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Monday, August 16, 2010

This Weeks Garaging Finds

It's so great to be back on a normal schedule- I couldn't wait to go garaging this weekend. Here's what I found...

This "Family Is Everything" magnetic board was $1.00, the lantern $1.00, the new Bunco game .50 and the new Robeez baby shoes $3.00.I also picked up this great Lifetime 6' picnic table for $40.00. It actually folds flat, which makes it easy to move and store. I priced these at Home Depot and they sell new for over $200.00. We will use this a ton on our back porch.
Isn't this a beautiful cabinet? One problem... It has no legs. The previous owner had this sitting on cement blocks in her front room. They were having an estate sale and I felt his huge desire to rescue this piece. "How much for the cabinet," I asked. "three dollars, " she responded and then Mr. Right loaded it up. Can't wait to do the transformation on this one! Also, I tried something a little different this weekend. Mr. Right and I went to a storage unit auction. Storage units like these...

I forgot my camera, so these are pictures from the internet- but they are very acurate. Here's the deal. People sometimes don't pay their monthly storage fee and after a certain period of time the entire contents of the unit are auctioned as one lot. The auctioner opens the rolling door, potential bidders have a few minutes to glance inside (there is a very strict rule about not crossing the threshold of the unit and not touching or kicking anything). You really take your chances when bidding on a unit that may look something like this...
You might be able to see one or two potential items, but mostly it's boxes, papers and a filthy mattress or two. The rules state that each unit you win must be emptied and cleaned (broom swept) within 48 hours. You actually pay a $25-$50 cleaning deposit on each unit- which is refunded when they have examined your empty, clean space. I was excited to participate in this adventure. When we arrived, registered and received a bidder number- Mr. Right and I began socializing with our potential competitors. It was quite a Motley Crew- Pawn shop owners, antique dealers, etc. One friendly women shared some stories with us explaining that a while back she had purchased a unit and found several boxes of drug paraphernalia that had to be disposed of. She said she had a big garage sale to make money on her purchase. Ironically, the woman who owned the storage unit happened to come to the sale. Evidently her boyfriend, who rented the unit, had gone to jail and she didn't know where he had stored her things. She became this women's best customer by buying back all of her childhood dolls and memories. After hearing this story I was a little discouraged, as I didn't want to be potentially rifling through nastly and illegal items. However, we decided to wait and see what the units looked liked. After an hour and a half in the scalding heat, Mr. Right and I called it quits. Some units had sold for as little as $45- while others got to over $600- But I just couldn't shake the idea of the fact that we were buying ourselves so much work. These units were packed to the roof. Everything was covered in filth and it occured to me that most "normal" people wouldn't let their personal items be confiscated, if they had any value. Mr. Right commented that people obviously make a living buying and reselling what's in these units- I discovered- I do have limits! I love trash, but it's gotta come one piece at a time, after careful consideration as to what I will do with it. I hope there were some successful bidders, but as for me and my trash... I'll stick to the old fashioned garage sale. Love, Kelly.

19 comments:

  1. Ok so that $3 cabinet? Turn it into a wall unit! It already looks like it belongs hanging on a wall.
    I love all your finds this week; esp. the lantern and the folding picnic table. Thatd be great to have for having yard sales:)

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  2. In our neckk of the woods they do storage unit garage sales when someone doesn't pay. Seems like that would be a little better. I've never been to one though so I'm not sure how it really works.

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  3. I thought it was a wall unit...why fight it? Just my idea.
    Kinda creepy about the sale you went to. Down the way from me, a guy sells stuff he cleans out of abandoned/foreclosed apartments. Yesterday, he had a lot of toys and kid's books which made me feels sad and sorry for the children who loose their things. I really couldn't buy anything.

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  4. My dad buys storage units sometimes...cuz he get bored. :) Last one he spent $120. In it he found an antique armoire (he sold it for $200) and two college football bowl rings with 2 bowl watches (he sold them for $500). But...there was a whole lotta junk in there too. Maybe it is like playing the lottery? Sometimes you win but most of the time you don't.

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  5. My dad used to own several mini storage buildings and he just had garage sales when people didn't pay. He ended up with a bunch of vintage fiesta ware once (which I have now) but other than that, it was mostly junk.

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  6. Wow, I had no idea what went into buying a unit. I always thought it was piece by piece. That's pretty crazy.

    I can't wait to see what becomes of the $3 cabinet!

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  7. It is amazing what people will store and pay fees on month after month. Some things are treasured family heirlooms that should be being enjoyed (and treasured) but others are things they are too lazy to walk to the curb. I went to a unit sale that was done by silent bid, except the bids were then read out loud and the dealers laughed at the low ones. I'd like to know what they wanted to pay big money for, but like your sale, you did not get to go inside until you paid.

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  8. Oh I love the cabinet! See if you can find a way to hang it on the wall. With a paint job and the proper setting it could be a real prize.

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  9. i would love to own that cabinet. definately hang it up on a wall. it just screams "look at me" and should be hung in a prominent place.

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  10. Love the cabinet, I would find 4 little wooden legs and attached to the cabinet, paint in a shabby chic color with a little crackle in a complimentary color to the cabinet.

    The artist in me would want to create a mix media shadow box inside!

    So much fun and potential, awesome find!

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  11. Awesome cabinet....I love the price too:) So nice you joined my party...hope to see you again soon. Have a great weekend. Debbie

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  12. Sounds really cool, but I don't think I could have gone through with it either. Who knows what you might find (and not in a good way).

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  13. I love your finds and that $3 cabinet is so cute!! I don't think I would like the storage unit auctions now that you have described them. Icky and lots of work!

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  14. Love your story! I never knew they did that. I have seen sales where they pull it out and you buy like a garage sale but not the auction. That would be a lot of work and not sure I would want to dig through that much trash and filth to get anything!

    Your cabinet is going to be something special! Just stopping by from debbiedoos!

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  15. Great finds! I agree with you about the storage units. Maybe you would 'buy' a bargain but that is a big risk to take!

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  16. Great and varied finds! I definitely have to check back to see your sesults!

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  17. Love the green cabinet and it looks like it should be hanging on a wall over a buffet. I'm sure you will come up with a great solution. I've been looking for a similar one.
    ~ ~Ahrisha~ ~

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  18. I don't think we have auctions like that here in ther uk but I heard a programme that This American Life did on the subject. It was fascinating but a little sad.

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