I love getting free stuff. No, I'm not talking about through blogging (though that's good too!) I mean acquiring stuff that other people would otherwise put in the bin or dump at the tip.
Let me give you an example. At church on Sunday a lovely lady came up to me after the service and said she'd heard I was having trouble with my oven- despite being repaired you still need to jam a knife in the back of it to get the fan to work which is neither convenient or particularly safe I feel.
She told me she was having a new kitchen fitted this week and would be getting rid of her 5 or 6 year old oven. Did I want it? I figured a working 5 year old oven was better than my "electrocution waiting to happen" model so said "yes please".
I don't know about you but my oven almost has sentient life of its own. Dripping pizzas, sloshed yorkshire pudding mix, dropped oven chips and a lack of time or energy to clean the flipping thing mean it lurks rather than sits in its housing.
But this lady's oven looked brand new. I mean seriously I could see the gleaming racks through the sparkling door! And it's a great brand too! I was delighted. So delighted I asked if I could take her hob too. Which she happily agreed to as she was going to dump them both.
In the past I have picked up a gorgeous vintage-y dining table from Freecycle, many many clothes and shoes for my children, A two-storey wooden playhouse, bikes, 2 cars (honestly - real working cars!) a three piece suite, a wooden conservatory and a carpet. To name but a few.
I think I get offered stuff because I make it well known in our community that people should check with me before dumping stuff. Or people put two and two together (much as we did to make 7 children ) and figure, rightly, with that many kids there can't be much sore money flying around.
Anyway they know that if I can't use it I'll do my best to find someone who can through church or school. It's environmentally friendly and cost efficient.
At the moment I'm on the scrounge for bricks so my husband can build the low wall for our conservatory. I'm delighted at the thought if having more space in our cramped home, my friend was delighted to be able to help us out and the widow of the man who originally built the conservatory actually stopped me in the street to tell me how pleased she was that someone else would be getting use from her husband's craftsmanship.
So if you need something, don't be afraid to ask. Make use of social networks, Free sites like Freegle and Freecycle, your blog, notice boards in supermarkets and little shops - someone out there might just be glad to give away something you really need.
And can I take this opportunity to thank the people who have given me free stuff in the past - it really is very much appreciated!
Let me give you an example. At church on Sunday a lovely lady came up to me after the service and said she'd heard I was having trouble with my oven- despite being repaired you still need to jam a knife in the back of it to get the fan to work which is neither convenient or particularly safe I feel.
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| deadly oven |
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| free table |
But this lady's oven looked brand new. I mean seriously I could see the gleaming racks through the sparkling door! And it's a great brand too! I was delighted. So delighted I asked if I could take her hob too. Which she happily agreed to as she was going to dump them both.
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| Our "new" conservatory being dismantled from its original home. |
In the past I have picked up a gorgeous vintage-y dining table from Freecycle, many many clothes and shoes for my children, A two-storey wooden playhouse, bikes, 2 cars (honestly - real working cars!) a three piece suite, a wooden conservatory and a carpet. To name but a few.
I think I get offered stuff because I make it well known in our community that people should check with me before dumping stuff. Or people put two and two together (much as we did to make 7 children ) and figure, rightly, with that many kids there can't be much sore money flying around.
Anyway they know that if I can't use it I'll do my best to find someone who can through church or school. It's environmentally friendly and cost efficient.
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| free bike |
So if you need something, don't be afraid to ask. Make use of social networks, Free sites like Freegle and Freecycle, your blog, notice boards in supermarkets and little shops - someone out there might just be glad to give away something you really need.
And can I take this opportunity to thank the people who have given me free stuff in the past - it really is very much appreciated!
