Thrift. Flip. Repeat.
This BOLO is coming courtesy of a friend of mine. She posted about it on FB and OF COURSE I had to look it up on eBay to see what it is selling for. Check out the completeds!
Also, below you can read her post on FB and her mom’s response (shared with her permission, of course). It made me laugh!
Here are a few of my flips from the last week. It was nice to get rid of some of my older inventory.
Nordstrom Men’s Wool Blend Coat
Paid: $2 @ VV, Sold: $44.95 + shipping (listed since January, 2018)
Fitflops are my personal favorite! I wear them all the time. I like the plain ones best though, and these were too big for me.
Fitflops, Size 10
Paid: $6.39 @ VV, BO Accepted: $25 + shipping (listed since March, 2018)
Nikes
Paid: ? @ ys, BO Accepted: $50 (listed since June, 2015)
Hallmark Mary’s Angels Rosebud Ornament
Paid: $1 @ ys, BO Accepted: $25 (listed since May, 2013)
Starbucks Tumbler
Paid: $2.39 @ VV, Sold: $29.95 (listed since February, 2018)
World Market Pig Plush
Paid: $1 @ ys, Sold: $27.95 (listed since July, 2016)
HUGE Plush Dog
Paid ? @ ys, BO Accepted: $30 (listed since January, 2018)
NWT Build A Bear Werewolf Plush
Paid: $5 @ VV, Sold: $39.95 + shipping (21 days after listed)
Hope you had a great sales week!
Blow molds can be a great flip . . . if you’re willing to deal with all of the hassles that come along with them. The biggest being that they’re so, well, big. What a pain to ship. And making sure that they work, and aren’t cracked in not immediately obvious ways, etc. I will often eyeball them at yard sales (and even currently have a Christmas Mickey Mouse in my garage my boys talked me into keeping this last summer), but I’m not anxious to buy them to flip because it honestly seems like a lot of work. But at some of these prices, maybe I will change my mind! Check out some of the sold links below.
Easter Blow Molds
Christmas Blow Molds
Thanksgiving Blow Molds
Valentine’s Day Blow Molds
St Patrick’s Day Blow Molds
4th of July Blow Molds
Halloween Blow Molds
And of course a lot of these are currently out of season so could likely bring in even higher prices at different times of the year. Flipping them locally, while maybe not as profitable, is always an option too.
I want to give a shout out to Money in the Garage because I am pretty sure his talk of flipping blow molds is what originally brought them to my attention several years ago.
Where did the last month go? I thought I would stop in and share a few sales.
Not long before Christmas I decided to STOP procrastinating, and list a few items that I knew should sell fairly quickly (you know, if only they were actually listed).
Such as:
Handy Manny’s toolbox! You push a button and it plays music and the front row of tools moves around. I have sold several of these over the last couple years (and my boys have their own that I am looking forward to selling . . . eventually.) I finally listed it on December 14, and it sold in about half an hour.
Sold: $49.95
Super Why is still a great buy! This was a bigger Whyatt, who had a cape that moved when a button on his chest was pushed, and he also had springs on his feet. He was also (finally!) listed on December 14, and sold the same day.
Sold: $44.95
A 3X “ugly” (actually really cute) Christmas sweater. Also listed on December 14, sold the next day.
Sold: $24.95
So, why was I procrastinating again? No idea.
And here’s a BOLO reminder that I have mentioned before – Thomas Duplos! I came across a lot that was being sold on a FB group. Oddly it had been listed for several hours when I came across the post, a decent-sized bag full, for only $5. Why no one else had snapped it up I’ll never know, but I was happy to buy it. I picked them up on Veterans Day, and then let my youngest play with them for a month or so. I finally got them all listed about a week before Christmas. I was hoping for a few last minute sales, but the first train from this lot didn’t actually sell until Christmas Day. On the upside, every single one of the others has already sold since then.
Percy
Sold: $19.95 (7 days after listed)
Gordon + tender + passenger car
Sold: $39.95 (12 days after listed)
Thomas + Troublesome Truck
Sold: $39.95 (13 days after listed)
Thomas
Sold: $17.95 (18 days after listed)
And I’ve also sold a few Star Wars toys, no huge surprise.
Paid: $1 @ ys, Sold: $39.95 (listed since late summer)
I bought around 150 costumes on Halloween clearance this year, and have already sold quite a few. I think I must be close to recooping all of my initial investment, if I haven’t already. I thought the costume below was cute.
Paid: $2.49, Sold: $24.95 (sold 5 days after listed)
I’ve been focusing a lot more on clothing lately, and bought very few toys at yard sales this summer for resale. But looking at all of these sales makes me think maybe I need to get back into the toy groove. You’ve gotta admit, they’re way more fun!
What has been selling well for you recently? I’d love to hear about it!
‘Tis the season. Sales are good right now. I am hoping to hit my sales goal for the month by the 20th because I know sales will drop off almost entirely then, if not before. Here are a few of my better sales over the last few days.
I bought a LOT of costumes at 90% off after Halloween. I’ve been listing a few here and there, and several have already sold. (Including a vampire costume. Who buys a vampire costume in December?) The Sonic the Hedgehog costume below also sold very quickly.
Paid: $1.99 @ Wal-Mart, Sold: $24.95
I bought a Mo Willems pigeon plush for my youngest on eBay for Christmas last year. For some reason they were selling it with the Pokemon plush below. It was in good condition, so I listed it. Wasn’t a super fast flip, but I sold it for more than I paid for both plush originally.
Pokemon plush
Paid: ?, Sold: $29.95
Snoopy Mug
Paid: $4ish @ VV, Sold: $34.95
Perfection isn’t always a fast seller, but it always sells eventually.
Paid: $2ish, Sold: $39.95
And a few Christmas-y sales!
I picked up a bunch of animated (move and play music) hats on post-Christmas clearance two years ago. Almost all of them sold last year, with the exception of three of the style below. Two of which have sold so far this year.
Paid: $3ish, Sold: $34.95
This tapestry blanket was super cute, and in great condition.
Paid: $4ish @ VV, Sold: $49.95
I picked up all 12 of the plush below at a church rummage sale over the summer. I paid $25 for 3 bags of plush. I am sure I made my $25 back long ago on other plush sales. Apparently these Rudolph plush were sold at CVS years back.
Sold: $74.95
How are December sales looking for you so far?
***Photo borrowed from completed eBay listing.***
I have a long-standing love affair with Build A Bear. At least I love to buy it. Some of it (clothing especially) sells well, some of it (many of the miscellaneous plush) not so much.
But, here’s one that could be worth picking up if you come across it. You’ll notice that the ones in the Santa outfit generally sell for more than the ones without. Check out completeds HERE.
Sales are hopping! At the risk of totally jinxing myself, the last few days have been great. I had planned to get some listing done this morning but never got to it because I had so many items to get packaged up – a good problem to have. This is the first really good streak I’ve had this year, surpassing my loose goals of 5 sales (or $100+ in sales) per day.
Here are a few of my favorites from this week:
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| Cleo Pinocchio Plush Paid: $4 @ consignment sale, Sold: $29.95 (listed since October, 2014) |
I listed a bunch of footie pajama lots in November (I’d guess at least 10 different lots, maybe more) and every single one of them has already sold. The ones below I took out of my youngest son’s dresser last week. He hasn’t been wearing them, is close to outgrowing them, and I figured I might as well get them listed before winter is over.
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| 8 Pairs of Carters Footie PJs, size 3T Paid: $8ish total @ various yard sales, Sold: $34.95 (3 days after listing) |
Costumes sell all year long! Whenever I find toddler-sized Old Navy costumes I always look them up. Some of them can sell for pretty good money. Baby sizes not as much (although there are always exceptions, like the cheeseburger costume I sold for $50 last October).
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| Old Navy Chicken Costume, size 5T Paid: $7? @ consignment sale, Sold: $44.95 (listed since October, 2014) |
I bought this hat last summer at a friend’s yard sale. I go to enough yard sales that several times each summer I wind up at yard sales of people I know. I’m not a fan. Either I feel bad because they don’t have anything I want to buy (and I feel like I should buy something), or they know I resell, and I don’t want them feeling like I’m trying to make a buck off of them. Awkward.
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| VTG Smokey the Bear Snapback Hat Paid: $1 @ ys, Sold: $39.95 (listed since November, 2014) |
More maternity clothes, no surprise. This particular skirt is an Australian brand.
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| Ripe Maternity Jean Skirt Paid: $1 @ consignment store, Sold: $27.95 (listed since September, 2014) |
And an honorable mention too! I have had this hanging around for-ev-er and had been waffling between listing and redonating it for months (it’s from the ’80s and shows its age a bit).
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| Snuffleupagus (Sesame Street) Christmas Stocking Paid: $0.25? @ ys, Sold: $24.95 (5 days after listing) |
‘Tis the season . . . that I want to avoid the Post Office at all costs. It’s not too far out of my way, so on a normal day I stop by the Post Office once to drop off packages, usually around 3:15 after picking my oldest up from school. This gives me an hour of leeway (weekday last call for packages is 4:15 p.m.), and also allows me to get anything purchased in the morning ready and shipped out the same day, which buyers love.
BUT.
Ugh.
The Post Office in December is no joke, and it’s already started. On many December days I *try* to pull into the PO parking lot, but traffic is backed up out of the parking lot and into the road because cars are lined up waiting for a parking space in the too-small lot. And I not only have to contend with finding parking, all the other customers, and the potentially bulky packages I am transporting, but also have both of my boys in tow.
So, the obvious answer is ——-> have the PO pick up my packages!
Right?
But. In the summer it’s stinkin’ hot, and I don’t feel comfortable leaving packages out in the heat. And right now it’s either (literally) freezing cold, or raining buckets. So leaving packages outside for pick-up doesn’t seem like an option.
Do you use carrier pick-up? What do you do? Keep your packages inside and have the postal person ring your bell? (I’ve done that a few times and it’s worked okay, but I feel that I hover by the front door afraid I will miss them, and am not as productive with my day as I normally would be.)
Or? If you have a system you use that works well for you I’d love to hear about it!
We decorated our Christmas tree this evening, and as my husband pulled out this set of ornaments he wondered aloud how much they would sell for online. Wahaha. (That’s my best approximation of an evil laugh.) He’s not at all an eBayer, but I’m totally rubbing off on him!
We wouldn’t actually sell our set. They were passed on to us by my inlaws years ago, and they were favorites of my husband when he was younger. We like seeing them on our tree every year. It is a set of five ornaments that all hook together, four ornaments have two reindeer each, and the last has Santa in his sleigh.
Of course, after he asked I had to look up how much they are worth. The set can go for over $50, and I’m guessing at this time of year they might go even higher. You can see some completeds HERE.
It’s been awhile since I did a recap of how long it took for items to sell within any given month. I had over 100 sales in August, and this was the breakdown of what month each of the items sold was originally listed in:
Listed in August, 2014: 21
Listed in July, 2014: 21
Listed in June, 2014: 11
Listed in May, 2014: 7
Listed in April, 2014: 2
Listed in March, 2014: 5
Listed in February, 2014: 4
Listed in January, 2014: 3
Listed in December, 2013: 3
Listed in November, 2013: 7
Listed in October, 2013: 6
Listed prior to October, 2013: 15
Halloween-related sales: 10
Christmas-related sales: 2
Best Offers Accepted: 16
I still think almost everything will sell . . . eventually.
And Halloween sales are really picking up already. Get those costumes listed if you haven’t already!
I met my listing goal for August . . . with half an hour to spare. This month has reinforced how important it is for me to keep track of my new listings with a ticker. For a week or so early in the month the ticker website was not working correctly, and I had to try to keep a mental tally of how many new listings I had. It was a challenge! I was so glad when the website started working again. Then at the end of the month I could tell I was cutting it close as to whether or not I would reach my listing goal. It definitely motivated me to list more than I would have otherwise.
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| Folkmanis Frog Puppet Paid: $0.50 @ ys, Sold: $24.95 (1 day later) |
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| Rocket (Little Einsteins) Pull-Back Toy Paid: $1 @ rummage sale, Sold: $15.95 (same day as listed) |
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| Rocket (Little Einsteins) Plush Paid: $1 @ rummage sale, Sold: $14.95 (3 days later) |
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| Old Navy Pink Puffer Jacket, Size 18-24 Months Paid: $0.50 @ ys, Sold: $14.95 (7 days later) |
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| Puma Toddler Shoes Paid: $1 @ ys, Sold: $17.95 (3 days later) |
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| Eeyore Plush Backpack Paid: $2 @ rummage sale, Sold: $39.95 (15 days later) |
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| GAP Maternity Skirt, Size 10 Paid: $1, Sold: $18.95 (20 days later) |
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| Columbia Men’s Shorts Paid: $1 @ ys, Sold: $14.95 + shipping to Canada (6 days later) |
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| Nike Athletic 2XL Shirt Paid: $1 @ ys, Sold: $21.95 (1 day later) |
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| Pink Honey Bunny Lovey Paid: $1ish @ ys, Sold: $29.95 (19 days later) |
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| 4 Build-A-Bear Gingerbread Men & Women Paid: $2 ($0.50/ea) @ ys, Sold: $59.95 (1 month later) |