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th turpentine,
mineral spirits or wax remover. This will show you where the real
problems lie.
Maybe a chair needs to be recaned, or a child's dresser could use
some bright decals - there are many ways to fix up old furniture
with little effort.
Sometimes you can make patches, bleach out stains, reglue loose
joints or cracks. New handles or drawer pulls will spruce up a
useful piece of furniture.
If the piece is already painted, you might scratch a spot from
underneath to determine if it's hardwood. If you know furniture and
are good at restoring, you may remove the paint and refinish. If
you're not so versatile with wood, you can repaint.
But don't repaint a piece of wood furniture that has never been
painted. You could ruin it. You'll be better off refinishing it to
increase its value. You can determine if the surface was finished
with shellac, lacquer or varnish, and you can do spot touch-ups and
repairs.
If you refinish, you may need to strip the surface of the coatings
already on, and restain and varnish the piece.
I'LL TAKE IT AWAY
Did you ever hear somebody say, "I'll pay them to take it away?"
Perhaps a member of your family who's tired of the piles in the
garage or shed wants to clean up. Or maybe a family is moving and
doesn't want to haul everything cross country.
You can cash in on others' castoffs. A good way to let them know
you're there, is by placing ads, in the local newspaper or recycler
magazine. It can be a blanket statement like, "I'll haul your junk,"
or "I buy used household goods." Or, you may dea l in only one
particular item, such as "I buy used cameras."
Leave yourself plenty of room to refuse to take things of little
value, or be prepared to quote a hauling and dumping fee. Set up a
time to inspect the goods being offered and don't commit yourself
until you are sure of their true value. You may need a pickup or a
van to transport large objects.
With every load of goods, you'll have some treasures and some
worthless stuff. Although almost anything will sell, you can have an
agreement with a dump or recycling plant to take what can't be
salvaged and profited by.
CREATIVE CRAFTS
One of the most rewarding and profitable ways to make money in your
spare time is with crafts. You can often get materials at cut-rate
prices and use them to create beautiful handmade objects that
everybody wants to buy.
Start with the easiest, inexpensive items first. Take a look at
decorating magazines and handicraft books for ideas and find the
simple, low-cost instructions that require no expertise and little
equipment.
If you have many sources for castoff items, you will want to
consider recycling and making new from old. You can cut old bottles
to make vases or glasses. Or, you can make lamps from bottles or any
object that will fit the electrical switch and cord.
Rug hooking and braiding are good ways to use up lots of fabric
scraps and discards. They're something you can do in your spare time
- even in front of the television. For those who are good with
woodworking: wooden boxes, cutting boards, stationery r acks and
spice holders sell fast at the craft shows - they're wonderful
presents.
You might be interested in needlework. Crocheted aprons, appliqued
dolls, needlepoint pillows are always good items. You can make a
high profit from handmade quilts or Afghans. Wha
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