Christmas in July!

I couldn't resist sharing a few photos of some very old glass Christmas ornaments that I have listed on eBay this week. I love vintage and antique Christmas and always have a number of vintage Christmas books for children and boxed ornaments (i.e. Shiny Brites -- I love them and try to keep a few boxes online all the time). These ornaments that I listed tonight are really unusual. Check out the tiny Bordeaux wine bottle ornament -- it's glass! They are older (I would date these as 1900's to 1940's vintage) and really unique. Here are a few photos - and a link to my Christmas goodies!

http://search.stores.ebay.com/Birdhouse-Books_Christmas-Ornament-premier-shiny-brite_W0QQfcdZ2QQfciZQ2d1QQfclZ3QQfromZR10QQfsnZBirdhouseQ20BooksQQfsooZ1QQfsopZ1QQfsubZ0QQsascsZ0QQsaselZ81052548QQsatitleZQ28ChristmasQ20OrnamentQ2aQ2cpremierQ2aQ2cshinyQ20briteQ2aQ29QQsofpZ0

Favorite of the Week - Moulin Rouge Ashtray

Hi again,

This is my first blog post in a while! I'm going to start a feature that I'll call "Favorite of the Week." I'll post a photo of my favorite recent listing, and tell what I find interesting about it.

My favorite this week is a retro ashtray with a Moulin Rouge motif. It is heavy yellow glazed pottery with a great Mid-Century Modern/Eames era design (similar in style to California pottery ashtrays). The design is labeled Moulin Rouge and it has a vintage Paris motif. I would date this as 1950's to early 1960's.

I don't smoke (never have) but I just love the look of this piece.

http://cgi.ebay.com/Moulin-Rouge-1950s-Yellow-Paris-Ashtray-EAMES-ERA_W0QQitemZ360075385272QQihZ023QQcategoryZ594QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

What to include when listing Book on eBay

I started on eBay buying books -- you know, those "oh, I remember those from childhood" favorites. Then I started selling. I still shop for vintage books on eBay, but a lot of auctions are missing vital information for a collector. Here's the information I like to see in a book auction:

Title - full title

Author or authors

Illustrator - this is KEY with children's books, as I often am looking for an illustrator (i.e. Eloise Wilkin, Corinne Malvern) more than an author

Publisher - be sure to also see the dustjacket and back of book, since Book Club Editions (i.e. Weekly Reader, Book of the Month Club, etc.) are frequently listed in these locations

Publication date - look at the copyright page and list the MOST RECENT date. I've made several purchases and been disappointed because auction seller listed the EARLIEST date instead of MOST RECENT, and I ended up with a reprint.

Type of book - Hardcover (with or without dustjacket?), trade paperback (larger paperback, i.e. same size as a hardcover book), mass market paperback (the smallest of the paperback sizes)

Edition - look at the copyright page again for the words FIRST EDITION or string of numbers, i.e. 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1. I always include this with listings.

Description of book - What is this book about? This is also the place to interest illustrations that may be of interest to a collector - i.e. "lots of vintage illustrations featuring a cute Scottish Terrier" or "illustrations show travel on a Delta Airlines jet."

Condition - Be as specific as possible! Creases? Writing in book? Any dog-eared (turned down) pages? Spots or stains on pages? Foxing (tan coloration) on front or back endpapers? Wear at edges of dustjacket? Library markings? You can't list too much about condition!

I hope this is helpful ... I know this information helps me as a buyer, and I hope it helps my own buyers too!

Vintage Brochures from Old Tourist Attractions

A few years ago, I read a wonderful book called DIXIE BEFORE DISNEY by Tim Hollis. It is about old fashioned tourist attractions in the southern United States. Lots of great memories in that book! So when I found a shoebox full of old travel brochures, I bought them all. They have done really well on eBay, selling from $5.00 to $46.00. The star was a front and back brochure from Florida's Rainforest in Wildwood, Florida. But I've also had Weeki Wachee, Silver Springs (Ocala, Florida), Potter's Wax Museum (St. Augustine, Florida), and more. So don't pass up those vintage travel brochures! Besides -- they're fun to read and travel back in time.

Here are some great vintage travel brochures, if you'd like to take a look:

http://search.stores.ebay.com/Birdhouse-Books_vintage-brochure_W0QQfciZQ2d1QQfclZ3QQfsnZBirdhouseQ20BooksQQfsooZ1QQfsopZ1QQsaselZ81052548QQsatitleZvintageQ20brochureQ2aQQsofpZ0

Never throw away an empty vintage box!

I learned a while back -- never throw away an empty vintage box. List it on eBay!

I listed these boxes on eBay and they sold for over $30. They are Christmas gift boxes from Rich's Department Store -- an old fashioned (now long gone) store chain from Atlanta. Rich's had fun Christmas festivities, including the lighting of the Great Tree downtown and the Pink Pig (a cute little monorail for children):

You'll find more information about Rich's on Wikipedia:  Rich's Department Store.

I have a history with empty boxes on eBay. One of my favorite sales was a toy box lid (not the complete box). I bought a big bunch of cute vintage Marx dollhouse furniture at a local yardsale. The seller put it in a box lid. I brought it home and found the box lid was from a toy similar to Mr. Potato Head -- but featuring other fruit and vegetables (I remember a green pepper and an orange). The box lid went for $107!

I love those empty boxes.