Apron Thrift Girl

Share Exchange Clothing Swap

We are lucky to have what we call The Share Exchange in Santa Rosa, California. This is a fantastic and inspiring model that includes frugality, thrifty living and community building in the Share Exchange.

Here's what they are about:

"The Share Exchange Innovation and Incubation Center is Sonoma County’s first coworking space. We offer an affordable place to work during the day and hold community events in the evening. 

In addition to having a physical cowork and event space, we are big proponents of LOCAL and SHARING. Often these things can save money and resources.

As such, we are home to the first Made Local Marketplace where everything in our store is made here in Sonoma County. We represent almost 200 local artisans!

If you are short on money, you'll be interested in the Sonoma County Time Exchange which is an hour-for-hour exchange of services.

We find effective resource sharing tools and promote them locally:

Rentalic -- peer to peer sharing of goods

Urban Garden Share -- matching urban farmers with land owners

Neighborhood Fruit -- helps you find and share fruit locally

Santa Rosa Tool Library -- a local lending library for all kinds of tools

This coming Saturday they are having a Clothing, Jewelry, Book and Exercise Gear Exchange. For a small fee of $5.00 you can bring a bag of good, usable items and trade them for something New To You.

I love the entire concept of Share Exchange and hopefully will attend the Swap this Saturday.

Do you have something like this in your community?

Store Closing Sales

Various Flea Market / Craft Fair Supplies

There are those moments while thrifting that I really try to suppress some of my emotions. I do this often at Estate Sales. When I arrive at a home of someone who has died you see their entire life around you. You see their clothing still hanging in the closet, you see their collection of perfume they may have had since they were a young bride, or there may even be food still in the pantry. I do try to connect with the previous owner and piece together a little of their life in my mind. I also whisper small words of gratitude as I shop when I find something that is dear to me. I don't shop in an oblivious bubble that these things didn't once belong to someone full of life.

Today I stopped by a toy store in Petaluma that is closing it's doors in the next few weeks. I love to shop a Store Closing sale and yet at the same time, I don't like it. It's so sad to see someones dream and passion end. I realize that sometimes they go on to better things but often, especially in this economy, they close because they can't stay in the black. Each time a physical store closes, we lose something that is part of our local community.

With that said though, Store Closing sales can be a very good source for inventory, fixtures and supplies. The items above: spinning rack, bracelet display, ring display, jewelry holder, and table sign holders came to $20. They will be a part of my upcoming Flea Market booth.

The thing that I try to do when shopping at a family estate run sale and a Store Closing sale is to be respectful and kind. They deserve that much.

How to find a Store Closing Sale?

A great source for finding Store Closing sales is Craigslist. I simply type in Store Closing into the search bar and typically 5-10 listings appear. Sometimes you can get an idea of price in the individual listing. Another suggestion is reading your local paper, especially if the establishment has been in the community for years. The other way is by word of mouth. What's been your best find from a Store Closing sale?

By the way, the store in Petaluma has a lot of Manequin supplies which are great when taking photos of clothes. If you'd like the address, please email me.

Did you enter for the Shoppee App Giveaway?

Here are the winners:

Here are your random numbers:

12 domestic diva 
21 Pamela 
27 JosephineTomato
19 Amy Stark
5 Leah
2 Karen Therese
10 Melissa
24 Karen
11 Shana Stein
23 Heather

Timestamp: 2012-01-26 13:46:38 UTC

If the winners could email me, I'll send you your free codes for the App.

Here are your random numbers:

12
21
27
6
5
6
10
24
11
23

Timestamp: 2012-01-26 13:46:38 UTC

Thrift Share Monday - January 23

Cathrineholm Bowls

It was a very wet weekend in Sonoma County. After a couple months of sunny and sometimes warm days the rain was very welcomed. It also meant that there were only a few sales to attend. I did go to one on Friday where I found a set of Cathrineholm Lotus Bowls.

Set of 3

They are in beautiful condition, so yellow and very cheerful. They can do really well on eBay and Etsy. This set on eBay sold for $172. Some of the rarer colors are the blue & white, pink & white and orange & white. I think this set might do well because it includes 3 pieces.

Mercury Glass Beads

These were from a few weeks ago but I found them in my Office Reorganization of 2012 and just can't resist how beautiful they are.

Last week I decided to simply clear my desk off and ended up rearranging my entire office. Does that happen to any of you? I do like the change though and each step forward with organization helps me feel more efficient in my job.

This is my first full week back to work since the children got out for winter break in December. Cerys finally goes back to school and I can finally start working on eBay again. I posted a recipe on Flavorstitch for an Immune Boosting Smoothie that I gave to Cerys every day.

Here's to a productive and healthy week for all of us.

Did you go thrifting this weekend?

Thrift Share Monday celebrates the Art of Thrifting. As a community of readers and bloggers we are able to connect through the process of buying second hand, selling and sharing.

We Thrift  - We Share

Here are some guidelines if you would like to join Thrift Share:

• Your Thrift Share Monday blog post should include your thrifted finds from the weekend.
• Create a blog post with photos of your items.
• Link your Thrift Share Monday post back to Apron Thrift Girl.
• Link to your Thrift Share Monday post on Apron Thrift Girl using inlinkz below.
• If you participate with Thrift Share Monday regularly, please add a button to your side bar so that we can build our Thrift Share Community.

Don't forget to visit Her Library Adventures for Flea Market Finds.

Shoppee App Review & Giveaway

Shoppee - Smarter Shopping Made Easy

Last Fall when Dave and I sat down to reexamine our monthly expenses, food was what we spent the most on after rent. Living an organic, holistic and gluten free lifestyle doesn't come cheap in our daily lives. Although I will add that this is an investment in our bodies and our future and so for us it's worth every penny. Dave is in his 40's and I am in my 30's and we aren't on one single prescription drug and we are rarely sick. I feel that both of those facts help with our healthy diet.

So how does one stay frugal and healthy? It's an ongoing challenge. I have to shop smartly and I achieve this by using the Shoppee App. I know that many of you are Amy Dacyczyn fans and still remember her infamous Price Book. I myself had one up until this last year but I always found it tricky to use and cumbersome.  Trying to juggle shopping with children and writing down prices and ounces was just plain difficult.  Thankfully price books can now come in the form of an App. I researched for the best app on-line as well as looking at the apps themselves on my iphone.

Shoppee was the closest thing to Amy's price book that I could find.

I now use it every time that I shop whether it is on-line at Amazon, at Costco, visiting the Grocery Outlet, ordering from Azure Standard or shopping in our local grocery store. Finding the lowest price is one of my key goals when buying food.

 
Here's a screen shot from the Shoppee App website. You are able to look at individual stores to see what items that you have purchased there, the size and for what price.

This is my favorite screen because you can bring up an item such as milk and make a direct comparison on price and size.

From this image you can see the price of milk per gallon. Both Aldi and Coscto are the same price while milk at Giant Eagle is the most expensive. When I am adding new items that I purchased under the individual store item, I'm able to type in information in the Notes field. I will often add that the price is a Sale price.

My favorite store in all of Sonoma County is a fabulous local company called Oliver's Market. When something is on sale at Oliver's it isn't just 25¢ or 50¢ off but sometimes it's as much as $4 off. A few times a year Oliver's sells Napa Valley Organic Oliver Oil 25.4 ounces for $7.99. This is an amazing price. I'm able to go into Shoppee and see that most stores sell this size from at least $12 and more. This tells me to buy and stock up for at least 4 months.

This app can be useful for any size of food budget. The App is only $1.99.

When I contacted Shoppee to let them know that I wanted to write a post on their fabulous App they generously offered me 10 apps to giveaway to my readers.

This app is for anyone with an iPhone or the iPod touch. It should work on an iPad as well but it will be a small screen.

Would you like to win one?

Please share your a tip on saving money while grocery shopping.

If you'd like some extra entries please comment separately for each one to let me know that you:

• Stumbled this post
• Tweeted about the Giveaway
• Shared on Facebook
• ReBlogged about the Giveaway

I'll announce the 10 winners next Thursday, January 26th.

**Amazon Affiliated Link is included in this post which helps support Apron Thrift Girl

Buttons for Sale - SOLD

These are from my own personal collection. They lost their home as I needed the vintage set of drawers that they were living in for another project that I'll share with you very soon. I figure it is time to sell them as I continue to downsize my collections.

I was planning to sell them next fall at the Waldorf Winter Faire but I thought I'd offer them here first in case anyone is interested. I'm asking $25 (SOLD) for all of them plus shipping. I was planning to sell them for $3 each at the Faire so it does include a small discount. If they are light enough to go by airmail (US) I'll ship them for free.

A facebook reader has claimed them. Thank you!

Thrift Share Monday - January 16

Metal Sculpture

Estate Sales have begun to pick up in our area. There were probably 6 in total this last weekend. I was still nursing Cerys back to health so I had to miss all the Friday sales. I did manage to get to a couple on Saturday including the one where I picked up this fab sculpture. It isn't signed but does look similar to Curtis Jere's Raindrop Tree. It may be a copy of one of his sculptures. I have plans to sell it but for now it will be enjoyed in our living room on top of our mid century modern stereo cabinet.

Vintage Notebook 25¢

I still can't resist vintage notepaper, especially for this price. Many of my vintage stationary supplies sold very well and quickly at the Waldorf Winter Faire. I'm going to collect these through the year and sell them next December. I'm hoping to be a vendor at a few more Waldorf schools this year to help with my 2012 financial savings goal.

Brookstone Pool Table $10

I want to discuss children and money a bit more in depth but for now I'll quickly share that on Sunday when Keiran and I were at Costco, he found a Cars 2 activity book that he desperately wanted. He had some money that his grandmother had given him before she travelled home to England. I asked if he wanted to spend $7.99 on the book.

The difference in a child's thought process when it is their money or "mom buys it for me" is night and day. He placed the book in the cart and then said to me "no I don't think I'll buy it" and went and put it back. A couple months ago he begged me to buy this poorly made table top pool table. It was a piece of junk so I stood strong and said no and that we'll wait for a better one. Yesterday at a yard sale we found it. Brookstone doesn't seem to sell these any more so I have no idea of the original price. Amazon has a folding mini pool table for $149. Ours is very solid though and last night it was played with for at least three hours. As I type this Dave and Keiran are playing on it again. I'm so glad that I said no to the junky one.

The lesson that I am teaching Keiran in delayed satisfaction is priceless.

Did you go thrifting this weekend?

Thrift Share Monday celebrates the Art of Thrifting. As a community of readers and bloggers we are able to connect through the process of buying second hand, selling and sharing.

We Thrift  - We Share

Here are some guidelines if you would like to join Thrift Share:

• Your Thrift Share Monday blog post should include your thrifted finds from the weekend.
• Create a blog post with photos of your items.
• Link your Thrift Share Monday post back to Apron Thrift Girl.
• Link to your Thrift Share Monday post on Apron Thrift Girl using inlinkz below.
• If you participate with Thrift Share Monday regularly, please add a button to your side bar so that we can build our Thrift Share Community.

Don't forget to visit Her Library Adventures for Flea Market Finds.

**Amazon Affiliated Link is included in this post which helps support Apron Thrift Girl

Did you go thrifting this weekend?

Thrift Share Monday celebrates the Art of Thrifting. As a community of readers and bloggers we are able to connect through the process of buying second hand, selling and sharing.

We Thrift  - We Share

Here are some guidelines if you would like to join Thrift Share:

• Your Thrift Share Monday blog post should include your thrifted finds from the weekend.
• Create a blog post with photos of your items.
• Link your Thrift Share Monday post back to Apron Thrift Girl.
• Link to your Thrift Share Monday post on Apron Thrift Girl using inlinkz below.
• If you participate with Thrift Share Monday regularly, please add a button to your side bar so that we can build our Thrift Share Community.

Don't forget to visit Her Library Adventures for Flea Market Finds.

Savers - Martin Luther King Day Sale

Savers - Martin Luther King Day Sale

"In honor of the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday, on Monday, January 16, all Savers thrift stores will offer 50 percent off. With more than 100,000 items on the sales floor at any given time, and 5,000 new items added daily, Savers is a mecca for shoppers seeking value-priced treasures. January is an especially good time to stop into Savers as many cleared out their closets and donated goods around the holidays to make room for new gifts."

I used to love going to the sales on Monday holidays when I lived up north in Washington. My nearest Savers is about an hour and a half away so I will be missing out but I hope that many of you can take advantage of this sale. And that you'll be sharing your finds on Thrift Share Monday of course.

Here's a link to find your closest Savers store.

Have a fabulous Thrifting weekend.

xoxo

Selena

Craft Books SOLD

Craft books for sale

Handmade Hellos
Handmade Soirees
Vintage Style - Cath Kidston (small tear on cover)
Dozens of ways to repurpose a pillowcase
Pretty little pincushions

$30 for all (plus shipping) SOLD Thanks!

turning 12

Cerys turning 12

What a difference a year makes to someone turning 12 rather than 11. This year I could barely wake her up to come to breakfast on her birthday. She found it difficult to smile as she opened her gifts. She didn't want the "birthday fairies" to come but last minute (once we were asleep) she sneaked out and decorated her own table with fairy decor. She is done with American Girl, Dolls, Dress-up, Wooden Toys and playmobile and instead loves Selena Gomez CD's and books of any kind.

Yesterday around lunchtime I got a call from the school letting me know that Cerys didn't feel well and that she needed to be picked up. On her birthday.

Last Minute Healthy-ish Birthday Cake

When our children are sick we take them off all sugar and begin to make their immune systems stronger with herbs, remedies and healing food. Cerys was crushed when I explained that her original chocolate cake with vanilla frosting would be put on hold until she was better.  We compromised and decided to have Pamela's Gluten Free Cornbread with a honey spread. I buy it by the case.

At the last second though I found this amazing recipe for honey frosting.

Ingredients      * 1 1/4 cup Honey     * 2  egg whites     * 1/4 teaspoon salt          * 1 teaspoon vanilla

Directions  1. Heat honey in a saucepan, over very low heat, stirring occasionally.    2. In a large bowl, combine egg whites, salt, and vanilla; beat with an electric mixer until the egg whites are stiff, but not dry.   3. Slowly pour honey into the stiffened egg whites, while beating at a low speed.  4. When all honey is combined, crank up the mixer speed to high and beat for 7-10 minutes, or until the mixture has stiffened back up. Recipe by SunnyBella. Since the cornbread was smaller than a cake I simply made half of the recipe. It was perfect. I won't mention how many spoonfuls of icing that I enjoyed.

The frosting was a soft, decadent meringue with a lovely taste of honey. It was delicious and Cerys actually told me that it was the best cake that she's ever had. It was kind of odd to have something so rich on top of corn bread but it kind of worked. And it made my 12 year old smile and I couldn't ask for more.

**Amazon Affiliated Link is included in this post which helps support Apron Thrift Girl

Thrift Share Monday - January 9

Vintage Park Lane Necklace featuring a Mod Fox

It's a little strange to go from work overload (aka before Christmas) to slow down (aka Dec 26th) and now back to work today as the children head back to school. I have a mountain of work to do and am sitting here pondering where to start. Is anyone else feeling something similar?

Here's my to-do-list

1. make sure eBay store has all listings current
2. list a box of books on Amazon
3. clean off shipping table
4. ship all orders
5. clean office
6. work on back log of emails
7. prepare for Cerys's 12th birthday tomorrow

Do you have an up and running to do list?

Remember that typically lots of people still continue to shop in January. Buyers are looking for deals, others are looking to spend gift cards and certificates while other people are running on the shopping high they've had since before Christmas. It's a good idea to begin to refill your Etsy and eBay stores from all your holiday sales and take advantage of January buyers.

Thrifting wise I didn't do very well this last week. The best sale was miles away by the sea. I'm not very keen on driving on icy roads at 5 a.m. in the morning so I gave it a miss. I can't even think of one thing that I thrifted this weekend.

The fox necklace photos are from a sale that I hit last year. The estate sale was from a woman who used to be a representive of Park Lane Jewelry. There was so much NOS (new old stock). I now wished that I had purchased more but I do love the pieces that I found. Thanks Amy for sending me to the sale. There's nothing better than friends who call or email you telling you to go to a fab sale. Right?

Did you go thrifting this weekend?

Thrift Share Monday celebrates the Art of Thrifting. As a community of readers and bloggers we are able to connect through the process of buying second hand, selling and sharing.

We Thrift  - We Share

Here are some guidelines if you would like to join Thrift Share:

• Your Thrift Share Monday blog post should include your thrifted finds from the weekend.
• Create a blog post with photos of your items.
• Link your Thrift Share Monday post back to Apron Thrift Girl.
• Link to your Thrift Share Monday post on Apron Thrift Girl using inlinkz below.
• If you participate with Thrift Share Monday regularly, please add a button to your side bar so that we can build our Thrift Share Community.

Don't forget to visit Her Library Adventures for Flea Market Finds.

Vintage Quilt - SOLD

Vintage quilt for sale. It needs some small repairs but is in overall good condition. Most of it appears hand sewn with some machine stitches on the hem. Looks the perfect size for a double bed. Some light stains.

Asking $25 plus shipping. First one to reply with a commitment to buy. Thanks so much. The Quilt is now sold. Thank you for your interest!

After Christmas Sales

Since there hasn't been many garage sales or estate sales I've been doing a little shopping online to take advantage of the after Christmas sales. I was excited to find that Crate and Barrel was selling red and white baker's twine for $4.95. I wasn't completely sure how much I was ordering although 2300 feet sounded like a lot. When they arrived yesterday I was kicking myself for not buying more. I was going to share this with you yesterday but when I went back on the site, I discovered that they were sold out.

I'd suggest looking in the stores in case they have any left. I wrap most of my orders with tissue paper and tie it with Baker's Twine. This is probably my favorite sale find if the season.

Do you have a favorite sale item to share?

Bubble Wrap® Appreciation Day

Bubble Wrap® Appreciation Day

This is one of the days that I look forward to most during the year. Well at least the ReSeller in me does. This is the day that I stock up on Bubble Wrap® for the entire year. Last year I ordered 5 large rolls and as I type this I'm on my last roll. I didn't think I'd make it through Christmas but luckily there is about a 1/4 of a roll left which might get me through the rest of the month.

Here are the details from their website: Fastpack's 8th Annual Bubble Wrap® Appreciation Day is January 30, 2012, and lasts for 24 hours! All products listed on this page will be offered with Free Shipping! Sale starts at 12:01am EST on January 30, 2012 and ends 24 hours later."

The rolls come in different colors. I love the blue and purple the best. Sometimes I order red and green. I like to shake things up a bit and sometimes order 1 roll of each color. I've had a few costumers write to me to compliment the colored Bubble Wrap®.

Last year I ordered 5 rolls that each measured 230 feet long by 12 inches wide. Each roll cost me $17.45 which equals around 7 cents a sheet. (I'm not sure if the price will be higher this year or not. This price above reflects the 2011 sale cost)

Amazon has a box of Scotch Bubble Wrap that measures 100 feet. Their price is $15.99 and includes free shipping if you are a Prime member. Their cost would be .16 cents a sheet.

What's the quality like? I'd probably consider it to be good quality. Not brilliant but not poor. Sometimes it doesn't tear neatly especially if I'm leaning over 3 boxes of packing peanuts to get to the wrap. Perhaps that tells more about my tearing skills than the quality of the wrap. I do find that it works perfectly for the glassware that I wrap. I've not had anything arrive broken or damaged.

Now the best kept secret about the Bubble Wrap® is the enjoyment the children get the day that a tower of Bubble Wrap® is waiting for them outside the front door. The Bubble Wrap® usually hangs around a few days in the living room. They Bubble Wrap® arrives with a thick, clear, plastic wrap around it. The kids tend to bowl with them, make tall towers, roll on them and laugh as they bounce them off each other.

For more Bubble Wrap® fun take a look at this link!

**disclosure - I wrote this post because I love BWAD. I didn't get any compensation for sharing this. The Amazon link is an affiliate link which helps support Apron Thrift Girl.

Thrift Share Monday - Balance in 2012

a photo Keiran took of a balancing game that he thrifted

It's been 7 months since Dave began working in San Francisco. From morning until 7pm, Monday-Friday, I look after the children, drive them to school & pick them up, feed them, care for them when they are sick, look after the house (well sort of) and somehow manage to work at home ReSelling. Dave arrives home and it feels like a mad dash to get him fed, get Keiran to bed and somehow find an hour for us to spend together after the children have gone to sleep. It's not the life that I had imagined in some ways but we are grateful that he has a job that he loves, a good salary and of course health insurance.

We make it work.

This holiday season when I slowed down I realized how the busy season has taken a toll on me. Then I asked my bookseller friends in a private email group that I take part in about the condition of their homes. We all laughed together as we realized that inventory was everywhere, packing peanuts littered our offices, and chaos was generally everywhere.

I talk a lot about balance on ATG because it's something that I constantly strive to achieve. It's not like we have a normal job where we have to be at an office at 9am and leave at 5pm (if that exists anymore). Many people can leave their jobs at their place of work. I had people email me on Christmas demanding feedback for something on eBay. Seriously? They had nothing better to do than chase me for feedback on Christmas?

At this point, my entire house is clean and pretty much organized. Except my office which always takes a hit when I am cleaning the rest of the house. As you know cleaning a home means shuffling and moving many things into other rooms. There is still inventory in the rest of the house, but it is is tidy and clearly marked bins. The garage I'm planning to work on next.

My key to balance in 2012 is to continue to stay organized. This way I can keep my life in balance. And keep Facebook at bay. A life that is organized and balance will be more profitable for my ReSelling business.

What is your number one goal for 2012?

Did you go thrifting this weekend?

Thrift Share Monday celebrates the Art of Thrifting. As a community of readers and bloggers we are able to connect through the process of buying second hand, selling and sharing.

We Thrift  - We Share

Here are some guidelines if you would like to join Thrift Share:

• Your Thrift Share Monday blog post should include your thrifted finds from the weekend.
• Create a blog post with photos of your items.
• Link your Thrift Share Monday post back to Apron Thrift Girl.
• Link to your Thrift Share Monday post on Apron Thrift Girl using inlinkz below.
• If you participate with Thrift Share Monday regularly, please add a button to your side bar so that we can build our Thrift Share Community.

Don't forget to visit Her Library Adventures for Flea Market Finds.

Repost - Closing Down Your Business for 2011

                                             Dala Horse sold $24.95

Below is a repost from last year about how to close down your business for the year. I had a reader ask me about taxes and whether I do them. It's a great question because there are a lot of ReSellers that don't. My mother used to be a bookkeeper though so not doing taxes would leave me with all kind of guilt both from my mother and from dodging the government. This year, if you make a certain amount of money in sales, Amazon, Alibris and Paypal will have sent you an email asking for your social security number because the government is requiring them to do so. It will be a lot harder to avoid paying taxes. Taxes give me an excuse to really understand my business. I get to learn how much I spent and even better yet, how much I made. Although I don't like crunching numbers, I love the final moment when all is revealed.

Here is the 2010 post with a few changes.

Are you ready to close down your business for the year? Here's what I do in preparation for taxes:

• create a new 2012 Excel Spreadsheet for all my selling venues that include books, eBay, Etsy and misc sales. I usually make a copy the current spreadsheet and then delete all the sales and item details. I'll name the file ReSelling 2012.
• Count all inventory in house and garage. Some of this data is on my computer and some needs to be counted manually. Many items I will have stuck a small post-it note with the details of where I bought it, how much I paid and the date.
• Print off all eBay invoices for the year. Click on My eBay, Click on My Account, Click on Select Invoice (right hand side). I print off January 2011-December 2011. Organized sellers might do this every month but I tend to wait until the end of the year.
• Print off Etsy Bills for the year. Click on Your Etsy, Click on Your Etsy Bill. Click on each Month to see your bill.  You can also download files but I prefer to print off directly from Etsy.
• Print off Paypal 2011 Financial Summary. Click on Report under the History Tab. Click on 2011 Financial Summary. 
• Place all Thrift Store Receipts in Business Purchases manila envelope. Place Business Expense Receipts in Manila Envelope. Place all Mileage information in Manila Envelope. Place all Travel Expense Receipts in Manila Envelope.

As a disclaimer, this above is how I handle my business end of year. I'm not a qualified financial adviser or accountant and the best advice I can give is to contact someone qualified for detailed information on how to close our your business for the year. Since I made more money than previous years and because I don't like bookkeeping like my mother, I'm considering hiring a bookkeeper for my business. The ReSelling business can be very complicated since it is often spread out over many venues.

Here is a fabulous post from A La Modern on ReSelling & Taxes.

Because January is such a good month for ReSelling, I don't normally tally up my sales and do tax preparation until February when sales slow down. February has always been my month to catch up on paperwork. I'm really looking forward to figuring out how much I sold in 2011 with my record months in November and December. Have you been adding up your ReSelling sales? I'm hoping to sell even more in 2012 and look forward to getting started next week. I have much bigger goals in 2012 and working efficiently and in an organized fashion is the first step for me.

I'll be back on Monday, January 2nd with Thrift Share Monday. There are luckily a few sales tomorrow morning. Thankfully because I'm not sure how much more of this dry spell that I can handle.

Happy New Year everyone!

ReSelling - using a photo light tent

Italian Yarn - Thrifted for $15 (entire lot)

My kind parents gave me a photo tent for Christmas. It was at the top of my wish list and I was giddy with excitement when I opened up their present to discover it was in fact a photo tent. I used to own one on Bainbridge Island but I left it behind. I guess I either didn't think I would be using it again or that I really didn't want to move a lot of things down to California. In hindsight that was just so silly of me. Although the light is pretty good in our rental house, the hours that I can take photos in certain rooms are limited. I definitely can't take any work photos at night.

I took this photo above at 5:10 pm as the sun was setting and the room was dark. I still have to get used to using the lamps but I'm delighted at the freedom that I now have to take photos at all hours of the day.

This is my new Photo Light Tent. It's a great price for just $45.

The tent is compact and it's easy to take on the road with you. Now with the eBay app being so user friendly, the app and tent means that ReSellers can list auctions on the road.

It's complete with two lights, the tent, background cloths in colors black, red, blue & white and a little tripod for your camera.

eBay has a free listing sale for the next three days. I'm not supposed to be working but I may sneak in a few auctions using my new photo tent.

Did you get any presents related to your business that you are excited about?

**disclosure: photo tent link is an amazon affiliated link

Thrift Share Monday - Boxing Day

Christmas Lamb Roast (on a thrifted platter surrounded by thrifted dishes)

Christmas in our house was truly beautiful. With Dave's mum visiting from England it was extra special. The kids were so appreciative with every gift, something that really comes with age. Keiran kept stopping opening gifts and would sneak off to starting a drawing or playing with something he just opened. Then he'd come back to join us and open another gift.

Cerys's large gift was 100% thrifted. My nearly 12 year old girl has discovered a love of music this last year. Avril Lavigne is her favorite. We have picked picked up nearly all her CDs at thrift stores and yard sales. Cerys discovered that Avril has her own clothing line called Abbey Dawn. They used to sell them at Kohl's but now you can only get them from Avril's website or Amazon (not with Prime). Right after Thanksgiving I found a woman selling a large collection of Abbey Dawn clothes in Salinas through Craigslist. I emailed her and asked if I could buy the collection (which came to around $53) and pay for shipping plus a little extra for having to go to the post office etc.. She emailed me back and said that she would be happy to do that. My entire cost for a packed medium priority box full of clothing was $65. Yesterday Cerys opened up her gift and discovered many t-shirts, a hoodie and jeans. It felt so good to have thrifted her present and to see her so excited about it. Throughout Christmas day I think she wore every item that was in that box.

There wasn't a single yard sale this last weekend and I didn't make it to any thrift stores. Just maybe someone will have one on New Years weekend. I'm hoping.....

Did you go thrifting this weekend?

Thrift Share Monday celebrates the Art of Thrifting. As a community of readers and bloggers we are able to connect through the process of buying second hand, selling and sharing.

We Thrift  - We Share

Here are some guidelines if you would like to join Thrift Share:

• Your Thrift Share Monday blog post should include your thrifted finds from the weekend.
• Create a blog post with photos of your items.
• Link your Thrift Share Monday post back to Apron Thrift Girl.
• Link to your Thrift Share Monday post on Apron Thrift Girl using inlinkz below.
• If you participate with Thrift Share Monday regularly, please add a button to your side bar so that we can build our Thrift Share Community.

Don't forget to visit Her Library Adventures for Flea Market Finds.

Recycle Bank - earn rewards

Recycle Bank

I don't remember where I learned about Recycle Bank but it fits into my life quite nicely because I get to click on links about eco-friendly things (financed by brands) and in return I get free stuff.

Recycle Bank helps teach people to think about sustainable living. I must admit, that I'm pretty familiar with most everything they share, but it's nice to be reminded about why I live a holistic lifestyle. We get so set in our routines that sometimes we forget the "why" part.

My first reward was a free years subscription to Martha Stewart Living Magazine.

This next year I'm going to look at creative ways to get things that I adore for free. I love going to the movies, but I don't want to pay the price. I'm going to see how I can barter, trade, assist my way into the theater without any money spent.

I take surveys with another company that I can trade for Blockbuster movie rentals. It is truly amazing how much we can get for sharing our opinions or reading information about recycling and sustainable living. The more creative you can be with your frugality, the more abundant you will be.

Thrifty living isn't about living in scarcity but instead it's about embracing the beauty of saving and celebrating abundance when you find it. Even if it is simply picking up a penny on the ground. When my Martha Stewart Living arrived in the post last week I felt like I had really earned it rather than just pay for it on my credit card. As I snuggled up on the couch to read my magazine, I felt so satisfied and proud.

What do you get for free?

**the Recycle Bank link is a referral link

who designed this fabric?

Mod Vintage Fabric

I found this fabric at the fabulous estate sale last weekend. I see lots of funky mod faces in the fabric. Do you or am I just seeing things?

Does anyone recognize this fabric or designer? It doesn't have any markings or information at all. I'd love to know who this is.

Congratulations to Adriann Humphrey for winning the Shabby Apple Apron on Wednesday. Adriann, if you could please send me your shipping details I'll pass them along to Shabby Apple so that they can mail you your brand new fab apron.

Is everyone ready for Christmas? For me, this was the least stressful Christmas ever. The pressure to buy, buy, buy was complete gone this year. I don't know whether my children want less or that I feel more inspired to save money than to get caught up in the buying frenzy that many people suffer from every December. I did go to Target on Tuesday and I swear people were just tossing anything that looked appealing in their cart. I was nearly sucked into the "need" to buy but shook myself and reminded me that I don't need to buy more than what was on my list.

Merry Christmas my thrifty friends.

Thrift Share Monday - my Christmas wish

I've mentioned this a few times but the gift giving part of Christmas doesn't mean the same to me that it used to. Or I should say the gift receiving part of the holiday. I do love to find the perfect gift for someone, especially the children. For me though, in the last few years, Christmas morning was met with disappointment. Okay I realize that sounds incredible selfish and you are right. It is. But in a way we all revert back to those childhood feelings were Christmas morning and the opening of presents was truly about me, myself and I.

This Christmas I'm letting go of that feeling. I don't know if it is my age or just my realization that things don't fulfill me like they used to. This year it's all about giving and that feeling is authentic. My wishlist used to be pages long.

This year on my wish list instead of asking for a lot of items, I've asked for things that I need for work. Like a box resizer tool and a photo tent. Things that I not only will use often, but tools that will help make my business better. Things that will make me truly happier and my days easier.

Have you found that your Christmas wishlist has changed because of thrifting?

The thrifting angels smiled down at me this weekend and blessed me in the form of an estate sale in a packed house. Not only was it filled to the brim, but the previous owner was a crafter.

I arrived at the house at 6:15 a.m. on Saturday morning to sign my name up on the list. I was #9. I walked in the door at 9 a.m. and left the house at 12:15 p.m. I shopped for 3 1/4 hours. I stumbled out of the house my arms full of bags, boxes/bins and I was delirious with hunger. I eventually got home and I was worn out for the remainder of the day. I didn't care though because the sale was incredible. It was my Christmas wish because really what I want for Christmas is to do my favorite thing in this world and that is thrift.

Here's a sample of what I bought:

• 12 pairs of shoes including Keens, Ariat & Danskos
• 3 large cloth bags full of art & craft books
• a bag full of DVD tv series
• heaps of craft supplies
• jewelry
• a vintage Alfred Hitchcock board game
• Martha Stewart Stamp sets (new)
• 5 April Cornell tablecloths
• vintage fabric
• Vintage Perfume

It was definitely one of the best sales of the year. Perhaps it will help me get through the thrift withdrawals of the next couple of weeks.

Did you go thrifting this weekend?

Thrift Share Monday celebrates the Art of Thrifting. As a community of readers and bloggers we are able to connect through the process of buying second hand, selling and sharing.

We Thrift  - We Share

Here are some guidelines if you would like to join Thrift Share:

• Your Thrift Share Monday blog post should include your thrifted finds from the weekend.
• Create a blog post with photos of your items.
• Link your Thrift Share Monday post back to Apron Thrift Girl.
• Link to your Thrift Share Monday post on Apron Thrift Girl using inlinkz below.
• If you participate with Thrift Share Monday regularly, please add a button to your side bar so that we can build our Thrift Share Community.

Don't forget to visit Her Library Adventures for Flea Market Finds.

Shabby Apple Apron Giveaway

   

Today I'm offering a giveaway from Shabby Apple, a fabulous website featuring flirty, stylish dresses a woman can wear just as comfortably in the office, at a family dinner, or on a date.

Shabby Apple was started because they saw a need in women’s fashion that was not being met. A need to make women feel feminine and beautiful for what they wear, not what they bare.

Shabby Apple is a fashion company for women, by women, and of women.  Because serving women and families is a core value at Shabby Apple, they devote a certain percentage of our net proceeds to charitable causes serving women and children. How fabulous is that?

If you'd like to enter to win an apron from their website then, please head to their Facebook page and "like" them. Then come back over to ATG and leave a comment.

Shabby Apple is also giving ATG readers a 10% off coupon to use on their website. Just plug in the code apronthriftgirl10off when you check out. Just in time for last minute Christmas presents.

***Shabby Apple has asked that this drawing is open to US Residents only.

The drawing will take place this Wednesday. Good luck!

Eichler Home Estate Sale

I'm waiting outside a home that the estate sale company referred to as an Eichler home. Eichler homes were built between 1950's to 1970's and were designed in the style of mid century modern. Marin County is full of them.

There wasn't much happening in Sonoma County and I thought I'd make the drive south, if anything just to spend some time in an Eichler home.

One of the best things about estate sales is the opportunity to see vintage homes. Many of them are actually time capsule homes. When you walk in it's as if it's 1960. The previous owners often don't throw anything out. It's like a time travel experience which I think is priceless.

One hour to go before they open.

question from a reader - eBay holiday shipping

Arabia Plate sold for $52.80

A reader sent me a question this morning that I thought I would answer here in case it might help some of you:

X-mas shipping?  Hi...You have really inspired me to sell on ebay...and its has been great.  I just have one question:  how are you going to handle shipping this week leading up to Christmas?  I sure all of us that have been inspired by you could use some advice on how to handle it.   Do we send everything Priority at our expense?  Do we close our stores?  Do we continue to sell with an email that it won't be shipped until after the holidays?  I could really use your advise...everything else you have posted since January when you started selling has been spot on...I have earned extra money this year because of you.  Thanks a million.  Liz

Every seller will probably have a different approach as we get nearer to Christmas. I was planning to go full steam ahead to Christmas and beyond Christmas but something happened. I became exhausted and when that happens my body starts to ache and the stress gets too much for me. So I slowed down without really wanting to. I stopped racing to get hundred of items listed. Instead I began to reprice items, ship the many orders that are coming in every day, clean my office and house in preparation for my mother-in-laws 30 day visit and tried to take some deep breathes to calm my stressful nerves. Sales still flowed in though so it was a win-win.

Regarding Liz's questions though, my store stays open every day except when we go on vacation and leave my physical home. I find that once buyers get into the shopping mode, they keep going all the way until the end of January. Many people then either get tired of spending or realize that their Visa bill is going to arrive and remind them that they spent too much money.

**Don't forget all of the eBay gift cards that people will receive.

I offer Priority shipping on most items. I don't really offer overnight, mostly because I've never ever sent anything that way and don't have the experience. Yet if someone asked me, I'd see if I could help. I ship every day except Sunday. Saturday I sometimes ship but I prefer to pack and ship Monday - Friday. I'm usually thrifting all day Saturday unless I pack something early Saturday morning.

I'll ship most items for free if they qualify for First Class Mail. Unless it's a very valuable item though I won't offer free shipping on Priority Mail. It depends on each item though, how heavy it is, the value of it and whether I can wrap the cost of shipping into the asking price. 

If someone buys an item very close to Christmas I'd hope that they would email me first to see if it could reach them in time. Overall I really try to provide good customer service to all my customers and that includes trying to get an item out quickly for them.

eBay is becoming a profitable business for me. I just signed up for the free offer at eBay to try Outright until April 2012. I signed into it and nearly fell off my seat when I saw that I sold over $32,000 through eBay this year. I sold that much doing a job that I absolutely love. At the end of the day, I get paid to shop. It doesn't get much better than that.

During the last two years I would call myself a bookseller but slowly eBay was gaining over my sales at Amazon. When I finally gave in and realized that I was indeed a ReSeller, my business took off. It is amazing what can happen to a goal when you throw all of your focus in that direction. It was really this last Fall when I began to understand the true potential of selling on eBay. My goal for this year is to save $25,000 to put in our house down payment fund. That is on top of the Waldorf school fees that I pay for from ReSelling.

More about that in the new year.

xoxo

Selena

Thrift Share Monday - the sweet scent of Perfume

Vintage Youth Dew Perfume Sold for $49.99

Although I don't ever wear any perfume (gives me quite the pounding headache) I do adore selling perfume, especially vintage bottles. I was so surprised to learn that there is such a following for perfume. Many people don't even buy them at the estate sales that I attend. Not all of them are valuable so it's worth doing a quick research either at home and making note of brands that sell or researching while at the sale.

This rather small but very French bottle sold last night for $86.

It was purchased two weekends ago. Funny enough I had just about run out of my supplies of vintage perfume and told myself that I needed to stock up. Perfume has become my bread and butter item to sell on eBay. Low and behold the very next day I found 12 bottles of vintage perfume including Hermes, Gucci and other rare French perfume.

The best thing for me about selling perfume is that I never even hesitate to consider keeping it. The only little challenging thing about selling perfume is that it is illegal to send it on an airplane because it's considered flammable. Now I do know lots of sellers that will ship it airmail. This is a even a hot topic on forums with some being okay to take the chance while others follow the law. For now, my listings state that I am shipping Parcel Post and that it is illegal to ship priority. Here is a bit more information on how to ship perfume.

Do you have a favorite brand of perfume (new or vintage) that you have had success with?

Did you go thrifting this weekend?

Thrift Share Monday celebrates the Art of Thrifting. As a community of readers and bloggers we are able to connect through the process of buying second hand, selling and sharing.

We Thrift  - We Share

Here are some guidelines if you would like to join Thrift Share:

• Your Thrift Share Monday blog post should include your thrifted finds from the weekend.
• Create a blog post with photos of your items.
• Link your Thrift Share Monday post back to Apron Thrift Girl.
• Link to your Thrift Share Monday post on Apron Thrift Girl using inlinkz below.
• If you participate with Thrift Share Monday regularly, please add a button to your side bar so that we can build our Thrift Share Community.

Don't forget to visit Her Library Adventures for Flea Market Finds.

Winter Faire

I'm just so relieved that I took last summer off to spend time with the children. This fall has been such a whirlwind and completely opposite from our relaxing days in the sun. Sales every day, a record breaking month on eBay and there is very little time for anything else. My social life and blog both are victims to the craziness of the ReSelling Retail season. Yet a part of me is having so much fun. The sound of the eBay app cash register sound makes me smile every time.

This last week I have been juggling my parents being here, listing, selling, another eBay listing sale and preparing to sell vintage items as the Waldorf Winter Faire tonight and tomorrow. Am I ready for the Faire? Not so much but today after I go to a couple estate sales, I'm going to race home and hopefully finish pricing everything. I'm going to be selling vintage Christmas, fabric, ephemera, Waldorf books, vintage children's books and more. Please stop by and say hello.

I'm still not up to having 200 items in my eBay store which was my original ReSellers Listing Challenge Goal. I made it to 170 yesterday but items keep selling. I can't think of a nicer problem than that eh?

How are your sales? Is the season crazy for you too? How it Etsy? I'd love to hear about your ReSelling Adventures.

xoxo Selena

Thrift Share Monday - Happy Halloween

Keiran

This weekend we had a Halloween celebration at our Waldorf School. It's far different than most Halloween parties. Each class acts out a skit for parents and families to watch. Each student in the lower grades carves a pumpkin that is grown at the school. These pumpkins are lit and the campus becomes a magical place with the glowing orange light, children in costume, a bonfire and the scent of warm food coming from the kitchen. The day was very warm and the evening was so perfect.

Ten minutes before we were due to leave Keiran started to panic about his homemade ghost costume.  Keiran was becoming so upset. I got what Keiran was going through. I can't tell you how many times I've dressed up in either costume or even a fancy dress and felt so self conscious that I nearly was sick to my stomach. I sent Dave and Cerys to the school and told them that we'd drive in our other car.

Then Keiran and I got to work very quickly to find him a costume. It was quite simple, first we found his vintage hat. I was thinking gangster. Not very Waldorf but we had all the fixings for it. We found his dress shoes, black pants and tie. He isn't wearing the tie in this photo because I (gulp) don't know how to tie a tie. We added a mustache when Keiran came up with the idea of being a member of the press. We quickly found an older typewriter font on my computer and printed out "press" and stuck it in his hat. He also wanted to carry around his vintage Polaroid camera. He felt so confident when we arrived at the school.

I was so proud of him to take an upsetting situation (aka - the failed ghost costume) and turn it around creatively. He was the only vintage member of the press there that evening.

Have a wonderful and safe Halloween.

Did you go thrifting this weekend?

Thrift Share Monday celebrates the Art of Thrifting. As a community of readers and bloggers we are able to connect through the process of buying second hand, selling and sharing.

We Thrift  - We Share

Here are some guidelines if you would like to join Thrift Share:

• Your Thrift Share Monday blog post should include your thrifted finds from the weekend.
• Create a blog post with photos of your items.
• Link your Thrift Share Monday post back to Apron Thrift Girl.
• Link to your Thrift Share Monday post on Apron Thrift Girl using inlinkz below.
• If you participate with Thrift Share Monday regularly, please add a button to your side bar so that we can build our Thrift Share Community.

Don't forget to visit Her Library Adventures for Flea Market Finds.

Lenka - Everything at Once

This is dedicated to those of us that connect to Barbara Sher's definition of a Scanner. I heard this song for the first time early in the week and can't get it out of my head.

I'm sure any scanner can relate to wanting to do everything all at once.

Lenka is a fabulous musician that I discovered on Pandora.

October ReSellers Listing Challenge - Week 4

Apron Thrift Girl's - ReSellers Listing Challenge

Are you ready for week 4 of ATG's - ReSellers Listing Challenge?

Here's what I'd like you to do in order to take part in the challenge:

1. Comment and tell us your Listing Challenge Goal.
2. Add a link to your ReSelling Venue/Store. (optional)
3. Begin to List your items - don't forget to tally up your listings since items hopefully will start to sell.
4. Grab a Button and spread the word. We want to motivate & inspire.
5. Check in every Tuesday until November 1st. Share your progress in the comments.
6. Share your link every Tuesday to show us how busy you've been. (optional)
7. On November 1st, share whether you've reached your goal and if you wish, share how many of your Listing Challenge items have sold.

 
Button

This challenge isn't just about what you can list and how many items you might sell. It's about taking a step back and reviewing your business.

Last February I realized how inefficiently I work. I can't tell you how easily distracted I am. Seriously, just that soft ping of an email coming in send me to my inbox to see what has arrived. And then since I've left my listing it means I can quickly check my gmail account. Then I may as well see if anything new is on Craigslist. I'm completely and utterly distractable.

My work day is very short. In fact my listing days are really just Tuesday and Wednesday. Monday I work on sorting through everything. Thursday is a half day at school and I usually just do bookkeeping, organizing and maybe a bit of listing in the morning. Friday I'm back out in the field scouting for new inventory.

Eight months after the February challenge I realize that I work differently. I'm still not terribly fast at listing but I am definitely able to list more. I still get distracted from time to time but I CLOSE down the facebook page so that I won't even be tempted to pop in and take a look. As you all know, one peek and you get sucked into watching another funny cat video.

What have I learned this month?

I have too much inventory.

I have too little time to list.

I want to increase the amount of money that I sell each month.

It's really just a simple math formula that I need to evaluate and solve. I need to find balance between selling and listing big ticket items (between $150-$800) and small items ($15-$75). I need to stop buying anything that I can sell. It's very hard for me to see an item at a garage sale that they have priced for 50¢ that I can sell for $12. I need to walk away more. I want to keep my focus on Mid Century Modern.

Remember that we don't have a boss that keeps us on track. We usually are the boss, the secretary, the bookkeeper, the employee, the delivery person and so on. Most of us are a one man/woman show.

It's important to look at our business often and see how we can be more efficient.

Now back to the challenge. Although I'm not near my goal of 200 items in my store, I have sold a lot of items. I've also organized my office which means that I will be able to work better in November and December. I currently have 128 items in my store. My sales for the last 30 days is $1967. Overall I'm really pleased with October.

What has been the biggest insight into your business during the October Challenge?

Thrift Share Monday - Antiquarian Books

                                                   Vintage Ulter Tea Towel $2.50

Keiran spotted this fabulous towel on the back of a door on Sunday. I had been to the same estate sale on Friday but never saw the door closed enough to see this. Because Dave is English, I love being able to bring home any form of the Union Jack. I want the children to understand their heritage and to be proud of both the American Flag and the British flag. This might end up in Keiran's room.

Box of vintage keys $8

1960's painting.

Antiquarian Book from 1544

Another bookseller and I talked about this book in depth at an estate sale on Friday. We both tried to research it in the field but didn't come up with much. I merely loved holding a book this old. The bookseller left it and in the end I left i behindt. I couldn't justify $100 on something that I knew nothing about.

Of course I thought about this book all weekend long. I was at the house by 8am on Sunday morning in order to be first in the house to look for this book. It was still there and the new price was $50. Now I could take a risk. I still don't have a clear answer as it will take me some time to figure out how to research such an old book.

The pages are absolutely beautiful. I feel honored just to be in the presense of a book this old.

At the same sale I also picked up an 1845 book called Elements of Botany by W. S. W Ruschenberger, MD. Another one to research.

I forgot to take photos but I found my first ever Pucci items; 2 neck ties. 

The best part of the weekend was thrifting with long time readers and friend, Joy and Jeanie (and of course Bill). I'm such a lone thrifter most of the time, that it felt strange to speak aloud my thoughts on items. Joy noticed the same thing. I loved seeing the interaction between Bill & Jeanie. They were so sweet.

Do you usually thrift alone or with a thrifting partner?

Did you go thrifting this weekend?

Thrift Share Monday celebrates the Art of Thrifting. As a community of readers and bloggers we are able to connect through the process of buying second hand, selling and sharing.

We Thrift  - We Share

Here are some guidelines if you would like to join Thrift Share:

• Your Thrift Share Monday blog post should include your thrifted finds from the weekend.
• Create a blog post with photos of your items.
• Link your Thrift Share Monday post back to Apron Thrift Girl.
• Link to your Thrift Share Monday post on Apron Thrift Girl using inlinkz below.
• If you participate with Thrift Share Monday regularly, please add a button to your side bar so that we can build our Thrift Share Community.

Don't forget to visit Her Library Adventures for Flea Market Finds.

ReStore Furniture Find

Very cool furniture piece from ReStore in Santa Rosa for $150

I so adore Thursdays. I get pick up Keiran from his short day of school at 12:35 while his sister enjoys four hours of Circus. It's a precious time to spend with him. We usually end up either going to local museums, exploring parks or going to thrift stores. He always is present with his fabulous good natured spirit and his keen thrifting eye. He's pointing out more and more valuable things to me.

Today I wanted to introduce him to the Habitat for Humanity Thrift store in town called ReStore. It's filled with building supplies like tile, sinks, stoves, light fixtures, doors, hardware, paint and furniture. He loved the store and it made me excited for the home that we'll eventually buy. They even had eco friendly paint today for $7 a gallon.

This lovely piece of furniture (photo above) was there and a steal at only $150. It may have been handcrafted. It's definitely old but kind of hodge podge together too. It was solid wood though and so fab with those glass doors. If I had a studio, I'd certainly would have been tempted to buy it. If you are in the Santa Rosa area and are interested, I'd give them a call and see if it's still available.

I'll be doing a post on ReStore soon with lots of photos.

I have an excited weekend ahead of me. I get to go thrifting with two of my friends and readers (Joy and Jeanie) tomorrow. Then on Saturday I'm going to attend a Grocery Outlet Blogger's Summit in the Bay Area. Although I'm still exhausted from L.A., I'm sure the excitement will help me through the weekend.

Have a wonderful Thrift filled weekend and I look forward to seeing your posts on Thrift Share Monday.