- This is all the name of the game, right?
Buying things secondhand.
$30.
I'm a haggler.
I may have forgotten to measure.
I'm so close, which is what makes this so frustrating.
Hello, my name is Rachel and I just moved in
to my own one-bedroom apartment.
One thing I have come to realize
is that I really don't have a lot of furniture,
like pretty much no furniture.
So I've never really been that big into decorating.
I've actually had the same tattered map of the world
on my wall since like 2014,
but since I'm older now,
and this is the first place that's just mine,
I really wanna put some effort into it
to make it feel like my home,
but I also don't wanna spend a lot of money.
So I thought it could be fun to challenge myself
to furnish my living room for only $500.
So the only other rule is that any item
that I acquire for this apartment has to be secondhand,
which is also probably the only way I can do this
since secondhand furniture is way more affordable.
Not only does new furniture cost a lot,
it's also really not great for the environment.
In fact, the EPA reported that in 2017,
about 12.2 million tons of furniture waste
was generated in the US,
and in 2015, US homes were estimated to spend
about $121.7 billion on new furniture.
So right now, here are the items
I currently have for my apartment.
A lamp, a rug, this chair I got from Murl,
a coffee table.
Nope, wait, that's a laundry basket.
So here are the items I need to find for my apartment,
a couch, a coffee table, a TV stand,
a TV, a bookcase, and then I also wanna get some plants
and decorations with any leftover money that I have.
Is this going to be possible?
Who knows.
I am very afraid.
We're gonna do it anyway.
I'm getting a little nervous now
because I'm remembering how indecisive I am
and how picky I can be.
Going into Goodwill, and we'll see if I find anything here.
I'm not seeing a ton of furniture here,
but there is something that wasn't on my list,
which is just this a little adorable side table.
And I think it could actually be really cute
if I spray painted it.
I think I'm gonna get it.
It's only $20.
Not only did I just get that little side table,
which I didn't need,
but I also got this adorable wicker basket for $8
that I can put my yoga mat in.
Goodwill comin' through.
I have now spent $27
and I haven't even gotten anything on the list yet.
Now, I'm gonna try looking for some used items online,
which is where I think I'm gonna have the most success.
First, I'm gonna try OfferUp.
So let's see if I can find a couch.
This is the piece of furniture
I think I'm the most nervous about finding.
Couches tend to be expensive,
and I really want one that I actually like.
I think as far as color goes,
ideally I'd want like a neutral.
Let's start with 0 and we'll go up to $200
just for the heck of it.
This is a sectional sofa for $60.
I wonder if there's something I could do
to kinda like patch up this damage
on the corner of the couch.
This is actually a beautiful couch.
I do like the olive green color.
This is a pretty nice couch for $90.
Would this even fit though?
Okay, I think I'm gonna ask
what the measurements are for this couch.
Wow, this person's saying they originally got this couch
for $3,000 and they're selling it now for 50.
See, you can get really nice stuff secondhand.
Ooh, I have an inbox.
They said 119 inches by 98 inches,
and that it's still available.
So let's go measure.
Okay, so I just measured and unfortunately
that really big sectional couch
doesn't look like it's going to fit.
I just got back on here and I was looking around
and I found this other couch.
It's only $25.
I just reached out to this woman to see if it was available,
and she said it is.
So I'm gonna see if I can come pick it up this weekend,
but I think this might be the couch.
So while I'm waiting for her to respond,
I think I'm gonna go check out Facebook Marketplace now,
and I need a coffee table.
This is a coffee table/storage chest.
Can put stuff in there.
What is this?
Rustic coffee table for $60, 19 hours ago.
And it's really close to me, too.
Selling very cheap because it has
a slight wobble if you push it.
Easily can be fixed with the right screws.
I'm gonna see if he would sell it to me for $50.
There is this group that,
I think Ari Jackson had told me about.
It's called a Buy Nothing group.
It's basically a group in your local community
that offers items that they no longer need.
And then if you need something,
you can go into the group and ask to see if anyone has it.
I don't know if asking for a TV is too much.
I do need some potted plants for this living room.
So maybe I'll see if anyone has any extra.
In the meantime, I think I'm gonna check out an OG,
which is Craigslist.
Maybe Craigslist will have a TV.
This is a 52-inch Sharp Liquid Crystal TV.
No remote, no power cord, no stand.
I don't know if I wanna do that one.
Ooh, okay.
Sharp Roku TV, 50 inches.
In excellent condition.
Selling 'cause I just purchased a bigger TV.
They're selling it for $120.
I wonder if I can talk them down.
This is the ideal TV that I want.
So I think I'm just gonna see if they'll take $100 for it.
The guy got back to me about the coffee table.
$50 would be all right.
Beautiful.
The one from OfferUp with the $25 couch just got back to me.
And she said she's free tomorrow afternoon.
I think I can start making moves then
to get the pickup truck for tomorrow.
So I'm gonna go grab the coffee table now.
Hopefully I can arrange some other things
to pick up tomorrow so I can rent a truck.
I have a table.
I really like it.
The only thing I have to say is it does wobble a bit.
When you get there in person, don't be afraid to be like,
hey, this is more wobbly than I was expecting it to be.
Can we actually do $35?
When I got there in person,
I was too nervous to say that to his face.
So I just said, it's fine, and I paid $50 for it.
So don't do what I did.
This is all the name of the game, right?
Like, buying things secondhand.
So I'm definitely learning along the way.
I'm heading to, it's called Restore.
And it's part of Habitat for Humanity.
People donate their furniture and other used items.
So I'm gonna go check it out.
Maybe they have like a cheaper TV here.
Okay, so it looks like they have some TVs here,
but they're a little bit smaller than I like.
For $100, I can get a much bigger TV
that's a lot nicer and newer.
After going to the store
and seeing they don't really have a big TV selection,
I think I do wanna go with the one from Craigslist,
and it's great because she just got back to me
and told me that it's available
and she will do it for $100.
So I'm gonna try to look for a TV stand now
and see if I can find anything.
Ooh, this is nice.
Okay, it's 120, so that's more money than I wanna spend,
but I also haven't spent as much on other items
as I was expecting to at this point.
So I have a little bit more wiggle room here,
but let me see if she would take 100 for this.
This woman already just got back to me
and she said she can do it for 100,
but she can only do next Wednesday.
This is probably the trickiest part of this whole thing
is coordinating this pickup.
So hopefully, we can make this work.
It's a new day.
I'm gonna check and see if anybody got back to me
from the Buy Nothing group.
Oh my gosh, somebody messaged me back.
And she said, hey, Rachel,
I have some plants that need a little TLC
and will be happy to give them to you.
Amazing.
So far I have spent $303.
I really still just need a bookcase.
And I'd also really like to get a second couch,
which I think now I'm gonna be able to afford.
So I wanna see if I can find a couch
that fits within my budget and that I can also pick up
around that same time on Wednesday.
Couch for $25.
Oh, but it was posted two months ago.
The cushion looks a little like, it's seen better days.
Here's a round love seat,
but it was from five months ago.
Definitely has moved by now.
Ooh, I kinda like this one.
It's gray/green.
I'm gonna see if this is still available.
And in the meantime,
I think I'm just gonna ask on Instagram,
if any of my friends happen to have furniture
that they're trying to get rid of.
All right, so while I was just posting that,
it looks like somebody responded.
One of the green couches, he said, yes, it's available.
Oh my gosh.
Asking 120 for the couch.
Should I ask if he will take 100 for it?
He's been trying to sell this for five weeks.
So maybe he will take $100.
I just got back from picking up the TV.
I somehow just managed to carry it up these stairs,
and I didn't drop it in the pool.
So that's success.
I mean, that's part of this,
buying things secondhand and picking them up yourself.
It's gonna be more work than,
say, getting it shipped to your door.
But I got this thing for $100.
And when I look up the price online,
it looks like it's on sale,
but even on sale, it's still like $400.
I mean, this is the way to go.
Guess what?
So the guy just got back to me,
and not only did he say yes to the $100,
say yes to the Wednesday pickup,
but he specifically can only do Wednesday night,
which is the only time I can do
'cause I'll have the truck then.
- Serendipity!
- We got a green couch.
- Hey! - We got a green couch.
So one of my friends responded to my Instagram Story
and they have a bookcase.
It's not the kind of bookcase
I would normally jump all over,
and I didn't really want a white one,
but I was thinking that since I'm gonna go get spray paint
to spray paint the side table anyway,
why don't I just spray paint this bookcase?
So I'm heading to Home Depot right now
to see what my options are.
He's gonna mix my own paint color for me.
I'm leaving Home Depot.
Didn't have enough of the spray paint in the color I wanted.
And then the guy was like,
why don't you just get some regular paint and use a roller?
And I was like, yeah, obviously.
So now, I'm going to go paint this tomorrow.
And I'm very excited.
All right, it's Wednesday morning
and my friend just dropped off the bookcase.
So you know what that means?
(upbeat music)
Let's paint.
(upbeat music continues)
It took a really long time,
but I'm finally done with both coats,
and I'm so happy with how these came out.
This is like a really affordable way
to take some old furniture you have lying around,
instead of getting rid of it, to give it a new life.
I'm here with Jojo.
We're on our way to get the furniture.
It is time.
This is not a drill, people.
I'm so excited.
(upbeat music continues)
We just got the first couch and the TV stand.
We're gonna drop them off
and then go get the second couch,
and Johanna kindly pointed out to me
that there might not be room for a second couch
in this apartment.
Did I measure ahead of time?
- No. - All right,
we're gonna have one couch.
We're gonna be a one-couch household.
I'm really disappointed
that I didn't end up getting the other couch,
but I feel like it's gonna be too tight of squeeze.
Should have measured that better.
It's okay.
Tomorrow's a new day.
Not giving up.
I still wanna find something
that's gonna fit in that space.
So I'm thinking like a big oversized chair,
since I didn't end up getting the beige couch.
And then I also am gonna need some throw pillows
to go on the green-colored couch.
I found a beige oversized chair that I really liked.
And I also found some throw pillows that I really liked.
So I reached out to both of those people.
Hopefully I will hear back.
The lady just got back to me about the chair
and it's still available.
She's asking 125 for the chair.
I just asked if she'd accept 85.
We will see what she says.
One of them got back to me at about throw pillows.
She wants $35 for two throw pillows.
I can go buy new throw pillows for $35.
I'm getting a little spicy with this woman.
I said, the most I can go is $30
because for any more, I might as well just buy new ones.
Ao.
But an exciting update is that the person got back to me
about the chair and she accepted $85 for this chair.
I'm getting really nervous
about the budget now of everything.
If I spend $30 on these throw pillows,
I'm gonna be over $500.
Oh my gosh, she responded.
She said, that's fine.
$30.
I'm a haggler.
But I'm still over now.
I still feel like I have done very well
in this challenge so far.
I think I'm just gonna be okay with that.
So luckily, my friend has a truck
and he was able to help me pick up this chair.
I didn't know if we could do it, but we did it.
We got this thing inside.
I'm very happy with this purchase for $85.
I just picked up my free plants
that I got from the Buy Nothing group.
They look great.
I also have some other plants, too.
So I'm gonna mix them all together.
I mean, hey, I got them for free.
So that was awesome.
All right, so I just got home from picking up the pillows
and I love the pillows.
I think they're so cute.
And the girl actually gave me $5 off
because she realized there was a water stain
on the back of one of them.
And then the girl also happened
to be getting rid of this gold lamp
that I thought was so perfect
and would match everything so well.
And she sold it to me for $10.
So I was like, I can't say no to that.
Now I have everything,
and it's just time for me to put the whole room together.
(relaxing music)
Okay, now it's time for the big reveal.
I am so happy with how this living room came out.
I had no idea how I was gonna pull this off,
and I really exceeded my expectations.
It's crazy to think I got everything here secondhand
and for $100 or less.
I love how the painted bookcase came out,
especially once I added in my books and my plants.
I love how the pillows match the couch and the rug.
I think they're so cute.
And I'm really happy I ended up not getting a second couch
because I really like how the big oversized chair
fits into this room.
I think one of my favorite transformations
is really the little side table
because that looks like a completely different item now.
I can't believe I got it for $20 at Goodwill,
but I love how everything here
really feels like it's my style
and matches the theme I was going for,
and that I was able to achieve that
without buying anything new.
So overall, between the couch, chair, coffee table,
TV stand, TV, side table, lamp,
pillows, basket, paint, and the roller brush,
bookcase and the plants, which I got for free,
it all came out to $523.
So I was $23 over budget,
but I think it's fine because I ended up getting more things
than I originally had set out to get.
So I think I still did a pretty good job.
And I didn't add this into the total price,
but I also wanna point out that I spent about $85
on the truck that I rented to pick up all the furniture.
So that is going to be an added expense,
unless you already have a truck
or you have a friend who will let you borrow theirs.
So even though this was a little stressful at times,
it was way better for the environment
and it saved me a ton of money,
plus it was fun and it let me be creative
and think outside the box.
So I hope I inspired you to try this yourself
and see what you can find second hand.
We did it!
Can I watch my TV now?
(upbeat music)