One thing I’m a bit jealous of during quarantine is the purging that many people have done as evidenced by curbside piles. I’ve been working full time during COVID so have not really had the luxury of more time to do this.
BUT, I have noticed that a “perk” has been lots of “free-cycling”- people putting things at the curb - even single items - that are not needed and free for the taking. Sometimes people put things on our neighborhood FB page - nearly always someone scoops them up - free fencing, play equipment, furniture, etc. Often still in good condition just not needed anymore.
To me this is a pleasant “side effect” of quarantine. Like one sided bartering.
Have you picked put out any items or picked up any items that have found a new home??? Is this practice something done in your neighborhood?
One thing I gave away: I had a child sized wood and cloth beach chair - very cute with a white/blue striped fabric. I saw a family on a bike ride haul it away. A couple days later while on a walk, I saw it in a family’s front yard right next to two adult sized adirondacks. So cute!
One thing I rescued: a old style adirondack chair. One seat board was missing. Otherwise solid and good looking. Brought it home, H fixed the board, D2 sanded and gave it a fresh coat of paint and now it’s on her front porch.
Yesterday my son picked up a 70’s Magnavox stereo console, octagon shape. As he loaded it in his car (barely could lift it!!) the home owner pulled in the drive and said it worked perfectly - his grown sons didn’t want it anymore. Turns out it works like a charm and is considered vintage - which S likes.
My D and her H have very little money. Plus, playgrounds are closed. She was able to score a climbing gym/slide structure for her toddler for free, plus bikes for her. D has always been a whiz at getting free stuff, but lack of money and inability to find a job in this pandemic has really upped her game.
Our town has a Buy Nothing page on fb. I gave someone a bread maker. I then posted on the local parents group fb page, wondering if anyone had seen hair cutting shears. I couldn’t order any online for almost a month. Lo and behold, the woman I gave the bread maker to saw my post. Turns out she’s a salon rep and GAVE me a pair of pro shears that would sell for over $200. We’ve done four haircuts with them, including my own hair.
A friend of mine is a total expert at curbside scrounging. Her entire house and yard has an eclectic vibe, and it WORKS. At my house, it would look like a storage room.
I have a large dog crate that friends gave us, but our beagle doesn’t like it. Was going to put it out on the curb, but figured noone would take it til after COVID. Maybe I should give it a shot!
You guys are inspiring me to try this with some decent, but unwanted, furniture. We live in a rural area where there are people who can repair anything.
Last week, my husband broke the axle on his very old tractor mower, and he texted a few friends that he would sell it for $100 to the first taker. A guy came and picked it up, then had it repaired and working that afternoon.
And now my husband gets to buy the $$$$ mower he has had his eye on for ages…
D and I cleaned out our attic over Memorial Day weekend. We put a ton of stuff on our front lawn with a huge free sign and got rid of almost everything. Most were things we definitely could’ve sold (beds, rug, tables, sport equipment, toys) it felt great to give it all away.
@CountingDown I think that dog crate will go! People will just take it, let it sit for a couple of days just like we do groceries or packages and then clean it up and use it.
If you create a Buy Nothing page on fb, people will take everything. We’ve goon rid of a lot of other stuff this way. In fact, people now post to see if anyone is giving away the thing they need.
Nextdoor and neighborhood for sale FB groups are great to get rid of stuff. I got rid of a spare dog crate this summer in under 5 minutes. “Free” on anything In my neighborhood will disappear very quickly.
We’ve been cleaning out the kids rooms and had a lot of board games, dvds and the like that we didn’t need any more. Posted on our local facebook yard sale page for free and most stuff was gone within the day.
D is moving. She was very successful in selling most of her furniture and odds and ends.
Right the FB pages have been in action for years and has been a good way to get rid of stuff. I’m talking about the literally curb side exchange. This morning on my run I saw 2 perfectly good dining room chairs at curbside. When I circled back around, they were already gone!
On Buy Nothing, I gave away a bunch of knock-off doll clothes for American Girl dolls. The grandma who took the clothes for her granddaughter later texted me a pic of the little girl with her dolls, all wearing the new clothes. It was so cute.
Meanwhile, another parent asked if there was any REAL American Girl stuff to part with. My daughter, who will be moving out in a few months, had plenty of stuff she wanted to sell. (My daughter actually purchased a lot of her own AG toys, including a doll, with money she saved from allowance, etc…) I put the woman in touch with my daughter, who ended up making about $200 selling some of her AG things. The woman was thrilled and so was my daughter. So giving away the doll clothes got my daughter some much needed cash.
We have also given away my son’s ancient skateboard ramps, lots of books, art supplies, and many other things. Other than my cutting shears, I haven’t taken anything though. I still have a lot to get rid of.
I’m sure someone will grab the dog crate. My D just bought one for $20 for her growing puppy. Her boyfriend works for a company that has a great page for employees and friends and family to sell or give away stuff. They have gotten a lot of great deals.
I’m hunting for a dining room table that I can put in my sewing room for when I quilt large pieces. Ideally, my current kitchen table would be perfect, but where would we eat? Knowing how DH and I make decisions about big purchases, it will take us a couple years to decide on a replacement. Because I’m high risk, rescuing a table will have to wait a while.
OTOH, there is an old bike that needs TLC sitting on the screened porch that can also go to the free curb!
Our city has a yearly trash pick up for large items. Much is not junk. It’s great to see drivers scoping the neighborhood and saving about 1/2 of items from the landfills. When budget was tight, the city stopped pick up and only offered large dumpsters once a year. That was sad, as it all went to a landfill, not to mention far less convenient to drag to a center location.
In our area, if you advertise anything for free,it will be gone the next day. If you try to sell a $50 (or more) value item for $10, it will either sit, or you’ll be asked if you will take $5. Easier to donate or freecycle.
The old metal file cabinet that I dragged to the curb yesterday was gone when I woke up, even though it was covered with stickers from radio stations and bars from my son’s college town.
