Planning An Eco-Friendly Move

We're finally doing it! My family and I are packing up and moving back to the East Coast from Texas.   It will be great to live closer to family and actually see some Fall foliage.

In preparation for the move, I focused on two main areas. 

1. Eco-Friendly Packing Materials
The first thing I investigated was the possibility of limiting or eliminating the waste of using cardboard boxes and tape.

www.rentagreenbox.com

A few cities have some amazing options for folks moving intra-city, such as: Rent A Green Box.  For a modest fee, you can rent reusable boxes (with tops).  The company drops plastic boxes off at your point of departure for your move, then picks them up at the destination after you've unpacked them.  It also sells eco-friendly packing materials for fragile items.  And if you plant your used packing labels in the garden, you can watch lovely snapdragons spring forth!  Rent A Green Box currently operates in Orange County and Los Angeles Counties.

Live in Seattle or the surrounding areas, Canada, Idaho or Minnesota?  Take a look at Frogbox.

BungoBox serves markets in Arizona and Florida.

Rentacrate serves a number of markets and can be used for cross-country moves.

2. Moving Less Stuff
Moving is a great opportunity to pare back.  If there's anything we haven't touched in a few years, whether it's kitchen equipment, books, toys or clothes, it's going to be reviewed.  Holding a moving sale and advertising it on craigslist.org is a great way to cull your possessions.  We plan to do this two weeks before departure.  Whatever is left over will be donated to Goodwill for a tax deduction or given away on freecycle.org.

Cute garage sale sign from www.sassysigns.com.

What are your eco-friendly moving tips?

My Experience As A Seller on craigslist

My youngest (and last) baby is now three years old, so I thought I'd clear out the baby things and other clutter while I was at it.  I combed through closets and our storage and filled our dining room and living room with items we could do without.  Then I set about determining prices, photographing the items and listing them all on craigslist.  If you were wondering why I've been so quiet over the last few weeks - this is why.

I decided to try craigslist first since most of the items were heavy or bulky and shipping would be prohibitive, which meant eBay wasn't a practical alternative.  I will try eBay next.

Overall, my experience has been fantastic and I can't imagine selling this much stuff so easily any other way.  On average, I sold my items at about 50% of retail, which is terrific!   Here are some of my "best practices":

• I didn't encounter too many strange people but  I did take precautions to ensure my safety, such as having my husband home during pickups.  
• Most of my items were high quality and in excellent condition, so I held the sales in my dining room rather than my garage.  I think people felt more comfortable paying higher prices when the items were displayed in a nicer setting.
• I held a few Saturday morning "events" to speed the process.  
• I occasionally arranged to meet buyers at public places to ease their minds.  While it felt strange to stand outside of Best Buy or Lowe's and swap goods for cash, it did facilitate some transactions and I don't blame people at all for feeling nervous about going to peoples' homes.  So if you're a buyer and are nervous - ask the seller if he or she might meet you at a convenient public place.  Chances are, they'll be receptive to it if you reassure them that you're serious.
• I researched my items thoroughly and checked prices for similar items on craigslist and on eBay to make sure my prices were realistic.  
• My postings had lots of good photos and all of the pertinent information.
• I only accepted cash.  
• I quickly learned not to put items "on hold" for people as they often did not show up and I risked losing "bird in the hand" sales in the meantime.

If you are considering selling things on craigslist, it might help to read a few of my experiences so you can prepare yourself.  Some of the highlights include:

• being stood up by numerous people who were "seriously" interested
• the painter and the electrician who left business cards for future shoppers
• the man who told his wife (quite seriously) right in front of me that he planned to serve his son's goldfish to his visiting parents because the fish had become too much work - craigslisting is a study in human behavior and relationships
• the woman who bought a bunch of toddler toys and then tried to sneak an additional one into her car (I caught her and made her fork over more money)
• the lady with the 10 month old who opened a box of babyproofing equipment, let her 10-month old gnaw on it, then put the soggy thing back in the box and walked away (as I stood there with my jaw hanging open). Thankfully, she eventually bought it.
• being offered ridiculously small amounts for items that were already quoted at 50% of retail and were in excellent condition
• the one lady who entered, then said she needed to go to her car to call her daughter about the crib I was selling, then peeled out like she was afraid for her life
• the hugely pregnant woman who yelled at her husband in front of me for not bringing more cash
• the woman who brought her toddler and then spent the entire time (sometimes unsuccessfully) trying to keep him from running through our house and playing with my kids' toys
• the customers who wanted to buy my living room chairs that the baby items were merchandised on
• the customers who argued with me via email about the pricing - giving price quotes from retailers on items that were not identical to the items I was selling
• and finally: my husband's response to my complaining: "As long as they're paying me money, I don't care if they p*** you off."

Give craigslist a try sometime.  You will be amazed at how easy it is to sell the things you are not using!

National Costume Swap Day Is Tomorrow!

Tomorrow is National Costume Swap Day - what better way to have a green Halloween than to recycle last year's costume?

Find a place to swap costumes here: Find A Costume Swap

Great Finds At Antique Stores And Consignment Shops

I enjoy browsing antique stores, consignment shops, yard sales and bazaars.  I love a bargain and I love the idea of reusing rather than buying new.

Sure, sometimes these places are musty and dusty.  And sometimes they smell exceptionally awful.  You know what I mean - as if the furniture came from a crazy cat lady's house.  No offense to the cats.

And sometimes you come across things you'd rather not see - such as the real human skeleton (with coffin!) I saw at the White Elephant antiques store in Dallas.  Yes, of course I took a photo.  No, I won't post it here, even though Halloween is a month away and it might be seasonally appropriate.

I'm browsing a lot more these days.  We are finally getting around to properly furnishing our formal living room.  Turns out, 'formal living room' is not a euphemism for 'little boys' scooter race track and wrestling room.'  It's actually supposed to be for entertaining!  Now if I can just remember how to entertain.  And build a fence to keep the kids away from 'the good furniture.'

Now, I'm not adventurous enough to get into reupholstering antiques.  I have no idea how to do it myself and the cost of having someone else do it is so high, we may as well buy new.  So that's what we're doing for the upholstered pieces.  But the coffee table and side tables will be "reused," and the area rug will likely be an antique. 

Through my hunting, I've noticed an interesting development: upscale consignment shops and antique stores are popping up like mushrooms after a week of rain.  Existing stores are full of new inventory.  I'm sure the economy has something to do with it.

Here's the kicker: they're actually selling good stuff at decent prices.  eBay is also chock-full of good stuff!  Like this lovely little Henredon leather-top drum table:

So, if you're planning on making some enhancements to your decor, consider buying used.  There's a lot to choose from these days.

SinkPositive Accessory Sink: Fresh Water For Your Hands, Graywater For The Bowl

Every once in a while I stumble across a cool green gadget.  This is one I saw yesterday.  You just replace your toilet lid with this SinkPositive Accessory Lid, attach a hose to the refill valve in the tank, and presto: a sink on the back of your toilet.  You have fresh water to wash your hands and graywater for your bowl.

Something to think about!

10 Ways to Reuse and Reduce

The Three R's: REDUCE, REUSE, RECYCLE

I've written many times before about recycling (you can see my many posts here), but I think not enough attention is paid to the topics of reduce and reuse.  So expect more posts from me on these two topics.

To kick things off, let me give you some ideas on ways you can reuse and reduce:

REUSE

1. If you've got things you don't need or want, you can pass them along to other people who might be able to use them instead.  Do not underestimate others' abilities to reuse things you think are worthless.  You can sell things through eBay, craigslist or yard sales (see my tutorial on yard sales here).  Or you can give them away through Freecycle, Goodwill or any number of other local programs.  Subscribing to your local freecycle email list can also be a great source of entertainment.  It's pretty funny to see what some people list.  For example, one request was recently posted to my local group for a male peacock to join a female peacock someone had living wild in their backyard.
2. Source or buy items used via the vehicles I mentioned above, or via pawn shops, antique shops, second hand stores or flea markets (what an awful name for something so fun).    For instance, my husband mentioned to me the other day that he saw a whole lot of great garden tools at a second hand store near us.  Why buy brand new tools when you can buy gently used ones cheaper?  They're going to get dirty and dinged up by you anyway!

REDUCE

1. Use cloth instead of paper towels.  In my house, we use cheap bar towels I picked up in bulk at Costco.  I have one bunch of them dedicated to cleaning my house.  I have another bunch dedicated to my kitchen.  I also cut up old bath towels and use them for cleaning.
2. Choose cast iron.  Did your Teflon pans get scratched and you need to buy new ones?  Cast iron cookware is healthier, cheaper and far more durable, and it's easier to care for than you imagine.
3. Make your own household cleaners.  The end product is cheaper and reduces the world's production of plastic in the process.  See my recipes and tips here.
4. Cook.  This seems like a simple idea but it's one people forget about.  If you enjoy store bought hummus, lemonade, muffins, pizza, ice cream, steak marinade, you can make your own, often healthier, versions, and save the world some plastic, paper or glass.  You can save time by preparing more than you need and freezing some for another day.  See my recipes here.
5. Make your own makeup and reuse those old containers.  It's really not hard. As an added benefit, you know exactly what you're putting on your skin.  See my recipes here.  Check back, as I plan to write about a few more very soon.
6. Save water in your garden. You can reduce the amount of water you need to effectively hydrate your lawn and flower beds by a) watering at night and b) scheduling your sprinkler heads to run through several five-minute cycles instead of just one long one (helps the water sink in better so you have less running down the street).
7. Compost.  This qualifies as both Reuse and Reduce.  Reuse kitchen and garden scraps and reduce the amount of fertilizer you need to buy for your garden.  See my postings on composting here.
8. Use your freezer and learn how to properly store things in it to save leftovers and reduce spoilage - it also enables you to take advantage of good prices on your favorite organic foods.  See my tutorial here.