What I’m Buying…or Not!

Out tootling around the other day I ended up in my neighborhood thrift store. (Naturally!) It was slim pickings but I did spot this Korean brass, black enameled vase with abalone shell inlay on a new merch cart. Gosh this was nice. It was super heavy (at least two pounds!), so pretty and in good condition. But, whoa, priced at $14.15. Worth it? Well, maybe if I could sell it for $45+.

A quick in-store search showed me that similar vases were priced for sale from $18-$25. Poop! I had to leave this beauty on the shelf. Later at home I did a Worthpoint search that found that some have sold recently in the $30-$70 range. That was curious. So I might have been okay buying it and pricing it higher than other sellers. Hard to say.

I also found this odd, hand-painted pottery figural lady vase. It looked like a mid-century Italian or Greek piece to me. So while I wasn’t able to find out any information in the store, for $3, it was worth the gamble. She went in my basket.

Back home I still haven’t figured her out though I feel she is something special. Can’t decipher what remains of the writing on the bottom, possibly “boyd.” So the research continues. Let me know if you have ideas.

And I always keep an eye out for old bohemian garnet jewelry. On eBay I won an auction for this simple bar pin. (Alas the great vintage jewelry box is NOT included!)

Even with the shipping cost from England I should be able to make a $35-$60 profit…which is okay in my books.

And I loved this rendering also bought on eBay. It’s a 1955 interior designer’s original watercolor done for a magazine.

Isn’t it fabulous?! Probably not much profit in this, but it was too cool to pass up. 🙂

But my big purchase was this antique sterling silver purse. It was a bit of a risk. The online seller is a new one with no feedback and allows no returns (which is usually a deal breaker) and it was pricey. This is a photo from the listing.

So why did I risk this purchase? For me, these little purses are amazing works of art. Love all the curlicues, flowers and fish. I  have a small collection of sterling purses and from time to time use them as wallets, tucking in a credit card, driver’s license and a bit of cash. I have also sold a few and while this one has some scratches and polish residue, nothing egregious, and I know there is some profit left in it.

So I’m not buying a lot, but trying to focus on quality items. But gosh this is a crazy kind of business. Things I think know are amazing sometimes take a long, long time to sell. Here are two thrift-store finds that finally sold after over a year in my store: a lovely Spode “Pink Italian” cache pot and an antique William Cowan & Co. silverplate creamer with a rattan-wrapped handle.

Still I would rather sell long-tail stuff than things that don’t resonate with me. How about you??

As always, happy hunting,

Karen