It's garage sale season. Yeah!
For those of us who love the challenge of the hunt this is a great time of the year. For those who need to get rid of stuff this is the time and the way.The usual way to bring these two groups together is the hand drawn sign staked into a patch of grass on the corner or tacked/taped to a utility pole.
With eagle eyes and not so eagle eyes we sale enthusiasts watch for the treasure maps. Unfortunately not all signs are created equally.
Signs on a main thoroughfare have three seconds to be seen and read, no matter what the size.
There are four things to remember when you're making a sign.
- Size
- Color
- Wordage
- Location
Color - When choosing your poster-board, cardboard, board, etc., keep an eye for background color. Most people use a black magic marker to apply wordage. The ideal color combination is black lettering on neon yellow background. The neon yellow catches the eye while the black lettering is crisp and pops on the yellow.You want your contrast to be on either end of the color wheel spectrum. You're probably wondering why I didn't say white background with the black lettering. First, white doesn't catch the eye. Second, white in contrast to black is too much. Which is why more and more books are going to cream colored pages. It's more pleasing to the eye
Wordage - K.I.S.S (Keep It Simple Salesman) On the main road sign only put what is absolutely necessary.
Yard Sale
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I personally only put Garage Sale with an arrow. Then I place arrows along the route to my house.
What if you're more than a block from the main road and you feel a need to post your address and when you're open? A block from the main road is a good place to put a sign with this information. This location is a safe place for people to slow down or stop to read your sign. Add an arrow so they know they're going in the right direction.
On all your signs the words should be made from block letters.Cursive is pretty, but it's not as easy to read.The letters should be tall and thick enough to be read at least a half block away. Farther on the main street where cars will be going faster.
As a rule of thumb I make my letters a minimum of four inches. With signs on main roads I make it a minimum of six inches. Bigger is better.
Location - Your sign should be posted a half block from the turn to your sale. For added measure I put an arrow at the corner so they know they are in the right place. Make sure your town or city allows signs. In most towns and cities the piece of yard by the curb is public property even though the homeowner maintains it. As a courtesy be careful where you place the sign and do as little damage to the yard as possible. Also as a courtesy to other home owners, your neighborhood and treasure hunters, please take down your signs soon after your sale. There's nothing more disappointing than following all the signs only to find out it was the week before.
Right about now you're probably asking yourself, "why in the world would this lady blog about garage sale signs?"
I'm a huntress who hates to miss out on treasures hidden in your junk. And bad signage is a pet peeve of mine. Not just yard sale signs, all signs. I've passed some beautiful billboards, and to this day I have no idea what company was advertising. Which proves the point that bigger isn't better if you can't get the message in three seconds.
To all my garage sale friends out there, Happy Sale-ing!
