Reuse And Re-love At The Garage Sale Trail

By Marcus Braid on October 2, 2015 in

Bondi Beach resident and television celebrity Barry Du Bois believes in sustainability to the extent he wants to have his home running off the grid by the time his children go to school.

And he believes the Garage Sale Trail – which will take place across the country on October 24 – is the perfect way to promote the theme of reuse.

“It goes with getting involved with your own community, talking to one another and saying, ‘Hey, I can make something really useful out of that’,” Mr Du Bois said.

“It’s a great test of yourself if you can look at something and see that as it is it may not be useful, but you can test yourself to see if you can make it useful in your world.”

Now in its fifth year, the Garage Sale Trail is Australia’s biggest reuse event. Sellers can hold a sale as a household, street, community group, school, charity, or as a local business. Participants can make money for themselves, or fundraise for a cause.

Australian artist and 2015 Archibald finalist Paul Ryan has unveiled a one-of-a-kind portrait of Mr Du Bois in preparation for the event. The portrait was created on a discarded object saved from landfill to officially launch this year’s Garage Sale Trail.

“It’s an honour to have a portrait done,” Mr Du Bois said. “I mean, we’re all egomaniacs. To be on a piece of recycled art means so much to me. My whole brand is about sustainability, reusing and re-loving things.”

Andrew Valder, co-founder of the Garage Sale Trail, said the priority was to ensure participants registered their sales.

“Areas like Bondi are the absolute heartland for the Garage Sale Trail,” he said. “That’s where it started. We’re fortunate that it continues to be hugely popular. There will probably be 400 garage sales in the Bondi and Bronte area.”

To register a garage sale or for more information, visit www.garagesaletrail.com.au.