New England dealers, I need advice.

[Paper Roses]

Time has come for me to begin cleaning out this old house. Since my husband died, I have found this house too big for me and am giving thought to selling it.

I have given my daughters a lot furniture and misc. Some things are of no interest to them. I have been collecting 'stuff' for years and have things that it is time to sell. I do not want to get involved with e-bay. The thought of all that rigmarole, including shipping makes me cringe. I have a back and foot problem that keep me from getting around like I used to so I'd rather consign some of these goodies with a dealer near me.

I live north of Boston. The stuff I have is of value to collectors and some is old and utilitarian.
There is no junk, no old kitchen stuff. I could provide a list to a dealer with my in initial gleanings. This will be an ongoing thing until I run out of stuff that the kids don't want.. I will be cleaning out here as I can and will be willing to meet with any dealer at their shop to discuss.

The commission rate must be reasonable, not the 50/50 stuff that I have seen lately in some clothing consignment shops.

Maybe what I am looking for does not exist. I will be consigning a period (1780) Queen Anne chair to a fairly local shop that sells only wood.
I have--at least as of now--no furniture other than this chair.

Do you have any advice or suggestions for me? PM me if you like.

Thanks.
PR

[Kat45]

1. I'm curious about the same thing.

I have a lot of my mother's old stuff since she died two years ago, and I'm also wondering how and where I could sell it. I'm also leery of ebay, both because of the comments I've heard as to how it is for sellers these days and because I also don't want to deal with shipping. I have some furniture, including a Lane cedar hope chest, some collectibles, and of course some things that I'm totally uncertain about (they may or may not have value). I've seen same as you in consignment shops; actually, I think I've even seen rates worse than 50/50. Thus, I am also curious about this subject.

[grasswire]

2. I know of a picker who works Cape Cod

He is a lifelong friend of a former BF of mine (who is a 40-year dealer in Holyoke but specializes mostly in photography and coins).

I don't know if this picker would be interested in everything you have, but he might be interested in some of it -- buying it outright as pickers do. I can forward his email address to you if you want to inquire. I would classify him as an honest man.

Of course there are auction houses for better things. Any way you go, you are going to pay someone to sell it for you. But you know that.

Do you have any books or photos or collections of paper things, by the way?

[mtnsnake]

3. If you have a period Queen Anne chair

you should think about contacting Skinners Auction Gallery in Boston. They'll give you an auction estimate of what you can get for your chair, and they are reputable. Often, their estimates are on the conservative side, which is a good thing.

[Paper Roses]

4. Took my first step today to get rid of some treasured 'stuff'.

I found a refiner who will deal directly with the public. I weighed all my silver and what little gold I had, converted to troy oz, figured what to expect and went to see him this AM. The net result was a little more than I thought this stuff would bring.

Since he was paying 85% of spot price, I had a pretty good idea what to expect. The fellow weighed all of the stuff in front of me, no behind the counter, no see the scale business. Tested those things that were questionable, tallied it up and paid me on the spot. He had some special kind of gizmo that could read metal content that was like a bar code scanner. He showed me what the results were and they pretty much corresponded with my home weighs(I brought my notebook with weights with me). Some was a visual check on the marks.

I am going to e-mail him and let him know how pleased I was with the transaction. Some of these things that are now gone were special to me but my kids did not want any of it, even though I asked about 10 times, "are you sure".

My next step is the smalls and some wood. That starts tomorrow.
Since I may put this old house on the market in the spring, it is time to get this job done.

[Vinca]

5. I don't envy you. I dread the day we sell this place.

I'll be tempted to have one of those sales where you throw open the doors and let them have at it.

[Stinky The Clown]

6. I dread doing what you're doing.

Sparkly (who will likely outlive me by 20 years or more) will probably have to deal with my "stuff", but my kids want nothing to do with it. I have over a thousand old fountain pens, with very little junk. I have several hundred watches. No big names, but a good bit of it very fine "ordinary" makers. Those two collections alone are worth 10s of thousands. I also have tools, two old cars, books, scientific instruments, clocks, that sort of thing. Sparkly has a massive book collection, a lot of vintage clothing, some of it quite fine. As is true for my stuff, none of super high quality, but all very nice stuff. And then there's "our" stuff. Our entire house is furnished with vintage. The only new stuff is the sofa and loveseat set in the den.

This place would be a picker's/auctioneer's dream.

I can't bear to part with this stuff . . . . yet.

[Paper Roses]

7. I'm pleased you and others are with me on this.

My situation is such that this is not only necessary but the smart thing to do.

My house is furnished with vintage furniture too. I have given some of it to one of my girls and it is now in her house. The things my other daughter wants are still here. She has a tiny apartment and no space.(I also have a bunch of her stuff in my attic)

A lifetime of memories are wrapped up in all of this. No things of big monetary value, just sentimental. Like you, my only new furniture is the den couch and a recliner.
The rest we picked up along life's way.

Since my husband died, I feel a great need to remove myself from most of these memories. I know what the kids want, the rest I will move along in a slow attempt to simplify things.
It has taken me almost three years to face this endeavor.

I feel sad but relieved that I am starting one of the hardest things I have ever done.
Life goes on.

[mopinko]

8. stinky, you should start selling and put the money

into a special fund for something that you really want, or for your retirement. that way it will feel like you are getting something besides just cash.
don't burden your kids with it.