I started my weekend early by attending two great estate sales orchestrated by very knowledgeable women. I have found that most of these estate companies are run by ( and mostly staffed by) women and I think that's fantatstic.
I went to a Cranberry Row Estate Sale and a Lori Palmer Estate Sale today, and they were both staffed by friendly people who offered to help you with any questions that you had. I was greeted with a smile and even though it was hectic for the sales people, they remained professional at all times.
Gotta give you shoppers a tip, though. Don't challenge an estate professional as to whether a Louis Vuitton handbag (or any other luxury brand item) is authentic or not. It is her job to know her merchandise, and if it is a knock-off, she will tell you! If you don't believe her, don't buy it!
If you want to check if you are getting a good deal on luxury brand, look on Ebay or Portero.com.
Thursday, June 23, 2011
Sunday, June 19, 2011
I'm not the only one!
It was a beautiful weekend to go out to garage and estate sales. I started compiling my e-mail blast of sales on Thursday and sent it out Thursday night for all those who opted-in. I hope you all found great bargains!
My husband had a great Father's Day partly because I found him some wonderful Jazz CD's at a neighborhood-wide garage sale. I love those sales-you just park your car and walk, or slowly drive around scanning the goods.
I picked up a great, small, air hockey table for my kids-just needs a puck-for a cool $20. Thank goodness for minivans!
My husband gave me a great book on garage sales- Garage Sale America, by Bruce Littlefield. He gives you tips on selling and shopping as well as telling you where some yearly garage sales are! It has some great photos, too. So, my fellow bargain hunters, we are not the only ones. Littlefield actually flew to a famous state-wide garage sale with $1,000 in his pocket and rented a truck to bring home his wares!
I'd also like to announce that some of my blog followers have asked me to keep on the lookout for certain things-so my personal shopping business has begun. All those on the lookout for books, furniture, sports equipment, vinyl records, old tools, Legos (yes! Legos!), let me know, and I will find them!
Have a great week :)
My husband had a great Father's Day partly because I found him some wonderful Jazz CD's at a neighborhood-wide garage sale. I love those sales-you just park your car and walk, or slowly drive around scanning the goods.
I picked up a great, small, air hockey table for my kids-just needs a puck-for a cool $20. Thank goodness for minivans!
My husband gave me a great book on garage sales- Garage Sale America, by Bruce Littlefield. He gives you tips on selling and shopping as well as telling you where some yearly garage sales are! It has some great photos, too. So, my fellow bargain hunters, we are not the only ones. Littlefield actually flew to a famous state-wide garage sale with $1,000 in his pocket and rented a truck to bring home his wares!
I'd also like to announce that some of my blog followers have asked me to keep on the lookout for certain things-so my personal shopping business has begun. All those on the lookout for books, furniture, sports equipment, vinyl records, old tools, Legos (yes! Legos!), let me know, and I will find them!
Have a great week :)
Saturday, June 11, 2011
And an estate sale to remember!
After my less-than-fun excursion to a Pine Cone Antiques estate sale, I attended an estate sale organized and staffed by MPT Appraisals. Lorraine and her staff were pleasant and wonderful. This was my first estate sale with MPT and Susan greeted me with a smile at the door which was a welcome relief from where I just came from.
I introduced myself, told her who I was, and explained what I was doing and she seemed genuinely interested, as did Lorraine, when I offered her my card-which she accepted.
I explored the house, chose a few items and checked out. MPT prices were also very fair. Not only was shopping there a nice experience, but Tommy helped me carry the items to my car and put them in for me.
This readers, is how estate sales should be conducted. Thank you, MPT, for your professionalism and friendliness.
I will be referring you to those who need your services and recommending your estate sales in my weekly garage/estate sale e-mail blast.
I introduced myself, told her who I was, and explained what I was doing and she seemed genuinely interested, as did Lorraine, when I offered her my card-which she accepted.
I explored the house, chose a few items and checked out. MPT prices were also very fair. Not only was shopping there a nice experience, but Tommy helped me carry the items to my car and put them in for me.
This readers, is how estate sales should be conducted. Thank you, MPT, for your professionalism and friendliness.
I will be referring you to those who need your services and recommending your estate sales in my weekly garage/estate sale e-mail blast.
An estate sale to forget..........
I am going to make an exception to my rule about not naming bad estate sale companies because I had an experience yesterday that I don't want any of my readers to have. And according to my research, this company has a history of being rude to customers based on the interviews I've conducted.
The company in the hotseat is Pine Cone Antiques. I found thier ad on nj.com and interestingly enough, they did not put thier company name down in the ad. You can't even find much about them on the internet and they are not even listed on estatesales.net. Now I know why.
When I walked in I felt like I just arrived to a funeral. Not one person working there greeted me or smiled. I tried introducing myself and giving my card to the woman in charge and she just looked at me and walked away. Without taking my card or even uttering a greeting! This was going to be interesting.
I looked around the house, found some items, and began to check out. I noticed the woman was impatient with customers, barked out orders to buyers, and seemed very stressed out- and showed it. Estate sales are important, albeit stressful jobs, but there is a proper way of conducting youself and I've seen many people do it with class and professionalism. My next post will show that.
Pine Cone's staff (which included her rather surly husband and another unfriendly woman) WAS NOT helping people pack up thier purchases, help carry them, or being particularly helpful in general. The last straw came when I was chatting with another buyer in the (empty) kitchen and the woman in charge walks between us and says "move it, move it, move it, I'm very busy and you just can't stand around here!" At first I thought she was joking, but she wasn't joking. Even the man I was chatting with told her she was rude!
Well, I don't tolerate this type of behavior and she and I had words and I told her that I would be blogging about this. She shot back, "well, I don't read your blog!"
Well, Barbara, many people do, and will hopefully NOT attend your sales.
The company in the hotseat is Pine Cone Antiques. I found thier ad on nj.com and interestingly enough, they did not put thier company name down in the ad. You can't even find much about them on the internet and they are not even listed on estatesales.net. Now I know why.
When I walked in I felt like I just arrived to a funeral. Not one person working there greeted me or smiled. I tried introducing myself and giving my card to the woman in charge and she just looked at me and walked away. Without taking my card or even uttering a greeting! This was going to be interesting.
I looked around the house, found some items, and began to check out. I noticed the woman was impatient with customers, barked out orders to buyers, and seemed very stressed out- and showed it. Estate sales are important, albeit stressful jobs, but there is a proper way of conducting youself and I've seen many people do it with class and professionalism. My next post will show that.
Pine Cone's staff (which included her rather surly husband and another unfriendly woman) WAS NOT helping people pack up thier purchases, help carry them, or being particularly helpful in general. The last straw came when I was chatting with another buyer in the (empty) kitchen and the woman in charge walks between us and says "move it, move it, move it, I'm very busy and you just can't stand around here!" At first I thought she was joking, but she wasn't joking. Even the man I was chatting with told her she was rude!
Well, I don't tolerate this type of behavior and she and I had words and I told her that I would be blogging about this. She shot back, "well, I don't read your blog!"
Well, Barbara, many people do, and will hopefully NOT attend your sales.
Sunday, June 5, 2011
A barn sale
This was a new one on me. I've never been to a barn sale until this past weekend. And if I owned a barn, this would be exactly what I'd do with it.
As part of my sale preparation for the weekends, I look on craiglist to see where the garage sales are being held and I map out where I'm going. I read about this sale and I had to go even if it was a bit farther than I usually venture.
Well, I was not dissapointed. This barn sale was being held by the owner and in each part of the barn there was indeed something for everyone as the ad said. There were loads of antiques, collectibles, furniture, tools, toys - even crafts made by the barn owner herself.
There was even this $1 wood item area where one could find different parts of something and create something new.
I actually came home with a few wooden items and will let you know how and what this "project" turns out to be!
As part of my sale preparation for the weekends, I look on craiglist to see where the garage sales are being held and I map out where I'm going. I read about this sale and I had to go even if it was a bit farther than I usually venture.
Well, I was not dissapointed. This barn sale was being held by the owner and in each part of the barn there was indeed something for everyone as the ad said. There were loads of antiques, collectibles, furniture, tools, toys - even crafts made by the barn owner herself.
There was even this $1 wood item area where one could find different parts of something and create something new.
I actually came home with a few wooden items and will let you know how and what this "project" turns out to be!
Have a garage sale....at someone else's house!
I happened upon two interesting sales this weekend and I will blog about each one separately.
I always like to look at antiques and there was an ad for that at a house pretty close to mine. This nice couple were major collectors-they had eveything from crystal chandeliers and vintage doorbells to Italian ceramic ashtrays and 1950s barware. It was fun to look around but what was interesting was they had the garage sale not at thier home-but at thier realtor's!
The realtor was a very nice woman who offers her front yard out to her clients (and former clients) to hold garage sales. This particular couple found a house through this realotr off the beaten path and the realtor said there was now way they could hold a successful sale at thier location, so she offered up hers. She lives on a major street in my town and at the end of the day, they had a very successful sale.
The moral of this post is, if you don't think your sale location will attract potential buyers, borrow a friend's -- or realtor's.
I always like to look at antiques and there was an ad for that at a house pretty close to mine. This nice couple were major collectors-they had eveything from crystal chandeliers and vintage doorbells to Italian ceramic ashtrays and 1950s barware. It was fun to look around but what was interesting was they had the garage sale not at thier home-but at thier realtor's!
The realtor was a very nice woman who offers her front yard out to her clients (and former clients) to hold garage sales. This particular couple found a house through this realotr off the beaten path and the realtor said there was now way they could hold a successful sale at thier location, so she offered up hers. She lives on a major street in my town and at the end of the day, they had a very successful sale.
The moral of this post is, if you don't think your sale location will attract potential buyers, borrow a friend's -- or realtor's.
Sunday, May 29, 2011
Garage sale case study number one
Happy Memorial Day weekend everyone!There were some garage sales this weekend despite it being a holiday weekend. Since not many sales happened, I want to devote this post to one particular sale and use it as an example to help people if they should embark on thier own garage sale.
I went to a sale yesterday and the seller happened to be very into dolls. Not just the run-of-the-mill barbie doll, but "collectable" baby dolls with wardrobes bigger than most hollywood starlets. She was asking $40 on up (some were being offered at $80!!) for these dolls that I'm sure only another collector would buy.
However, across the garage was a very nice Noritake snack plate and cup set in the Violette pattern as shown in the photo.
The seller was offering the set-eight plates and eight cups for $15.00! According to the Replacements web site which buys and sells china, crystal and silver, ONE placesetting alone is being offered at $23.99! The web site notes that this Violette pattern #3054 was sold between 1948 - 1958. That makes sense considering the seller mentioned it was one of her wedding gifts!
The moral of this post is, if you want to have a successful garage sale, research the value of any china, glassware, antiques or collectibles which you are selling-not just the items that you are really interested in! If the seller took the time to research the value of the Noritake set like she did her dolls, she would have made a bigger sale on the china than just $15.00. And I'm sure her dolls went back into her house with her after her sale.
I went to a sale yesterday and the seller happened to be very into dolls. Not just the run-of-the-mill barbie doll, but "collectable" baby dolls with wardrobes bigger than most hollywood starlets. She was asking $40 on up (some were being offered at $80!!) for these dolls that I'm sure only another collector would buy.
However, across the garage was a very nice Noritake snack plate and cup set in the Violette pattern as shown in the photo.
The seller was offering the set-eight plates and eight cups for $15.00! According to the Replacements web site which buys and sells china, crystal and silver, ONE placesetting alone is being offered at $23.99! The web site notes that this Violette pattern #3054 was sold between 1948 - 1958. That makes sense considering the seller mentioned it was one of her wedding gifts!
The moral of this post is, if you want to have a successful garage sale, research the value of any china, glassware, antiques or collectibles which you are selling-not just the items that you are really interested in! If the seller took the time to research the value of the Noritake set like she did her dolls, she would have made a bigger sale on the china than just $15.00. And I'm sure her dolls went back into her house with her after her sale.
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