$6 an hour

So I figured that's about how much I made this weekend at my yard sale. I added up all the hours I spent this week advertising the sale online, making signs, digging through all my closets and my garage to find anything I haven't used in a few years that someone else might like, putting price stickers on everything, loading down my car until driving over a pebble would make me bottom out, unloading and setting everything up, the actual sale, then taking down the leftovers and reloading my car, and finally getting home to unload and put everything away. The money I made at the sale came to about $6 an hour. If I'm being generous. But it was still exhilarating to be carrying all that cash in my purse. I felt like a rich woman. A lot of dollar bills and quarters will do that to a person.

(this is my front seat - the back was packed to the ceiling, and the trunk was full)

My friend and I had a joint yard sale at her house, because, apparently, she lives in the "Yard Sale Capital" of Utah Valley. Who knew? Well, I guess a lot of people besides me did. We discovered that when there were several other yard sales going on in the same town, and when we had mobs of people (OK, maybe not mobs, but a lot) come to our yard sale all morning. Silly me, I thought it would be a slow morning (I even brought a book) because October is #1. NOT a summer month, and therefore NOT a month you would think to go "yard-sale-ing"#2 NOT warm enough to be out and about before the sun is even showing over the mountains. I thought I would need the enticement of free hot chocolate to get the people there. Oh, they liked the hot chocolate all right, but I didn't even need to go to the trouble, it turns out. If you build it....or set it up....they will come!

We learned a thing or two about yard sales that we have decided to put into good use when we have another sale next year. I will put them here for the rest of you to consider. But if you decide to have a yard sale, please do it on a different day than mine. I want all the glory and money for myself....

• If you advertise that the sale starts at 8:00 a.m., be ready for eager-beavers (who, I decided, must have insomnia and are a little crazy) to show up at 7:40.
• If you advertise that the sale ends at 12:00 p.m., be ready for people to still be driving by, then slowing down to take a look, at 2:00 p.m.
• Have everything marked with a price - most people seemed to not be comfortable "making an offer" or not having a beginning price to bargain down from. I know if someone said "make an offer" to me, I would be thinking in my head, "Free sounds good to me - how cheap can I possibly go and not offend you?"
• Sell things cheap. People come to a yard sale to get extreme bargains or unusual things.
• Have a lot of inexpensive items. Like a dollar or less.
• CD's go fast. At least they did at 50 cents apiece.
• DVD's and books go fast, too. If they are in good condition and cheap.
• Clothes sell better when they are not too wrinkled and old.
• Old dinosaur computer monitors don't sell.
• Wear pants with big pockets. That's where I stuffed all my money.
• A few people will try to bargain. Know how low you'll go on certain items. I was pretty much a pushover because I just wanted to get rid of stuff, ie: Customer: "Will you take all the change in my hand for these two shirts?" me: "Sure." I think it was about 35 cents.

Not that I am now a yard sale guru by any means. It is a whole separate culture that I prefer to benefit from, rather than join. But I am a little wiser. And just a little richer. Time to go on vacation!