backgarage

http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/backgarage/OVCP/~3/MPBE9A6WXTQ/

http://www.backgarage.com/?p=2705

Apartment Therapy recently did this post which included some tips on garage sale bargaining.  I am of the opinion that most people who write garage sale bargaining tips don’t actually attend a lot of garage sales (cough, cough).  So the same tired advice (”The later you go, the more they’re willing to bargain,”) gets over-recycled and is never actually used.  Since anyone who goes to garage sales knows a little about garage sale bargaining (like, “bring cash, most sellers won’t take credit cards”), we don’t need the generic advice.  So I’m here to up your bargaining skills a level: to bring you from beginner to novice or from novice to pro.

• Yes, bring cash. But bring a variety of bills — from big to small. And don’t keep it all in one place. Before you approach the seller, separate the absolute max you’re willing to pay into one pocket so the seller can literally see your inability to pay more for that lamp… and you’ll walk away with it 90% of the time.

• When buying like items, get a box. Pile all your like items — dishes, books, costume jewelry, whatever it is — into said box, and when you approach the “cashier,” before they start counting up your items, offer them a ridiculously low price for the entire box. (Don’t be afraid!) While 80% of sellers won’t go for it, they’ll counter with a slightly higher price still nothing close to what you’d pay for each item if counted individually.
• Round down. This is one of the simplest bargaining techniques and it helps to take advantage of it to the fullest. If your pile of items equals $21, it’s harder for the seller to imagine taking $15 for the pile. But if your batch of bargains comes to $26, they’re likely to accept $20.
• Think about your bills. Again, use the power of your bill denominations in your bargaining. If something is $45 and you only have $20 bills, you’re likely to pay $40 for it — sellers hate to make change, especially earlier in the day if they weren’t prepared.
• The more you buy, the better. Conventional wisdom tells us this — but not for the usual reasons. The more you buy the easier it is to confuse sellers about the true value of things. It’s much easier to get a $75 pile of stuff for $60 than it is to get a $75 end table for $60. So shop in numbers — or pool your stuff with a friend to try to amass the most stuff for a better deal.
• Throw something in. If the seller barely budges, accept their offer but at the last second say, “Would you throw this in?” while holding it up. Make it something under $5. Most sellers have no idea what’s happening and agree before they know what hit them.
• Keep silent. For example:

  You: Would you take $5 for this lamp?
  Seller: Five? That tag says $20.
  You: [Silence]
  Seller: We paid $100 for that originally.
  You: [Silence] [Look at lamp with skepticism]
  Seller: Fine. How about $10?
  You: Um…. okay.

  Works every time.

• Practice these phrases:

  - Would you take a quarter for this?
  - If I put these both together, would you give me the pair for seven?
  - I’m sorry — I was just driving by and don’t have change — would you take just $40?
  - Would you give me the box for $10?
  - Will you do $5 on this?
  - Will you throw in the garden gnome?

• Nightmare of nightmares! They won’t bargain! Make it quite clear you’ll walk away. If the price they’re asking isn’t worth it to you, just politely say, “That’s fine, I’ll just put a few of these back, then.” Remember: you’re teaching them a valuable lesson in price structure. Walk away.
  

  
  

  

threadbanger

http://feeds.threadbanger.com/~/622171/0/threadbanger/rss~How-To-Make-a-Rockabilly-Summer-Swimsuit

http://video.threadbanger.com/video/123343/123343_2009-07-10-163842.m4v?s=lgOLV

backgarage

http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/backgarage/OVCP/~3/WMPAz2Gc0iE/

http://www.backgarage.com/2009/07/friday-garage-sale-open-thread-710/

</p>

Garage Sale HPIM0475, originally uploaded by edwardkotun.

Here’s how to use this thread:

• Promote your own yard or garage sale.
• Tell everyone about a sale — any kind of sale — you stumbled on.
• Rant about sales, rave about sales.
• Talk about stuff you bought at sales this weekend.

If you haven’t already and you’re in the Chicago area, sign up for the BackGarage Garage Sale Hotlist. Every Friday morning I send out a list of my picks for the best garage sales, yard sales, estate sales, flea markets, auctions, rummage sales, and more. So no more rifling through the classified ads. BackGarage does all the work for you.

Interested? Sign up here. One last order of business! Chicagoans: you can now use the “share this on windy citizen” button and the bottom of all posts to share your favorite Chicago-related BackGarage posts with the rest of our fair city. If you don”t have one already, you’ll need an account at WindyCitizen.com, but you probably want one anyway. It’s what all the cool kids are doing these days.

Enjoy your weekends!

garfieldminus

http://garfieldminusgarfield.net/post/139063700

etsy_howto

http://www.etsy.com/storque/how-to/handmade-code-find-fabric-with-morecloth-4313/

As part of our Handmade Code series, we're bringing you news and how-to's about the innovations emerging from the Etsy Developer Community. Located at developer.etsy.com, the Etsy Developer Community serves as a hub for third-party software developers who are making neat and helpful programs for Etsy shoppers and sellers. Recently, Etsy Admin daniellexo suggested we interview Catherine about her application, morecloth.

For years I've been fascinated by textiles and textile design. I like looking at fabric, stitching it into one-of-a-kind quilts and potholders, creating fabric designs of my own, and writing software for that purpose. I wrote the morecloth app partly just for myself ⎯ as a window through which I could look at emerging design and color trends in the make-it-yourself fabric world. But I also wanted to do something that might benefit small fabric-related businesses and, indirectly, the many ingenious designers whose work appears in this milieu.

What's the basic idea of the application? What need does it fill?
There's a lot of attractive fabric for sale at Etsy. This application selects some of what's available and groups it according to color, giving buyers a new, color-oriented way to browse through fabrics in many shops at once, as well as giving sellers another way to reach buyers.

Where do we go to find it? What's the URL?
Go to http://www.morecloth.com.

Who is it for? How many people are using it right now?
It's for anyone who wants a quick, distraction-free glimpse of Etsy fabrics sorted by color. This is just a glimpse, not a comprehensive view; there are many ways to sort by color and far more fabrics at Etsy than the thousand or so currently visible at morecloth. But this changing sample of what's available has caught and held some people's attention. In the month since I started this project, over 4,800 have visited morecloth. And many have spent over an hour there.

How do you use it?
On the front page of morecloth, there's a collection of striped bands of color. Clicking on a band will take you to a page of fabric swatches in that color range. Clicking on a fabric swatch will take you to the corresponding Etsy listing.

Are there any costs or further opportunities/ways to get involved?
No costs — the application is free for both buyers and sellers. Each week I add a few more Etsy shops. If you're a seller specializing in fabric, your shop may already be included, but you're welcome to email me (catherine@morecloth.com) to make sure I've come across it.

What should one do if there's a bug or a problem? Who should one contact?
If there's a problem, please email me: catherine@morecloth.com.

What's one surprising/fun/amazing story you've heard about someone using your app? Or what is your favorite part about the app?
Maybe the best feature of this app is its simplicity. It samples a wild abundance of textile patterns and colors, and presents them in a way that feels manageable.

Anything else you'd like to add?
For you sellers out there, I talk a bit about how listings get selected for inclusion on my blog.

Have you used morecloth before? Post in the comments below!

More Handmade Code Posts

Browse for Fabric on Etsy | Shop by Color on Etsy

backgarage

http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/backgarage/OVCP/~3/GNqlfymnh0k/

http://www.backgarage.com/?p=2715

Color me officially obsessed with this ecclectic, brighly colored vintage shop on Etsy.  Pieced together by a set designer and textile artist in Toronto (visit her handmade shop here), the shop offers a mix of useful modern staples, like the Luxo Wall Lamp and Ingraham Wall Clock, and one-of-a-kind must-have designer finds, like the Japanese two cermaic jar set on the wooden tray.  Add to that a smattering of West German ceramics, my favorite huge green Haeger planter and lovely space-age desk organizers and I’m hooked.

Here are some of my other favorite pieces from her shop:

slashdong

http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/slashdong/qsOv/~3/dyGquqiHMZk/

http://www.slashdong.org/2009/07/09/the-pelvotron-3000-its-the-pelvic-thrust

I’ve been finding the most wonderful things thanks to following teledildonics on twitter search lately. For instance, the Pelvotron! It’s a video game control project by Andrew Styer, a student at NYU’s ITP school.

Pelvotron 3000 - testing from ams on Vimeo.

Yup, using your hips to control a game. Combine this with the Joydick…

And… Well, I’m not really sure what you’d get, other than awkward. But I’d post of video of it.

Via Someone telling Andrew he should do his thesis on Teledildonics. Do it, Andrew!