Ripping strips of blue painter's tape to price a table full of pots and pans, Tracy Dempsey preps for her first culinary rummage sale.
“This has been a very big undertaking. I’ve never even done a garage sale,” says the Tempe bakery and wine shop owner.
Home cooks hunting for serveware and gently used kitchen equipment will find a boon of community-donated items at Tracy Dempsey Originals and wine shop ODV Wines on March 8 and 9. Proceeds will benefit the Blue Watermelon Project, a chef-driven nonprofit that advocates for fresh food in schools.
"Bottom line is, kids need to eat and have a healthy meal," Dempsey says. "I think school lunches are so important for so many kids to have access to good food. It might be the only meal they have that day."
Standing in the area of her shop that’s normally reserved for wine tastings, Dempsey estimates she’s received thousands of donated items including cookware, books, baking items and serving dishes, from plates and wine glasses to animal-shaped casseroles. One person brought 15 “meticulously packed” boxes.
“There’s a lot of great things for entertaining. There’s a lot of brand new, unopened items,” Dempsey says. 
Organized on tables are vignettes of offerings. Mugs are grouped with French presses and a Cuisinart coffee maker. A black-glazed tagine sits next to steam baskets, which are tucked beside a fondue pot. Enameled pans are displayed, still in their original boxes. A sous vide cooker is placed alongside an Instant Pot, an air fryer and a meat-grinding attachment for a KitchenAid Stand Mixer. Heart- and lobster-shaped baking pans are stacked on a table next to boxes of brand-new Silpat baking mats and canisters brimming with wooden cooking utensils. A book nook features classic culinary reads such as “The Joy of Cooking” and “The Cake Bible," as well as titles from Ina Garten, Martha Stewart and Milk Bar baker Christina Tosi.
Items are priced to sell – Dempsey picks up a set of six diamond-shaped pastry pans, which she’s tagged as 50 cents each.
She got the idea for the culinary rummage sale after seeing a friend in California host one to benefit Les Dames d'Escoffier, an organization for women in the food, beverage and hospitality industries. The proceeds from Dempsey’s sale will go towards creating a "Culinary Classroom Library" for schools that partner with Blue Watermelon Project as well as bringing in chefs for hands-on demonstrations with students.
“As a chef, there’s nothing more satisfying than working with the kids directly and seeing those ‘aha’ lightbulb moments,” she says.
Though the sale doesn’t officially begin until Friday, guests can browse during normal business hours at Dempsey’s store. If something catches a shopper’s eye, they can place a hold on an item to be purchased at the sale.
Organizers are asking shoppers to bring cash, personal checks or their phones to make any credit card payments online through Blue Watermelon Project’s donation page.
In addition to the items for sale, there will be a silent auction of about 10 items, such as a wine fridge. Borrowing Ebay’s format, buyers can make a bid or opt to pay a certain price to buy the item immediately.
With her store now full of kitchen equipment, Dempsey is excited to turn those items into cash.
“The donations are here, but now we need it to generate the funds that we can then give back to Blue Watermelon Project,” Dempsey says.
Here's a look at what's for sale: 
1325 W. University Drive, Tempe
“This has been a very big undertaking. I’ve never even done a garage sale,” says the Tempe bakery and wine shop owner.
Home cooks hunting for serveware and gently used kitchen equipment will find a boon of community-donated items at Tracy Dempsey Originals and wine shop ODV Wines on March 8 and 9. Proceeds will benefit the Blue Watermelon Project, a chef-driven nonprofit that advocates for fresh food in schools.
"Bottom line is, kids need to eat and have a healthy meal," Dempsey says. "I think school lunches are so important for so many kids to have access to good food. It might be the only meal they have that day."
Standing in the area of her shop that’s normally reserved for wine tastings, Dempsey estimates she’s received thousands of donated items including cookware, books, baking items and serving dishes, from plates and wine glasses to animal-shaped casseroles. One person brought 15 “meticulously packed” boxes.
“There’s a lot of great things for entertaining. There’s a lot of brand new, unopened items,” Dempsey says.
Baking items include heart- and lobster-shaped baking pans, brand new Silpats and six-inch cake pans.
Sara Crocker
Organized on tables are vignettes of offerings. Mugs are grouped with French presses and a Cuisinart coffee maker. A black-glazed tagine sits next to steam baskets, which are tucked beside a fondue pot. Enameled pans are displayed, still in their original boxes. A sous vide cooker is placed alongside an Instant Pot, an air fryer and a meat-grinding attachment for a KitchenAid Stand Mixer. Heart- and lobster-shaped baking pans are stacked on a table next to boxes of brand-new Silpat baking mats and canisters brimming with wooden cooking utensils. A book nook features classic culinary reads such as “The Joy of Cooking” and “The Cake Bible," as well as titles from Ina Garten, Martha Stewart and Milk Bar baker Christina Tosi.
Items are priced to sell – Dempsey picks up a set of six diamond-shaped pastry pans, which she’s tagged as 50 cents each.
She got the idea for the culinary rummage sale after seeing a friend in California host one to benefit Les Dames d'Escoffier, an organization for women in the food, beverage and hospitality industries. The proceeds from Dempsey’s sale will go towards creating a "Culinary Classroom Library" for schools that partner with Blue Watermelon Project as well as bringing in chefs for hands-on demonstrations with students.
“As a chef, there’s nothing more satisfying than working with the kids directly and seeing those ‘aha’ lightbulb moments,” she says.
Though the sale doesn’t officially begin until Friday, guests can browse during normal business hours at Dempsey’s store. If something catches a shopper’s eye, they can place a hold on an item to be purchased at the sale.
Organizers are asking shoppers to bring cash, personal checks or their phones to make any credit card payments online through Blue Watermelon Project’s donation page.
In addition to the items for sale, there will be a silent auction of about 10 items, such as a wine fridge. Borrowing Ebay’s format, buyers can make a bid or opt to pay a certain price to buy the item immediately.
With her store now full of kitchen equipment, Dempsey is excited to turn those items into cash.
Here's a look at what's for sale:
“There’s a lot of great things for entertaining," Tracy Dempsey says of the items donated to sell at the Culinary Rummage Sale. That includes plates, wine glasses and more.
Sara Crocker
The sale includes a small library's worth of cookbooks, featuring classic culinary reads such as “The Joy of Cooking” and “The Cake Bible," as well as titles from Ina Garten, Martha Stewart and Milk Bar baker Christina Tosi.
Sara Crocker
Culinary Rummage Sale at Tracy Dempsey Originals
March 8 and 91325 W. University Drive, Tempe
