Community Chat

[Shanus]

@ScrapHappy   We learned when we moved and had a garage sale, folks son't want other people's old stuff no matter what's it worth. If you really dread packing it up, let it go for whatever price you're offered even though it's painful. There were some things left at the end of the day that I had to part with for a "song"....some finally got donated at 6PM.

***I was left with 7 dinner plates (blue and white) that no one wanted. I put them in a plastic bag, smashed lightly with a hammer and used grout to glue them together on my balcony table. Looks quite nice.

[hkrgrl]

while i agree that china is not 'in' right now, but goes around comes around! 

times change and i think it will make a come back. 

and when 'they' do want to buy, it will be outrageously expensive.they will be looking for new/used sets on ebay etc...

my advice:  sell it for what it's worth!! hold your ground.  if its too much trouble to haul to garage sale, then just advertise on SM.

people are looking for CHEAP at garage sales, so i personally would just take a pic with the details and make a sign  & if someone is interested you can meet up and sell it. 

good luck!!!

[gardenman]

Facebook Marketplace and other selling sites are often polluted with trolls who will insist they're interested and want to meet up somewhere to buy what you're selling, then they don't show. You spend time packing everything up, going to the meeting place, then waiting for them to show up, and they never do. It's a bizarre game some people like to play for some reason.

I went through that a few years back while trying to clear stuff out. Someone swears they're interested, love it, and want to meet up in a neutral, public place. You pack it up and go there, and they never show. It gets very tiresome very quickly.  

[CJC]

@Boehm Collector I love your blue plates and would buy them in a heartbeat to use as my casual dinnerware. But then I am 81 and come from a different time and different world. 

[Boehm Collector]

@CJC     I'm 70 and I hear you.  I definitely come from a different time and world.   My dad had a dish fetish.  LOL.  When he was growing up in Italy, his family was dirt poor.  They never had matching dishes much less a bone china set.  So when my brother and I were growing up Dad purchased so many dish sets for us.   He was the doctor for the employees at the local Mikasa warehouse.  So sometimes he would ask to be paid in bone china sets.   These are just the ones I have.    Not including the ones my brother has.    The ones on the bottom are the ones I use everyday.  

[willowbark]

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@Boehm Collector wrote:

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@willowbark wrote:

I think young people do not want to buy plates or stemware...plenty of that too. 

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 @willowbark ... for the most part I agree with you.   But my 28 year old niece, who got married last August, actually wants my DB's  Tiffany Alpine Blue dishes.

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@Boehm Collector  My mom's collection is not very pretty and I never liked them when we were served for special occasions as a kid.  I discovered  I  had these because my late husband  brought them to our house after she passed among other things that I was shocked are now in my possession. 

[PinkyPetunia]

I agree that buyers at yard sales want items for next to nothing.  I would display a few pieces, put up a sign of what's available and state "Make an Offer"  to see if anyone bites.

[KittySoftPaws]

I donated a huge set (almost 60 pieces) of my family's fine china, all pieces in mint condition. What I was told is, those who would possibly want it already have some, and those who don't, just don't want it, like the younger generations.  It is no longer practical in any way. I always say, no matter what something is "worth" it is only worth what someone is willing to pay for it. Donate it, once you do, you will feel better not worrying about it or lugging it around IMO.

[occasionalrain]

When wives and mothers went off to work and weren't home during the day, gracious living was replaced with quick and easy.

China, because it can't be put in a dishwasher, lost its appeal. I was a SAH wife/mother so I still used China and still use it now.

[Tinkrbl44]

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@ScrapHappy wrote:

We are having our neighborhood garage sale this weekend.  This will be our last time participating, it's too much for us now.  So, I'm trying to get rid of as much stuff as possible.  We hope to down size in 2 years.  I have my Mom's Lenox Charleston china.  All 3 plate sizes and tea cups (12 of each), gravy boat, sugar/creamer and large serving platter.  Never been used.  The large plates still have $68 price sticker on bottom.  I just think my Dad liked to buy nice/pretty things for her.  Should I attempt to sell it at our last garage sale?  I was thinking $200 for everything?  I understand china is not as popular as it once was but a couple of years ago I did have someone at the garage sale specifically looking for silverware, china, and electronics.  Is $200 to much or too low?  

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@ScrapHappy 

I guess $200 is a good starting point, but you need to decide beforehand what is the lowest price you will accept.

If you can't get your asking price, will you take it all back home for another time, or try to practically give it away at the end of the day?

Someone might see your set and wait until the last minute to make an offer, hoping you don't want to carry it all back home.  

What I've learned from eBay selling is that you can't list something at a price you think it's worth .... you should list it at a COMPETITIVE price, based on what similar items are selling for.     

(I had a friend trying to sell an almost new Dooney bag, and she thought reducing the list price by $20 was "fair".  The problem is, there are tons of Dooney bags on eBay, and bags similar to hers were going for $100-$150 less than she was trying to get.  She still has the bag in her closet.)