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Consignment sale shopping season is my favorite time of year! It’s like Christmas morning for this money-conscious mama 🙂
Ever since I became a stay-at-home-mom, my husband and I are living on a stricter budget. I love finding ways to shop smarter and stretch our dollars further. Consignment sales shopping is one way to save hundreds of dollars on children’s clothing, maternity clothes, toys, books, baby gear, and nursery furniture. I get excited about finding a good bargain and local consignment sales are the place to do it! I refuse to pay full price for children’s clothing and toys after my experiences consignment sale shopping.
Shopping A Kids’ Consignment Sale Saves Money
March 21-24 was the Just Between Friends local consignment sale event. I bought my daughter’s entire spring and summer wardrobe at this consignment sale.
I spent $93.75 on enough clothing to last my daughter through the next two seasons.
I came home with 52 items of clothing: 30 tops/dresses/rompers, 20 bottoms, and 2 pairs of shoes (1 pair of sneakers in the next size and 1 pair of white sandals).
52 items of clothing at a total of $93.75 equals $1.80 per clothing item! Sometimes I can find outfits on the clearance rack that average under $2 per item, but not always. So, I consider this weekend’s consignment sale shopping a win!
Just Between Friends hosts these HUGE shopping events in cities all across the United States. There is also an event in British Columbia. They host an event in the Fall and the Spring, giving you two opportunities during the year to save money on stylish children’s clothing and gear. You can also use these events as a way to make some extra cash by selling your children’s outgrown clothing, toys, books, and gear. Just Between Friends makes it easy for you to become a consigner and the number of volunteers who assist at these events is amazing! You can read more about Just Between Friends here.
This is my second year shopping at these consignment sales. You can read about last year’s shopping experience here. I don’t consider myself a pro by any means, but I learned a few things that helped me make the most of these discount sales. I want to share these 10 tips with you to make your consignment sale shopping a positive, easy and rewarding experience.
10 Tips for Shopping A Kids’ Consignment Sale
Wear Comfortable Shoes
Consignment sales are usually held in large facilities, which means there is a lot of square footage to cover. You will be on your feet for a few hours so wearing comfortable shoes is key!
Bring A Bottle of Water
I don’t know about you, but shopping makes me thirsty. I always bring a bottle of water with me when I am running errands and shopping for a long period of time.
Be Prepared with A List of Your Needs & Wants
Write down your child’s next clothing size. Trace your child’s foot onto a piece of paper to help with sizing for shoes. Look at what clothes you may already have for the next clothing size/next season and make a list of specific items you are looking for. Take inventory of what your child already has as far as toys, books, and clothes so you know what NOT to look for and don’t end up with a duplicate book or toy. A few of the clothing items I was looking for were spring jackets/sweatshirts, sundresses, shorts, skirts and holiday dresses (Easter and Christmas). Don’t forget to check out Halloween costumes or dress-up clothing, too! This list can also include toys, furniture or other items you may be searching for. We looked for a kid’s activity table for the playroom. Also, it doesn’t hurt to look ahead for winter jackets, hats, snowsuits, gloves/mittens, and boots.
Go the First Day
If you are looking for big ticket items like furniture, toys, strollers, or high chairs, you need to visit the consignment sale the first day it is open for public shopping. These particular items do not last! You can check out their website for a full shopping schedule. The first public shopping day for Just Between Friends was Thursday. I went to look for a kid’s activity table and just browse the clothing. A few clothing items I did find were $3 and less so I purchased them that day. The cashier gave me a $5 off $50 purchase coupon to come back and shop on Saturday so that was a bonus.
Attend the 50% Off Sale
Just Between Friends hosts a 50% off sale on Saturday. Plus I had the coupon from Thursday’s visit. Items not marked with a star are 50% off. Those with a star remained full price. I did the bulk of my shopping on this day.
Get There Early
I planned to arrive at the consignment shopping event as close to open as I could. Since my daughter was with me, this time works best for her. Also, traffic, parking and the crowds were more manageable. It is much easier to look through the clothing racks and toys with fewer people.
Leave the Kiddos at Home
Shopping a consignment sale is MUCH easier without the little ones in tow. My daughter has joined me on these consignment sale shopping events because I went during the day when the hubby was working. It was harder to focus on shopping when I was pausing frequently to give my daughter a snack, her water cup, or just plain entertain her. For future sales, I will employ the help of the grandparents to watch my daughter for a few hours while I shop. My hubby joined me for the Saturday sale because he was coaching swimming that morning nearby the sale location. He met us for breakfast and we went to the sale afterwards. We had a few other errands to run in the area so we made a morning/afternoon out of it! His job was entertaining our daughter and keeping her moving around. She doesn’t like when the stroller is kept still for too long! He also helped me sort through the clothes I pulled off the rack and helped me make the final decision on a few items. So, if you can’t leave the kiddos at home, bring the hubby or a friend along for an additional set of hands!
Bring A Large Bag to Hold Your Finds
This particular consignment shopping event provided you with a large IKEA shopping bag upon entering. This bag worked really well for holding the items as I was shopping. I would definitely suggest bringing a large bag or even a laundry basket to hold everything as you shop.
Take Advantage of the Decision Areas
There were large tables set up at the Just Between Friends consignment sale shopping event. After I went through the clothing racks and stockpiled everything that caught my eye, I headed over to the designated decision areas and proceeded to scan and filter my finds. I inspected each clothing item again for spots, holes or tears and put into one of three piles: Yes, Maybe, No. There were a few items I chose to put back after looking at them again. I had picked up a few duplicate items or ones that were very similar. Having the table to spread out and take the time to look through my finds before getting in line to purchase was very helpful! I definitely recommend utilizing this area.
Reference Amazon and Ebay for Toy Pricing
If you are not sure if the pricing of a toy is a good deal, look up the item on the Amazon or Ebay apps on your phone. I discovered a Minnie Mouse Pet Shop Playset for $7.50 and found that to be a GREAT price after researching the price on Amazon and Ebay. This particular toy was being listed for double the price on Ebay and for $80+ on Amazon!!
These 10 tips have helped make my shopping experience at consignment sales the past year a successful one. Be sure to check out the consignment shopping events in your area and take advantage of the discount pricing for children’s clothing, toys, gear, and books. You can reference the Just Between Friends website here to see if there is a sale near you. These consignment sale shopping events are very organized and I highly recommend visiting one in an area near you! Pin this post so you can reference it for future consignment shopping trips! Happy shopping!
Yaaay! We buy just about everything second hand but I’ve never done a whole years worth in one go! That’s amazing!!!
Thanks! We have two sales. One in the fall and one in the spring. I try to buy 2 seasons worth at each sale. The hardest part is knowing how many items of clothing I should really be buying for each season because I want my daughter to wear everything haha. I like knowing that my “shopping weekend” is here and I just go to town and get it all done! Then, I focus on washing and folding everything in one shot so it’s ready to go for when my daughter will be wearing it.
I am bookmarking this post! We have a few consignment sales that are close to us but I’m a chicken and haven’t really ventured in more than once. I was so overwhelmed that I haven’t been back since. Definitely going to take these tips with me the next time a sale comes around! I know I will save money, it’s just a lot all at once 😬. I loved the foot tracing to help with shoes! Never thought of that before. Thank you for making this post!
That’s great! I’m glad you found the tips helpful. I remember it being very overwhelming the first time I attended one of these sales. I had no idea what to expect, but after attending multiple ones, these tips proved to be very helpful! The foot tracing is great for shoes because I know a toddler shoe size 5 is different depending on the brand you get. Just pick one focus for your trip whether that is looking for a specific article of clothing (pants, shirts, shoes) or other items (toys, books, etc.) and start there. The great thing about these sales is that they last through the weekend so you can break it up and come back another day. Good luck with your shopping!
These are some great ideas. I hadn’t realized that the big consignment sales existed. I thought you had to go to consignment stores. I will definitely have to see if there is one near me.
Thanks! Yes, there are two big ones in our area. Just Between Friends and Kids Clothesline are the big ones that come for an entire weekend in the fall and spring. I had never heard of consignment shopping until I saw many of my friends sharing these particular events. I figured I would check them out and I am glad I did!
Great tips! I love shopping at consignment sales. We have Rhea Lana where I live; the have a sale at least twice a year. My youngest is nine now, so I don’t even go until it’s half price. Ha!
Thanks for reading! I’ve never heard of Rhea Lana. I love going back on half price and discount days. You can usually still find some great toys/clothes. It always amazes me how much money you end up saving shopping at consignment sales!
I loved your tip about using the decision areas to decide which items you really want! I have two little boys and they are growing so fast I don’t want to buy them all new clothes every two months. I would love to shop at a consignment store to see if I can find second-hand pieces that work for them!
I definitely recommend shopping at consignment sales! From my experience, you can find many clothes in almost new condition. The consignment sales near us have very high standards for the items that get put out during their sale. The decision areas have been lifesavers for me because it gives me a place to look through everything one last time because I have the tendency to just grab so much lol. There are usually hanging racks for you to put the items you’ve changed your mind about, too!! Good luck shopping for your little boys 🙂