April 24, 2009
www.portland.jbfsale.com

Friday night, we headed over to the Just Between Friends (JBF) Consignment Sale hoping to find a great deal on a stroller for the little one I am expecting in September. The sale was free, but since it was at the Expo center, we did have to pay $7 for parking. Any time you are going to the Expo center, the more people you put in your car, the less you’ll have to pay for parking for each one. Plus for carpools of 3 or more, the Expo center charges $6, so you save an extra $1.

The parking lot right in front of the sale was full, but luckily there isn’t any shortage of paid parking at the Expo center, so we just had to walk a little way. This is an extremely popular event! We arrived at the sale at 6:30, just half an hour after the sale opened to the public. When we went inside, we found many of the larger items such as cribs and swings were already sold. We did not find the exact stroller we were looking for, though they had several nice ones at good prices. Since the baby is still a ways off, and we are receiving lots of stuff as hand me downs and gifts, we were hesitant to purchase much. We did pick out a hand full of cool books.

Then we saw the line. As I said before, this is a very popular sale. The line snaked all the way around the building. Closer to the exit, there were several vendors who were only accessible while you were in line. They would help keep things more entertaining while you wait to make your purchase. We looked at our little stack of books, looked at the line again and put the books back on the shelf. Since this is my first time to the sale, I do not know how the line would compare on Saturday and Sunday when the sale is open longer. Since it is only open to the public for two hours on Friday, this might have been the longest line of the weekend.

The Portland JBF sale is a great place to get infant and children’s items at good prices with a huge selection of all sorts of used items, especially clothing. Parents can bring their children, but since it is a busy event with a long line, I would not recommend bringing little ones unless the children are trying on clothing or otherwise essential to the shopping process. The event did not have entertainment for children other than browsing through the items offered for sale. This might be a good time to drop the kids off at Open Play at Inflatable Kingdom or a similar program somewhere else, while you shop.

The Portland JBF Sale is open to volunteers and consignors earlier in the day, so for the best selection, that would be the way to go. For any parents who have used baby and children’s goods, the sale is a great way to turn your items into cash. Consignors pay a $10 consignor fee and get 70% of the selling price for sold items. Lots of items were selling when we went! After the sale, the consignor can pick up items not sold. Any items not picked up are donated to two different charities: Portland Sunshine Division and Insights Teen Parent Program.

The next sale is scheduled for September 25 – 27.

HL

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