$2 for this set. I don’t do shots or drink sake, but I had to have these.
-Erin
Update from Sarah: I just want to let you guys know that I think Erin is lying. Because last night I saw a picture that she was tagged in where she was drinking shots of this:
Because I am a nerd and because I have a “no shots” policy, when I saw this picture, I thought it was hand lotion.
I don’t have much to say about this sale we visited a couple weeks ago, other than it had an insane amount of vinyl records. Oh, and that we brought Everett with us to the sale, which was an adventure.
I gave him that maraca to distract him. He clutched onto it with his sweaty little mitts through the whole house. And then he dropped it along the way and I didn’t notice, so sorry to the people running the sale because it is probably behind a dresser somewhere.
I should mention that there are perks to taking a baby to an estate sale. You can disobey all rules. This house was basically built on top of an ice luge and had a crazy long, treacherous driveway that patrons were barred from parking in. I rolled my ass right up into that driveway though and was like YO PEOPLE WE HAVE A BABY OKAY.
Anyway, I don’t have much to say because I didn’t buy anything. The house was cool though, and the amount of records was astounding. So here, indulge in these photos:
ULCER DEPARTMENT. LOL.
I don’t remember exactly what Sarah bought, but I am pretty sure she got this:
And this:
-Erin
Update from Sarah: Because I’m a bad friend, I actually made Erin drive up the driveway and give me the baby, and then go park her car elsewhere. I was afraid of backing out of this driveway because it was super long and there was a crazy woman standing at the end of it who refused to move. Man, all I’ll say is you get a lot of attention if you’re holding a super cute baby, even if it’s just for 3 minutes.
The first thing Everett and I looked for was a Big Hug Mug.
There wasn’t one.
This person was obsessed with two things: Clowns and records.This was hands down the most records I’ve ever seen outside of a record store.
They also had this cool old player piano.
There were lots of books at this sale, which excited me. But I only found a couple of hardcover comic collections for Adam.
I also found a copy of Mommie Dearest on DVD! I looked like this when I found it.
My mom let me watch that movie as a child and it scared the sh*t out of me! Time to revisit it.
I also found this adorable vintage Holly Hobbie serving platter:
The people running this sale were awesome and charged me $10 for all my crap. The plate alone was marked $8!
Everett started getting cranky and Erin and I both had little patience for that vast quantity of records, so we booked it out of there. We were all happier at Daly’s, where we indulged in some good-ass food. Here’s proof:
tumblrweed-connection asked: Have either of you considered selling on Etsy?
The short and long answer is no.
We talked about this when we were together on Friday and saw your question. It seems unappealing for many reasons. First, it seems like a lot more work than eBay. Second, we both have very low levels of patience and Etsy seems like a place where you’d do a lot of waiting–waiting for the right buyer to come by and find something you’re selling. And third… (and this is just me personally), I have found things go for a lot cheaper on Etsy than they sell on eBay. This is great if you’re a buyer, but as a seller, I would like to maximize my profits because I am greedy.
Do you have luck selling on Etsy? Anyone else want to chime in?
-Sarah
I have, on many occasions, been amazed by an individual’s willingness to sell literal garbage at a garage or estate sale. But… on eBay?! I was just looking through some listings for my fave figurines. Can you believe that someone is actually trying to sell these two little ladies? They look like they’ve been victims of a very colorful zombie attack.
-Sarah
Last Saturday, I hopped on a plane to South Carolina to visit my parents while they’re vacationing there during February and March. I was prepared for maximum relaxation and treasure hunting. In particular, I was convinced that I would find another Big Hug Mug. My mom’s friend Ann was also visiting while I was there, so the three of us started our treasure-hunting adventures on Sunday, where we hit up the Coastal Carolina Flea Market.
If this doesn’t look promising, you’re right. It was bad. But it was so bad, it was good. So many things that were hard to resist.
This giant flea market is part garage sale, part Gibraltar Trade Center, part… confusing. There are a bunch of huge buildings attached to one another where people have more permanent booths set up (like GTC), where they sell things ranging from antiques to stun guns. Also, everyone smokes inside the buildings. It’s so gross.
The first booth we got to was filled with antiques and other treasures. At this point, Cindy was thrilled to be here. That was before she saw the rest of the offerings.
Does your baby need a stun gun? This baby did.
That’s not your style? How about this beautiful velvety blanket?
Still not your style? How about these leggings on blow-up legs?
When we were outside in the garage-saley area, I found this crazy hoarder-y person’s place with a sign that said that everything was one dollar. In the midst of all the rest of the garbage here, it sounded promising. Spoiler Alert: It wasn’t. Here’s a sample:
I was fading fast and then noticed something we don’t have in Michigan–a taco truck! I was pumped.
It was really good.
On our way out, we found one other booth with “antiques” and I purchased a pair of sterling earrings with inlaid stones that were overpriced. My mom purchased something that I can’t remember, but I know she spent way too much money. What can I say? We were desperate.
Here she is again, checking things out.
Oh I remember–she found some beaded pins that the woman who owned the booth told her were pieces of old Native American beadwork. My mom believed her… I am still very skeptical. The reason for knowing that’s what they were was that she saw something similar on Antiques Roadshow. WTF?
Besides the tacos, I did have one other good experience–I saw this painting and was immediately able to identify the animal depicted, thanks to our super helpful readers.
-Sarah
This week’s principal’s note features a burned bum.
-Sarah
Update from Erin: I adjusted this image and reposted because it was hard to read, but here is the best part transcribed: “Acie were taking a bath near the heat last night and burn one of his sit down…”
On Saturday, I returned to Ann Arbor for “The Super Auction” with Timmy. He was on the hunt again for some nice sports items and I was just looking to get out of the house.
If you don’t remember, “The Super Auction” is held on some farmland inside a giant barn just outside Ann Arbor. If you also don’t remember, things often sell super high here. Maybe that is why it’s called “The Super Auction” because it is SUPER expensive. Seriously, it’s like people save all year for this thing or something. And then they show up dressed like hog farmers but carrying mega bank.
There were three separate auctions happening when we showed up: a sports memorabilia auction, a toy auction, and a vinyl record auction.
That Jolly Roger boat pedal car above sold for $900! It was really neat and some kid will be riding in style. Actually, probably not. Some old man will probably have it on display in his man cave or something. The other pedal cars actually sold pretty cheaply…all around $100 or so.
I don’t know what you are supposed to do with this giant train, but I wanted it! It was sold by the time I got to the auction though. Whomp whomp.
I also loved this ride on horse guy. My dad forbid me to buy it though because he said it looked very “germy.” My dad is OBSESSED with germs. He is like Marc Summers—just totally insane about germs. And if the stove is turned off. He is also insane about that.
What I did buy was a giant stack of records for $5. I shouldn’t even say “stack” because it was a straight up haul. Zach asked me to buy him records at random and he got his wish.
I also bought a box of random doll related things for $20. I took a chance on it without even sorting through everything because it was one of the cheapest prices for an item I had seen all day. There was some good stuff in the box that I will be putting on eBay.
That tin doll IronRite machine above is SO CUTE. It runs on batteries and still works. I haven’t found a way to justify keeping it yet, but I am sure I will.
All dolls need their own doll flatware set…just FYI.
As for Timmy, he bought a million things because he is apparently a secret baller. The best things he bought were some old Lafayette Rittgers baseball figurines. These ceramic art pieces are from the 1940s and my dad had never seen them before despite all his years of collecting. The studio where these were made was out of Chicago.
He paid $80 and from looking at eBay, he got a great deal!
And to top things off, Zach found some good records in the lot I bought him. We spent part of Saturday listening to random folk and funk singers and it was delightful.
-Erin
Are you watching HBO’s new show True Detective? If you are, then first things first: I am the Yellow King.
Ok seriously, everyone watch this show. It’s incredible. Matthew McConaughey is brilliant. You may have loved him in How to Lose A Guy in 10 Days, but on this show he is EVEN BETTER.
Also featured on the show is this mug:
I had never seen this mug before, but apparently it is a thing. Sarah said she sees them all the time at sales. The mug was sold by FTD the flower company and came with a bouquet inside. I guess everyone on Earth got sent one of these in like the 90s. I didn’t get one because I live a sad and lonely life (because I am the Yellow King).
Anyway, since I am obsessed with True Detective, I decided I wanted one of these mugs. So off to eBay I went.
WAIT. What’s this?! Big Hug Mugs are selling for crazy money on eBay?!
I needed to find myself a Big Hug Mug fast…and then sell it! Turns out, Sarah was also on the hunt:
It also turns out that Sarah already owns a Big Hug Mug (shocking I know). She probably got it at this sale.
Everett and I headed out to a nearby thrift store yesterday to try and get our own mug. I was sure we would find one.
The mug pickings were slim. There was no Big Hug Mug to be found. Things looked dire. Everett wanted this afro rocking horse, but I told him we had to press on. We left the horse behind.
Ok, so we didn’t find a Big Hug Mug. I was bummed. We are actually going back out today to search again. If you have a Big Hug Mug, please hurry up and go donate it now to a Metro Detroit thrift store.
What we did find was this:
This vase looked old and well-made, so I looked up the maker on eBay. Turns out that these things sell! And well! I was thrilled.
I paid a whopping 99 cents for the vase and will be putting it up on eBay soon.
So not a totally disappointing trip, although I will not be satiated until I find that damn mug.
-Erin
I have been meaning to make this a regular addition to the blog. I’ve written about selling large lots of photographs in the past, but not much about why I do this. One of the main reasons I buy huge lots of people’s old snapshots is because I collect old pictures of people with pets or other animals. Here’s one of my most recent favorites.
What is going on in this picture? Is that a bull? It’s so hairy. Is she waving a graduation cap? Did she graduate from bull-riding school?
So from now on, I’m going to try to post a few of my favorite pet/animal pictures each week or so.
-Sarah
Update from Erin: I AM DYING. That is obviously a buffalo. Sarah actually described this photo to me today before I saw it for myself and I was seriously losing my mind. How do you not know what a buffalo is?!? She even admitted to googling “shaggy bull.” SERIOUSLY DEAD. I’M DEAD. I’M A GHOST NOW BECAUSE I DIED FROM DISBELIEF.
Update from Sarah: I still cannot stop laughing. I am a true idiot.