Tuesday, June 18, 2013

Stuff, and other stuff...

Tis the second week of summer and I am pretty bored! Well on Thursday I head up to my dad's house where I'll be for an indefinite amount of time. He is having surgery on Friday, and being as he lives alone, I will be spending time as his caregiver so-to-speak. Which I hope doesn't really happen, as in, I hope his surgery is very successful and he doesn't need any help. Time will tell.

Anyway these past few weeks have been uneventful. We did the flea market again, saw a few free movies (Gofobo, anyone?) and the dog and I have been taking our daily treks through the neighborhood. Oh, and I found a new amazing show on Amazon Instant Video! It's called Out of Practice. It didn't even last a full season (although the whole first season did make its way online) and it starred Stockard Channing, Henry Winkler, Ty Burrell (better known as Phil Dunphy- dad on Modern Family.) and Christopher Gorham (better known as HOT). It is just hilarious. I highly recommend you check it out if able!

Decided to check some of my older entries. It's funny how the direction of this blog changed. When I first created it, I actually said I had created it as an outlet to express myself. Now it's part reflection, but also part sharing in this incredible thrifter community I've stumbled upon. By the way, in my first entry (dated 2010), I said I wanted to start trying to conceive in 2011! My, how things have changed. At this point, I don't know if I ever want children! (well aside from the assortment of furry ones and the ones I teach, who will forever be a part of me)

Anyway, so we did the flea market again, and here are the results from our second trip out. Like I hinted, I changed the direction to more or less "get it out of my sight, I am so sick of looking at it" items, which trust me, we have enough of. Made $68.50, not including the $10 fee.

$5 dolly step ladder thingie (paid 25 cents for at a gs)
$10 XBox HD DVD player and handful of DVDs (personal property)
$10 box of Power Rangers trading cards (free to me; from Dad)
$5 cat carrier (personal property...was our sweet little kitten's... R.I.P. Monty)
$5 4 comics (free; from Dad) and 2 video games (personal property- junk games from gs)
$2 dog pillow (personal property, which Daisy chewed a hole in, and then proceeded to never sleep on again. Spoiled mutt.)
$2 pocket packs of tissues ($2 at Dollar Tree- originally got for school goodies but never used)
$4 Halloween pillows (probably paid around $10 at Target- was going to use for decor but again, never used. Probably a good decision anyway. They were black pillows. Black + animals=mess.)
.25 single pocket pack of tissues (paid .25 originally at a back to school sale)
.25 microcassette (bought at an estate sale I posted about awhile back)
.50 Avengers jumbo eraser (bought for .20 at GW)
.50 grill stone (.50 TS)
$10 set of records (free; from Dad)
$14 pants (Carlos's)

Lastly, I have listed two of the Hot Wheels I posted about last week. One has a day left in auction. It is currently at $113.50. You can see it here:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/271222095765?ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1555.l2649
That's the biggest profit I've ever made.


Thursday, June 13, 2013

A new venue, or alternate title: It pays (literally #christraeger) to eavesdrop.

So last week I was at my favorite (although I have one that is coming in at a close second- more about that in a moment) thrift and I was leisurely strolling the aisles, and I overheard a conversation happening between a worker and a customer. They were talking about selling at a flea market. Hmm, silly me, I didn't even realize we had good flea markets down here, despite the fact that I've lived here for almost 4 years. I guess I thought that the flea markets that did exist down here were in poor neighborhoods. Well I listened eavesdropped for a bit and mentally recorded the names of the two locations they were speaking of. When I got home I checked their websites, and I was very impressed with how professionally done the websites were. A quick decision was made; I would try my hand at selling at the flea market!

So last Saturday we did just that. I only had a day to prepare, so I gathered a bin of plush, a bin of cake pans, and a few random oddities. We set up shop at around 6 am, paying only $10 for our space. In a short 4 1/2 hours, I cleared $78 (after fee). I also learned that I will not get eBay prices, so I will be varying my inventory for this upcoming weekend, and doing more or less "take this please I can't bear to look at it anymore" items. Here is what I did sell:

A bunch of comic books- $25 (free to me; from my dad)
An "I kiss better than I cook" sign, which actually went to an older man, which in hindsight, is creepy, $2 (probably what I paid for it- from a gs)
3 of DH's video games- $12 (he probably had $20 invested in them)
a curtain rod- $5 (originally purchased for our personal use but has been taking up space in the garage for 2 years- probably paid $12 ish)
a Hindu god statue- $10 (.50 at gs)
Attorneys at Flaw board game $2.50 ($1 gs)
Wineopoly board game $2.50 ($1.99 gw)
Likes and Gripes board game $3 (probably $1.99 ish VOA)
Toy Story travel pillow $3 ($1.25 I think, CVS clearance)
VS dog $1 (.50 VOA)
glow sticks $5 (originally paid $11.99, bought them for a school event my first year teaching but never used them)
Barbershop DVD $1 (IDK)
2 ties $10 for both (probably around $5 for both- Ohio Thrift)
another DVD $1 (free to me; from my dad)

As you can see, the profit margins are slim, but rookie mistakes, chalk it up to the learning curve, profit is still profit, and like I said, I know better what to bring next time!

As for that second favorite thrift I mentioned earlier...

Yesterday I had to go to the P.O. and on my way home I dropped off books at the library and I just had to check out the Goodwill. Cuz you know, I hadn't been thrifting in 6 days. But it was an instance when it PAID to stop. I stumbled upon a delightful assortment of vintage items, from the late '60s and '70s, all in their original packaging. I assume all donated from the same person. For whatever reason, Goodwill significantly underpriced said items. Which is quite a surprise because the Goodwills down here actually make a point of gathering their high-end merch for a live auction each weekend. But for whatever the reason, I was able to snag 3 red-line Hot Wheels cars, STILL IN THE ORIGINAL PACKAGING, for .99 each. Um. Guess what? Completed listings go up to $200 each!!! SAY WHAT! I have already listed one, and it already has two bids up to $60.99. Um. I paid .99!! I also got a new in packaging 1967 Barbie dress set. Completeds show around $80 and that's for USED. Golly goodness. I will keep you posted! Definitely had a WOW FACTOR moment! #storagewars