Indiana turned 22 on Tuesday and boy did we surprise her!

My family LOVES surprises and the crazier the better!  It was just she and me so I booked one of the retro trailers at Waypoint for the evening without telling her.  I told her to pack an overnight bag with warm clothes and to bring her bike helmet and guitar.  She had NO idea where we were going!  But that wasn’t the ONLY surprise.  More on that later.

Here is one of my favorite photos of my darling Indy.  This was taken in Playa del Rey when she was about 5 years old.

Welcome to Lynn’s Latest #32…

December 18th
Watch for it every Friday or every other Friday!
Volume I  Issue 32

 

I had a great time out in Palm Desert over the weekend of the 5th.  It is always good to hang with my Palm Desert friends. We were able to support local restaurants on the 5th (Las Casuelas) and the 6th (The Little Bar) before everything was shut down AGAIN!  Ughhh!

Here are photos of the amazing tile work on the bar at Las Casuelas in Palm Springs!  I took these photos for my mama who wants to do her kitchen counters at the beach like this.  Gorgeous!

In happier news, I found a ton of great stuff for the store and eBay.  Here we are loading up my car with treasures.

My friend, Mo, who has been my eBay assistant extraordinaire for years, and I finally figured out how she could still work for me from Palm Desert.  I will go out there once a month and heavily source.  While I am in town, she writes it all up on the “I Sell” sheets that I invented back in 1998 and photographs it.

The “I Sell” Sheet is how I am able to have 15,000 items listed at auction and keep track of them.  It also allows you to list from the sheet without having the item right in front of you.  This is how Mo can list from anywhere once she has the item written up and photographed.  Here is an example of a set of flatware all written up and ready to be photographed.  I liken my system to an Assembly Line way of listing on eBay (Just like Henry Ford invented :)) Sorry!  Don’t know how I got off on that tangent.

Once all that is finished, Cindy (my new eBay assistant here in Ventura) gives us empty shelf numbers so we can sort the new items in boxes by eventual shelf placement.  Mo stays in Palm Desert with her stack of “I Sell” sheets to be listed when she has time and I haul all of the goodies back to be placed on shelves in Ventura.  Voila!  Problem of long-distance listing solved!  Works for Me!  I get a break from listing and Mo gets work.  Win-Win!

Mo and I have been friends for a long time (way before she started working for me) and ever since our boys started playing baseball together back in 2002!  This is a photo of Mo and me back in the day at an eBay event.  This was the first eBay Live that we attended in 2005 in San Jose.

From left to right, Russ Grove (President NuMarkets), Jim “Griff” Griffin (eBay Spokesperson), me, Jesse Melton (NuMarkets), and Maureen (Assistant extraordinaire). This photo was taken right before I danced the Pogo with Griff to the B-52’s live performance of Love Shack….Those were such fun days!

Back to reality, here are some of the boxes that Mo had written up… all ready to head back to Ventura con migo (with me).  I am in the Spanish-speaking mood because of those tile counters at Las Casuelas.  I used to speak fluent Spanish when I lived in Spain for a year and also minored in it at USC.  I do try and practicar whenever I can!  There I go off on another tangent.  Oy Vey!   Ok, here are those boxes!

OK time for a future eBay score!  This is from some of the stuff that Mo listed that you can even see in that photo.  Pretty cool huh?  This is a Wilton Armetale Water Goblet in the Plough Pattern.  They sell for $45.99 on Replacements.com.  I usually try and get 1/2 of Replacements prices at auction and then I price right at their retail when it goes into my store at a fixed price.

I cut off part of the title in this photo to make it larger for the ezine.  This item will still be at auction until Friday, December 18th at 10:18 pm.  To see the actual listing or to bid :), please click here.

Before I forget, talking about living in Spain for a year reminded me of a recent post on the Town & Country Magazine Instagram account.  I follow them for fun and was scrolling the other morning when I saw this post.

Part of my year in Spain included six months on the USC Spain Semester with 50 other USC students and we were all super close.  One of the 50 students was Sean MacPherson.  LOL!  He looks the same!  Maybe a bit older, but still as quirky as ever.

I think it is time to talk about the store…OMG! We have been doing some super fun decorating. This past Wednesday, Val and I attacked the back wall of the store. Boy, did it ever need some TLC. I wish I had a before photo, but alas, I do not! Here is the after! Pretty nifty, huh? We have already sold some stuff out of the vignette, but it has been replaced with even better stuff. So, please stop in and check it out!

OK, now for some of the new arrivals to the store.  This is kind of cool because in this photo of that same couch (taken for our website) you can see a “during” of when Val and I were decorating.  Same sofa, looks totally different, doesn’t it?  It all depends upon how you style it and with what accents.

Another great new sofa.  Super comfy and suggested retail is $1,000.

And this driftwood look dresser just arrived!

OK, let’s get back to Indy’s surprise birthday.  I am sure you are dying to know what went down or not?  Hahahaha.  The Waypoint was soooo accommodating that they let me get into our trailer early to decorate.  Sweet!  And I forgot to tell you, but the Waypoint has a few “dog-friendly” trailers and I was bringing Cha Cha as part of the surprise.

That involved a whole new level of packing!  Much like in the old days when I would take the kids as babies to Mexico.  OMG!  Gotta find one of those ezines to share how crazy I was in packing for that….Anyway, back to today!  Here is my car loaded and ready to go.

Here is what the setup looked like for my sweet girl!  I even hung streamers outside…that was a bit tricky and you can barely see them in the photo, but trust me they are there!   Then it was back to the house to pick her up.  It was only 11 am and it was shaping up to be an EPIC day!

On my way to pick her up, I was following a car with a license plate that gave me goosebumps.  OK, back story….(of course there is a back story)!  My dad (aka Papa) was like a father figure to my kids.  Actually, he was more of a father to them than their real dad and I have no problem saying that out loud.  My dad made it a point to ALWAYS be in California for Indy’s birthday on December 15th.  I don’t think he ever missed one. Well, he was missing this one, but maybe not?

Long story short.  If you don’t know, my dad passed away on Cinco de Mayo in 2017 from Pancreatic cancer and broke all of our hearts.  We miss him soooo much!  He left me some money and that is what I used to open Lynn’s.  That was a blessing, but I would rather have my dad.

So, as I was driving to pick Indy up check out this license plate on the car in front of me.  BTW, my dad had his doctorate in Education from Indiana University and was known as Dr. Dralle.  If that license plate wasn’t saying Happy Birthday to Indy from Papa, I don’t know what would.

I grabbed Indy and we headed out.  I gave her a cliff bar to eat because it was going to be a long trip to our destination.  Had to mess with her a bit.  Told her I was looking for the terminal, no scratch that, the station.  Hahaha.  At first, she thought we were going on a boat and then a train.  Finally, I pulled into the trailer park, and it all made sense.  Fun!

Waypoint is so much fun!  We grabbed bikes, road downtown got lunch and then I went and picked up Cha Cha from Puppy Play time.  Cha Cha was so happy to see her!   Here they are messing around in the camper before we all took naps.  Little did Indy know that was not the only surprise.

As you may recall, my son Houston has been living in Oklahoma City teaching school as part of his Notre Dame Masters Program.  He had to administer finals this whole week, so we didn’t expect to see him until this upcoming weekend.  Now for the plot twist.

Unbeknownst to Indiana, Houston and I had been plotting.  Houston administered his last in-person test on Monday, scheduled all the rest to be taken virtually, asked for a personal day off Tuesday and planned to leave OKC at 9 pm on Monday night.  If he drove straight through (20 hours) that would land him in Ventura at 0400 hours (LOL no idea how that military stuff works) or 4 pm on Tuesday, her birthday!

Now that is sibling LOVE!  Click here for the video on Youtube I filmed when I heard him drive in and start up the steps to the trailer.

This is from my Instagram post.

We actually pulled it off!  Biggest surprise EVER!  Well not ever…did I  tell you about the Walt Disney World Surprise when she was 7 years old and Houston was 9?

Click here for the video on Instagram.  BTW, Indiana makes the same noises in both videos and she apparently always points when surprised!  I LOVE this!  Here she is pointing at the cameraman (my brother Lee).

Thank you for letting me share all of that.  It was soooo much fun!  For me anyway 🙂

Time for a score!  I bought this in November of 2018 at the Boys and Girls Thrift store on the Avenue here in Ventura.  I paid $8.  Finally sold for full price a few days ago.  $130.49.  Score!  Kaching!   Check it out here.

Back to the store…because that is why we are here…right?  There are a lot of kids that come in with their parents and grandparents that just steal our hearts.  One of those little girls, Emily, always likes to play hide and seek with us.  Her mom was pregnant and I just knew that Emily needed a little gift.  I found the most adorable blue bear that took batteries and would play peek-a-boo with her.

I bought it about 4 months ago and put it behind the counter and waited for Emily to come back in with her parents.  I waited and waited and waited.  Well, her mom was pregnant….give them a break!   Finally, they showed up last week (with the new baby) and I was so happy to give Emily her Peek-a-boo gift.  I think she liked it!

This past Sunday there was an epic estate sale in Carpinteria.  I enlisted the company of my faithful and true companion, Indiana, and off we went at 9 am on a Sunday.  Pretty early for us!  We had about 2 to 2 1/2 hours that we could leave the Cha Cha alone and it was GO time!

I spent over $1,000 and got some amazing items!  Can’t wait to get them all listed on eBay and the other items priced and in the store.  Check out these photos of some of the items I purchased.

Here is one of the items from that sale that is currently listed at auction.  Here is the link to check it out.  If my calculations are correct, it should sell in the $250 range.  I paid $12. .

Here are some more neat things that have come into the store recently.  These are Leather Wing Back Chairs by the company Global Views.  They retail for $1997 each!  Our price is $495 each.  Please come in and check them out!

Don’t forget about this killer Mid Century Modern Burlwood Side or Coffee Table that recently arrived. It is not going to last! 1950’s Vintage!

The store is PACKED…. I say PACKED with amazing gift items for Christmas!  It is soooooo exciting…..with new stuff arriving daily!

I want to take a moment to thank all of you who are shopping locally.  It means the world to me, my team, and my family.  YOU are keeping us in business and we are extremely grateful.

Check out some of the fun Christmas ornaments that are still available.

Here is a new fun furniture piece that just came in done by our very talented Sandy.  I love this Annie Sloan painted end table in Pure White with Blue Fish decor.  Sooooo cute!  And only $195.  What a great Christmas gift this would make!  It won’t last so check it out soon.

My grandmother ALWAYS said, “The time to buy it is when you see it” and that advice has never been so right on as it is for MY store!  Things go quickly…don’t miss out!

Since we are closed on Mondays, I decided to do an experiment with the Cha Cha.  I pretended it was “Take your Daughter to Work Day” and I gave it my best college shot.  Didn’t work out so well…but baby steps…Right people?

In this photo, you will see spilled water and spilled lunch (those kibbles)!

Just a reminder of Our HOLIDAY HOURS:

Tuesday through Saturday 11 am to 5 pm
Sundays 11 am to 3 pm

We will also be open this Monday, December 21st from 11 am to 5 pm

We will be closed on the following days:

Friday, December 25th Christmas
Friday, January 1st New Years

CLOSING EARLY at 3 pm on

Christmas Eve Thursday, December 24th
New Year’s Eve Thursday, December 31st

Just had to share this photo of Indiana leaving to drive Cha Cha to Puppy Play time.  Does it not look like Cha Cha is driving?  LOL.  We love her more every day.  I am talking about Cha Cha here…not my daughter.  Hahahah.  Just kidding.  Love them both more every day!

Time for another eBay score!  I bought this crazy fun side coffee pot at a local neighborhood garage sale last month.  I paid $10 or maybe $5.  Nothing major.  It was listed at auction for $49.99 and did not sell.  Raised the price to $129.99 at a fixed price in my store and it just sold for $89.39 after I sent an offer to the buyer.  Score!

Check it out here to see why it sold for so much more than I paid!

Soooooo many great things arriving in the store for the Christmas Season. Check out these amazing kitchen utensils that retail for $9.95 (well the spreader is $6.95 and the Spurtle is $12.95). These are selling fast and may sell out! Time to shop! Also, Free Shipping and available for sale on our website.

With the new Covid announcements from the Governor, I just want to reassure you that we are taking this very seriously and following protocol.  We sanitize, wear masks, request that you wear a mask (unless you have a health issue that exempts you), and have a very large store.

With over 5,000 square feet our max capacity is 88 people.  WOW, I wish I could have 88 customers at once when covid is over!  Wouldn’t that be amazing?  Just kidding, but kind of serious.

Bottom line is this, even at 20% of capacity (which the Governor is suggesting), there can still be 17 of you in the store.  We never get that busy, so please feel safe and please ask us if you have any special requests.  We are more than happy to make your shopping experience a great one!

I have to apologize here to both y’all and to Carlos. This entire newsletter has been hijacked by Cha Cha.

I just mentioned to Indiana tonight that a year ago, we didn’t even have Carlos yet. How crazy is that? These pets that have totally changed our lives FOR THE BETTER, were not even here a year ago.

Carlos was NOT a covid pet…(ie adopted because of boredom and too much time at home) he is LEGIT. I decided to get him and surprise my kids WAY before this Covid Crap. Check him out in his adoption ad. I saw this and immediately teared up and raced to Newbury Park to grab him before anyone else did. Blessed? I think so!

OK, so let’s share a few throwback photos of our little Carlos! Here he is in his Christmas Sweater right after we got him! They grow up so fast!

And I will end this section with a fun picture of my kids with Cha Cha after her grooming today at Aloha. She is sooooo clean and fluffy.

Do you remember this piece that Sandy had just finished from the last ezine?  IT IS AMAZING….all Annie Sloan…Aubusson Blue, Svenska, Old White with a Royal Design Stencil and Bubble mermaid knobs.  This piece is a WORK of art!  I LOVE IT!

Can’t wait to get it priced and in the store…

Uh oh…..It has already sold!  Seriously?  Yes!  You must stop in and often so you don’t miss out on amazing pieces like this.

Let me wrap this up with a HUGE thank you for your continued support of me and my small business!  You are keeping us going and my gratitude is immense! THANK YOU  THANK YOU!!!

My mom is in town so please stop in and say HELLO!  Finally, a great photo from back on March 1st, 2020 before all of this madness began and we could all be together.

My team, from left to right.  Emma, Val, my mama, me, Indy, Cindy, and Peggy.  Sandy, where are you?????  Check her out in the photo after this one.

Since Sandy missed that group photo, here she is with Cha Cha in the store yesterday.  Hahahaha!  Cha Cha is bigger than she is!

Thanks for reading my ezines!  I appreciate it….as always!

eBay with Heart & Design with Heart……Lynn

 

P.S. All of the professional photos I use on Instagram, Facebook, and in these newsletters were taken by my friend Denise’s daughter, Jaclyn Sabo. She is amazing! To learn more about Jaclyn….https://www.jaclynszabo.com/

P.P.S. If you have a friend who wants to sign up for this newsletter.
https://lynnsconsignments.us4.list-manage.com/subscribe/post?u=1358893710d6b499048e37be1&id=0fa31ceabb

https://tinyurl.com/lynnssignup

P.P.P.S For those of you who don’t live close to Ventura…don’t forget you can shop our store online!
https://lynnsconsignment.ricoconsign.com/

 

My family is gone and I am headed to Palm Desert to gather up some treasures for the store & eBay!

More about that later, but for now let’s check out the Christmas Window at night.  It is a lot fuller now so I will have to take a new picture.  Hopefully, I can do that before this ezine goes out because it is super festive!

Welcome to Lynn’s Latest #31…

December 5th
Watch for it every Friday or every other Friday! or SATURDAY!
Volume I  Issue 31

 

In fantastic news, we have turned the corner with Cha Cha!  Let me tell you, those first two months were BRUTAL.  Having to keep her at home and away from other dogs because of the Parvovirus was NOT fun!

She really loved having Houston, Emma, and Indy home.  They took her on a run and we have been walking her around the neighborhood every day.  SHE LOVES it!  And it wears her out.  She also goes to “Puppy Play Time” daily from 9 am to 11 am at Send Rover On Over.  It has been a Godsend.

It really is just like having a baby.  You have to wear her out before she wears us out!

Here are Houston and Emma with Cha Cha at Arroyo Verde Park.  Literally, 5 minutes from our house!

In more Cha Cha and Carlos news, I attempted the unthinkable.  I decided we should take our Christmas Card photos at the Store with both of the pets!  HAHAHAHAHA

So on Thanksgiving day, before our festivities began, Mor Mor, Indy, and I loaded up my SUV with the Cha Cha.

Houston and Emma had more of a challenge as they took Carlos in Emma’s car.  Carlos does NOT like to travel in cars.  Not many cats do and he was whining.  Luckily, it is only a 5-minute drive to the store!

Here are some of the outtakes.  I promise you that no animals were hurt during the filming :)!

OMG, this is so funny!  I just realized that I keep saying that everything in Ventura is only 5 minutes away.  My house to the park 5 mins and my house to the store 5 mins.  When I lived in LA for years everything was 30 minutes away.  Do any of y’all remember that?

“You live in the Valley and you need to get to Santa Monica (30 minutes), LA to Manhattan Beach (30 minutes), Brentwood to USC (30 minutes).” Hahahaha, it is probably more like an hour now!

OK time for an eBay score!  I list and sell a TON of regular coffee mugs.  My average sales price for coffee mugs is in the $25 range.  Yes, you heard that right!  Check out this mug that recently sold for full asking price of $42.59.  How can that be?

Well, if you have a favorite coffee mug and it gets broken, what would you pay to replace it?  I currently have 1,273 mugs listed for sale on eBay!  I pay between 5 cents and $4.00 for each one.

One of the coffee mugs that I sold for the most money was this Gonzo Muppet mug by Sigma Tastesetter.  It sold for close to $300.  They still sell in the $200 plus range.  If you see one of these…grab it!

Here is a set of Gonzo and Animal Muppet mugs also by Sigma that recently sold together for $385.  I don’t think I would have positioned them this way on eBay.  I would have sold them separately.   Seller started the auction at $99 and it got 26 bids.  Check it out and the bidding history here.  Pretty fascinating!

Let’s check out what is going on at the store!  Indiana went in on Monday and redid the yellow room…just when I thought it couldn’t get any cuter it sure did!

BTW, that darling dog figurine that I bought in Palm Springs last month sold a few days ago for $125.  How cool is that puppy?  Now, you understand why I keep heading back to the desert.  Great finds and great friends.  Doesn’t get much better than that!

A HUGE THANK YOU to those who shopped with us on Black Friday.  It is VERY much appreciated!  We had our highest volume sales day ever in our 2 3/4 year history soooooooo THANK YOU!!!!  Shopping local and helping to keep all of Ventura in business is very much appreciated!

Speaking of local, I want to share a few of my favorite businesses.  First is Coastal Pedicure.  Have you EVER been there?  It is unbelievable, you recline in a massage chair, take a little nap and get a pedicure.  One of my favorite things to do!  Rebekah recently purchased it and is the new owner.

Please show her some love.  Phone is 805-705-9644 and is located at 1416 E. Main Street.  Even if salons have to close (fingers crossed they don’t) a gift certificate makes a great gift!

I was there for a pedi this week and LOVED that Rebekah had purchased many of her ornaments from Lynn’s Consignments.  Thanks girl!

I posted some close-ups on Instagram (please follow me @LynnDralle and @LynnsConsignments) of the ornaments from my store and I LOVE that Old World Christmas who makes the stunning mercury glass ornaments reposted it!

Another of my favorite local businesses is Mupu Farms in Santa Paula.  We have gotten our Christmas Tree there every year that we have lived here in Ventura.  This is year #3!  Yay!  They get their trees fresh from Oregon and you will not be disappointed!

After Jack loaded our tree, Indy took him to meet Cha Cha in the back seat!  BTW, dogs are NOT allowed on the farm as they can scare the farm animals.  We should have checked that out before we took Cha Cha with us.  In any event, it is a super fun tradition for Indy and me!

Mupu Farms 3710 Ojai Road Santa Paula 805-625-0018

Here is the tree set up in our family room.  Guess what you have to do with a puppy in the house?  Put a fence on it or is it around it?  LOL!

OK, gotta share some more fun outtakes from our Christmas Card photoshoot.  It was actually a really fun day!  Doesn’t Cha Cha look huge?

My final favorite local business for this ezine is Tupelo Honey (right next door people!). Watch for more of my favorite local businesses in the next newsletter.

Indiana decided she wanted to have her hair colored darker. She was born with much darker brown hair, but it started getting sun-streaked (which I LOVE) when we moved to California when she was 3 1/2. Fast forward, set up an appointment with Joey Villegas (we LOVE Joey) and the rest is history. Check her out! Love the pic Joey! That’s my kid!

Tupelo Honey 1987 E. Main Street 805-628-3075

Let’s get back to the store!!  Sooooooo many great consignments coming in and some of them only last a day!  You MUST stop by often if you are in the market for a specific piece.  I don’t even have the time to get them photographed before they sell!

These amazing end tables or nightstands retail for over $1,300 each.  They are spectacular and available at only $395 each.

This killer Mid Century Modern Burlwood Side or Coffee Table just arrived.  It is not going to last!  1950’s Vintage!

The store is PACKED…. I say PACKED with amazing gift items for Christmas!  It is soooooo exciting…..with new stuff arriving daily!

Which reminds me….look what is in stock!  Hurry in and get yours before they sell out!   2020 Toilet Paper Ornament is only $14.99.  Santa Claus with mask is $21.99.

There are ONLY 9 Toilet Papers and 22 Santa Claus Ornaments left in stock.

If you can’t stop in to pick one up, you can always order here.

Check out these other darling Blown Glass Old World Christmas Glass Ornaments that are also in stock from $12.99 to $44.99 for the snowman set.   Again, they are all available on line with more coming in next week.

Here are a few fun furniture pieces that just came in.  I love this turquoise secretary that one of our consignors brought in.  She is super talented!  She used one of the Iron Orchid Design Transfers the “Sea Queen” that is no longer being made.  This piece WAS for sale at $495.  It sold on Black Friday!

My grandmother ALWAYS said, “The time to buy it is when you see it” and that advice has never been so right on as it is for MY store!  Things go quickly…don’t miss out!

But back to our Christmas Card Photo Shoot! I have to keep sharing the outtake photos because it is the only proof I have that my mom and Emma were actually here for Thanksgiving! LOL. Here they are!

Our HOLIDAY HOURS will be as follows:

Tuesday through Saturday 11 am to 5 pm
Sundays 11 am to 3 pm

We will also be open on Monday, December 21st from 11 am to 5 pm

We will be closed the following days:

Thursday, November 27th Thanksgiving
Friday, December 25th Christmas
Friday, January 1st New Years

CLOSING EARLY at 3 pm on

Christmas Eve Thursday, December 24th
New Year’s Eve Thursday, December 31st

Before I forget, I was able to swing by the store a few nights ago and get a newer more updated photo for y’all.  Check it out!

Time for an eBay score!  I bought this crazy vintage calculator/check writer recently for a couple of bucks out in Palm Springs (see why I keep going out there to source!).  Just an FYI, vintage calculators can sell for big bucks!  This one sold for the best offer of $45 yesterday.  I realize that $45 isn’t big bucks, but wait until you find one that sells for $500!

Check it out here to see why it sold for so much more than I paid!

Soooooo many great things arriving in the store for the Christmas Season.  Check out these amazing kitchen utensils that retail for $9.95 (well the spreader is $6.95 and the Spurtle is $12.95).  These are selling fast and may sell out!   Time to shop!  Also, Free Shipping and available for sale on our website.

With the new Covid announcements from the Governor, I just want to reassure you that we are taking this very seriously and following protocol.  We sanitize, wear masks, request that you wear a mask (unless you have a health issue that exempts you), and have a very large store.

With over 5,000 square feet our max capacity is 88 people.  WOW, I wish I could have 88 customers at once when covid is over!  Wouldn’t that be amazing?  Just kidding, but kind of serious.

Bottom line is this, even at 20% of capacity (which the Governor is suggesting), there can still be 17 of you in the store.  We never get that busy, so please feel safe and please ask us if you have any special requests.  We are more than happy to make your shopping experience a great one!

OK, now for my final eBay score.  This one cracks me up because even though I misspelled Fruit, Furit anyone?…it still sold for the full asking price of over $200.  See, it is OK to make mistakes.  You can still do O.K. in this life!  Don’t sweat the small stuff!

Check it out here.

OK, this section is probably going to get smaller and smaller since basically, my entire newsletter is about both pets.  Am I Right or am I Right?

BTW, I am packing tonight to leave for the Desert and Carlos is not happy.  He is a bit smarter than Cha Cha and is also 8 months older than her.  He knows that I am leaving and he is pissed.  He is not taking his eyes off of me.  A little creepy?  Yes, I would have to say so.

Whenever I pack to go out of town, I hang all of my clothes on my canopy bed frame.   I know that is the correct term, but it sounds so childish…like I have a princess canopy bed.  LOL….not the case, but in any event when Carlos sees that he knows what the 411 is and that I am leaving.

Check him out! Poor baby.  He doesn’t know that Indy and Cha Cha are staying here with him.  He will survive.

When Houston was home for Thanksgiving he really worked with training Carlos on his “Fast Cat” Wheel.  Sooooo much fun!  Carlos has been “secretly” practicing (well at least I think he has been) because last night he shocked and amazed me with his SKILLZ!

I literally had to post on Instagram and tag “Fast Cat” and they reposted it!  I LOVE it when this happens.  I secretly want to be Instagram famous, but can’t get over 848 followers.  SO Please follow me @LynnDralle @LynnsConsignments.

I know this is Carlos’ Corner, but I must end with Cha Cha trying to help me list on eBay AGAIN!

And finally my beautiful Indy girl with her ESA (Emotional Support Animal) Cha Cha!

Oh and I was wrong!  I have way more pics of the kids here from Thanksgiving, but not that many of my mom and me.  Oh well, love these photos.  Here are the kids with us at Brunch at another one of my favorite LOCAL Ventura businesses Cafe Nouveau!

Indy and Emma were saying that Houston is looking a lot like a famous actor in his mod clothes, sunglasses, and trucker hat.  Which actor do you think he most resembles?  LOL!  I can’t wait to hear your responses.

Check out these amazing chairs and matching tables by OFS we just got in.  The chairs are like new and retail for $2,500 each.  Priced in the store at $695 each.

Since I am burning the midnight oil writing this ezine, I was lucky enough to get a text from Sandy with a photo of a desk she just finished.  IT IS AMAZING….all Annie Sloan…Aubusson Blue, Svenska, Old White with a Royal Design Stencil and Bubble mermaid knobs.  This piece is a WORK of art!  I LOVE IT!

Can’t wait to get it priced and in the store…

Before I forget, I have so many wonderful people helping out at the store…not just my employees, but my consignors, my customers, and my friends.  You ALL are amazing and I am so grateful for you.

Here is a little peek at Adolio (who is available to hire to move your items) helping to put together a lamp.  My grandmother would comment…” any old port in a storm” as Adolio puts together this lamp by standing on the stairs!  Gotta love the ingenuity!

Let me wrap this up with a HUGE thank you for your continued support of me and my small business! You are keeping us going and my gratitude is immense! THANK YOU THANK YOU!!!

Until we can travel again, I will be around. Stop in and say HELLO! Finally, a great photo from back on March 1st, 2020 before all of this madness began and we could all be together.

My team, from left to right. Emma, Val, my mama, me, Indy, Cindy, and Peggy. Sandy, where are you?????

Thanks for reading my ezines!  I appreciate it….as always!

eBay with Heart & Design with Heart……Lynn

 

P.S.  All of the professional photos I use on Instagram, Facebook, and in these newsletters were taken by my friend Denise’s daughter, Jaclyn Sabo.  She is amazing!   To learn more about Jaclyn….https://www.jaclynszabo.com/

P.P.S.  If you have a friend who wants to sign up for this newsletter.

 

With Covid still hanging around, I have really been missing traveling the world…even though most of it was with my ex-husband and my ex-boyfriend.  LOL, but seriously yes.

More about that later, but for now let’s check out the new Turquoise window at night!

Welcome to Lynn’s Latest #30…

November 13th, 2020
Watch for it every Friday or every other Friday!
Volume I  Issue 30

OH CRAP…Happy Friday the 13th, 2020
What could possibly go wrong?

In the last ezine, I asked y’all which front window color you liked the best. I heard from many of you that you needed to see the choices again. So here they are in ROY G. BIV order.

Red, Orange, Yellow, Green, and the Blue above.

Hit me up and let me know which one is your favorite?  I want to hear from you!  Thanks 🙂

In Super Awesome news, Indiana came home from Pepperdine to watch Cha Cha for three days so that I could go to the desert and get some sleep!  Just Kidding, NOT!

It was seriously AMAZING to not have to get up during the night to let the puppy outside.  I would get a doggy door, but I have to worry about my King Carlos.   Anyone have any ideas?

BTW, Cha Cha is getting HUGE.  She was born on August 5th (so is a Leo like my mama) and is currently only 3 months old.  I am not kidding, she has doubled in size since we got her!

This past Saturday, Emma (Houston’s girlfriend) flew into Santa Barbara from New Jersey.  She has been holed up in NJ with her mother during Covid.  Here she is meeting Cha Cha for the first time!  Carlos was soooooo happy to see her as well.

It was great to see her and I had the pleasure of taking both Emma and Indy out to dinner at Casa Bella. How fashion forward are these two?

Time for an eBay score, don’t you think?  I do!  Well, actually I am hoping that this is a score in the making.  I spent this past Sunday through Tuesday out in Palm Desert hitting a few estate sales.  I got some pretty cool stuff!  Including this original oil painting that I paid $75 to acquire.  What do you think?  Check it out here.

We redid the yellow in-store vignette yesterday.  I think it turned out super fun.  That little yellow sectional is for sale for $449.50.

I did a super fun interview with Griff for the eBay for Business Podcast last week.  We always have so much fun during our chats!  We got on the subject of Cha Cha and how incredibly insane I am with taking on a puppy on top of owning Lynn’s Consignments, selling full time on eBay (15,000 items currently listed baby!), writing an ezine, and actually having to do the shipping while Cindy was on vacation last week.

Just typing that out makes me exhausted!  Anyway, Cindy had her vacation scheduled for quite some time, it just turned out to be terrible timing for me!  It is ALL about me 🙂

Check out this table full of stuff I had to ship on Monday she was out of town.

Here is a link to my episode on the eBay for Business Podcast with Griff.

You may have to look for episode #115. Check out the graphics for the show. Cha Cha is FAMOUS!

In case you missed that tiny photo of Cha Cha and me doing “Cindy’s” shipping.  Check it out here.  And yes, those 15,000 items listed on eBay are behind my office at the store.  Does anyone want a tour?  Just ask!

Let’s get back to the store!!  Last Thursday evening we had an employee tree trimming party.  Super fun!  Here is the crew in front of our gorgeous trees.  Left to right, Val, Sandy, Cindy, Peggy and me.

The store is PACKED…. I say PACKED with amazing gift items for Christmas!  It is soooooo exciting…..with new stuff arriving daily!

Which reminds me….look what is in stock!  Hurry in and get yours before they sell out!   2020 Toilet Paper Ornament arrived today and is only $14.99.  Santa Claus with a mask is $21.99.

If you can’t stop in to pick one up, you can always order here.

Check out these other darling Blown Glass Old World Christmas Glass Ornaments that are also in stock from $14.99 to $22.99 each.  Who doesn’t want a sloth ornament for Christmas?  LOVE these!  Again, they are all available online with more coming in next week.

Here are a few fun furniture pieces that just came in.  I love this turquoise secretary that one of our consignors brought in.  She is super talented!  She used one of the Iron Orchid Design Transfers the “Sea Queen” that is no longer being made.  This piece is for sale at $495.

But back to the Christmas Trees!  I am so excited for the holiday season!  It’s time to celebrate……

Here is our Kazi tree decorated in handwoven ornaments that pay the men and women of Rwanda, Uganda, and Ghana a living wage.  Please help us support this amazing company!  In the back, you can see the trees all decorated in the Old world Ornaments.

Here is a close-up of some of these amazing ornaments.  These pom pom lidded basket ornaments are only $11.95 and you could put a special gift inside…a love note, a promise, a gift certificate or a special piece of jewelry.

Before I forget, we have a VERY special chair waiting in the front window for a VERY special guest.  If you have any youngsters that would like to see where a special guest will be visiting us closer to Christmas, please bring them by!  The little ones that have seen it so far, are filled with wonder and excitement.  Never too early to get in the spirit!

Just a reminder of our current store hours…..THESE HAVE BEEN MODIFIED
Tuesday, Thursday & Sunday 11 to 3 pm.
Wednesday, Friday & Saturday 11 to 5 pm.
We do stay late if there are customers so if you are in the area check us out to see if we are still open after 3 pm.

Time for an eBay score! I bought this Papier Mache Angel last December at an estate sale for $2.00. Sold it for the best offer of $66.00 yesterday. It is my goal to always make 10x my money when selling on eBay. I guess I did it!

Check it out here to see why it sold for so much!

Soooooo many great things arriving in the store for the Christmas Season.  Check out these amazing kitchen utensils that retail for $9.95 (well the spreader is $6.95 and the Spurtle is $12.8=95).  We just got in a huge reorder!  Time to shop!  Also, Free Shipping and available for sale on our website.

We got in the most hysterical line of greeting cards. The artist is from Seattle and I have followed her for years. Super fun to have these cards in stock in the store. You can shop for them here…Free shipping within the continental US.

Got a group text on Sunday morning from my son in Oklahoma City…..Notice how I immediately use the “S” word and then my 84-year-old mother says she would rather use the “F” word.  LOL!

Thank God he is fine!  Houston will quarantine for 10 days and then take a Covid test.  If he tests negative he will be able to join us for Thanksgiving.  If not, I am going to be so upset that he can’t join us for Turkey day.  Ughhhhhh!  Can 2020 please be OVER!

Here is one of my favorite pictures of me and the Goose!  He was practicing cheering for the USC football game that we were going to be attending.  LOL.

Time for an eBay score?  I think so!  But, this time I am going to share ANOTHER one of my mom’s scores.  What?  Yes!  My mom has been selling on eBay for almost as long as I have.  She is 84 years old and still pulls down about $3,000 a month.  She is a rock star!  AND you all seem to love hearing about her success in the last ezine, so here we go again!

This listing is for some flatware that she bought recently.  These 3 pieces of flatware sold for $150!  Yes, you did hear that correctly.  Check it out here.

My mom is my biggest fan and I so appreciate her!  Thank you Mor Mor! I LOVE YOU!  She also thinks that I need to stop writing these newsletters and put my energy towards writing a novel. So do my kids BTW.  They all believe in me!  It is quite nice!

I have always wanted to write a novel, but never carve out the time.  I have been quite successful with non-fiction (Wiley, McGraw Hill, and Scholastic have all published me) so maybe I am afraid of fiction.  Thoughts?

Here I am with my Mama “fake” reading a book.  Maybe this can be motivation, inspiration or whatever it takes to get me fired up and started on my FIRST NOVEL!

Tons of great furniture has been coming into the store.  This puppy has drastically changed my life and I am only in the store for two action-packed days lately.  That doesn’t give me much time to get the furniture photographed and uploaded to the website.  Soooooooo please stop in and check out the new inventory as most are NOT online.

Here are a few of the new pieces.  This one is a beautiful Lockland Canova Grey Door Cabinet / Armoire that comes with clothing rods as well and a mirror inside the one door.  57 x 21 x 72″.  This piece retails for $2549 on Wayfair.  Our price, $595.

Here are some of our great dressers in stock.

I mentioned at the beginning of this ezine that I miss traveling the world.  My love for travel started when I was a small child.  My parents and my grandmother used to drag us along for every international adventure.  I went to Europe for the first time when I was 6 years old and my brother Lee was 3.  My sister wasn’t even born yet!

Here is one of my favorite pictures of my dad with Lee and me in front of Buckingham Palace.  My brother and I were so scared we didn’t want to get anywhere near that horse and my dad made us….and he was sooooooo mad!  I miss you, Wayne Dralle!

Then there was that trip to Hong Kong with my grandmother when I was in High School.  Here is more about that from story #23 in my 2nd book in the 100 Best Series, “Money Making Madness”.

Do you love my perm?  It cracked me up when I pulled this photo from the book archives…my brother had named it “HongKongpoorlydressed”….LOL!  I just text him, who was he saying was poorly dressed?  Me or grandma?

He just text me back and said that I was the one that named the picture.  Sounds about right, I do think that I am pretty humorous.

There were so many “World Travel Adventures” over the years.  I lived in Valencia, Spain for the entire summer after high school graduation.  I did the USC Spain Semester in Madrid in 1984.

There were about 50 of us from USC in Madrid for those 5 months and we became super close.  Here we are at a Spain Reunion party somewhere in Westlake Village back in 1986 or 1987.  If you know anyone in this photo, please let me know!

It was at Debbie Kessler’s (I think she married someone with the last name Allman) home and I have lost touch with her.  My friend Joanne (who appears in lots of my newsletters and her daughters have all worked at the store) is pictured in the front.  She still looks exactly the same.  I put an arrow over me since I don’t look exactly the same.  LOL!  Good times people!

My ex-husband and I traveled a lot, even spending our honeymoon in Bali at the Amandari and the Four Seasons.  First-class all the way baby! Thank you Cheryl Leaf!   I couldn’t find any of our Bali pictures so here is a photo of us at our wedding, the day before we left for Bali.

I traveled a lot with my kids as well.  Missions in Mexico, Disneyworld every other year, Disney Cruises, and summers spent in Bellingham.  Here we are on a spur of the moment trip to Puerta Vallarta….Nothing better than a “surprise vacation”.

My ex-boyfriend and I also traveled extensively. Cozumel, Cayman Islands, Cabo, Catalina, Florida, New York, Nicaragua, and Roatan to name a few.

We even purchased a property in Nicaragua.  Here is the view from our Lot 35 in San Juan del Sur.

I miss all these travel days. I miss my dad, my grandma, and my sister who were always up for a travel adventure. Can’t wait for Covid to be over so I can get back to my globetrotting ways. LOL! But I am totally serious.
OK, now for my final eBay score. Not a huge dollar amount, but hard to find Audio Compact Disc from the Langley Vineyard Church. It sold for about $35.

Check it out here.

OK, this section is probably going to need a new name.  Thoughts?  Or should Carlos still have his own corner?  And Cha-Cha gets her own space…The Challenges of Cha-Cha?  The adventures of Carlos and Cha Cha?

OK, this is hysterical.  One of my ezine readers (Valorie Huston) wrote in with this….

How about….
“Cha Cha-ing with Carlos”    EVERYBODY DANCE NOW!!!

This could be it….thoughts?

Here is my Carlos cleaning Cha Cha’s chin.  How funny is this?

I also got some super cute pics of the two of them today as they were snuggling on Cha Cha’s anti-anxiety bed.  This may soon become Carlos’ bed since Cha is soooooo big!  Check them out, are they not darling?  It looks like it is Cha Cha’s turn to clean Carlos.  LOL!

I know this is Carlos’ Corner, but I must end with a 4 part photo set of Cha Cha helping me do eBay.  At least she thought she was helping me.  LOL!  I posted this on Instagram (follow me at LynnDralle) and FaceBook and several of you want to know when I get these patch boxes (that belonged to my grandmother Cheryl Leaf) listed.

One of our favorite vendors at the store is Baggu.  They make those incredible “on-trend” reusable bags that are all the rage.  Just last week they came out with an entirely new line with new designs.  They announced that ordering was open at 6 am and guess what?  I actually happened to be awake because I HAVE A PUPPY!  LOL, but not really.

I went a little bit crazy with ordering for the store, but check out all these amazing new items!  Puffy laptop sleeves…WOW!

Then there are the new Zip Sets.  OMG!  I am getting some of these for Christmas Gifts.  Great for TRAVEL (which I LOVE and will talk about later)!

Then there are the darling Ear Bud Puffy containers.  These will make great stocking stuffers and make you a huge hero to the younger generation.  Who knew you could be so cool?  Check out all the new Baggu here.  Remember, free shipping.  Order now!

Finally, the awesome new mask designs!  Constellation and Forest Floor…..WOW!  We will be getting more of these in with the loops instead of the ties, so please check us out for all of your Baggu needs!  Thank you for letting me over-share.  I LOVE this company!

I am going to wrap up this ezine with a quote from my Gary John Bishop Calendar that has made a HUGE impact on me.  Wow….I just noticed that it was from October 2nd, what should have been my sister Kiki’s 51st birthday.  Check it out…..

I have taken this quote to heart. I started to examine what was taking up a ton of time and making me frustrated. First, my computer was out of hard drive disc space. I was spending hours every day deleting photos, documents, and anything that would let my computer run faster.

I wasn’t ready for a new computer so after reading this quote, I called Mitec here in Ventura and took my laptop in for an upgrade. $600 later my computer is working like a dream. Thank you Mitec! THIS DEFINITELY MADE MY LIFE BETTER!

I have many more examples but will save those for later ezines. But, I sincerely hope you take this suggestion to heart. REPEAT!
Let me wrap this up with a HUGE thank you for your continued support of me and my small business! You are keeping us going and my gratitude is immense! THANK YOU THANK YOU!!!

Until we can travel again, I will be around. Stop in and say HELLO! Finally, a great photo from back on March 1st, 2020 before all of this madness began and we could all be together.

My team, from left to right. Emma, Val, my mama, me, Indy, Cindy, and Peggy. Sandy, where are you?????

Thanks for reading my ezines!  I appreciate it….as always!

eBay with Heart & Design with Heart……Lynn

 

P.S.  All of the professional photos I use on Instagram, Facebook, and in these newsletters were taken by my friend Denise’s daughter, Jaclyn Sabo.  She is amazing!   To learn more about Jaclyn….https://www.jaclynszabo.com/

P.P.S.  If you have a friend who wants to sign up for this newsletter.