To an outsider, it must appear that nearly every neighborhood in Bismarck and Mandan has a child with a birthday party this weekend, what with the signs in bright colors, balloons and streamers decorating street corners and vehicles.

But the events this weekend are better than a party for people looking for bargains. The weekend after Labor Day, the people of Bismarck and Mandan clean out their homes to see if one man's junk truly is another man's treasure.

And so, like every year, garage sales, rummage sales and yard sales are sprinkled throughout the cities as people offer there goods to their neighbors and strangers as crowds of people come to town for the United Tribes International Powwow.

While the bulk of the sales take place Saturday and Sunday, many started Thursday or today. Friday's Bismarck Tribune contained 242 classified ads for garage sales. Normal weekends, 50 to 100 such ads are placed.

The hot items for each sale seem to vary. Some people reported selling large amounts of used clothing, while furniture or knickknacks pulled customers into others.

For Arlene Miller, 902 N. 12th St., her late husband's collection of tools from the past 50 or 60 years was drawing in the business to her garage sale. She said people had been stopping regularly Friday to check out the selection.

Bargain hunters didn't get an early start at Miller's sale like they did at a sale she had a few weeks ago. At that sale, people were claiming items more than half an hour before the 8 a.m. start time.

"It was funny," she said. "We didn't have that kind of rush this time."

Amanda Davis, 1732 N. 23rd St., has clothing and other items for infants and toddlers, because she's "done having babies." She didn't advertise her sale, and the traffic through her garage came from a sale up the street boasting similar items.

Sales other weekends don't bring in as much business as ones the weekend following Labor Day, because people look forward to going to the sales every year, Davis said. She said it's usually a nicer weekend than Labor Day.

Her sale will last until she's tired of sitting at it or until her items sell out. She speculated about what she'd do with anything left over by Sunday.

"I'll just be like, 'Take it. I don't care,'"she said laughing.

(Reach reporter Jenny Michael at 250-8225 or jenny.michael@bismarcktribune.com.)