8 Ways to Fulfill The "Buy-Nothing-New Challenge"

Combine the greening of America with economic woes and you have an entirely new movement. The Buy-Nothing-New Challenge is becoming more popular as consumers attempt to cut back on costs while reducing their carbon footprints. Besides, Americans love a challenge.

It takes real discipline to stick to the rules of the challenge. The basic premise is to buy nothing new for a set period of time, with the exception of food, health and beauty products and safety-related items (like a baby car seat). Everything else to enter your house must be second hand.

The rewards, however, can be substantial: Children learn about delayed gratification; everyone learns about fulfilling basic needs creatively; the money saved can be breathtaking; and there's a great deal of satisfaction to be had in not adding to your community's landfill.

Taking the pledge is one thing. Figuring out how to accomplish that goal is another. Here are eight resources to help you get through the challenge.

1. Kijiji
The eBay classifieds section known as Kijiji allows you to search only for local classified ads. No auctions, fees or shipping costs and easy local pick-up.

2. Craigslist
Here's a no-brainer. If you can't find what you want in your area, you might cast a wider net and search in cities outside your region. SearchTempest makes it easier to browse Craigslist without cycling through pages and pages of unrelated ads.

3. Freecycle
It's amazing how many people still aren't aware of this tremendous resource. As with Craigslist, Freecycle groups are located almost everywhere in the U.S. There are four types of posts: "Wanted" indicates you're searching for an item; "Found" tells others you got what you wanted; "Offer" lets the group know what item you have to give away; and "Taken" informs the group you found a person who needed the item offered.

4. EBay
This online auction site is a bit pricier than the others, but it can be a great place to find second-hand stuff in decent shape. Keep in mind you'll still have to pay shipping on eBay, so decide whether that fulfills the terms of your personal challenge.

5. Garage Sales, Estate Sales, Etc.
With spring approaching, more home sales will appear offering everything from plus-size clothing to tools. Searching through piles of other people's cast-offs can be time consuming, but the prices can't be beat. Practice the art of haggling in such open situations.

6. Friends and Family
There's a long tradition of handing down children's clothing and Babys R Us castoffs, so why not expand this system to include other items you need? Friends and family also may be happy to trade or barter for stuff they don't need, whether it be for an unused blender or time taking the carpool.

7. Repurpose
Turn a satellite dish into a bird feeder; an unused chair into a table; or old sweaters into potholders. For more information about repurposing, check out "How to Upcycle 6 Pieces of Old Furniture," and "Salvaged Threads Upcycles Castoffs Into Kicky Couture."

8. Public Libraries
Talk about broken records. We're always recommending the many services available at your public library, but here's something you may not know: Some libraries give away old magazines and books that are either outdated or no longer fit for circulation. Of course, you can always borrow without charge the latest books, movies, music, video games and more.

Have you tried the Buy-Nothing-New Challenge? If you have, what was the hardest part and what was the best? Is there anything you were dying to buy once the challenge was over? Once it was over, did you slip back into your old consumerist ways?