What's Happening -- Cari Cucksey is Coming to Town
Hi. My name is Traci and I am an HGTV addict.It's true. My box is tuned to HGTV or watching a show from my DVR just about anytime that I have control of the remote (in other words when it is not on "Jessie" or "Dog with a Blog"). In fact, it is playing as I type this!So when I got the chance to talk with Cari Cucksey from the show Cash & Cari I was in nesting TV heaven.
If you don't know the show, it follows Cari (pronounced Car-ee not carry, despite the pun) as she and her folks from RePurpose go to homes and help homeowners suss out value from their items. They organize, price, and host an estate sale. Here is a clip from one of my favorites...We all know that many of our belongings hold a meaning beyond the thing itself. As the daughter reflected above, she hopes that the items are loved by the buyers as much as they were by her dad. Cari understands this element and uses a combination of facts and kindness to help the homeowner have the best estate sale possible. She is also a terrific source for recognizing hidden treasures as a seller and a buyer. (This thrifty girl loves, Loves, LOVES this!)And she is coming to Austin! The Home and Garden Show will be at the Austin Convention Center this weekend (February 28-March 2). Cari will be making presentations on Saturday and Sunday. I am so excited! And as she was coming our way, she was kind enough to spend a little time chatting with me. Yep, little old me!To begin, I asked her how she approaches the psychology of her job. As I mentioned, there is often a lot of emotion attached to objects. How does she help them let go? And for what price? Cucksey told me that she brings her clients "accurate truth" about what the product is selling for. And it can be a hard pill to swallow. There is an ebb and flow with these things and something that might have had value 4 1/2-5 years ago might not be selling now. But she also stressed that there is "no price on a memory"; if you will regret the sale years on because the value was more emotional than financial, don't sell it.Then we moved into discussing my hobby -- "thrifting". (I call it a hobby to justify it to my husband. Otherwise, it's just shopping -- haha!) Cucksey's suggests that you know your end goal when shopping. Have a budget and a plan. Look for "practical" pieces that can be looked at "in a different light". That's when she gets excited - seeing the "potential"! When asked her for her best advice, she stated enthusiastically "if something speaks to you, buy it". I love that! I told her that my husband was going to hear that a lot. He may not be her biggest fan afterwards, but I will!Finally, I have to say that she is genuinely nice. The person you see on screen is who she is. In fact, I will close with my favorite thing she said, "the world can use more kindness". Yes, yes, it can.A huge thanks to Hook'em Marketing for arranging the interview. And double thanks to Cari for her time and graciousness. Can't wait to see her at the show this weekend. I hope you'll join me there. It's what's happening!The 9th Annual Austin Spring Home & Garden Show is proudly sponsored by Time Warner Cable, KASE 101 Today’s Country, KVET 98.1 FM and KEYE-TV. WHAT: The 9th Annual Austin Spring Home & Garden Show www.austinhomeandgardenshow.