A testimony from Mandy from MissMaesDays.com
The day had come when I had had it with storing all of our school supplies, projects, lesson plans, and books in our kitchen drawers and cupboards. For years, I was using the kitchen island and drawers for homeschooling our kiddos and it just was not working.
I had an “a-ha moment” when I looked at our hardly-used formal living room…it was the perfect space for a classroom! When I saw it in my mind I knew it could be done.
But we didn’t have the extra cash to transform an entire room in our house into a school room. How in the world could I afford the furniture and supplies to make the conversion?!
Then it hit me like a ton of bricks! Sell the formal living room furniture — the couches, tables, lamps, and decor. Then, USE that money to purchase the items I need for our school room!
Voilà! A school room paid in full, without using credit cards.
Here’s how I did it:
- I listed my formal, living room furniture on Craigslist.
- I sold smaller items on eBay.
- I purged my entire home of unused, unwanted items, readying them for a garage sale. (Any items that didn’t sell on Craigslist and eBay were sold in the garage sale.)
- I planned and orchestrated a successful garage sale.
After my efforts to create some extra cash, I found that I had over $1,000 cash IN HAND. So, I set out to get some deals!
How did I do it?
- I shopped garage sales for furniture pieces.
- I shopped discount stores for decor, teaching supplies, classroom supplies, manipulatives, and games.
- I researched curriculum to invest in. I found coupons and deals to purchase curriculum.
- I scoured the internet for deals on things that you simply can’t find locally.
- I sought the internet for my “dream, can’t live without” pieces. (Mine was a double-sided whiteboard easel on wheels!)
- I shopped for discounted paints/supplies at my local hardware store for decorating my school room space.
Once all of my hard work had paid off, I sat back and prepared to design our homeschool room knowing that we paid CASH for it! It was the greatest feeling in the world. (Here’s a look at our finished room).
MissMaesDays.com is the creation of Mandy Mae; wife, mother, teacher, and frugal-DIY-enthusiast. Hoping to inspire mothers to take action in making a positive influence in the lives of their children with simple, DIY, crafting, thrifting, and teaching projects, Mandy Mae enjoys sharing both her successes and hiccups with easy-to-follow tips & tutorials.
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I have a friend who is beginning to homeschool her daughter, and she will loves this. Thanks for sharing.
Love this room! Great job!
I also converted our ‘formal’ living room into a playroom for my daughter. Keeps her close while I’m in the kitchen and keeps all the toys out of the main living areas. Total win for everyone!
Exactly! Way to go, Leslie! Gotta love those “win-win” scenarios!
What a gorgeous room! Did you have more luck on eBay or Craigslist? I have yet to really make eBay work for me, but I know that others manage to earn quite a bit off of it!
Great question! I had more luck with Craigslist this time around because the pieces of furniture I was selling were very large. I sold a couple of items on Ebay but the majority of it was sold on Craigslist and our garage sale. Good luck!
As you look to grow your library, I recommend paperbackswap.com. There is an annual fee, but beyond that, and a very few dollars to mail a few books out to get credits, it is virtually free. It will literally pay for itself in 4 books or less. Congratulations on your beautiful room!
Thanks for reading Amy and for the great resource! 🙂
Looks great!
Thank you! 🙂
Awesome job, your school area looks fantastic!
Thanks so much! 🙂