but I grew up trading an the lure of the mountains, which the Indians held sacred . . .
Good finds!
You know, when I was reading this and I got to the picture of you with the bullwinkle ears, I thought to myself, "that's him!" then I read your comment and laughed. They are really kind of cool!
The bike is great. Unfortunately I was not able to talk my daughter out of spending $120 for a used Peugeot yesterday. At least it's in great shape and reminds me of the Peugeot I bought with my summer job money in 1973. In fact, I paid $120 for mine too, but mine was brand new. Everyone here rides bikes so they are in demand. Maybe that's it.
The mirror is wonderful. I would have bought it. My daughter has been looking for a free standing full length mirror.
The rest of the stuff, I'd pass.
Teresa, I usually don't think of myself as practical, but in the case of that mirror I guess I am. I like mirrors and collect them whenever I can find them for free. I use them for wall covering in dark rooms - on the wall opposite the window.
Siouxy, you can get away cooking with aluminum, but never cook anything acidic in it. That means nothing with vitamin C, including cabbage, tomatoes, potatoes, oranges, etc (a lot of things have C . . . ). The acid breaks down the aluminum and it gets in the food. When it gets into your body it has nowhere to go because it's an unnatural substance. It tends to build up in your body rather than getting passed on. Sorry. Of course, like global warming or reparations, you'll find someone to disagree with me - especially on the internet : )
Irene, I think rock collectors appreciate the stone spheres. This resembles serpentine, but it isn't that, I know.
To elaborate on this selling of souvenirs based on holy places, my family not only had a gift shop in the most revered valley for the Ute indians, we also sold a whole lot of "authentic" rubber tomahawks over the years.
I need to go through my junk and have a garage sale. I have too many collections that I hate to part with.
Helen, bottles like this date from before the enameled, or "painted" sodas. They tend to have more shape, or architecture, incorporated in their design. This one has a date of 1948 on the bottom. Janie and I would have yard sales regularly, if we didn't live on the 15th floor . . .
Anodized aluminum (think Calphalon) has a hardened surface and is nonreactive. So are glass and stainless steel.
Ron, make sure your cooktop Pyrex is stovetop-safe. (Check out the old percolators and disembowel them). And no cooking oven-safe Pyrex at a temperature above 385 degrees.
Don't put it under the broiler.
Perhaps Pyrex has changed, but if you're shopping at yard sales, be very careful.
Sometimes the end of the year sales are the best. Desperation to rid your house of clutter makes for great deals for the buyers.
It's getting late in the season Elizabeth. Every week is different and some of the community sales earlier on were incredible.
Roxanne, if I had a shop or better way of moving merchandise, I might check the end of sales.
Roxanne, the mirror was a great deal for anyone into that sort of thing. Though I had no interest myself, I couldn't pass on a picture.
I live for garage sales like you would have, Joanne!
Thank you, Kim. It's amazing how much the character of a household comes through in the yard sale contents.