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Lanea
Permanent Resident
USA
5158 Posts |
 Posted - 04/30/2008 : 05:19:00 AM
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I freecycle locally, but some of the items I'd like to give away appeal to knitters more than average folks, so they don't necessarily find new homes. My husband and I are in the midst of replacing all of our floors, so we have to pack and unpack every single room in the house as the work progresses, which helps me find more and more stuff to give away. I could wait until the KR retreat this fall, but I'd really prefer to get rid of things sooner rather than later.
I think we should start a KR-based freecycle group. We've obviously had lots of stash sales and trades go on here in the forums, but really only for knitting supplies and books. I bet lots of us have other things that KR members would be interested in that we could trade or give away.
See proof of insanity: http://www.crazylanea.com/
Join the KR Webring: http://www.crazylanea.com/fiberarts/2006/07/the_knitters_re.html
Buy handmade sock knitting bags: http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5031570 |
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Jane
SustaYning Member
USA
4292 Posts |
Posted - 04/30/2008 : 05:39:53 AM
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That's a great idea! But you wouldn't be thinking of trying to freecycle a certain evil cashmere-eating cat, would you? 
Jane
The knitter formerly known as jcc28
Blog: Not Plain Jane
Photos: My Flickr Album
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Sharyn
Gabber Extraordinaire
USA
418 Posts |
Posted - 04/30/2008 : 05:45:09 AM
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Lanea,
What a small world - I am in the midst of doing the same thing. Getting new floors, packing up stuff, and finding lots to give away! And, I've been freecycling alot. Gave away a mattress set, dog house, clothes dryer, huge plants so far, and still finding more.
Are you proposing that the KR freecycle be for local pick ups only, or perhaps the receiver could reimburse the sender for shipping - if it's a smaller item? I have some yarn scraps, balls of acrylic, and some old fingering weight wool that have made it to the giveaway pile. I am far away from all you KR folks, but if anyone is interested I could send it. I also have some quilting books and natural healing books that will be going away - the price of media mail is low, so they could be sent for a few bucks.
It feels so good to clean out, doesn't it? The worst part of the new floors experience is that mine are messed up, so they might have to do them over. Packing up again is not appealing....
Sharyn |
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Lanea
Permanent Resident
USA
5158 Posts |
Posted - 04/30/2008 : 06:03:41 AM
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No Jane. Yarrow, though evil, is my favorite cat and I could never part with him. Please don't tell Speedwell--he's very fragile, and he deserves better from me. (Wow, I sound crazy . . . )
How funny, Sharyn! It's a lot of work, isn't it? I am so excited to be getting rid of all that carpet though. We're putting in bamboo in all but the tiled baths and kitchen. What are you doing with your floors? Are you also painting? I hope it doesn't take too long to replace your floors again--what a pain!
It does feel great to get rid of stuff, but I really don't want to throw things away, so the freecycling can get a bit frustrating if people aren't taking things I offer.
I have to pack up my studio in the next couple of days, and I bet I'll find some good stuff to give away. That's going to be the toughest room, hands down. The library is hard to work on too. I know I need to get rid of some books, but it's like pulling teeth.
I think local pickups would be ideal, but won't always happen. Some things the recipient will probably be willing to pay shipping for, and as you mentioned some things can be shipped via media mail, which is pretty cheap.
See proof of insanity: http://www.crazylanea.com/
Join the KR Webring: http://www.crazylanea.com/fiberarts/2006/07/the_knitters_re.html
Buy handmade sock knitting bags: http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5031570 |
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Sharyn
Gabber Extraordinaire
USA
418 Posts |
Posted - 04/30/2008 : 08:05:02 AM
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We put in Marmoleum (old fashioned linoleum, but an extremely eco-friendly product for those who don't know what it is) in the kitchen, dining, hallway and master bedroom. We already had ceramic tile in the bathrooms and laundry, so we only have carpet in the spare bedrooms and living room now. I really like it, but installation can be tricky I guess. We had the most experienced installer in town do it, but there were some unexpected problems which may require having to do it all over again. It is very beautiful, so I'm not sorry I did it - I just wish it was over! I have a constant stream of house guests starting in June, so I'm starting to panic.
I painted most of the rooms when we moved in 5 years ago, so I only had one wall to repaint before the floors went in. The big problem was that the base molding now sits lower on the wall so I had to repaint the bottom of every wall! Trying to find all the paint from 5 years ago was a challenge. Are you painting, Lanea? Are you being brave with colors or keeping it neutral? I was inspired to do some mosaic thresholds in the doorways to the bathrooms - the marmoleum sits a little lower than the ceramic tile, so rather than some toe-busting transitions, I created some gently sloping tile mosaic strips. They are really pretty, and even the floor store owner was impressed.
I reorganized my yarn/craft workspace into the master bedroom now - I got new cubby shelves, baskets that fit, lots of space to view my stash and be inspired. I'll post some pictures once it's a little more complete. In the process of moving the yarn from the spare bedroom to the master bedroom, I discovered that I have waaaay tooooo muuuuch (but I still only have one little bag full to give away - any takers?) And the books - yikes! Luckily most of the books are in the living room and we didn't have to pack up that room.
Lanea, let me know what you find to give away from your studio - I might just have room for something I think I need :)
The quilting books I have to give away are pretty nice with lots of pictures. If I quilt again, it will be to finish my crazy quilt so I don't need the Americana and Amish quilting books any longer. If anyone is interested, PM me with your address and I'll be happy to send them to you for the cost of media mail.
Sharyn |
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Lanea
Permanent Resident
USA
5158 Posts |
Posted - 04/30/2008 : 08:48:17 AM
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Ooh, that sounds gorgeous. Do let us know if you post photos of the floors.
I am indeed being brave with the colors. The redone bath is a bit sedate but still a pretty saturated blue, because I wanted to make sure the paint looked good with the gorgeous tile we had the guys put on the floor (pictures in my most recent blog post) and still keep the light as bright as we could. The library, next to be painted, is going to be a gorgeous deep orange--think browning orange leaves in the fall. The living room will be green. The kitchen already has a verdigris wall, but that one is going darker soon to look better with the tile in that room. We're still undecided on the bedroom. The studio has me torn though. I love color, but I don't want to paint the walls in a color that will affect my sense of color in there. We'll see on that one.
I may be interested in those quilting books--not that I need any more books . . .
I have a bunch of movies on VHS to give away, and some books will be culled once I start moving things back into the library, and a towel rack, and all sorts of other stuff. Who knows what the studio will reveal.
See proof of insanity: http://www.crazylanea.com/
Join the KR Webring: http://www.crazylanea.com/fiberarts/2006/07/the_knitters_re.html
Buy handmade sock knitting bags: http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5031570 |
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Sharyn
Gabber Extraordinaire
USA
418 Posts |
Posted - 04/30/2008 : 10:26:44 AM
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I would be happy to send you the quilting books - I'll PM you this evening with the titles (just in case you already have them)
Your colors sound gorgeous - I have a house full of brave color. In fact, I fell in love with the Marmoleum floor for the kitchen just because it was so perfect for the color scheme I had going
The one wall I had to repaint was the wall where the new yarn/craft shelves were going, so I understand your indecision on color for your studio - I decided to use a more neutral color so it didn't clash with the riot of yarn color that would be displayed there. I used a color called Fig (Valspar paint, Eddie Bauer group) - it's a medium brown with a reddish/yellow warmth to it. The rest of the room is a very sunny yellow-orange, so things are really warm and toasty feeling in that room.
Sorry everyone, we've kind of taken over this thread with our talk of flooring and paint color - but I do love the idea of KR freecycle and hope it has some interest!
Sharyn
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Luann
Permanent Resident
USA
2610 Posts |
Posted - 04/30/2008 : 11:02:13 AM
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Beautiful floor, Sharyn! We looked at linoleum but ended up going with cork for our new kitchen, which will be finished... someday (3 weeks behind schedule and counting!)
I too have a bunch of knitterly things to give away. I was just going to save them for the next KR retreat as well, but if we figure out a system I'd be happy to have them gone sooner rather than later.
Luann
Knit and let knit!
Now with actual blogging!:
http://www.luannocracy.blogspot.com |
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Sharyn
Gabber Extraordinaire
USA
418 Posts |
Posted - 04/30/2008 : 11:55:23 AM
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We considered cork, too. The final decision came down to what was available for transition pieces - I hate raised transitions, and we have a step down to our living room that would have had a big raised ridge.
Back to Freecycle - we already have the Swap section, so Clara could we have a new category for Freecycle? Rules would be that it was Free, otherwise it can go in the for sale or trade categories. I just thought of an idea, too - instead of reimbursing the sender for shipping, we could have an honor system where the recipient gave a donation to KR. So, it would limit what gets posted to those people willing to pay the cost of shipping it off, and those people willing to make a donation to KR for the free item.
Any thoughts? Luann, whatcha got to give away?
Sharyn |
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Jane
SustaYning Member
USA
4292 Posts |
Posted - 04/30/2008 : 12:39:39 PM
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quote:
Originally posted by Sharyn
We considered cork, too. The final decision came down to what was available for transition pieces - I hate raised transitions, and we have a step down to our living room that would have had a big raised ridge.
Back to Freecycle - we already have the Swap section, so Clara could we have a new category for Freecycle? Rules would be that it was Free, otherwise it can go in the for sale or trade categories. I just thought of an idea, too - instead of reimbursing the sender for shipping, we could have an honor system where the recipient gave a donation to KR. So, it would limit what gets posted to those people willing to pay the cost of shipping it off, and those people willing to make a donation to KR for the free item.
Any thoughts? Luann, whatcha got to give away?
Sharyn
Brilliant idea Sharyn -- that's sort of what Minh does when she gives yarn away on KR.
Jane
The knitter formerly known as jcc28
Blog: Not Plain Jane
Photos: My Flickr Album
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Sharyn
Gabber Extraordinaire
USA
418 Posts |
Posted - 04/30/2008 : 1:07:32 PM
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quote:
[i]Originally posted by Jane
Brilliant idea Sharyn -- that's sort of what Minh does when she gives yarn away on KR.
Jane
The knitter formerly known as jcc28
Blog: Not Plain Jane
Photos: My Flickr Album
My idea was inspired by that - so I need to give credit to Minh.
Sharyn |
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Lanea
Permanent Resident
USA
5158 Posts |
Posted - 05/01/2008 : 04:56:59 AM
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I love the floor color, Sharyn. I am pro orange.
And the idea to make donations to KR to balance the cost of shipping is brilliant. Keeping things out of the landfill and supporting my absolute favorite site and online community--magnificent.
So, some of the things I have to freecycle (KRcycle?) are:
* A whole bunch of VHS tapes, including Wallace and Grommit videos,
The Secret of Roan Inis, Cool Hand Luke, and other goodies
* A set of those thick zippered plastic bags that blankets and bedding come in--I don't use them, but I know some knitters love them.
* Sock yarn leftovers that aren't blue or green. I'm making another sock yarn blanket, but limiting the pallet this time around.
* A whole bunch of back issues of Smithsonian magazine. I haven't found any teachers locally who need more magazines for collage and such, so these will go in the paper recycling very soon if someone here doesn't want them.
* Some CDs we just don't need, but I can't think of what any of them are off the top of my head.
* Some books, though I don't know which ones yet. That will be discovered over the next couple of weeks.
See proof of insanity: http://www.crazylanea.com/
Join the KR Webring: http://www.crazylanea.com/fiberarts/2006/07/the_knitters_re.html
Buy handmade sock knitting bags: http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5031570 |
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Sharyn
Gabber Extraordinaire
USA
418 Posts |
Posted - 05/01/2008 : 07:50:02 AM
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Lanea and I just arranged our first KR Freecycle exchange - what fun it will be to get a package in the mail! She's sending me her sock yarn leftovers, and I'm sending her a stack of quilting books. And, two donations will be headed KR's way very soon. What do you say, Clara, can we have our own category?
Sharyn |
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NastiJ
Permanent Resident
1268 Posts |
Posted - 05/01/2008 : 08:56:34 AM
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quote:
Originally posted by Lanea
* A whole bunch of VHS tapes, including Wallace and Grommit videos, The Secret of Roan Inis, Cool Hand Luke, and other goodies
* Some CDs we just don't need, but I can't think of what any of them are off the
top of my head.
* Some books, though I don't know which ones yet. That will be discovered over the
next couple of weeks.
you might want to check out Swaptree: http://www.swaptree.com/ - quote:
Swaptree is a site where you can trade books, music, movies and video games that you don't want, for the books, CDs, DVDs, video games that you do want, for free.
Unlike auction sites or other used item sites where you can sell or purchase items, on swaptree your items will only cost you the price of shipping. So if you don't really see the point in selling a book online for $3, just so you can then go out and buy a new book for $15, then swaptree is for you!
The best part is that once you get an item from someone and you finish reading, listening or viewing it, you can just list it on swaptree and get something else for it!
Nancy J.
"Learning how to knit was a snap.It was learning how to stop that nearly destroyed me." Erma Bombeck |
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Lanea
Permanent Resident
USA
5158 Posts |
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stitchmd
Seriously Hooked
716 Posts |
Posted - 05/03/2008 : 06:42:16 AM
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This is a wonderful idea. It's inspiring me to think some more about de stashing all the stuff I will never get around to knitting but just can't part with. Somebody kick me.
You can't have a battle of wits with an unarmed person. |
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Chayah
Permanent Resident
1924 Posts |
Posted - 05/04/2008 : 06:58:52 AM
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I think this is a great idea, and I like the postage/donation idea too.
Warmly, Chayah
"When I was young I admired clever people. Now that I'm old I admire kind people."(A.J.Heschel) |
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Sticks and String
Permanent Resident
USA
1113 Posts |
Posted - 05/09/2008 : 6:36:50 PM
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I love this idea!
Jo |
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Lanea
Permanent Resident
USA
5158 Posts |
Posted - 05/12/2008 : 05:11:48 AM
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So, at least half of our inaugural freecycle swap has taken place. I received the books from Sharyn (yay) and sent her yarn and sent a donation to Clara. Anyone else ready to play?
Rather than pestering Clara about a specific thread (I know from reading other postings that she currently can't add or change titles at the moment, and I know she has plenty to do), we can post in the Swap section and just title with "KRCycle--Item name."
I also think it would be great if we could keep track of the total donations our little scheme is bringing in. I think a lot of people forget how much it costs to run a site like KR, and I'd love it if we could encourage more donations to help support this wonderful community space Clara has provided us. I don't want anyone to feel like it's invasive though, to ask about donation amounts, so perhaps a running total with no specifics about who donated what amounts? Please feel free to tell me if you think that's too nosy--it just seems to have been a very effective strategy for Knitters Without Borders.
See proof of insanity: http://www.crazylanea.com/
Join the KR Webring: http://www.crazylanea.com/fiberarts/2006/07/the_knitters_re.html
Buy handmade sock knitting bags: http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5031570 |
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Sharyn
Gabber Extraordinaire
USA
418 Posts |
Posted - 05/12/2008 : 05:53:00 AM
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Lanea,
Glad the package arrived! I'm looking forward to the one you sent, too -
Your idea for labeling the post "KRCycle" will work just fine - as far as keeping a total of donations, is there a way to specify that when the donation is made? It might be intimidating to others if they don't feel they could donate as much as the last person posted......if it's specified when the donation is made, at least Clara will know the source.
I just cleaned out some more stuff, and I'll post a list soon -
Sharyn |
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minh
Permanent Resident and Destasher Extraordinnaire
USA
3416 Posts |
Posted - 05/12/2008 : 08:26:38 AM
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If people make the donation to KR using Paypal, there's a comment box where you could write "KRCycle".
The problem is that it puts the burden on Clara to tally the donations. We could have a coordinator to tally the amounts, but none of the specifics will be revealed as Lanea suggested.
I have an exam tomorrow but after that, I'll KRCycle a spinning book and some sock yarn leftovers. I love spring cleaning :) |
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Freecycling on KR
