craig's list

I'm a Craig's List girl.

Nearly everything in our apartment furniture-wise was found on the list, some in DC (last time), some in New Haven, some in the last week or so. My friend E is the queen of CL, and is always able to bargain someone down. (It's amazing!) I'm still practicing that. I am good, though, at finding stuff we love within our furniture budget (aka -- my babysitting money!).

It starts with the search.

I like to search for standard stuff like "bookcase" or "bedframe" but to really find the winners I think you have to have a few wildcard searches, too. My favorites:

"zebra"
"stripe"
"french"
"orange"

You never know!

It is also important to try to imagine all the different ways someone might have described something. P and I are looking for a bookshelf made up of cubes, the kind you see everywhere -- at IKEA or Target. Those seem to be listed under bookcase, bookshelf, cubes, cubbies, & squares! Sometimes it is in "household" and sometimes in "furniture." Craig's List shopping requires persistance!

Rule number 2: Measure twice, buy once! Ask them to measure the thing before you A) drive all over kingdom come to pick it up B) try to fit it into your car or C) try to put it in your studio apartment. Just saying...

My next hard-learned lesson in Craig's Listing is to bring a friend, if you can. My dear bridesmaid K accompanied my out to Chantilly, Virginia (yep, I had no idea how far away that really was) to pick up our latest treasure. K kept me from getting lost, helped me fit our adorable china cabinet into the CRV, and made the drive out to the middle of nowhere (and then to a semi-sketchy storage unit -- but what storage unit isn't semi-sketchy?) much more fun.

Also -- sometimes it pays to be enthusiastic! A sweet girl held our beloved brown loveseat for two weeks for us, even though she said she had a lot of interest, just because I seemed the most excited about it. :-)


Now.

I worked at the Yale Peabody Museum of Natural History for about five minutes, and I learned a thing or two about bed bugs while the museum had an exhibit up called "Bloodsuckers." I kid you not. I have bought upholstered furniture on Craig's List, and it is my absolute favorite. I have a bed that we bought for 50 bucks a year ago from a Yale student who was selling it...on Craig's List. This is wild, you guys. Totally dangerous, living on the edge. Any of these things could have brought disgusting bedbugs into my house and I might have had to get rid of all of my clothes. Or at least wash them. And move out. And all kinds of hassle.

Some things are totally safe, I think, from the bedbug:
-wrought iron beds
-wooden furniture
-storage cubes/cubbies/squares/bookcases/bookshelves
-old suitcases/typewriters/other things one might use to decorate

Other things -- like things with cloth -- require more care!
But...I think it can still be worth it if you're careful! What do you think?

Oh, craig's list! How did people move without you?