Book Review ... Biblical Minimalism

Today, I am promoting a new book, called Biblical Minimalism, by Cheryl Smith.

In the book, my friend, Cheryl is very transparent about the journey God has taken her and her family on in reducing the material things they own. She is honest about the struggles of giving up things, yet also points out the great rewards of doing so. Rewards like having more time, energy and joy since her family is no longer weighed down by so many things to care for.

Cheryl writes in a conversational style, somewhat like you are sitting and chatting with her. Parts of the book may "step on toes" as we can give excuses of why we can't do this or that, but even those areas can lead us to think and evaluate. She shares related Scriptures and principles as she goes through the book. It is a book worth reading!



"To purchase the book, click HERE." 




Biblical Minimalism Book Trailer



"Cheryl Smith is the author of the book “Biblical Minimalism,” the story of her family’s journey from a life of abundance to a more abundant life. She is the author of the blogs Biblical Minimalism, where she writes about minimalism from a Biblical perspective, and Homespun Devotions, where she writes devotionals and conducts “Inner Views.” She loves to spend time with her husband and son in the mountains, sing and play Bluegrass music, and write." 

To purchase the book, click HERE!!

Mommy's Christmas "Store"

Mommy's Christmas "Store" was a popular thing in our home for many years. Recently my adult girls reminded me of the "store" and talked fondly of their memories of it. One of them said, "Mom, you need to write a blog post about it!"

The items varied from year to year... and the prices were low so that each child could buy gifts for their siblings and parents. No, they were not allowed to buy things for themselves at the "store". 

Little toys, crayons, pencils, little notebooks, simple jewelry and more were put into the store. 

We banned "wish books" from our home - those Sears or Penney's catalogues that had such enticing pictures of wonderful treasures in them. Those books of temptation to reject what God had already blessed us with in favor of something "new". After hearing the kids say things like "WOW! That bike is lots better than mine." "I want that doll."and other comments, we also did away with the ads from stores like Walmart and others for several years.  I hate the materialism in our culture and especially at Christmas and wanted our kids to enjoy giving and to appreciate what they had, not lust for more. 

The Number One Way I Save Money

We tried to keep things rather simple and the store helped us do that. This was especially helpful as we traveled so much for surgeries and it would have been very difficult to take 6 kids shopping at regular stores where they couldn't afford things anyway. Neither could we in many years. 

"Gentle Joy Shares A Christmas Miracle" on Homespun Devotions

Just pieces of paper with prices. Very simple.

The kids LOVED this! I asked some of the guys if they remembered the Christmas Store and they did and loved it. One son asked if we would be having the Christmas Store this year... and he grinned since all of our "kids" are now adults. I laughed and said no.

 I would set things out in our master bedroom on the bed with the door shut, arranging things so they could shop. The anticipation of what would be in the store each year was high as was the excitement of being able to choose something for everyone. The line would form outside the door and one child at a time was allowed to shop. 

They would debate over what to get for each person and how much to spend of their money so they could get the best gifts for each person. There was much excitement over all of this. After they had chosen all of their gifts, the gifts were put into a bag and they then hurried past the other kids still waiting outside the door and took the gifts to a place where they could wrap each one.

One daughter said it was hard to wait outside that door for her turn. The excitement was high. I always made sure there was enough for each child to choose from. The Christmas Store was open for a little while on one day sometime before Christmas and then not again until the next year so it was a much anticipated time. 

1 cent items seems silly, but when little, they had very little money. I would give jobs for them to earn money and they loved shopping and lingering over various items to be sure to get just the right thing for those they were shopping for.

These are not actual items we used for our stores as I didn't take any pictures of them. These are items that "could have" been in our store and are set up to give you an idea of what our store was like.  One son reminded me that they rarely got candy and that wasn't usually in the store. I did put Smarties in the 1 cent section a couple of different years as they weren't as sweet, there were several in a roll and the kids loved them.

I shopped throughout the year for small items the kids would like. Some items were used for the various trips we took for medical reasons for one son.  Tips For Traveling With Children

Other items were saved for the Christmas Store. Most items were purchased at garage sales where I find many amazing deals and I pray about finding what we need.  My Garage Sale Prayer List

I tried to have a bit of a variety. Sometimes I saved out certain items so that one child could be given something they had not seen in the store. 

50 cents was about the limit for the store. By the way, I didn't make any money on the store and usually I lost money, but it was a precious part of teaching our kids to love to give.

Wonderful family memories do not have to cost a lot and I have been surprised at how something simple like this that was done more as a quick fix out of necessity has become so special and precious to our family. 

Are Your Kids A Blessing?

I hope you are able to build sweet memories this year whether for Christmas or not. Our kids are like sponges and they absorb so much more than we realize most of the time. I love being aware of that and trying to deliberately help them learn while also having fun.

Thank you for visiting. I hope you have a precious Christmas season of remembering Jesus and His wonderful sacrifice for us.

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If you are interested, this is on my friend Cheryl's blog over at Homespun Devotions. 

Gentle Joy Shares A Christmas Miracle... on Homespun Devotions

How to Make CHICKEN BITS!

  I started making chicken bits and they are wonderful! I am using them the same way we would normally use bacon bits. The flavor is strong and tasty and I know what is in them since I am the one making them. Also, I have tired of the fatty bacon bits and am loving the better chicken bits. They are not hard to make either.

  First of all, I cook chicken breast... you can use other parts of the chicken, but I have used the chicken breast. I watch for it to be on sale and I love to cook it in the crockpot and let it be marinated to deepen the flavor and make it wonderfully moist.  Here's how I do that:

Strange Marinades for Chicken!

 Most of the chicken breast was shredded, as shown here, but I saved out some larger pieces to use for making chicken bits....  see next picture. I could have used the shredded chicken also, and may in the future.

  I put cooked chicken in a frying pan with olive oil and seasoning. You can use your favorites... or experiment.  :)

I used a variety of spices... including Italian seasoning, dried garlic and onion and more. I didn't measure... just sprinkled it on the cooked meat in the pan.... and added more when I wanted to.

Next step is to start cutting the meat  with the turner. Since the meat is cooked and so tender, it is easy to cut.

Cutting with the edge of the turner worked well and I kept cutting the pieces smaller and smaller.


I added some BBQ sauce and some Italian dressing to it as it was cooking... and some more olive oil. 


This was cooked on a medium heat and turned often to brown and toast the meat.

 You can decide how brown you want your chicken bits. I cooked mine for about 25 minutes or so and turned them often so they wouldn't burn.

I would have been fine with cooking them to a darker crispness and yet, we loved them this way too. I think there will be some variation on how well done you want them.

When we tasted  pieces now and then, they just tasted better and better.  What a wonderful explosion of flavor.  :)

 TIP....  Do NOT make this when you are hungry!!!  Eat something first as these smell and taste so good that it may be hard to stop "trying" them.   🙂

 I put my Chicken Bits into 2 feta cheese containers and put them in the freezer. I didn't make a lot of it...  so we will be careful on how much we use at at time... just like we would be careful about how many bacon bits we would use.

I also told the family that these containers are not to be used for casseroles or soups... these are for chicken bit uses only! They would taste great in anything, but I want to make these last.  I have some ideas of what I want to do with them... and plan to share one of them soon.

Here we had chicken bits in our broccoli salad... and they were delicious!  We usually use bacon bits, but loved the chicken bits and they added such great flavor.

We have also used chicken bits in a regular salad and on BLT sandwiches. I love having these highly flavored bits of chicken ready to add something special to dishes.





 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

           How to make delicious bits of chicken to use in place of bacon bits.

                          Chicken Bits


 1-2  Chicken breasts, already cooked
 1/2 cup Olive Oil
 1 1/2 - 2 tsp dried Italian seasoning (can add other seasonings also, if desired)
 1/2 tsp. dried garlic
 1 tsp. dried onions ..................................... Put in frying pan, cook on medium heat. Cut meat
                                                                           into small pieces as it cooks

1/4 cup BBQ sauce
1 cup Italian dressing.................................. Stir in and continue to turn over as the meat browns


         
................................................................ Cook on medium heat for about 25 minutes until it reaches
                                                                    the brown and toasty color you like. This needs to be
                                                                    watched as you don't want it to burn.

                                                                 More olive oil can be added, if desired.                                                                   


                                                                  Store in a covered container in the freezer and use as
                                                                      needed. Great for salads, pizza, BLTs, and more.


Gentle Joy Homemaker                               www.http://gentlejoyhomemaker.blogspot.com

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 Thank you for visiting... If you make these, I would love to hear about it... and how you use them.... or if you have made something similar.  I love to read your comments.  I hope you have a wonderful week.

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Picket Fence Hides the Trash Cans...

 We live in the city, although we would love to move to the country. While we live in the city, we want our yard to look nice, and also be very usable.

We have areas that are utilitarian... not pretty. One of those areas is between our two large pine trees where we store our trash and recycling cans.

 I'd much rather look at an old picket fence than at the trash cans, so when we found an old one for free, this was a perfect place for it.

At first, my guys didn't think it was necessary, but we have all been glad to have those trash cans shielded a bit. I sure appreciated the work the guys did to make this old fence work here as they had to adjust the size of it and anchor it into the ground.

 From the deck, we can look out to the back garden with the gray picket fence and also see the picket fence in front of the trash cans.

I added hostas in front of the fence to give color and interest to the area. The pine trees drop pine needles which forms a pretty brown carpet and makes a natural mulch for the hostas.

 Here, you can see the fence between the two trees and the hostas in front of it. Other stuff that we need to deal with is behind that fence and you can see it a little. I am so glad it is behind the fence where it isn't obvious. 

We also found that this is a good place to put a thermometer since it is in the shade much of the day.

Are the trash cans totally hidden? No, they can still be seen, but the picket fence in front allows your eye to flow over them rather than to be drawn to them.








This next picture shows some of our garden areas... and at the far right you can see the trash cans with the picket fence in front of them.

At the back is the new little courtyard patio that I blogged about here:
Table Top Becomes Courtyard Patio!

The wonderful raised garden beds are in this post:
New Raised Garden Beds

The picket fence around the back garden was also an old fence we reused when someone else was done with it. There are lots of ways to use an old picket fence in the garden or yard. I love having it around my garden and shielding the trash cans, but it can also be used as an accent for a flower bed or to add interest to a boring corner of the yard.

If you have a chance to get some picket fence, it doesn't have to be in perfect shape to work well and look nice....  these have been in use in our yard for several years and they were old when we got them. They still have many years of use left in them. Sometimes a picket needs to be replaced, and we do it, but for the most part, they are fine out there with not much care at all once it is in place and I like that. I don't want to have a lot of yard items that need lots of care.

Do you have a section you want to "hide"? A picket fence could work, but something else could also... this is a time to think "outside the box" and be creative. A trellis with vines growing on it would also work....at least in the summer and fall months. What solution have you used in your yard to hide something? Feel free to share your ideas in the comments.

Thank you for visiting... 

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Money-Saving Tip for DOORS

  We all have doors and they tend to be used a lot.... especially in a home like ours where there is a big family. Those door latches really get a workout and we expect them to keep working well.

  Once in a while, the hinges may start to squeak and it is easy to oil them and stop the squeak.... thankfully.

Other problems can also arise... like having trouble getting the key into the lock... or getting the key to turn and unlock the door. Did you know that the problem can many times be solved very simply by just lubricating the lock?  Just spray the lubricant into the lock, put the key in and work it a bit... maybe repeat... and it can work great again.



This has worked on different types of locks... and it works great.

Sometimes the latch can stick also... and with a bit of lubrication added and then moving the handle back and forth, it can start to work smoothly again.














I knew these things... after all, I grew up with a dad who can fix "anything".  His way of doing things is rapidly becoming rare and will eventually become extinct, though.  We live in a culture of "throw it away and buy a new one".  Though I resist that thought, it has actually become something that is hard to avoid as it can be more expensive to fix some things anymore than it is to just buy a new one. Also, many times we don't know how to fix whatever it is on our own, so we give in and buy a new one.  Sigh.

We have had a door knob on the bathroom door that would sometimes lock when the door shut.... not just when we actually locked it. This knob didn't have a key, only a button that turned to lock or unlock... It worked most of the time, but sometimes needed to be turned a couple of times to work.

 This was a bit frustrating, but it worked... until the day we faced an uncertain length of stay in that bathroom since the lock engaged and would NOT disengage, no matter how many times we turned that handle or the lock button.  After a few moments of panic, it finally opened. Whew.  I immediately put some strong tape over the latch to hold it in and keep the door from latching again.  It became urgent to get a new doorknob.... but since this was the master bathroom, not the main one, we used it that way for a few days.

Then, my parents visited... and Dad noticed the tape and asked if there was a problem, so we explained. He said he could probably fix it, but we doubted it this time.... we had given that door knob enough chances! We humored Dad though.... and he fixed it.  He said it just needed a little lubrication... or a lot of it in this case. He sprayed it into the latch area and around the lock area and moved the parts until they worked smoothly again.   I hadn't known the lubricating would help the door lock on this type of door as well, but it did... and it saved us the cost of a new door knob.


Dad said this is the stuff he likes to use... no, I am not selling it, nor am I getting anything for showing this brand.... just sharing what my Dad has found works well for him. I am thankful to know that and not have to shop around on my own for a good product.

I plan to buy a can for our house... and I am thinking it would be a good idea to periodically lubricate the door latches and locks as a preventative measure to keep them working well for a long time. I like that thought better than waiting until we are locked in... or out... of someplace.  :)

 I thought this may be of help to some of you also.  I know I sure appreciate those little tips that save money here and there. Thank you for visiting... and I hope you have a great week.

Garage Sale Series-Hints & Tips

Garage Sales are such a blessing...  and we have had a LOT of garage sales over the years. We have tried this and that... and learned much. In this post, I am sharing some hints and tips about having a garage sale.

Garage Sales are not all the same... and they shouldn't be either... we are all unique and the way we sell our stuff can be also. We can learn from others, but I encourage you to develop your own style.



I don't have any specific order to these hints and tips... and they are not hard and fast "rules".. just things that have worked for us. :)

~One thing we always try to do is to have music going during the garage sale...  I hate going to a sale where everything is totally quiet and anything I touch in the garage sale is easily heard... it is very uncomfortable. I want my customers to be comfortable while they look... music helps.

~Do not play music overly loud... it doesn't need to be soft, but I have been to sales where the volume of the music hurt my ears... and my kids also complained that it hurt their ears... we left. 

~Don't cease talking to the person helping you man the garage sale when people come to the sale, so that there is an uncomfortable silence-you can continue to chat a bit, but be very aware of anything your customer needs. Do NOT stare at or watch the shopper very obviously either!!!!  Be ready to speak to them and say hi, but allow them a sense of privacy as they shop even as you do watch a bit.

~Don't comment on every item your customer touches and tell them the story and try to sell the item. Respect your customer's ability to shop and don't intrude on their shopping... I have had people do this to me to where I didn't want to look at anything else.. and I left. Allow your customer to shop in peace and they may buy more. There's no need to "strong-arm" them.

~Be aware of any trip hazards in your sale and remove them.. or identify them with a sign or colored duct tape or something. Give warnings... like "watch your step".

~Price every item in some way... either with tags or signs.
 
~Do not put fragile glassware on a card table... use sturdy surfaces for that.

~Put jewelry, cell phones or easily stolen items near where you check people out.

~Have a specific table area for checking people out. Also, realize that some people may want to "make a pile" while they continue shopping... that can be done on one end of your checkout table.

~Have plenty of light... use lamps or extra fixtures and highlight tables and items. If you have plenty of light, people can see things better... and we find we sell more... stuff looks better with enough light.

~UNPLUG GARAGE DOORS after they are opened for the sale.  We always do this as the thought of someone accidentally pushing the garage door button and the door coming down during the garage sale... on someone or scaring someone is not fun and could be very dangerous.

~Post several signs saying "Not Responsible For Accidents" prominently.

~Save up grocery bags... or ask for some from family and friends... this is helpful for those who buy a few things. If you are short on them, don't use them for only 2-3 items.

~ We post signs saying "No Smoking" "No Pets"

~Do not let your dog (or cat) out at your sale... they can be a trip hazard and they can also bite... EVEN if it is a dog that "never bites".  My son was bitten by a dog at a sale,... a dog the owner said, "never bites anyone", but it was the 2nd day of the sale....  The dog may be overwhelmed with so many people... and may feel protective, etc. Also, not everyone loves dogs.... and since my son was bitten at a sale and we are no longer willing to trust that an owner has complete control of their animal, we do not shop at any sales where there is a dog. If you have your dog out, you will probably lose some customers.

~By the way, one really weird thing that happened to me... and I'm sure you would know better.... but these people didn't...  I walked up toward a big garage sale and there was a teenage guy with a scarf around his neck. I though that was odd with the warm weather, but some people are strange, so I continued up. When I got close enough, I realized the "scarf" was a big snake all wrapped around his neck!!!!!  I immediately turned and left.. he and his mom said he would put it away, but there was NO WAY I would shop there after that. Keep the pets away from the garage sale.

~Tablecloths are great to put on the tables...  plain or simple patterned tablecloths work best. A tablecloth that is too busy can look overwhelming with lots of stuff on it.

~Tablecloths (plastic or cloth) or sheets can be used to cover items on the walls and shelves of the garage that are not for sale.... we use clothespins to do this.

~Though a garage sale CAN be put together quickly in a couple of days, it can be helpful to start weeks before the garage sale... put items you want to sell into a tote in a certain spot and keep adding to it as you find items as you are doing your regular cleaning. Sometimes I will price them and put them into totes early... then on garage sale set up day, things are much easier. This year, due to my greatly decreased energy, I started about 6 weeks early and kept piling up totes as I did a little on different days. It really helped conserve my energy.  This pile of totes is stuff for the garage sale... and it is all priced. Whew. :)  This is not ALL of the garage sale stuff though!  :) Yes, this is the same garage where we had the garage sale.. this is before we set up, obviously. :)

~Have change on hand... lots of ones and fives, a couple of tens, some quarters, dimes and nickels... and maybe a few pennies.  We usually try to have $100 worth of change... it doesn't take long to need that much... especially when we have several people give us a $20 bill to pay for $3.50 or $2 .. it is better to have too much change than not enough.

~Use good signs to direct people to your sale.

~A canopy cover is helpful... great to shield from the heat and sun... or from rain.

~Boards can be used to make a backdrop to your tables... and shield stuff that isn't for sale... a lattice board is great for this... and we have just pinned a tablecloth to the back of it.... and it looks great. Check the garage or basement for what you have and use that... no need to buy things especially for the garage sale. A board with a tablecloth over it can look great.

~Use what you have... make tables from dining room chairs facing each other with a board on top of the seats of both...  a door works too.... For several years, we always took the basement door off and used that for a table. :)   Benches to the table work also... or patio furniture.  Empty totes with lids can be tables.

~People will notice things more when they are not on the floor... putting them up on tables or boxes gets items to an easier height for people to see and shop.

~It works well to sell in increments of 25c... for example 25c, 50c, 75c, $1.00, $1.25, $1.50, $2.00.  I used to sometimes mark things 5c, 15c, 35c and my husband hated it, so I stopped. It is really easy to add things up when you do it in increments of 25c... and we do also have many 10c items.  

~We have sold popsicles for a couple of garage sales when it was REALLY HOT out.... Bad idea for us... there were only a few who did this, but those few ate (or allowed their child to eat) the popsicles while they shopped... and got sticky drops on the floor or garage sale items. We don't do that anymore. :)

~Putting like things together can make it easier to shop... like housewares together, etc. More on that in  Garage Sale Series-Displays

~Take large bills into the house

~Have at least 2 people "manning" the sale at a time... this helps with safety and security.

~Use a "fanny pack" or some other way to keep the money on your person.  If you use a money box, do NOT EVER leave it unattended - they do get stolen. I would never leave it with a child either... robberies do happen and a child would look like an easy target.








~Sometimes people will work together to distract you while someone else will steal something. You can't watch everything... and theft does happen, but it does help to be aware.



~Folding screens can be helpful for the garage sale... and we use them to form "doors" to close off our living area... We just pull the folding screen closed before we open the house door to go inside... here, the house door is closed and the folding screens are open. It does help to preserve privacy for the family.


~Don't just sit and wait and watch customers... stay busy tidying tables and filling in empty spots... don't let your sale look "picked over" or people won't look as much.  Take down tables, if you have too little to fill them.


~Advertising on Craigslist is free and easy... and many people look there for garage sales, so it can increase the number of people at your sale.

~Take your signs down after the sale...  we also take ours down each night, but that is a personal choice.. unless your city bans leaving them up overnight... check the city code for sales.

~A free pile helps... it helps to draw people and it also helps with getting rid of some things that you don't want to bother selling.... we tend to add to our free pile as the sale goes on. :)

~Rearranging your sale a bit can change the whole look... and people will notice things they didn't see before... this especially helps for the people who make more than one trip to the sale.

~The last hour or so of the sale is a good time to "consolidate" items... move things, tidy up, restock the inside tables to make things look more interesting inside the garage and doing this before you close up helps as it removes some items from outside and you have less to box up for the night. It also helps because that last hour that may be slow, but this makes it still productive and your sale will look nice and fresh for the morning. 

~If someone buys something and leaves to get a bigger vehicle... planning to come right back to pick up their large item... like a table, dresser, etc.... always get their name and phone number. If they don't return, you have a way to contact them... sometimes people forget how to find your sale... especially if they plan to come back after the sale closes.

~Clothes can be put on tables or hung up... they get noticed better when hung up, so as something sells, it helps to put more up.

~We keep batteries on hand to test anything that takes batteries, but we do not sell the items with the batteries inside.

~I alert everyone who is manning the sale that we do not give the hangers, lightbulbs or batteries away with sale items.

~I also let them know that the picture stands do not go with items... they are either sold separately or they are not for sale. 

~Be friendly, smile and have fun. I hope you have a great garage sale. There are so many other possible hints and tips... feel free to share yours in the comments. :) 


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Garage Sale Series

Garage Sale Series-Selling Jewelry

Garage Sale Series-Price Tags

Garage Sale Series-Displays

Garage Sale Series-Signs

Garage Sale Series-Hints and Tips



#Garagesale #yardsale #sales
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Garage Sale Series-Signs

I am doing a Garage Sale Series... this post is on signs.  Signs are one the THE MOST IMPORTANT things for a successful garage sale.

If you want to read the rest of the Garage Sale series, the links will be at the bottom of this post.

Garage Sales can be such a blessing.. a lot of work, but a real blessing, whether you go to shop at the sales, or hold one of your own.  Today, we are talking about having one of your own... and having signs that will draw customers to your sale. The signs are really important as they are the first thing people see about your sale, unless they saw it on Craigslist or other advertising, which we will talk about another time.

  In the summer, you can see all kinds of Garage Sale signs... all shapes, sizes and colors. Some, like the one on the right, make use of other signs as a holder and tape something over the initial sign. It works... but such signs can be made more effective.

The sign on the left in the picture, is one you can buy... and it works also; however, this type of sign can be easily mistaken for a For Sale By Owner sign that is the same design... they can be hard to read until you get close enough to see... or until you can discern that there are only 2 words so it must be the garage sale sign. :)





What makes a good sign, anyway? I am sharing some things that I consider great for signs.

It is important to remember that people looking for garage sale signs will usually be driving... and may be in traffic, so they will need to see important information in your sign with only a glance. Also, they may need to change lanes to get to the side of the road needed to go to your sale. So, it is important that your sign be SEEN easily.

What needs to be seen? People need to be able to tell it is a Garage Sale... and not a house for sale... or a lost cat... or something else, so Garage Sale or Yard Sale, Sale, Rummage Sale, Tag Sale, or something needs to be prominent on the sign.

  Another important thing... a VERY IMPORTANT thing... is an arrow.... an easily seen arrow. When some one is driving, they need to see at a glance where to turn... not have to try to find the arrow on the sign. Make it big and bold.... very easy to notice. A little arrow is better than no arrow, but a very obvious arrow will really help. The yellow sign on the picture here only has garage sale and an arrow... not much information, but very effective.... it gives the information needed.








 This garage sale sign is a good sign, but this picture shows how a good sign can be hard to see when driving. Is there an arrow on it? I can't tell from here. I assume from this sign that I should turn right on this road to go to the sale, but some people put a sign like this and have an arrow to turn LEFT. Not such a good idea... but if you do that, make the arrow BIG, so that people can see it.








 Another sign... it has arrows and an address, the days and times open.  A lot of good information and the sign is effective because the words, Garage Sale, are so big, but the rest is hard to see unless you slow way down. This can also possibly cause an accident.

This sign has big bold letters and a great arrow... this type of sign will bring in more traffic.

Placing the signs is important too.... they should be put at corners where many people will see them. They need to be put where the city says they have to be... like ours says they have to be 10' from the road. The city may have other restrictions, like how many signs or when they can be up, where, etc.  It is good to check and follow the rules.

This was one of our garage sale signs from our recent garage sale. We have used these for many years.... and this is just a piece of poster board over a frame, with black paint. We added plastic over the top to protect against rain.. we put streamers on... sometimes we do balloons also, but they have to be done each year or sometimes each day, so the streamers are so much easier.... We used to put the days we would be open... like Wed-Sat, but now we just put Today on the sign... and we always take our signs down each day.  This sign was used last year also (and maybe for several years!) and we did nothing to it this year to use it again. Most of our signs only have, today, on it once. If you put Today, on your sign, NEVER leave it up on a day you are not open... that offense will alienate people from your future sales.

Other sign tips:

It you have more than one sign, try to make them look the same... or at least something that will tie them together.... like white with black lettering and a certain color streamer. If people are having to follow your signs to your house it will be easier if they see another one just like what they saw at first.

Taking your signs down at the end of the sale, is important... and even each day, is a good idea. Some cities won't allow them up overnight. Sometimes signs get stolen. We have had to make a lot of signs over the years... they wear out... or they get stolen and people just put their address over ours. This is why it helps to have an easy plan to make signs... they don't need to be fancy.

Use old political signs to make your own signs... take the sign off of the frame so it is opened up, then fold the front sides so they are inside and staple or tape. Now you have a white surface to paint on.... make your sign and easily push it into the ground.

Having your address on the sign is a good idea... but remember that the word, Sale, and the arrow are the most important.  The address can be put inside of a big arrow, to save room.

Too much information can be distracting and be hard to read... if you have lots of baby stuff, and want to put that on the sign, that's great, but don't go into big detail... I have seen signs that say: Baby stuff, stroller, onesies, toys, rattles, diapers, johnny jump up, play mat, etc... all on one sign.  It won't really help you to do that... that information is best put on your ad on Craigslist or in the paper.

Use bold colors.  Writing GARAGE SALE in yellow might look nice, but it won't be very visible. If you want to use yellow, then outline it in black, but don't make the writing only yellow or light colors.  Also, even if you use a large black marker, it will be hard to see unless you make the letters large and go over them a few times and widen them.

Using a variety of colors on the sign gets confusing. Choosing 1-4 colors is plenty.  I have seen garage sale signs where GARAGE SALE was written large, but each letter was a different color. Just realize, that it will be hard to see and read what you have.

To decide if your sign can be effective, hold it up in the house and have someone far away... down the hall, maybe, see if it is very readable from there..... or try it in the backyard.


Having the time on the sign is a great help also, if you want to add that... keep it simple though, like 8-5 or something. Don't try to put Wed 8-5:30, Thurs 8-5, Fri... etc.  Try to keep the times the same and reduce the amount of writing on the sign.

Have good contrast on your sign between the background of the sign and the letters.  A light colored background, like white, with dark lettering works well. The reverse is good too.  Using a brown cardboard box side can work, but since the background is in between, you will really need to have your letters bold so they can be seen.


The purpose of your sign is to draw attention, and customers, to your sale. Having good signs will really help. Taking the time to make, or buy, good signs and then taking care of those signs, can really help also, as they can last for years.

Thank you for visiting my blog today... I hope you have a great garage sale.

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Garage Sale Series 

Garage Sale Series-Selling Jewelry

Garage Sale Series-Price Tags

Garage Sale Series-Displays

Garage Sale Series-Signs
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