Odd Ball Finds–Will They Sell?

It was a beautiful September morning and I went to the ATM for cash and then up the road to our monthly flea market held at one of our high schools. Surprisingly the nearby street parking was blocked off with “No Parking” signs and the onsite school parking in the front was full with the market and vendors. Where the heck we were supposed to park?! Well, it occurred to me that there might be parking in back of the campus and by golly there was, teacher parking. But I was the only car way back there, isolated, no other people around, some distance from the flea market right by the train tracks. I knew it was safe…still I felt a smidge uneasy. So I listened to my gut and drove off the school grounds and eventually found street parking some distance away where I felt secure. (Tip for the Day–Trust your instinct. If a situation or someone makes you feel uncomfortable, however irrational it may seem, head in the other direction. A classic book to read on this is “The Gift of Fear” by Gavin de Becker.)

By I finally made it to the flea market and started enjoying myself. I chatted with some vendors. Bought a few things. Ran into a friend. Even got myself a coffee before I started my trek back to my car!

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But most everything I bought was either odd and/or likely to take forever to sell. I’m not trying to sabotage myself, it’s just what appeals to me and what I think might be undervalued or overlooked.

Marked “made in Japan,” this pottery sea dragon appears to coming out of the waves. But the holes confused me–is this meant to be a flower frog? Hmmm. What I do like is that the dragon is a brown color and has more detail with its scales and talons than the darker waves.

This brass Lipton tea tin is in honor of the British Empire Exhibition 1924. A proper antique it has a few dents. Others for sale online range from $17 (very damaged ) to $171! Some folks have polished theirs, but I prefer it unpolished and that’s how I will sell it. Professionals in the biz discourage polishing older metal items as it reduces their value.

This is a charming vintage scrapbook with blank pages. Likely from the 1950s-70s, I thought someone might be tickled to use this.

I am not a fan of bullfighting, but I did like this Mexican matador and bull nodding salt and pepper shaker set. I normally don’t go for “cutesy” stuff so I can’t explain why I bought this!

This was my last purchase–a small homemade, signed (“Robles”?) pottery alligator. I think he is fantastic, but will anybody else??

Total paid: $24.

It turns out I didn’t need to go to the ATM. Had plenty of money without it. No outstanding buys. Nothing that had me dancing at the flea market. Need to do a bit more research before listing anything, but profit wise these items will put gas in the car and buy a few groceries. Still it was a fun morning and that counts for a lot.

Wishing you happy hunting,

Karen