Vintage Paint by Number Paintings Almost always sell!

One item I almost always have good luck with are Vintage Paint by Number paintings. I am not sure why people collect them but they do. These are the paintings you might have done as a kid with numbers for what color to paint in. Painted ones sell best (those completed). I just recently sold the two featured in pictures here for a 10x profit over what I paid. Generally you want to pick these up for 3 to 4 dollars or less with sales prices from 15-30 dollars. Those featuring animals (horses, dogs etc) are usually more worthwhile listing.

Leather Folio Given by Shah of Iran's Wife -Flea Market Find

I have to admit, I loved this item from the minute I found it at a local flea market. It appeared to be just a leather folder, folio whatever you call it! LOL But it had some cool designs on it. I didnt really look it over well enough to see the inscription inside that said it was given by the Shabanou (Shah of Iran's Wife) and Empress of Iran. It might have been a gift given to visitors or something developed for sale there during their reign in the 70s. I paid about 3.00 for it and sold it for $50!! You really never know what you will find when you are out hunting. Keep in mind some basic things... If its unusual , different looking.. has some age to it (usually pre 1980) and especially if you have never seen anything like it or heard of it before, it is usually worth buying (for a low price , keep aquisition costs low less risk of loss on items). This item was old looking, a little dusty perhaps and needed care. I dont often touch items but had some Kenneth Cole Leather cleaner around and it worked wonderfully! I highly recommend it! IT looks like suntan lotion and I just used a little and cleaned it up safely! Take a look at the pics!

Defunct Sports Teams.. Especially hockey teams. AHL

People always think that the more popular a sports team is the more valuable an item might be. For example lots of people love the Yankee or the Red Sox or for that matter in hockey the New York Rangers. However usually big name teams have TONS and I mean TONS of merchandise available from many sources. Its in chain stores, its in sports stores, its at games, its everywhere! The best sports items to sell are often items from now defunct (no longer in business) sports teams, especially hockey teams which seem to have developed a rabid following in their day. AHL (American Hockey League) teams are especially good since the AHL served as the proving ground for many NHL players. The fans were very loyal. In New Haven , CT we had a team called the New Haven Nighthawks and there are some crazy collectors and even though they havent been around for many years people still buy their stuff. I just listed a pair of unused season tickets from 1981 which already have a bid (pictured here). I still miss going to the games myself. I have some the most highly sought after New Haven Nighthawk items including one of the only sets of all the programs from when they played the Russian Red Army team before the fall of the Soviet Union. So think SPORTS, think DEFUNCT, think AHL and especially New Haven!