I am hopelessly Addicted to Craigslist. Kind of like food is to some people. Craiglist is one of my addiction. What is Craigslist? It is a service where people post whatever they want to sell at a designated price and people contact them through their Craigslist email.
See here if your city is listed. Look on the far right columns and you will see a list of the cities and countries Craigslist is in.
What have I have bought? I found a 1930s mirror and 1950s chandelier. In my area,many of the listings contained really outdated furniture, but if you are patient you may find what you want.
I adore used furniture and written about how to choose wisely in part one of my eco-chic used furniture series.
Rule of Thumb:
Also, be careful of scams, always go with another person when you are going to look at a piece just to be on the safe side, and make sure that any upholstery or rugs are not full of fleas. My rule of thumb is I do not buy furniture from people who have pets or smoke due to my children’s allergies.
Selling on Craigslist
I have also sold pieces on Craig’s list but always have someone with me when I am showing the piece.
Garage Sales, the Hunt is More Fun than the Bargain
Garage sales are another one of my favorite places to find pictures and knick knacks. Talk about a score! I found 2 beautiful Queen Anne chairs in a neutral color for $75 each! Again, I was at the right place, at the right time. My kind of garage sale is an older couple who is downsizing and is selling the contents of their house. You can find wonderful treasures at these kinds of garage sales.
eBay, you thought it was just for electronics?
I have a watch group of selected used furniture dealers. They tend to have higher quality furniture on their sites. My rule is I only pick dealers who I can go to see their furniture.
I did buy a desk on eBay for my husband. It was nerve racking because someone tried to outbid me in the last minutes. I prefer the “buy it now” sites because I am not a risk taker. Generally, the dealer furniture will be higher priced than buying furniture from a homeowner.
Just in case you missed Part I, read HERE.
Join the Conversation:
So are you addicted to eBay, Craigslist, and/or garage sales?
Photo courtesy of Megan McCormick, under Creative Commons Share-Alike 2.0 license
Dawn bilski says
Is there a link to part 1
Anna@Green Talk says
Dawn, thanks so much for catching this. Here is part 1. I added it to the article.