Sorting Into Piles

Clearing, sorting, and organizing - Its fresh on my mind after our friend Claire posted on Facebook. She was wondering how much that type of service is worth. It opened up a great thread. If any of you Wisconsin people (Madison specifically) need a hand getting things organized, contact me for her information.

To thin out and declutter your home,  I recommend  sorting everything into piles. Throw away, recycle, donate, give and sell.

There are fantastic options in Livingston for donating. The Community Closet http://communitycloset.com/ and the Senior Center http://www.livingstonmontana.org/living/senior_center.html are my two regular drop offs for donations. There is also a yearly garage sale for the Park High School kids that are trying to raise money to go to Japan through the Sister Cities Program http://www.livingstonmontana.org/living/sister_city.html. Once a year the Park County Environmental Council holds an electronic recycling project http://www.envirocouncil.org/. I believe it's the best way locally to get rid of all of your broken and outdated computers, TV's and the like.

I don't throw much away. You'd be amazed at how much you can recycle. Don't forget, all of your metals can be sold at a good recycling center. I have used Pacific Steel and Recycling in Bozeman. Its a bit of a drive, but if I'm headed over to do errands in the "Big City" it sometimes pays for my gas and groceries! http://local.yahoo.com/info-17102587-pacific-steel-recycling-bozeman.

About a year ago, I started a project where I would try to give something away every day from my house. Its not as easy as you would think. Some days it might just be something little, a pencil or a something tiny. Other days, I would try to give someone something of real value. This was all in an effort to re-enforce lesson "It is better to give than receive". It is true. It made me feel wonderful, although I would say the neighbors were probably thinking I was a little nuts after a while. I think it stopped when I tried to give our truck away. George put a stop to that pretty quickly. I understand... but still it would have been fun. In retrospect, I should have truly enlisted the help of my family.  Maybe I will reinvigorate that project.

As for selling, George and I are pretty good at holding sales. This is the season for sales. If you want to get rid of things and draw a crowd, people are out on Saturday mornings. A gentle reminder, everyone is having a sale, so don't out price things. Give me a call if I can help.

Taylor Mott Queen Sized Headboard - Bird Sculpture for Sale

To say the least, I was surprised when this appeared at the estate sale I was working on last week. Thinking back, I'm not sure why - the owner has so many amazing pieces of art throughout her home. 

The artist, Taylor Mott is a native Montanan who now resides in New Mexico. He has an impressive list of gallery representation. If you are not familiar with him, he is easily found on the internet. 

This is a one of a kind headboard with hand cast birds. They appear to be little kestrels or falcons. It was being sold at a heavily discounted price of $1600 at a shop in Bozeman. The owner is now asking $900 for it at this estate sale to keep it from going into storage. She is heavily downsizing. 

Call me at 406-224-1559

10th Street, June 8th 9th and 10th

Here's a little preview of the next sale we are helping with. It will be held at 216 South 10th Street - Friday from 4pm to 7pm,

 Saturday from 8am to 3:00, and Sunday 8am to ? 

There are a lot of wonderful antiques and treasures here. 

The owner is an artist with fabulous taste. 

I think you are going to love this sale.

Can't wait to see you!