Pictured My mom, Peggy, me, Sandy, Kathy, Indiana, Val, Steve, and Joanne

Welcome to Lynn’s Latest #11…

March 26, 2020
Watch for it every Thursday or every OTHER Thursday!
Volume I  Issue 11

Welcome to our new normal….I MISS all of you!  I have been going to the store almost every day to work on eBay, place reorders, straighten up and fulfill the website, call in, and text orders.  I must say it is LONELY!  Sandy and Cindy are there most days as well (Thank God for these girls), but I miss the energy of the store when it is filled with Customers and Consignors!

I think this picture of Carlos says it perfectly….Wake me up when this sh*t is OVER!

So, Thursday started out pretty normal, we had the store open, business was good and customers were staying at least 6 feet away from one another.  I got home and thought…let’s support a local restaurant… so we ordered take-out from Prime.  Soooooo good!  and they are running 4-course meal specials.  Call them!  (805) 652-1055

We all enjoyed our dinner and then the news flash…California was shutting down.  Shelter in place.  Yikes!  What does this mean for all of us, small business owners?  SCARY doesn’t begin to describe it!

I quickly got over that emotion, because that is how I roll.  Time to look for the good, the positive, and make lemons out of lemonade.  Oops, I think I have that backward.  Make lemonade out of lemons….LOL!

My mom is back home in Bellingham and fell and twisted her knee…the EMTs wouldn’t take her in because the hospitals are not a safe place for her.  It isn’t broken and it is getting better, but I am trying to figure out if we should bring her down here, have my brother go up and stay with her, or any other options….anyone has any ideas?

Here is a photo from my ezine on July 21st, 2016.  Indy, my mom, and I were waiting in line for a Bellingham estate sale.  Crazy to believe that this was less than 4 years ago!  My goodness…so much has changed!

Back then, I was looking for retail space in Bellingham, Houston was walking the Camino in Spain, my dad was still alive and my mom was about to turn 80.  Read about it all here…http://www.thequeenofauctions.com/articlepages/ezinev12is06.html

Friday morning after the shutdown, we were all kind of lost.  Didn’t know quite what to do with ourselves.  Do I go into the store?  Do I take a day off?  I ended up going into the store to work on an Annie Sloan paint reorder and to work on eBay.  Cindy and Sandy also came in to do some clean-up and eBay.

When I got back to the house at around 5 pm, the kids were like, let’s go to the beach.  OK!  As long as I can take a beach chair, a blanket, a magazine, and a glass of chardonnay, I am in!

It was such a treat!  Spending time with the kids, laughing, walking on the beach, and just chilling.  I think God is telling us all to slow down a bit.  🙂

On Saturday Sandy and I went into the store to do some more cleaning and get ready for when we can reopen!  Hey folks, just so you know, the store is going to look impeccable!  Can’t wait to show it off to you all 🙂

A super nice customer also called in a paint order that we delivered curbside…actually we put it in her trunk.  Thank you to those supporting us through these tough times!  It is greatly appreciated!

Speaking of the store and how nice it is looking, check out this vignette that Sandy worked on.  The theme is kind of Bali, East Indian, etc.  What do you think?  I can get you the prices on anything you see.

OK, time to share an eBay score!  Thank God for eBay!  Seriously, for those of you who need to bring in a little extra money during this quarantine, clean up your house and find things that can bring in the bucks on eBay.

I have some resources for you…..check out my eBay website.  It hasn’t had a lot of love shown it recently, but there is still a lot of good info on it.  Especially if you read my old newsletters.  http://www.thequeenofauctions.com/

I went to a garage sale about six months ago and bought 100 Snoopy/Peanuts mugs and glasses for approximately 50 cents each.  They will take a while to sell….but this one sold today for the full price of $34.79….Whoooooo Weeeeee!

https://tinyurl.com/snoopyglass

You all know and remember Val (who was my first store employee) right?  She hasn’t been around a lot because her husband, Ron, is fighting esophageal cancer.  For more on that and their story, please check out the Go Fund Me page I started for them.  You all have been amazing!  Thank you to all of you who have donated…seriously?  $8,181 on our way to $10,000.  God Bless!

https://tinyurl.com/theharringtonsneedourhelp

Val’s birthday was this past Saturday, March 14th.  I had ordered her a gift, but it wasn’t here for me to give it to her in person on the last day she worked (Friday the 13th).  So, I shipped it to her and she received it this past Monday.

Check out her darling Facebook/Instagram post.  I miss her!  The gift is a super cozy blanket that says….

“It’s OK to….

Not Have All the Answers
Feel All the Emotions
Have Bad Days
Let Yourself Cry
Ask for Help
Make Mistakes”

I bought this for her with the cancer battle in mind, but in all actuality, it is a great message for all of us.  It is OK!  and we are gonna get through this and become stronger and more compassionate for it….trust me!

And now for another eBay score!  I buy, list, and sell a TON of coffee mugs!  They are the bread and butter of my eBay business.  You can pick them up for 10 cents to a couple of bucks each.

Just sold this one for the best offer of $20 plus shipping!

https://tinyurl.com/greekcoffeemug

And, in one of my books, Money Making Madness, https://tinyurl.com/drallemoneymakingmadness

I discuss a coffee mug that originally came from my grandmother’s kitchen cabinet. Now, I knew this coffee mug had potential because it was vintage and jadeite.

Here is that excerpt from the book with story #49

The Story

I have never had a cup of coffee in my life. OK, I take that back. I had one cup of coffee in Paris in 1985, and it was laced with brandy. It was snowing, I was freezing, and my friends Juliette and Vicki said it would warm me up. It did warm me up, but I still can’t stand the taste of coffee. Instead, I drink about six Diet Coke every day to get my dose of caffeine.

It’s funny, but I didn’t realize where I learned NOT to drink coffee until I was writing this story. This jadeite green coffee mug was in my grandmother’s kitchen cupboard for years and years. It finally dawned on me that my grandmother NEVER drank coffee. No wonder I had no desire to try it or like it. I was following the lead of my favorite role model.

Anyway, I inherited it in one of my boxes. I thought one coffee mug was never going to sell for very much but decided to do some research anyway. I knew it was jadeite by Fire King. Fire King was a group of ovenproof lines launched by Anchor Hocking in the early 1940s. Jadeite was named for its green color, which resembled jade; it became a signature item of the Fire King line. When I got on eBay, I found that these are super collectible. Three of the jadeite coffee mugs together had recently sold for $100! Each mug’s handle curve is named for different letters of the alphabet–there are “c” and “d” curves. I guessed that mine was a “c” handle.

I put it on eBay with all of that information in the title. I started the bidding at $9.99 (my usual) and couldn’t believe it when it got ten bids and sold for $36. It was shipped to Japan and the buyer paid $14 more for airmail shipping. My grandmother would have laughed and laughed over this one. She would have gotten such a kick out of it!

Another thing that she would have gotten a big kick out of was that she and I were appearing in an article in the Antique Trader that very same week. I had interviewed Sharon Korbeck, the editor of the Antique Trader, for my McGraw Hill book, and she thought that my grandmother and I would make a great story. It was written in the spring of 2004 and published at the end of July.

The Antique Trader was my grandmother’s favorite magazine; she read it faithfully cover to cover every week. She would have been thrilled to pieces to be featured in this publication. I used to include this wonderful article in each box that I ship out to my eBay buyers. I have heard such nice comments from my customers. Things like, “The article adds such a personal touch,” and, “I feel like I know you and your grandma!” I’ll bet they don’t know that neither of us ever drank coffee!

For those of you who want to learn more about selling coffee mugs on eBay…My eBook “Cash for Coffee Mugs” is on sale for $57… which is an incredible price since just one successful coffee mug sale will more than pay for that.  Check it out here.

http://www.thequeenofauctions.com/ebay-ebooks/cash-for-coffee-mugs.php?id=home-promo

OK, back to the store.  Even though we are not open, we still have great items that you can purchase by phone for curbside pick-up.  Here are two super fun and bright chairs.  Brand new and only $29.50 each!

We are also getting in a lot of outdoor furniture. Just what we need….some fun new pieces to brighten up our “stay at home” houses! These Sedona armless sectional pieces are $125 each and there are 4 available.

The Breeze (love the Breeze) published a photo of me, Sheldon, and Breezy from my 2nd-anniversary party!  That was only 25 days ago and it feels like a lifetime!  “Calgon take me away” is what my sister used to say when things were tough.  If only it was that simple!

Our next Annie Sloan paint class originally scheduled for Saturday, April 4th has been POSTPONED until we get the all-clear to gather again.

If you have any questions please call the store at 805-628-3289…

However, this is a great time to work on projects at home!  We have plenty of paint in stock and you can place your order online and we will be happy to get it to you curbside or deliver for free in Ventura. (This goes for everything in the store and on our website, as long as it can fit in an SUV!)

Here is a link to Annie Sloan products on our website.  https://lynnsconsignment.ricoconsign.com/store/category/Annie%20Sloan?sort=LH

OK, so it has been my plan to paint, paint and then paint some more.  Unfortunately, even with all of this “free” time, it doesn’t really seem like there is any “free” time.  Do any of you feel my pain?  I have been spending more time with my kids, putting more time into eBay, trying to keep the online orders coming in for the store, meeting customers for appointment-only showings, and brainstorming on how to work around this mess!

Well, now I have myself in a pickle as one might say.  I posted a story on Instagram today (follow me at LynnDralle, LynnsConsignments, and MrKittyCarlos) of this cabinet and how I was going to paint it “like Annie Sloan does”.

Well, guess who responded to my insta story?  Annie Sloan herself!  And she is sooooo funny….check this out.

I WILL be painting tomorrow (so stop by and say hi through the glass :)) and I just drew up my plan.  When I was little (age 3 on) I used to do these crazy doodles and then color them in with all different colors.

I sold them out of my bedroom when we lived in Canada for between 5 and 25 cents each.  I am going back to my roots here and will use that original design technique on the top portion.  Stripes on the base and I think plain to the left.

I just found a sample of my artwork that I did recently.  Yikes!  When I pulled it out, it was dated 1990.  Well, apparently, that is recent to me.

I am super excited to get back to my art.  When I was accepted into USC, I told my dad that I was going to choose the art school track.

I will never forget standing in our rec room on Bayside Road in Bellingham and what he said to me.  “You will go to business school or you won’t be going to USC, because I won’t pay for it”.  Decision made.  My dad was not that type of dad, but he felt very strongly about my college track.  It still haunts me a bit…what if I would have gone to USC’s art school?  Would my life have been different?

In any event, as I have had time to think these past few weeks, I am super grateful and feel blessed that this virus is giving us all a chance to reevaluate our lives and where we are….and maybe where we should be? Do you feel the same?

CARLOS’ Corner…..the little guy has all of our hearts.  We just LOVE him!

He thinks that he is a dog.  He plays fetch with us…seriously!…he brings us empty toilet paper rolls (God forbid they would be full), balls, bracelets, dixie cups, (actually anything that he can carry in his mouth)…drops it at your feet and waits for you to throw it.  I will post some videos someday when I have more “free” time because it is HILARIOUS!

Here he is in action with his tennis balls that he got for Christmas.  Apparently, I knew I wasn’t getting my kids a cat, but rather a DOG because I bought him balls!  BTW, really hard to get a great photo of a cat playing with tennis balls LOL!

It was so fun having both my kids home.  Unfortunately, Houston’s principal at the high school he teaches at in Oklahoma City insisted that he return, even though classes are most likely canceled through the end of the school year.  It was scary for him to fly back this past Tuesday.  At least I got him out of Santa Barbara airport instead of LAX.

He said the airports and the planes were empty.  Ughh!  He is hoping he can drive his car back to Ventura and do his remote teaching from here.  It was so nice to have him home…not often do you get to have your college-age kids home with you for an extended period of time.  Here they are at the beach before he had to leave……

Don’t forget that most of our gift items can now be purchased on our website! The new Baggus that were just released are also there for purchase….they are soooo fun!

Until this Corona Virus madness ends…anything purchased on our website will ship for FREE.  Yes, I did say that out loud…Check our online store with the link below.    Any questions, please call the store at 805-628-3289.

https://lynnsconsignment.ricoconsign.com/

Here is a link to all of the fun Baggus…..
https://lynnsconsignment.ricoconsign.com/store/category/Baggu?sort=HL

Staying home gives all of us a great chance to work on projects, redo rooms and get organized.  Don’t forget that all of the amazing IOD products are also available online and we can get to you curbside or deliver for free in Ventura!

Here is a link to the IOD products.
https://lynnsconsignment.ricoconsign.com/store/category/Iron%20Orchid%20Designs?sort=HL

Another photo of things that have come into the store.  The media cabinet was painted by Sandy in Annie Sloan Graphite and she also added an IOD transfer.  How cute is that?  It also has some super fun clock knobs for hardware.  Priced to move at $195.  The Orin Ellis white leather ottoman (with the faux dalmatian on top) is $249.50.  Those fun shaggy pillows in hot pink and silver are $14.95 each.

Please text me for a private showing.  I don’t have anything else to do!  LOL.  760-880-3535.

Last week (before we had to shut down), we sold two couches to two of our favorite customers.  The first couch went to Joy and her husband Micheal (she WILL be teaching the calligraphy class when we are back open).  Check out how great it looks in her house and I love the sweet text message she sent with the photo!

“Hi Lynn, here’s our gorgeous new sleeper sofa, thanks to Lynn’s consignments!  I made the long skinny pillow and the arm covers.  Thanks again!  I hope you and the family are well!

After Joy & Micheal purchased their sofa, Kelei and her husband Joe came in looking for a sofa for their new houseboat.  It had to be a very specific dimension to be able to maneuver it through the hatch.  Seriously?  We finally found the perfect couch and they love it!  The pillows are also from my store!  How cute is this?

Here is one last shot of a super awesome European chandelier we have in the store.  It came in at $495 and is currently priced at $297.

One last eBay score!  I bought a HUGE box of random trading cards a few years ago.  I probably paid $5.00.  Over the years, I have sold a bunch of them.  This one sold today for the best offer of $11 and $17 in shipping as they are going to Paris.  Ooh La La!

 Funny, because when I was a freshman at USC (in the business school :)) I played “Don’t you want me Baby” by the Human League over and over and over again!  I drove my RA crazy!

https://tinyurl.com/smashhumanleague

So, it has been really strange having Indiana here doing her Pepperdine courses using Zoom.  Especially because she is a theatre major.  Lots of weird noises coming from the living room.  LOL.  Here is what her computer looks like when Carlos is helping her study.  Poor kid!  It is really hard to get him to stay away.

Don’t forget that we now have gift cards available on the website.
https://lynnsconsignment.ricoconsign.com/store/category/Gift%20Card

Just so you know, this will get better.  This too shall pass.  God has got this.  And, on top of that, my neighbor, Gina Cole (the best neighbor ever–who brought us homemade tacos for dinner tonight) sent me this photo of a rainbow over my house.  We are all good!

OK!  One last fun photo.  Indiana, outside, working on her movement class and trying to become one with a plant.  LOL, whatever?  At least she is super busy and enjoying her Zoom classes.  Apparently, I should have bought stock in THAT company!

Again…..A Happy New Decade (We will get through this!) from Lynn’s Consignments team to you and your family!   We hope to see you soon!

Pictured…Emma, Mor Mor (my mom!), me, Val, Peggy, Kathy, and Jo Dallas!

For some reason, I wrote A LOT this week! So, this is how I feel now that I am finished. Just like Carlos…I am WORN out! However, I wish I was as tall (long) and lean as this little guy!

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.