Friday is fun day

Well, it isn't my granddaughter's idea of shopping fun as you see here. But the excitement of finding a treasure to sell on eBay can't be beat to my way of thinking. I look forward to Friday fun because that's when the Estate Sales begin.

On Thursday morning, I can hardly wait to get into the local classified ads and find my treasure chests. I look for "whole house sale" announcements as well since an estate sale manager told me the charge for advertising causes her to advertise that way instead of saying Estate Sale.

 I also make a note of any church or school rummage sales that will be held on Saturday. Just in case I have a few dollars left from Friday's adventures. These are often great places to find newer items at great prices. The organizers of these sales often don't know how to research pricing and you can really get good deals there.

One eBay seller I know makes a practice of getting to these sales a day early to make a contribution (things he couldn't sell on eBay the week before) and while he is there, he may make an on the spot offer on some items. They can't resist because that means less work displaying and marking.   Some of the things I look for at estate and rummage sales include:

• Silver (especially sterling)
• Costume and fine jewelry (look for makers marks)
• Postcards from small US towns
• Pre-1970s vintage Hallowe'en and Christmas decorations
• Art Pottery (again... look for a mark on the bottom)
• Vintage buttons
• Vintage clothing (with cool buttons too)
• Clocks
• Guitars and other stringed musical instruments
• Old signs
• Needlework kits and books
• Household items with vintage advertising logos and slogans

You will want to look for items in categories you know about of course. But those are a few items to be on the look out for.

Well, I'm off to make my route plan. Happy hunting!