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The other day I went thrifting. Well that’s not unusual! It’s what I do. But now only once or twice a week. That day I found two Waterford double old-fashioned glasses (I think in the Lismore pattern) in lovely condition. I was thrilled. But neither had a price sticker. And darn it, this store has adopted the policy of sending price-less items back to “processing” and you can’t buy them right then. I was peeved. The employee I had approached expressed sympathy but essentially said her hands were tied. She said they might hit the shelves later that day of not, there was no guarantee. (Typically the store prices these type of glasses at $4 to $6, brand new they sell for $99+ each.)
And I wondered why they implemented this policy. One employee said they started it some months ago when they took out the changing rooms to cut down on theft. Still wanting a price for price-less items seems just the opposite of theft. We want to buy the items! In the past these items would be returned to the back room where the sorting/pricing folks would find a price for it and a few minutes later it would be back in your hands ready to be rung up. I really don’t understand why that had to change.
Another annoying change is the switch to playing Muzak in the store. Why, oh why? In the past they played all types of real music including the Commodore’s “She’s a Brick House”! It was great. Now sourcing in the store reminds me of being in the dentist’s office. Not a place I want to be.
That day I did buy two matching vintage/antique silver-plate over copper wine bottle coasters/holders. Some do have value (in the $$$) and they do sell. My two appear to have no brand mark, but show signs of wear appropriate to older pieces. The finish on the turned-wood bottom had been all but worn off and the wood was dry so I used Boos Wood Cream to bring up a little color and condition them. The copper is starting to peek through the silver plate after decades of polishing. I think these are circa 1920 to 1940.
All said, they are pretty and useful things. It’s rather fun to imagine all the parties and holidays when they were put in use.
And I wanted to buy this thick (rather stiff) unisex leather pouch with a bit of tooling but at $23 and unbranded I just did not feel confident that I could make enough profit. I needed it to be $10 and under. Likewise I found a small Fossil purse, but it was priced at $26. Left it behind too.
Well, I went back the nest day to the thrift store on the off chance that the Waterford glasses were back on the shelf and no one had snagged them. Twas not to be!! Drat! I couldn’t find them.
But I did pick up this 19th century hand-colored engraving (set in a much newer frame) of “The Thames Tunnel” in Wapping.
Back at home I scrutinized the print with my jeweler’s loupe. I found what I expected to find: good lines with hand-coloring applied on top and the occasional color spills outside of the lines and some foxing (common with older prints). No dots! I haven’t opened it up to look for plate marks but this is definitely an older print.
It was engraved by Samuel Lacey and printed by Jones & Co. and possibly dates to 1843 according to the Brunel Museum. (Sir Marc Brunel was the engineer behind the Thames tunnel.)
So I was pleased with this engraving, but the truth is the Waterford crystal glasses were the sure-fire sellers with a good profit margin. They were a slam dunk. The wine coasters should sell, but there are a lot to choose from online and they could linger. And the 19th century engraving will be a long-tail item. It’s not mid-century cool or on trend though it is a neat bit of London history. (For some reason I am attracted to these old engravings.) I might have bought the leather satchel if it had been cheaper.
Total spent: $17.
I did have an interesting talk with a man who was buying an enormous painting (approximately five feet wide!) of a beach scene at night, circa 1966. His father had been a painter so he knows about art. The painting had some damage but nothing he couldn’t repair and it was by a known artist and potentially worth in the $$$$. It cost him $67. I never even look at the paintings that are that big! While it was an intriguing painting, I was happy with my little engraving.
Wishing you happy hunting,
Karen
