Featured Estate sale yesterday - the real thing

So many yard sales bill themselves as "Estate" sales that I usually ignore it. My son called and told me about one yesterday. The house was one of the oldest in town - late 1700s-early 1800s. Awesome view of a pond. The antiques were the real thing and priced well beyond my purse. The company running it also wouldn't deal. The prices were max, so there was no opportunity for a dealer to buy for resale. I saw all the usual folks there and very few were buying. I'm sure they'll send anything not sold to auction. There was lots of glass and china, primitives, furniture, some books, samplers. I did manage to get two books - one is the collected history of the towns on Cape Cod. It must weigh 10 pounds. It was marked "Quaker Bible" and marked $15. I brought that to their attention and they said $10. Sold. The other one is a history of Milford, MA with a bunch of what looks like very old personal letters stuck in the back. Another $10 and I'll check out the letters later today. I also got two mint crock covers for $3 each. Yay! I needed covers for a couple of crocks and they're hard to find. And that was all I could afford. Most everything else started at $100 and went up.

 

Bev aka thelmasstuff, the two books sound wonderful. I wonder why in the world they called the one a "Quaker Bible."

Please let us know when you have read the "old letters" in the history of Milford, MA, book. I love reading old "of the time" letters.

 

The last few estate sales Ive been to were overpriced as well . Im talking more than retail ! Damn the internet , damn it to hell !!!

 

Wonder if they have a deal to take what ever isn't sold.

There are a couple of estate people in the Sac area that I know get what is left over. Goes to their shops afterwards. Have to wonder just how ethical some of these estate liquidators really are.

 

Hi Pat,
I went to one last year. They had Armatel plates for 75 dollars each. I usually buy them for a friend and pay 3-5 dollars. Of course they did not sale and the woman had them in her shop window two weeks later for 8 bucks each. I HATE estate sales run by "so called experts"
greg

 

I took a picture of two of the old books. Look what they did - used packing tape to hold the covers on! It won't come off without taking the fragile outside leather with it. Idiots.

 

Wonder if they have a deal to take what ever isn't sold.

There are a couple of estate people in the Sac area that I know get what is left over. Goes to their shops afterwards. Have to wonder just how ethical some of these estate liquidators really are.

We all know that every antiques dealer, estate sale business, ebay seller, etc. are not totally reputable.

There is an estate sale company here in Columbia & the owner has actually been put in jail for non-payment.

http://www.thestate.com/news/local/article32765937.html

What totally amazes me is there are still people consigning with them & they are still holding sales.

I have only been to a couple of their sales & it was long before rumors started to go around about them. One was where the original owner repaired watches & clocks, first at his jewelry store then in his home. They were selling the complete contents of the room which included a c.1900 floor safe. I really didn't know what I was getting myself into, but I still made a very hefty profit. I am also not done selling everything & someday I may finally unearth all of it.

Peggy

 

Bev, the two books you got sound worth what you paid... and more. Maybe quite a bit more. Local histories can be valuable. But the one you showed with the tape looks different, since it says "Ledger" on the spine. So you did not buy that one? And I agree, whoever put that packing tape on a leather cover did not know at all what they were doing!

 

Wonder if a hair dryer set on a low heat setting would help remove the tape.
Might be worth a try. At this point you don't have a lot to loose.

 

Try lighter fluid on a tiny spot. Let it sit for a minute or two then lift the tape. If it works do the same til it's off.

 

Many people are ignorant of such things and/or dumber than a mud fence.

 

I haven't been to an estate sale since last fall, but I can tell you the trend around here is also higher and higher prices.

We have one estate sale runner here who sets his prices so sky high that nothing can be purchased and he does this so he can bring all the items to his stockroom or store and then he can sell it from there or on ebay. Has been doing this routine for years now and I don't understand how he continues to get business.

He has a questionable past and was in jail for financial reasons, yet he regularly has estate sales near here and gets many clients, some were celebrities and others are very well healed. Goes to show, many don't vet out their estate sale runners well at all.

As soon as I see his estate sale name for an ad, I cross it off my list and so does everyone else that I know that regularly attends estate sales. The guy is unstable and has been prone to violence as well at his sales.

The books sound interesting that you purchased.
Hope they turn out to be great finds.

 

This may stain the leather and soak through to the page.
I'm not sure I would try this on leather/paper.

It works great on glass, and some porcelains.

 

A "tiny spot" on a ruined book I wouldn't think could really hurt much at this point.
Hair dryers can be even more dangerous because of impatience.
-
I use it to take stickers off book covers all the time but rarely the book itself.

 

This is a really big "tiny spot", but to each his own.
We try what we are comfortable trying.

And yes the hair dryer takes patience.
We women have a lot of that. I won't say why as it might sound insulting to men.

 

????
Never mind.
Sorry for trying to help.

 

Don't be sorry, not your fault.
I'm in a cantankerous mood. Husband has taken shelter in the garage.

 

Tell him he can come back in if he brings the chocolate. Or maybe a bottle of something good. Chocolate sauce counts.

 

Who?
King of Things or my husband?
I chased both away yesterday.
Not one of my better days.

 

Bev......found this link on the internet....worth a read anyway...and it does specifically mention removing tape from leather (slightly less than halfway down)....good luck!!

http://www.alibris.com/article/031010/book-restoration/book-restoration-tape-removal