Always Say "Yes" to Free Stuff Part 4

Just what you've been waiting for! Another episode in my "Always say yes to free stuff" series!

My youngest sister (yes, I have lots of family!) had a yard sale last fall and gave me a few things that didn't sell that she was either going to take to Goodwill or me! As usual it seemed like it took me awhile to get them listed but here are a few things that sold fairly fast!

Small Vintage Vanity Mirror

Free - Sold for $14.95 - Profit $12.43

Big Microwave Plate

Free - Sold for $14.95 - Profit $9.05

Euphoria Perfume (over half used)

Free - Sold for $7.50 - Profit $6.81

Pampered Chef Cake Decorator

Free - Sold for $9.95 - $8.61

That's $36.90 of profit for me! Better than letting Goodwill have it, I say!

I've been trying to catch up on a few things with my business the past couple of days. I'm home sick with the flu along with my husband and son. I don't have it as bad as them as I didn't get a fever but the body aches and the cough are no fun! Had to miss a funeral and a wedding reception today because I just felt too crummy! Hopefully you are all doing well. Thanks for stopping by! ~~Pam

Always Say "Yes" to Free Stuff Part 3

Hello! Just a short post today as I'm running behind and out of time! Still gotta couple of orders to get ready!

A couple of months ago one of my sisters gave me this beautiful afghan that she had made for her in-laws probably 20 or more years ago. They had used it a long time and are now downsizing so they had given back to my sister. She didn't want it either so she gave it to me to sell! It almost seems like a sin to sell something that someone spent so much time on! I thought about keeping it myself but decided to list it instead. I researched crocheted afghans and came up with the price of $49.95. It's not a huge blanket...more of a lap size. It sold within a week or so of listing.

Handmade Crocheted Afghan

Free - Sold for $49.95 - Profit $42.88

Another item the same sister gave me were these shoes. They were in okay shape, not like new but not real worn either. So for these two items that she gave me I made $55.59!

Nike Shoes

Free - Sold for $15.00 - Profit $12.71

I have another sister who I've mentioned on my blog before. Naomi Lynn.....she has given me lots to sell and I've featured those items before. I haven't sold anything lately that she's given me but I have finally been listing a box of jeans and shirts she gave me over a year ago! I'm sure some of that will be selling soon! Thank you Naomi! If you haven't checked out her stationery shop on Etsy you might want to do that....she's a wonderful designer! She actually has two shops with two different kinds of styles. Here's a link to her Frieda Katherine shop!

Well, that's about it for today! Thanks for stopping by! ~~Pam

Always Say "Yes" to Free Stuff Part 2!

Hello! So, I have a confession to make......sometimes I'm not crazy about the free stuff that others give me to sell! I think it is more fun to go out and find my own stuff that I think looks interesting or unique or whatever! Sometimes when I do get free stuff from people, I take way too long to get it listed! Anybody relate? Take for instance these vintage sewing machine attachments. Buttonholers to be exact. I actually thought they were neat and I have done my share of sewing in the past but I didn't know if there was a market for these old things! A friend had given them to me to sell if I wanted. They were her mothers and she didn't want them or have a use for them. They sat around my office area for a few months before I finally got around to researching them and listing them. I listed the pink set first and then after doing more research I realized that I could probably do better by just selling the rest in a lot. I made a nice little profit of $42.47 for both listings! It only took a little less than 2 months for them to sell and they both sold within an hour of each other to different people! I thought that was crazy! And now they're outta here! I should have got to it sooner!

 Sewing Machine Buttonholers and Instructions

Free - Sold for 35.95 - Profit $30.93

Singer Sewing Attachments

Free - Sold for $13.45 - Profit $11.54

This next item is a book about trains that my 3rd daughter Gabby gave me to sell. Her ex-boyfriend was really into trains and I don't know if he gave her this book or if she just bought it on her own but she didn't want it anymore....she says she hates trains! 😁😁 I also had this book sitting around for awhile waiting to list it and it actually sold the same day I listed it! I should learn to never let anything sit around for awhile.....but some things are just more fun to list than others! At least this was fairly easy to photograph and then to ship!

Train Book

Free - Sold for $12.00 - Profit $10.27

These 3 items sold on the same day and they were given to me free! I made a total of $52.74 that day on things people gave to me! If I could do that much in sales every day it sure would help!

How many of you are "gifted" things for re-sale?

Thanks for stopping by! I will be back tomorrow with part 3! ~~Pam

Always Say "Yes" to Free Stuff! Part 1

Hello Everyone! I'm sorry it's been so long (again) since I've written! So much going on all the time, as I'm sure all of you have lots going on too! I was just thinking of what I could write about and realized that I've actually made a nice little chunk of money over the past couple of years from things that people (mostly my family) have given me to sell. Ever since my husband lost his job over 3 years ago I've been trying to sell more. He is working 3 different jobs now but we still need some income from me to help make ends meet. Anyway, my mom and sisters and even my older daughters have given me things that they decided they didn't want or even things that they've found at yard sales and thrift stores that they thought I could sell for some money.....bless their hearts! :) I appreciate it so much! I thought I would write a few posts just showing the different things I have been given and what the profit is.....here goes!

My daughter Brittany went to a couple of auctions awhile back and ended up getting a tub of plush bears for a dollar! I think they were on a table of other things that she actually wanted. She gave me the bears to sell. I researched them and most weren't selling for a ton of money but every little bit helps! I still have several more in my shop waiting to sell. These have sold since December:

Boyd's Bear Eugenia

Free - Sold for $8.95 - Profit $ 6.60

Boyd's Bear "Peepers P. MacDonald"

Free - Sold for $8.95 - Profit $8.27

Lot of Bears

Free - Sold for $10.95 - Profit $8.57

Winnie the Pooh Classic Plush

Free - Sold for $21.95 - Profit $17.32

Pier One Imports Blue Plush Bear

Free - Sold for $13.45 - Profit $11.44

So I  made $52.20 clear profit on the bears so far after fees, supplies and postage!

Next up are a couple of Shark vacuum attachments that the same daughter let me sell. She cleans houses and businesses for a living and she loves the Shark vacuum. She has gotten at least 3 over the past couple of years and she doesn't need all the attachments so I made a little money on these:

Shark Vacuum Attachment Dusting Brush

Free - Sold for $8.00 - Profit $7.01

Shark Vacuum Attachment Rotator Brush

Free - Sold for $11.50 - Profit $9.67

So the total profit in December and January from just what my daughter gave me is $68.88! I know it's not a ton of money but every little bit helps! I think also that I probably priced things a little lower than I might have if I had to pay for them. Sometimes you just want to move stuff fast!

So always take what someone else wants to give you. Sometimes they're just going to give it to Goodwill or throw it away and you might as well take it and make a little money! I'll be back with more on Tuesday! Thanks for stopping by! ~~Pam

Crazy Things to Sell and Making Money on Cleaning Up!

A couple of months ago I decided to clean out a couple of spots in my den...aka eBay/Etsy office. In the bottom of one of our bookcases I had designated a spot for my little girls art supplies and general fun stuff. She always loved to get in there and color, draw, paint, play with stickers, etc....but now, she's not such a "little" girl anymore. She's almost 11. She likes to play on her tablet...and the computer.......ugh. 😩 Anyway, I cleaned out the cupboard. She had lots of crayons.....and more crayons....and on top of that I had crayons! Broken crayons! Crayons that I thought I would someday melt down and pour into some kind of cute molds and then sell them on Etsy! (thanks Pinterest!) Oh boy....so I looked up broken crayons on eBay...I figured if there was such a craft as melting down crayons and making new fun crayons, then somebody out there might want to buy mine! I was right! I had almost 8 pounds of crayons! Six little baggies of 90 each for a total of 540 whole crayons plus half of a gallon size freezer bag that had broken crayons and also some whole crayons. I listed them a few days ago for $34.95 with free shipping. They fit in a medium priority flat rate box. After fees and shipping I made $18.59 profit on them! Just on something that was sitting around gathering dust! That was my "crazy things to sell" item!

Then I had lots of markers, crayons, colored pencils, coloring books, beads, papers and other fun stuff. I decided to make a gift basket for a little girl with everything. I had the pink heart gift basket bag on hand forever, already had the basket that I used so everything came together nicely! I probably didn't make much per hour on this because I did spend a little bit of time on it but I sold it on Facebook for $15.00. That's money that I didn't have before and it was better than just throwing all the stuff away, which I was tempted to do!

After I was done cleaning out her space I decided to clean out a cupboard of mine! It's a double door cupboard/bookcase type of thing that I keep my shipping supplies in, plus some buttons, plus some scrapbooking stuff....plus other junk! It was a mess! I used to make handmade cards....in fact that was my first shop on Etsy! I haven't had any cards in it for a few years but you can see my sold listings here.....wow, I just looked and the last card I sold was 4 1/2 years ago! I didn't realize it had been that long! I just don't have time to do all the things I like to do! So yeah, I had collected lots of card-making supplies.....like stickers! I had a basket full of them. I sorted them all out and took pictures and sold them on Facebook for $20.00! The person that got them got a really good deal as there were lots there but I knew I just would never get around to doing anything with them.

Next I had 2 different kits that I had started years ago. I used to see these really neat scrapbook/photo books that people made with lots of different papers and stickers and embellishments. I wanted to do one for a baby boy and another for a school album. I had collected lots of different things for both but alas....I never got around to that either! (Can you tell that I love to start things but can never seem to finish them? 😳 !!) So I sold both kits for $10 each on Facebook too.

So, all in all, I ended up making $73.59 for that days work. Not tons of money but not too bad either! I could have just boxed it all up and sent it to Goodwill but I figured I might as well make the money instead of them! I still have a lot of cardmaking supplies that I need to sort through and sell. I still want to keep some of the stuff but I definitely don't need all that I have.

What crazy thing have you sold lately? Have you made money on "cleaning up" around the house?

Thanks for stopping by! ~~Pam

Quick Post - What Sold Today

Paid $5.00 - Sold for $37.50 - Profit $26.63

Just a quick "what sold" post....bought these 24 American Girl books a couple of weeks ago for $5.00. The lady originally had $1.00 each on them but just offered them all to me for five bucks! Why yes, I'll take those!

I also sold 3 pair of jeans today to 3 different people. I paid $1.00 each for them. Two of them were womens Lee jeans and after doing some research I realized they don't sell for a whole lot. Most were selling for around $8 when I looked. I priced mine at $9.95. The other pair were mens Levi's and I sold them for $14.95. I ended up making $30.11 profit after shipping and fees and cost of items.

Well, that's about it for now. Thanks for stopping by....gotta go! ~~Pam

Speaking of buttons....last night I sold 20 sets to the same person! Now that was a thrill! :) The order totaled $101.35! That was really nice! Most of the time I sell just one set, which I definitely don't get rich off of! Sometimes I sell a few sets and that's always a lot nicer. This order was great! Now I really need to get busy listing more buttons!

Tomorrow we are having a graduation party for our daughter, our 6th child. Actually, her and her sister are the ones having the party. They're doing most all the work! She figures there will be around 200 people...maybe more. They are fixing the food and having a dance. It should be fun! Today they made over 400 cupcakes and frosted them all.

All cupcakes are not shown in these pictures! They also made potato salad using 60 pounds of potatoes and 10 dozen eggs! They had a couple of friends to help but they spent several hours doing all the work and even cleaning up pretty good after themselves! I'm glad they can do it cuz I sure can't anymore! I used to be able to do that kind of stuff but I just don't have it in me anymore! Getting older and too many aches and pains!  Anyway, it ought to be fun! The menu is sloppy joes, potato salad, green bean casserole and cupcakes. They tried to keep it as simple and cost effective as possible. I'll let you know how it goes!

Thanks for stopping by! ~~Pam

A Little Experiment

These buttons are headed to Italy today! The lady paid $13.33 for shipping for a 4 ounce package! The buttons were $7.50. I have been trying to up my price on buttons a little bit here and there. I used to just charge $4.95 for a set like this but these were a little more unique so I charged accordingly. I see others on Etsy charging more than I do and then I see some charging less. It's a fine line to try to figure it all out!

35 Metal Buttons

Cost - probably a quarter - Sold for $7.50 plus shipping - Profit $6.12

I know a lot of people wouldn't want to mess with selling buttons but for some reason I really enjoy sorting them and making little packages for them. I think it's kind of a calming thing. Here's an example of how I package most of my buttons.

Anyway, I've been so busy trying to sell on eBay that the past few months I hadn't spent much time listing any new buttons. I have lots of buttons....so I wanted to try to list more and see if I could sell more. Of course we all know that the more we list, the more we sell, and it worked with my buttons too! In June and July I only had around 450 views in my button shop for each month. I only had 2 and 3 orders for each month too which totaled about $33 for both months. I started trying to add more listings and in August I had 811 views and 9 orders totaling $64.80. September was 856 views and 12 orders totaling $86.45. October has about doubled that. I had 1550 views for the month, 23 orders of 36 sets of buttons for a total of $186.75! My goal has been that I would like to sell at least $50/week of buttons. I know that's not a lot but every little bit helps! That would be $2600 a year! It doesn't take a lot of time to list them or pack them up either. I'm hoping to increase that number as time goes on. I wish I had some really, really neat buttons! I have some nice buttons but I've seen some sell on eBay for quite a bit of money. Makes me wonder where they get them and how much they might pay for them. Check out this sellers sold listings. They have beautiful, unique buttons and it looks like they do really well on them! I'd love to find some like theirs!

So, I need to up my eBay listings as I'm sure I would make way more on those things than on buttons! But, I do enjoy the buttons so I will most likely keep listing them too.

Here are my stats for October:

eBay - Sold 31 items for $630.21 - listed 33 items

Down Vintage Lane Etsy shop - 4 orders of jars (10 jars total) for $87.85 - listed 8 items

ButtonCrazy Etsy shop - 23 orders of 36 sets for $186.75 - listed 70 sets

Facebook - Sold 5 items for $65.00 - listed 5 things

Total gross income - $969.81 -    116 total new items listed

After fees, shipping, supplies, cost of new items to sell, storage unit and miscellaneous I figure I made approximately $519.84 profit. Definitely want to increase that number. I need to figure out some solution to managing my time better I guess. Although I think I probably just have way too many demands on my time and I can only do so much! I do have good intentions!

Anyway, thanks for stopping by and listening to my ramblings! Have a great day! ~~Pam

Dollhouses

A few months ago I bought a Playskool dollhouse at a yard sale for $15. I knew I wouldn't want to try to ship the big house but I also knew that the dolls and furniture were worth something! I ended up putting the dollhouse on Facebook for $20 to at least make a few dollars extra plus then the person could pick it up and I wouldn't have to ship it!

Paid $15 - Sold for $20 - Profit $5.00

I then sold the furniture that came with it for $14.95 on eBay. I probably should have listed it for more.

Already paid for - Sold for $14.95 - Profit $10.73

Next came the best part.....I sold the dolls!

Already paid for - Sold for $35.00 - Profit $30.35

Then I found another dollhouse just like the first one. I also paid $15 for it. Sold it and the furniture that came with it for $30 on Facebook so I made $15.00 profit. Then I sold the people and car that came with it.

Already paid for - Sold for $34.95 - Profit $30.69

I also realized that I had forgotten to put the railings on the first dollhouse so I listed those as replacement parts.

Already paid for - Sold for $14.95 - Profit $12.55

So, I paid $30 for the 2 dollhouses and accessories. I sold everything for $149.85 and made $104.32 profit! I see some listings where people sell the house and everything with it but it just seemed easier for me to piece it all out and sell the houses right here at home for easy pickup. I have an old Victorian dollhouse that my sister-in-law gave me to sell. Still need to take pictures of it.

Have any of you sold dollhouses? Which way did you list it?

Thanks for stopping by! ~~Pam

Sale of the Week

I know, it's been over a month since I've posted! Time goes so fast and life is soooo busy! Just thought I'd put up a quick post of my best sale for the past week! Found this milk glass rooster at a yard sale for $3.00. Researched it on eBay and at the time there was only one other one and it had sold for around $50. I don't remember how I came up with selling it for $69.95 but that's what I listed it for and it sold! It took a few weeks but it's so fun to sell something for that much more than what you paid for it! I just looked at how much others have sold for in the past few weeks here and some went for the asking price of $50. A few put theirs up for auction and got $20-$45. Anyway, just a quick post! Have a great day! ~~Pam

Imperial Milk Glass Rooster

Paid $3.00 - Sold for $69.95 + $16.22 shipping

  Profit after cost of item,

fees, shipping and supplies - $54.44

September 25th Update!

Hello! Finally stopping by with a little update! I've had a pretty good past 60 days selling. Always trying to do more but it seems hard to make the time! Here are a few of my better sales in the past month.

I bought a Dollhouse that came with furniture and these dolls. I paid $15 for all of it. I finally sold the dollhouse on Facebook because I didn't want to hassle with trying to ship such a big thing! I sold the dollhouse for $20 so I made my money back plus $5 to boot! Then I sold the lot of furniture for $14.95 and made $10.73 profit on that after fees. So I was up to $15.73 profit and then I listed these dolls and sold them for $35 with a profit of $30.35 for a total profit on the dollhouse and stuff with it of $46.08! Not too bad!

Lot of 14 Loving Family Dolls

Sold for $35.00 - Profit $30.35

Love this green fluted desk lamp!

Green Fluted Desk Lamp

Paid $2.00 - Sold for $24.95 - Profit $15.74

Old VHS tapes still sell...eventually! These had been listed awhile but I made out pretty good on them!

                                   

                                                    Classic Television Set of VHS Tapes

Paid $1.00 - Sold for $21.00 - Profit $16.97

A few weeks ago I made out pretty good at some yard sales when I found quite a few pair of jeans and overalls for $1.00 each! I was able to put some in lots that were the same size which really helped with the profit! Here are a few of the better deals!

2 Pair Men's WORK N SPORT Blue Denim Overalls

Paid $2.00 - Sold for $39.95 - Profit $31.98

3 Pair Lees Dungarees

Paid $3.00 - Sold for $44.95 - Profit $35.41

Went to yard sales this past Friday and found some good deals that I have to take pictures of and get listed this week. Hopefully I can get them done before Friday and more yard sales!

Thanks for stopping by! ~~Pam

Weekly Update!

Hello! Just thought I'd stop by with some of my sales for the past week. Seems like I'm selling pretty good for me. Always hoping for better though! I am way under where I should be on my listing goals and yet it seems like I'm always sitting here trying to list! Anyway, here are my stats for the week of August 8-14th. and some of my eBay sales:

Ebay Store:

Items in store: 396                          

Sold: 12                                           

Cost of items sold: $25.64              

Total Sales - $288.45                     

Highest price sold - $44.95            

Average price sold - $24.03          

Returns - 0                                        

Cost of new inventory - $19.25      

New items listed - 11  

Etsy - DownVintageLane

Sold 1 item - $9.50

Listed 1 item

Etsy - ButtonCrazy

Sold 2 sets of buttons - $9.50

Listed 16 sets

I always try to pick up hot rollers when I see them. This past week I sold 3 sets in a 24 hour period!

Hot Rollers

Paid $5.00 - Sold for $29.95 - Profit $20.80

Hot Rollers

Paid $3.88 - Sold for $21.95 - Profit $11.41

Hot Rollers

Paid $5.00 - Sold for $29.95 - Profit $20.11

Womens Skechers Hiking Boots

Paid $3.00 - Sold for $39.95 - Profit $30.24

This next pair of Nike shoes were a gift from my sister....she probably found them at a yard sale and I'm not sure how much she paid for them but knowing her (she's like me when it comes to this stuff) it probably wasn't more than a couple of bucks! (thank you Naomi!)

Nike Golf Shoes

Paid - 0

Sold for $39.95 - Profit $35.24

Samsonite Train Case

Paid $1.88 - Sold for $24.95 - Profit $19.75

Sometimes I just gotta get the cheaper things even when I know I won't make a ton...like these napkin rings. Not a whole lot of profit but every little bit helps! Sometimes I feel like I would be throwing money away if I don't go ahead and get it to sell! And these are easy to pack up and ship!

Hexagon Wood Napkin Rings

Paid $1.00 - Sold for $9.95 - Profit $7.89

This wood silverware organizer was a gift from my sister but it didn't fit in my drawer! I was just going to take it to Goodwill but thought I'd look it up on eBay and decided to sell it!

Drawer Organizer

Paid - 0 - Sold for $14.95 - Profit $12.39

Ladies Tommy Hilfiger Shorts

Paid $2.00 - Sold for $12.95 - Profit $9.13

So, that's about it! Thanks for stopping by! ~~Pam

Selling Jeans

Hello Everyone! Just thought I'd talk about selling jeans for a minute. Last Friday hubby and I went to several yard sales. The first one we stopped at had lots of jeans to look through. They had their yard sale the day before and it had rained overnight so everything was kind of drippy and wet! She had lots of jeans to choose from. I've sold some jeans here and there and really didn't think I wanted to mess with it too much. I mean, if you just sell one pair at a time, depending on the jeans, it just might not be worth the trouble, depending how much you paid for them. Anyway, she only wanted a dollar a pair! The ones I bought were all in very good condition and there were lots of them the same size so I figured I could put them in lots of 2 or 3 and it would pay off quicker. I only ended up buying 11 pair because everything was just kind of a mess there. Now I wish I would have just taken the time to look through more. The picture above shows 3 pair of Levi's jean shorts in size 32. I sold them a couple of days after listing for $44.95. They cost me $3.00. After fees I made $36.89 profit! Not too bad for something pretty easy to list and ship! Even if I would have had to pay $5.88/pair at Goodwill I figure I could have made about $22.00 profit. I think I might just be on the lookout for sets of 3 of the same size and brand and see what happens! What do you think? Are jeans worth selling? Do you sell them separately or in groups?

Thanks for stopping by! ~~Pam