This email was sent to registered sellers with 'tips' for the next event. Seller specific information has been removed and helpful links added.

Included in this email is your appointment information/code, what to bring to the sale, additional sizing tips and general information. Yes, I am known for lengthy emails, but folks have said they find them helpful. Reminder – February 3 is the cancelation deadline. If you are not able to participate in the upcoming event, please let me know asap so you are in good standing to sell at future events.

This event is for Spring/Summer items only.

******** VERY IMPORTANT – THIS IS THE LAW TOO! *******
Recalls – you MUST screen for recalls – recalled items are not safe and we know you want to get them out of little hands. The law does not permit recalled items to be sold.
If you have performed a recall on an item, we are very sorry but due to the difficulty for us to be able to determine if the recall has been done or if it has been properly done, we are unable to accept those items This includes Bumbos where you added safety belts yourself as part of the recall. Also, the way the law is written, interpretation is subjective so we are error of the side of caution and safety. Also, the way the law is written, interpretation is subjective so we are erroring of the side of caution and safety. *** You will have to sign your agreement stating you have checked for recalls.

NEW/Reminders:

• VCR TAPES WILL NO LONGER BE ACCEPTED!
• VCR Tapes are not accepted
• DVDs must have a case
• Computer games must have a case
• SHOES - important reminder - There are 3 'groupings' of shoe sizes: childrens, Youth, and adult. PLEASE if you are bringing a YOUTH sized shoe, make sure to put it in the YOUTH size boxes!

Important seller tips:

• See Seller Tips link on www.kidsignments.com for complete tagging instruction
• Use the Tape Tags for tags needing masking tape and only tape at top and bottom of tag
• Shop ahead by signing up to help at http://www.kidsignments.com/volunteernew.phpPLEASE tell every expecting mom you see about Kidsignments! Maternity items are always abundant.
• We DO NOT have racks for 5T –mark 5T on the size on the tag, but hang these on the 5 rack
• Check your codes on your tags please – I usually have at least one seller mark some or all of their tags with someone else’s code. This is usually done by someone adding items to the event using a friend's code and mistyping it - therefore giving someone else credit or having us further our handwriting detection skills to help assure each seller is properly paid for their items.
• PLEASE use the barcoded prices on your tags & remember NR must be preprinted (no handwritten NRs accepted)
• Strollers or other large items, in addition to your tag, write your code on a piece of masking tape and tape it underneath your stroller (or other large item) in case the tag falls off.
• Shoes – same as strollers, put a piece of tape with your code (and price too including NR) on it to the bottom of each shoe. Please do the same on any item with small pieces or items where the tag could come off.
• We do not accept inflatable items (they do not stay inflated and if they were, they may not survive the massive shopping!
• Carseats must be less than 5 years old and NEVER been in an accident – you will have to sign your agreement that this is correct. If you are not the original owner and therefore unable to certify that, please do not bring it.
• Sellers canceling late (after February 1) will not be permitted to sell for 2 events
• Want to prescreen your furniture so you do not bring it all the way to the fairgrounds to be sent back? Furniture needs to be in great shape to sell here ~ our shoppers expect nice items. Email me a picture or your item and I can try my best to tell you if it will be accepted (you will need to check for recalls still). Please note that we do not accept household furniture – only kids items! Do not bring your office desk or bookshelves ~ they will not sell here (we speak from experience).
• Items containing lead and certain plastics chemicals – laws are in place that restrict lead in items intended for children’s use as well as certain chemicals in plastics. We have added additional items to our ‘not accepted’ list to try to help screen out these items.
• Drop off information will be sent later in a separate email closer to drop offs
• Donating a door prize? Email me with a subject line of ‘Door Prize’ so I know and can approve. We do not accept 'service' type door prizes.

"The Don't List" - Due to the inability to easily determine which of the following have been recalled, could contain lead or regulated plastics, sanitary reasons and concern for safe usage of these items, we will not be accepting the following items in addition to not accepting any recalled items:

• Baby Bottles or ANY item related to food consumption such as plates, sippy/cups, silverware
• Jewelry (numerous lead recalls)
• Teething Toys
• Polly Pockets (over 7 million recalled many years ago...)
• Magnetix or other similar magnetic type toys due to recalls and CPSC alerts on these items
• Mattresses
• Painted wooden toys (except Brio or those made in USA) Wooden puzzles must have printed manufacturer information on them or you cannot verify they are okay.
• Vinyl Children’s books (bathtime books)
• Car Seats older than 5 years
• Cribs - we cannot accept any cribs - laws are in place that make it illegal to pretty much sell any preloved crib included converted toddler bed from a crib
• Strollers, Exersaucers, high chairs, infant swings, or other large baby equipment item older than 5 years
• Dollar Store/Dollar Tree or similar type items
• Grab Bags that do not contain all of the same items (it is too hard for us to confirm what is in the bags if we are unable to see the items well)

If you provide an email from the manufacturer stating that a painted wood item does not contain ANY lead and is not recalled, we will accept it. You will need to bring a copy of the email. We will retain the letter and start a database for those items and post for future events.

As always, we do not accept underwear (except if new in unopened package), disposable diapers (unopened or opened package), food items, any lotions or liquids, formula, t-shirts that are of the ‘someone went to somewhere and all I got was this t-shirt’ type, household items that are not related to children (not toasters or blenders please unless they are of the play type), or non-family type movies. We know you will use your best judgment when deciding what to bring. When bringing potty seats and similar type of items, you MUST sanitize these items completely before bringing them!

Returning Seller? The below information is the same as I sent out last event. It includes the Kidsignments Walk which many of you have shared you find very helpful : )

New Sellers - you will want to print this email out and read it in your spare time to get some great tips about selling with Kidsignments! We have been doing this event for a long time and want to share this valuable information with you to help ensure your experience selling with us is successful! Just about everything in this email is also available on the website.

Please note that some of the information below was also included in the returning seller highlights above. Those are very important since I include this information twice.

Recalls – PLEASE check www.cpsc.gov (the link is on our website) to make sure you screen your items BEFORE bringing them to the event location. For carseats, check http://www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/recalls/childseat.cfm. Each seller will be signing their consignment agreement and verifying that they have assured that none of the items that they are bringing have been recalled. We really depend on each of you to do this to keep our kids safe and ….it is the LAW! You will want to become familiar with this site to check items that you are not selling also. You can sign up to receive new announcements of recalled items. There are also a few sites that have a picture list of the recalls from last year but the CPSC site has all the recalls so you should not count on other sites to list all this information. Also check your manufacturer sites.

How do you size your clothes?

This is so important to make sure you put the size on your tag that allows your item to be properly hung on the sale floor. Manufacturers have really gotten more creative in their sizes over the past few years so I hope this helps. Click here make sure that you are sizing your items correctly.

More manufactures are varying from the sizes we have used for over a decade. Please make sure to only use sizes we have racks for. The size information is listed further down in this email and also included on our website. An example of this is 5T and 6T which have surfaced in the past few years. We have racks for size 4T, 4, 5, 6, 6x (girls only has 6x), and 7. So, if you have an item labeled 5T, pick the size you are going to hang it with, put this size on the tag and also write 5T in parenthesis:

Size: 5 (5T on label)

Discount days:

Thurs/Fri. Feb. 14/15 – items without a NR on the preprinted tags are 25% off
Sat. Feb. 16 – items without a NR on the preprinted tags are 50% off.

Tape Tags! - Please, please please use these tags for items you need to adhere to the item with masking tape. Why is this so important? Removing these tags at checkout allows us to go much quicker allowing for faster checkout. And remember, only use SAFETY PINS when you are pinning your tags to soft goods such as clothing. Do not under any circumstances use straight pins, staples, glue, or any other way to attach the tag.

Conserve paper and print more tags on a page: I have put a tip how to do this on the page where you print the tags. Also, a kind seller emailed me some additional tips that she did to make this work for her. I have added this tip to the very end of this email. Try it and see if you can get more tags to a page too.

Want to shop ahead and without a crowd? You have to volunteer a lot of hours to do this, but our helpers are usually the same ones each time since they really love this opportunity. Imagine standing in front of your size of clothing and only shopping with 1 or 2 other helpers – sound like fun? Sign up to help at : http://www.kidsignments.com/volunteernew.php

Fliers – Please feel free to print the fliers from our site and put up on your church, work, school, etc bulletin boards! Share the news about this event! We have 4 colorful versions for this event.

Need First Time Shopper Tips? Check www.kidsignments.com and select “Shopping Tips” on the left side.

Need First Time Seller Tips? Check www.kidsignments.com and select the Seller Tips link for more information.
Of course under “How to Tag” and “FAQ” you will find all the great instructions on how to prepare your items.

Here are the answers to the most popular questions I usually start receiving about this time:

1. Where do I get hangers? Do you supply them? No, we do not supply you with hangers. Try your neighbors, relatives, dry cleaners, co-workers (and/or your spouse's co-workers) and your spare closets. You would be surprised how willing folks are to give away their extra hangers when you ask! Our experience has shown that wire hangers work the best to make sure your items remain on their hangers for the entire event. The tubular plastic hangers tend to bend and break very easily. They also have more problems with the safety pins remaining closed at the top of the hanger when pants are hung from them. We do not like thin, crispy, plastic store hangers as they tend not to survive the first day of shopping and end up breaking and your item will drop down on the floor. Need a lot? Try ordering online like one seller just emailed us previously from http://www.uline.com/BL_8933/Wire-Hangers

Need great safety pins? We buy our great strong and sturdy safety pins from:
http://www.cleanersupply.com/products/search.cfm?KEYS=safety+pins&x=0&y=0 (They sometimes have sales like, buy 2 get 1 free.)

2. I have more than I told you. Can I bring them all at my original drop off time? Yes, you may bring all you can tag (provided it is the right season) at your original drop off time. We are very used to being asked this question.

3. When do I receive my preview pass? You will receive your pass when you have completed the entire checkin process. You must have at least 25 items accepted to receive a preview pass.

4. When is pick up? Pickup of unsold items is Monday, Feb. 20 from 10am – 1pm and again from 5pm – 7pm. All unclaimed items (including lost and found items) are all donated to a local charity of Kidsignments choice after 7pm on Feb. 20. We are not able to accommodate any special requests for a different date or time.

Okay, returning sellers know what comes next in my emails……it is time to take the Kidsignments Walk through your house. If you are a returning seller, you can skip over the next few paragraphs unless you want to be reminded that every room in your house has something potentially that could be placed at the sale and free up some wonderful space!

Can’t wait to reclaim space in your house again? What about your garage, basement, attic and outside too! The Spring Kidsignments event is a great place to sell bikes, scooters, basketball hoops, sports nets, slides, swings, pools, tennis racquets, balls and all those wonderful outdoor toys that need new kids to play with them! Spend a few moments outdoors and see what you might find. Yes we accept big stuff like ping pong tables, outside basketball poles, hockey/soccer goals and basically all the other 'big stuff' you can think off that kids and teens (and yes, grown ups too in most cases) like to have fun with!

When you come inside, check out that hall closet where the light weight jackets and spring sweaters are hiding out!

Venture down the hallway (pick up the toys and tag them as you go since if they were left out they must be destined for the sale) and down to the linen closet. Reclaim the space by tagging all those sheets, bedspreads, curtains, sleeping bags, rugs, and other kids items taking up space in that wonderful closet! Oh, the space you will have when you get rid of the items looking for new homes!

Hmmm….now, the scary place…..your child’s room. Did it become less cluttered from last few walks you did if you are a returning seller? Don’t forget to go through the toy box, under the bed (watch out there!) and also check on the book shelves. That book your child never really liked much may soon be the favorite book of another little boy or girl! Dig out all those outgrown spring and summer clothes, jeans, costumes,capris, bathrobes, pajamas, hats, shoes, belts, bags, sports gear, tights, costumes(dress up outfits), and special attire and tah-dah! You have made space for everything you plan on buying at the sale! Don't forget the accessories!

Now, onto the TV and computer area. BluRays, DVDs, computer games and don’t forget CD's too are very welcomed at the sale as long as they are FAMILY VIEWING FRIENDLY. They must have their cases. No media items are accepted without strong cases. While you are tagging those items, pop into the kitchen for a snack (hey, we’re burning calories as we are doing this right?) and discover more space waiting to be reclaimed there too! Unfortunately, the bottles, cups, plates and silverware will not come to the fairgrounds this time due to the plastic chemical laws but you may discover other items or toys your children have left here that you can tag!

If your house is like mine, you also have a teenager sitting in front of the video game machine. Casually call to him/her, “Hey, got any games that aren’t any good any more?” Of course this really doesn’t mean the game isn’t ‘good/playable” but is usually is the right lingo ( he was 18 months old when I started this event) to bring me a big stack of games he has already ‘beat.’ Now, while they are moving, get them to go through their closet and bring you their clothes that they “won’t wear anymore.” I have done this technique for the past several years and my son does a great job of leaving nothing in his closet. Do not ask for just the ‘outgrown’ clothes. By asking for the “won’t wear” clothes, I actually get what he will never wear including those that still fit. Oh, and I let him keep the money for what he tags now too! Incentive for him!

Now walk through your house and go through your reclaimed space. No, don’t look at that pile of items you have to tag. It will be tagged and gone to the fairgrounds shortly so you don’t have to put up with it sitting there very long. You may have to remind your family of this also.

******* Where to start? HELP! *****************
Are you overwhelmed and don't know where to start tagging? If you have a lot of clothes to tag, start with the larger sizes first and work your way down. For example, if you have several years of clothing for your child, start with what they just outgrew and work your way down in size. The older sizes sell extremely well (this surprises some people since they think infant is the first to "sell out" but at our event, the older sizes get shopped very heavily and quickly. Also, if you have 'trendy' items, these sell best right after your child outgrows them since they are more apt to be dated quickly.

Having the correct size listed on your clothing is essential to being able to sell it. Please write the correct size on your tag to make sure your item is in the right place to increase its chance of selling. (The sizing tips are also posted on the link on the “Size Tips” page so don’t worry if you lose this email about finding this information.)

Here are some sizing tips:

• Always use the lowest of the range listed on the garment's tag. If the tag says 4/5 for example, write size '4' on your tag.
• 4T and 4 are two different sizes (we have separate racks for each)
• 6 and 6X are two different sizes (we have separate racks for each)
• If it says 'Slim' or 'Husky' on the tag, please include this on your tag! This is very important for buyers!
• If it has an adjustable waist - please include this in your tag! This is very important to shoppers!
• If the shoe tag says 'Narrow', 'Wide' or even 'Extra Wide' included this on your tag. Shoppers looking for these items greatly appreciate it!
• Costumes (are considered dress up/pretend clothing at our spring event) - please use smallest size when tagging these also and list the range exactly like the tag reads like: 4-6.
• When pricing a set, only include the price on 1 item please! Do not price 2 items separately and then hang them together on one hanger as a set. If it is hung as a set, it needs to be sold as a set. Don't forget to put the accessories on it too! Shoppers love to buy complete outfits! Make sure both pieces are the same size!!! You can put a piece of tape with your code on the additional items just in case they become separated.
• TAGS – Please make sure only one tag actually goes on an item! Sometimes tags stick together so please make sure you are only pinning one on an item!
• SHOES - You must write your information (your code and the price) in ink on the bottom of each shoe (and remember to put the tag on ONE of them!) or put a piece of masking tape on the bottom of the show and write on the tape. We know that you didn't bring us just one shoe to sell but at the end of each sale, we somehow manage to find that this phenomenon occurs. You must include a tag on one of the shoes. The tape does not replace the tag.

SIZES: (Check our Size Tips Page!) This list has all the sizes that we have separate racks for. Some manufactures have recently started inventing new sizes such as 5T, 6T, 36 months. We do not have racks for those sizes so please makes sure the size on your tag matches one of the following:

Preemie
Newborn
3 months
6 month
9 months (yes, this really is a size)
12 months
18 months
24 months
2t
3t
4t
4
5 (put 5T on your tag if the item is 5T but hang in the 5 area)
6
6X (girls only)
7
8
10
12
14
16
18
18/20 (boys only)

Juniors:

Sizes are 0,1,3,5,7,9,11,13,15 (we also have racks for S,M,L,XL) Important – we really screen to make sure you are bringing juniors and not ladies clothing. We absolutely do not accept ladies clothing, only juniors. Please, do not try to bring non-junior clothing and try to put it on the junior racks. Some retailers, for example Old Navy and American Eagle, use even number sizing. We will have racks for these sizes also.

Young Mens:

Pants: we go up to 32 or 34 if they are truly brands that are popular with young men (we have racks for S,M,L,XL also)

Here is a guide for 'if the tags says this, write this on your tag'

If the Tag says	Write on Your Tag
Up to 5 pounds	Preemie
0-3, newborn, infant, Up to 10 punds	Newborn
3 months, 3-6 months	3-6 Months
6-9 months, 6 months, 6-12 months	6-9 Months
9 months, 9-12 months	9 Months
12 months, 12-18 months	12 Months

Another thing you will run across with tagging your infant items are labels listing pounds instead of sizes on them. Here are the best guidelines I can provide for size translation (although this seems to vary greatly by manufacturer so please use your best judgment as well):

If the Tag says	Write on Your Tag
Up to 5 punds	Preemie
Up to 10 pounds	Newborn
11-13 pounds	3-6 Months
14-16 pounds	6-9 Months
17-18 pounds	9 Months
18-22 pounds	12 Months
23-24 pounds	18 months
24-28 pounds	24 months

 

It really helps to hold your item in question to another one of the size that you think it is and compare them. This is the best way to determine if you made the correct guess : )

For maternity and junior sizes only, if the tag says X Small, Small, Med, Large, XL you may put this on your tag. We will have racks for these at the event (in addition to numeric size racks) for junior and maternity sizes only.

Your items will not sell if they are in the wrong size!!!

We often see items hung in the wrong spot due to the seller incorrectly interpreting the size. The most common things we see is 4t hung in the size 4 area or vice-versa, 6x items placed in the size 6 area, shoes missing the 'Narrow' or 'Wide' information, and infant items mis-marked. I hope the above gives you some great information to help make sure that your items don't end up hung in the wrong spot! I know you spend much time and effort preparing your items for this event and I want to give you as much information as I can to try to make sure you don't bring these items back home with you.

Toys with lots of parts

You know these items, the ones you have been constantly picking up off the floor. Very important! Make sure all the pieces are there, bag them in a Ziploc, seal the bag with packing tape and secure the bag to the toy. PLEASE use masking tape since packing tape sometimes takes off the paint on the toy.

PINS

Twice a year Gwinnett area stores seem to run out of safety pins…hmmm….I wonder? Yes, this does happen so make sure you get your pins now! Don’t wait until a few days before! PLEASE make sure to use strong Safety Pins when hanging heavier clothing items (such as older kids jeans and Maternity items). If a pin bends as you are sticking it through, then it probably won't hold up to shopping and will end up on the floor which leads to your clothing getting dirty. See our link above for great safety pins. Do not use tagging guns! They do not hold up to the serious shopping that occurs at this event

Door Prizes

If you would like to donate a prize for the drawing, please email me with a subject line of ‘Kidsignments Door Prize’ as soon as possible. We do not accept service type door prizes.

HELPERS

I have a few openings for Kidsignments Helpers. We fill the openings based on what sizes you are shopping. We make sure that Kidsignments helpers are shopping different sizes since this is one way to assure that our helpers do not make a dent in the racks when they shop. If you have already completed the form this month, you will be hearing from us shortly. We fill spots making sure no size is being overloaded with helpers. If you would like to help and haven’t signed up, please go to http://www.kidsignments.com/volunteernew.php

One last tip I have for you (well, there are a bunch more on the FAQ( Frequently asked Questions) page on the www.kidsignments.com site : ) I strongly encourage you to use the 'NR' option on your tags as little as possible. If an item has been on the sale floor for the preview sale as well as 3 additional full sale days, it has had a really good opportunity to be shopped. If you really don't want to bring it back home with you (and fill up that nice closet you just cleaned out), please use the 'NR' option very selectively. Also, you must use the tags with the NR preprinted on them for this event. We do not accept tags where the NR has been handwritten on them. We also do not accept tags where the NR has been altered in any way (crossed out, cut off, etc).

Thank you for everything that you do to help me run this event smoothly! Turnout for registration this event was very fast once again! I give thanks for being allowed to be able to hold this event and thank you very much for being a part of this event!

H