There will be no garage sale for me. And no, I won’t box up anything and mail out to anybody because here it is.
It’s all packed up and stashed in the dog kennel and no, I won’t get it all out again so I can send you an assortment in your mailer.
Becky’s friend Patty had this to say: “Oh, Becky, we don’t have that much time left!” And ain’t that just the truth? Have you thought about how much time it would take me to send you $2.00 worth of fabric intended for the rummage sale in a prepaid mailer?
So…. that’s settled. I’m not mailing out anything intended for the rummage sale.
From Jane – her 15 year old grandson Zach is making a quillow – how do you spell quillow????
I checked out the new Tractor Supply store today – chicks were very expensive – some were $11.98 each! .
If the wind isn’t 40 mph tomorrow I’ll be back outside raking.
I finally made it to JoAnn’s fabrics yesterday and bought two of your books. Civil War Remembered and Beyond The Battlefield. it’s coincidental that I am presently readind Mrs . Lincoln’s Dressmaker. I am also downsizing my home and condensing my sewing room anticipating a move following the passing of my husband of almost 67 years last November. In the process I found a little bag with sheep’s wool in it with a note that read it came from a sheep named Munchkin who lives with friends at R.R., 2 Garner, Iowa and is fed, loved and cared for by Country Threads. I am guessing that I bought this from you at a quilt show at the Rosemont in Chicago or when our quilt guild had a work shop at Country Threads. If you would like to have it I would be happy to send it to you. And yes, I am planning a garage sale. I have already sent at least 5 car loads of stuff to a resale shop. My quilter is dropping of my quilt today. That makes 3 completed quilts in the last month. Will send pics when I bind this one. I enjoy doing the binding. It’s like the frosting on the cake. I am enjoying my new books and look foward to making some of your quilts. I am not a fabric horder but have enough fabric to keep me busy. Still praying for Patti in Florida. Hope she is doing better. Have a great day everyone. Happy quilting.
Minnie – I remember Munchkin well and I’d love to have the bag of her wool. What a sweet memory for me. I went to lots of trouble shearing and keeping each pelt separated with the name when I sent it to be washed and carded. The mill promised me they’d keep it together with the name. Thank you so much, Minnie! I appreciate your thoughtfulness very much.
I am NEVER moving again! I have been spending the last several weeks here in NY spinning down our stuff in the big house. The thought of doing a yard/house sale is simply out of the question. I have been giving things away to friends and to our Church for their yard sales. As I go thru boxes in the attic, it’s like a walk down memory lane. I can’t believe all the quilt kits I found boxed up that I bought over the years and never got to. Now, I’m either not interested in making them up or they won’t fit in anywhere. I can’t imagine how much money I have invested in them. I always thought my kids would have to do it, when I passed on and that would make me chuckle!!! I figured they always made fun of all my stuff so they could clean it up. Boy, did that backfire !!!!! Hehe.
You are so much closer to being settled. South Carolina sounds like a desireable spot. Wishing you well.
Thank you Li. Life moves on.
Barbara – you won’t ever have to! That’s the good part and look at all the stuff you got rid of that doesn’t need to be taken to your new place. I’ll bet you’re anxious to get to SC but your NY place was such a fantastic place that I’ll bet there’s parts you’ll miss. Our church never has rummage sales but I wish they would.
Mary, This move is very bittersweet. You know what I’m passing on so I pray the new owners love the house as much as we have. Wonder how the “ladies of the house” are going to react. Hehe. Can’t wait to hear if there is any “ghost sightings ” by the new owners; IF you believe in that sort of thing. Just saying. Haha.
Barbara – I know how bittersweet this must be – go hug the baby!
Good idea, Mary. I am guessing that includes the plaid star quilt kit? Just checking—no worries. It is time to slow down and take care of ourselves. I am making myself take an hour break with Squeak on my lap everyday. She loves it and sleeps. Sometimes I read the newspaper or nap😺 Snow in Western,NY, Kathy. Imagine that!🙀.
Hi Diane, thankfully it was gone by 11 and it’s all green again. It was a photographers morning around here though!
I like your idea of sitting down for an hour with a kitty snuggle!!! I’d probably get through a book faster cause at night I don’t read long.
Glad it was gone quickly, Kathy. The “nap time” with Squeak has helped her to calm down some.
She is very afraid of Buddy, but he is a gentle giant. He is just WAY bigger than she is–20 lbs vs 8!
I find I forget what i read if I read too much at night. OLD.
Happy reading with a kitty:)
I’m glad you decided to cancel involvement in the garage sale. When we moved 10 years ago, I told my husband that we would never have another garage sale. We donate to thrift stores, Goodwill, and Habitat for Humanity stores near us. He’s starting to sell some of his stuff on Facebook marketplace and enjoying it. He stays busy with that since he’s retired and it keeps him out of my hair!😆
Mary, still think you could do garage sale then what’s left over take to thrift store
Tammi – well, you think wrong!
You are learning the fine art of saying no. I will never have another garage sale in my life. So much work, and so much easier to donate. We have a free table at guild where I take a bag or small box of goodies every month. My junk is someone else’s treasure.
I hate the wind. Makes me cra-cray!!
Good decision! The only thing I might suggest is to put the information about whatever thrift shop(s) end up with your bounty. That way anyone close enough to have been interested in your garage sale, can go to the thrift shops instead.
I’d be cautious about what thrift you donate the fabric to – some like GW & S. Army seem to ship any fabric off to be recycled, not sold in their shops. I’ve not heard of that happening with smaller local thrifts so far.
No sense in having spent all that time bundling fabrics into baggies if they’re only going to get sent to the shredder!
I agree with you Mary. Now it is done and out of your house. I did that last winter when I cleaned my sewing room. Put in boxes, brought to quilt retreat, and just let everyone take and the rest of it a friend took, and I said I don’t want to see it again, do with it what you want.
I agree with canceling the yard sale too, even though you did the hardest part of organizing and pricing. And, besides, while preparing for the sale, you get to revisit your stuff. I’m always surprised at the things I forgot I had when I started downsizing.
Whew! Glad that’s decided.
I agree with your decision to cancel the yard sale. It’s a chore for me to just get stuff into my car to donate to Goodwill. I hate to think of my daughter’s having to do that someday. My brother says he has hired a dumpster to clear out at his place. Afraid that would be the easiest thing for my kids to do. I hate to think of them sorting everything piece by piece. I wish I had adapted the “minimalist” philosophy early in life. Ha Been a collector all my life.
Mary, my feelings are you are such a busy person & have so many responsibilities with your animals & the yard…why make more unnecessary work for yourself? We have a very nice consignment shop near here & I’ve sold a lot of things there. I also have a friend who will take furniture & items for people who’ve come out of treatment & setting up an apt. This is through a church. Other donations go to the veterans or Matthew 25 Ministries. They do so much good work helping at disaster sites. Your new kitty sure is a cutie! We took Boots yesterday for eye surgery. He needed his Cherry Eyes fixed. I’m hoping this never needs doing again! His original owner had it done & this is a redo. Poor puppy sure isn’t happy about having to wear this cone, but it’s sure settled him down! So far no zoomies in the house!!
Alice – poor Boots! Those cones are the worst!! Yes, I have too much work around here to take on anything else – I’m slower than I used to be and my back is not real good. I’ve pretty much scratched the garden – there’s a nice farmer’s market close by. It’s too windy again today to rake so I’ll sew instead – the farmers are in the fields today. They’ve been waiting.
Since everything you boxed up is already priced, you could donate it to the person that is having the yard sale at least someone would get the money for it and your time wouldn’t have been wasted! A win win !
Jane, I love the picture of your grandson sewing! I have pictures of my grandchildren sewing their projects. It makes me happy they wanted to learn and have the basics. Hopefully sewing will be part of their lives. I hope your grandson will love it and keep sewing!
My dreaded plan today is to clean flower beds and mow. It’s not pleasant cleaning flower beds on windy days. A few weeks ago, my niece and her small children visited and my niece was determined to help me with yardwork and started working in the back yard. I said if she insists, let’s work in the front so thankfully, the front is done! I love that girl (woman)!
Cute chicken cartoon!
Our church holds a big rummage sale each year. We make $2-3000, all free will donation. It’s where my “stuff” goes.
Great decision not to yard sale or mail. I have forever given up doing yard sales, you make miniscule amounts of money for a lot of work and aggravation. I prefer to donate fabrics I to several folks I know that make charity quilts. I have 4 boxes ready to donate right now, two to one group that makes quilts for veterans and one that makes quilts for homebound folks. We have a new Habitat for Humanity ReStore in my area and they get furniture and household goods. The rest goes to Goodwill. I agree, life is too short to spend on yard sales. My mom (92 years young) says you spend the first 40 years of your life accumulating stuff and the next 40 getting rid of it. Ha.
Cindy – your mom is right! I wonder why but then I remember all the fun I had hunting for all the collectibles and that’s a good memory.
We woke up to our yards covered in a blanket of bright white snow. It’s the wet stuff though that is so pretty outlining every tree branch. I look at it as more moisture in our ground. My primroses and daffodils survived last weeks cold so I didn’t cover them in hopes they will still be colorful as this will melt later today, I’ll take this serenity over the 50 mph wind gusts we had at dinner time last night. All I have to do today is deliver Easter baskets our church mission group assembled for the children staying with their moms at women’s shelter. We had two 17 yr olds on our list for baskets and I am certainly glad they are with their mothers versus a life on the streets. Challenging to find items for their baskets but with a lot of hope, they came out so sweet wrapped up in cellophane and ribbons.
Looking at what you’ve boxed up, I’d be tired out from doing that alone so glad you don’t have to price and go through all that. Good choice and now onto the day.
Kathy – snow! The wind has been unbearable here, too, and today it’s just awful again. Just fyi – all the items in those boxes are already priced for the sale. I spent days doing it. Ugh
You’re right! If it’s not fun or something you enjoy, don’t do it! Since you have it sorted, donate it to the thrift stores you like to frequent when you make trips to town. They might like to have new inventory to sell. Glad you’re looking out for yourself!
Mary – I moved last year. I downsized but I still have a lot of “stuff”. I’m not ever going to use all that stuff so I’ve given a lot away. And I’m still giving stuff away. If I had an Etsy or Ebay account, I could sell it. But that’s a lot of work and at 76 going on 77, I don’t need the anxiety nor do I have time. And I’m not going to have a yard sale that’s for sure. Too much work. So I continue to give things away. I believe you made the right decision for you. You do enough for all of us on this blog and with your pattern sales. I thank you for both. You have your hands full with your farm, house, animals, church, and other interests.
I spent most of today with a friend. We went to 3 cemeteries to put flowers on graves for our respective family members – for Easter. It was a warm day so it was pleasant. We’re going to do it again later this year.
Take care everyone.
Sharon – thank you for your approval. I’m not going to the bother of Etsy or EBay either! I don’t need the little pittance of money. My next project will be cleaning off my sewing table so I can start something new and fun!! We are the same age – when is your birthday?
I am also the same age – will be 77 in August. I am also a Sharon but go by Sheri. Must be something about this age group that we were named Sharon – seems like a lot of us. I guess it was a popular name at the time.
Good decision, at our age we’re trying to simplify not make more work for ourselves. By the way I love that last quilt you showed, the 9 patch with all the different fabrics, just my style. We give a lot of our stuff to the Indians. We have an organization here in Colorado Springs and they take it all to the reservations. I think it is called One Nation. As I am slowing down and stopping production of making quilts, I find I am enjoying the ones I have more. I use them a lot, I always have one with me in my lounge chair, and I switch them out on the beds. Love touching them and enjoying looking at the fabrics. Hope your new kitty does well.
It is a lot of work to package things up. I have given fabric to the home economics department at both a junior high school and senior high school in our school district. Lots of students can use fabric they don’t have money to buy as they learn to do some basic sewing. I also called the Salvation Army in our city last summer and found they take fabric. So, a bunch of apparel fabric went there.
Spring yard work is in full force for us. I go to bed tired and sore each evening. We have had 8 LONG days of work. The garden is tilled, plotted out, onion plants in the ground, posts in for where our tomato and pepper plants will eventually go. The flower beds are cleaned, transplanting of flowers done, lawn mowed and fertilizer applied. We were going to plant lettuce yesterday, but it was so windy we figured the seeds would just blow as we tried to put them in the ground. We have a pear tree in full bloom, a mass of bright yellow daffodils in bloom, and I picked 20 spears of asparagus yesterday. The beauty and bounty of our yard is again evident. That is why we work so hard at all this. Age is slowing us down and my husband has actually talked about cutting down the size of our garden again. All I can say is ” yay”.
Vicki – I’ve always imagined your yard as a little retreat from your busy life but I, too,have always dreaded the back breaking work. Rick is constructing a raised cedar bed for strawberries and I’ll plant just peas, beans and some pumpkins for decorating in the fall. My back can’t bend like it used to and I’d rather mow lawn. I started my irrigation yesterday – I didn’t use it last summer because we had so much rain early in the spring but I should have started it even in August. This year I’m getting an early start.
Glad you decided to cancel because you can. The time you already spent organizing and pricing and then later put the time in to selling – you can save those hours and make an extra quilt instead. Have a wonderful week. Hope the wind stops blowing.
You made the right decision! Garage sales are not worth
all the energy and time spent on preparation.
and everyone wants a better deal, no matter your
price.
Put your feet up and relax!
Good call. Save your energy for something fun!
This makes me feel better. I would rather miss your yard sale because you decided not to do it than miss it because of jury duty. Enjoy your free time.
Great decision to cancel sale!.
Suggestion: if someone wants to send you $25 – you can fill one of flat mailers. I think they cost $8-9. No picking – you stuff the mailer with fabric!
Just a thought!