I have frequented yard sales and estate sales with my mom for years. I still remember the first time I went to an estate sale and saw my mom rummaging through some poor old dead lady's linen drawer. I was shocked at the invasion of privacy. Poor old lady who probably cherished her things more than anything in the world. That is, of course, until I saw a complete Mikasa china set for less than $50 and then it was "to hell with the old lady". There is nothing like a good deal at a good estate sale.
It is absolutely amazing what people will do for a good deal. Black Fridays are a good example. People who complain about having to wake up early to beat rush hour on a daily basis actually wake up at 3AM so they can buy a toaster for a dollar. Then I have friends, (one in particular and you know who you are) who once a year gets together with other shopping hungry women and spend the entire day (yes, the entire day) shopping. They are at Ikea before it opens and they end their day at a Walmart that closes at midnight. Before baby I would have probably said that I would rather clean port-a-potties but now that I am a mom I think of the great parking space I could get at Ikea at 9AM.
This is what happens...baby pops out and you need to go shopping...its like an itch.
So I have weathered Black Fridays, Cyber Mondays, Yard sales, Garage sales, estate sales, auctions, clearance sales, you name it...but nothing had prepared me for a children's consignment sale.
Back in the fall of last year, my friend Jenny had mentioned this consignment sale (they do them twice a year) but since I was only pregnant (no baby yet) I didn't make it there until 12:50 and it ended at 1PM so there was nothing left (remember no baby, no deep rooted urge to go shopping). Last weekend, however, was the spring consignment sale and Jenny and I made plans to attend this one together. She had mentioned that I should bring bags and get there early but she failed to mention that madness and chaos that was about to ensue within the walls of this normally peaceful little church.
Sale goes from 8AM to 1PM. Jenny had told me to be there early so I woke up (ha ha ha...woke up...ha ha ha....like I get any sleep to begin with) let me rephrase that, so I handed the rug-rat to hubby, picked up Starbucks at the crack of dawn and was at the church by 7:30AM. Obviously there were already a million people there waiting in line like they are handing out money. I, however, was prepared...I had my coffee, I had my bags. I was good, until the doors opened.
Everyone pushed their way in to this crammed up little room full of racks of clothes and tables covered in toys and here I am holding a darn cup of coffee (freaking Starbucks addiction) when I needed both hands TO GRAB EVERYTHING I COULD AS FAST AS POSSIBLE. People were pushing each other to make it to the shoe bin. Women were screaming at their husbands to grab as many games as possible. It was absolutely chaos. I gulped my coffee and joined the madness pushing and shoving my way through the crowd to make it to the 0-3 month old boy's clothes rack. I am still sore from having wire hangers and elbows shoved into me. I managed to make my way downstairs where the "big ticket items" are. In baby world these are strollers, play pens, bouncers, walkers, and swings. Sigh... I remember when big ticket items at sale were Coach bags at 70% off.
So how did I make out? I bought about $400 worth of stuff for about $60 bucks. $60 BUCKS!!!! YES AIDEN, YOUR MOTHER ROCKS!
|
|  |
I must say that now I am hooked and for those of you who have never attended a children's consignment sale, here are a few tips:
1) Be there early. There is no need to be there at 4AM, but be there by opening time. Most people who attend consignment sales are experts and know exactly what the good deals are. If you are late you wont find crap.
2) Free your hands. Dont bring coffees, phone, wallets, or anything that you have to actively hold in your hands. If you cant slip your cash in your bra like I do, then bring a purse you can sling over your neck. Leave your hands for the grabbin.
3) Bring empty bags. They can be supermarket bags or if you are on a green kick, canvas bags, but for the love of God, bring a bag. Some sales do not provide bags and you can buy more things if you have a way of carrying them.
4) Dont bring kids. They are annoying in these sales plus it could be dangerous. People are like savages in these sales so having little kids running around is not very safe. If you must bring a kid, keep a good grip on them. I personally would not want my kid in that chaos.
5) Head to the big ticket items first, buy what you need, take it to the car, then come for the small ticket items like clothes and small toys. It is hard to walk around while carrying a bouncer. I made the mistake of starting with clothes when I really wanted a jogging stroller. By the time I made it downstairs, all the jogging strollers were gone. :(
6) Park by the exit not the entrance (if they are different). When I got to the sale I noticed all the spots at the entrance were empty. I thought I made out until I came out of the sale lugging all my stuff and had to walk half a mile to make it to my car.
7) Bring cash. Some places may take checks but dont risk it. Only bring checks as a back up
If you have kids these consignment sales are definitely a good way to stock up on the kiddie items. Things are cheap and in good shape. I will warn you, however, that they can be stressful especially if you dont have the "I just had a baby shopping gene" I mentioned earlier. My husband would divorce me in a heartbeat if I forced him to come to these things. Below are some pictures I found online of consignment sales just to show you the massiveness of it all.
Now if after all of this, you still want to brave a children’s consignment sale, check out the following links. I bet I beat you to it.
http://www.kidsconsignmentsales.com/
No comments:
Post a Comment
Let me know what you think!