I sold more great JUNK at the flea market 2 weeks ago. I made about 200$ in sales this time—I usually make around 300$ for the weekend but it was kind of slow. This is the same inside flea market I sell at once a month only this time it was a little different. You’ll see why in a minute. I get the same spot every time and I usually have this great lady next to me who is very nice. We take turns watching each other’s stuff and catch up on business while we are there. Last time she couldn’t come because she had another show to do. So I was wondering who would be set up next to me.

It was ……………CRAZY TRASH TALKIN “JOE!” That is what I am going to call him. I hope he never comes back and he probably doesn’t want to from the sound of all the complaining he did.

Did you ever meet a non-stop talker? Yea, the kind that just keeps talking whether anyone is listening or not. I mean, no one even has to be NEAR the talker and they just keep talking. OK, now you have part of the picture. Add to the non-stop talking the way the guy looks. Straggly hair cut straight across in the front, dirty baggy clothes, big ole workin’ boots, and each eye is a different color—for real! Age looks about 70 but is probably younger (maybe even 40 but who could tell?). And then there are the items he sells and how he sets them up.

OK, he had 2 8-foot banquet tables to use but apparently they weren’t long enough so he put plywood boards over top of the tables that stuck out about a foot on each side to make the tables bigger. Oh, he sounds really clever you say—NOT! His items were a big old mess. He had dusty old adapters for cars or something, about 100 videos all stacked upright instead of sideways where you could actually read the titles, a few new umbrellas hidden under the adapters, some old single use cameras and a BIG pile of sports jerseys. These seemed to be his pride and joy. Nothing was marked with a price but when a customer would come near the table, he would start his spiel—“the jerseys are only 20.00 each. Best buy in all of Pennsylvania. You can go upstairs and get them for 50.00 or you can go to the mall and pay 100.00 but I got the best deal anywhere. Only 20 bucks. You can’t beat that anywhere. Only 20 bucks people and I got all kinds just look!” Rinse and repeat the entire time that the customer MIGHT still be standing there.

Then, when the customer starts walking away (he only sold 2 all weekend) he starts the trash talk. “Best price in PA. Oh, I guess nobody wants to spend any money anymore. You can’t get ‘em cheaper anywhere else. Just try! These people don’t wanna spend any money here. I don’t know why I came. I could go to XXXXX or XXXXX and they wouldn’t be afraid to spend their money there. You people are really cheap here! I don’t know why I bother!”

AND THEN he has this big sign with crooked letters on a huge piece of cardboard set up behind his table. It says “MENS DVDS JUST ASK.” It took me a little while to figure that one out but after he explained it to me about 10 times the first day, there was no more explaining needed. “Some places won’t let me sell this stuff but I don’t see what the problem is. I don’t let no kids see it and I keep it hidden behind the table or inside my truck when I’m outside. This is a free country. They don’t give me no problems in Jersey but when I go to Quakertown, they won’t even let me have it there. No one sees it unless they ask. This is a free country. I can sell whatever I want. No kids ever see it.I keepit hidden” He did have about 4 customers for the dvds he had in 3 cardboard boxes behind his table. He made the customers come behind his table (after stepping over trashbags and coffee cups) to open the boxes and pick through the dvds. I guess they got a good deal. I really don’t want to know!

Round about lunchtime, Joe got tired. He had told me earlier about how he beat cancer and what the treatments were like and how they don’t have any good doctors around here, and the only good ones are in New York that know what they are doing. So I felt a little sorry for him…but not much…I mostly just pitied the doctors who had to work on him. But then the day got better. He flat out fell asleep! There he was sitting in his beat up beach chair with his scraggly head hung back and snoring loudly through his big open mouth. No more talking! Customers would just pass him by and I wasn’t about to wake him up. One lady came up to him and asked him a question about a camera and he woke up for a minute but then went right back to snoring.

I tried to stay on the other end of my table for the rest of the day. He woke up after about an hour and started in on the talking again. He talked while I waited on customers. He talked while I went 4 tables away from him to fix my merchandise. He talked while I walked to the other side of the room…and it’s a big room. Mostly it was trash talk about how cheap the customers are and how much money he’s not making at “a place like this where I thought it would be better since we are inside. I can’t wait to go out in the 40 degrees again. At least people spend money there.”

Well, there were some good things. There were no bad smells emanating from his area. He didn’t eat much. He liked kids because he entertained them with a scruffy frog puppet whenever they got close to him. He did beat the cancer. So did I so we had that in common. I’m pretty sure he won’t read this. And I’m pretty sure he won’t be back!

Selling on Ebay is not quite as stressful!!

click here to visit by ebay store!!   everythingvintagesteph.com

HAMMERTAP is a great system of statistics for determining what to sell on eBay or any internet site. The stats are very specific. If gives you the best time of day to list, the best day to list, whether or not you should use an auction or fixed price format, and a list of most used keywords. That is just the beginning of using this tool. It is very helpful and worth looking at the free trial!

Another great ebook that I have read is called Thrift store goldmine. I could have written this book because I agree and use all the tips in it! The only difference for me is that I find most of my items at local estate sales and auctions rather than thrift stores but I look for a lot of the same things. This book give so many tips all in one place, it is really worth the price.   THRIFT STORE GOLDMINE

You can use youtube for uploading and using video but another site that is specifically for ebay videos is called VZAAR. All you have to do is upload the video and then search for the listing you want to insert it into, click once and it is embedded for you! Check out this FREE service at:

and check out how my listings are doing at

everythingvintagesteph.com

vintage reading and grammar books 1870+

on sale until feb. 26

I decided to write about the items I am listing tonight and tell you the story that goes with each one. These are 3 glasbake square mugs that were part of a promotion for Lipton tea, probably in the 1970s or so.  I think they originally came in a set of 5 because I had one of these sets last year and it sold for about 40.00 or so. Each mug is a different color and they are really neat looking!

silkies pantyhose

I bought a few of these at an auction some time last year and thought I would try them on eBay. I paid about 1.00 for the whole box. Imagine my surprise when I sold 9 pair for about 30.00! This company has been mail ordering pantyhose for many years so I guess they are rather popular. I came across more at an auction a few weeks ago so I am listing them in lots according to size. These are a queen size and I hope they go for 30.00 again but I’m not holding my breath!

14 vintage damask napkins

I find lots of vintage napkins at my local auctions. It’s tough to find more than 4 that are in very good condition though! Sometimes I wash them up but I love it when they are already in great condition and I can just list them. These are damask because they have a shiny subtle design on them. They are actually 2 sets of 6 and 8 but they are so similar that I am grouping them together. If you had them around a table, you would never know they are different. Sometimes I can sell these napkins for over 20$ but usually they go for a bargain price of 5-10. Still a good deal when you consider the department stores sell them for at least 2-3$ a piece!

sheet music magazines

Did you know that you can buy and sell back issues of many types of magazines on eBay? Just look up your favorite magazine and check it out! These mags are great because they contain lots of sheet music. I have also sold recipe magazines like Taste of Home and have seen the Martha Stewart magazines sell for a good price when an entire year or subject is grouped together.

Perhaps this gives you an idea of what you can sell or buy on eBay. You can click on any of the photos to go to my listings or click HERE for     everythingvintagesteph.com.

Have a great day! It’s snowing here in PA again!

florida travel decals

This was a good week on eBay. For some reason, sales were up and bidding was in the war zone on many items. Such as:

7 vintage travel decals for Florida. I bought a handful of these at my local auction a few months ago. I sold some of them by the single piece and made about 3-5$ each. I also have a few that didn’t sell that are still listed in my store at everythingvintagesteph.com. I probably paid about 3.00 for the lot of them. I had some leftover that I just held on to for a few weeks but I finally listed all the Florida ones together. They sold for 45.00 total. Nice! They are probably from the 1960s or so and have nostalgic value for those who visited and collected them at that time. Mine were still in the original wax envelopes—most of them– and featured various parts of Florida.

vintage craft patterns

Another favorite find this week was vintage patterns. I buy a lot of these and they don’t always sell. I have clothing patterns from the 1970s and apron patterns from the 1950s, etc. The craft patterns seem to sell better than the clothing patterns. This lot of 9 patterns was for various crafts like pillows, purses, aprons, and even felt shoes. I decided to list them all together instead of separately. The lot sold for 22.10. I usually pay 1.00 for a box full of old patterns at the local auction so I was happy!

colored aluminum pitcher and mugs

My final pick is aluminum kitchen cups and pitchers. I bought a box full of these at the local auction. They were sold in lots of 5-6 pieces and not all the pieces were matching. I paid about 9.00 for the entire box of various lots. I only listed 2 lots on ebay. The rest will go to the flea market this weekend at merchantssquaremall.com in Allentown, PA. One of the lots I listed on Ebay were for 6 pieces of “Colorcraft.” I decided to try those because they were marked with a brand name. Those sold for the opening bid of 4.00. Not that great. I also listed a 5-piece lot of 4 mugs and a pitcher. These sold for 26.00.They were not marked with a brand name but I think the difference is that that they were colored and not plain.

Perhaps this info will help you in pricing some of your vintage finds—let me know! A great tool to use in determining value of items and deciding what to sell is called HAMMERTAP.

Vintage Skipper doll below is listed on eBay now until Feb. 16 at everythingvintagesteph.com

vintage skipper doll

On sale starting Feb. 4

Who knew you can sell vintage fruit on ebay?? A few weeks ago I bought a bin full of plastic grapes. I was going to save it for some props for the plays I am in. I decided to try selling some on ebay. I sold about 9 bunches for 12.00. Then I sold another 12 bunches for 15.00 and another 8 bunches for about 8.00. I paid 1.00 for the whole bin. So when I saw these at the local auction a few weeks ago, I bought them (for 1.00 of course!). These are on sale right now. Why not try again??

20 vintage Valentines

Also on sale starting tonight is a LOT of vintage Valentines. These are usually pretty popular. Some people sell these one at a time but I like to bunch things together in lots. The ones in the lower left corner are probably from the 1920s. A lot of people collect these and now is the time to get them listed!

Renwal dollhouse furniture

Then there is the vintage doll house furniture by Renwal. This is a good brand name, probably the most popular, for doll house furniture. I only have the blue bedroom set but I am always on the lookout for Renwal. With the price of new doll  house furniture in the stores, you can pick up a nice bargain on eBay!

TEN 8 track tapes

The last item I have listed starting tonight on eBay is a lot of 10 8 track tapes. Yeah, when I first got a few of these I was ready to throw them in the donation bin. Then I tried selling a few on eBay and I was surprised that they sold. I’ve only gotten a few dollars each for them so far but at least they sell and I usually can pick them up for very little money. I don’t even have a way of testing them but I give a guarantee and so far have not had any complaints!

So, check my completed auctions in a few days and you can see what price these items sold for and you will know their “approximate” worth.

CLICK HERE to view my auction

listings!

vintage red poncho on auction until jan 28

If you are lucky like me you can find a mannequin at a local estate sale or thrift shop. Keep your eye open at going out of business sales or even craigs list. I finally got myself one for 20.00. I already see a difference in sales—or maybe it’s just a coincidence for now but I think the trend will continue! I always had trouble taking photos of dresses and coats. I either laid them out on the floor or hung them on a hanger over the door. But people like to see what they might look like in a piece of clothing so the mannequin really is a LOT better. Take a look at these and decide!

sold this coat for 15.50

didn't sell this one although I think it is nicer. it's listed in my store now

storing my ebay junk before it gets listed

I go to a local estate auction almost every week. I have a few favorites but usually pick the one closest to home, which is about 15 minutes away at a firehouse every Tuesday.

I don’t even need to sign up for a number there because I am number 305 every week and I don’t even have to hold it up for the auctioneer because he knows it! Normally, when you go to an auction though, you need to show your driver’s license or other ID and sign up for a number at a registration desk. You will use that number to bid with throughout the auction. Some people raise the number in the air with every bid, others just raise it once and then keep shaking their head yes (or winking or raising an eyebrow) to continue the bid. It’s best to raise the number so the auctioneer can be SURE that you are bidding.

Try to have an idea ahead of time of the price you want to stop at or you could get carried away just trying to win the bid! I don’t have any trouble with this but some people do.

Plan to stay at the auction as long as you can because you might have to wait hours for something you have your eye on. In the meantime, you can learn a lot from the other items and what they are selling for. I went to many many auctions before I started learning what was a good price to bid on the various types of glassware, pottery, quilts and other antiques that are usually available. Now I know a good deal when I see it!

where I store my junk in the garage

I have a strategy at my auctions. I don’t talk much so I can pay attention to the bidding. I don’t take many breaks so I don’t miss anything. Sometimes I wait for certain people to take their smoke break or leave so I don’t have the competition! I bid on a lot of box lots of linens and kitchen tools. When he holds them up for bid, I count how many he has and won’t bid more than 1.00 each (depending on what it is). If there are 10 items in the box, I won’t go past 10.00 because I know I can easily sell them for 3.00 a piece. I don’t bid past 4.00 on any one tablecloth. I don’t bid past 50.00 on any one quilt, etc. I know my limits and there are always exceptions!

I arrive early and check out the merchandise. If I can’t get there early, I still walk around and check it out while the auction is going on—most places allow this but it is harder to pay attention. I usually stay until the very end because that’s when the best deals are—the auctioneer is tired and many people (competition) have already left. I use the Internet on my cell phone to check out prices during the auction if I am not sure of how much to bid. (I don’t see anyone else doing this at my weekly auction –no techies there I guess!)

Here are some of the bargains I got just this week:

A box of flatware 1.00

5 cases of new high quality gel mousepads 2.00 for a case of 10

a pile of sheet music 1.00

vintage sewing caddy 3.00

4 shoe stretchers 1.00

Shirley temple mug 5.00

Box of costume jewelry 5.00

Box of ties 1.00

I only spent 47.00 this week—I usually spend about 80-100$. I had to leave early to go to a meeting . I sell these items on ebay or the flea market or the antique shows I frequent.

gel mouse pad by KNOLL

It’s a lot of fun and also addicting!

Check out my ebay auctions  HERE!

My vintage foyer

ok, I love the flea market, both shopping and selling but here is my opinion on bargain hunters–please be kind! I have lots of regular customers at the merchants square mall in Allentown, PA where I sell every month. My favorites are those who know the price is good–come on, it’s a DOLLAR!–and they will gladly pay it and be happy. My unfavorite customers are those who try to get it for less EVERY TIME! I know, everyone likes to bargain but if the price is already 1 or 2 dollars or only 50 cents, give it a rest!

SO, there is this one lady who works at another booth in the mall. Here she comes–she picks up 2 or 3 items that might add up to 4.00. She hands me 2 dollars and doesn’t even ask if I will take it–she just expects me to!! If she tries to do this on a Friday when I am setting up, I won’t take it–if it’s near closing time, no problem. She does this every month. There is a man who comes every month too and does the same thing but at least he asks. There is another young mother who comes every month and has 2 babies in the stroller and buys about 5-10 items and for each item she asks–will you take 1$ (if it’s2$) will you take 50 cents (if it’s 1$) will you take 1.50 (if it’s 3$). Now, she is not as annoying because I can see she is buying for her children and she asks for every item and she buys a lot–quantity discounts are fine.

This kind of bargaining, will actually work against you. It makes the seller want to raise the prices because he/she knows that the cheapskates will still ask for a discount, even when it’s already a steal! I like what one of my friends says when asked about a 5.00 item “can you do better?” He says, “Sure I can do better, you can have it for 6.00. Better for me!”

Bargaining on larger items like at an antique show is fine! The item might be 10 or 20$ and sure, there is room for a discount. Most sellers expect to lower a price on a larger item by maybe 20%. But at the flea market when it is already CHEAPER than dirt–I even have people ask me to take 25 cents when it is 50 cents and even had (I think once!) a person who asked if I would take less when IT WAS A QUARTER! What do you want it for, free?? I have to pay rent you know. And gas to get here and plenty of time and effort buying and setting up and eating lunch…

So, I hope you are not one of my UNfavorite customers! I give my favorites a discount even without asking so it pays to be kind!

CHECK OUT MY EBAY STORE!

I sell lots of these vintage wooden spools!

Let’s start with the shoes! I bought 2 pair of vintage shoes at the local auction a few weeks ago. They were brand new in the box. I paid 1.00 each. The first pair was by Colorifics and they were full of gold beads. They sold for 4.00, my opening bid. The second pair was by Vera Cruz and they had leather soles and suede sides with fancy lacing. They sold to a person in South Africa for 15.50 plus I had to charge them 18.00 for the postage. Not mind boggling but a pretty good investment for 1.00!

gold beaded shoes

Then there was the box of lace I bought for 1.00 the entire box. I just started to sell this. So far I sold 70 yards of white lace for 8.76, and 11 yards of eyelet lace for 5.50. The ribbon trim didn’t sell so I will list it in my eBay store. I have about 10 times more lace left in the box. That should add up nicely for my (once again) 1.00 purchase.

lots of trim--still for sale!

How about a brass doorknocker featuring a Scottish man in kilts with a bagpipe? I had 2 of these, exactly the same. I took them to an antique show and they didn’t sell for 6.00. I took one to my booth at Zionsville Antiques and it didn’t sell for 6.00. Then I listed one on eBay. It sold for 5.75 right before Christmas. I listed the other one and it just sold for 29.00 right after Christmas. You never know!

vintage tablecloth on auction until jan 12

VISIT ME AT  EVERYTHINGVINTAGESTEPH.COM

CLICK HERE for one of the best ebooks about buying and selling vintage items from thrift shops!! I use the cheat sheets and ideas in this book all the time!

Sold at the same flea market today that I wrote about last month. It was really PACKED! There were so many customers that I had people in front of my tables almost constantly. Sometimes they were 2 and 3 deep, looking over each other’s shoulders. I had one lady with a large walker “parked” in front of the jewelry for about 5 minutes and I could tell others were annoyed who wanted to look at the jewelry.

I only had 4 tables this time because I gave one to my son to sell stuff. He sold about 25$ and I sold about 170 $ just today. There is still tomorrow. I sometimes waited on 2-3 customers at once. Some people take a lot of time getting out their $$ so I just stick out my hand to take someone else’s 50 cents or 1.00 while I am waiting and then I might have 2 people digging in their purses for their money! It can get crazy but that is how I like it!

The Christmas items were still selling pretty well. People were buying purses and books and bottle openers and dolls and all kinds of knick-knacks. I had Barney back packs and tablecloths and a box of old paper for 50 cents a piece. People love to look through the pile.

If you live anywhere near Allentown, PA, check out merchantssquaremall.com and come on over!

neat vintage bedspread selling on ebay until Jan. 8 click on photo