Local Sponsorships

Since we get so much NYS love from the community, we're all about giving back. Recently, stomp approached us about sponsoring the NCHS band program. Well, we're suckers for a good deal, so we bit. Look for our ad in the upcoming concerts (and of course we'll tell you the details).

Looking for a local sponsor? We might be able to help. It may not always be in the form of money, but we'll help where we can....

People like this need NYS

Do you park your nice car in the driveway while filling your garage with junk? People mentioned in this article do.

Well, we don't have nice cars, but we *do* park them in the driveway (for the time being). But why store all that junk when there are thousands of potential buyers on Naperville Yard Sales? We're working on it....

Another wild and CRAAAAAAZY weekend!

As of this post, there are:

7 yard sales today
45 yard sales on Friday
47 yard sales on Saturday

Last week, my wife hauled home a huge bag of those ball pen balls. A HUGE bag. It cost her 25 cents. The kiddos love it. They can take up the entire floor of a whole room when dumped out (which they are quite frequently). We're just trying to find a place for them now....

Have a cool story with warm fuzzies about and experience on NapervilleYardSales.com? We'd love to hear about it.

We'll feature the neatest ones on this blog, and give you some free publicity as well. Contact us today!

Why we do what we do

A bit off-topic, but it's good to get grounded every once in awhile with what's really important.

Where have we been???

Okay, I know we've been lax in posting. We've been having waaaaaay too much fun playing, enjoying the beautiful weather before it gets increasingly colder.

One heads up - we're partnering with a few fundraisers with various organizations this fall to help give them some additional exposure and help them raise funds for the worthy causes they support. If you know of an event such as this, let us know and we'll do our best to help them out.

Another seller tip

(start drumroll) (end drumroll) Post lots of items

You see, the more stuff you post for sale, the greater the likelihood that people will find something they're interested in and if they find something they're interested in, they'll come to your house and likely see something else they are interested in as well that maybe they missed online and they'll want that too.

We weren't planning on selling the quilt rack, but when they came to look at our headboard (and buy it), they spied it sitting unused in a corner.

"Is that quilt rack for sale?"

"Uh, uh, uh....for the right price, anything's for sale!"

"How about $15?"

"Sold!"

Worked like magic. And now we have one less thing in our house.

What I'm coveting today

I wish I had a current excuse, er, use for this piece of work, but, alas, I already have enough other stuff rusting away....unused....says my wife....

The random lady in the street

She wasn't really "in the street," but her car was. My wife was driving down the road yesterday with the windows wide open, enjoying the beautiful weather (which is steadily getting colder!) and at a stop light a lady starting chatting with her, something like this:

Random Lady: "Is your van the one on the website?"
My beautiful wife: "You mean Naperville Yard Sales? It is..."
Random Lady: "Yes! Do you know the people who run it?"
My beautiful wife: "Yes! I'm married to him!"
Random Lady: "Really?!?! Cool! I love the site! I posted something there last night!"

And then the light turned green and the conversation ended. But, if you are the alleged "Random Lady" who likes to converse with people at stop lights, let us know who you are so we can give you a free Premiere account. We love bumping randomly into people in the community with a common connection.....

So, how's it growin'?

A few stats on NYS, as we approach our two-month birthday:

• Almost 500 people have signed up as sellers
• Over 3000 people came to Naperville Yard Sales last month
• Your items have already been viewed hundreds of thousands of times
  
• NYS traffic is growing at about 10% per week

So, all this bodes well for the future. I can't quite park in my garage yet, but I'm hopeful!

And the first two lucky suckers are....

...angelafax took away a nice end table while Paula ended up with the hydraulic car jack (sniff!).

Interesting to note that 2 women called me, but 2 men showed up. I guess men are good for something after all....:)

13 more sweeeeeeeeeeeeet items to go!

McCarty & Owen School Fall/Winter Resale

Be sure to check out a Children's Resale Fundraiser in Naperville this weekend.

Item #1 has now been posted....

Here's a link. It's a nice little addition to whatever you need. We used it in our last house for our guest room, but just can't find a place for it here. Don't you hate it when your old furniture doesn't conform to your new house??

Cheapskates, rejoice!

If you're coveting a free Premiere account and are too much of a tightwad to pay the $7.95/month for one, you can invite your friends. If you don't have any more friends or you're tired of entering fake email addresses (no, they don't count), we're trying to make it easier on you.

So, here's how you can get it: contact us and claim your car decal. Put it on your car. Get a free Premiere account for as long as it remains on your rear window....

Share the NYS love.....

The official promo scoop

Now that we've smashed the 1000 barrier, it's promo time! Here's the scoop:

Short version: "15 over 15 not for 15 in 15 to 15" promotion. Also known as "dollar days."

Longer: 15 items worth over $15 each, for $1 (not 15) in 15 days to 15 sellers.

Longest: Beginning on Friday, September 15, we will be offering 1 free item per day at some unappointed, random, and changing time of day. We have 15 items, each worth over $15 (some much more). If you're the first to respond you get the item for $1. This madness will continue for 15 whopping days.

Why are we giving stuff away for almost free? Because we love you. Seriously. Okay, maybe we don't know you personally yet, but we love our users. We've bought a lot of cool stuff off of you, and you've helped us clean out our garage (it's getting there, but still needs some work!). So, we thought we'd show our appreciation with some nice stuff that we've accumulated and, despite our best attempts, have yet to find a use for. What kind of stuff? The full range from baby stuff to tools to small furniture to --- wait, we won't ruin it. You'll just have to check in to see what's in store, er, online. Just don't wear out the refresh button on your screen.

Important small print: To be eligible, you must have posted at least one item on NYS prior to claiming the item. Only one item per person. You must pick up the item within one day or it will be offered to the next person. If, after getting the item, you decide you don't like it or don't need it or your spouse gives you that funny look, TOUGH. You only paid a buck for it, so you're not out much - buck up! (hardy-har-har). Why don't we just give it away for free? Well, my papa always said "there is no free lunch" - so we'd hate for you to think otherwise.

Preview for NYS Blog Readers

I know you're all dying in anticipation for the "special 1000 reward" thing. And for the gazillions of faithful NYS blog readers, you'll get a special preview tomorrow, one day ahead of everyone else.

Feel special? You should. The "special 1000 reward" thing isn't like winning the lottery or getting married, but it *is* similar. In some ways, and on a fraction of the scale. Kind of. Maybe.

What my wife is coveting today

My wife loves scrapbooking. The problem is, with our two munchkins we don't get as much time as we'd like to canonize our lives on acid-free paper. This book on doing a 25 page book in a weekend sounds enticing....

Now, what someone really should do is offer super-cheap scrapbooking services. You take my pictures and deliver a finished product. Even *I* would be interested in something like that....

What the future holds

NYS is approaching 1000 items rather quickly. A special surprise awaits (as another token of my undying gratitude) all y'all once we cross that psychological 4-digit barrier. At least *I* think it's a nice surprise. Stay tuned!

As a sign of my gratitude....

....for two people from NYS that have bought stuff from me and thus helped clear out space in my basement (not enough space, however, for the sweet pool table that was snatched up by Sandi), I will exhibit my undying thanks for these two people via a shameless plug for their items. Really nice people, by the way.

Help Nat get some children's books. And if you or someone you love is looking to move more downtown, they're selling a condo. (Thanks for buying my trimmer!)

And help stump get rid of the antique painted table. (Thanks for buying my golf clubs!). But for a person who has "lots of unused stuff" only posting two items seems minimal. :)

There, now I don't mean to be setting any sort of precedent for future buyers of my stuff. The great deal you're getting should be reward enough. But you never know what might happen....

Update: apparently I have real and living issues with confusing words and names. It is STOMP, not STUMP as previously indicated. (sigh)

The Naperville We Know And Love - Is Back!

Holy guacamole, Batman! After a slow Labor Day weekend for yard sale junkies, the fervor has returned with a vengeance. As of writing this, there are:

16 Yard Sales today, ramping up to 43 yard sales on Friday, and 38 yard sales on Saturday. Yes, there are some overlaps with multi-day sales, but wowsers! Yard sale heaven....

Another seller tip - free of charge!

If most people are like me (an unlikely assumption, I know), the desire to purchase something is often based on not just the price, but the price it would otherwise cost me. Do I really need it? That's somewhat irrelevant. And if the price is right, it's completely irrelevant.

So, if you want me to buy your stuff, first tell me the price. Then tell me how much you paid for it or how much it is selling for elsewhere so I can feel like I'm a smart consumer. Then I'll probably make a dumb consumer decision and buy it. But I'll feel good about it.

That's why I have a hydraulic car jack in my garage that I have never used and will likely keep forever. They normally cost $20-$50. I got mine for $5. I love NYS. :)

What I'm coveting today

Pool table. For $200?!?!

Wish my basement was bigger. Or maybe this is my excuse to build an addition on the house.

Unique, you know?

You never know what people have in their basements. Certainly some things you'd never have in your basement, right? Er, well, maybe there are some things you need to get out in the open like this die-cast bank replica - fishing theme. I always used a piggy bank.

Or this: my breastfriend pillow. Maybe my gender excludes me from understanding.

Or these kawasaki air sticks. One by one, I have decided to remove the batteries from all my kids' toys. This gift ain't for me, but I'm sure it'd be nice for a first-time parent. :)

Ah, NYS is great entertainment. I don't want to reveal what I *am* interested for fear you'll snatch it up first. :)

Official Yard Sale Addict Recovery Day

A heads up to all: as of this Sunday (September 3), each Sunday will be the official yard sale addict recovery day. It's the day when we all take time away from our computers to enjoy the sunshine, life, friends, church, our families, and many other enjoyable and enriching things.

Life is too rich to spend all-day, everyday in front of the computer, so we're taking a rest. Come join us in the park on a walk, in the hospital visiting our friends, or snuggling on the couch reading a story with the kiddos.

And don't worry, we'll be back at 2 am Monday mornings! ;-)