March 2015 – Things I find in the garbage

Deviations

March 24, 2015March 24, 2015 garbagefinds43 Comments

Last week I joined the eBay Partner Network. Basically, that means I get a cut of their profits when anyone creates an account or buys something after visiting eBay through a link on my blog. I figured I might as well, since I regularly include links to eBay anyways. It might help me make a bit of extra cash, though I’m not expecting it to be super lucrative.

So, if you ever want to buy something off eBay (and not necessarily my stuff) considered getting there by first clicking one of my links. It won’t cost you anything extra, and I’ll make a few bucks. If you’re interested in creating an account, do that through my blog too! Feel free to send me an email if you need any help with the process.

Here’s hoping one of you wants to buy a car on eBay, as the cut of that would be quite nice. Or how about these million dollar earrings? Okay, maybe that’s pushing it.

Anyways, last week was another good one. My spot in NDG again produced some interesting finds.

Inside this bag …

… was a cool 60s mod wall light.

It’s a pretty cool piece that creates a really awesome ambiance. I couldn’t find any marks on it, but I wonder if it could be a designer piece. The bag had something written in parenthesis under the “yellow lamp,” which could maybe be a name. However, I either can’t make out what it says, or the name isn’t well known. It looks like “A Angin.” Either may, it might have some value, although I have a strong appreciation for good lighting and the color yellow.

There were some nice old kitchenwares, including a working mixer (the last setting seems unusually loud, but it might just need some oil) …

a cooking thermometer, in its original box …

a glass juicer (which cleaned up nicely) …

and some old silver plate cutlery.

I also saved a nice framed print featuring the Arc de Triomphe …

a book on Wicca …

an issue of Rolling Stone magazine from 1971 …

a New York Times magazine from 1967, featuring an article on dreaming (I like the handwriting near the top, which says “keep for article on dreaming”) …

and a small copy of the UN Charter, which was apparently bought at the United Nations building in New York in 1952.

I visited Mount Royal on Tuesday night. I’ve been keeping an eye on this spot, since it produced some neat stuff a few weeks back.

This week I opened the recycling bin, and found it was full of books! I took a lot, more than I could handle really. I ended up putting the ones I didn’t want (couldn’t keep might be a more accurate phrase) in the Give Box on St Viateur.

Some of the books were quite old, and in nice condition too. All these sex psychology books were published in the early 1900s by F.A Davis Co. They were all written by Havelock Ellis, save for one by a guy named Huhner. Havelock Ellis was one of the first people to scientifically study homosexuality, and invented the term “eonism.” Eonism apparently means “the adoption of female dress and behaviour by a male”.

I shot this picture using the brass book holder I found at this exact spot. It really makes the books look great! I’m considering keeping it now, as it would help make my eBay book listings extra nice.

Inside the book on eonism were a couple old newspaper clippings featuring stories about men who dressed like women. They’re a fun read for anyone who interested in LGBT issues. Click on the photo for a better view.

Another book contained a couple clippings from 1937 about the murder of a guy by the name of Henri Fissiault …

while another contained a couple of questionable pamphlets. The one on the left advocates choosing a wife based on eugenics. In that school of thought, the quality of one’s genes can be deduced from their facial features and body type, among other things. Needless to say, that was disproved long ago, but not before the holocaust and mass sterilizations in the USA and Canada (which, to no surprise, disproportionally affected native and other minority populations before the program finally ended in 1972).

I enjoyed saving this giant brick of a book.

It’s a dictionary that was published in 1882.

The cover isn’t in good shape, but it should provide some fun nonetheless. A few friends and I have I’ve recently been playing something called the dictionary game, where someone reads a definition from a dictionary and others have to guess what the word is. I imagine this 1882 edition will have some fun old-timey words and phrasing.

There were lots of other books too, including:

a book of poetry by Tennyson from 1923 …

a collection of New Yorker cartoons from 1937 …

a two volume edition of “Outlines of the Life of Shakespeare” from 1889 …

an old book of Rembrandt prints; a book published by Nato in the early 60s about emergency war surgery …

a book about Louis Riel; a book on the history of Montreal (published in 1942) …

a book of Aislin’s cartoons; another compilation of New Yorker cartoons (up to the year 1950) …

and many others! The main themes here seem to be psychology or Canadian history.

The most valuable book might be the DSM II manual, on the left. The DSM is a classification of mental disorders, as determined by the American Psychiatric Association.

The DSM II was published in 1968, and famously included homosexuality as a mental disorder. These manuals are not particularly common, and apparently somewhat collectible. One recently sold for 250$, while mine is only one of two currently listed. The other is set at nearly 625$ with best offer, though I’m not sure if it’s worth that much.

Mine is listed at about 280$, with free shipping. It’s in good condition, though slightly more worn than the others. I may reduce the price slightly if it sits around for a while, but I do expect it to go for a nice sum.

Thursday night brought me back to my spot in NDG.

I opened one bag, and saw an old jewelry box. Some objects rattled within, and I was excited to take a look inside.

I was hoping for another big jewellery haul, but it was not to be. The bottom drawer held some nice incense, a deck of (tarot?) cards, and a really gnarly looking tooth (which can be seen below the red incense, if you’re not too grossed out by such things).

This is the card deck. Any help identifying it would be appreciated!

The top drawer was mostly full of junk. I did save a few things though, including a crystal bead necklace, a ring, and a couple scents in cute bottles.

The box itself was kind of nice, but in need of minor repair. I might be able to fix it up without too much effort.

There was some nice stuff beneath the jewelry box. This container was marked “old coins.”

The coins weren’t super old (mostly from the 1960s), but they still added up to a little more than a buck.

There was a singing bowl. It’s fairly small, measuring maybe 3.5″ in diameter.

There was a nice footed trivet, or at least I think it’s a trivet.

It’s marked “Manning quality, Bowman, Meriden Conn.” on the bottom.

I did find a few bits of jewelry in this little mesh bag.

Many of the pieces were crystal and rocks pendants.

This one ring stuck out from the rest. It also really sticks out from your hand – the stone is held a good half inch or so from the ring hole. It’s marked and tests as sterling silver. There’s a designer mark as well, though I can’t make it out. I posted some pictures of the marks below, if anyone’s interested.

There were a couple of art prints in a box along with some old wrapping paper. This one features a building on McGill College and Sherbrooke. It’s hard to tell if this one is an original or a print, though I suspect it’s the latter.

This is the “One who understands” by Paul Klee. It looks to be a silkscreen print, as it’s definitely made from real paint. I had some hope that it was an original, but it’s likely just a nice museum souvenir.

Let’s finish off with these letters, and a question to you.

I found a bag full of old letters at this spot. Many date back to the 1930s and 1940s.

I haven’t actually looked at them very closely. Many though are from the war years. This ink seal appears on the back of several of the envelopes.

Old letters, like perhaps nothing else provide a glimpse into what life was like “back in the day.”

(The paragraph in the middle reads: “Right now, I’m on a week-end + and not a thing to do – the deadest play on Earth is Moncton I believe”).

(The middle paragraph reads: “We had a very nice crop of potatoes and price is very encouraging. $9.00 at present”).

I’m curious though about what you think of the act of saving old letters from the trash. I’m of the opinion that they have great historical value and should be saved from destruction. However, others might make the argument that looking at old letters is an invasion of privacy, and that they should stay on the curb.

What do you think? Let us know in the comments!

I’ve been finding some pretty great stuff recently… I hope it keeps up this week!

In other news

My eBay score is now over 100, meaning that I’ve received over 100 positive feedback votes. It’s at 105 as I write. I think of this as a sort of milestone. It’s taken a long time, and a lot of sales to get to that level, especially because many people don’t leave feedback. I’m proud of the achievement, and eBay has given me a baby blue star next to my username as a result.

I also got my first negative comment on the blog. It was pretty offensive, with “filthy canuck vermin!” being a phrase of note. I deleted it because it wasn’t really productive, but it was interesting that I finally got one after 3181 comments and 392,599 page views.

Last week’s garbage sales (March 16 – March 22)

1. HP Laptop: On Kijiji for 80$. I finally listed it this week and a couple people emailed me within a day. Found a little over a month ago in Cote St-Luc.

2. Guy Vidal brutalist earrings: On Etsy for 100$. These sold within a day to someone in Ottawa. Featured in last week’s post, and found in NDG.
3. “Krasnaya Moskva” Soviet perfume: On eBay for 25$. I’ve already received positive feedback. Found in Cote-des-Neiges in August of 2014.
4. Order of Ahepa 1958 Supreme Convention program: On eBay for 30$. Found in Ville St Laurent September 2014.
5. Serengeti Solano sunglasses: On eBay for 37$. I forget where I found these, but it was somewhere rich.
6. Box of Israeli phono-card samples: On eBay for 33$. This was one of my oldest finds still in my possession. I found these cards probably six years ago when I still lived in Ottawa. I kept them in mu bookcase for all these years, but figured it was time to move on and listed them on eBay. I’m glad to see them go. FYI: phono-cards were postcards with little records printed on them, and they were somewhat popular in the 50s.

7. Four bird pendants: to a reader for 10$. You can see them mixed in with the jewelry above. Found a couple weeks ago in Hampstead.

Total: 318$, 13439$ since May 18 2014 and 3756$ since the new year began. Another solid week. I’m very happy with my profits of late. It’s crazy how far I’ve come as a seller even just in this last year.

New listings

1. American Psychiatric Association; DSM II SECOND EDITION, 1968 APA
2. Lot of 3 WWII-era felt patches – North Shore Regiment New Brunswick, 2 Canada
3. Vintage 70s Barbudo COSMOS Eyeglasses Frames, 22KT Gold Plated, Made in Spain
4. Vintage Black Martin Wells 50s Eyeglasses Frames, Size 48-24, Made in Australia
5. Vintage Guy Vidal earrings, pewter, 1960s modernist / brutalist style, dangle (SOLD!)
6. Serengeti sunglasses Solano DR 5641, Drivers, Made in Italy (SOLD!)
7. Rare Israel Phono-Cards – Box of Samples (4) – 1950s Judaica, Postcard, Jewish
8. Order Ahepa 32nd Supreme Convention 1958, Boston, Greek Greece American Canadian (SOLD!)

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If you have a question, see anything that you’re interesting in buying, or to just want to say hello feel free to email me at thingsifindinthegarbage@gmail.com. I also enjoy reading your comments! Keep in mind that I frequently get behind on emails, so I apologize in advance if I take a few days or weeks to get back to you.

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Brutalist

March 18, 2015March 21, 2015 garbagefinds17 Comments

There’s a lot of luck involved in trash picking. I often wonder (especially on slow weeks) if one turn in a different direction would have brought me treasures beyond my wildest dreams, or even just some of the usual cool and valuable stuff.

I went to Hampstead last Monday night, hoping to hit up a couple of good spots there. Both were both totally barren, though, so I was going to need some luck if I was going to have a successful night. I explored nearby NDG for a bit, but after a while I got tired and decided to head home more or less empty-handed. However, on a whim I took a right turn onto one of the last roads of the route, thinking it would be my final road of the night.

Not long later I came across this big pile of trash, and instantly knew I was going to be there a while. I didn’t find too much this time around, but I had a feeling it would be more productive in the future. It looked to be a house clearing situation.

I saved mostly kitchenwares on my Monday night haul. There were three vintage flame-coloured cast iron pots. The ones at front center and back right are by Le Creuset, while the other was made by some company out of Belgium. The rest of the bags were largely full of clothes, old spices, and stale food from the pantry.

The pans were fairly dirty, but I know that cast iron is easy and satisfying to fix up. The little one cleaned up quite nice, and I sold it to my room-mates mom for 5$. The big Belgian one wasn’t super dirty to start, and I gave it to a friend who does woodworking because it needed a new handle.

I still have the little dutch oven (top right), which was the dirtiest of the bunch. Somebody definitely burned some food in it at some point. It’s improved quite quickly with some scrubbing but still needs a lot of work. If you have some tips on how to clean it, let me know!

Tuesday’s night run in Mount Royal wasn’t too productive, but I did find some neat stuff in Cote St-Luc on Wednesday.

I picked up a few bags from this place and put them in the trunk. I could tell there was some decent items inside, and I figured I’d sort through it elsewhere, leaving the junk in someone else’s half-full bin (it can be easier to sort this way, particularly when you’re dealing with very small things that fall to the bottom of a bag). I found a few cool things and figured it was worth checking out more of the stuff.

When I came back I was surprised to see a guy, who was probably over 80 years old, bringing more trash to the curb. I decided to explore some other streets before returning to look again. I prefer to work undetected, especially in neighbourhoods with the local security officers. I sometimes wonder though if I miss out on interesting interactions by doing so.

Regardless, I went back later when the only light in the house was a flicker of a television. I picked up a couple more bags, and put them in the trunk.

This jewelry box was inside one of the bags. It looks like it would have been made in the 1950s. Inside the bag (and thankfully underneath the jewelry box) was a bunch of food waste, including some scraps of cooked chicken. A few pieces of jewelry had fallen out of the box and into the food waste, so I had to fish my way through it to make sure I didn’t miss anything great. It was gross, but being thorough (and having a strong stomach) is one the most profitable characteristics of a trash picker. One little piece can sometimes make you a great deal of cash.

However, the good stuff was still in the box, and I got my hands covered in chicken grease mostly for nothing. Thankfully, I had some wet wipe things that I keep in the car for this exact situation.

Many of the pieces were broken or not particularly exciting. This is a picture of what I kept – the rest (including the jewelry box itself, which was mostly in good condition but needed some work) I left in an open box on the curb.

A couple pieces stood out from the rest.

This modernist sterling brooch was made by Reuven of Israel. A similar pin was listed for around 60$, though it didn’t sell.

These vintage cufflinks are likely the most valuable pieces of the box.

They’re made of 14k gold, and weigh about 5.09 grams. For weigh alone, they’re worth around 140$. They’re in good condition though and should fetch a fair bit more. Similar cufflinks on Etsy (example one, example two) are selling for 320$ and 450$. I think these are a bit cooler, but I plan on pricing mine slightly lower so as to increase the chance of a quick sale.

Otherwise, I saved a few more vintage sunglasses, a small collection of scents (one of which, the Guy Laroche “Fidji,” is up on eBay for a good sum), a pin that states “I am proud to be a Zionist,” and a Hebrew hat pin of some kind. Let us know if you can translate it!

I returned to NDG on Thursday night for the second of their bi-weekly garbage collections. I went back the spot that provided the cast iron pans on Monday and came across another massive pile. The stuff was a lot more interesting this time around.

There was a bunch of luggage at the back right of the pile. One had this cool old hotel sticker on it, but it was quite worn and not worth taking.

These old patches came from a bag otherwise filled with old letters, some of which date back to the 1940s. They’re likely from WWII.

There was a cool vintage 1940s life insurance policy …

a sterling silver candle snuffer, probably of Scandinavian origin …

a gold tooth (which weighs around 5 grams, making it fairly valuable) …

a little bag full of eight loonies (1$ coins) …

… and some other random stuff. I love finding cash in the trash!

However, the jewelry is what really made this a good haul. This is just the stuff that’s likely destined for the yard sale box!

I had some good luck finding jewelry early on in my career as a full time trash picker (which I began in March of 2013). To be honest, my big jewelry scores were likely the only thing that allowed me to survive financially in the early days. I found a great haul of gold in Rosemont not long before I started (as an aside, I’ve come a long way as a photographer since then!), a pillowcase full in the Plateau just a month or so later, and a couple shoe-boxes full of jewelry and curios later that summer. I also found probably another thousand dollars worth of gold at another place in the Plateau, that I never mentioned because the person yelled at me for taking it (I would totally mention it if writing about it today, but I was nervous about it at the time). Oh, and there was also the bag of costume jewelry the police took from me, which I never had a chance to really look at.

(Edit: I forgot about a nice bunch of sterling I found here… what a summer! Unfortunately I never got around to posting pictures of this stuff).

Anyways, these finds are what got me through the “summer of garbage.” At the time I was still a true novice at online selling, and was very ignorant of its potential. I sold much of what I found at yard sales, and likely gave away some really nice pieces for very cheap, though I at least made sure to keep the silver and gold (I still have many of these pieces sitting around unlisted). I came to expect that I could expect to find a great jewelry hoard every two or three months. However, the luck dried out after that collection of curios in Rosemont, and I hadn’t found a big haul worth noting since.

This collection, while not as large as what was in that pillowcase, should make me some good money! Most was just sitting at the bottom of one trash bag. I spent probably a half-hour or more carefully exploring the bag, making sure I didn’t miss a thing.

Whoever lives or lived here had an interest in new age spirituality. Many of these pieces feature numbers and symbols that have a meaning that I don’t understand. I found some Buddhist booklets in a couple of the other bags, but I’m not sure all these items are related to Buddhism. Zoom in for a closer look, and let us know if you recognize anything!

I was able to identify this as some sort of Masonic pendant. I’m surprised I haven’t found more Mason-related stuff in the past. This piece seems to be fairly modern.

I also thought this ceramic pendant was particularly cool! It’s fairly large, measuring about 4″ tall.

This bunch is the cream of the crop, though. Most will end up on eBay or Etsy.

This pair of earrings and matching brooch are marked AJ 925 Denmark.

AJ stands for Arne Johansen, a Danish modernist designer. Her work sells for nice prices on eBay. The clip of one of the earrings isn’t on right, but it should be reparable.

I couldn’t find a mark on this pendant, but it did test positive for sterling silver. It’s about 1.5″ long.

These brooches are Mexican silver. On the front are inlaid pieces of what looks to be mother of pearl. The one on the right is quite large, measuring around 2″ in diameter. One of them is missing the pin locking mechanism, which might be tough to fix.

These old sterling Mexican cufflinks are unfortunately scrap metal at this point, as one of the clasps has broken off. It’s a shame, as they’d be pretty cool otherwise.

It’s also a shame that this bracelet is missing a stone. It might not be too noticeable if use a stone from near the clasp to replace the one that’s missing, which is closer to the middle. This piece is also Mexican silver.

The back of the pendant on this necklace is marked “Noras,” which doesn’t bring up much on Google. It’s not sterling, but might be silver plate or pewter. It’s definitely made for someone with a smaller neck. It’s quite beautiful, and definitely of the modernist style.

I thought this insect-like pendant was pretty cool.

It’s also marked sterling. In addition to a bird mark, it looks like there’s another faded mark above the “Sterl.” I’ll have to do some research on this one, as it could be quite valuable depending on who designed it.

Speaking of which, here’s a great example of a valuable designer piece.

I might not have known if not for a knowledgeable reader named Joann dropping by at just the right time. She came for a metal stamp box I found a few weeks back, and I offered to give it to her for free in exchange for helping me identify some pieces I thought might be bakelite (they were!).

She happened to come by the day after I found all this jewelry. I was photographing it all on a white table in the front hall (the backdrop for nearly all my photos) when she arrived. She’s had a lifelong interest in jewelry, so we ended up looking at it together for a bit. When she saw this bracelet, she instantly identified it as being made by one of Quebec’s most renown brutalist jewelry makers of the 60s and 70s.

We couldn’t find the signature at first, but it eventually did turn up. The artist is Guy Vidal, who was apparently a Montreal-based designer. According to this article by Roberta Peach, these Canadian brutalist jewelers, Vidal included, were not well recognized until fairly recently. Now, the market is eating them up. Check out these realized prices on eBay – some pieces are selling for 200$ or more!

These earrings are also signed by Vidal.

I can’t find a signature on these, but they definitely look like they match the bracelet.

Same goes for this little pin. It looks to be made of brass, and is also very artfully designed. The center is adorned with what looks to be tiny pearls.

I definitely learned a lot from this experience. For one, I realize that not all valuable jewelry is silver and gold. I also learned what bakelite smells like. I owe many thanks to Joann for her help!

I look forward to checking back on this place going forward. When someone throws out eight loonies and a treasure trove of jewelery you know they’re not paying much attention to what they’re tossing. That’s obviously good news for a scavenger like me.

Last week’s garbage sales (March 9 – March 15)

1. Vintage Snoopy poster: On eBay for 140$. It took a while, but this nice old poster finally found a buyer. Found last summer in TMR. (It’s the pink one in the picture above – the blue one is still listed).

2. Passover Haggadah book, 1956: On eBay for 8$. Found last summer in Snowdon.

3. Vintage Susy Goose barbie house: On eBay for 15$. Also found last summer in Snowdon. This piece sat around for a while, and I recently lowered the price a fair bit just to get it out the door.

4. 1952 Curling pin: to a reader for 4$. Found last week in Hampstead.
5. Small change: returned to the bank for 6$. Found in various places.

6. Fortune telling card deck: on eBay for 30$. Found last month in Verdun.
7. Cast iron pot: to my room-mates mom for 5$. Found this week.
8. Loonies: 8$ that went straight to my pocket. Found this week.

Total: 216$, 13121$ since May 18 2014 and 3438$ since the new year began. A decent week, if nothing special by recent standards.

New listings

Note: local buyers who can pick up are eligible for a discount on anything I have in store. Email me for details.

1. Guy Laroche "Fidji" Eau de Toilette
2. MyKronoz Smart Watch
3. Second Victory Bond (WWII) Certificate of Honour
4. A Critical and Explanatory Commentary of Old and New Testaments (1876 books)

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The Oracle

March 10, 2015March 11, 2015 garbagefinds14 Comments

My sore foot slowed me down for a lot of the week. Walking was difficult, particularly over uneven and snowy surfaces. I had a friend help me on my Monday night run, and we came across a place that provided a good weeks’ worth of finds. I’ve already made nearly 200$ from stuff I found here, and I expect there’s a lot more money yet to come!

In one of the bags were two old scrapbooks.

It was a kid’s school project about Expo 67. The books were filled with newspaper clippings …

… and some official Expo ephemera. I like the wheel (below to the left) that shows the location of each pavilion.

This map is the coolest piece, however. It’s some kind of master pavilion plan for the Expo, published in 1966. It’s signed by Gilles Gagnon, one of the head engineers of the project. I posted some pictures to the Expo 67 Facebook group and a few people seemed genuinely excited to see it.

This map likely isn’t very common since it wasn’t public domain and wouldn’t have been mass produced. I imagine someone would have had to have had some connections to get a copy. It might be worth a bit of money, but first I’ll get a nice quality scan to share on the Expo 67 Facebook page.

I found three old business card holders, full of business cards from the 1950s to probably the 1980s.

One card belongs to a familiar name, at least to those who follow Canadian politics. It’s the card of Justice John H. Gomery, who became known in 2004 when he headed the commission that investigated the sponsorship scandal. Later, after the conclusion of the commission, a federal judge determined that Gomery had displayed bias and judged issues before all evidence was heard.

It’s a bit funny, as I just saw Jean Chretien speak at Concordia last week and might not have remembered Gomery otherwise. This business card was probably made in the early 1970s, and will likely go into my box of garbage keepsakes.

I found a yearbook from 1944.

It was published by the Strathcona Academy, a high school in Outremont. From what I can tell it closed back in 1956.

This piece of paper, which (attempts to) talk humorously of all the changes that happened in the lifetimes of these graduates, was tucked inside the pages. It was probably given out at a reunion. The tone of some of the statements are bizarre, a great example being: “In our time closets were for clothes, not for ‘coming out of'”.

There were a lot of old photos and large-format negatives.

I saved a collection of buttons, cufflinks, jewelery, and baubles. The bird pendants are a part of a set that was made in Japan.

I thought the Star of David pendant on the left was interesting. The front surface (but none of the rest) seems to be rusty. I’m not sure if that’s part of the design, but it looks pretty cool. The pendant on the right is marked “e-sterling”. I’m not sure that means, but it’s definitely not pure sterling.

Two 10 Commandments charm bracelets …

… and a 1952 Town of Mount Royal curling club pin were part of the collection.

There were a whole bunch of vintage sunglasses and frames, which should do well at a yard sale.

One oversized pair by Christian Dior was particularly nice. I expect to sell them for close to 100$. The were probably made in the 60s or 70s.

In terms of miscellaneous stuff, I found a 1940s-era plastic ring box, some vintage ear plugs (unused of course!), a Dunhill lighter case, a little music box mechanism (which plays the “Happy Birthday” song), two very beautiful miniature perfume bottles, and an old Canadian military patch. The lighter case and bottles are already up on eBay, for about 50 and 60$ respectively. The patch (below) has already sold for 23$.

My most valuable finds though were watches and watch parts. This 1940s Nova watch unfortunately doesn’t work, but looks very attractive. I may be able to sell it for parts.

This Art Nouveau-era (~1910s) watch also doesn’t work, but looks awesome.

The gold-plated Mount Royal on the left is also just for parts, but the newer Anne Klein on the right probably just needs a new battery.

Here’s the first truly valuable piece. It’s an old Exacto (apparently Rado before it became Rado) in a 14k gold case.

I already sold this watch for 160$, and received positive feedback to boot! It worked, but was missing the crown (the piece you use to wind the movement).

This Doxa also has a 14k gold case. Its band is made from lizard and calf leather.

The mechanical movement was replaced with a quartz. The watch was dead when I found it, but it only needed a new battery to work again.

I have it listed on eBay for around 600$ (Canadian, with shipping included). I may end up lowering that a bit, but I figure it’s better to start too high than start too low! Regardless, I’m sure I’ll make at least a few hundred from it. It’s a very attractive watch, and it’s worth a fair bit in gold alone.

However, this watch band may be the most valuable find of them all.

The band is by Patek Philippe and it has a signed 18k gold buckle. I originally figured it was just a piece for my scrap metal collection.

Patek Philippe is a prestigious brand, and some of their watches sell for over 100k on eBay. As a result, watch collectors (who tend to be a passionate bunch) pay good money to get authentic parts for their watches. Buckles of this type regularly sell for between 400$ and 600$!

I have mine set at 700$, in case a collector is looking for a buckle of that exact variety (specific markings of this type, and their desirability can be difficult to research). I may end up lowering that price, but it’ll certainly be a nice payday either way!

This just shows to show that trash picking even casually has the potential to make you some good cash. I gained over a thousand dollars in stock (and that’s a conservative estimate) in just one night. Obviously this kind of thing doesn’t happen every day, but the potential is always there.

My foot is feeling better this week, so I hope to do a bit more exploring in this suddenly pleasant weather. I hope the good luck keeps up!

Last week’s garbage sales (March 2 – March 8)

1. 14k gold Exacto watch: On eBay for 165$. This sold to a guy in Ontario within a day of being listed. I already received positive feedback, so this transaction is a done deal. It’s fun when transactions are completed so quickly! This is one of the watches I found this week, just to be clear.

2. Canadian Officer’s Training Corps patch: On eBay for 23$. Another one of this week’s finds.

3. Tag Heuer F1 watch: On eBay for 105$. This is a nice watch, albeit one that needs some love. Found mid December in NDG.

4. N.E. From sterling pin: To a reader for 30$. Found mid February in Cote St-Luc.

5. Baby cup, silver ring, and book: To a reader for 15$. The shipping was a bit more expensive than I expected, but through my error I learned a bit more about how Canada Post’s prices work. The cup was from Outremont, the ring from Verdun, and the book from Mount Royal.

6. St Christopher medallion: To a reader for 1$. This also cost me a bit more to ship than expected, since it had to go over the border and was subject to customs even though it fit in a regular letter envelope. I was expecting to make just 4$ anyways, so it wasn’t a big loss. Found last week in Verdun.

Total: 337$, 12905$ since May 18 2014 and 3222$ since the new year began. Another good week! I’ve been doing a good job keeping on top of my listings, which has definitely helped make my income more consistent on a week-to-week basis.

New listings

1. Exacto 14k gold watch (SOLD!)
2. Canadian Officers Training Corps patch (SOLD!)
3. Patek Philippe 18k gold watch buckle
4. Vintage Christian Dior oversized sunglasses
5. Vintage 1950s Shell key finder
6. Vintage copy of “Through the Looking Glass”
7. Orientations (WWII-era magazine)
8. Hillbilly Cookin’ cookbook
9. Romanian Jewish theatre book, 1956
10. Vintage Brass book holder
11. Vintage La Castillere miniature glass perfume bottles
12. Dunhill lighter case

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