Friday, January 12, 2018

Material Girl: Show & Tell

These past weeks I've been obsessed with material things, specifically with researching, photographing, and writing up things to list for sale on eBay--both some of my own old things, and also vintage stuff I find at thrift stores.

When I was younger, say until my forties, I was mostly taken up with metaphysical things--what are and what do I think about god, relativity, psychology?

Now I wonder about things like, Who invented polyester?
How do you clean aluminum?

Doing eBay has been a mash-up of three things I loved when I was a kid: 
scavenger hunts, show and tell, and thrift stores.

It satisfies some hunting-and-gathering instincts too: 
I feel atavistic.
(Can you feel atavistic? Perhaps I am atavisticizing?)

I've made almost $100 profit in 6 weeks (hm... about what I made writing nonfiction for young readers). I've spent it on other things I want from eBay, including the Czech spaceman I already posted, and a Pyrex glass stove-top coffee pot, which is on its way.

Here are photo collages of some of the stuff I've listed:



I researched all these things and am confident in my identifications--the dates, for instance, are often from original ads I found online, not just what other eBayers say (not a reliable source).

They are, listed in order from Left to Right in each row:

• Wear-Ever Aluminum Pan, 1956, anodized lid, curly-loop handles


• Canadian Mountie RCMP figure, on birch disc (1970s?)


• Items from The Golden Rule Lutterloh Pattern-Making Set, 1966


• Boontonware Melmamine 9"/4Qt Mixing Bowl, Raspberry-Pink Splatter, 1960s 


• Tag from sheer yellow apron, handmade by Mae Bennett, New Prague, MN


• Card of 2 LaMode-brand black plastic "basket-weave" buttons 


• Buttonhole attachment for Singer Sewing Machine, © 1940


• White ironstone 7" tall sugar jar & lid, Meakin, 1870s


• 4 Fire-King Peach Lustre Cereal Bowls, 1950s


• Repoussé tulip spray on hammered aluminum, casserole holder by Rodney Kent, 1955


• Nesting brushed-aluminum canisters, anodized lids, mid-century modern


• Sterling Silver Salt Shaker, Lunt 1100, 1920-40s


• Nicholson Brand 13" File


• Star Trek fabric, 1970s (not a reproduction) 


• Unbranded Cathy Doll, drinks, wets, blinks, waves, 1960-70s

4 comments:

Michael Leddy said...

Pretty fancy Wearever ware there. Ours was a Reverware family. I still have one of the copper-bottom pots.

Frex said...

Ha! I grew up with copper-bottomed Revereware too---still have some, because it's a great USABLE design.

I'd never seen that Wear-Ever style before. I LOVE its look, but it's poorly designed for use--the slippery curly handles would be oh-so-easy to lose hold of.
*CRASH*

My guideline for if I pick something up at a thrift store is the quesiotn,
Would I keep it if it doesn't sell?

This pan is so cool, I definitely would---hang it on the wall or something.

gz said...

I must start ebaying stuff...I've been brave enough to get an account, now to gather confidence to use it....

Frex said...

GZ: I'd love to hear about your eBay adventures, when you get going.
I'm enjoying it, obviously--it takes rather a lot of time, but it doesn't COST money, and it clears some clutter.