Hi!
Happy May Day! It was a tradition when we were little to hang fresh flowers on people’s front doors. Is that really a tradition? Or did my mom just want flowers?
- Lynn Recommends: Listening to Griff & Lee Interview + 50 Tips
- Special Announcement: Palm Desert Mustang Charity Auctions!
- Feature Article: 5 Things to Pick up at Garage Sales that Most People Miss!
- The Queen’s Update: I am teaching three Classes at eBay Live!
This ezine is published once a week.
May 1, 2008 Volume IV, Issue 18
Dear eBayers,
Well, I decided I had better check Wikipedia on that May Day Tradition. Here is what they say about some early European settler’s tradition “In some parts of the United States, May Day baskets are made. These baskets are small and usually filled with flowers or treats and are left at someone’s doorstep. When you ring the bell, you are supposed to run away. The person receiving the basket would try to catch the person running away. If they caught the person, a kiss was to be exchanged.” So it really was a tradition–Didn’t know about the kiss part though!
I hope your eBay business has survived April and that May will be better for all of us. My April was down quite a bit from March, but almost dead even with April of last year. I have high hopes for May!
I was so busy this past weekend listing the charity auctions for Houston’s baseball team, that I didn’t get anything listed for myself. Not Good! I will have to work extra hard this week on listing my own stuff. But check out the Special announcement section to find out more about the charity auctions and all the amazing items we have up for sale. Auctions end 5/6 so don’t miss this section. I have donated quite a few of my best-selling products!
I did take a small break on Sunday to take Houston to work with a former Major League Pitcher and Indy to the Webkinz Extravaganza. (Jeanine–from last live boot camp– I am sure you can relate!)
Houston got to spend an hour working on his pitching with Brian, a former pitcher for the Cleveland Indians. Oral Hershiser taught Brian his change-up pitch (a very famous pitch) and Brian taught it to Houston. Houston was over the moon! (That is definitely something that Cheryl Leaf my grandmother would have said).
And the lesson was at a private residence right next door to the La Quinta Resort, where Live Boot Camp is going to be held this September. The private residence has its own baseball field and batting cages! It was wild! For all of you who do attend live boot camp this year, I will show it to you. Seats are selling out quickly for live boot camp. 17 spots are already reserved. Don’t miss out!
After the baseball lesson, we headed to a store inside the Desert Marriott, called Mary Helen Kids. The Webkinz extravaganza was held across the US this past weekend and kids could win prizes just for going to certain stores. Indy and Houston scored with two free Webkinz, a backpack, lip gloss (not for Houston), and some trading cards.
Here is Indy after she learned she had just won a Webkinz. It was a special day for both my kids!
If you missed my radio interview with Griff and Lee this past Tuesday, check out the Lynn Recommends section for a download and another cool surprise that I had forgotten about.
During the radio interview, we talked quite a bit about garage sale season and those items that get overlooked. Check out my feature article for some great examples of what to look for that other people may miss!
Once again, I am super excited to announce that I have been selected to teach two computer labs and co-teach one seminar at eBay Live this year in Chicago. Please read the Queen’s Update section to learn more. I want to see you guys in those seats!!!!
Here’s to Successful eBaying!
Lynn Dralle, ‘The Queen of Auctions,’ Creator of the best-selling eBay Boot Camp in a Box and Boot Camp in a Box Lite.
The Griff and Lee radio interview on Tuesday was fun and informative–as always. Those two are the best! Click here to listen if you missed it.
And while I was in the queue waiting for my segment, I got to hear an ad from WS Radio announcing a free download of the 50 top-selling tips that they gathered from ten top eBay sellers. Wow! Guess what? I was one of those ten sellers. Quite the honor and here is a link to all 50 tips.
The Mustangs charity auctions are up and running! Finally! After weeks (maybe even months) of gathering donations from all of the awesome parents, I was able to list 56 items for the boys.
Click here to see what we have for sale www.palmdesertmustangs.com
Here is a little bit more info about the team: The Palm Desert Mustang baseball team is comprised of eleven-year-old players from the Coachella Valley in Southern California. Our travel team represents the city of Palm Desert in tournaments. Our boys are very competitive (while still having fun) and have won numerous awards. Our team has qualified to attend the Triple Crown Summer World Series in Steamboat Springs, Colorado this August. It costs a lot of money to send 11 boys and their families on this once-in-a-lifetime trip. We appreciate your help and support!!
Please help us out and bid early and often. I have even donated a seat to Live Boot Camp that starts at 99 cents! There are rounds of golf, restaurant certificates, lots of my product,s and more!
Don’t miss out! These auctions end on 5/6.
‘5 Super-Secret Items to Pick up at Garage Sales That Most People Miss‘
by Lynn A. Dralle, ‘The Queen of Auctions’
Now that garage sale season is here–And in a big way! Here are 5 categories of items to pick up that most people will miss.
1. Legos
My father bought my son a huge Lego collection about seven years ago. I have been stepping on them all over my house in my bare feet ever since. They hurt! Well, we are cleaning up our house and simplifying–so my son decided it would be OK to sell them. You won’t believe what they sold for…in the several $100’s!
I had no idea how to do it so gathered them all up and weighed them. 56 pounds! And it turns out that a lot of people sell them by the pound on eBay. Now I am going to start buying Legos at garage sales and start another bin full. Remember Lego brand and Playmobil are the best brands.
Here is the auction. Click here to see what they sold for.
We got a ton of questions about the mini-figures and pamphlets. The mini-figures and Harry Potter Legos seem to be the ones that people are looking for. I asked Houston if he would pull out all the “little people” (as Griff called them in our radio interview) and set them up in a cool design for a photo.
Here is what he and Indy came up with for me to take an extra photo. We found 88 minis in that 56-pound lot. Start collecting Legos at garage sales or from your own home!
2. Cookware…You probably all remember the Le Creuset pan that I paid $5.00 for and it sold for $70.11!
Click here
to read more.
Remember, the condition is very important…..Other brands of cookware to look for are:
New and Newer:
- All-Clad (brand) Stainless
- Lifetime (brand) Waterless and Stainless
- Baumalu Copper
- Calphalon Commercial & Residential
Vintage and Antique:
- Griswold Cast Iron (see example below)
- Erie Cast Iron (also a Griswold mark)
- Wagner Cast Iron (sometimes–not always)
- Graniteware
- Descoware
- Le Creuset (as shown above)
- Dansk
- Any French Copper
Remember this cast iron Griswold pan from story # 57 in The 3rd 100 Best Things I’ve Sold on eBay–Ka-Ching ?
It sold for $153.50.
3. Coffee Mugs
I can’t say enough about coffee mugs. Almost every single garage sale you go to will have at least one coffee mug if not dozens. The thrift stores are also packed with mugs.
Don’t pass up any Starbucks mugs and also look for themes (dogs, cats, etc.) and good signatures. Most Coffee mugs are only 25 cents and if you choose correctly will bring at least $9.99.
Maureen (Mo), my assistant, has a Bullwinkle mug up for sale this week that we think may go quite high.
Here is a link to Mo’s Bullwinkle Mug
I’ve got 199 coffee mug listings in my eBay store ranging from $19.99 down to $9.99. Most of these will eventually sell. Remember, if it doesn’t sell at auction, quickly move it into your eBay store and it has a great chance of selling from there. We sell coffee mugs every single week.
4. Sports Jerseys & Jackets
We were at a sale in a part of the valley that we usually don’t go to and I saw this Water Polo USA jacket. My mom specializes in clothing so I told her to buy it ($5.00). There was still an hour left to go in the auction and it was up to $46.00. A member of the US Water Polo Team previously owned this jacket. Pretty Cool!
Check to see what it sold for.
I also picked up four Sports Football/Baseball jerseys at the same sale a few weeks ago for $5.00 each. Here are two of them. You just never know what they will sell for but you can’t go wrong by paying less than $5.00.
Here is a Minnesota Vikings Jersey
Here is a UCLA Baseball Jersey
5. Flatware
Flatware is usually overlooked at garage sales and in thrift stores. I buy sets of silver plates for between $25 and $100 each (if they have a box), sets of stainless for $2 to $50 and sterling really depends upon the pattern. I like the silver plate sets in boxes because I know I can get at least $25 for the wooden box and that usually covers my entire purchase. The flatware is then free.
Check out this box that already has a bid of $24.99.
I paid $50 for the set of silver plates. The pattern was Reflection by Rogers Brothers and I sold seven pieces of the flatware for $87.67 plus what the box brought in. I have already doubled my money and I have about 25 auctions that didn’t sell that I will move into my eBay store at $9.99 each. You have got to love flatware! Plus it is easy to ship.
Check out what this tomato server sold for. I bet you didn’t even know what a tomato server was or is!
I hope that this gives you some more ideas of what to look for when you are out garage saling this Spring. For those of you with cold winters, remember that NOW is the time to stock up!
Happy eBaying!
Lynn
WANT TO USE THIS ARTICLE IN YOUR EZINE OR ON YOUR WEBSITE? Yes, you may – just as long as you include all links as they are and append this complete blurb with it: The Queen of Auctions and eBay Power Seller, Lynn Dralle, publishes ‘eBay Tips & Tricks’ a weekly ezine with 10,000+ subscribers. If you’re ready to jump-start your eBay business, make more money and have more time, get your FREE tips now at www.thequeenofauctions.com
I am excited to announce that I will be teaching one class (Twice now!) and co-teaching another class at eBay Live! I have been asking eBay if I could do this for years and finally my dream is coming true!!! The classes are 90 minutes long each.
I can’t believe that eBay Live! in Chicago is just 70 days away. Yikes! I have so much to do. In addition to the classes, we will be in a 10′ by 20′ booth–Booth #538. Carmen, her husband Jason, Mo, and I will be manning the booth. Mo’s sister Mary Beth will also be helping out. Can’t wait!
The first class that I am teaching–on my own–is called “How To Research Quickly & Effectively When Selling Higher Profit Margin Items.” It is a computer lab course. I have the dates and times now for all the classes. This one will be taught on Thursday, June 19th from 10:00 to 11:30 am and then again on Friday, June 20th from 1:00 to 2:30 pm. I just found out that this class will be held in a room that has 25, 50, or 75 computers.
To get the larger room here is what needs to happen. Because there are no advanced sign-ups for any sessions interested students CAN go to the Agenda Builder after they register for the conference and build their agenda, showing they will attend your session.
The more people that indicate interest through the Agenda Builder, the larger the room they put the session in. They are not held to their choices, however, so if they change their minds no one will hunt them down! Here is more about the class:
I will bring in ten unique items–typically higher profit margins from the antiques and collectibles category. As an example, a flatware set (just one piece), dinnerware set (just one piece), antique vase, etc., and show them on the computer where to go and find values and identify patterns fast! I will use Google, PriceMiner, eBay and Replacements.
The computer lab classes are workshop classes where attendees can get hands-on experience. They are limited to 100 attendees sharing 50 computers. Lab presentations are similar to Seminars, but have more step-by-step instructions and screenshots/images, so attendees can follow along on the computer. I hope to see you there!
The second class that I am co-teaching with Herb Oberman is called “From One Item To A Truckload – How To Source High-Margin Items Locally.”
My section is about shopping garage sales and thrift stores. This class will be held on Friday, June 20th from 10:30 to 12:00 noon.
Here is more about the class:
If you are looking for ongoing sources of merchandise that are not imported, or want to see how you can make significant profit off of low-cost items, this is a must-attend seminar! Join Herb Oberman and Lynn Dralle aka The Queen of Auctions, to learn more about locally sourcing high margin items that have not flooded the eBay Marketplace. Herb will talk about finding companies in your area that sell products at rock bottom prices which you may then resell on eBay. Lynn will show you how to quickly and effectively shop garage sales and thrift stores to find those unique items that can sell for big bucks on eBay.
It is a Seminar. These are lecture-style classes for large groups of attendees. Seminars look like your classic presentation – with a mixture of bullet point content and screenshots/images. Can’t wait to see you at either one!
eBay PowerSeller and third-generation antique dealer, Lynn Dralle, is the creator of Boot Camp in a Box, the home-study course where you can learn to implement the Dralle Method to maximize your eBay profits.
If you liked today’s issue, you’ll love this step-by-step course that is guaranteed to be the most complete and enjoyable guide to selling on eBay that MAKES YOU MONEY.
Read all about it here.
The Queen of Auctions also offers articles, teleseminars, how-to books, tracking guides, DVDs, eBay Boot Camp training, and other resources to help entrepreneurs make their eBay business a six-figure sales machine. Click here to learn more.
The Queen of Auctions/All Aboard Inc.
PO Box 14103
Palm Desert, CA 92255
760-340-6622
Lynn@TheQueenofAuctions.com
Happy eBaying!!
Lynn
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Lynn is an experienced eBay Power Seller, author, and teacher. If you want to know the eBay tips, tricks, and tools that Lynn uses for buying and selling at an online auction click here.