eBay the Right Way

eBay Seller Chat with Becky in Florida: $100 Sock Sale, Home Decor Trends, Magazines, Epic Frog Estate Sale - She Leaves No Stone Unturned 🐸

• Suzanne A. Wells • Episode 222

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Suzanne Wells:

Foreign Hello, eBay. Ers, welcome to episode number 222 of eBay the right way. Today's date is June 18, 2025, and my guest is Becky in Florida. Announcements, just a reminder about my bolo books being converted to ebooks. The link to the instant download is below the podcast. I am diligently working on the third and fourth editions, so those are coming soon, and you can still grab printed copies from my eBay store. But once those are gone, they won't be replenished. So if you are a hard copy book person, now is the time to complete your collection. And yes, a fifth edition is in the plan. I have already started gathering information for that one as a spreadsheet nerd and your personal researcher, I keep track of everything, and I don't know if that's good or bad. Okay, let's talk with Becky. Welcome back, resellers. I have Becky with us in this episode and tell us where you're located.

Unknown:

I'm in Pensacola, Florida.

Suzanne Wells:

Oh, okay, so you see lots of military aircraft. Where you are. They

Unknown:

do we do you're the home of the Blue Angels bathroom. Yeah.

Suzanne Wells:

Have you been in that area very long? Yes,

Unknown:

actually, my parents were both in the Navy, and they they were raised in the north and they met down here at a Navy base. So I was born in the Pensacola Naval Hospital. Really. Okay,

Suzanne Wells:

baby, baby, alright, yeah, okay. So why don't we start off with how long you've been selling on eBay and what brought you there?

Unknown:

Sure. Um, my husband and I opened a joint account, actually, in 2009 so I've been kind of playing around with this for quite a while. Um, we had needed some extra cash, and we're just kind of looking around the house for things to sell. And my husband came up with his compound bow, which was quite a big thing, an item to start with, but it was like, hey, there's some there's some extra cash. And my son had just been born in the hospital, and we had some of those bills. So we're like, Sure, let's try it. And we sold that, of course, within about a week. I think it was mostly just auctions back then, and we ended up getting$400 for it. So surprisingly, that's still my biggest sale to date from one item, still waiting for that big one come up. But

Suzanne Wells:

so that was like a hunting bow.

Unknown:

It was, yeah, it was a Browning compound bow. And I think we had arrows with it. Don't believe we had the hard case that sometimes they come with um, but you'll never guess where it went. You have any guesses?

Suzanne Wells:

I don't know, somewhere out west, Montana, Wyoming,

Unknown:

no, it went to Russia, really. So we were kind of, a really in shock, and that was back in the days when we had to do all the custom forms and all that stuff. We went to the post office, sold all that stuff out. Then we're like, oh, how are we going to ship this thing? So we, I think we ended up using a TV box to ship it, and it got to him. He, I think it was maybe three weeks until he got it, and he sent back really good feedback, and was very happy with it. So that was our first experience. Oh, that was

Suzanne Wells:

a big item to be your first experience. Yes, it was, it was you No, just jump in, right? So back to the international shipping. What is your reaction when you see people on the groups of like, Oh, should I? Should I ship internationally? And it's like comparing it the way. Is now,

Unknown:

right? So, way it

Suzanne Wells:

used to be, which I'm remembering, the steps, of course, you package the item, and then I guess it would be first class International. That was up to, like, four pounds, I think. And then there was the internet. I don't

Unknown:

remember a whole lot, because after that, I was like, I'm making sure I'm not doing international shopping right. Because

Suzanne Wells:

fill out that form and that's and then put it in that clear plastic sleeve on the front of the package. And I think you had to take them to the post office, like it couldn't be picked up. I think you had in and, yeah, I did. I did that in the beginning, and then now we've evolved to like, all you do is click a box to participate in the eBay international shipping and that's all you have to do, right? They eliminate any problematic countries. If there's a problem with the item, you just get your money back. It's it cannot be returned to you exactly. There's all these safeguards now that you know, for the listeners, there's no reason not to it's exactly. Nothing different on your side, except you click a box when you set up your listing and make sure you put the weight in, right? And there's like, there's like, nothing to it, and there's no risk,

Unknown:

right, right? I love it. That's my speech. I have a probably two or three items I'm going to mention today that went overseas. So, okay,

Suzanne Wells:

yeah, I love it. Jump in and talk about those

Unknown:

Sure. So I had an epic sale yesterday.

Suzanne Wells:

An epic sale, fail sale, okay, that's what we like. Epic sale.

Unknown:

So I sold three pairs of socks for $125

Suzanne Wells:

okay, well, tell us what they were.

Unknown:

So they were Victoria's Secret knee socks, and they were vintage. I had gotten them at an estate sale. This was a great estate sale, and he ended up being one of my favorite companies to go to now, but this lady had oodles of Victoria's Secret vintage and Fredericks of Hollywood, and so I don't know if she worked at those stores or what the deal was, But I was able to get quite a bit of Victoria's Secret items,

Suzanne Wells:

or maybe she just had cold feet and, like, pretty socks.

Unknown:

Well, I don't know.

Suzanne Wells:

Were they Victoria's Secret pink or just Yes, okay, because they were pink line where it actually says pink on it was 20 years old in I think it was 2022 and I expected a big surge in their products that year because they were 20 years old. But I don't know if that happened, but yeah, some of that pink line that actually wasn't ink, or has the sequins, or they're all fancy and sparkly, those are a thing,

Unknown:

right, right? There wasn't very many of them on the platform list. Did they

Suzanne Wells:

have

Unknown:

like, were they new with tag? No, they were not. They were actually, I think they had been washed. And so you tell me if this is eBay the right way or not? So I put them in collectibles. Well, yeah, so, and I told, I told them, these have been washed, and they've been pre shrunk, and so not necessarily to be worn, but I'm selling as a collectible, and that seemed to be fine. Is that? How, kind of, how you

Suzanne Wells:

that would be the one way to go on that? Yeah, okay.

Unknown:

I was kind of wondering how you did the granny panties and that kind of, the used

Suzanne Wells:

clothing policy says everything has to be clean. So I know there's some what's the best word, skanky listings out there that are like foot fetish, like the fruity socks, and that's just a place I'm never going to go, right? Yeah, on there. I saw one the other day that was for, for some shoes that were, you know, for foot fetish people, obviously, because then they were nobody, and the lady, the lady was wearing them and had her, you know, toenails polished up and,

Unknown:

you know, yes, yes, yeah. I. I was researching some of that, and I came across some, it's like, oh my goodness.

Suzanne Wells:

I feel like there's enough appropriate items we can sell where we don't have to go dark alley of that kind of stuff. The Victoria Secret line is over 20 years old, so that would be considered vintage, and right it didn't have the price tag on it. I don't know if the it had a tag on the inside, and they didn't usually have dates on them, so there's no way to know how old it was, but I think that's yeah.

Unknown:

So from that same sale, I also was able to purchase some fuzzy slippers, and these were, like, booty slippers that had kind of the crisscross shoe strings with big pom poms on them. Okay, right? And there was nothing else like these on the internet. I couldn't find anything like them. I was like, Okay, we're going to start these high. And I started them at $80 and that that's what I got gold price for them. So, yeah, that was really fun sale. What brand were

Suzanne Wells:

they? Those were Victoria secrets. Oh, okay, same thing. Yes. All right, yeah, okay, for you. So, yeah, it's amazing what you know, slippers, house shoes, whatever you call them, can sell for I've sold some Uggs for over 75 and bionic, wow. It all depends on the condition and everything. And as with a lot of clothing items, larger sizes do better because there's just fewer of them. So yeah, people, I think, Oh, you're gonna sell used, right? Like, I go back to that scene in Seinfeld where Elaine is wearing her nasty bunny slippers. Are you a Seinfeld fan?

Unknown:

I've seen it some, but not a lot. Well anyway, in this

Suzanne Wells:

one episode, she's wearing her her nasty, nasty bedroom slippers, and her boyfriend David putty calls them bacteria traps, because they're so gross,

Unknown:

right, right? When people go

Suzanne Wells:

to that, when they're thinking of selling pre owned bedroom slippers.

Unknown:

You never know what people will buy from you. That's a great sale. Yeah. So, yeah. So I had another really fun sale. I had gone to the bins, and I found this set of acrylic paints and paint brushes, and I kind of opened the cap and make sure they weren't used or dried out or whatever, and they were still sealed. So I picked those up and I had them, I guess, listed for, I don't know, at least six months, and nothing happened. I was thinking about just taking them off. And a week later, someone made an offer on them, and it was kind of a low offer, you know? I mean, I only had them on there for like, 25 bucks or something, and they offered 18. I was like, Oh, sure, I'm just ready to get rid of them, right and move on. So right after they bought them, they gave they sent me a message, and they said that they were the Delta RC builders company, which is remote controls, oh, for movie sets, and they were going to use my paints for a quarter size model RC, and it was going to be one of their F fifteens in the Top Gun movie. Oh, really. So that was just so fun. It just made my day

Suzanne Wells:

really looking for, um, that was how long ago?

Unknown:

Um, I was back in April.

Suzanne Wells:

So wait, there's another Top Gun movie coming out. Yes, yes,

Unknown:

three, yes, it's coming out next year.

Suzanne Wells:

Okay, so riding the wave on that top gun stuff, aren't they?

Unknown:

They are. They are. Well, fun fact, the original Top Gun movie was the first movie My husband and I saw together. So that just really made my day. It was really special. So,

Suzanne Wells:

oh, okay, what a good memory. So is your husband from a military family? Also,

Unknown:

no, he's not okay. He's he's actually from Michigan. We met up in Bible college in Indiana, and I lived in Michigan with him after we got married for 11 years. So,

Suzanne Wells:

so you're kind of an prairie Michigander.

Unknown:

Yes, all my kids are. They are. So what part did you live in? Yep, like, right in the middle, um, about an hour north of Grand Rapids,

Suzanne Wells:

okay, oh, so you got some cold weather. So you, you Yes, like, Florida a lot. Now, I do, I do. It

Unknown:

just got, it got to be depressing after six months of cold, and I didn't do very well. So

Suzanne Wells:

well, I will say I've never been to Michigan, and that's on my list. It is beautiful. It is up and all the lakes, I know they're famous for blueberries and which are my favorite movie somewhere in time was filmed there, right right? Mackinac Island, or Mackinac Island, Mackinac, Mackinac Island, yeah, yes, one of my favorite movies. And they have conventions there, and you dress up. And I just think that's very cool. And no, no motor vehicles on the island, just right? Bicycles. And that really is going back in time. I'd love to go. It is, I guess you know, you've kind of made the round. At least you could say yeah, I tried it and it wasn't for me.

Unknown:

Yes, yes, I did love the snow for about one month. But then I would like to kiss it goodbye one day.

Suzanne Wells:

Yeah. Well, good for you. Okay, so you've you kind of made the rounds everywhere,

Unknown:

got around a little bit. Did

Suzanne Wells:

you move around a lot with your parents being in the military?

Unknown:

No, actually, we stayed here my my parents got out of the military shortly after I was born. Okay? So, yeah, my, my dad went into civil service, and he still worked on the base. But, yep, okay, so, but my husband's a trucker, so I have been around. I've been tracking with him, and still may in the future. So

Suzanne Wells:

does he do long hauls like on for weeks at a time?

Unknown:

Um, usually just one week at a time. But what sometimes he has, sometimes he has so we've ventured out west once, once, I went to Canada with him. So, so, yeah, it's been, it's been an adventure for sure. Okay,

Suzanne Wells:

my brother drives a truck, but he just does loc Well, he was in Atlanta, and then he kind of moved north in the foothills of Blue Ridge Mountains, but all kinds of trucking, I would not want to drive a semi through downtown Atlanta ever. I hear you, yeah, there's a wide open road out west, and then there's, you know, and in the Midwest, and then there are cities in this very different

Unknown:

you are correct, as you

Suzanne Wells:

know. So okay, well, we got off topic there. What else would you like to talk about, since you are prepared with your list of

Unknown:

well, let's see. One of the random items that I sold was that that fabric that you had highlighted on your YouTube video, it was an upholstery fabric, and you had kindly mentioned that all you fabric people are so smart, and yes, appreciate that. I think it was, in this case, it was just kind of more instinct. But I will tell you my thinking process. There was number one, there was a lot of it. So somebody could really, you know, make several pillows or chair covers. Also, it was really just beautiful. I have a passion for interior design and decorating, so I just kind of knew this is really good. And upholstery fabric, anyway, is super expensive, um, but also maybe a tip for listeners is it had the writing on the edge of the company and the design, which was super helpful, too, and looking it up and and listing it so, um, he was six yards, and I paid $10 for it, and it sold for 82 so very that was a really, really good one. It was the colonial Williams I guess, Colonial Williamsburg fabric in the Chinese Peony pattern, if anybody's interested. Okay,

Suzanne Wells:

so are you an interior designer? Is that your like regular job, or you just kind of do it on the side? No,

Unknown:

I have kind of just played around with it. I'm have wanted to get into it for years. Right? And I actually was kind of looking at courses and just deciding what I wanted to do. And I found one that I was interested in, but I wanted to save up money to be able to do to that without going into debt. And so I was like, eBay is the way to go. It's giving me money right now. So, right. So I just really got going on that, and I just loved it. So

Suzanne Wells:

can you give us any insight into home design esthetics that are popular I think everybody knows about, like farmhouse and farmhouse?

Unknown:

Yeah, yeah, that's going away. Right now. It's more maximal, maximalism. Oh, really, but yes, a couple years ago, it was minimalist. Everything you know, right?

Suzanne Wells:

I follow a bunch of home interior design pages on Facebook because I just like looking at them and like this background is the kitchen from the move the Netflix series bloodline their kitchen. So I went, found a picture of it and put it on that's very cool. I didn't even realize it a lot, and I just, I got a change of background. I get bored. I noticed very nice. A lot of the color schemes are just neutrals and gray and like, Is that coming to an end? Can we Yes, that has ended, and I get that it's neutral, but, like, Baby nurseries are in gray and black. And I know it's terrible. You can't get on board with, you know, buying a baby gift for somebody and it's gray or black? Um, yes, it seems so wrong. And gray is just not a happy color. You know what's No it's done jewel tones? Is it pastels? Like, what's happening there?

Unknown:

It's jewel tones right now, and there's a, it's kind of a the color of the year. Is it Pantone? Right? Like a grape purple. Oh, kind of color? It's really pretty. It's, it's a muted grayish purple, but um, super pretty. Um, but yes, colors are coming back. Pigeons to

Suzanne Wells:

things, everything. Carol, all these pictures of just gray and white and neutrals, it looks like a hospital, not a home,

Unknown:

right, right? Well, I do like neutrals, but there has to be a right balance of everything. And that's one of the keys to

Suzanne Wells:

and you can put some code decorating the pop like and you definitely need one color scheme, like a royal blue or, you know, something that that pops a little bit, but exactly it seems, it feels so depressing to me. You're right. You're right. He's gray. Well, I'm glad to hear that's that's being phased out. We're going to move on to something else. And that's, I think, for like, pickers, that's important information, like, what, what colors are hot or popular? Because Right, right people that want to follow that style, and it's like, oh, this this purple vase, or this purple lampshade or whatever it is. It's good to know that, because people are going to go on yes and look for unique, fun items that where they can express themselves like, Oh, I love this. I've never seen something like this before. And if it's the popular color, even better,

Unknown:

right? That's for sure. That's for sure. Um, I've recently started collecting milk glass and kind of just looking at that and I I'm finding a lot of home interior stuff that I'm like, Oh, I don't know whether I want to sell this or, yeah, there's that, but, yeah, a lot of my house is purchases from garage sales or estate sales. But I love it. It just makes for a very lived in look. So another one of my favorite estate sales I've been to was a family run estate sale. I am assuming they did not advertise it anywhere, and all they did was put out one sign at the end of their road. I happened to see it and go to this sale. There wasn't a lot of people there, so I kind of got the pick of everything. And this lady was a collector, let's just say many things. She had a lot of vintage and even some antique things. I asked, you know, what the prices were, nothing was marked. And she's like, just make a pile. And I was like, Okay, great. So I kind of test the waters. And I like, well, what does that mean? You know. Wow. So I asked her, what, what is this one item kind of cost me and, and she's told me, just $1 or whatever. So I'm like, Okay, it's safe to make a big right? So anyway, I found some vintage magazines there, and there was about 40 of them. And like, you know, I'm, I can't, I don't have time to look all of these up, but I'm going to take a chance on and she ended up selling them all to me for $3 okay, and so I was, got home and found out that one of them was a real winner. It was a Saturday Evening Post April issue of from 1950 I don't know what made it so popular. If it was the alcoholic anonymous article in there, or it was the Jackie Robinson picture on the back, but it was very rare at the time I listed it, there was only one on there. And right now, there's about three or four listed on there. But they, for some reason, they don't have the cover of the magazine on their listing, and I don't know why. I don't know you knew why, but I thought

Suzanne Wells:

maybe it got ripped off and they don't have it, or was it in another

Unknown:

row? No, because I looked at all the pictures, um, they even said they're the covers intact, but a little bent. So I'm really curious as to why that is.

Suzanne Wells:

What's their gallery picture? It was the

Unknown:

the article about the alcoholics. Okay, so they know something about, yes, apparently. So, so anyway, I sold that one magazine for $85 in a matter of minutes. Oh

Suzanne Wells:

gosh. And usually it was not worth anything. There's like a zillion of them out there, and they're just not right. It's not right. Be like, oh I it's like, National Geographic. There's a couple that have iconic covers, the the girl with very blue eyes and the dark skin and the head wrap thing on, um, that used to be worth a lot, but I don't think it is anymore. But yeah,

Unknown:

yes. So I found several others that were worth a good bit, and one I sold for 50 that was a Ladies Home Journal issue. Another about that, I don't it was a 1953 I would have to go back and look at it. Did

Suzanne Wells:

you have a whole bunch of those? And you just picked out the one that was worth the most.

Unknown:

I looked at comps on every one of them. After that one magazine, I'm gonna research these. And it was definitely worth doing. I sold another women's Home Companion for 43 and then I sold a lot of seven of Ladies Home Journal and McCall's. These are all 1950s those were I sold for 44 so I really out of that whole lot, I made almost $300 from just the magazines. So that was really fun. She also had a frog collection like I've never seen. Her whole house was filled with frogs in a plague of Egypt or something. Gee, I'm not a fan of frogs, but I did end up buying quite a few of them. And I found some of your bolo book frogs, the ones with the sponges in their mouths,

Suzanne Wells:

right? Yeah. So everybody had on their sink in this 70s and 80s, the frog with his mouth open, and you stick the little scrubby thing in there? Yes, yes,

Unknown:

I was so excited, just like I found one of Suzanne's. So that was fun. And

Suzanne Wells:

I'm just going to interject this, yeah, this, it got away from me on a previous episode, magazines cannot be shipped media mail, yes, and I know you know that I'm just repeating this sure as they have advertising.

Unknown:

So yes, that's one of the things I learned along the way. Oh

Suzanne Wells:

yeah, you did always learn. Me, well, I wasn't saying that you were shipping them wrong. I just That's a point that is often missed because magazines are media, yeah, right. Oh, that's fine, but it has to do with the advertising. Because if the Post Office's stance on this is if they allow it, then, like, everything in the world is going to be shipped media mail, like all these, you know, advertising, mailings and flyers and all that stuff. And, you know, it's just a cheaper class of mail, but it does take the slow boat to China anyway, I usually like if it qualifies for meeting mail, I usually offer that and something else, or ground advantage and priority and let the let the buyer pick. Because just because it can be shipped media mail doesn't mean that's what the buyer wants. And I started shipping my bolo books, media mail, like, the first year they came out, because they took so long to get there, or they got loans and media mail. Yeah, that's not fun, child of the post office, and there's no sense of urgency. And I was like, you know, people like, can you ship this media mail was like, nope, bad experience. Don't want it to get lost. I know you want to have it in your hands in a couple of days. You can start looking for these things, sure, but it is for the listeners. You know, if you do media mail, you can offer other options and, okay,

Unknown:

I didn't even realize that, yeah, you can know I learned something new

Suzanne Wells:

and offer ground advantage and priority. Don't try to make the decision for your buyer like I'm going to they're going to want to save money, so I'm going to do it this way, because they might need it immediately. So many things now are being used for wedding decorations and shower decorations. I had a lady buy a bunch of those empty perfume bottles for it's like a 60th birthday for a friend, and that was her favorite scent of the Chanel number five. Yada yada. But all these old things are being used as decorations for parties and stuff. So they yes, they might be, you know, last minute Larry. And they're like, I need this by Thursday. You know, can you ship it faster? So, yeah, just just absolutely thought on magazines that was a lot.

Unknown:

Yeah, I have looked at several since, and I haven't come across any valuable ones. So I just happened to hit the jackpot on that

Suzanne Wells:

one, the older ones, 50s and 60s. I've heard of people taking the pages out and framing the ads and whatever, with the hairstyles and the clothing and fun decor for a vintage shop or your house or coffee shop or whatever, there's value in what's inside the picture. They may be, quote, parting it out, you know, and doing different things with it, or, right, that craft, decoupage, you know, covering things, yes, yes. And so you don't know. The only way to know is ask them, Hey, why'd you buy this? What are you going to do with

Unknown:

it? Right? Exactly? Oh, I was tempted to take some of the pictures out there was just some adorable ads for tide with the lady and the apron and, yeah, just frame it and put it in my laundry room. I was like, That would be so cute, yeah, but yeah, I shared them. We kind of looked through them with my grandma and and my mom and it took them back, and they just really enjoyed looking through them.

Suzanne Wells:

Yeah, it's the nostalgia, the feel good rush of endorphins when you see these things that remind you of your youth. Um, yeah, keep the price on that

Unknown:

exactly, exactly right.

Suzanne Wells:

What Is that cute bag behind you? It says, Pick Junker. I can't read the rest.

Unknown:

Um, vintage Hunter. Oh, okay, so my mother in law bought that for me a couple weeks ago and sent it to me, and I was so surprised.

Suzanne Wells:

It's, it's just a white tote bag, like a canvas tote bag with a black, old timey pickup truck. I don't know. I'm always looking at the background that that's cute art. Does your goodwill require you to bring your own bag now?

Unknown:

No, they don't. Well, they might have. Some of them do. Well,

Suzanne Wells:

I've been encountering that and talking with other sellers in other states that they're all moving towards that as I guess, save money on bags. I don't think it's an environmental thing. I think it's a we don't want to buy the bags anymore thing. But

Unknown:

yes, that's a, yeah, I. Guess I have had some of them ask if I really want a bag, like they don't want to give me one. So yeah, I'm sure it's probably going that way. Well,

Suzanne Wells:

in the Carolinas, they have these, like, at the checkout, they'll have stands of no the reusable bags for like,$1 so if you didn't bring yours, or you didn't know, you can just buy one. And that happened to me a few weeks ago, and it's a nice, sturdy bag. It's a

Unknown:

big one, nice. Well, that's good.

Suzanne Wells:

Remember from now on, in case I don't have my IKEA bags with me, but yeah, that's right, cutting back and and now they're selling you the bag instead of giving Oh, boy,

Unknown:

yeah, yeah, well, that's a Yeah, bummer. I don't know if you your bins has a bunch of tote bags at the front that you can just grab and put stuff in my bins does that. I haven't

Suzanne Wells:

been to a bins enough to know I went to a couple out in the Midwest last year, and there's one in Greenville that I haven't been to yet. And then there's a new one, newer one up in Rock Hill that's been open about a year and but it's like 50 miles away, so, but that's a good idea that they give you the bags, or let you buy the bags.

Unknown:

Yeah, it's kind of weighed with your other stuff, you know, but Right? But they do collect whatever comes in. They put it in a big tote at the front, so you come in, you just grabbed your trash can. They used to have carts, but now they use trash cans on wheels. I've seen, yeah, and I usually go right over, grab a couple tote bags, throw them in there. So I'm ready to start going through my stuff.

Suzanne Wells:

So do you like the trash can on wheels concept better than the cart?

Unknown:

It's not as easy. When you're going through your but it does make for better maneuvering in the store with all the people. So yeah,

Suzanne Wells:

I was going to say that it's better for traffic flow, because these are, like elongated, like a a kitchen trash can. They're elongated. They have wheels, so they're not long and, you know, wide, like a shopping cart, and there can be some congested areas in those for

Unknown:

sure, yes, they don't take up, like, half bins, right? Yeah, but I feel people trying to block

Suzanne Wells:

the YouTube videos and stuff, like, it's hard to bend over and get your stuff out. It is, it is reevaluate. Do I really want to buy this? Because I do that too, before I check out anywhere I go through it again, like, okay, was this an impulse or or is this really going to make me money? Do I just like it, right? Yeah, here, if all the bins are going to that with the trash can on wheels idea,

Unknown:

I'm really not sure. I was really sad to find out that our bin store is closing this fall, and it's only about 20 minutes away from me, so that's where I get a lot of inventory, but they're opening another one in Foley, Alabama. That's about an hour and a half for me. So it's not terrible, but I won't be going over there as often,

Suzanne Wells:

right? To make that a a day trip and work in some other stops.

Unknown:

Yes, yes. So speaking of bins, when we went up to Michigan for a trip to visit my husband's family thanksgiving, I decided to visit the Grand Haven bins, which is right next to Grand Rapids. And wow, was that different from ours? Okay? Whatever. Much. Just much bigger. They did have regular carts. They had a whole room separate just for clothing, which was crazy to me, because we have a very small it's, I mean, it's just a lot smaller. But also the pricing was a lot different. They had everything for 99 cents a pound. For housewares and ours is $1.79 a pound. Oh, so it's quite a bit, quite a bit more. They will do books separately. Books are like 50 cents a piece, right? There was a lot more defined over there. And I also found another one of your bolos. I found a boat and tote bag there. Okay, yes, I haven't sold it yet, but it's, it's on there, and I've got a lot of watchers, so it's. So

Suzanne Wells:

what does it look like? Is it white with colored straps, or is it a color?

Unknown:

It is orange and green and yellow stripes. Okay, so I haven't seen very many of them. There's I saw one other one like it. Mm, hmm. So,

Suzanne Wells:

so for the listeners, she's talking about the iconic LL Bean. I think it's made of like sail cloth, or it's canvas,

Unknown:

definitely canvas, Boat Tote, yes, coat

Suzanne Wells:

bag that those some can sell for like, $300

Unknown:

yes, they're so heavy duty. I i read a little bit about the history that they used to carry ice in, okay, where I am up in Maine. So another thing I like to sell is Christmas, and I've done really well with Christmas stockings of all different kinds. I sold a nanco Eminem stocking for $32 okay, that was, it was a little bitty thing. It wasn't really a full size stocking, but that was a nice sale. And then I sold some of those needlepoint stockings with the velvet on the back. Those do really well.

Suzanne Wells:

They're very heavy duty. And do you ever sell any that have names on them?

Unknown:

I have some that have names on them. I don't have them listed yet, so I need to get them listed. But

Suzanne Wells:

I don't think it matters, though, just you know, for the listeners, because first of all, if it's needlepoint or cross stitch or something, even those bucilla ones, you can take that off. You can, but I see so many Christmas displays that have stockings and, you know, maybe they don't care if the name's on there, you know, if it's if it's in a little boutique or a store, or a store window or something, doesn't matter if the name's on it. You know, personalities go either way. It could be like, Oh, nobody's going to want it because it's not their name. Or it could be, oh, that's if somebody's name and they want it, or they don't care that it

Unknown:

has a name on it. Yes, you're exactly right. And I believe the ones I have, I think I have four of them with names, and I think they're all LL Bean, right? And they're really nice, high quality. So

Suzanne Wells:

yeah, those are very durable and well made. And somebody who's into sewing, they can figure out how to cover up the name or take it off or

Unknown:

whatever. If, sure, there's so many options you could do, it's important to them put some ribbon over it, or something, you know,

Suzanne Wells:

come up with something, because it could have been, oh yeah, my dad had this exact stalking and yada yada, and it got lost in the move or, you know, whatever. And again, the cinnamon something,

Unknown:

yes, along the same line as the needle point with the velvet back, I found two Nutcracker pillows. They're made of the same type of stuff. And the comps for those were really good. So I sold two of those for$78.02

Suzanne Wells:

together, or each$78

Unknown:

I sold both of them together for 78 oh, I don't think I would do that again. I think next time I would sell them separately, because the shipping was so high, that big, yeah. And I was like, okay, that's one of the things I I've learned. It's just, if it's too big, it's they might not want to buy it because it's shipping. So, yeah,

Suzanne Wells:

I just took some listings down that have been out there a year, and they were for those little hotel soaps, vintage, way back in the day. And I bought those at an estate sale. Was like, this huge bucket for 20 bucks. And I was like, Oh, I could make different lots. And, you know, I I tried it all different ways, but I think it's they're just too heavy. People don't want to pay the shipping, and yes, they'll probably end up being donated to a woman's shelter or something like that that needs soap, but they're very cool looking, and from hotels that don't exist anymore. And I thought that would be appealing to somebody because of the vintage value, but I can't even get away. I put them on auction for $9 like starting at$9 and I think it's just they're so heavy that nobody wants to pay that. So you're right, yeah, sometimes you don't realize that till you list the item and and watch it sit there for a year or so,

Unknown:

right? Right? Also, some. Pottery Barn velvet stockings. These were a dark purple, and they sold for both of them. Both of them sold for$50 No, I'm sorry, great. No, I'm sorry. Yes, that was those. And then, have you ever heard of the Charles craft cross stitch stocking? Yes, I sure have. Okay, those are great solo items. Um, they'll sell anywhere from 25 to 50 each stocking. So I found two of those for $1 and sold them each for $50 so

Suzanne Wells:

so it was the completed, not the kit.

Unknown:

These were brand new, and they didn't have anything on them, yet. They still have the tags on them. Oh, okay,

Suzanne Wells:

so wait, is craft a needle work brand Yes,

Unknown:

finished. Okay, yes, um, it's the stocking is either green, red, or it has a print, and then the cuff is cross stitch material. So those do super well. I'm always looking for them so and then I went to another estate sale that was kind of similar to the one with the magazines, and they hadn't had it advertised very well. I was the only one there, and they had oodles of Christmas stuff. I guess they decorated their whole house with Christmas, and they had contests in their neighborhood and to see who would win the prize? I guess it was one of those associations or whatever, right? Yes, yes, right. They went all out. And I think they had everything from Dillards. You're familiar with that. Oh, yeah, yeah. So that was a really fun sale. I got so much Christmas the department, 56 Santa Clauses, several of those, some clausenet ornaments, and got a little Christmas tree, and I kept that for myself, but oodles of just blast ornaments, beautiful sets, like seashells, and that was really fun. It was just a blast.

Suzanne Wells:

Don't you just love those sales. And you walk in, you're like, ooh, these people like to shop. Oh,

Unknown:

yeah, they do. I think, I think he said his wife was a lawyer, so she definitely had money and

Suzanne Wells:

anymore, well, I think it's just shopping is one of those things that it creates endorphin, it becomes a habit, and people just love it, and then it's just the accumulation that follows.

Unknown:

And Right, right,

Suzanne Wells:

yeah, and I went to an estate sale once, and this lady was into TJ, Maxx and the entire basement. And this was a big house. This was like a 6000 square foot house. The entire basement was just tables and tables of all the stuff still in the box, in the package from TJ Maxx, wow, yeah. And it was just the accumulation was mind blowing to me. But yeah, we love finding those estate sales.

Unknown:

Yes, we do. I saw

Suzanne Wells:

Facebook the other day like one of those reels, and it was this long line of people at an estate sale, and the the voiceover was like, if this isn't what happens at my estate sale after I'm gone, then I'm doing it wrong. Like to have the most stuff at your estate

Unknown:

sale that is funny. Oh, my goodness. That goes back to your

Suzanne Wells:

interior design esthetic of maximalism. Oh, yes. I guess people are just getting on board with that.

Unknown:

Yes, yes, they are. That kind of reminded me of another funny estate sales story. I was shopping at one, and all of a sudden this lady comes in that was another shopper, and she says, someone just took the tire off my car. It's like, who did this? And we're like, I don't know. So we went out and. Found out the neighbor had removed her tire off her car for parking in front of his driveway. Oh, so you have to be careful where you're parking.

Suzanne Wells:

Yeah, I'll teach her, yeah. Oh,

Unknown:

yeah. So they had to call the police, and he came and made the neighbor put it back on. Technically, both of you could have gotten a ticket, so yeah, let them off, but just a word to the wise.

Suzanne Wells:

There you go. Okay, well, wow, that hour went by fast. Do you have any final words or tips for the listeners?

Unknown:

Yeah, sure, I do. First I wanted to give this thanks to God and my savior for guiding me into this journey, because it's just been really a blessing being able to do this while I'm homeschooling my kids. And I know you have a lot of homeschoolers on here, but it works. And, yeah,

Suzanne Wells:

it goes together. And it's, this is so flexible. You don't have to be anywhere at a certain time.

Unknown:

You can just around, right? Yeah. And then just also you, Suzanne, for teaching me so much. The the courses and the books have been just amazing. So if anybody needs sources, they are out there. YouTube is great. Join Facebook groups for any specific niches that you are interested in. You're not going to learn everything in two weeks. I mean, it just like anything worth doing, it's going to take time, but it's great, and it's, it's a fun process. I've enjoyed learning

Suzanne Wells:

Well, and, yeah, you're not going to learn at all ever. I spend no no hours. Yesterday, I had bought these little Professor calculators on an online auction, and it said, you know, they work and everything. And I get them and I couldn't get them to work, and I'm putting new batteries in, and I'm like, so disappointed. I'm like, Oh, I've wasted money again, something that doesn't work well, no operator error. I went on YouTube and like, you had to push buttons like to set up the problems, because it's like a it's like a backwards calculator that gives you a problem and you put in the answer. So you had to push, like level and go and all these buttons in a certain order. And they did work. I was just good, like, I don't think I ever had one of those. Those came along after I was the age to use them. I was like, I can't believe this. These don't work. And I'm now, I'm like, the calculator repair shop, but it was just doing everything in the right order. Oh, good. And now we know that I didn't know that before. That's so

Unknown:

right. Always Learning Right exactly. I've had to do that too. My kids found a wall e robot at a yard sale, and I had to get batteries for it and learn how to use it right, right?

Suzanne Wells:

Thank goodness, because you can figure out anything. Just go on YouTube and see if somebody's made a video, and I've never not been able to figure out how to do something by going on YouTube and finding a video. So I'm very thankful for all those people that make the videos on how to fix this

Unknown:

time. What part

Suzanne Wells:

do you need for this? And it's huge, yeah, how do we live without it? I know, right. Yes, go ask the neighbor.

Unknown:

Right, right.

Suzanne Wells:

Library. Thank you again for coming on the podcast and sharing all your information. There's been a lot of helpful tips, and we'll watch for your sales on the Facebook group,

Unknown:

okay, thank you. Suzanne, thanks. Have a great day. You too. Bye.

Suzanne Wells:

A few follow ups from Becky regarding the LL Bean Boat Tote, it's listed for 8997 and only two watchers. She was thinking of another item and forgot to mention it. So I'll tell you here. It is a rare jelly cat, Ginger striped, I guess, cat or tiger. She didn't say what kind of animal it has 28 watchers and is listed for$175 so yes, those jelly cat items can do very well, and the color of the year she was thinking of wasn't Pantone. But Benjamin Moore's cinnamon slate. It's described as a delicate mix of heathered plum and velvety Brown. The color aims to offer a balance of enduring style and modern sensibility, creating a sense of calm and comfort. And I'm so glad that we're moving on to some deeper, richer colors and not so many neutrals, but that's just my personal preference. So you might want to look up that color again. It's Benjamin Moore's cinnamon slate. And keep your eyes out for home decor items in that color or close to it, since that is now trending, okay. Next week, my guest is Mindy. You may have seen some of her sewing pattern sales on the money making Mondays thread, she has accumulated a great deal of knowledge about the fine details of selling sewing patterns and craft supplies in general, and you will love all of the detailed information she shares. So that's it for this episode. If you are interested in being a guest, please reach out to me and let's talk. Thanks again for supporting this podcast and make it a profitable and productive week on eBay. Bye, everybody. You