How to Find Things to Sell in a Rummage Sale

Having a rummage or garage sale can be one of the easiest things you have ever done and it can also make some extra money to pay bills, make a trip, go out to dinner, or splurge on something special.

The first step toward having a rummage sale is to sort through your home to find excess items, things you don't use and can live without out. Are the kids all past the baby stage? If so, sell those strollers, bouncers, cribs, cradles, and other baby items. Are the kids teenagers with no interest in toys? Put a price tag on those Barbie dolls, teddy bears, and Tonka trucks. Have the children outgrown barely worn clothing? Great - put a tag on those jeans, dresses, and winter coats! Is your own closet stuffed full to bursting with things you don't like, never wear, or don't fit? Tag them and sell them so you can buy new clothes you like, you'll wear, and that will fit!

Sort through those kitchen cabinets. Almost everyone has kitchen appliances they love and kitchen appliances that they never use. Rid yourself of the clutter - toss in the hot air popcorn popper you haven't used since you discovered microwave popcorn, that skillet you never use, or that hot dog cooker you got for Christmas. If there are extra dishes, cups, or glasses around, you might as well get a little money instead of letting them collect dust.

The real dust collectors - knick knacks from long-ago vacations, wedding gifts you never learned to love, the exercise bike you don't ride - can all go into a rummage sale and earn you some bucks instead of taking up space. Look around at those paintings hanging on the wall - maybe that landscape or the velvet Elvis can go brighten someone else's home!

A rummage sale is the change to get rid of that old sofa in a color you hate, those old chairs that are cluttering up the kitchen, or that desk that no one uses.

Do you have college textbooks sitting on a shelf that you haven't opened in years? Sell them! Are there DVDs, CD's, old records, or movies that you don't watch or listen to anymore? Sell them too - remember your trash may be someone else's treasure!

Most people have upgraded their computer two or three times so dig out that old monitor, the extra keyboards, or the tower and sell it. Believe it or not there are still some folks just getting into the cyber age or there are kids whose parents want to give them a computer without spending the major bucks to buy new. Have used software? Sell it!

What about those gift sets you got for Christmas....the fragrances you wouldn't wear, the aftershave your husband doesn't like? Put a tag on and sell them to someone who can appreciate the aroma!

Get really wild and drag that wedding dress - the one you'll never wear again - out of the closet and sell it. Many brides find something chic at a rummage sale and if the gown is old enough, vintage bridal is all the rage. Same goes for those formals you wore to the prom or will never wear again.

Bedspreads you retired, curtains you replaced with something brighter are both fair game for the rummage sale special! Have old costume jewelry that you don't wear? You know the answer by now - sell it!

Is there a box of old postcards tucked away? If so, collectors will buy them for a fair price if they are vintage.

Things not to sell at a rummage sale include any kind of product (lotions, fragrances, make-up) that has already been opened or partly used, used socks or undies (yuck!), and anything very personal like your daughter's teen angst diary.

Any and everything else is fair game so clean it out, put a tag on it, and sell it! Its fun and it just might be profitable!