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Okay, I just have to get this off my chest. I don't understand why some people are so against used items. Sure, there are situations where you definitely want something new, for example, a toddler potty comes to mind. But why, why, why are people buying items that are many hundreds of dollars when they could get them used for so much cheaper? Garage sales, Craigslist, Salvation Army, Value Village, Goodwill, consignment stores, etc. Used does not have to mean crappy, although certainly it can mean that sometimes. However, we have saved so much money on household, baby and clothing items from getting used stuff...even our car, which is a great car, is now 13 years old, and we only got it two years ago. The trick with garage sales is to try to go to nicer neighborhoods (especially towards the end of the day), if you can, and you can find some really nice items. When we went garage saling when we first moved out here two years ago, we got a great couch, an Ethan Allan coffee table (not that I care about furniture brand names, but the seller played it up), a cherry cabinet, a fabulous table made of old oak, etc, etc, etc...probably for less money than one single piece of brand new furniture. It just doesn't make sense to me to be all snobbish about used items when you can still get nice things and not have to spend an arm and a leg. I mean, if we had the money, I'm sure we might get a few new things...but I still don't think I could ever buy new furniture at the prices they are at, because it's the principle of the thing! I don't know; I guess I just like to get more for my money, and I really could care less if something is previously owned.
About the "old oak" table, the conversation we had with the seller has since become an inside joke. It was towards the end of the day when we were looking around a neighborhood garage sale, and we saw the table and decided that it was probably the right size for our very small kitchen. Well, we asked how much it was, and the lady said $70. Um, no. Not happening; that is a lot of money for a garage sale item, and especially this one. Anyway, Braden proceeds to try to talk the price down, and she goes and gets the other lady who is actually the owner of said item. The following conversation ensues:
Braden: I don't mean to insult you, but we have $20 dollars here...
Lady #2: (hesitates) Well, it is old oak...
I don't remember the rest of the conversation, but suffice it to say, she took our offer, because the table hadn't sold (and wouldn't sell at that price; that's why it was still there) and it was the end of the day. Anyway, we just thought it was hilarious that her reason for not wanting to lower the price was because it was "old oak" (like we cared or care at all...it's a table), so from that point on, whenever we spilled food or drink or got anything on the table or any other piece of furniture, it became "That's old oak!!!" or "Be careful, this is old oak!!" It's funny which situations or quotes become inside jokes. :)
Okay, I just have to get this off my chest. I don't understand why some people are so against used items. Sure, there are situations where you definitely want something new, for example, a toddler potty comes to mind. But why, why, why are people buying items that are many hundreds of dollars when they could get them used for so much cheaper? Garage sales, Craigslist, Salvation Army, Value Village, Goodwill, consignment stores, etc. Used does not have to mean crappy, although certainly it can mean that sometimes. However, we have saved so much money on household, baby and clothing items from getting used stuff...even our car, which is a great car, is now 13 years old, and we only got it two years ago. The trick with garage sales is to try to go to nicer neighborhoods (especially towards the end of the day), if you can, and you can find some really nice items. When we went garage saling when we first moved out here two years ago, we got a great couch, an Ethan Allan coffee table (not that I care about furniture brand names, but the seller played it up), a cherry cabinet, a fabulous table made of old oak, etc, etc, etc...probably for less money than one single piece of brand new furniture. It just doesn't make sense to me to be all snobbish about used items when you can still get nice things and not have to spend an arm and a leg. I mean, if we had the money, I'm sure we might get a few new things...but I still don't think I could ever buy new furniture at the prices they are at, because it's the principle of the thing! I don't know; I guess I just like to get more for my money, and I really could care less if something is previously owned.
About the "old oak" table, the conversation we had with the seller has since become an inside joke. It was towards the end of the day when we were looking around a neighborhood garage sale, and we saw the table and decided that it was probably the right size for our very small kitchen. Well, we asked how much it was, and the lady said $70. Um, no. Not happening; that is a lot of money for a garage sale item, and especially this one. Anyway, Braden proceeds to try to talk the price down, and she goes and gets the other lady who is actually the owner of said item. The following conversation ensues:
Braden: I don't mean to insult you, but we have $20 dollars here...
Lady #2: (hesitates) Well, it is old oak...
I don't remember the rest of the conversation, but suffice it to say, she took our offer, because the table hadn't sold (and wouldn't sell at that price; that's why it was still there) and it was the end of the day. Anyway, we just thought it was hilarious that her reason for not wanting to lower the price was because it was "old oak" (like we cared or care at all...it's a table), so from that point on, whenever we spilled food or drink or got anything on the table or any other piece of furniture, it became "That's old oak!!!" or "Be careful, this is old oak!!" It's funny which situations or quotes become inside jokes. :)
2 comments:
I totally agree. I'm not sure why people pay full price for new stuff. As soon as you buy it, it becomes used stuff! :-)
I agree too! We like to "trade-up" as we call it, for example Ray found a nice new oven/stove on craigslist for $75, bought it and then sold our old one for $50, so really we only spent $25 for a nice new stove!
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