Wednesday, April 6, 2011

consigning at the totswap: this mom's experience

I just lost my consignment virginity. And couldn't wait to tell you all about it.

Because it was so easy. (SO easy).

This weekend is the spring Timonium TotSwap Consignment Sale. It's only THE biggest consignment sale in the region. And some lucky buyer is going to walk away with some of the Bug's infant wardrobe.

I had eight (yes! 8!) bins of clothes sizes 0-24 months sitting in my basement collecting dust. It wasn't really for sentimental reasons as much as it was a result of my sometimes frenzied life. Seemed easier to throw all of the clothes in a bin and send them into storage as opposed to sorting, storing, consigning and giving away. But as I was cramming more clothes into overcrowded bins last weekend, I decided enough was enough.

I registered as a consignor for the TotSwap online. It cost $10, but got me access to the database to register my items and two tickets to the coveted pre-sale event on Thursday night.

Then I got busy sorting. I did a first-run through all the bins and went with an immediate gut reaction (didn't want to get too bogged down in the 'ohhh-- I remember when she wore that for 30 seconds!): Keep, Trash, Donate, Consign. All of the Consign items then went through a second round of scrutiny as I sorted into piles by size (you can only consign 25 items per size, per TotSwap rules).

After I was happy with my selections, I sat down and entered each item into the TotSwap database. I had received a tip from Kimberly at The Muddy Princess to price well. So I usually erred on pricing lower than higher for my items. I also made a point of putting outfits together rather than consigning individual pieces. I'm not sure if this strategy was smart - - I'll let you know on Sunday! For each item, I needed to note whether or not I wanted the item marked down to 1/2 price if they don't sell before Sunday (YES -- sell, sell, sell) and whether or not I wanted them donated if they didn't sell (another YES. I don't want any of it coming home!).

Once each item was entered and priced, the database provided me with a PDF file of all of my tags so I could print them on cardstock and cut. Super easy.

Then came the tagging and hanging. By far this was the most tedious part of the process; however, I'm pretty sure it was self-induced tediousness as my Type-A personality came out in full force. (cool) progeny reader Heather White gave me a great suggestion of marking my hangers -- to make my clothing items stand out amongst the thousands at the sale. So I tied brightly colored ribbon around each hanger. I was also a bit neurotic about pieces getting separated or the tag being misplaced. I may of od'd on safety pins.

All of the clothes went into a plastic bin for transport. Once I got to the sale for drop off, I stood in line for maybe 10 minutes before an inspection station was free. All of my clothes were inspected and then I was free to place them on the sale floor.

Despite my scrutiny (and I'm pretty picky!) two of my items weren't up to snuff. Honestly, I didn't even pick up on the stains until I was looking at them in the florescent lights at the sale. Note to self: don't sort clothes in the basement and then tag at night. Make sure you're looking at all of the items in daylight.

So there you have it. All in all, I put about 4 hours into prepping for the sale and put 60 items on the TotSwap Sale floor.

I'm pretty sure it was worth it - - but I'll let you know for sure when I receive my check. It's due to arrive 7 days after the sale. {{Pretty sweet, right?}}

Just in time to buy the Bug a few new spring clothes.

(cool) tip: Headed to the TotSwap as a buyer? Check out our 10 tips for navigating the sale! Have things piling up that you too could part with? Like the TotSwap on Facebook to be notified of their next sale!

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

There is another great kids' consignment sale this weekend - the Kids Clothing Exchange. It's held twice a year at a swim club in White Marsh: http://www.pinevalleyswim.com/consignment/springhours.pdf

FYI, there's no fee to consign there and they use the same database system as TotSwap :)

Kimberly said...

You were totally on the ball - good for you! I must have gotten to drop off right after you because I saw your pretty ribbons on some hangers as I was hanging up some of our clothes.

Will you be shopping the presale tomorrow night? I'll be there too!

(cool) progeny said...

Thanks for your comments! Can't believe I missed you Kimberly. I was at the sale tonight and picked up a few great things for the Bug. Including a never-been-opened Djeco pull toy Snail for 70% off the retail price. Sweet. :)