Dig This Treasure!

So again, the Plymouth auction treated us very kindly.  Remember all the way back in September when Zach bought a cast iron bank for $17?  It looked like this:

Well this guy had been living on our bookshelf since then, that is, until Zach did some research on it.  It turns out that this bank was made by the J & E Stevens company around 1872.  J & E Stevens are best known for making some of the earliest mechanical banks, which fetch incredible prices on ebay:

These mechanical banks are also some of the most faked out there, so be careful!  

J & E also made still banks though, and many looked like tiny safes.  Early versions opened with a skeleton key, and later the safes had combination locks.  

Zach bought our particular safe bank at the auction simply because he liked it.  This is an example of one of my 2013 antique buying strategies.  I’m going to buy things that I like, even if I plan to sell it.  If it doesn’t sell, I have something to keep that I like.  At the same time, chances are that if YOU like it, someone else out there might like it, and it will probably sell.  It’s a win-win.  

In this case, Zach bought something that not only he likes, but A LOT of people like.  And a lot of people collect.

Here’s what the bank sold for:

Can you believe it?  This was really exciting.  I’m not sure what he is going to do with the money, but I hope it involves buying like 20.88 more J & E Stevens banks at $17 each.  (Yes I did the math.)

And while you’re here, I’ll give you the duck decoy selling price I promised last week.  

I want to double my money on everything I sell, all day err day.

-Erin

So after our excursion last Friday, we decided to check out a Doug Dalton auction in Romulus.  You might remember this same auction from that time Sarah bought a million dolls and I got my heart broken by some paper mache Halloween decorations.  

As usual, the items at the auction looked high-end, and we were particularly excited about a mass of duck decoys they had to offer.  I wanted to get to the auction early specifically to research and examine all of the ducks, considering I won the lottery last time I bought a duck decoy.  

Sarah, however, had another goal in mind–washing her car.

That’s right, there are riches to be made, and Sarah wants to wash her car.  Mind you, her car is filled with estate sale treasures she bought weeks ago, so cleaning her car is not a priority, JUST WASHING.  So we did that.  She tried to convince me to drive her car through the wash for her (she was scared) but I refused.  I’ve watched enough People’s Court to know what happens when you drive your friend’s car into a car wash and accidentally destroy it. 

Anyway, this hilarious sign greeted us as we exited the car wash.  And also, look in that foggy mirror, there is TOTALLY a ghost child standing on the left side just below the white part.  Spooky.

So on to the auction we went, and luckily we did have some time to inspect the goods.  From my last duck victory, I learned that it is important for the duck to be hand carved, hand painted, and signed by the artist.  The older the better also seems true.  And the duck should be in good shape, unless it is super beat up and thus “primitive” looking, which some people also collect.

I ended up buying the two ducks below, as a pair, for $100.  

They are signed with the name Hoffman, and a tag on them indicated that they are from the “Walter Snow School.”  I have no idea what this means, but Walter Snow decoys seem to fetch high prices.  I figured any connection to him would help.

At first when I won, I panicked a bit.  I was caught in the moment and really should not have bid so high.  My last decoy was only a $10 investment, and therefore much less risky of a buy.  I started to worry that I seriously overpaid.  

[Spoiler alert: I didn’t overpay!  These ducks are doing swimmingly on ebay, and I will post an update with their final selling price.]

The rest of the auction looked just ok.  It was mostly guns and man-stuff.  Sarah visited a separate toy auction in the back of the room, so she will update you on that.  

Here is a sea monster we didn’t buy.

The gun on the left looks like a dueling pistol!  Zach has two replica dueling pistols, so I thought that getting him a real one would be cool.  But then everything started selling for really high prices and I knew it was hopeless.

I also got excited because there were old instruments, which I also sold recently and did well with.  That red Gibson guitar is apparently very collectible and Zach told me to try buying it.  It was in bad shape but still ended up selling for $475.  Obviously, I was not the buyer.

And if you think that is a high priced item, listen to this…we totally got to watch a saxophone at this auction sell for $4,000!  It was incredible.  People started cheering and clapping for the winner.  The saxophone, a Selmer Mark VI, must be like the holy grail of saxophones.  Look at what some recently sold for on ebay:

So crazy!  

The other crazy part was that this saxophone probably would have gone higher than $4,000 but the auctioneer did not see a woman in the back of the room trying to bid.  He closed the auction at $4,000 and the winner was some guy up front.  The woman came running up and started arguing with the auctioneer.  I felt bad for her though, she clearly had her hand up and was trying to bid.  At that point though, there is nothing you can do, and all auctioneers have signs up saying they are not responsible for mistakes.  Whomp whomp.

-Erin

Update from Sarah: My car was so dirty that I could barely see through the windows. I also have an unreasonable fear of drive-thru car washes because I had a bad experience in one once: I stepped on the brake and you would have thought I set off a nuclear bomb considering how the guys at the place were yelling at me. So I really wanted to get my car washed while Erin was with me, so she could talk me through any traumatic events or scolding that might occur. My car was so clean after this wash that at the end of the auction, we walked up to my car and I thought it wasn’t my car. I actually asked Erin, “Is this my car?” True story. 

This auction was so crazy packed with people. Obviously there isn’t a lot of entertainment in Romulus on Friday night. 

Ok so first, I don’t know what Erin is talking about with that gun. I’m pretty sure you cannot buy a gun unless you have a permit. While I am writing this, Erin is texting me, trying to tell me that that isn’t true for guns more than “100 years old.” I told her it sounded like she was making sh*t up. 

During the duck decoy auction, I bid on and won a “primitive” looking duck. I spent $50 on him which is a lot, but I figured that if he didn’t sell, he was cool enough to keep. Here he is. 

He’s sort of leaning back in that picture so you can see the thing underneath–it’s made of some metal and old nails. He already has a few bids, so I think at the very least, I’ll make my money back. 

The normal auction was boring me, so I went in the back room where they were auctioning off old tin toys and trains. I’m not sure why Erin didn’t come in there. I bought a few things, the most promising of which seems to be this old Western Pacific tin train, made in Japan. 

It’s not getting much attention on eBay so far, but I’m still hopeful. One just like it sold for $132, so I’m not sure what all the homies are waiting for. 

After the toy auction ended, we stuck around to see some of those instruments sell for a ton of money. One correction–that sax sold for $4400. I only know this because there was another guy bidding on it who actually plays them, and he was in line to pay right in front of me. He had stopped bidding at $4000 and was super pissed about not winning it, because the guy who did win it was going to resell it. I guess that’s just the way the cookie crumbles. 

So I’ve never hidden the fact that I LOVE me some Native American art and artifacts, as long as they are authentic and not stolen Indian designs made in China.  In particular, I really like Inuit art.  I’m no expert, but a lot of it seems to present everyday, mundane life in more meaningful and whimsical ways.  And a lot of it has animals in it, particularly whales and narwhals (always cool).

Until recently, my closest attempt at owning Inuit art was this book I bought on ebay.  It was essentially a catalog of Inuit art that I would never actually own.  

I considered at one point cutting out and framing the photos in this book, which would probably end up being sad and embarrassing.  Is that some original Inuit art on your wall?! No? You cut it out of a book?  That’s sad.  Go buy yourself some Inuit art.

Around the time Sarah and I started getting into auctions, I discovered that there are live auctions online!  This seems obvious, but was actually a huge epiphany for me.  And sure enough, there was an online auction scheduled out of Vancouver featuring ALL Inuit art.  I was thrilled.

I figured this would be my chance to buy a piece more affordably.  Pieces on ebay always sold for high prices or were listed expensively to begin with.  Maybe I could catch a deal in this live bidding.  

The items up for auction were all great.  There were sculptures, fabric art pieces, prints, and more.

I zeroed in right away on the piece below:

It’s called Fox Traps and Anxious Hunters by Jamasie Teevee.  It’s a lithograph (#22/50) from 1976.  I entered a pre-bid of $150 and went to bed (the sale was happening on Pacific Time and it was getting late).  Sure enough, when I woke up the next morning, I had an email saying I was the high bidder, and the bidding ended at $120!  SO AWESOME.

Jamasie Teevee died in 1985, and all of his prints I’ve found for sale are listed for upwards of $400.  I feel like I got a really great deal, and a really amazing piece of art.  I’ll cherish it for a long time to come!  Now I just have to find me a narwhal sculpture like the one above…

-Erin

P.S. LOOK HOW CUTE THAT WALRUS IS.

Update from Sarah: Oh my gosh! I heard the story of the Inuit art print but have never seen it or a picture of it until now. It is so stinkin’ cute. I’m actually really jealous of this.

The Plymouth auction hadn’t been in action since before the holidays, and the crowd last Saturday showed just how excited everyone was for its return.

Zach, Timmy, my sister Lindsay, and I got there super early and snagged some third row seats.  The people in front of us had a clever way of saving their seats:

There were not enough chairs in the place to accommodate the crowd, and I am pretty sure there wasn’t enough oxygen either.  It was hot and stuffy, and very very loud.  The chaos was clearly annoying the auctioneer, and he would repeatedly yell for people to quiet down or to move away from the front tables.  Most of the time I had no clue what was being auction off, and in deja vu of last week, kept asking my sister.  She usually had no clue either.

For the most part, everything was garbage.  Actually, I shouldn’t say “for the most part,” I should say for the WHOLE PART everything was garbage.  We stuck around though.  Even if we didn’t buy anything, this auction is always entertaining.  In fact, our favorite “regular” was mincing about, wearing his pajamas and talking in a volume similar to when your ears are completely plugged up.  I think he ended up buying a box of markers or something.  

Zach ended up with some cool woodblock prints that he has already framed and hung up in our bedroom.  These were a steal at $5 for the whole lot.  No one else even bid against him.

He also bought this old “camel saddle stool” which I am not going to pretend I know anything about.  From what Zach has said, these stools are modeled after actual camel saddles, and were popular in home decor during the 50s and 60s.  Zach set a limit of $30 on this item, and luckily he won it for $27.50.  

It is all leather on top, which we have since cleaned and polished.  The stool is now being used as a footrest in our living room.  To be honest, I was skeptical of this purchase, but now that it is clean and has a nice spot in our house, I am on board.

Timmy bought some diecast toy car that was sold during the 2003 All-Star Game.  He actually worked this particular All-Star Game for the Detroit Tigers, and wanted the car in commemoration.  It came with a World Series car, which he is going to sell on ebay.  

Lindsay ended up with 2 giant boxes full of Beanie Babies and Beanie Buddies.  If I had known she wanted Beanie Babies, I definitely have some to offer.  Remember this?

At some point, everyone was ready to get the hell out of there…except me.  I had been holding out all night for one item, and I was NOT going to leave without it.  FINALLY, after being at the auction for almost 3 hours, and watching people pay $9 for scissors, my item came up.  And I won!  Here’s what I got for a mere $5:

A whole bunch of ornaments that look like Chicken McNuggets!  If you recall, I had my first ever McNugget a few weeks ago.  I can’t say I am a huge fan of real nuggets, but these ornaments are the cutest!

So overall, a fun night.  Not the most lucrative or unique treasures, but treasures nonetheless!

-Erin

Erin convinced me to hit up an auction in Tecumseh with her on Wednesday night. This auction wasn’t at the same place we auctioned at in Tecumseh before. However, I had been to this place with my parents earlier in December, I was just a slacker and never wrote about it. Anyway, the auction did not look good in the pictures, but I figured I would humor Erin.

Erin was late, so on the way there we had to hit up Micky D’s because we were starved. When we got there, I was still finishing my filet-o-fish and I thought Erin was going to blow a gasket while waiting for me. She was so eager to get in there.

Can you blame her?

Ok, in all seriousness, this auction was probably the worst thing I’ve ever been to. They were auctioning off stuff that I doubt would sell even at a thrift store or get taken out of a garage sale’s free box. It was crazy. For example, many of the items on this table were marked as being from the dollar store.  

Despite these truths, there were two things that I was coveting at this sale. First, these guys, which were not there when I was at this joint with my parents:

I wanted them so bad. But I think they’re now a permanent part of the ambiance there.

Second, I REALLY wanted this battery operated cat.

I thought she would be an excellent white elephant gift. This past year at the holiday potluck Adam and I host, Erin’s husband Zach brought the best white elephant gift: Christmas Cat. He found this gentleman at a flea market and there was a serious war over him during the white elephant exchange.

I am confident that my cat will surpass Christmas Cat as Most Desirable White Elephant Gift. I won her for $2, a serious steal, and when we got her back to my house and Adam put some new batteries in her, let me just say–she blew our minds.

Despite the lack of treasures at this auction, people were pumped to spend between $1 and $5 for loads and loads of garbage. That includes, unfortunately, both Erin and myself. For some reason, I thought it was a good idea to buy two hula hoops. 

I also thought it was a good idea to buy a box of Halloween plates without looking at them closely first. They were chipped, made in China, and not even safe for microwaves or dishwashers! We ended up giving them to a man who was buying things to furnish his sister’s home. He told us that she had nothing, so he was trying to help her out. On the ride home, Erin was doing her sob story thing, feeling bad for the woman. But I just finished reading The Glass Castle, so I put it in perspective for her. After all, having someone’s old coffee mugs and chipped Halloween plates is better than nothing. Right? I don’t know. Maybe not.

Anyway, the guy who runs this joint is my favorite guy. At one point, he put a toaster cover on his head because he thought it was a hat. Anyway, the combination of his mic not working half the time and the items all being garbage caused me to have to ask Erin, “What is it?” over and over again.

Erin ended up scoring the only real treasures of the night (besides my cat), and I’ll let her tell you about them.

-Sarah

Update from Erin: Apparently it takes 30 minutes to eat one Filet-O-Fish.  I wouldn’t know because I would never eat one.  Sarah forgot to mention that she left remnants of this fish burg in my car near the foot heater, and once it got reheated hours after we left the auction, my car smelled like a swamp.

So yes, this auction was pretty junky, but I still had fun.  Everything was entertaining.  As she mentioned, every time a new item came up for auction, Sarah would instantly say, “What is it?”  EVERY TIME.  And then I would have to be like, “Oh it’s a stack of wooden bowls but 4 are cracked,” or “It’s a pile of 3 teddy bears that say ‘Mommy’ on them.”  Near the end, I just started saying, “It’s garbage,” every time.

Except these plates.  I didn’t buy them (for fear they would be a TTFYHO), but they sure are cute.  

I was also entertained because the the auctioneer kept inventing words.  At one point he auctioned off some ceramic Christmas Village knick-knacks and described them as being from many different “scenaries.”  He also kept calling VHS tapes V-S-H, which is an honest mistake, but still funny.  And, he kept lying!  Sarah got suckered into buying some “cast iron spurs” for $10.  The auctioneer even clanged them together while suggesting they were heavy and solid.  When Sarah won the spurs, they weighed about the same as a paper clip (not cast iron).  Luckily, they let her return them.

I won a few cool things, perhaps the only cool things at the auction.  First up were these old antique skeleton keys.  

I’ll probably put them on ebay, although they would look really nice hanging on the wall, or in a cabinet, especially if I found one of those big old key rings for them.

I also bought this polar bear sculpture because it looks like Murano glass.  Even if it isn’t Murano, art glass in general is popular.  The fact that this sculpture is animal related definitely doesn’t hurt either.  This guy is also really heavy, which I think is a plus to collectors.

I hear that in real life polar bears are mega ferocious.  In fact, I think my sister told me about some guy at a zoo who got eaten by one after he climbed in the exhibit to snuggle it. 

P.S. Sarah thought those Blues Brothers would fit in my little 4 door sedan.  Thankfully they weren’t auctioned off this night.  Look at how huge those things are compared to the doors below!  I can’t imagine trying to move them, let alone “just sit them in my back seat” like Sarah suggested.

I haven’t written a “fave find” post in awhile, but this recently-acquired biscuit box sure is cause to write one now.

Antique biscuit boxes were used at bakeries or old General Stores, and they were filled with doughy delights.  The grocer would open up the box and use tongs to pull out the treats for a buyer.  The box is metal with a glass front so purchasers could see the goods inside.

I found this particular box at a small auction I went to with Timmy on Thursday.  It was right near my house, and all of the items looked good.  Unfortunately, it ended up being really high-priced!  People were bidding machines!  I was getting very grumpy because neither my dad or I were winning anything, and because people were paying obscene amounts for worthless things.  Common Effanbee dolls for $70?!  They barely sell for $10 on ebay.  It was a lot of stuff like that.  [Sidenote: Zach pointed out that “Effanbee” sounds like I am saying “F'in B” which is funny.]

So I figured that the biscuit box would soar in price, and I would go home sad.  It was the only item at the auction I REALLY wanted.  But then it went up for bidding, and I won it for $25!  I was thrilled.

As you can see from the photo, I put some old books in it and am now displaying it on our bookshelf.  I think it adds a nice look to an otherwise typical shelf.

If you are interested in your own metal biscuit box, take a look on Etsy and on Ebay.

-Erin

P.S. Can anyone tell me what “Not in the Trust” means on my box?!

Sarah alluded to the fact that I was a “lucky b*tch” when I purchased an antique cast iron horse at the soggy-underpants-on-the-concrete auction we attended recently.  Her assessment, while harsh, is true.  I am indeed a lucky b*tch.

The auction was high-end, and people were bidding like crazy on everything.  I figured I would go home empty handed.  I did start to raise my hand for a Tiffany Lamp that I thought was selling for $25, when really it was selling for $2500, but luckily I caught myself.  Finally, an item came up that I was willing to spend more on and win.  It was a cast iron horse still bank/door stop.  It was huge and heavy as hell.

This guy had everything going for him.  There are cast iron collectors, there are still bank collectors, there are door stop collectors, AND there are horse collectors I could sell this to.  

For some reason, I have been operating under the belief that I paid $65 for this guy, but I found a receipt when cleaning out my purse that said $85!  What happened at this auction was that the auctioneer would speak so quickly, and people were bidding so rapidly, that you would raise your hand for one price, but be counted for the next highest bid offered.  It was insanity.  For days after the auction, I sulked about the fact that I had seriously overpaid for this horse.  Here’s a text between Sarah and I where I complain about it, and Sarah kindly reassures me:

Well, as it turns out, I wasn’t so “dum” after all.  That horse sold for some mad cash!

$300?  I was so shocked.  And happy.

I messaged the woman who bought the horse to ask about her motivations, and here is what she said:

Hi Erin - The horse is beautiful, in wonderful condition and is an extremely rare shape. The detail in the mane, the tail and the musculature make this iron animal very special. I collect the smaller cast iron bank horses. But this clydesdale a great surprise when I saw it and I knew I’d own it. The price I ended up paying is comparable to a cast iron boston terrier doorstop I own. And finally, I am a horse person; I ride and have loved these animals all my life. “Clyde” will be loved and will guard a prominant door in my home. Thank you for selling him. Catherine

She named him Clyde!  I love that.  And I love when this whole estate sale/treasure hunting/ebay thing we have going helps people to unite with items they might never have found otherwise.  And when it makes us some serious cash, things are even better!

-Erin

I know you all have been pining for a porcelain update.  I have heard your cries, and here now, is the current status of my porcelain collection.

I’ve been exclusively buying Herend porcelain, and more exclusively, porcelain in the Herend “fishnet” pattern.  Back in September, I caught wind of a special Herend event happening in Troy, at Nieman Marcus.  The event was at the end of October, so I counted the days with a reminder calendar on our fridge.  

The day arrived, and I hiked out (despite having a cough & cold), to buy me some high-priced ceramics.  The event featured a Herend artist, direct from Hungary!  She was handpainting figurines right there in the store!

This woman did not speak English, but I proceeded to tell her that I admired her work and loved Herend and blah blah.  

There were a lot of figurines to choose from, and I was so excited because this was the first time I had ever been in the presence of more than one Herend piece available for purchase.  Up until this point, I had only bought Herend at an auction, and on ebay.

I wanted to buy a piece in the lavender fishnet pattern because it is a newer released color.  Here is what I chose:

I even had the artist write “Herend Event 2012” on the bottom, and sign her name!

So my collection now stands at 4 pieces of Herend fishnet figurines.  I had a giant cat too, but I am selling him on ebay right now because I want to buy a cuter piece to replace him. Also, I’m aware of the rabbit to non-rabbit ratio here, and don’t worry, I hope to remedy that in the future.

But wait, there’s more!

So a few weeks after the Herend event, I randomly stopped at an estate sale while out buying dog food.  And lo and behold, they had a piece of Herend!  Priced at $10!  It’s not fishnet pattern, but it is still super pretty.  He is displayed on the shelf below the fishnet pieces.

Again, if you/your mom/your grandma/your neighbor/your anybody has some Herend porcelain they are looking to sell, let me know!  I have 100% positive feedback on ebay, so you know I’m legit. 

-Erin

After visiting the Southfield Antique Expo last weekend, I went home and took a brief nap, then met up with my parents to go to my favorite Plymouth auction.  My parents had never been to this auction, but they were used to my endless chatter about it being quite the honeyhole.  Sarah was planning to join us this evening, but when I arrived and saw the items for sale, I texted her and told her not to come.  Everything was REALLY lame.

I was bummed out because I knew how excited my parents were to score some treasures, and it really didn’t look like that was going to happen.

But then Timmy started unrolling some old posters, and realized they were some pretty rare hockey and baseball ones.  One poster in particular, of Gordie Howe, was something my dad had only seen one other time.  That one, had been all ripped up, and still sold for about $50.  The one here at the auction was in mint condition.  I knew that we were all in for a long night, and that Timmy was NOT leaving without those posters.

In the meantime, I bid on and won some old glass pharmacy bottles.  I paid $5 for all of them, and ended up selling them on ebay a few days later for $20.

Usually at this auction, an item goes up for bidding, and no one wants it.  The auctioneers then throw in another item, and so on and so forth, until someone finally bids.  At one point, someone ended up buying about 6 huge boxes of glassware for $5. They picked what they wanted out of it, and then announced that anyone who wanted to could come take stuff for free.

I grabbed a nice marble cheese plate, two Pyrex casserole dishes with lids, and this old cookie jar that looks like an orange.

I sold this thing for $14 on ebay already, which isn’t bad for something I got free.

I should also mention that Zach’s parents were at the auction, and his aunt and uncle.  Aunt Sue scored some nice dishes out of the free stuff pile, and Zach’s mom bought some nice antique silverplate pieces.  Zach’s dad was the winner by far, buying a cool old sword for a mere $40.

But then Timmy’s items came up for bidding, and it was clear he was going to be the night’s champion.  He bought a huge lot of the baseball posters for $13 first.  Then, the auctioneer tried selling 3 boxes of old hockey video games, VHS tapes, and ephemera.  Nobody bid on it, so the auctioneer threw in the Gordie Howe poster.  My dad started bidding against another guy, and I thought that the price was going to skyrocket.  The other guy bowed out at $16 and it was true happiness for Tim.  Here is a sample of the goods, including the desirable poster (far right):

He also got a huge folder with old war papers and documents.  Super cool.  And in the VHS tapes, he found a film about old Olympia Stadium and its official closing in 1979.  He is having it transferred to DVD and keeping it for his collection.

Here’s Tim later that evening, celebrating:

Fun fact is that my dad ONLY drinks Molson Ice beer, which no restaurant has because ANY ice beer is disgusting and embarrassing to order in public.  So in this photo, my dad is sampling a craft beer, which he ended up hating, and not ordering.  Another fact is that my dad once said, “Who drinks craft beer?” while we were AT a craft brewery, where he then proceeded to try and order a Molson Ice.

-Erin