Featured Storage Full of Glass

Alas, those of us of a "certain age" have inherited a lot of stuff from our parents and grandparents. Many things were wedding gifts or things gifted and collected over a life-time. Bridal registries for silverware and china were still a thing when I was married in 1980, so I have my own Royal Doulton dinner set as well as my mother's Royal Crown Derby dinner set. I have 2 tea and luncheon sets -- one Wedgwood and one RCD. And I'd get a pittance for them now.

So, use google lens to research quickly -- much of what you have is likely donatable -- and then if something pops up as a possibility of rarity or $$$, set it aside for further research. I think that would reduce what seems to be a rather large amount of "stuff." There is probably a gem or two in there, but it might not look like it at first glance. When in doubt, post here and the boardies will help! Good luck!

 

My sister was gifted, gee thanks, with a set of dinnerware my grandparents got as a 25th anniversary present . 1946 vintage. She donated it to a refugee ministry. Grandma didn't like it much and neither did we. The best use for it was for someone who needed dishes.

 

Yeah I need to learn to start parting with things. The reason I have this huge collection of glass is because my father was in the same position I am in now. His parents passed away and he decided to keep stuff like this instead of dealing with it then. Then again, my father probably didn't know about websites like these if it was even here then. I guess that is the advantage I have now. So now I am sitting here looking at it and wondering whether I should box it back up, store it and forget it or do something about it.

As I mentioned earlier in the thread, I believe we have glass from several different family members from both sides of my family. That is one reason I want to make certain I do not overlook things that might be of value. I am going to get a nice fold out table from Costco or Facebook marketplace and use that to start sitting out more of the this glass. I may advertise for a huge glass yard sale or something and see if there is any interest.

 

Here’s the page for the Astral crystal bowl pattern on Replacements. It looks like they don’t have any of the bowls, but it might help you identify any other glassware that is the same pattern. Sets tend to be more attractive to buyers in my experience. Even just two matching fancy glasses makes a nice housewarming/wedding gift, while singles often languish on thrift store shelves.

https://www.replacements.com/search?query=ASTCEL&page=1&pattern=3001

 

@Born2it
Thanks I was looking for the Austrian set and was actually able to find it on the website but they are all out of stock like I am guessing most are. They seem rare. I also thought the sets would be a lot more valuable (maybe they are) but if you look at what sells on eBay there are a lot more singles and uneven amounts selling than there are entire sets. Like one bowl or two dinner plates. It blows my mind.

My other set that is not pictured was called "Basket of Cheer" and has a Poland stamp. I know the age of the internet has hurt the value of a lot of things. I'm guessing it is because people have realized how much of it there really. When I researched my set (which is like 30 something pieces I believe) I easily saw that I could make more money by breaking the set up and I really do not want to do that.

So I know that a lot of you seem to be getting at there is no way to value sets and stuff but is there a way to place a 'fair' value on something that there is not a lot of information for? For instance, if I post the 14 piece set (or whatever it was exactly) should I ask and be willing to take $300? Is that too much or too little? Just trying to get an idea. I would like a lot of this stuff to go to a good home where it will be appreciated.

I just do not have the room for this stuff. I dislike getting rid of it but the reality seems to be that is what is going to happen to it regardless. My goal honestly is to sell it but I would rather donate the stuff that has no interest now rather than think about it getting crushed by a compactor and go off to a landfill somewhere.

 

We all quite understand how you feel. The reality is that dinner sets are not particularly desirable at this time. If you can't sell a complete set, sell the nirs that people are willing to pay for and donate the rest. Sadly, we can't guarantee that something won't wind up crushed or whatever once we decide to part with our "stuff."

 

And if you think dinner sets are bad, pity those with handcrafted items. Things with days or weeks of labor in them sell for pennies on the dollar. Some quilts sell, but not for what they should.

 

I so very feel your pain! I had to clear out a densely packed house a couple years ago, and it almost broke me. I couldn’t bear the thought of perfectly usable things going to a landfill. I filled a container of stuff to keep, had a huge estate sale, and spent months trying to find homes for the rest. Here’s a couple of things I learned:
- If you have to donate, pack sets together in their own box, clearly labeled as such.
- Selling individual items online is time consuming, and the profit margin can be small, but adding a few at a time is more manageable.
- A yard sale can be a great way to get a lot of stuff into new homes without having things drag on for months. It helps if you can join a neighborhood sale, have a mix of things available, and/or convince a neighbor or two to join you. I won’t go to a sale that only has stuff I want but don’t need, but if I go to a sale looking for something I need and see some blue glass, I’m probably leaving with what I want. And I’m not alone.
- Even giving stuff away for free via an online portal can be time consuming, but having even just a few people do happy dances, get teary-eyed, or clasp the items to their chest like a teddy bear can be extremely rewarding. Even knowing someone is reselling to an established market reduces the odds of something going directly to trash.
- Organizations that help refugees, domestic violence escapees, and formerly homeless people set up new homes are usually more grateful for sets of nice things even if they have to be hand washed and/or aren’t currently fashionable. They get a lot of mismatched junk donated.

Giving estimates of value isn’t generally something that this group does, in part because the value in the Midwest US is often very different from the value in the UK which may also be different from the value in Georgia or the other dozen places folks here live. We’re pretty good at pointing people at places to look to get values, but we’re definitely not in the business of giving appraisals.