Freebies
You can furnish your home for free if you know where to look. Websites like snaffleup.co.uk, freecycle.org and gumtree.com advertise furniture that people are giving away.
Check these sites out regularly as they’re updated daily and the good stuff goes quickly. You can also sign up to their mailing lists to help with the hunt
A popular vehicle for clearing unwanted — but still useful — items out of basements and garages in many southern Ontario cities has come to Kapuskasing.
The aptly (and punnily) named freecycling movement is really not such a new idea. It’s basically a swap meet updated for the digital age. Rather than lugging all of that unwanted stuff to a place where other people with unwanted stuff can look at your unwanted stuff, freecycling sees people take pictures of their items on a computer bulletin board, include descriptions and contact information and…voila! Digital swap meet.
“If you have something that is still usable, rather than have it end up in a landfill, you offer it to someone else,” said Marissa Reedhead, who started up Kapuskasing Freecycle.
If you want to get rid of an old car, cell phone, or appliance FreeCycle is a great place to do so. The FreeCycle network is made up of individual groups across the globe that are giving and getting stuff for free in their own towns. The only rule; everything posted must be at no cost, legal, and appropriate for all ages.
With Americans discarding 245 million tons of trash annually, there’s plenty of free and cheap stuff to be claimed. Whether you find it at a thrift store, a yard sale or an online exchange such as freecycle.org, rescuing discards is easy on the Earth and the wallet.
Some say ‘Nothing in life is free.’ While that’s usually true, there seems to be an exception. It’s a website called Freecycle and it’s a way to save a buck while saving the environment. The Colorado Springs version of it is quickly growing.
Sara Maisel sorts bags filled with toys, clothing, and bedding – some of the stuff she plans to give away for free on the Freecycle website. “I really, really enjoy it,” she said. “Sadly, I’m on there more than I probably should be.”
FREE STUFF
The four-poster bed in my bedroom, the blender on my counter and my fax machine all cost me the same thing: nothing. That’s because I’m a member of an e-mail network called Freecycle (www.freecycle.org). The objective of all Freecycle groups is to keep stuff out of the landfill by giving it to people who might need or use it. You can get rid of unwanted household items and ask for items that you might need. You must follow the group’s guidelines, including keeping your offers and wanted postings in balance.
You could furnish an entire apartment from stuff that’s been left out on the curb, and I’ve been known to stop and throw items into my minivan. If I can’t use it, I post it on Freecycle.
How do you go about being frugal? I guess examples-wise, if you use something like Freecycle and you get it for free, no matter what it is, you’re getting a little value for that. If you have to purchase something for retail, you want to get the lowest price possible. You do that by asking them to lower the price, asking if there’s a sale coming up. We’re always doing that. We always say, “Is this going to go on sale?” “Yes, come back next week.” Promotions, that’s another one. Like the TVs that we got for free. Sales, promotions, negotiations. The worst they can do is say “no.”
2) The Second-Hand User
Ask yourself if you can get a used dresser instead of that “new” one you need. The Daily Green suggests looking at Web sites like Freecycle and Craigslist, as well as thrift stores and garage sales to find a new home for that perfectly reusable piece
Martin Raymond, who founded a company called The Future Laboratory, which does market research to identify future trends, says that the web site Freecycle is another example of this move away from consumerism.
People have changed spending habits as the financial crisis bites
Instead of simply throwing things away, people advertise their unwanted goods on the site and either give them away, or exchange them for something they need.
FREECYCLE is pretty similar to eBay or Huuto.net except that all of the items changing hands are free. Since the Freecycle Network’s (TFN) launch as a small waste management project in 2003 it has expanded to include branches in over 85 countries, with over five and a half million members.
According to the organisation’s mission statement, the idea is simple: “to build a worldwide gifting movement that reduces waste, saves precious resources & eases the burden on our landfills while enabling our members to benefit from the strength of a larger community.”
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