The Big T.O.P. List - The Weekend Garage Sale Picker!

Yes, I know, this blog posting is late in coming....I also got distracted and did a "non picker types related blog post" in between...ooops....my disorganization is showing (more on that "little" topic will be covered in later postings)

It is summer here in Manitoba, and things have been hectic. Summers are just way too short here in the prairies. 

I tend to try to pack a years worth of outdoor work into just a few scant months. Plus, I need to keep up with indoor projects  (and general "life") at the same time.

Also, with summer comes garage sales & yard sales, of course. 

Garage sales and yard sales are pretty much synonymous these days. I have seen "Yard Sales" in garages, and "Garage Sales" held in yards. 

The terms are essentially interchangeable. It is all semantics, really.

That brings with it the "weekend garage sale hobbiest pickers."

Let's just call 'em WGSHP's for short, okay?  That will save my achin' fingers some work....!

So, these "pickers" are probably the "lowest" on the totem pole of picker types.  

No, no, no,  I am not saying they are "scum" or anything of the sort, they are just the lowest level at which I would consider someone to actually be able to legitimately use the word "picker" as a part of their "title".

The individual who is a WGSHP will determine by their actions if they deserve respect or not. Heck, everyone on this earth should take that thought to heart, really...

But, this blog is about picking, so I will stay away from the oh-so-tempting philosophical rant running around my brain (for the time being, anyway.)

WGSHPs do just what the title describes. They run around to garage sales on the weekends and buy items for resale. Whether they resell them online, at auctions, to dealers, at flea markets, to fellow collectors (and on and on) is all irrelevant.

The source of their merchandise is garage sales, pure and simple.

The sources of any picker's merchandise can generally be determined by the types of stuff they don't find.  If you put a pile of a picker's picks in front of them, and lined them up in a long row, you would soon see how the merchandise runs the gamut, as to the picker's picks' quality, type, age, size, etc, etc, etc. The list of differences is an entire lifetime long, really.

For example, a WGSHP may come up with the odd advertising sign, maybe a mint boxed tin toy now and then, some new/old stock inventory once and awhile, a primitive piece occasionally (if that is even on their radar), a valuable painting, etc. 

But, what you will notice is that they do not have a regular influx of certain items that a "professional picker" tends to bring to the market. 

There will/could be a regular influx of Swanky Swigs, Starbucks Coffee mugs, china, 1970s mod items, 1980s funky retro items, 1990s collectible toys, and a long laundry list of other items that can be found at garage sales with regularity.

I am not knocking these items or categories, don't get me wrong! 

Have you seen what some of the modern Starbuck coffee mugs sell for on eBay? 

Heck, it is enough to give you coffee mug envy!

The WGSHP is a part timer...well, an "occasional timer", really. Their buying activity is pretty much limited to those weekend garage sales. They might drop in to the odd auction, the odd thrift shop, and even some antiques & vintage shops. 

They might actually spend a dollar or two in those places, too. Their collecting habits might be the very fuel for the garage sale picking they do. 

Many collectors finance the acquirement of parts (or even their entire) collections in this way, using the profits from their garage sale hunting to add to their collections. 

Oh so many collectors start out going to garage sales in the first place simply as part of their hunt for the objects of their personal obsessions. On one of those outings, they see something that they know is SO absurdly cheap that they can not resist buying it, even though it is not something that they want themselves.  

After that, and maybe even during the moment they spot the bargain.....

....they figure out that they should SELL it to a dealer, fellow collector, scrap gold buyer (etc!). 

They end up grinning ear to ear after they have resold the item(s) for a "handsome" profit. With that profit they treat themselves to a purchase of a  piece that previously caught their bottomless collecting heart, but the contents (or rather lack of contents) of their wallet blocked their acquiring it to fill that empty space. 

With that little space filled.....

A Weekend Garage Sale Hobbiest Picker is born!

Will he/she grow, expand their horizons, mature? 

Some do, some don't.

Those that do mature become one of the many other "Types Of Pickers" in this world....and now you k now where the "T.O.P" of this list comes from....

So, are you a WGSHP? 

Yes?  

No?

If you answered no, keep reading this blog for more T.O.P postings! 

Heck, if you answered YES, you should keep reading, too!
You may end up deciding you want to change your picker title!
Or you just want to be entertained...it is all good! 

Safe pickin', folks! 

TRASH TO CASH - Upcycle Your Dogs!

Ever since I started this blog, I have been meaning to write on "upcycling"  vintage (and not-so-vintage)"junk."  I have been doing this sort of thing for YEARS.


Long, long, long before the "Picker Chicks" even existed (or even thought about doing the things they do) I was creating many things from "junk".  As early as I can remember I was creating things from "trash".  Craft and art supplies are expensive. Why go out and buy them when you can get them for free or near free?

This carries over into the world of antiques, collectibles and vintage items...and the business of selling those items.

One of the things a hardcore picker and a newbie picker have in common is:

Needing to sell that low-end merchandise....and in the process end up making some real money from it.

The newbie may have bought the items in error, and needs to re-coup some of their investment. The hardcore vet likely has accumulated the items as parts of bulk purchases, auction box lots, house clean-up contents, etc, etc, etc.

Hardcore vets, like myself, like to maximize our money. Combine that with the fact that this sort of low end, common stuff is impossible to sell to bulk to our regular dealer and decorator customers.  Plus, we are not afraid of doing work.

You CAN make lemonade out of those boxes and boxes (and boxes, etc....) of lemons.

 All you need is IMAGINATION...and a little hands-on effort.   "Upcycling" is a recent term, but antiques dealers have been doing it for YEARS. Human kind has been doing it for centuries, actually.

The concept is darn simple....taking low and/or "no value" junk and creating something of value by reworking it and/or combining it with other low/no-value items.

Here is a simple thing, that takes items with low and no value, all items you have lying around, or ready to go to the trash, recycling or thrift store, and makes something you can sell at a flea market, craft sale, and even in your antiques store.

Grab that box of round cookie tins you have been hesitating putting in the recycle bin. Dig in the boxes of old hardware you have in the back rooms, the ones you bought at the auction so you could get the antique door knobs and Eastlake drawer pulls from...oh, and snag that busted 1980s table lamp you scavenged a socket from...you can use some of the parts from it, too.

You can create an item that you can retail for $15 - $45...just from some of these tins, some short lengths of copper, brass, or chrome tubing, (or even rusty pipe!), maybe an old lamp part or 2 some washers,   and some elbow grease!

Below you will find a link to the article describing how to do it. With a little imagination and your own pile of "junk", you can now create some salable inventory from that trash you have been hoarding....!

----- Click here to go to what I call the Vintage Tin Tree Storage/Organizer article -----

After you sell a bunch of these creations, you can get back to pickin'!

Realities of the Junk Biz Lifestyle VS Reality TV - Part One...of many to come)

Ah, you are back! GOOD. At least you want to learn!

(Oh, warning, no pictures exist in this posting.) 


Just the facts, period.

The thing is, when you are in the "junk biz" "stuff happens," just as it does to anyone else.....and sometimes  "stuff happens" even more-so.

Times can be tough. 

An expected/unexpected bill can pop up. 

You could get so overworked/tired/stressed that you need a vacation or you will loose your mind and/or your family.

You may need to take an urgent trip via airline, and not be able to pick up a "cheap flight" and have to pay the airlines top-end rates.

You need to take some other emergency trip, maybe rescue of friend from a bad relationship, or just "be there" for someone.

You may wish to take time off just to be with a friend/relative in the last months/days/hours of their lives. 


You suddenly may have health issues of your own arise, or need to assist a  family member or friend in health related issue.

You may trip on a half-buried wire while in a scrap yard, resulting in a face-meets-chrome impact, and leave some extra patina and scuffs on that Dodge DeSoto bumper you were after...but at least you know roughly where to look for the other halves of your front teeth....seeing as you did hear 2 "pings" as they ricocheted off the grill.


Of course, I could keep going on and on and on. However, those of you who have been on that long road of life for more than, say, a quarter century, without the family safety net constantly hovering underneath their tightrope....well, you all don't need reminders of the past.  

I do want to make those who are new to the junk biz well aware of the realities of the junk biz lifestyle.  

ATTENTION ALL of you who fall under these categories,

  - Reality-TV-Is-Real-Life-True-Believers
  - newbie-but-I-AM-A-PROFESSIONAL-Storage-Locker-Buyers
  - Wannabe-Pickers
  - among other hoards of those people, falling under multiple known (and currently unknown) categories of those who are  bushy-tailed-bright-eyed-earnestly-peering-through-their-rose-colored-glasses with that 100 yard I-am-going-to-be-rich-buying-and-selling-other-people's-junk sort of dazed stare

 PLEASE CLOSELY read the next 6 points:


(1) EASY MONEY DOES NOT EXIST IN THE JUNK BIZ....nor anywhere else.


(2) YOU CAN NOT KEEP ALL/MOST/MUCH OF THE GOOD/COOL/VALUABLE/NEAT/INTERESTING/WEIRD/USEFUL/BIZARRE STUFF AND EXPECT TO MAKE A LIVING.... unless your business plan includes being a paid regular on Hoarding: Buried Alive and other similar shows..


(3) IF YOU ARE A COLLECTOR WHO AGONIZES OVER SELLING OR GETTING RID OF THINGS DO NOT GET INTO THE JUNK BUSINESS....at least until you have seen a shrink, the therapy is complete and worked, allowing you to finally no longer hate your mother for giving away your Optimus Prime Transformer to the neighbor kids after you FINALLY moved out of your  parent's home... for the first time, anyway.


(4) IF YOU TRULY BELIEVE YOU WILL IMMEDIATELY MAKE ENOUGH MONEY TO SUPPORT YOURSELF (LET ALONE YOUR FAMILY, TOO) YOU ARE DREAMING...AND PURSUIT OF THE DREAM WILL MEAN A NIGHTMARE IS SURE TO BE NEXT...it is better to "keep dreaming" rather than live a nightmare and have a stress induced heart attack....and never dream again.

(5) IF YOU ARE A MAJOR GERMAPHOBE, BE SURE TO ADD THE COSTS OF EXTENSIVE THERAPY INTO YOUR "EXPENSES" SECTION OF YOUR ACCOUNTING RECORDS....and do let me know...as I want to buy as much stock in  glove and hand sanitizer makers....that way I can retire within a year.



(6) IF YOU THINK YOU KNOW IT ALL, YOU DON'T....but, if you still insist you know it all, let me know when and where you set up to sell your wares. I love to buy things from people who are such experts. It gives me such confidence! I am constantly awestruck while in their presence....especially when I think of the huge profits I will make from the items I buy from them. I also thoroughly enjoy the stories they tell, as historical fiction is a favorite of mine.

- THE END - 

(7) DO YOU FIND THAT ANY OF THE FOLLOWING DESCRIBES YOU (OR YOUR BUSINESS PARTNER)?

- CAN NOT LOOK, NOR THINK BEYOND WHAT SOMEONE SAYS IS "THE END" (if you are reading this, congratulations!)

- DO NOT LIKE THE UNEXPECTED

- CAN NOT THINK WAY OUTSIDE THE BOX 

- CAN NOT IMPROVISE

- PANIC EASILY

- FALL APART UNDER ANY STRESS

- HAVE LITTLE/NO PATIENCE

- GET BORED EASILY

If so, you are far better off to stay on your couch, and keep watching Reality TV.....

You see, (and do realize that I do say this with utmost sincerity,) your favorite "Junk TV" shows are as close to  real as you truly ever wish to experience....I'll bet your sanity on it.

THE TRUTH BEHIND THE JUNK CELEBS: Barry Weiss of Storage Wars

Came across an interview with Barry Weiss of Storage Wars fame. It may well sort out much of the fact from the fiction, the truth behind rumors, end speculation, blow away unfounded stories, stop (or start) trash talk, etc.

Is he a TV producer?
Is he married?
Is he real?
Is he a picker?
Is he a reseller?

and more questions will be answered!


Enjoy!

CLICK HERE FOR INTERVIEW

Or cut and past this link into your browser: http://www.aoltv.com/2011/08/03/storage-wars-barry-weiss-interview/

PICKERS vs STORAGE AUCTION PEOPLE - the battle begins!

Just watched Glendon Cameron's latest video entitled "Storage Auction Tips - Storage Auction Buying Versus Picking"

 He does suggest that you start by "picking" to see if you can handle the business of buying and selling.

 First of all, I need to clarify the statement for him, I think....or rather, maybe for me and all of those professional pickers out there.

Ok, first picking is not for everyone, either.....picking antiques & collectibles, that is.

Let's sort things out a bit here....

There are all sorts of buyers people call "pickers"

There is the "garage sale picker." Out of them, I'd guesstimate that 95% (conservatively) are part timers....not real, professional, pickers, IMHO. Most people in the antiques business consider those sorts as "avid garage salers", not true pickers. Yeah, we do call them "garage sale pickers", but a "garage sale picker" is not a true professional picker.

Same goes with most thrift shop/second hand store pickers. Usually they are hobbyists, with another income which pays the bills. Sometimes that income is also connected to the vintage biz, but usually it is not. I have a lawyer friend who picks garage sales and thrift shops....but he is not a professional picker.

Now, most pickers I know who do this for a LIVING, do everything...garage sales, auctions, liquidations,  estate sales, advertise for stuff, give out flyer's, do cold calls (aka door knocking), and yes, they even hit storage locker auctions....among a number of less publicly well known ways to obtain merchandise. Some I may have mentioned here, others I have not, which I will save for a book...some are trade secrets of mine.

Now, things are QUITE A BIT different in my neck of the woods as far as "Storage Auctions" go. Folks relying on storage auctions for inventory would loose their shirts around here.

Why?

 Within a 5 hour's drive (radius) at highway speed, of where I live, there MIGHT be 4 storage unit auctions held each YEAR.  Until the "Storage Wars" and "Auction Hunters" got started airing the storage companies did things differently in this area.
The few times there was defaulted lockers, they would simply toss out the stuff, bring the stuff to auction houses or consign the contents with auction houses (who do the clean-out & pick-up the contens of the lockers)

The auction house would sell the stuff by the pallet if they (the auction house) felt it was junk, by the box if it was mediocre stuff, with the few good things pulled out and auctioned separate.....

OR if there was lots of decent stuff, it was set up like any other regular consignment auction, and most items were auctioned one by one!

 And for a few other eye openers....

Locally, gas is priced at $4.35 a gallon. Diesel is close to that (or MORE at times).

There was actually a diesel shortage in this area for a few weeks,,..so vehicles were only allowed so many gallons a week. And usually for most semitrucks that week's allotment lasted a day or 2 tops. Cube vans drink the stuff like crazy, too, as you may know.

Consider a 3 hour drive on the highway, against a Canadian prairie winter wind? No idea what that is like?

You can watch the fuel gauge needle drop...!  And you discover you have muscles that you didn't know you had....all at once cramping and in fire from wrestling the steering wheel against the cross winds, in order to keep the truck on the road.


 As you know, driving to many hours (and back) to go to a storage auction is not something you'd want to do much. Sure, if the odds are extremely in your favour to score a good unit, yeah, sure, you might take a chance...but, to do what "Auction Hunters" do and drive all "across the country" is not plausible for 99.89% of the players out there. If you have the inside track on some units coming up, their contents, the resale potential of the contents, (etc) maybe for the long time pro, with a super fuel efficient truck and time to spare........Odds are that doesn't happen much.

 Professional pickers are very versatile people.  We need to be to survive.

If I could pick just "advertising collectibles" and make a living, I would.

But, I can't. Yes, I am good at what I do...DAMN good. Best in the province according to many veteran dealers....the best in Western Canada, according to some even.

The thing is, there is just not enough of a ready collector market available, versus the expenses of finding the right items for resale to that market.

So, I became knowledgeable in a wide variety of things. I am not exactly a "Keno Brothers" sort of expert in any area, but my knowledge is decent, and in some areas it is better than the average advanced collector in those fields.

I will even pick up scrap metal, IF it makes sense, money & time wise, at that moment.  If I can buy a sign from an old garage/gas station, and they will gladly give me the "junk pile" in the back, consisting of 90% scrap radiators, catalytic converters, copper tubing, brass fittings, aluminum rims (etc), and I have the room in my van....it will get loaded, because the odds are I will make far more on the "precious metal" scrap than I will the sign...

AND, going to to ask about the scrap out back is a PERFECT way to get your foot in the door, and conversation started...and a legit look at the hidden parts of the property.

So, the fact is, some pickers are ALSO professional storage auction buyers. 

No, Barry Weiss of Storage Wars fame is not a picker. Funny guy, is being the cool dude, and all that, but essentially he is a collector having some fun. Which is cool with me. He was a picker, possibly, but is not one at this juncture.


 If he was a professional picker now, the scenario likely would have been more along this line:

 He'd have bought the lockers, been careful sorting the contents (no smashing stuff, etc), pulled out the collectible stuff he had a market for or felt was worth researching, and sold the non-collectible second hand and modern stuff in a wholesale lot sort of deal (ie: the new buyer cleans the rest out) to another bidder or a second hand shop dealer he knows....maybe even partner up with a second hand dealer, in those cases....


And then off to another storage auction, estate sale, house call, cold call, scrapyard, etc, etc, etc!

Picking is about versatility, and sourcing your merchandise from where ever you can and being able to make a buck at the same time utilizing those sources.

Yes, you may see me "doing what I do best" at a:

Country Auction 
Farm Auction
City Auction
Surplus Auction
Industrial Auction
Bankruptcy Auction
Garage Sale
Estate Sale
Porch Sale
Yard Sale
Liquidation Sale
Liquidation Company's store
Flea Market
Antique Shop
Second Hand Shop
Thrift Shop
Storage Auction
Vault Auction
Salvage Auction
Pre-Demolition Sale 
Pre-Demolition Auction
Salvage Store
Surplus Store
Scrap Yard
Salvage Yard
Auto Wreckers
Dollar Store
Hardware Store
Grocery Store
Lumber Yard
Recycling Yard
Recycling Depot
Trash Dump
Dumpster
Back Lane
River Bank
Dry River Bed
Beach
Open Field
Barn
Farm
Warehouse
Shed
Garage
Gas Station
House
Apartment building
School
University
Laboratory
Office Building
Manufacturing Plant
Semitrailer
Storage Unit
Rock Pile
Gravel Pit
Hotel
Motel
Grain Elevator
Church
Theatre
Drug Store
Military Base
Brewery
Gun Show
Airport
Cottage
Cabin
Movie Props sale
Church Sale
Bar/Saloon/Lounge
Campground
Resort Town in Mexico
Small town
City
Suburb
Downtown
Uptown
Funeral Home
Pawn Shop
Hospital
Plumbers Office
Insurance Agency
Wholesaler
Restaurant
Cafe
Coffee Shop
Railway Depot
Railway Auction
Factory



The look on some of your faces were priceless when you got to different parts of the list...but, they are all places I have picked, and many I do pick.

Plus the list is far from complete....it actually goes on, and on, and on. Not to mention it grows longer as I add to the list. I am always seeking unrecognized "treasure" in all sorts of places.

I think outside the box...and inside the box, and under the box, and above the box, at the corner of the box, and...

You get the picture.