First Live Auction in a Long Time!

I have so been looking forward to this auction! For over a week once I discovered it was happening. I first headed over there Thursday where you could look the stuff over and decide what you wanted to bid on. Not to mention looking up comps and specs.

The last auction I went to was with my Mom. When? I'm going to guess 25 or so years ago. I remember the Auctioneer looking at her to see if she wanted to continue bidding and how cool as a cucumber she was nodding yes or no. It was good training for me.

I barely got there before the auction commenced. I took my seat and then realized I needed to be closer to the action so I sat in row three in front of the auctioneer, sort of. Close enough to see and hear. Except they had the microphones going out at least 3 times. There were three auctioneers and the "Senior" one who was last was very old school. With the singing nonsense in-between bids. He also went a little too fast and missed some bids. The other two were younger and the last one, or the one who finished up had my number. He actually had my number and no longer needed me to hold it up when I won.

It was exhilarating.   

So many people there. Despite the covid virus code red in Louisville. Maybe 30 of us. One serious bidder, I called her Throw Mama from the Train becuase under her mask she resembled the character exactly. She even walked like her. And had greyish hair in the Throw Mama style. That woman bid and  bid and bought and bought everything! The doll heads above I dearly wanted because I love doll heads and doll parts. They are a pretty easy sell. I call them a macabre oddity when I post them on Mercari and Ebay. But old Throw Mama scooped them up as a bundle and paid about $40. I wanted to nab them for closer to $10.  But I did get the Kentucky Derby Barbie and she is sold already!!

I got every thing I went for and then some, two lots for $1 and I got excited and picked up another lot for about $60 that included a Queen of Elizabeth Barbie but it was a lot also and included a few other things that I should be able to flip..I missed on the Princess Di and Prince Charles dolls. 

I went in thinking I went in thinking I would spend 300$ and I ended up only 30 something over . Which is a relief. It could have been much worse.

Thanks Mom. I miss you.

Honey Hole

 I've heard a lot of people refer to their go to sourcing place as their Honey Hole. The place where they find over looked or under priced treasures.

I think I found mine yesterday. Which tells me I need to widen my range. The GW's and the SA in this area are rather picked over, though I did luck out and find this last week! An Icelandic Design Vintage sweater that was waiting for me as I walked in. Just sitting with the Men's Tee shirts. About a month or so ago someone had written about finding one so I knew I had hit gold. $5.99 I believe. I have it listed at 85$ and just offered it to someone for 65$. Some on Ebay are as high as 129$.

 Be that as it may....I had won several things in an auction. I had to travel to another county and found myself in the million dollar home area. Even the air smells better out there. The house was huge! Sitting close to Harrods Creek. I collected and paid for my stuff, 4 Nunn Bush shoe stretchers/keepers, and an assortment of jewelry from India. a 40$ investment I hope to triple my money. turn 40 into $120. Is that double my money? You would think I, as a business major, would know. It was a long time ago and I , the wizard of calculus, can barley figure out ROI. 

Knowing I was in money territory, where all the rich escape from Louisville crime, taxes and surly neighbors, I googled the nearest Thrift Store.

I went down windy roads that took my breath away in their beauty and in their on coming traffic. Until I arrived at my destination. I was surprised at how small the place was but it was crammed with goodies from top to bottom. Since I do not sell a lot of clothes, I naturally went there first and looked for cashmere sweaters and off brand stuff that I (tried) sneakily to comp on my phone. I thought the red was the 50% 0ff and scored two jackets, one a sweater jacker, the other an expensive brand going for the 20-35 dollar range on Poshmark. Two for $6.29 was a good enough gamble for me, but alas I was wrong, yellow was half off so I returned them.

I found a Barbie out of the box and without shoes, otherwise in very good condition for 1,99$. It was from the Barbies' of the World collection and represented India. (India a reoccurring theme this day!). I scored a Bratz Doll and a dog cup (that was for me. A red one to match my purple one). Then I found in a shopping cart, poised to be shelved or just in the aisle to be picked from, 10 unopened packages of sexy thigh high stockings! OMG! 59 cents a piece. The comps (I did not even check in the store knowing these were pure gold) for the Calvin Klein are 19 bucks. Plus shipping!!

This particular thrift store has not received the memo to stop putting money merchandise in the display cases. And I was drawn to a jar of jewelry like a moth to the flame. I asked to look at it and rolled it around and it seemed like pretty junk, but the pearl necklace on top spoke to me so I indulged and shelled out 35$

When I got home, hoping that someone had overlooked a Miriam Haskell or some Coro jewelry or possible a turquoise bracelet I was not lucky. Only two things marked. One a Chico's necklace and the other a Tiffany and Co .925 silver bangle.

I have to get it authenticated. I will not let myself get too excited. But, man oh man! My honey Hole!

Good bye my go to Auction House

 It's a sad day for me this week when the on line auction house that I use most closes it doors after pick up tomorrow. In November of 2018 I found this jewel on line and have never looked back. I think there might be three or four weeks when I have not picked up something I won at the auction.

My biggest scores were the pearl necklace, or rather what I spent the most money on, with papers of authentication and a large Paul Sawyier that I just went crazy on and won for 250 bucks.

They always had the best stuff. I bid on a group of pearl necklaces about three weeks ago and won for about 18 bucks. Included and not mentioned in the description was a Miriam Haskell that is vintage perfect and listed on line in the 250 range.

I like to keep my MH.

I have been selling on line for about 10 months and I have had tremendous luck flipping their stuff. My first flip with them was a Rt. 66 Zippo lighter that I won for around 12$ that I flipped for over 30$

i was hooked. And I made some mistakes, like listing the items I won before being able to pick them up. A few sold immediately, like the Joan Rivers bracelets and the Michael Kors shoes. They lost a bag I had sold in advance but my buyer was patient. Once I scored a pristine Disney Castle, Beauty and the Beast, and it was dropped and broken. Nuts. I twice bought name brand (or so they said) purses, one a Dooney and Bourke, the other a Gucci, that were fakes. Hence my run in with the wicked garage sale lady.

I received a lot of good jewelry. A lot of jewelry. The commission was okay with  me as it was usually less that shipping and handling from Shopgoodwill.

My other go to for jewelry.

Good bye Sher and Lynn. I loved it. Best time ever, 

Authenticate. It's so impoirtant

 I went to a yard sale this morning. I passed it yesterday and it looked big and a lot of cars were parked all around. I planned on heading back there. Instead, since I was right by the GW, I went to the GW instead.

I found some treasure in the GW, but more about that at another time.

So, I went to the Yard Sale today. I was greeted by a really nice guy who asked if I needed help finding anything and I asked about Barbie Dolls or old T-shirts. He said no and we began a quick conversation about him collecting and flipping coins. He knows his coins etc. etc. etc. We agreed it was the thrill of the pursuit and the art of the deal. That's the part I'm not great at, I replied. I love to source, but to negotiate and post I'm not so eager.

We parted ways and I did a quick look around, some interesting things but nothing I would like to purchase and flip.

This old woman (lol, probably only a few years older than me. Who can tell anymore, everyone with grey hair looks 100 to me) had a Coach bag sitting in front of her and two Dooney and Bourke bags on a shelf of bags. I looked the D&B over. One was 10$ the bigger one (about the size of a carry on) was $20. The Coach bag in front of her was priced at $10.

I stuck up a conversation about authenticating bags. She replied or retorted that she only seeks out and buys her bags from reputable places. Or something like that (I would make a terrible witness on the stand remembering a conversation). I told a big fish story about selling an authentic bag that the person on the receiving end challenged the authenticity and kept the bag and I lost my money.

I suppose she took offense that I would suggest she had a knock off. I am not an authority, but she probably is or thinks she is, or buys bags all the time. I continued to poke the bear, not realizing I was doing so, just talking too much (in retrospect)  talking to her like she was a flipper also.

I do remember what I said, If you don't buy them at a Coach store you never know what your getting because the counterfeits are so good. I did not read her well.

I offered her 20$ for the Coach and the Dooney and Bourke. She barked, "No". so I was leaving and noticed that the smaller D&B was only 10$ making my offer exactly what they were asking. I pointed it out, "Oh, it's marked 10! It's what your asking!" then why did you offer me $20? She barked at me! I misread the label and thought it was 20$ will you take 15$

Fat chance.

I will never make that type of rookie mistake again.  

The Goodwill Haul on Senior Day

 There are some really good perks to getting older. One of them is the Senior Discount, which at my Goodwill (the closest one) is 30% on Wednesday. I was in the mood to do some sourcing (aka shopping addict and potential hoarder). My last experience at the Bins left me feeling ashamed of myself for calling that guy an A**hole (which he was, but my Mom would have been so disappointed in me) so I decided to drop in to the GW for a few minutes.

Now I am becoming a little more experienced in sourcing. I go through the sweater/shirts for women and look for unusual brands I am not familiar with and skip over the Old Navy, Dana Buchman, Carol Little Liz Claibourne, etc. I am on the look out for cashmere too, but did not find any yesterday. Only a very pretty shirt by Kathy Chu which I looked up on Ebay right there! They are selling for $12 less, or more. So at my Senior discount, I could turn a tidy profit spending $3 on it.

In the hard goods aisle I found a Jim Beam Black stainless steel Flask for 99 cents, less my discount so about 69 cents and I can sell it for around $12.

Moving on I found a two pack of Johnson and Johnson baby soap 1999. 99 cents, (less discount)  so I picked that up also thinking somewhere along the line I could couple it with something.

I found 6 gently used Betty Boop Shower Gel for 6$ less my discount so about 4.20. I noticed that there is not anything on Ebay or Mercari that resembles the bottles, so I may turn a profit on those also. Maybe the 6 mostly full (lol...maybe a quarter used from each) for $16.

The creme de la creme was a Wonder Woman Secret Wishes Rubie's Costume for $2.99 less my discount, so about 2$. It is an XS (size 9-2) so it might take the perfect person to buy it, someone skinny and into sexy costumes or adult dress up. I swear, that is what it said on the package. Offered it on both Ebay and Mercari for $27.

UPDATE: SOLD FOR FULL ASKING PRICE $27!! 10/16

So for my 11.50$ I hope to sell the whole lot, and I realize it may take time and some may never sell, for 75. less my fees, which lets just estimate at 13% would be 53.75.

Not setting the world on fire, but all I have to do is sell that Wonder Woman sex outfit and I'm in the gravy.

Work Station The Great Outdoors!

So this is where I spent a good portion of the late morning and early afternoon today. These are a small example of the shoes I have collected from The Bins to resale. The profit is good, but the preparation is long and hit or miss.

For example, the only shoes in this batch I did not get at the bins I picked up from FB Marketplace earlier in the summer. I took the shoes without examining them  closely. I was just stoked to score some Birks to resell. They were repulsive. I ordered a Birk cleaning kit from Amazon because the home remedy's I had  read about on my Ebay sites just were not getting the job done. I scrubbed with baking soda and wiped down with alcohol. They were still filthy and still had a very strong odor. I gave up on them. Until today, when I once again scrubbed them with baking soda and Dawn dish washing soap.

The Vans I am soaking in a solution of some hair salon gunk which is  lightening agent that really works. I have just been dragging my heels about getting all this done because, lets face it, feet are icky.

And I got myself put in Ebay jail for three days because of Trashed stinky Vans. 

Now they will just be some refurbed preowned with lots of life left.

The Birks I am going to group together, two Birks and one knock off and see if I can get 50 for the lot.

I would be very happy. 
 

This Weeks Best Flips

 

My best flips this week. This Mattel James Dean I picked up at the 2nd estate sale I have  attended. The first one was pretty bad. Everything smelled like intense cigarette smoke so I left after a few minutes. But this sale was much better. The first day I picked up a couple of Around the World Santa's and a few other items. The next day I went back in anticipation of the 50% off sale and found three Mattel dolls hidden in a cupboard in the Doll Room. I missed them the day before because two other women where in that area and I was blocked out. I got him for 7.50$ no tax (yay!) and flipped him this week for 45$ plus shipping of 14.90 shipping. I grossed 57.74 less my discounted shipping cost of 11.19 making a tidy profit of 39.05. That's a ROI of 520%

I'm going to start using ROI and profit to gage my success (or failure).

2nd good flip was this...

 also picked up at the estate sale. She was 5$ sold her for $34.47 gross less my shipping cost of 8.12$ leaving me a net profit of $21.35 and a ROI of  427%.

I sold a Victoria Secret Bra I got at the bins. That's about 1.29/LB by 4 oz. lol. Sold it for 24.99 plus shipping of 4.65 making it 29.64 less my discounted shipping cost of 3.23 making a net profit of 26.41.. My initial investment of 35 cents leaves me with an ROI of  7545%

I may not be doing it right, but that sounds good to me. 

Etiquette at the Bins and Maybe You're the Asshole

 I can not gush enough about how much I love the bins! Most the time I have a great time sorting, sifting, and digging through every thing to find the hidden treasure. On the most part everyone is very cool. Helping each other find matches to shoes, or if someone is collecting a certain set of items from the bin most people are courteous enough if they run across the item they will hand it over to the person. For example, one guy was grabbing all these medical items his father. I knew there was a box of things in the next bin over so I handed it to him.

If two of us are reaching for the same item it is not unusual for both of us to step back and say "go ahead". During the covid pandemic the Bins were closed for several months. I thought I was going to DIE because I was jonesing so much to dig. I missed it so much. When it reopened in mid May (maybe) they had very strick rules about wearing masks and social distancing. The bins were cut in half to avoid too much crowding around each other. The carts were sanitized. They may have limited the amount of people allowed inside but I do not remember that  being an issue.

Now fast forward. We're still wearing masks but the bins are all in place and people are swarming the bins again. 

I have found myself being really bitchy about it. I like social distancing. I like not having someone reaching over me to grab something that is my area of scoping out. People do it all the time, some nicer than others.

I HATE people being overly aggressive. I HATE people tossing the things that do ot interest them to get at something that does. They toss indiscriminately with little regard to those around them or the items they are destroying in their destructive path. There are several of them, and they are an irritant to me like non other. And as I grow older and more bold and don't give a SHIT what othrs think about me I have found myself calling them out. Yesterday one big guy was very aggressive and leaned over me and bgrabbed two belt buckles that were right in front of me that I would have picked up if given the chance.

"Hey social distance!!" I chided him

"You're wearing a mask, you're safe enough"

"The other part is to not crowd into each others space!"

"You must be a Democrat" he sneered

"you must be an asshole" I shot back.

"Yes, I am" he said and retreated else where.

I have never been like this before. I have given people a piece of my mind several times now. I have muttered "Social distance" a lot of times. I almost threw a shoe at someone once. I worry that i am racist as I have had two incidents with the immigrants at the shoe bin. They ignore me. 

I don't like the person I am when I feel my space, my area I am digging through is being infringed upon by some thoughtless bin digger. I pray to give me patience and not make me the asshole.

What was it Raylan said, "if you run into an asshole then you have run into an asshole. If you run into assholes all day, maybe you're the asshole".

Wise Words.

Where Do I Source? Learning Curve Experience.

 I have joined several reselling groups on Facebook. They have proven to be an enormous source of information from everything not to sell (TY toys, Lulamon, etc) (and I have a few to add, like Funko toys! you really have to know your stuff to move that crap).

What is most helpful is how to source, what to source, and how to package it so it arrives unbroken. Shipping is difficult at first and takes some time to educate yourself on how to do it without getting burnt.

I have begun to order boxes from ebay and the post office has some free stuff for priority mailing but you must be careful to not inadvertently use a flat rate box. YIKES. They are a good thing at times, but not all the time.

These groups always have someone asking "What should I sell" and the people in the group are brutal. Sell what you know!! Find out on your own. Don't ask us to do all the work and then hand it over to you. Another question asked constantly is    "what do you sell" when someone is boasting about 15 grand in sales in a 90 day period. The answer is always very cagey and usually is "A little bit of everything".

Recently someone asked, "where do you source?" and she received all sorts of snarky answers, some people can be very rude and condescending. I know a lot of them go dumpster diving and road side trolling. There is a great blog about things I find in the garbage. That guy has a guardian angel named Lucky. 

It made me think about where I source from. Definitely not from my closet, though I do have a pair of Frye boots circa 1970 that I acquired from Ebay in the 'naughts for $10. I bet I can flip them now for a lot more!

I score from SSTC and that stuff usually is very good. Some of it may take a while to sell, like the porcelain dolls, b ut I did move 3 for $20 and made my money back and have a slew more to go which will be all profit once I do. I source from two other auction companies and I generally go after the jewelry because I can get a lot for 60$ to 120$  and piece meal it off and make my money back quick and easy.

The bins! God I love the bins but I always buy way too much and my death pile is enormous. I have too many clothes and never have them posted. Boo hoo. But when I do, I can usually sell them. I look for vintage and unusual things in the bins.

I can flip shoes.

I like FB Marketplace to source. I have found Birks that are a stinky mess that I have not flipped yet. I scored another pair and after reading up (from one of the FB groups) how to clean them, I will offer them together and try to turn a profit. I found a lot of Concert Band t-shirts that I have sold most of, given one to Bridget and can't find another and have two left over. Any one like Asking Alexandria?

And I have had no luck at garage sales. Maybe because I'm not comfortable at them. I need Joe to go with me. Estate sales have been not so good, but I did score three Mattel dolls.

Learning Curve.

BTW two packages heading out in a few minutes. Elvis and mismatched vintage earrings.

  

Take a Chance and Surprise!

 

This is a vintage pair of Beau Jewels Clip on Earrings.  Found in a box of "junk" jewelry that I picked up at an estate sale this week. The box cost me 61$. In it I found a couple of great things including this pair of gorgeous clipons. As I was leaving the auction company guy says good bye with this "Hope you find something in there!" and I did. Besides this there is a deer antler turquoise bolo or a pendant of some sort. I have not seen anything like it and if I have I don't recognize what  the purpose is. But, it will sell as I have already sold two pieces of this type of oddity.

But my big score came from SSTC with a bag of Vintage and modern pearls.

A Miriam Haskell from circa 1940's with rhinestone spaces and signed on the clasp with an eight point flower signature.

Bingo! Holy crap. For 7$ (plus the 22% for seller premium and tax) that one piece can be sold for any where from 125$ to 250$