Wednesday, December 27, 2006

Well, did we survive the holidays?

Not sure I did.

Actually, spent Christmas blessedly alone...

except for two cats and a dog... played all those CD's I have that drive everyone else crazy and had one of the most relaxing days of my life...

Anyway, been listing like crazy over the last couple of days...

check it out if you're interested...

http://stores.ebay.com/luckypennyfleamarket

really, just a drive by post today...

Tuesday, December 12, 2006

got to gear up....

Well, the truth of the matter is that I'm just not listing like I used to... but there is some stuff happening... between running around getting Christmas stuff, and getting the new market stall stocked, and trying to deal with crazy siblings... well, ebay just didn't get the attention it deserves. But I'll be listing today... and we'll see what happens...

Everything just seems to be a bit more of a chore than it has to be right now...

I know people who publicly declare themselves Pagan every Thanksgiving so they don't have to deal with Christmas. I'm starting to understand them... Anyway, I guess I'll just spare the blog-world from my ranting...

Thursday, December 07, 2006

Well, I'm back....

wow, haven't posted in a while. Been busy. Off to stock up a new stall in Forrests Antiques and More, and listing on ebay has suffered while I've been running around...

anyway, it's not much of a stall, just an 8 x 9, but you'd be amazed at how much stuff you can fit in one of those...

listing driftwood for you reptile fans... you'll need it for those vivariums, or reptile cages, or whatever we're calling them this week, and I'll have a nice hand-tooled leather vest, as soon as I get the pics took, and there's always that stuff that you just list to see what happens...

Gearing up for Christmas.

Not looking forward to it...

Wednesday, November 22, 2006

getting ready for thansgiving...

Well, we're not cooking for Thanksgiving, so you'd think it would be nice and calm, right... No way. The Store suddenly has china sales... I guess people just got out the holiday china and realized that they had pieces missing. Of course, there's no way in hell it's gonna get there in time for Thanksgiving, but I guess they want it for next year...

Anyway, we're going to a restaraunt this year.

I don't want to cook, Mom isn't up to cooking, and of course my Sister ain't gonna cook, and even if she did I wouldn't be invited, so we're going to a restaraunt.

Don't know why. Never really liked Turkey anyway.

But I am wishing everybody out there a wonderful Thanksgiving, and hoping you have a great holiday season...

Sunday, November 19, 2006

Well, It seems that everything is working out OK. Crazy lady went poof, her auctions got pulled, and most of my friends survived the board. It was all very distracting... I'm afraid I gave too much of my time to the drama and not enough to listing... But I will be listing most of today and tomorrow...

business, this time of year, is slow... But I will just have to keep plugging along...

anyway, there isn't much to do about it, but keep listing and hope that everything starts to pick up...

We are moving into Christmas... so maybe some shoppers will come out of the woodwork...

Wednesday, November 15, 2006

well, I don't know...

so, we've been enjoying ourselves on the old ebay message board, and then everything just started going haywire... there was a post about a crazy seller, so we're all having a good old time telling the poster what to do and how to deal, then the crazy seller shows up. And we're talking seriously crazy... Big auctions for "colonic cleansing" and Jesus, along with pictures of human crap that came out of people, and telling us that she had a doctorate and, well just absolute tripe... and then everytime somebody took a position against her, or just told her that pictures of crap in an auction might turn people off, she started reporting them to the moderators, who don't really seem to actually check what was said they just hand out slaps...

So, the final outcome is that even though her auctions are breaking about fifty rules, she's managed to get a whole bunch of my online friends into trouble... and a few of them won't be allowed to post anymore, at least for a week, and I'm feeling a little guilty because I certainly took a few shots at her, and I didn't get any slaps, but I was contrbuting to the problem that got some of my friends slaps, and really it's all just disgusting...

Oh well, my friends will be back...

There really isn't anything I can think of doing right now... I guess that I'll have to kind of wait and see...

Maybe a voodoo curse...

Thursday, November 09, 2006

About this trading assistant thing...

So, I guess I should post something on here that's actually informative, rather than just silly little advertisements for me...

Here's a few rules for anybody who's thinking about approaching me for selling things...

1) If it came in a box marked 'collectible' it's generally not...
Danbury mint, star trek & star wars figurines, etc... Are NOT investments. They are valuable for about one year, then the price drops and doesn't come back up for 25 to 30. Yes, I realize that Star Wars stuff is about 25 to 30 years old now. The problem is that everybody who bought it, put it up, and there are well over 5 million of the darned things floating around... With a few notable exceptions, it ain't worth my time to list...

2) I don't care what the collectors book says...
I am getting a little tired of explaining to people that even though the collectors book says that your baseball card is worth 500 bucks, the truth of the matter is that I can look over auctions on eBay for the last 30 days and tell you it's actually selling for about $75. And then, only if you're extremely lucky. Please, No amount of whining and/or self-righteous indignation on your part is going to change that. This comes under the collectible that really isn't... Yes it is collectible, but... If a company put out 500,000 of the things and everybody who bought them kept them, they're just not as rare as you think...

3) Don't bring me a catalog of supposedly wholesale stuff...
There are several supposed "wholesalers" out there who sell their catalogs to people for about $50 a pop, telling these people that they'll be able to sell this crap on eBay forever 100% profit, and you can have it drop-shipped from China too.... I am getting tired of setting people in front of a computer and showing them that their ever-so-valuable items are selling for 99 cents, and only about 1 in 20 listings are selling at all... So, no, I'm not going to be the trading assistant for these items because I'm here to make money, and this ain't gonna do it.

4) Don't bring me cheap Chinese knock-offs of watches, or purses, or anything else for that matter...
Along the same lines as #3... There are websites who auction of lots of watches with supposed retail values of 100 to 400 bucks each. Again, you have to pay $50 for the right to bid on these auctions... And the only person making any cash is the guy charging you $50. The watches themselves sell for 99 cents to 9.99, and only about 1 in 20 sell... So again, no amount of whining or indignation is going to convince me to sell this crap... I'm also very good at spotting fake purses. I have to be. If I list them, I will get kicked off eBay.

5) In reference to #3 or #4, there isn't a get rich scheme on the planet that holds water after a little market research. If someone tries to sell you a membership to a wholesale club or auction site... Remember, there isn't a legitimate wholesaler who works by making you pay for the dubious priveledge to see their stock... Also, if you type in wholesaler on internet search engines... None of those companies that show up are actually wholesalers... And I don't know of a single wholesaler who works that way...

6) Please don't bring me your handmade jewelry to sell.
I'm sorry, but every bored housewife with access to a Hobby Lobby or Michaels MJ Designs seems to have picked up a piece of fishing line and a few beads and declared herself a jeweler. At any point in time, there are well over 10,000 pieces of homemade jewelry on eBay, and unless you've got something really unique, (and lets face it, there are only so many ways to but a bead on a string) you're wasting your time. . . I'm sure your work is lovely, but there are so many of these pieces of homemade jewelry on eBay, that the majority sells for under 9.99. You're not going to make a profit, and I'm not going to make a profit, and we're all wasting out time.

Most of this jewelry is an impulse buy. People see it, want it, buy it. You can sell them off of a card table at the local crafts fair, or you may be able to convince a local boutique to stock them, but you're not gonna convince me to list them on eBay.

7) If you're in love with something, please don't ask me to sell it. Face it ladies, you may have paid $300 for a Dooney & Bourke purse, but you've since carried it around for a year and the inside is stained, the edges are scuffed, and no, I'm not going to be able to get more than 20 or 30 dollars for it.

8) Ebay is an auction. Which means that it will start at $9.99 and people bid up. Yes, it may sell for $9.99. But it is entirely possible that it will sell for 100.00 or even 2000.00. Trust me, if it's worth 500.00, people will bid it up to that. If nobody wants to give you 500.00, then it isn't worth 500.00, no matter what you say.

Well, I guess that's it for today.

Bet you can't guess who I had to talk to today, and about what... Just venting a little...

Now I really must get back to listing...

Tuesday, November 07, 2006

busy busy busy

started the day by having to run to the warehouse to get things that sold overnight, so that I could get them sent out. Then I had to list a whole bunch of stuff, then I had to answer questions from the auctions... along with, "According to the USPS the item was delivered yesterday, you need to recheck at home..." Possibly and honest mistake, but thanks to Delivery Confirmation, I don't fall for the scam version of it today...

Listed too much to list here... But if you're into retro Christmas stuff, there's some old Shenango plates you'll like, and there's some old kitchen appliances, and some brand new ones, and lord only knows what else you'll find... I've forgotten already.

Very very very tired...

Monday, November 06, 2006

model trains...

Well, I forgot these... almost forgot I had them in stock. Don't know how... a huge set of model trains, tracks, buildings, little people, everything really... Don't know much about trains. I had a set when I was a kid, but the first time I set them up my sister kicked the engine across the room and destroyed it. I go even by hanging her barbies from the clothes-line by their hair, and charging all the neighborhood kids a nickel a shot to shoot them with my BB gun. Even when I was a kid, I made a profit...
Anyway, more pics, 14 in total, in the listing, so check them out if you're interested... http://stores.ebay.com/luckypennyfleamarket


I just love listing cowboy boots... They usually sell pretty good, and it's amazing to see where they end up. I've sold at least half of them to France and Japan...

These are smaller sized, 6D, and will probably end up in Asia somewhere, although I've noticed locally that this tends to be a young kids first Young Mans boot, or sometimes women will buy a mans boot for the wider size...

These are impeccable, near mint, only the barest of usewear on the sole.

And these in suede are in good shape, but slightly more used...

And the Tony Lama's are 9 1/2 D, an easier size to sell, although these are in a slightly more used condition.

Guess we'll just have to see what happens with them, Started all the auctions at 9.99 with no reserve.

http://stores.ebay.com/luckypennyfleamarket

Sunday, November 05, 2006

Been listing a whole pile of medical books that I have here.. Psychology, Anesthesia, mostly modern but a few really fun vintage ones too... one is 1955.

don't know how they're going to sell, but they're cheap. I really am starting to get back in the swing of listing... And I have to list everyday. Got to get those sales up there!

Just a quick post... later...

Saturday, November 04, 2006


Well, I'm a little late, but I am managing to get the listing started... not too much going on. Here's the first... Staffordshire Ironstone Liberty Blue... 13 7/8 serving platter, featuring Washington Crossing the Delaware. The guys at replacements.com don't have one offered, but I'd guess between 70 and 80 bucks.





Next, the 12 inch platter, which the online replacement guys offer for 59.99. It's got a picture of the governors house in Williamsburg.







Don't worry, I'm not going to show you all of them here... after all, I do have a 12 piece place setting of the stuff. But I did say I'd put pictures in and there we are.

Went yard saling this afternoon, came up with som Gilmer Pottery, Some vintage Fire King, A lot of good stuff... But I'm trying to get the stuff I already have here on first.

Really should be going, Just taking a little break... and if you want to look more closely, go to http://stores.ebay.com/luckypennyfleamarket



Friday, November 03, 2006

Ahhhh, the relief of it all....

so, out of the store and I can now do civilized things. Like go to lunch with a friend, in about an hour, or sleep all day...

Actually, I will be taking pictures so that I can list this evening, and get the ebay store going again... all that's there is the standard store listings, and I need auctions up to get traffic.

I must say, I really do like ebay's new get it now thing...

I've been able to sell things that I normally would have to sit waiting on in the store. And it really seams convienient. I haven't bought anything with it yet, but to be able to go in, get all I want, and just make one payment for up to 10 different sellers, it makes it all much easier on the buyer. And let's face it, if it's not easy on the buyer, then they'll go elsewhere.

But, when I list tonight, I'll make sure that I post some pics here... I do have some nice things coming in...

Wednesday, November 01, 2006

November...

Well, I'm off to finish at the store, sweep it all out and such, then I may take a few days off to just relax... Need to recharge the old batteries...

Met the new tennants for my building. Definitely a new game room. There will now be five game rooms in the complex, 2 legitmate bussinesses. I give the game rooms about 30 days before they get raided. And I know for a fact that one of the businesses is seriously considering moving out...

I'm well out of it. I was considering going to Canton for first Monday flea market... but everything is packed up and I just won't have time to straighten it out or arrange things...

The truth of the matter is that I want time off... I haven't had time to think even.

I will definitly miss some of my regular customers, but luckily I have a mailing list so that I can get in touch with them about the new stalls and such, so that will be helpful...

Just random thoughts today, nothing really new... I'm going to try to get a little more creative with the posts soon...

Tuesday, October 31, 2006

Well, Happy Halloween...

So, I hope everyone has a great Halloween, there's too much for me to do to be doing any tricking or treating... Yesterday wasn't good, had a silly little newbie give me a neg on ebay, then he showed up on the discusion boards with a sock ID. If he'd just contacted me I would have refunded him with no problem, but he decided to neg instead... so on his head be it.

Anyway, hope he enjoys his neg, it hurts him more than me... I'm certainly not losing any sleep over it, I have other things to lose sleep over... Not even sure why I mentioned it, It's just the cherry on the cake of my day.

Actually, no news today... There's really nothing to say, but I like the idea of journalling... I used to keep a regular journal all the time. But working 12 hour days got me out of the habit. Probably need to buy a notebook and start up again.

The cat is being vicious, the pug dog is being long-suffering, and I'm just being tired.

What a depressing post.

Sorry to anyone who had to read this...

Monday, October 30, 2006

oh so tired...

well, two posts in one day. I'm actually on my way back to the store, after I came home to eat. Deb & Peter were a big help today, but I have so much to do... and only a day to do it.

Deb was not amused when she was taking something out to the dumpster and three of the local "characters" were diving through it. She really wasn't amused when they grabbed the box out of her hand. After that, we wouldn't let her go out there alone, and either Peter or I would go out with her.

She then apologised, because she thought I was exagerating about the substance abuse problem. She now definitely knows that I'm not. I'm not exactly sure what she saw, but I can imagine.

So, so glad to be out of that store....

The DRAMA is almost done..!

Almost out of that store. The landlord has already rented it to someone else, they're going to open a game room... Just what we need, more illegal slot machines... there's already three in that shopping center, and two more moving in. There will now be only 2 legal businesses there... but that's not my concern. I will, after tomorrow, not have to deal with frightening looking people and illegal drug use... I will just run my business on-line.

Might be writing a few letters to congressmen about either legalizing gambling so they can control it or enforcing the laws they already have, but I won't have to deal with it in my face anymore. On the other hand, maybe I'll just let Karma take care of it... those guys do look like Karma's kicked them in the face a few times already...

Now that I'm through with my rant, I suppose I should talk about the ebay thing. As of November 4, I'm going to start listing again. I was going to start sooner, but I've spent the last 2 weeks working everyday, and I need a little time off.

I do have some great Staffordshire Pottery to list, Liberty Blue -colonial, full set of 8, and a model train, some everyday Gibson Pottery, and a few other nice little collectables.

I'm saying November 4 as the plan, but I may get it there sooner. Right now I'm so used to working like a demon, that the last day off I took made me a nervous wreck!

Regardless, when it's listed, I'll post a few picks here. Then I'll work on Getting the Google adwords set up, they should get some traffic. Wishing everybody well, Later...

Thursday, October 26, 2006

Kron table lamps



Listed this great pair of table lamps today. From KRON, right now the only pair of table lamps from KRON that are listed as far as I can tell... although there are a whole passel of the siamese cat TV lamps, and one of the giant black panther mantle piece lamps... for quite a large price.

My pair, I'm starting at 19.95. Don't have the auction # handy, but if you go to the store http://stores.ebay.com/luckypennyfleamarket and click on the categories retro or collectables, they'll be right there... and if the shipping seems high, it's because they weigh close to 11 pounds. Not to mention there will have to be a huge box...

right now, I'm basically wasting my time. I should be doing the last of the packing here, but quite frankly, I'm tired! Can't wait till this is over and I can get back to listing all this stuff on ebay... later folks.

Tuesday, October 24, 2006

Figgjo Flint


We've got some wonderful Figgjo Flint in the ebay store, not a full set, so I'm listing them piece by piece. Figgjo Flint is known nowadays primarily for restaraunt ware, but these are vintage to the 70's, and come from the turi-design ASTRID pattern... back when they were doing china for the home market...

Great pieces with camel, sienna and teal flowers... I'm not going to be too upset if I don't sell them, as I'd be perfectly happy to keep them at the house.

If you need a closer look at them, just click on the link.. http://stores.ebay.com/luckypennyfleamarket

The weather here today is kind of clouded over, and there's supposed to be rain later today... yep, it's fall in Texas.

Wish we had pretty autumn leaves here, but everything just gets muddy and brown...

Monday, October 23, 2006

Vending Machines...


well, I went ahead and listed the vending machine, hopefully, I'll be able to keep the Scammers at bay this time around... not a bad setup for under $600 if I say so myself. I know new they cost well over $3000...

don't know why He's selling them instead of trying to set them up somewhere, but that's his business isn't it?

Anyway, if you're interested go to http://stores.ebay.com/luckypennyfleamarket It's strictly a buy it now, immediate payment, local pickup only...

Well, Hello There....

Well, Hello there, and welcome to my blog... this is actually my second try, as the first just didn't make me happy at all. And of course, making me happy is what it's all about right?

The truth is that I started a blog, and then we closed the actual store that the blog was about, because we started a new business plan. After I'd done a little number crunching, I figured out that the brick and mortar store was taking 10 hours a day and making 20% of my sales. That had to go.

So now we are almost exclusively an online market - selling mostly on ebay. You want to see ebay... http://stores.ebay.com/luckypennyfleamarket click there and it will take you straight to it.

Of course, the listings are down right now, I'm packing up the old store and that's taking up 16 hours a day, but I'll be at ebay full force starting November 1. We are also an ebay trading assistant, which means that I get to sell stuff for other people. That's always fun.

I don't have much else to say right now. Actually, I have a lot to say, but I'm too darned tired to do it. Time for me to go to bed and get some sleep.

But do drop by sometime soon, I should be telling you about some of the buying trips... and maybe even posting pics of some of the more remarkable auctions...