My Favorite Vintage Finds of 2019

Before the year ends I wanted to share my favorite 2019 vintage and antique finds, including where I found them, what I paid, and if available, what they sold for. Overall it’s been a good year. Not a perfect one. Made some buying mistakes. But mostly I’m happy with my finds and the prices I paid and am looking forward to another year in the biz.

Victorian Baby Ring

Loved this sweet sterling silver ring with its bits of Persian turquoise and pearls. Its small size (3.5) made it a perfect midi ring. The new owner loves it too!

Vintage Russian Lacquer Pin

You see a lot of Russian lacquer pins around, most with crudely rendered flowers. This one of a maiden by a stream was hand painted (I checked with a jeweler’s loupe) with such fine details I was blown away (and tempted to keep it)! I think I could have charged more for it than I did.

Pre-Columbian Style Colima Dog Vessel

Found this quirky guy at my local flea market. Did a lot of research trying to find out more about it. In the end I determined that it was a vintage copy of a pre-Columbian piece, but even copies have some value. I found a similar one that sold for $300 at auction. Will he sell? Time will tell.

1960s Enid Collins Cable Car Purse

Spotted this beauty in my local Goodwill thrift store. I think I gasped when I saw it! Older Collins purses are quite collectible. I priced this rather modestly as the cable cars are not the most popular in her line.

Three 1800s Medical Diplomas

I adore this type of ephemera. I bought these on Shopgoodwill in July but still haven’t listed them. Need to do a bit more research.

Vintage Perfume Bottle

I got this little gem at a half-off estate sale. It had two teeny chips but was otherwise in wonderful condition. Immediately after I listed it a lady sent me an offer of $40. I declined. A week or two later she sent another offer. Then another. While I do entertain offers, I knew this was fairly priced and did not accept. Sometimes the answer has to be no.

Harry Hambro Howe Ship Painting

This small painting (only about 9″ by 8″) was on the floor propped up against bigger paintings at my local Goodwill. I liked it and thought it “could be something.” Well it was. Within 15 minutes I found that the cryptic intertwined HH signature stood for Harry Hambro Howe–a marine artist who was born August 16, 1886. He came from a family of artists that included his grandfather, H. Howe, and his father, Captain T. Bailey Howe.

Lot of Vintage Religious-Themed Letterpress Printer Blocks

You’ve just seen these copper and wood blocks in a recent post, but I wanted to include them here too. I’m so smitten with them that when the seller listed another lot, I bought those too. They arrive tomorrow.

I listed the three small bell blocks (on the bottom left corner) for $20 with free shipping and they sold in 12 hours! Hoping the other lots do as well, though I will be keeping a few for myself.

Huge Antique Woven Paisley Scottish Shawl/Throw

I found this at an estate sale in the master bedroom. The room was packed with women scrambling over the racks of vintage designer clothes. It was bedlam and as I wasn’t particularly interested in buying clothing I tried to leave the room. Alas the estate sale “guard” at the door started questioning the girl in front of me. (Apparently the guard wanted to search the girl’s backpack). As a shouting match ensued (and I waited) I spotted this amazing piece of paisley hanging on a rack next to me. As a fan of paisley, I knew that was old and fabulous. Kismet. Couldn’t believe my luck.

Vintage Point de Venise Lace Tablecloth

This beautiful tablecloth came from an estate sale of a woman who was a consummate hostess. I did quite a bit of research on it, but likely priced it low as it sold within 24 hours. Still I made a nice profit.

Set of Five Vintage Belgian Religious Prints on Cloth

I bought these at an leather furniture store in Spring, TX, that also sold a few antiques. The owner had one corner set up with religious statues and bits that he has a picker get for him in Europe. Twice a year he has a container shipped over!

1950s Rialto Lucite Purse

This was a stop-me-in-my-tracks find at my local Goodwill yesterday. I had gone in to exchange an item and there it was mixed in with stuff on the metalware shelf. The price tag had it listed as “Plastic: Misc.” They didn’t know what it was! I was so excited it was all I could do not to pinch myself! Isn’t she a beauty?!

1940s Sterling Silver Puffy Heart Bracelet

This is another newer find from a fellow Etsy seller that I thought was a spectacular piece with a good price. A few of these charms I value at $80 – $100 each.

Small Carved Wood Madonna Santo

Found this at a rather scrubby, grubby estate sale with a lot of average, very worn things. Despite a tiny bit of damage, I thought this carved Madonna was desirable. She sold in 24 hours.

Well, I’ll stop the list now before it gets too long! Compiling it made me realize how much I enjoyed hunting for these goodies and selling them. What a fun way to make a little money!

Would love to hear about your favorite finds of the year.

Wishing you the best of holidays,

Karen