Sometimes I joke that everything I own was once someone’s garbage. It’s mostly true. When first time visitors ooh or aah, I can’t resist confessing that most of the furnishings were castoffs, much of it culled from yard sales. The first reaction is usually shock. Then they want to know I find the “good stuff.”
Consistently scoring at yard sales is a mission. Like any mission, it requires strategy.
Neighborhoods have personalities. You want to choose the ones most likely to have the type of items you want. Consider when the homes were built and who lives there. For example:
- If you’re shopping for period décor, choose an older neighborhood with older residents, preferably where both are of a vintage to have enjoyed your coveted furnishings the first time around.
- For any vintage furnishings, neighborhoods with basements and attics are especially promising. The owners might have been storing things for decades, instead of tossing them to make room for new purchases.
- If you’re shopping for children’s furniture still new enough to meet modern safety standards, target a newer subdivision with lots of young families.
- If your city has an art college, or even a neighborhood just known for young, artsy residents, you might find people selling their own artwork at yard sales. I live in one of those neighborhoods and I’ve often found paintings, sculpture, and funky, handmade furniture.
