Second hand market

[iris lilies]

The really nice antique and flea market I was in last year sold out...it's being remodeled to be a huge dollar general store.
I walked through a new flea market yesterday...noticed there were a lot of metal fake'tiques with made in china tags.
A guy came in asking about selling his wife's china. Guy behind the counter said there was no interest in China.

I continue to be surprised at the number of people who think their "good china" is worth something. Why dont thet just use it?

Well, my modern fine china dinnerware has a gold edge that will be ruined in multiple washes in the dishwasher, so thats why I wont use mine dailey. But I still like it for special occasions.

My antique flow blue pieces are fun, I love them, and who knows maybe I will start using them daily some day. Rigth now I feel obligated to kind of preserve them because they are 100+ years old and fragile, but my collection is made up of random patterns that I find attractive so that kind of collection is not "valuable" even back when flow blue was hot. If it were a complete set of one pattern, that is the sort of thing that should be preserved for generations, one has an obligation to preserve something that rare.

Shabby Chic weddings in a barn are still a thing, and I think one can get rid of flowery china to brides who want to mix and match vintage chona. But you cant charge them much for it.

There are thousands of sets of "Haviland" ( I use the term loosely) sitting in basements all over the country be ause people are paralyzed at rhe thought of jettisoning them for no money.

Keep in mind that our children dont want our stuff but the grandchildren may find the stuff attractive. I guess thats what is happening with mid century modern items, grandchildren of people in their 80's are finding this stuff attractive.

[Tybee]

My mom has a set of French Haviland that was her wedding present. I used to love that china. I keep thinking that maybe my granddaughter will find this stuff irresistible. I have primed her tastes with the Buffalo china Kenmore patternI just sent her parents:



We shall see. . .

[catherine]

Absolutely. Who do you know who wants Lenox figurines, Lladro, Royal Doulton, Waterford, Hummel? None of my kids, that's for sure. We have boxes of it from my mother and MIL, and we don't know what to do with it. Seems a shame to when you can't even give it away. What do you do, trash it? The value of it was in the thousands of dollars at one point. Do you keep it in hopes that it fetches a fortune in the 2050 edition of Antiques Roadshow? I doubt that they will. None of these things will be rare enough.

Books are also hard to sell in the used book market. I posted a ton of them on Amazon and sold maybe two--for less than what it probably cost me in the time it took to package and send them.

[Tybee]

Absolutely. Who do you know who wants Lenox figurines, Lladro, Royal Doulton, Waterford, Hummel? None of my kids, that's for sure. We have boxes of it from my mother and MIL, and we don't know what to do with it. Seems a shame to when you can't even give it away. What do you do, trash it? The value of it was in the thousands of dollars at one point. Do you keep it in hopes that it fetches a fortune in the 2050 edition of Antiques Roadshow? I doubt that they will. None of these things will be rare enough.

Books are also hard to sell in the used book market. I posted a ton of them on Amazon and sold maybe two--for less than what it probably cost me in the time it took to package and send them.

It is so interesting what our kids want and don't want. I am so surprised by what they spend on baby paraphinalia (sp) for example, like the jogging strollers, but then they got a dining room table on craigslist that is so darned ugly-- seriously, there are so many beautiful antiques and non antiques right now, and they got this ugly table with captains chairs, like something out of--I don't know, I was going to say the old West, but that's not right, either. And my dil does not own a tablecloth. So they definitely have different ideas than I did at that age. I wonder if it is the influence of video on people--it's all just a surface for a computer? I don't know; they are fantastic cooks and entertain, so it's funny they don't seem to care how things look.

[catherine]

This is an amazing coincidence, but after reading this thread I went online and googled "how to get rid of china" and there was a poster who said etsy has china on it. So I went to etsy and just searched for "china" and the FIRST thing that came up was MY Lenox pattern! At least I know I can get $40 for a few cups and saucers! https://www.etsy.com/listing/5168764...0723:516876437

il_570xN.1204026667_6vxt.jpg

I think the pattern's pretty enough, but it's really more of a pattern that looks better in a hutch than on the table (and I don't have a hutch). My DH, the amateur chef, hates it because you can't present food nicely on it. The pattern detracts from the food presentation.

it's funny they don't seem to care how things look.

Tybee, I think their aesthetic is simply less formal and ornate. But it's true that they don't have the "hope chest" mentality that we did. I remember it being a real pre-wedding ritual picking out your china pattern. I think another cultural reason for that is, some come from having lived with each other so they either blended all their stuff already and don't feel they need it; they don't see any real need because they have "good enough" stuff and have earmarked money for other things like travel.

[Tybee]

Good point, Catherine, about a different aesthetic, and travel as having very high importance. You're right about already having a household established, too.
I think I am going to concentrate on amassing jewelry to leave my dil and granddaughter. No one ever complained about inheriting jewelry, and it's fun to wear it in the mean time. Very small and portable. I was thinking about Old Indian Pawn bracelets as my next interest.

[Float On]

It is so interesting what our kids want and don't want. I am so surprised by what they spend on baby paraphinalia (sp) for example, like the jogging strollers, but then they got a dining room table on craigslist that is so darned ugly-- seriously, there are so many beautiful antiques and non antiques right now, and they got this ugly table with captains chairs, like something out of--I don't know, I was going to say the old West, but that's not right, either. And my dil does not own a tablecloth. So they definitely have different ideas than I did at that age. I wonder if it is the influence of video on people--it's all just a surface for a computer? I don't know; they are fantastic cooks and entertain, so it's funny they don't seem to care how things look.

I'm 50 and do not own a tablecloth. I do however make a lot of napkins (it's my therapy). I haven't bought paper napkins since '92.

[Tybee]

Do you have placemats, Float, or just put the dishes right on the table?

I think it was the ugliness of their table that made me think about the tablecloth.

But I remember readingthis wonderful biography of a girl who was born in America and grew up in Nazi Germany and she said every day, after they were bombed the night before, their mother made them go upstairs and clean off the dust and debris and put a tablecloth on the table for that night's dinner.

[Molly]

I was thinking about Old Indian Pawn bracelets as my next interest.

Tybee - Can you tell me more about this? I was doing research on ebay before listing some of my Southwest jewelry and came upon that term recently. What is Old Indian Pawn?

BTW, my Southwest pieces sold quickly, so apparently there is a market.

[Geila]

We have an auction house nearby that holds sales every two weeks. They often have really beautiful things in excellent condition that doesn't sell. E.g. a beautiful wood table with 6 lovely chairs didn't get any takers even at $30. And LOTS of beautiful china with hundreds of pieces that nobody wants. Such a shame. I've gotten some wonderful wooden furniture there, well made and in excellent condition.

But I've also bought stuff at Ikea because it serves a very specific function and space and is light and easy to move.

Currently, I'm in the market for a round pedestal table for my very small dining nook. I'd like to buy something at the auction house before they go out of business (!) but the sets are just too big. I'm thinking of going with the Ikea Docksta instead: http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/40063632/ and I can buy some beautiful chairs at auction for it. I haven't seen any pedestals at the auction house, though I don't go very often.

We had a large Ethan Allen dresser and just took it to Goodwill and let them sell it. It was big, heavy, ornate and dark. I didn't like it. I think it was from the 80's. I do like the pieces from the 50's (I think?), they are the ones with very clean lines and simple design in lightweight wood. The color is usually brown but I just strip it and paint it a pretty light color.