Robin Dover took two days off work and was up at 5 a.m. to prepare for her yard sale.
Tables of antiques, duvets, toys and clothing reached all the way down her Mountain Lane driveway for her Saturday morning sale.
“I cleaned out my house and my mother’s attic,” she said. “I’m not going to have a yard sale if I don’t have a good bit to sell.”
Carol and Donny Spriggs were trying to sell some items before moving to a smaller house. Along with earning some cash, the Spriggs couple hoped to have fewer items to move.
“We’re originally from Illinois, and up there people have garage sales Thursday through Sunday,” Donny Spriggs said.
Dover was hoping to buy an ottoman with the money she earned, and her daughter, Katie Mauney, was earning extra spending money for a beach trip.
Dover usually earns anywhere from $300 to $1,000 in her annual garage sales.
“Everything is priced at 25-cent increments, but prices vary to the time of day you come,” Dover said. “It doesn’t matter what I paid for it at the time, it matters how much you want to pay.”
Reach Jessica Pickens at 704-669-3332 or jpickens@shelbystar.com.
What you need to know before you yard sale:
For sellers:
- Advertise: Dover and Spriggs advertised in newspaper classifieds prior to their sales.
- Have plenty to sell and for buyers to choose from. Dover said she doesn’t bother putting together a sale unless she has several tables for buyers to choose from.
- Make it organized so people can easily browse.
- Price items to sell and price reasonably.
- “It doesn’t matter what I paid for it at the time, it matters how much you want to pay,” Dover said.
For buyers:
- Start early if you are going to hit several.
- "We started at 5 a.m.,” said Shannon Shytle, of Shelby.
- Map out where you are going and have directions. Shytle’s group cut out yard sale advertisements and taped them to a map.
- Carry money in small bills.
- Have bags and boxes to carry the items you buy.
Source: eBay