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Woman Is On A Mission To Trade A Bobby Pin Until She Gets A House, And Here Are Her Trades So Far

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In 2005, Canadian blogger Kyle MacDonald hit the headlines by bartering up his single red paperclip into a two-story farmhouse over the course of 14 transactions. Inspired by the successful quest, 29-year-old Demi Skipper from San Francisco has set out on a journey to repeat history.

With a single bobby pin in her account, Demi intends “to make one trade at a time, starting with a bobby pin and ending with a house.” As crazy as it sounds, she has already made a fair amount of solid transactions and is nowhere near about to slow down.

Since Demi launched her Trade Me Project account on TikTok, which follows her through what looks like the coolest project to have hit the media during the pandemic season, it has already amassed 3.8M followers and 24.7M likes. Let’s take a look at how she has been doing so far and it may well change the way we look at a lonely hair clip nestled in a sofa crack forever.

More info: TikTok | Instagram | YouTube

Demi has set out to see whether this single bobby pin can lead her to a house through a series of trading transactions

Woman Is On A Mission To Trade A Bobby Pin Until She Gets A House, And Here Are Her Trades So Far

Image credits: trademeproject

Woman Is On A Mission To Trade A Bobby Pin Until She Gets A House, And Here Are Her Trades So Far

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Image credits: trademeproject

And here is the list of 15 trade-offs she has done so far

Woman Is On A Mission To Trade A Bobby Pin Until She Gets A House, And Here Are Her Trades So Far

Image credits: trademeproject

Woman Is On A Mission To Trade A Bobby Pin Until She Gets A House, And Here Are Her Trades So Far

Image credits: trademeproject

Woman Is On A Mission To Trade A Bobby Pin Until She Gets A House, And Here Are Her Trades So Far

Image credits: trademeproject

Woman Is On A Mission To Trade A Bobby Pin Until She Gets A House, And Here Are Her Trades So Far

Image credits: trademeproject

Demi, who works for a restaurant reservation app and runs a wedding dress rental business, claims that she has been a natural born hustler her whole life. It was just natural for her to put her negotiating skills to the test with the Trade Me Project experiment.

But as simple as it looks, the trades often take hours of preparation before the transaction is sealed. “Everybody just sees the TikTok video and the videos are just a minute. And what they’re not seeing is hours and hours of research that’s going into this,” Demi told Good Morning America.

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Woman Is On A Mission To Trade A Bobby Pin Until She Gets A House, And Here Are Her Trades So Far

Image credits: trademeproject

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Woman Is On A Mission To Trade A Bobby Pin Until She Gets A House, And Here Are Her Trades So Far

Image credits: trademeproject

Woman Is On A Mission To Trade A Bobby Pin Until She Gets A House, And Here Are Her Trades So Far

Image credits: trademeproject

Woman Is On A Mission To Trade A Bobby Pin Until She Gets A House, And Here Are Her Trades So Far

Image credits: trademeproject

Woman Is On A Mission To Trade A Bobby Pin Until She Gets A House, And Here Are Her Trades So Far

Image credits: trademeproject

Woman Is On A Mission To Trade A Bobby Pin Until She Gets A House, And Here Are Her Trades So Far

Image credits: trademeproject

Demi is as determined as ever. It’s not a question of whether she gets her house, but rather when it’s gonna happen. “I am in go-mode until I get the house,” she claims.

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For everyone who thinks the 29-year-old has gone mad, Demi reminds us of Kyle MacDonald’s famous bartering quest called “The One Red Paperclip Project.” “If you think I am crazy, in 2006, someone traded a red paperclip up until they got a house, so let’s do it,” said Demi in one of her videos.

Woman Is On A Mission To Trade A Bobby Pin Until She Gets A House, And Here Are Her Trades So Far

Image credits: trademeproject

Woman Is On A Mission To Trade A Bobby Pin Until She Gets A House, And Here Are Her Trades So Far

Image credits: trademeproject

Woman Is On A Mission To Trade A Bobby Pin Until She Gets A House, And Here Are Her Trades So Far

Image credits: trademeproject

Woman Is On A Mission To Trade A Bobby Pin Until She Gets A House, And Here Are Her Trades So Far

Image credits: trademeproject

Woman Is On A Mission To Trade A Bobby Pin Until She Gets A House, And Here Are Her Trades So Far

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Image credits: trademeproject

Woman Is On A Mission To Trade A Bobby Pin Until She Gets A House, And Here Are Her Trades So Far

Image credits: trademeproject

The bartering trick has long been known in popular culture and folklore. For example, the Japanese Buddhist legend of the “Straw Millionaire” follows the journey of a poor man who becomes wealthy through a series of successive trades, starting from just a single piece of straw.

Woman Is On A Mission To Trade A Bobby Pin Until She Gets A House, And Here Are Her Trades So Far

Image credits: trademeproject

Woman Is On A Mission To Trade A Bobby Pin Until She Gets A House, And Here Are Her Trades So Far

Image credits: trademeproject

Woman Is On A Mission To Trade A Bobby Pin Until She Gets A House, And Here Are Her Trades So Far

Image credits: trademeproject

Woman Is On A Mission To Trade A Bobby Pin Until She Gets A House, And Here Are Her Trades So Far

Image credits: trademeproject

Woman Is On A Mission To Trade A Bobby Pin Until She Gets A House, And Here Are Her Trades So Far

ADVERTISEMENT

Image credits: trademeproject

Woman Is On A Mission To Trade A Bobby Pin Until She Gets A House, And Here Are Her Trades So Far

Image credits: trademeproject

Woman Is On A Mission To Trade A Bobby Pin Until She Gets A House, And Here Are Her Trades So Far

Image credits: trademeproject

Woman Is On A Mission To Trade A Bobby Pin Until She Gets A House, And Here Are Her Trades So Far

Image credits: trademeproject

Woman Is On A Mission To Trade A Bobby Pin Until She Gets A House, And Here Are Her Trades So Far

Image credits: trademeproject

Woman Is On A Mission To Trade A Bobby Pin Until She Gets A House, And Here Are Her Trades So Far

Image credits: trademeproject

Woman Is On A Mission To Trade A Bobby Pin Until She Gets A House, And Here Are Her Trades So Far

Image credits: trademeproject

Woman Is On A Mission To Trade A Bobby Pin Until She Gets A House, And Here Are Her Trades So Far

ADVERTISEMENT

Image credits: trademeproject

Demi’s most recent transaction got her this boosted board and it’s not near the end!

Woman Is On A Mission To Trade A Bobby Pin Until She Gets A House, And Here Are Her Trades So Far

Image credits: trademeproject

Woman Is On A Mission To Trade A Bobby Pin Until She Gets A House, And Here Are Her Trades So Far

Image credits: trademeproject

@trademeprojectTrading a bobby pin for a house. Traded the boosted board 💪 ##fyp ##trademeproject ##letsgetthishouse ♬ Renee – Sales

Image credits: trademe

Woman Is On A Mission To Trade A Bobby Pin Until She Gets A House, And Here Are Her Trades So Far

Image credits: trademeproject

And people are loving the project

Woman Is On A Mission To Trade A Bobby Pin Until She Gets A House, And Here Are Her Trades So Far

Woman Is On A Mission To Trade A Bobby Pin Until She Gets A House, And Here Are Her Trades So Far

Woman Is On A Mission To Trade A Bobby Pin Until She Gets A House, And Here Are Her Trades So Far

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Woman Is On A Mission To Trade A Bobby Pin Until She Gets A House, And Here Are Her Trades So Far

Woman Is On A Mission To Trade A Bobby Pin Until She Gets A House, And Here Are Her Trades So Far

Woman Is On A Mission To Trade A Bobby Pin Until She Gets A House, And Here Are Her Trades So Far

Liucija Adomaite

Liucija Adomaite is a creative mind with years of experience in copywriting. She has a dynamic set of experiences from advertising, academia, and journalism. This time, she has set out on a journey to investigate the ways in which we communicate ideas on a large scale. Her current mission is to find a magic formula for how to make ideas, news, and other such things spread like a virus.

Liucija Adomaite is a creative mind with years of experience in copywriting. She has a dynamic set of experiences from advertising, academia, and journalism. This time, she has set out on a journey to investigate the ways in which we communicate ideas on a large scale. Her current mission is to find a magic formula for how to make ideas, news, and other such things spread like a virus.

Justinas Keturka

I'm the Visual Editor at Bored Panda, responsible for ensuring that everything our audience sees is top-notch and well-researched. What I love most about my job? Discovering new things about the world and immersing myself in exceptional photography and art.

I'm the Visual Editor at Bored Panda, responsible for ensuring that everything our audience sees is top-notch and well-researched. What I love most about my job? Discovering new things about the world and immersing myself in exceptional photography and art.

What do you think ?

David Jeu 4 years ago

Would never work in the real world

48points

Parmeisan 4 years ago (edited)

It really did happen in Canada in 2005. But I think a lot of the trades are from people thinking it's a fun idea and wanting to be part of it. A lot of them are clearly not good trades for the other person. e.g, IIRC the town of Kipling did it mostly for publicity - and like most small towns in Saskatchewan there are lots of houses around that nobody wants because each generation they lose some population to the cities. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/One_red_paperclip

38points

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Daria B 4 years ago

It happened in Italy too, more than 25 years ago. But it was for a TV show, so people react differently when they see the cameras. (Sure, you can also question how genuine it was, or if it were all set up for TV. Anyway it was not a reality show, but a variety show.)

4points

Šimon Špaček 4 years ago

We used to play that game. Usually it was just one day action and we started with something like pen or fly trap. Most bizzare things I saw after a day: Two years old bicycle, palm tree in huge pot (it weighted about 100 kilos), cigarette box full of weed and the winner for all the time was full sized sled. Santa Clause style. It was big enough for two people in back and two in front and would require two horses. How did that girl got to that in Prague in August in just one day we will never know...

3points

Grumble O'Pug 4 years ago

She got soaked on the camera. The whole thing smells.

-2points

Brittania Kelli 4 years ago

It’s messed up that sneakers are worth that much.

45points

CatWoman312 4 years ago

They aren’t. Supply and demand is what inflates the price. They make a few of them and serious collectors will pay top dollar to get themselves a pair

6points

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Theron Roberts 4 years ago

it would've been more believable if she recorded the conversations with the people she was trading with

17points

r-c-rausch 4 years ago

Theron Roberts ?

-3points

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David Jeu 4 years ago

Would never work in the real world

48points

Parmeisan 4 years ago (edited)

It really did happen in Canada in 2005. But I think a lot of the trades are from people thinking it's a fun idea and wanting to be part of it. A lot of them are clearly not good trades for the other person. e.g, IIRC the town of Kipling did it mostly for publicity - and like most small towns in Saskatchewan there are lots of houses around that nobody wants because each generation they lose some population to the cities. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/One_red_paperclip

38points

Load More Replies...

Daria B 4 years ago

It happened in Italy too, more than 25 years ago. But it was for a TV show, so people react differently when they see the cameras. (Sure, you can also question how genuine it was, or if it were all set up for TV. Anyway it was not a reality show, but a variety show.)

4points

Šimon Špaček 4 years ago

We used to play that game. Usually it was just one day action and we started with something like pen or fly trap. Most bizzare things I saw after a day: Two years old bicycle, palm tree in huge pot (it weighted about 100 kilos), cigarette box full of weed and the winner for all the time was full sized sled. Santa Clause style. It was big enough for two people in back and two in front and would require two horses. How did that girl got to that in Prague in August in just one day we will never know...

3points

Grumble O'Pug 4 years ago

She got soaked on the camera. The whole thing smells.

-2points

Brittania Kelli 4 years ago

It’s messed up that sneakers are worth that much.

45points

CatWoman312 4 years ago

They aren’t. Supply and demand is what inflates the price. They make a few of them and serious collectors will pay top dollar to get themselves a pair

6points

Load More Replies...

Theron Roberts 4 years ago

it would've been more believable if she recorded the conversations with the people she was trading with

17points

r-c-rausch 4 years ago

Theron Roberts ?

-3points

Load More Replies...

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