How Old Is That Postcard?

Leo wrote the guide for eBay. A very interesting subject if you're a collector, buyer, seller of postcards.

Thanks, Leo, good job! (Click on title above to see the guide).

Buying and selling a grandfather clock

Okay, so you get some meatier content when you come to my blog. I can share a few experiences with buying and selling antiques.

The first is our grandfather clock. In August 2006 we bought a grandfather clock made from a kit at an auction for $225. I thought it was a good price. Hopefully, the resale would be about double that amount.

We had opened our first shop in that month on main street in Valdese. We took the clock to the shop and put $450 on the tag. The clock had worked at the auction, but quit when we put in in the shop. We were selling it "as is". It didn't sell.

We quickly realized the shop was a loser - costing more for rent and utilities than we were taking in - a lot more! So we closed the shop and put the clock in our living room.

In June 2007 we bought a house and moved the clock to our living room. It looked beautiful. Stately, elegant, but not over the top! Still, it didn't work and didn't get us any cash back.

In April 2008, we put the clock into our booth at Cornerstone Antiques: http://cornerstoneantiques.blogspot.com/. It started working right away! Loud, beautiful quarter hour strikes. The timing was perfect. A lovely clock.

And it sold for around $300. We had lowered the price feeling it was "shopworn", which it really wasn't. But with the economy the way it's been - and hoping to get some cash out of it - well, it's gone now.

What did I learn? Maybe that $225 was too much to pay for the clock in the beginning. To my credit, that was the first auction I've ever been at for the purpose of buying inventory.

Someone in Morganton, N. C., has a beautiful grandfather clock.

Liza Jane's Pig Lickin' Cake Recipe

Ms. Liza Jane Wooton of Bulan, Kentucky says this cake will be "Pig-Lickin'" good. She has no idea of how it got its name. She took it to the Ritchie-Fugate-Patrick reunion in 2007. Everyone who was lucky enough to get a piece of it, loved it.

Cake Ingredients:
1 box yellow cake mix
1 small can mandarin oranges
2-3 eggs

Make cake with mandarin oranges instead of water. You might add a few tablespoons water if too dry looking. Bake in two cake pans.

Icing:
1 can crushed pineapple, very well drained.
2 small boxes instant vanilla pudding
1 small tub Cool Whip.

Drain the pineapple until it's almost dry. Mix all ingredients together (do not add the pineapple juice). Drink the pineapple juice while you're waiting for the cake to bake.

After the cake is well cooled, frost it with the icing.

It is Pig-Lickin' good!

43 cards sold!

See, told you they were great! We mailed them out this afternoon!

111 Year Old Postcard NYC Trinity Church

Now and then you run across the truly beautiful antique card.

This one is in good shape for being 111 years old. It is copyright 1897.

Just imagine - to survive that long!

Please give it a look by clicking on the title.

43 Damaged Postcards

We listed 43 damaged postcards today on Etsy. They weren't ours; they're a commission item we're doing for a friend.

All the postcards are in some way interesting, but, boy, have they been mangled! Bends, creases, stains, rips, tears, dog bites, staple holes to name a few.

So why will anyone want them? Well, crafters can use them. So can scrapbookers. Anyone who wants old, interesting bits and pieces. I hesitate to call them "ephemera", but I guess they are.

Someone will enjoy the multitude of possibilities at a wonderful price!

View at http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=13618439 or click the title above.

Camp Devens Day Ayer, Massachusetts

We listed a lot of Camp Devens at Ayer, Massachusetts, postcards today. A lot as in "a bunch", not "lot of ...". Each is individually listed, that is.

Well, back in the day, Leo was stationed there for three months. He was in Intelligence School. While we were doing the cards, he'd mention "I remember that - it looks exactly the same". Or "I don't remember the hospital looking like that".

Some of these cards are in extraordinary shape for being World War I vintage. They look like they were stored away upon purchase and never used.

Take a walk down memory lane and visit our store to look at Camp Devens!