Always Optimistic – Today’s Auction Haul 2

Today – one of the coldest so far this season in Minnesota – we ventured out to pick up the things I won in yesterday’s auction. It was an online auction, which made it very convenient to bid from home. But – a word of warning – most online auctions that I find, the descriptions and photos of the items is sparse at best. Rarely do I find items listed with dimensions, so I just have to “wing it”.

In this particular auction, I bid on a set of vintage industrial metal pans. I liked the look of them and thought they would make cool planters or organizers. I also bid on an industrial stainless steel table – you can never have too many tables around, right? And of course, I had to bid on an old canvas mail bin on a frame with wheels! I also spotted a very cool industrial spot light on a tripod, and knew I had to have that. There were also several vintage metal hardware cabinets, three boat seats (for my husband’s ice house), two large boat buoys (because they were bundled with the boat seats) and a gigantic fishing net that I am sure was used to net fish as big as whales. Okay, maybe not that big, but definitely a big game fish net (also bundled with the boat seats). I also bought eight boxes of new poly bags in a variety of sizes (perfect for storing vintage items and for packaging the items I ship). I knew I was going to need help lifting everything, so I took two of my three boys along with me – thinking we’d make the 1-1/2 hour trip to the cities into an adventure!

When we arrived at the auction house, there was no place to park nearby, as others were already there loading up their trucks with their winnings. We braved the -20 degree temperature (yes, that is “negative 20”, as in 20 degrees below zero – this is Minnesota after all). When I paid for the items, I handed one of the auction helpers my list of wins and he just looked at me and my two kids with a strange look on his face, while he said “what are you driving?” I told him I have a Yukon XL and that there is plenty of room! To which he replied “you are a very optimistic woman”. Yes, yes I am. We followed him into a huge building and as soon as I saw the industrial pans, I have to admit, I was a little worried. The pans are HUGE! And there are nine of them! As I mentioned above, the online auction didn’t list any dimensions, but I had no idea these pans would be as large as they are! Then we saw the stainless steel table… and the mail bin cart, the hardware bins, the extremely large spot light, the boat items, and the eight incredibly large boxes of poly bags (again, I had no idea these boxes would be so large)! I was beginning to think I was going to have to call in reinforcements and have my husband leave work, drive home to get our other truck, then drive back down to the cities to help me haul everything. Darn those online auctions without dimensions!!! But… we were determined. And optimistic. My sons and I, now colder than Popsicles, spent the next hour and a half carrying all these large and heavy items about a block to where I had to park. After many trips back and forth, we finally managed to get everything in my truck, stacked together like a Tetris puzzle – and we still had room for us! Our trip today to the cities was adventurous and fun, and now we have a bunch of new items to get photographed and listed for our shop. As for that stainless steel table – it would be difficult to ship, so I think that is going to become a new table in our shipping and receiving area of our shop (at least in the Winter; when it’s nice again outside, it will make a cool table for the back patio to hold party food and beverages).

ONLINE AUCTION TIPS:

• Most online auctions have preview dates available where you can go on that specified date to inspect the items you are interested in. If you have the opportunity to go, make sure to bring a tape measure along so you can plan accordingly for how you are going to transport the items if you win.
• Make sure you drive an adequate vehicle, with or without a trailer, when you go to pick up your wins. In other words, don’t drive your compact car if you have a truck available.
• Have a Plan B. If you find yourself picking up an auction that you didn’t preview and measure, make sure you have an alternate plan for how you are going to haul everything home if you don’t have enough room in your vehicle. There is nothing worse than having to make multiple trips to pick things up and haul them home – especially when the pick up site isn’t close to home. Even just having a friend on standby if you need them is helpful.

TIPS FOR FINDING LOCAL ONLINE AUCTIONS:

• Local Paper – Sure, this seems obvious, but with so many people online these days it seems the local newspaper is often overlooked. Most cities have a free newspaper that is distributed to its residents, and most of those newspapers have a classified section or several full pages of ads. You might be surprised by the types of auctions you can find in these newspapers. Give it a try!
• Search Online – Doing a local search, you can find online auctions near you. One tool to use is EstateSales.net . Just enter your location, and not only will you find estate sales near you, you will also see the online auctions. Another tool you can use is MarketAlliance.com. In the search bar, just select “Online Auctions Only”. And one more tool is AuctionZip.com. With AuctionZip, you can search for auctions near you, as well as by category. For example “Antiques, Households, and Collectibles”. There are lots of other websites similar to these that you can find as well, but these three will help you get started.
• Craigslist and Facebook Groups – Two other sources for finding online auctions is through your local Craigslist and Facebook Selling Groups. This method can be a little trickier, but if you check these sites often, you can likely find a real gem of an auction.

Do you have any sources for auctions in your area? Share in a comment below.