More Secondhand Goodness

So we've already covered the basics of secondhand shopping, but here are some rather clever ways to save using the second hand principle:

Book Mooch http://bookmooch.com/

Do you like to read? Well, join this world wide trading site and for the cost of sending a book through the mail, have one sent to you. You get .1 points for each book you list to trade, and 1 point for each book you send. Trade in one point for each book you 'mooch'.

PRO'S: There's something so delicious about being connected to the whole world (even just through book trading). You can trade old books you aren't using anymore for second hand books - hello environmentally friendly options!

CON'S: The first thing I discovered is that sending a book through the mail is not as cheap as, say, buying a book at the bookman. And the site selection is limited to what people across the world are giving away (no crochet books for me...).

RATING: Two stars out of five for practicality and frugality, but Four stars for fun.

Free Cycle http://www.freecycle.org/

This community based program is simple. I have something I am not using, so instead of throwing it away, I will give it away. You can request an item, or list an item. Joining is free (and simple). I haven't found anything to give away or pick up yet so I can't list pro's and con's, but I know someone who has and she was over the moon about it. The only thing it appears to cost you is the gas to go pick your stuff up.

RATING: Four out of Five at this point. The only downside is that there's not a huge network in my local community yet, so there's only 5 pages of stuff to look through...

Clothing Swap

Okay, I don't have a particular site for this, but you can easily create your own on face book (if you just can't abide by doing it the old fashioned way) or set one up by talking to your friends and acquaintances. This is great especially for kids, but definitely for us as well. Have a bunch of people pack up what they aren't using (with the stipulation of no stains or rips) set a time, location and date and make a plate of brownies and a pot of coffee. I am planning one of these myself, so I will let you know how that goes and any pointers for making it easier.

Cheers, V.

PS - Just to let you know, today is day two of using the homemade laundry soap. No complaints yet. I haven't noticed any difference at all, actually.