[ A repost from my "Around and About" blog, dated December 19, 2011 ]
Yesterday afternoon I had a yard sale in my driveway.
I cleaned out my room this Fall, found that I own WAY too many things, and figured I could one day just sell it or give it away. That ONE day became one month, then two months, and three months.. and finally, one bitter mid December day I decided: YES! TODAY will be that one day!
I was an avid collector of Vogue magazines at one point in High School and an antique book hoarder, so there was an entire box full of that stuff. I used to buy dresses that didn't fit, shoes that were too big, and jewel cases for cds that I burned, but now I dress smarter and have an ipod - so there was a whole other box of THAT stuff. Old dolls from when I was a kid, jewelry that I purchased for single use occasions, gifts I received that I didn't use/like/need, an assortment of ornate Asian table pieces, and a bag of old phone charges and odd wires that I accumulated over the years. This was pretty much the scheme of my yard sale tabletop.
I discovered a few things after dealing with my first customer:
#1 People don't want to pay a lot for anything.
#2 It's prime Christmas gift buying time... so people want to pay even LESS.
#3 Finding a flaw on any piece of merchandise, anywhere in the world, substantiates an automatic discount.
My first customer walked away with two mint condition, silver (I dare not say the brand name) watches for four dollars, because "Isn't the premise of a yard sale to get rid of your "junk" for a reasonable to minimal price?", I said to myself, convincingly.
My next customer walked away with a four drawer jewelry box, a small floral jewelry box, a silver brooch necklace, and one other item I can't remember for seven dollars, which SHOULD have been eight, but the woman was a dollar short and I had no change for a twenty. Now this time, I felt like I was robbed; by me. I couldn't attempt convincing myself this time. I literally gave away some really valuable things, both in a monetary and sentimental sense, for close to NOTHING that they were actually worth.
The next few passer bys either gazed over all my things and snuffed at the ridiculously inexpensive price, perhaps wishing I'd go lower, and walked away... or pulled over in their car and rolled by like a snail while looking at everything on the table, with not even a wave or an acknowledgement to the seller - ME - then picking up and driving off.
About two hours into the yard sale's start time, everything died down. No more customers, not even a lot of general traffic was passing by. Granted it was cold and it was a Sunday, I still held out hope for someone that would see my table as being worth more than three dollars an item. Had I given in to my original price setting, I certainly wouldn't have had a single customer...
My mother believes that it was the cold weather. Had it been the proper season for a yard sale, I would have been cleaned out. Another thing my mother said was: Typically, the sort of stuff that people sell are considered junk; your stuff isn't junk.
In the end, I closed shop early and said 'screw you' to the remaining two hours that I advertised being available for. It was too cold and I was getting too touchy about people judging and taking my things. I do have some pretty decent things in very good condition, and I wasn't going to sell them, or myself, short, just to save some space in my garage. I'm sure I can find people that would appreciate a gift or donation from my collection.
A note for my future self: Let's splurge on a delicious, expensive dinner or a luxurious hotel with an amazing buffet-style breakfast every now and again... no more spending money on stuff that causes clutter and self-loathing.
I cleaned out my room this Fall, found that I own WAY too many things, and figured I could one day just sell it or give it away. That ONE day became one month, then two months, and three months.. and finally, one bitter mid December day I decided: YES! TODAY will be that one day!
I was an avid collector of Vogue magazines at one point in High School and an antique book hoarder, so there was an entire box full of that stuff. I used to buy dresses that didn't fit, shoes that were too big, and jewel cases for cds that I burned, but now I dress smarter and have an ipod - so there was a whole other box of THAT stuff. Old dolls from when I was a kid, jewelry that I purchased for single use occasions, gifts I received that I didn't use/like/need, an assortment of ornate Asian table pieces, and a bag of old phone charges and odd wires that I accumulated over the years. This was pretty much the scheme of my yard sale tabletop.
I discovered a few things after dealing with my first customer:
#1 People don't want to pay a lot for anything.
#2 It's prime Christmas gift buying time... so people want to pay even LESS.
#3 Finding a flaw on any piece of merchandise, anywhere in the world, substantiates an automatic discount.
My first customer walked away with two mint condition, silver (I dare not say the brand name) watches for four dollars, because "Isn't the premise of a yard sale to get rid of your "junk" for a reasonable to minimal price?", I said to myself, convincingly.
My next customer walked away with a four drawer jewelry box, a small floral jewelry box, a silver brooch necklace, and one other item I can't remember for seven dollars, which SHOULD have been eight, but the woman was a dollar short and I had no change for a twenty. Now this time, I felt like I was robbed; by me. I couldn't attempt convincing myself this time. I literally gave away some really valuable things, both in a monetary and sentimental sense, for close to NOTHING that they were actually worth.
The next few passer bys either gazed over all my things and snuffed at the ridiculously inexpensive price, perhaps wishing I'd go lower, and walked away... or pulled over in their car and rolled by like a snail while looking at everything on the table, with not even a wave or an acknowledgement to the seller - ME - then picking up and driving off.
About two hours into the yard sale's start time, everything died down. No more customers, not even a lot of general traffic was passing by. Granted it was cold and it was a Sunday, I still held out hope for someone that would see my table as being worth more than three dollars an item. Had I given in to my original price setting, I certainly wouldn't have had a single customer...
My mother believes that it was the cold weather. Had it been the proper season for a yard sale, I would have been cleaned out. Another thing my mother said was: Typically, the sort of stuff that people sell are considered junk; your stuff isn't junk.
In the end, I closed shop early and said 'screw you' to the remaining two hours that I advertised being available for. It was too cold and I was getting too touchy about people judging and taking my things. I do have some pretty decent things in very good condition, and I wasn't going to sell them, or myself, short, just to save some space in my garage. I'm sure I can find people that would appreciate a gift or donation from my collection.
A note for my future self: Let's splurge on a delicious, expensive dinner or a luxurious hotel with an amazing buffet-style breakfast every now and again... no more spending money on stuff that causes clutter and self-loathing.
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