Month: October 2019

The ever-changing marketplace

On By wisdomlaneantiquesIn Selling tipsLeave a comment

Today’s hot buys in the secondhand marketplace might be stone cold by the time you decide to begin unleashing them on the public.  Buyers are very fickle when it comes to what they buy.


Shabby chic could be in one year, then fifties modern the next.  It could be Depression glass even.  Several years ago here in my area, Jadeite was white-hot.  You could not keep it on the shelves, no matter what the piece (or the price) was.  You know what?  Now you can’t give it away, even if you mark it as “FREE.”

As a dealer, you must be willing to change with the times.  You might love kerosene lamps and high-priced graniteware, so you’ve filled your shelves with them.  The guy next to you is unloading advertising signs and designer marked jewelry.

You have to learn to watch.  Then you have to anticipate and move or the crowd in the isle will pass you by.

What kinds of items are selling in your area?

A few tips for a successful garage sale

On By wisdomlaneantiquesIn Garage SalesLeave a comment

I see them everywhere, especially during the spring and early summer months.  Garage sales are absolutely fun to go to, but how do you have a successful one of your own?

One thing that helps is to put out a lot of signs where you’re most likely to snag the most traffic.  The signs must be visible from the street, and even give the address of your sale.  It even helps to give the time and dates of your sale.

The next thing you need to do is to make your merchandise accessible.  The items that are not in the sale need to be either covered with a sheet or tucked away somewhere else if possible.  Dust or clean the things going into the sale.  A clean, well-organized sale does so much better.

Don’t overprice your items.  We’ve all gone to sales where the garage sale prices were higher than the original sticker price—and we have left shaking our heads in disbelief.

For your own safety, don’t allow strangers to enter your home to use the bathroom or the phone.  They just might be casing your house to see what you have for the possibility of a robbery.

Be willing to entertain a good offer (not 50 cents for a 50 dollar item).  If the offer is a little low, you can always give a counteroffer.

Be friendly with the people that come by—but don’t sit and stare at your customers.  In a way, they are your guests.  But at the same time, don’t allow bad manners (it’s your sale after all).

If you’re willing to do this, your garage sale will be a hit.  You might even just sell out of everything!

War Rationing affected even the fashion industry!

On By wisdomlaneantiquesIn FashionLeave a comment

When World War II started, rationing started with petrol and it eventually covered items like sugar, meat, cooking oil, and even canned goods.  Every American was issued a series of ration books during this time, and the ration books contained removable stamps that you could use to get items that were being rationed.

If you didn’t have the necessary stamps, then you could not get what you need.

Rationing covered a lot of things, but did you know that it even covered items like leather?

That’s whats going on with this purse—instead of using leather, the manufacturer used vinyl instead of leather.  The interior of this remarkable find reads NON-LEATHER 1943 (the ration on leather ran from 1943 to 1945).

You can see this terrific find in my Etsy shop here.  Head on over and check it out.

What kinds of items like this have you run across?

The auction’s over. Now what?

On By wisdomlaneantiquesIn AuctionsLeave a comment

The last item in the auction has been sold, and the items that you bought have been packed in your car.  Now what?

When you are ready to leave, this is now the time to go back to the “main desk” where you picked up your number.  The clerk that hands out the number also is where you pay for the merchandise that you won at the auction.

Most of the auction companies in my area also employ an additional clerk who accompanies the auctioneer.  Each time an item is won, the clerk fills out a ticket that lists the item description, the amount of the final bid, and the number of the bidder who won the item.  Sheets if tickets are returned to the “main desk” where bidder numbers are distributed.  Tickets are separated by bidder numbers.  When you check out, your tickets are tallied to determine your grand total.

At the “main desk,” the clerk will also give you a copy of the tickets.  These tickets will act as a receipt as well, but be aware that things sold at an auction usually can’t be returned.  If you are interested in something that runs off of electricity like a vintage Budweiser sign, make sure to see if you can plug it in before bidding.  Most auction companies sell items as-is, where-is, no warranties.

When everything is paid for, now is the time to head out and proudly display your latest finds.