Ironic "old lady" or "rich lady" fashion: use what you have

When I started this blog many years ago, I was passionate about sharing my tips for frugality.  My motivation came, in part, from R, friend of both son and daughter. Well! R is now a psychiatrist (I helped him with his med school essay) stationed abroad.

I loved reading other frugality/personal finance blogs. These have generally disappeared or morphed into commercial sites hawking credit cards and other unsavory products.

As has been usual in my life, I got off track and began sampling middle-aged woman sites and got especially sidetracked by ones exploring style for that age group. Of course, most of those have gone the way of the frugality blogs.

And the OTHER blogs that attracted my attention were the decluttering sites. Because...I have a problem. Thrift stores both giveth (to frugality/keeping spending under control) and taketh away (as even a few extra purchases a month  at $3 can add to the clutter in no time flat).

I have been going through my closets, amazed at all the nice things I have. Thanks be  to thrift store gods. In that process, I find a number of unworn items: these are my "old lady"/"rich lady" things.

I keep meaning to wear them, thinking they are "ironic" or will appear to be so. Then it occurred to me that at 66, I have probably passed the age of irony in that department.

And, of course, it is NOT frugal not to  use things. So herewith I vow to wear the following (most not from thrift stores btw).

--the Burberry raincoat, worn ONCE. This was bought by my parents on a trip to London in the  late 70s?/early 80s? when the pound was par with the dollar. My mother outgrew it.  Wore once to a funeral of a person who was not very nice to me. My DH wore the matching one my father outgrew. We got many compliments.

--the authentic LV mono bag (style is Looping, no longer made) This was a gift from my sister-in-law to my mother. My mother placed it in her Goodwill donation bag upon receipt. I happened to see it. I retrieved it. Worn never.

--the vintage Gucci bag I got at a thrift store. This has the disintegrating lining characteristic of the real thing. Has the GG monograms and the stripe. Worn once when I had to go into a snooty store for some reason.

--the alligator bag that belonged to my grandmother. I need to get the handle reattached. My grandmother was very chic but unable to really live her aesthetic because she lost most of her money fleeing Europe in 1938. She worked at a fancy store in Boston. The bag has a label from another fancy Boston store. Worn never.

--the LV mono card case also from my grandmother--see above. Used never. (I believe with Marcel Proust that objects retain something of the person who owned them, so I can never relinquish these items. They give me pleasure just to behold them and touch them.)

--Bally croc patterned bucket bag from thrift.  Used never.

--Gucci loafers from thrift store. A bit big. Want to get inserts. Otherwise, must say good-bye.

Use what you have!

Pillow Case

Ceci n'est pas a blog, folks.
I've been writing about various trivial things and will post here as I complete. They are for me.
Older posts remain.

Note to self and universe: I have had to give up thrift stores for the greater good of decluttering. It is tough. Approaching 6 months.


Another difficult part of my decluttering process is LINENS. I love percale sheets, the kind that used to be ordinary and are now impossible to find--200 or so thread count COMBED cotton percale. So I pick them up when I see them. Since they are white, they can be bleached. If one cares. I do not.

I have such linens bursting out of baskets in the few storage areas of my old house. I made a pile, Marie Kondo style.

Well, I didn't get rid of many. I have a lot. Everything sparked joy, sadly. Even the old Cannon twin sheets marked with a hospital laundry code. I figure I won't have to buy linens again for the rest of my life. I did separate by size and function.

My best surprise was at the bottom of a pile. It was a king size case (I don't have a king bed or pillow). Of course, I have no recollection of buying it. It was yellowed. It felt so good. I peered inside to see if there was a label. There was: D Porthault. A $200 pillow case. I imagine its mate was thrown out because of some minor damage and the orphan went to the thrift store where it was sold for 99 cents. 

I washed it and put it on my pillow, a down pillow that was likewise thrifted after I learned that you can wash down items in the machine in hot water. You can. There are loads of down pillows available because pillows have the "EWWWW" factor written about by many thrifting experts. The pillow case looked ridiculous as it is way too big for the pillow. My pillow will not be featured in Architectural Digest. 

Still, it felt delicious.

Sleep that knits up the raveled sleave of care,

The death of each day's life, sore labor's bath, 

Balm of hurt minds, great nature's second course, 

Chief nourisher in life's feast.

Housekeeping: Does Anything EVER Wear Out?

I am in the 1% of housekeeping--the bottom 1%. There are many things I can't do (fold, sew, e.g.) or don't do (iron): other things I do seldom AND badly. 

One of the things I do seldom and badly: getting rid of things. I have a wee bit of motivation because Miss Em is returning after a year abroad. She left behind too much stuff also, but at least she's an excellent folder and organizer.

Stuff I will NOT need to buy for at least 5 years

towels

bed linens

pillows

furniture

pots and pans

kitchen equipment

I should probably add clothing to that list, but am sure I will be enticed by many things. Still, it's amazing how little really wears out. 

Example: Mr FS got a beautiful shirt at Marshall Field (a definite blast from the past) in Chicago in about 1986. We were at a conference so I remember the date. Even at half price, the shirt was a splurge for us at $25. It remained a favorite for many years (very interesting chambray fabric). He must have worn it for almost 25 years. Finally, the collar shredded. We were ecstatic!

Another still-used item: cloth diapers. We bought our diapers second-hand (so a bit shredded from the get-go) from the very diaper service used by Mr FS's family back in the day. Both our kids used them. Then--after much searching--we found someone who wanted SOME of the diapers for her little one. We still had a lot left.

Miss Em uses them to wipe off her paint brushes. She loves them. They should last another 20 years.

Have you had anything wear out lately?

If Janice Can Do It, I Can Do It

Pretty much everyone in the entire universe reads and learns from the Vivienne Files, right? Well, in case you missed it, Janice is now thinking of selling some of her beautiful Hermes scarves.

Well, if she can de-accession items of such beauty and quality, why am I having so much trouble donating...let's see, a St John sweater with a hole in it in an unflattering color? A camouflage jumpsuit that I thought Frugal Son would like for a Halloween costume? An Armani sport jacket that is cut way too big for the men in my life? You get the idea.

Guess what? All these items came to me courtesy of the thrift store. I did some good for a charity by buying them. I can double my goodness (so to speak) by giving them back to be sold to the next person (except the St J, which will probably go--via the thrift store--to a bulk fabric buyer).

Really, if Janice can say good-bye to such beautiful things, I should be able to do the same to my motley collection.

Thank you, Janice, for the inspiration.

FOMO NOMO?

FOMO: fear of missing out

A fairly new acronym for me. It was used quite often in the recent mania regarding the Nordstrom Anniversary Sale. I read all the blog posts. I even bought something: a set of underwear for Frugal Son.

I get excited by sales as much as the next person. Probably more. I was raised by two sale-addicted parents. I am, in fact, writing this while taking a break from my on-going and inefficient efforts to declutter.

BUT--back to FOMO. As a little experiment, I put some of the most-touted items from the Anniversary Sale on my Nordstrom Wishlist. Guess what?

Though most of the items sold out, many have now reappeared...at even lower prices. The two Brahmin bags, the two Longchamp bags, various sweaters: all are now 50% off. One sweater I coveted is 65% off.

They are, of course, selling out even as I type. Still, seeing that Wishlist helped me a lot. I can wait till next year.

A technique for shopping your closet

I have a tendency to wear the same things over and over--a common affliction based on the well-known 80/20 Pareto Principle.

Well! I just packed for my trip (following the guidelines of the great Sue of unefemme). Hence, I perforce HAD to wear things that were not in my suitcase for my last few days at home. That was the "other" 80% Wow! I have a lot of nice things that have not made it to my desired "cost per wear." There's some space in my case, and I was tempted to add a couple of these "new" nice things. I resisted. Looking forward to the "new" pieces.

If there's a method here (and I'm sure I'm too lazy to follow it, unless forced to by the necessity of packing)  it would be to hide (for a while) your favorites and see if the results are agony (in which case say good-bye to the unfavored items) or, as in my case ecstasy (in which case wear them on your return).

I Fail at the Kondo Method. Everything Sparks Joy.

The title says it all. While the internet is filled with tales (and videos) recounting everyone's success with the Marie Kondo method of decluttering, I have been a failure. You are supposed to discard anything that doesn't spark joy.

While going through my tiny closets and pulling things out, I find that almost everything is sparking joy. Some things would spark joy in a lot of people. My weak spots involve fabric--pretty fabrics (no matter how small a piece--and no, I do not sew), cashmere sweaters, Italian sheets, linen dish towels.

I am also made joyful by bedraggled versions of the above. I LOVE the Eileen Fisher long alpaca vest that I rescued from an ignominious end at Goodwill. I wear it all the time at home. Ditto for the linen comforter cover with holes. Ditto for the frayed linen dish towels. I could go on.

If I donate these things back to the thrift shops, they will be tossed in the garbage can. Really. They get too much immaculate stuff. They have no room for the shabby. It gets put out by accident and if a worker or customer  spots a hole, into the garbage the item will go.

As I declutter at a snail's pace, I am filling a bag with things in good shape. My holey alpaca vest is safe with me. (And think of all the time and labor involved in producing that vest!)

Maybe I need to read that Kondo book again. I'm #12 on the list at the library.

A Peek at our Future Declutter: 112 linear feet of books

Frugal Son is living with two roommates in a house in New Orleans. Thanks to one roommate who was working on a filming project with a producer, the house was chosen for a makeover on a reality show! Our main request: bookshelves.

Mr FS and I have long been accumulators of books. We are constant readers, but things had gone too far. Perhaps it was the tempting offer: 5 books for a dollar at Goodwill. The poor books languished and languished. Of course, they needed to be rescued by an appreciative person, who might even get around to reading them someday. Luckily, Goodwill raised its prices recently, which eliminated the need to get books in groups of five. Both our children are readers and we couldn't wait to give them some books. The moment has come for Frugal Son.

The designer told me to prepare for more than 100 linear feet of shelves. She offered to buy books in bulk to stage the shelves. OH NO! We have the books, plus it's so wasteful to buy all those Reader's Digest Condensed books by the foot.

I am about halfway through the culling. That's a lot of books. And guess what? I've hardly made a dent.

This is a vision of my future declutter. My parents weren't readers, so when they retired and moved, they didn't have books to contend with. (That's probably why I love books in quantity.)  Mr FS came from a set of readers. They had zillions of books, but could barely stand to give even a few away.  (That's probably why Mr FS loves books in quantity.) Then--because of health issues--they had to move. Mr FS spent a week in California packing books for the move. Then they had him bring boxes upon boxes of books that wouldn't make the move with them to a charity shop. The charity shop rejected the books.

Frugal Son can't wait to get his library. He is especially eager to peruse the cookbooks I've set aside for him.

Meanwhile, I came upon some books I should read. I started The Assistant by Bernard Malamud. It is an incredibly powerful book, so powerful that I can only read a few pages at a time.  Since I started the process, I have not bought a single book. I have so much to read!

Check out these photos of the office of a famous decorator. I have the books, but not the exquisite decor, alas.

I figure we have about five years to get rid of the excess. Did you have an event that knocked some sense into you about over-accumulation?

Tradesy, Ebay, Buffalo Exchange: Cash for Decluttering Report

So sad! Miss Em is back in Belgrade, for four months this time. While she was here, she spent a lot of time amassing items that were requested by friends. So much is unavailable there, or scarily expensive. Most US companies will not deliver to Serbia. Here's what she carried: a post-mastectomy bra and forms (unbelievable that these are not to be had there); melatonin, Opi nail polish, well, now I can't remember the other things. We live in such over-abundance.

I have lost my in-house beauty salon operator (thanks for the haircut) and--perhaps most needed--my personal declutter assistant.

Here are the final numbers for her 2 months back in the USA. She got to keep all the money (much-needed) and I got a little breathing space.

TRADESY: An astonishing $800!
Ebay: An astonishing $500plus, mostly for two Filson garments!
Buffalo Exchange: A pretty good $200.

Miss Em also picked up some cash by taking care of a kid for a weekend. She was able to spend the rest of her time planning for her return to Belgrade, getting her art website set up, and applying to a grad program.

If you want some glimpses of our trip to the Balkans, see her tumblr: she captured so much of what we did, especially some of the little moments that truly define a vacation.

Further Decluttering: The Dreaded Ebay and Bulky Items

I am continuing to make use of my dear daughter. She offered to sell some things on Ebay for me. I vowed many years ago that I would never have another yard sale or sell on Ebay. So far, I have kept my vows.

However, I do have some things cluttering up my space that I can't quite bring myself to get rid of. Put that in the past tense.

Thanks to Miss Em, I am now--or soon to be--the proud UN-OWNER of a pair of Filson garments (too big, too heavy for my guys) and some cowboy boots. And a giant puffy coat in an unfortunate shade of magenta. And a few other things.

Of course I made some rookie-mistakes. One, I priced too low, so had several items whoosh away on a too low BUY IT NOW. Second, not knowing how much shipping had gone up over the years, I offered FREE SHIPPING.

I consider my selling midway between making some money and getting ready to declutter for retirement. If I look at things that way, I have been successful.

Also the two Filson jackets and the big down coat took up a lot of space. Getting bulky items gone is a good thing.

P.S. We did not unload another space hog: a wedding dress (not mine! I got married in a green dress from a yard sale). More on the fate of that bulky item later.

We said bye-bye to this. The buyer got a good deal too.

 LARGER IMAGE ZOOM

Decluttering: Tradesy and Buffalo Exchange Report

I am reading a new-to-me blog: An Exacting Life. This woman is impressive; she keeps track of EVERYTHING.  I just stagger along in my un-exact way. 

Miss Em--back from Serbia--will be making a return trip  from October to February . While I have the only exacting member of my family of 4 around, I am shamelessly using her.  To declutter. What else is new?

It's a win-win. She needs some money and I need to get rid of stuff. She is in charge of picking stuff out for the Buffalo Exchange and selling the more desirable items on Tradesy (she photographs, writes descriptions with a bit of help from yours truly). She gets all the proceeds.

So far: 

Miss Em took a trip to Tuscaloosa AL (where she went to college) to speak at an event. That town has an outstanding resale shop, Twice as Nice. We left some items there before she graduated and she returned from her trip with a few items and $35.

3 trips to the Buffalo Exchange. We always stop by when we visit Frugal Son, since he lives just a few blocks away. This is always fun. The people who work there are so great. Three trips netted $200 in cash and Miss Em used some credit to buy a few items. I really think going to the Buf keeps me from getting too stodgy--kind of like teaching. It's hard to be 60 among the young, but it's worth it.

Tradesy: This is like the world's biggest yard sale. Most people sell their stuff for WAY TOO MUCH. We price low. Miss Em has picked up about $400 from that venue and we've listed lots of things. Every now and then something sells. 

Miss Em also instituted a rule, which I am abiding by voluntarily: we must donate 15 items to "earn" a trip to Goodwill. So far I've earned a few trips.

Miss Em has netted about $600, which I find rather astonishing. While I know how much cash we've taken in, I have no idea what the numbers are as far as items. Miss Em has brought home perhaps 10 items (all second hand) since her return from Serbia. I've only bought 3 items since June. We've gotten rid of a lot more than that. But my question remains: why do I still have too much stuff??

the new orleans store

Decluttering the Freezer: Chicken with Preserved Lemons

Another gourmet dish emerges from my almost-no-grocery shopping vow. We have a lemon tree, which last year produced perhaps 200 lb of Meyer lemons. Needless to say, we were very popular with colleagues and neighbors. I FINALLY made preserved lemons, which I've been meaning to do for years. Nabbed this Claudia Roden (LOVE HER BOOKS) recipe from the NPR website.

No lemons next year. Our poor tree almost died in the terrible freeze. The little bit that is left (it looks like one of those hairy dogs after a major haircut, only the "hair" in this case was living matter) got some buds, but they did not set.

We're going to have this on couscous.

Have you ever had preserved lemons?



Claudia Roden's recipe from Arabesque (Knopf, 2005) is my choice for its sheer clarity and sure-footedness.
i
T. Susan Chang for NPR

Makes 4 servings


3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

2 onions, grated or very finely chopped

2 to 3 garlic cloves, crushed

1/2 teaspoon crushed saffron threads or saffron powder

1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

1 chicken, cut up in 8 or 10 pieces

Salt and black pepper

Juice of 1/2 lemon

2 tablespoons chopped coriander

2 tablespoons chopped flat-leaf parsley

Peel of 1 large or 2 small preserved lemons

12 to 16 green olives

In a wide casserole or heavy-bottomed pan that can hold all the chicken pieces in one layer, heat the oil and put in the onions. Saute, stirring over low heat, until they soften, then stir in the garlic, saffron and ginger.

Put in the chicken pieces, season with salt and pepper, and pour in about 1 cup water. Simmer, covered, turning the pieces over a few times and adding a little more water if it becomes too dry. Lift out the breasts after about 15 minutes and put them to one side. Continue to cook the remaining pieces for another 25 minutes or so, after which time return the breasts to the pan.

Stir into the sauce the lemon juice, the chopped coriander and parsley, the preserved lemon peel cut into quarters or strips, and the olives. Simmer uncovered for 5 to 10 minutes, until the reduced sauce is thick and unctuous. If there is too much liquid, lift out the chicken pieces and set aside while you reduce the sauce further, then return the chicken to the pan and heat through.

Present the chicken on a serving dish with the olives andlemon peel on top of the meat.

Decluttering the Freezer with Diana Kennedy

Still cleaning out the freezer. It's not empty by any means, but we can kind of move stuff around to see what is in there. What a concept.

Our meals have been quite luxe. Here's a sampling of what we've had since I last reported on my progress. Moroccan chicken and vegetable stew on couscous. Artichoke and mushroom sauce on pasta. Pierogi with sour cream and caramelized onions with red cabbage slaw on the side. Marcella's standby minestrone with those great parmesan rinds we got in Chicago, best souvenir EVER.

And last night, I finally made something that's been on my to-try list for a long time. The mushrooms, onion, and peppers (real poblano--love) were all roasted and in freezer bags. Instead of creme fraiche, I mixed yogurt and ricotta. Cilantro from the garden. I made beans and rice in the rice cooker for a side dish.

The only thing I bought: mix of yellow squash and zucchini, which were (yay!) on sale this week.

All I can say:  Diana Kennedy is right.

From My Mexico
A Culinary Odyssey With More Than 300 Recipes
by Diana Kennedy

This is my all out favorite dish. Even without the cream and cheese it makes a delicious vegetable side dish and with all the rich things, served in individual gratin dishes, makes a wonderful first course or main vegetarian course. I have modified the cooking method given to me. By cooking the mushrooms separately, the flavor is intensified. The small tender clavitos (Leophyllum decastes) literally "little nails" known as Fried Chicken mushrooms in the U.S., are my preferred mushroom for this recipe, but any small, juicy mushroom may be substituted.

1 pound (450 gms) zucchini or green squash
3 1/2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 heaped tablespoons finely chopped white onion
1 large poblano chile, charred, peeled, cleaned and cut into narrow strips
salt to taste
1/2 pound (225 gms) mushrooms (see note above) rinsed and shaken dry
1/2 cup (125 ml) loosely packed, coarsely chopped cilantro
4 ounces (115 gms) queso fresco or domestic Muenster cut into thin slices
1/2 to 3/4 cup (125-188 ml) crème fraîche

Rinse, trim and cut squash into 1/4-inch (3/4 cm) cubes. Heat 2 tablespoons of the oil, add the onion and chile strips with a sprinkle of salt and cook without browning for about 1 minute. Add the squash, cover the pan and cook over a medium heat, shaking the pan from time to time to avoid sticking, until the squash is almost tender -about 10 minutes. Meanwhile, toss the mushrooms in the remaining 1 1/2 tablespoons of oil, sprinkle with salt and stir fry for about 5 minutes or until the juice that exudes has become almost gelatinous. Add to the squash. Sprinkle the top of the vegetables with the cilantro, cover with cheese and cream. Cover the pan and cook over a gentle heat for about 5 minutes until the cheese has melted.

Excerpted from My Mexico by Diana Kennedy Copyright© 1998 by Diana Kennedy. Excerpted by permission of Clarkson Potter

Decluttering the Freezer: What We've Eaten

I recently made a vow to clean out my freezer. One of the pillars of my frugality is saving money on groceries. This is easy for me because I am a lover of the "food of the poor" and chow down on lots beans from various cuisines. Also, food bargains just leap out at me and are heard to resist.

Looking back at this blog, I noticed that I made the same vow each year. With little success owing to the aforementioned food bargains throwing themselves at my feet. This time, I meant business. I lowered my food budget to $20 a week. That will force you to use what you have.

Here's what's been on the menu, from the fancy to the more mundane.

--shrimp with tasso and mushrooms on cheese and jalapeno grits (not as hard as it sounds)
--STEAK with baked potatoes
--roast chicken cooked a la Zuni Cafe (with the trademark bread salad)
--pumpkin and sausage pasta sauce
--African peanut soup
--chicken stew on couscous
And other stuff I can't recall at the moment....

Some freebie leftovers came my way. From a bit of the ubiquitous spinach dip (pot luck party leftover), I made a frittata, using eggs that a colleague gave us. A double freebie!

Then, with some freebie chips, I made taco soup. Except for the chips, everything was a freezer clean out item.

Part of the trauma of Hurricane Katrina (for those of us a bit out of the city and its flooding who were spared the brunt of the tragedy) was caused by the pain of throwing out tons of  food in our electricity-less weeks. We were gifted with so much salmon and steak that we couldn't consume it or give it away. Everyone around here starts cleaning out the freezer at the beginning of summer, just in case the electricity goes out again.

Bon appetit!

Freezer and Pantry Clean Out: This Time I Mean It!

Every year, I write about how I MUST declutter. And that includes the food clutter. I have an average size fridge and freezer combo. I can't imagine how much I would amass if I had a separate freezer in which to collect "bargains."

Mr FS and I will be going on vacation in about 6 weeks. One would hope I could make a dent in the food. In past years, I had limited myself to $25 a week for food. For the next six weeks I will try for $20.

The week started well. We ate some frozen bean burritos, a beloved homey dish especially appreciated after a week away from home. Then I took out chili for tonight.

Then it happened: I stepped into the grocery for a bit of fruit and emerged with 3 lb of bananas, 1 1/2 lb of Aidells sausage, 3 lb of "turducken" sausage, and some boneless chicken breast. All the meat was 75% off, so my grand total was around $7.50. I'm hoping that Frugal Son doesn't have much food in his fridge. I'm planning on a big present.

As temptations go, food bargains are pretty benign. I'll let you know how it goes.

In Praise of Hoarding

Like many others, I am engaged in my perpetual New Year's resolution task: decluttering. I may have a worse than average clutter problem, perhaps because I am the child of a crazed thrower-outer, who got rid of many things I wanted, including a Steinway grand piano (this was not thrown out, of course). And another perhaps: maybe my mother's over-active discarding explains my love of thrift stores, from which I can rescue the unloved and unappreciated. After seeing a thick vintage cashmere cardigan languishing at Goodwill for a month because it has a small hole at the wrist, I feel called upon to provide a home. In fact, I am wearing this sweater right now; it has been a good friend in our unusual bitter cold the last few days.

Of course, I can't keep every slightly damaged item that comes my way. Still, I was glad of my hoarding instincts a few times this past year. And I should honor a few wonderful things.

To wit: the Lands' End down jacket that I lent Mr C as he went off to visit Miss Em in Serbia. I also gave him some wool underwear and some heavy gloves. And a suitcase. He is a med student living on loans, so any bit of savings is, I am sure, much appreciated.

Frugal Son is living in a New Orleans raised house with high--14 foot--ceilings. That makes for expensive heating! Thanks to the thrift store, I was able to supplement his blanket with a lovely second down comforter (and don't tell me about bed bugs! you can machine wash and dry down). Not only that, but his roommate requested a down comforter and I found a king-sized one the very next day!

If you go to thrift stores during a cold snap, you will find bare cupboards: there are a few ratty coats, ugly sweaters, and so on. I know. I saw.

But if--like a squirrel in a cold climate--you look for things you MIGHT need and that would be VERY EXPENSIVE to buy for short uses, well, hoarding may be the way to go.

Back to decluttering! Wish me luck this time

Major Declutter Results: $750 from Buffalo Exchange and Tradesy

Miss Em (leader, very decisive) and I (assistant and general pain) completed a major clothing declutter before she left for Serbia. I overbought during the past year
(at my beloved thrift shops) and she both overbought (see mom) and overspent (see Nordstroms and Garnet Hill). She's learning.

Since she couldn't bring that much to Serbia and because all her clothing will be a year older when she returns, we decided to do a declutter. Mostly we donated, but I told her that if we sold anything, she could have the money for her RETURN TO USA fund. She will probably not acquire much in Serbia. We set a goal of $1000 for the RETURN TO USA event and hope it will cover a year's worth of stuff.

So we carted many boxes to our much-loved Buffalo Exchange: $500 in cash! And that doesn't count what we took in credit (two Eileen Fishers for Miss Em, a small fall wardrobe for Frugal Son).

Then Tradesy: so far, around $250.00.

Tips for Tradesy, which is fairly new. As with Ebay, people search by brand. So list things that people will search for (hint: no Walmart). We sold a few clothing items (very few), but 90% of our sales were for shoes and bags. This is because bags are one size AND because people know what size they take in shoes. Here are some of the brands we sold: Frye, Dansko, Ecco, Michael Kors. We priced things very low. Or lowish. Our best sale: Frye boots for $70--a good price for both buyer AND seller.

I hate selling on Ebay and haven't done so in years. Tradesy is easier and--other than the Frye boots--we average around $20 per item.

I have hopes for a few more sales. Maybe we will hit our goal. Thanks Miss Em for helping with the declutter. We miss you so much.

The Biggest Declutter: Happy and Sad

About a year ago, I wrote about a happy declutter: Frugal Son, back from a year working in France, unsure of the next step, got a job at a bilingual school in New Orleans. He discovered that he loves teaching. He also discovered that he loves New Orleans. The happy declutter: helping him furnish his tiny shared apartment with my--ahem--overstock.

But we had a sad event too. Mr FS's beloved father died, and our share of the neat and sentimental items overstuffed the house again. More than before. Little did we expect...

That, owing to the fact that Frugal Son was paying too much rent and wants to stay in New Orleans, we would be able to help him buy a house. Using part of our share of the house of Mr FS's parents. We wish they could see it.

Yesterday, we moved a lot of overstock to the new house, including many items belonging to his much-loved grandparents. A table that Oompa made. A tapestry that Nana made. I do think that memories inhere in objects and, for this reason, I am stubbornly materialistic.

Getting Rid of Stuff and Getting Your Money Back: Return Items Within the Rules

My late father, who studied market research, was interested in consumer behavior. And he loved stores that stood by their wares. So part of being a good consumer is to return things you don't want. I can't tell you how many items with tags I see at thrift stores. I enjoy getting such things, but think the purchaser should return--and maybe donate the full price to charity!

Miss Em and I just boxed up a few things and sent them back to our usual retail sites: Garnet Hill, LL Bean, and Nordstrom. We kept the good things and returned the rejects. We love that these shops have no-questions-asked returns and we are careful not to take advantage of their policies.

So far, we have donated a bunch to the Food Bank thrift, taken books to 2nd and Charles, sold 2 things on Tradesy, and returned mistakes to stores, But the biggest declutter....

Getting Rid of Stuff and Breaking Even: 2nd and Charles

Remember Miss Em's song Get rid of stuff/Make money. The new ditty is Get rid of stuff/Break even. We have a book problem in these parts. The problem is that we have books from Mr FS's late and beloved father still in boxes. But we have no shelf space.

So: a new twist for the books one reads once--or never--and is willing to part with. Books-a-Million is--in some spots--transforming itself to 2nd and Charles. The latter sells used stuff and bills itself as a green enterprise. You bring in your stuff--books, cds, dvds, games--and await the verdict. Generally, the verdict is ridiculously low. As far as I can tell, you get about 60 cents cash for a trade paperback and about 75 cents for a cd. About double for credit. Zillions of people are unloading their stuff!

Now, I wouldn't take books that were worth much of anything to this place, since there is no way to tell how much you are getting for an individual item; you get a total and it's all or nothing. However, I get lots of books at the thrift store for between 25 cents and a dollar. Ditto for cds. So I am breaking even.

If I had books that I thought were worth a good bit of money, I would check on Amazon, Abebooks or the like. But for popular novels from a few seasons ago or diet books or whatever, it's a solution.

The business model seems quite lucrative, incidentally. Bookstores buy new books for around 60% of cover price. At 2nd and Charles, books sell for around half-price. So a book they buy for 60 cents might sell for $6.00. It's a cheap way to fill their shelves. Each item they sell pays for 10 or more items.

And it must be appealing. I saw lots of good books and the place was hopping--a young demographic.

Getting 60 cents a book is no big deal. But when you bring the max allowed (3 bins worth), you can get about $80.00 at a pop. Not bad.