You Really Never Know What You Might Find in an Auction Box

One of my favorite things about picking is bringing box lots home and sorting them out, researching what I find, and learning new things. It's like a treasure hunt and you never know what you'll find. It's such a rush to go through a box you paid $2 for that looks like it's full of total crap and finding a piece of gold or something else of value. 

Last week I bought a few blue tubs filled with old vanity items from what I assume are from around the 50's. I like selling vintage perfumes, compacts and other old vanity items. They aren't items that make a lot of money but I enjoy them and they aren't generally items I have a lot of competition with from other buyers so I can get box lots really cheap most of the time. I finally got around to sorting the tubs out tonight. I sort and price various glass and fabric items, and even found this awesome nurse cap just in time to sell for the Halloween season....

 At the very bottom of the second bin I found a plastic bag all rolled up. 

I'm thinking maybe it's more old scarves. (There were several in the bin already)

I unrolled the bag and turned it upside down and out popped ....

Nasty old human hair braids! 

Images of the last season of Dexter with Julie Stiles popped in my head at first, but it just looks like someone got a haircut and kept them as a souvenir. While there is small market for stuff like this, I think I'm just going to toss this unique find because it's just plain gross. Just goes to show though that you really never know what you'll find in an old auction box that probably hasn't be sorted in years and those finds aren't always good ones. 

Doilies, Doilies, Doilies!!!

What are they? Lovely often hand crocheted ornamental mats often used under knick knacks.

What I Paid: $5 for several flats of them.

Where I got them: At a household auction in Kent OH. I also buy these on a regular basis at auctions, yard sales, or anywhere I can pick them up cheaply.

Where I sell them: In my antique mall rental rooms.

How I sell them: These can sell on eBay for anywhere from a few bucks to twenty depending on how ornate and detailed they are, but I prefer to sell them in my antique mall rental spots for a few bucks a piece. While I could get more on eBay I sell them in my vending rooms because it's it's a lot less labor intensive. It would take me several hours to a few days to list a large lot of these on eBay over the few hours it takes me to tag these with my prices and vendor information. They are also functional. I can place them under figurines I sell to make my spaces look nicer while I wait for them to sell. I only buy when I get them for literally pennies each so selling for a few bucks still offers a profit margin I'm comfortable with.

Royal Doulton Jugs

I've only become familiar with these jugs in the past year or so. I'd see a few at an auction here and there, and they would always go a lot higher than I thought they would. Then, I went to a specialty auction with my father in law that featured an entire collection of the jugs along with other Royal Doulton collectables. I researched a few of them on my smartphone as the auction was happening and tried to bid, but they all went higher than I felt comfortable paying. I don't like to buy an item if I don't have a reasonable profit margin for my time and effort unless I want it personally. Even though I did not win any in my first few attempts it did make me aware that the jugs had significant value and a wide range of collectors so I now know to watch for them.

I was thrilled this week when four came up at auction. I didn't expect to actually win any but I looked up the values with my husband on our phones, and had a general spending limit in my head, so I decided to try. I ended up winning all four!!!

1) Izaak Walton D 6404. I paid $35 for him. Online reference sites list his retail value at around $250. I base what items are worth to me on current eBay values. To me an item is only worth what I can sell it for and when I list an item on eBay, I like to be one of the lowest priced sellers if not the lowest. I prefer "fast flips". I like to sell things as quickly as possible and move onto the next item. I listed him on eBay using a fixed price listing with a price tag of $59. I made sure to include the cost of insurance in my shipping price. I like to add insurance on anything over $50 that is fragile to protect myself from paying out of pocket if an item breaks in shipment. I take a lot of pride in my packing and I'm proud to say that I've never had a glass item break in shipment. To be fair though, I don't generally sell many glass items on eBay. I prefer to sell glass in my antique shop rental stalls, unless they have a high value.

2) Royal Doulton Large Merlin Character Jug D6529. He's the coolest in the bunch in my opinion. I paid $30. This particular jug comes in three different sizes. This is the largest of the three. I'm noticing that when it comes to RD jugs, bigger really is better in most cases when it comes to value. Other sites list his retail value at $60-$200 (Yea this guys values were listed all over the spectrum). I listed him on eBay with a fixed price listing of $79.75 making it $10 cheaper then any other "Buy it Now" on eBay at the time I list him.

3) Royal Doulton Large Pied Piper Character Jug D6403. I paid $35 for him. Retail is listed for around $125. I listed him as a buy it now for $64.75 making him about $5 cheaper then any other fixed price listing.

4) This is "Paddy". I only paid $10 for him. I couldn't understand how he went so cheap since I had plenty of competition on the other jugs. When I came home and had time to do a better search of eBay values I found a lot of listings for RD Paddys. This guy seems to come in several sizes from Mini to large, (mine is a large 6"), and he even has an astray version. I can only assume when people looked him up on their smartphones their screens were flooded with "Paddys" with low prices because they were seeing a lot of the small and mini versions in the mix. I found one for $29 but it was chipped. The cheapest I found buy it now was $79.99 so I listed mine at $69.75 fixed price.


This is my first time attempting to sell these so I don't know what the outcome will be. I have no personal experience to gauge what the approximate sell time will be or the final sell price. If I have them for more then a few months I will lower my prices and try again. Whatever happens, I'm really excited to sell something I haven't in the past and add to my ever expanding list of what I buy and sell.

A Lot of Bang For My Buck

Last night at an auction I picked up this white bag stuffed to the top full of stuff for $1. I was the only bidder and only bid myself because I wanted this pair of Bratz shoes that were sticking out for my middle daughter.

      After we started to unload the bag we realized that there was a lot more in it that was of use to us then we had expected.

     Not only did my middle daughter get the shoes, but she ended up with a new backpack style purse and a jersey. No idea why she wanted the jersey, but she did.

           We also ended up with a M&M costume that I will either let one of the kids in the family use, or sell on eBay for a few bucks, and several pairs of jeans and a few shirts that were my oldest daughters size. All in all, I'd say I did pretty well for my buck!

 

Thundercats Metal Lunch Box

Front View

Back View

Side View Showing separation of metal pieces.

What it is: A vintage metal Thundercats lunchbox. Made by Aladdin marked 1985.



Condition: Had it's fair share of scuffs and dings and due to my carelessness in transport and storage the metal separated. 

What I paid: Approx $2.50. I bought this in a lot of 3 lunchboxes. I paid $7.50 for all 3 making the single unit price $2.50.

Where I got it: I got this at an auction.
 
 What I sold it for: $41.00 

Where I sold it: eBay

How I sold it: I held this item for about a month because I wanted to time the eBay auction at about the same time as the Thundercats remake show came out. I start the bidding at $6.75 because I was confident it would go up. If I am positive that am item will sell well, I always start the bids low in an effort to attract more watchers and bidders early on in the auction.

Research: I knew the remake Thundercats show was coming out because my sister had told me and then I started seeing commercials advertising it so I knew to hold it a few weeks and generally old metal lunchboxes with a good subject matter sell well.

Vintage Hayward Malachite & Onyx Cufflinks

 

Front View

View 2

Back view (Marked Hayward)

What they are: Vintage Hayward hinged back cufflinks. They feature green and black stones that I believe are Malachite & Onyx set on a unmarked (is marked Hayward) gold toned metal.

What I paid: Approx $2-$3.

Where I got them: I got this in a box lot of jewelry at an auction some time ago. So long ago I don't remember but I generally don't pay much for jewelry lots unless I want something badly or know the value from previous experience.

 What I sold it for: $12.75

Where I sold it: eBay

How I sold it: I looked up similar but not identical pairs on eBay and prices ranged from $10-$50.  I decided to go the auction route and set it up for a 7 day auction ending in the evening with a start price of $9.75. It had 7 watchers by the auction end but no one bid. I then re-list them using a fixed price listing of $12.75. They sold within a few hours. If I had set them a bit higher, I think they may have sold for a bit more but I prefer fast flips.


Research: I didn't not do much research on the history of these. I just looked up going rates on eBay and referred to the following page to determine the name of this cufflink style.

1) http://www.askandyaboutclothes.com/Teasers/Teasers/CuffLinkTypes.htm

2)http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_trksid=m570.l2736&_nkw=Hayward+Cufflinks