How much do you spend on swag

[+michigansnorkelers]

I don't think this question has been asked in this way.

 

I've seen a lot of suggestions, but not as much on where to buy them, or how much people spend.

 

I shop at dollar stores, but most don't have very good items. I've had occassional luck at drugstores like Walgreens. And I recently learned that Michael's Craft stores have some nice dollar selections.

 

I seem to be averaging $1 per item, sometimes up to $2. This is getting a little expensive, (for me). Most of the time I leave something nice (in my opinion) but don't see much worth taking in exchange. So, I just clear out some junk, which there always seems to be enough of.

[+hairball45]

Dollar Tree has a pretty fair selection of swag grade stuff. I've even picked up little FM radios with earphones for a buck there, also little flashlights. Truthfully though, I find myself swapping less and less often, I rarely see anything I want, but when I do it's nice to have goodies along. Most of the time I'm just happy to have the hunt.

hairball

[Unhban]

Here in the UK I tend to do a mix of Tesco's party selection (quite a choice when you look) and small bits and pieces I've picked up at car boot sales, which can yield some interesting items for next to nothing.....

[+chizu]

Here in the UK I tend to do a mix of Tesco's party selection (quite a choice when you look) and small bits and pieces I've picked up at car boot sales, which can yield some interesting items for next to nothing.....

 

We got some really good stuff at Tescos due to their 3 for 2 selection on a load of stuff at the moment. Fialing that Poundstretchers/Instore is a good bet for really cheap and cheerful stuff.

[+briansnat]

I usually spend under $3 and most of the time under a buck. I particularly like getting things in bulk that I can break into individual units and use as swag, that way it can wind up costing well under a dollar. For instance I get the 12 pack of Off insect repellent wipes, or Wet Ones for $4 and leave one or two individual packs in caches. I also found a local drug store that sells boxes of individual packets of hand sanitizing gel. You get 16 packets for $3 and I leave one or two in caches.

 

Walmart is another good source. They often sell emergency rain ponchos for 87 cents. When I see those I get a couple dozen. The waterproof matchboxes are also 87 cents and make great geo swag.

 

In addition to Wal Mart, I shop basically everywhere for my swag. Home Depot, crafts stores like Rag Shop and Michaels, Target (the dollar section at the front of the store can be a good source) Sports Authority, Toys R Us the local supermarket, outdoors stores, drug stores, you name it. I keep my eyes open while walking the aisles and anytime I see something small, cheap and potentially useful I throw a few in my basket.

[+salmondan]

Oriental Trading Company- catalogue sales, is a great place to get items in bulk.

[+salmondan]

Oriental Trading Company- catalogue sales, is a great place to get items in bulk.

[+WebChimp]

Dollar Tree has a pretty fair selection of swag grade stuff.

 

I agree on the Dollar Tree. Also, aroud here we have Dollar General Stores, and we tend to pick up boxes of molded dinosaurs, rubber balls, small cars and trucks for a buck a box. We've been dropping three or four small items in each cache so the kids wo come next will have something to find. So, i guess leff than a buck each would be a good average.

 

Occasionally I'll find a huge pack of AAs on sale, so I'll pick that up and drop a ziplock with four AAs in it.

 

I have found items I wanted to trade for, but was caught with nothing to trade, so I wrote "Where's George" on a dollar bill, made note of the serial number, dropped it in the cache, and recorded it online when I got back. I reckon that swag would be about a buck each?

[+StarBrand]

I spend way too much but this is a lot of fun for our family - most swag is 50 cents to $3. Occasionally more - depends on the value of what I find. I carry a $25 nice watch with me for ultra-nice items I find. Dropped off 3 over the years in exchage for nice stuff. Just picked up a new one to carry the other day. I usually shop dollar stores or sale items at Wal-mart, Target.

[+HortonK]

Just discovered the usefulness of Dollar General Stores yesterday. Picked up some LCD watches, 5pk hi bounce balls, 15-20pk animal growth capsules, 2pk of cars, etc. for $1 each. We also shop at the One Spot section of Target and have noticed some pretty cool swag at the bargain bin at Michaels. As a 31-year-old, I don't have much need for any of this stuff, but I do have a 7-year-old niece who insists on leaving something at each cache, regardless of whether she takes an item or not! We seem to agree that it is always better to walk up to a well-stocked cache than an empty one, especially for the kids.

[+DiS02]

15-20pk animal growth capsules

 

Umm, animal growth capsules??

 

Not sure I really want to visit caches with them in then, imagine if a rat or snake got ahold of them!!! Giant Rats & Snakes!! yuckk eweeehh

 

[+gof1]

Normally I wouldn't rain on your humor, but.

I think the animal growth capsules in question are those things you add water to and they grow into animal figures many time their original size. I hope they don't go into a cache that leaks. I had this vision of popping the latch on a cache and having the lid spring off and a bunch of soggy animals, each larger than the cache, popping out all over the place.

[+michigansnorkelers]

Thanks for the repies. Looks like $1 per cache seems average?

 

Hey, there's one advantage to hunting micros!

[+HortonK]

Normally I wouldn't rain on your humor, but.

I think the animal growth capsules in question are those things you add water to and they grow into animal figures many time their original size. I hope they don't go into a cache that leaks. I had this vision of popping the latch on a cache and having the lid spring off and a bunch of soggy animals, each larger than the cache, popping out all over the place.

 

gof1, thanks for clarifying that for me. I have not actually placed any of these yet, but had seen them in other caches. I plan on putting them in a Ziploc bag inside the cache to avoid the soggy animal issue. Same thing would go for temporary tattoos (saw quite a few recently in caches) as well as any small puzzle books, electronic devices, etc. that would not be so nice if wet.

[+jcrosser]

Walmart is another good source. The waterproof matchboxes are also 87 cents and make great geo swag.

I can never find them at wal-mart!

[+Bamboogirl]

I'm fortunate in that my work takes me to Asia a couple times a year. There is no shortage of inexpensive doo-dads there that are not what one would find often over here.

 

All that said, not everyone gets to go places like that, so I'll call myself lucky. If I don't have a trip planned, or am out of goodies, there's some other good options:

 

Cost Plus is a great place for inexpensive swag that is different than the usual stuff. There are always toys, odd bits of jewelry or other such fun bits of stuff.

 

If you have a local rock shop, they are good for handfuls of interesting mineral samples - sometimes sold by the pound, so you won't break the bank. Kids love spiffy rocks and if you label them with the variety, they learn something and so much the better.

 

Sacajawea Dollars - not so much circulated, but banks still have rolls of them - and they are still only $1

 

I probably go overboard looking for swag to drop off - but its sort of like leaving a random present for someone and I like to leave fun stuff.

[+Renegade Knight]

...I've seen a lot of suggestions, but not as much on where to buy them, or how much people spend....

I buy my swag on eBay by the pound. (Coins in bulk for trade items).

 

For stocking a cache, I normally use garage sales. If you are looking with an eye to a cache you can find great stuff for pennies on the dollar.

Edited December 4, 2006 by Renegade Knight

[+Recdiver]

Normally I wouldn't rain on your humor, but.

I think the animal growth capsules in question are those things you add water to and they grow into animal figures many time their original size. I hope they don't go into a cache that leaks. I had this vision of popping the latch on a cache and having the lid spring off and a bunch of soggy animals, each larger than the cache, popping out all over the place.

That visual made me laugh out loud. Thanks.

[+BuxCamper]

Picked up an 8 pack of Matchbox/Hot Wheels sized cars at the dollar store. So 12.5 cents per drop. My son also donated a bunch of little things from his room. Most of the time I've TNLNSL but when my son is with me he always wants to trade. The last one I spotted something I wanted to trade for.

[+Super_Nate]

I am gonna have a lot of peope knocking down my door, but there is a store in my town that has what is called the penny room. EVERYTHING in that room is a penny (ONE CENT) They limit you to 25 things per person, but you can always go back there tomarrow!

 

So look at what the person that logged FTF on this cache said......everything in this bucket cost me less than $1 and it has some of the nicest stuff you will ever see in a cache.

[+gnbrotz]

I typically trade $1-$2 items when I trade (which isn't often). But...

 

I've got four caches in the works right now (all ammmo cans). The easiest of the four is getting the best mix of items from two other caches I've recently archived, two more will be basically identical to each other with $2-$3 items in them, and the last, as a 'social experiment' of sorts will contain items in the $5-7$ range. I'm going to challenge folks to trade up, with the offer to revisit perhaps twice a year and 'upgrade' the cache myself too, based on what I find when I visit.

 

If folks trade even or better, this cache could get interesting. Though I intend to honor my commitment, I feel like a Vegas casino owner: the odds are on my side. Between human nature and the difficult terrain to reach the cache, I don't see myself dropping a new gps unit into this cache in the next 12 months.

[+citonyc]

this is a good thread !!

i wish i could have read this one a few days back... before i blew $68 bucks on geoswag.com

but i would have never thought of looking at dollar stores...

ill check that out.. thanks

[+Super_Nate]

this is a good thread !!

i wish i could have read this one a few days back... before i blew $68 bucks on geoswag.com

but i would have never thought of looking at dollar stores...

ill check that out.. thanks

 

HOLY COW!!!!!! How many caches did $68 fill? OMG that is a lot of money to spend on a cache.

[+laughingcat]

I don't think this question has been asked in this way.

 

I've seen a lot of suggestions, but not as much on where to buy them, or how much people spend.

 

I shop at dollar stores, but most don't have very good items. I've had occassional luck at drugstores like Walgreens. And I recently learned that Michael's Craft stores have some nice dollar selections.

 

I seem to be averaging $1 per item, sometimes up to $2. This is getting a little expensive, (for me). Most of the time I leave something nice (in my opinion) but don't see much worth taking in exchange. So, I just clear out some junk, which there always seems to be enough of.

 

Yard sales and second hand shops like Goodwill or Salvation Army. Some of those places will price things too high, some have excellent prices. Takes frequent trips and patience.

 

And sometimes you want a higher dollar swag item as it will be required for a fair trade!