Swinging Christmas tunes will fill the air as you browse the second hand wares, nibbling on a muffin and socialising. A sustainably sourced Christmas tree in the corner of the yard will be decorated with twinkling stars made of broken CDs and paper garland fashioned from colourful strips cut of old copies of the NewsMail and the Guardian. It's all to promote “Buying Second Hand First” at the SustainaBundy Garage Sale Christmas Breakfast Party, this Saturday at 7am.

There will be no shortage of great deals to be had when 8 families, all members of SustainaBundy, gather in the back yard at 144 Barolin Street in Bundaberg to sell trailer loads of second hand items, incuding a nearly new freezer, jewelry and clothing, two ovens, stovetops and desks, even a dog house.

SustainaBundy promotes reducing consumption and sourcing daily needs locally to support the local economy while minimising our environmental impact - they call it "relocalisation".

According to SustainaBundy treasurer Carol Sweeney, "when you buy new, most of your money has to go out of our local economy to pay for manufacturing, packaging, distributing, marketing and selling the stuff. Buying second hand first keeps the money circulating here in town, with our local businesses."

It's also better for the environment. SustainaBundy's president, Dean Hazelwood, said, "making new stuff is very resource-intensive. Extending the life of second hand items reduces the consumption and waste of resources, and reduces the waste we send to the tip."

While you help save the planet, you can also purchase a breakfast of fruit, baked goods, tea, coffee and juice at the garage sale party, and at 10am SustainaBundy will also raffle off a basket of organic and chemical free delectables provided by Bundaberg Marketplace Fruit & Veg.

All donations from the day will go to future SustainaBundy projects, including an upcoming sustainability guidebook and directory, specifically for the Bundaberg region.

Call 4196 0043 or visit www.sustainabundy.org for more information.