Yesterday we went to the Mountain Farmlet for the Octogenarian’s Estate Sale. I found myself agog, and later aghast at the prices that her household items and antiques went for! Example:
Hoosier Cabinet in pristine condition: $40.00 Even the auctioneer was a bit peeved over that one. (I didn’t purchase this because I already have one.)
Let it be said that I was surprised at the prices we paid for the items we purchased, but remember, we were the highest bidders. Oddly some of the least of the items went for more, and the expected higher priced items went for less.
Items we purchased:
- Vintage folk art stool. A much painted, sturdy, small, and built to last bit of very cute! ~ $8.00
- Vintage miscellaneous garden tools. Lots of them. $20.00
- Newer, pink upholstered chair. (Nobody wanted it, and I will slipcover it!) ~ $1.00
- Five Vintage maple dining chairs and one upholstered ottoman. These will be cleaned, joints tightened up, and refinished or painted. The ottoman will reupholstered. $5.00
- Four Assorted antique/vintage Hanging Chairs ~ $5.00 for all. These hang off wooden pegs on the side of the log cabin’s wall. They needed to stay there.
- Set of Fireplace tools. ~ $7.00
- Set of Living room furniture in excellent condition. My guess? They were kept slip-covered since purchase. Upholstered settee and two upholstered chairs for our highest bid of $15.00!
- Antique oval entry table (altered to coffee table height). This item was the subject of a bidding war between an older fella and me… I started at $5.00 and the auctioneer asked for $5.50, and so on. At about the $15 dollar range I just held up my card and looked at the auctioneer and left it there. The auctioneer kept adding in 50 cent increments and the Old Fella and me were staring each other down, friendly like you know, but when the price jumped by a dollar to $27.00, I felt my head tilt ever so slightly and my left eyebrow arch up. He gave me a look I can only describe as incredulous and dropped out, so I got the table for $26.00. The quarter sawn oak is unbelievable. The table has a few issues with chipped veneer at the sides, but when you see the base and the top you simply overlook the flaws. (see an example below)
- Seed Planter. This is what I originally came for, and it was also a hotly bid after item. $45.00 New ones, see sample HERE, cost about $125.00 so still a good buy!
- Antique harrow. $25.00 I could only find one picture out there of this man-powered torture device, and he wasn’t sharing, so here is the link HARROW Mine has wooden handles and no wheel on front. I don’t have any idea what I will do with it. I don’t really want to leave it out in the elements, and of course, it is not appropriate for inside use. LOL! Do you have ideas for how, and where I might use/display this item? 😉
- One medium sized Bench vise. $9.00 We left two or three of these behind in California, and I have regretted it on more than one repairing mission! The new ones are cheaply made, fall apart easily, and are unbelievably EXPENSIVE! I had to outbid several Old Fellas for this item!
- Two Bench Grinders (one working one not). These were also items we left behind in California. Anyway, if I recall correctly, they were supposed to be $12.00, and apparently were free, because I don’t believe we were ever charged for them. oops! 😳
Having experienced my first auction I must say that it is a good way to find things you really need for a price you can really afford. That said, I don’t think it is a good way to sell off your lovely treasures!
~*~
Most embarrassing moment? It was my first time at an auction and I was new to the rules of the bidding… At one point bidding on the seeder I thought someone outbid me and I raised my card again…
The auctioneer: “Mam, you’re bidding against yurself, and I can’t charge ya twice!”
The crowd found this hilarious.
~*~
The table looks very similar to this, but that beautiful tiger stripe you see on the side is all across the top too!
I will have pictures for you of the home and the fun stuff we bought later this week! 😀
Life on the Farmlet 
I can’t believe the prices. I also have a beloved Hoosier cabinet and never found a bargain like that. I’ll be looking forward to the pictures.
Lillian
Lillian, I will be back out there, with camera, to meet with the roofer. I will have my camera with me this time. 😉
I would have bid on everything you did…and probably a good deal more.
It does get to be a fever, doesn’t it Joan? I had to keep telling myself “I DON’T NEED THIS!” Over and over and over… 😉
Well done. You got bargains and had fun! That table is gorgeous – I think what you call tiger stripe is medullary rays.
I did have fun, Viv. I don’t know if that is the correct term used here or not, I was just trying to explain the part I was referring to. However, it certainly is a beautiful table! 😉
I like farm sales, but auctions? Not so much. My impulse control can be poor.
I must say – those prices are unbelievable. I’d never heard of a Hoosier cabinet – what a neat thing! Of course, you need more of a kitchen than I have to even find room for one of those. Still, it’s wonderful.
The best deal I ever got was a drop-leaf gate leg table I found sitting by the side of the road as a come-on for a yard sale. It’s the kind that has the drawer in the middle section – there’s a name but I can’t remember it. The thing is solid walnut, and each leaf is made of only two big, wide boards. The price? $35, cash and carry. I paid and I carried, believe you me!
I bought more than I had planned, but was able to exercise control. I am glad for the settee and chairs as our 9 foot couch will never fit in that small living room! Besides, we can’t afford a new one. Do you still have the table? It sounds divine!
Regarding the Hoosier Cabinet. They were originally devised for the kitchen because in the early 1900s kitchens were furnished, because they didn’t have built in cabinets. Now I can’t say that is entirely correct, but the smaller homes I know for sure did not built-ins came later. Many people now use theirs in other rooms like the laundry or craft room. I think mine will be in the kitchen or the pantry, but we’ll see.
OMG Lynda, your 1/4 sawn table is just gorgeous… But whoever chopped it down has earned some VERY bad karma (if you get my drift 😉
It is heartbreaking when people don’t appreciate the value of handmade antique/vintage pieces (but, then again, such amazing deals for someone like you who does 🙂
Well, in this instance it sorta all works out right in the end, Deb.
Here’s why: They at some point needed a coffee table and the deed was done. When I bought it all her children told me how they remembered being little and coloring at that table. Now, we fast forward to me and guess what? I really wanted a beautiful coffee table to replace the glass topped one we now have. Somehow, the glass topped job just didn’t seem like it would fit in. So yes, it was the perfect, amazing deal for me, and now every time I use it I will think of the happy memory they shared with me! 😀
Just reading this now (guess I didn’t tick off the reply box, LOL)
There couldn’t possibly be any bad karma here – what a wonderful story!!
So, will you be attending more auctions, now that you’ve been bitten by the bug? I LOVE finding old things to bring home so they can live another day: )
Not any time soon for the auctions, Deb. I just saw a woman about a stove (more on that later) and I am a bit broke… 😉
I will be at the Mtn. Farmlet today. Demolishing the ticky-tacky and rotten shower to make room for the old tub in that corner. Big things are going to start happening in that room and the kitchen, and yes, there will be before and after photos. 😀
Love auctions, and love your tiger wood table!
Thank you, Chris, I sure did have fun!
GOOD GRIEF! I FORGOT TO MENTION WE MET MANY OF OUR NEW NEIGHBORS AT THE SALE TOO, AND THAT THEY WERE SO NICE!
Happy new, as my wife says. Or maybe happy new old, as I just thought to say.
Yes, Steve, happy new to me! (Well, US actually.) 😉
You were ‘surprised’ at the prices – reading this all the way from Down Under, I am outright shocked! Lucky duck you, but feel more than a tad sorry for the people who had to auction the goods . . . after all the costs . . .
I know, Eha! It was not to be believed. Interestingly, the 5 lawn mowers and the Jeep truck pulled in some good cash, but still…
Wonderful!
Thank you, Julie. Glad you’re back! 😀
I wish I had been there! I love auctions, unless they’re horribly crowded and the bidding is vicious. I’m so happy you found a few bargains! I can see a trip for FD and I in the future!! I’m just so happy for you and Bob!
This auction wasn’t crowded or vicious.
I had no idea when we went there that we would meet so many of our new neighbors, but in retrospect, DUH! So for that reason alone I am glad we went.
Yes, I would love to see you again and to meet FD! Just give us a little time to get the deep repairs done! Unless of course you are volunteering. In which case come on over! LOL! (You know I’m kidding. 😉 )
It sounds like you did well at your first auction. 🙂
Yes, and it was so much fun, Patti!
Auctions are such fun! Well done you. I get over excited by them and have to be careful to set a limit. Sounds like you got some great things. Shame for the octogenarian that she didn’t raise more but at least her things are being enjoyed by others now.
Annie, I was doing a mental, running total, and intended to stay under $100… I didn’t, but at least it was under $200. 😉
As for the Octogenarian, well, I hadn’t thought of it in that way, but true enough!
I can not believe those prices … and I love the story about the children coloring around the “coffee table”.
LB, paying up at the end of the sale was a stunner, let me tell you! And yes, that table will always be a delight for me. I’m so glad that her children shared with me.
I would have wanted the Hoosier anyway. I have one that belonged to my aunt and she used it all the time. I don’t know where I would have put it though. Maybe that’s why I don’t go to auctions or many yard sales!
Having experienced just this one I can see where your not going is probably a wise decision!
The more I work on the inside of the new Farmlet, the more I think I may be using the one I have. Pictures from the kitchen soon…