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Saturday, May 18, 2013

I Got a Knocker and a Bust ... and a Clock




I went to my first auction this weekend. Have you ever been to an auction?  I found it a little stressful as auctions are fast paced and there is no room for hesitation, but it was also a lot of fun to come home with some great finds.

If you have never been to an auction then here are a few tips:  
1.  Get to the auction early enough to register and have a look at all the goods. You don't want to be bidding on items sight unseen and then be disappointed later when you see the item up close. 
2.  Take water so you don't have to leave to get a drink, a tape measure so you can make sure the items will fit in the car, a pen and paper to note the number of the items you are interested in, a bag to carry all the small things you buy in, and nerves of steel.
3.  Be fast and decisive.  I missed out on an inexpensive vintage wooden tool box as I waited a split second too long to jump into the bidding.  It was actually good practice so I knew how fast and decisive I needed to be for the things I really wanted to buy.




Want to know what I bought? 

A clock -


A knocker - 



And a bust - 


There was also a few tables of things being sold like a yard sale so I bought this little gray transferware bowl and two brown transferware plates.



The best part was this was the house my husband had grown up in, so buying the front door knocker and the other momentos made it especially meaningful.
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9 comments:

  1. Wow, the house he grew up in. I thought it was a church! Beautiful. I was married to an auctioneer and went to many an auction. My additional tip is if you like the first few items of the sale buy fast because the audience isn't warmed up yet and you might get a good deal. And bid fast so it looks like you are not going to give up and it might intimidate the competition! Great finds.

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    1. Oh good suggestions. I didn't know those tips so I'll have to keep them in mind for next time.

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  2. Well I think it's especially neat that you bought the door knocker since your husband grew up in that house! Neat! Your other buys are neat, too. I got so sunburned today in the rain that I think I'm going to be sick....

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  3. Great finds and how cool that it was at your husband's childhood home, especially the door knocker. I have only been to one auction, at the home my brother and sil bought as the older couple were moving to a seniors home. She bought tons of stuff and I bought a few things.

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  4. Oh, Grace, I love that you now have the door knocker from your husband's boyhood home! What a special memento ... the fact that you won it at your very first auction makes it even MORE special.

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  5. What a beautiful house. The knocker will be very special for your husband. My favourite is the clock, and I love how you have it styled with the books. Any day you can get transferware is a good day!

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  7. Thanks for the auction tips! you found great items!

    Sabrina
    www.pinklittlenotebook.com

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  8. Beautiful finds! I would have bid on them all too! Love the house. Is it Toronto...or London? It reminds me of London, Ontario houses.

    Jo
    http://womaninreallife.blogspot.ca/

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