Ever hear of Freecycle? Most people I know haven't, and some even snicker at this level of frugality. They just don't know what they're snickering at.
Freecycle is a regional network of classified ads...most ads are "offer" or "wanted". The Golden Rule of Freecycle is that any items posted are given FREE, no money exchanges hands through Freecycle. The idea is that a lot of the stuff we toss in the trash may be someone else's treasure, and it is better to pass it on to a new life, rather than have it end up in a landfill.
Each morning when I wake up, and each evening, just before bed, I get an email from Freecycle, called the Daily Digest. Each of these emails contains up to 25 ads of people advertising stuff they would like to pass on (offer) or stuff they would like passed on to them (wanted).
I have been a member of my local Freecycle network for over a year, with tremendous success. Some of the things I've passed on have included:
Freecycle is a regional network of classified ads...most ads are "offer" or "wanted". The Golden Rule of Freecycle is that any items posted are given FREE, no money exchanges hands through Freecycle. The idea is that a lot of the stuff we toss in the trash may be someone else's treasure, and it is better to pass it on to a new life, rather than have it end up in a landfill.
Each morning when I wake up, and each evening, just before bed, I get an email from Freecycle, called the Daily Digest. Each of these emails contains up to 25 ads of people advertising stuff they would like to pass on (offer) or stuff they would like passed on to them (wanted).
I have been a member of my local Freecycle network for over a year, with tremendous success. Some of the things I've passed on have included:
- baby clothes
- baby gear (bouncy seat, traveling bassinet, etc)
- old electronics (lots of people like to collect this stuff to practice their tinkering)
- household appliances
- books, books, and more books
- toys
- jigsaw puzzles (I only ever do them once)
- decorative items (lots of candle holders)
- egg cartons (local egg farmer requests these from time to time)
- recycling box items (schools and daycares often take boxes of various food jars, styrofoam meat trays, aluminum pans, Popsicle sticks, etc)
And the things I've gained from Freecycle:
- baby clothes
- toys
- books, books, and more books
- a wooden filing cabinet (I'm almost organized!)
- a fantastic wooden rack which holds plastic bins for toys
- a broken DVD player (my husband fixed it)
- an easel
- a 6'x9' rug (in excellent condition, I might add)
- clothes (for me!)
- an Ultramatic bed (for my mom...beware, pickup for large items can be difficult!)
Clothes are one of my favourite things to get from Freecycle. They're certainly a huge expense for a family of four, and opening a bag full of name brands that I couldn't normally buy is very exciting. Of course, anything that we can't or don't use, we re-Freecycle (post in an offer).
A Freecycle account is completely free; all that is needed is a Yahoo! email account, and you're off. Please check them out, see what kinds of things people are offering. Then take a look around your own house and see what's collecting dust that someone else might really appreciate.
www.Freecycle.org
A Freecycle account is completely free; all that is needed is a Yahoo! email account, and you're off. Please check them out, see what kinds of things people are offering. Then take a look around your own house and see what's collecting dust that someone else might really appreciate.
www.Freecycle.org
No comments:
Post a Comment