Morning,

The sun is shining, the Venus Flytraps
are dozing, the mommies are half asleeping
(oh wait, no, they’re writing ezines) and
how are you doing?

I’m doing peachy indeed, thank you very much!
Today my husband and I decided to relax
with one of our favorite weekend pasttimes -
garage saleing! The sheer uniqueness and
treasures you can uncover can boggle the
mind, indeed.

First things first - I bought 3 roller blades
(well, pairs of roller blades, I mean you
really can’t do much with 3 roller blades and
two legs) - one for me, one for me hubby,
and one for one of me kids. Got the price
down from $4 each to all three for $10! And
they’re in great condition - my kids had
recently asked for ‘roller blading trips
along the Boardwalk’. Now, granted, the
last time I was one anything remotely blade-
shaped was when the earth’s crust had cooled
enough so I could ice-skate…but I digress.

True, when I did return home, I had to dash
out again to Target to pick up another set of
roller blades - I didn’t want my other child
to feel left out. Luckily, there’s a store
sale on them! New, they were $21 or so…
not like the prices I remember of yesteryear.

Another sale yielded (get this) 4 inch wide
lucite cubes. Picture, if you will, a 4 inch
solid lucite cube with the negative imprint
of a pyramid on one surface. What can you
put in that imprint? Why, the corner of
*another* solid 4 inch lucite cube (the corners
of cubes are pyramids, don’tcha know). Talk
about a conversational piece! I think it would
make a simply spiffy end of the year
gift for one of my kids’ teachers….
whenever they look at it, they’ll think,
ah, unique. It must be from a Ling.

At another sale, though, I really hit paydirt -
several immaculate first editions of the really
early Zane Gray novels. Those were offered to
me at $1 each (like my Gone with the Wind treasure
trove I had bought a few years ago and ended up
selling for $150 on eBay), so this time I
didn’t debate the pricing. I’m adding to
my collection! ’tis growing very nicely…
and if I ever do want to sell those on eBay,
I should clear a tidy profit.

One of the joys of garage saleing if you
turn things around on eBay is quite often,
the sellers have not a clue (really, not
a clue!) as to when they have something
really valuable. The challenge you
can run into, however, is you might end
up walking away from great deals that could
net you gratifying profits…if only you
knew what to look for.

Did you know that a resource now exists
that helps teach you quickly about what
sells in many popular collectibles categories?
Mentioned in the Wall Street Journal
earlier this year, the eBay seller’s guide
to finding profitable hidden bargains at
garage sales is an excellent resource!

A quick 29 page guide, it cuts thru to
the chase about what’s valuable in categories
such as books, tapes, clothing, CDs, craft items,
etc. etc. etc. And because it’s such a quick
read, you get the info you need when you need it.

Definitely check it out!

http://www.richhermit.com/help/garage.html

Garage sales are more than just relaxation…
they’re great for business as well. And they’re
more than just great for business….they’re
wonderful for relaxation too! It’s when
you can combine the two that you really make
for one super-exciting day. Take advantage of
that.

Enjoy!

Posted by rh in Rich Hermit, Personal, Tutorials