I went for a walk last weekend, not to find garbage but to get out of the house. Junk has a habit of finding me, however, so while I left home with no bags I ended carrying home five.
I kicked this bag and heard the jingle of coins, but unfortunately they were only pennies. More importantly they had been sullied by food waste, and I didn’t feel like getting my hands dirty for maybe 25c. To the dump they likely went, to join the millions of pennies already there.
I had better luck later on my walk. Yup, those are toonies. When you throw those out, maybe it means you have too much money.
All in all I found three toonies, six loonies, at least three Euros, and lots of other coins. I also found a £10 British pound bank note, and a fiver in one of the many purses that you’ll see later on. This all adds up to something close to 40$, making it my best cash haul in quite some time! British pounds, American dollars, and Euros are the best foreign currencies to find as they’re easily exchanged.
I found no gold here, but I did some pieces from a sterling vanity set (at right). I’ve never seen a hook like that before, so I’d appreciate it if someone could enlighten me! The animal charm bracelet looks vintage and cute, while the necklace is a quality Monet piece.
I usually don’t peddle in stuffed animals, but this time there was a whole garbage bag full and they all looked to be in pretty good condition. Plus, I’m more likely to take a chance on stuff when it comes from a household that throws out toonies.
These toys should find a new home at my next yard sale. This Fisher Price dog is especially fun, if you click on the picture it should show you a short video of it walking.
I also enjoyed this squirrel puppet (there’s a video of this one too). Perhaps my cat will appreciate it.
This spot was perhaps most notable for its large collection of barely used bags. The Herschel duffel at the top right was a nice find, they retail for around 100$ new. The Lole bag still has tags and seems to retail for around 140$. There’s a couple of vegan bags, one by Urban Expressions and one by Rachel F, a local designer. The WESC backpack also a lot of life left in it.
The little green purse is signed Christian Louboutin, and if it’s not fake it could be worth good money. I tried to do some research online, but most of the info out there is about fake shoes, not fake bags. It does look well-made.
I found lots of shoes as well. The two at top right are Repetto ballet / dancing shoes, which seem to sell for good money online. The black ones look barely used. The APC heels are also nice.
Here we have some Star Wars toys, an unopened box of Q-tips, and some plastic ties.
I also found some teas (I drank some already, they’re great) and an unopened jar of maple butter. As you may know, I love maple and am always excited to find it in the trash. I expect it was at least 8$ new.
There was another big pile here last night, but it was mostly unexciting garage / under the sink kinda stuff. I saved some useful cleaning products, but nothing too exciting. I’ll keep an eye on the situation, but at least I did very well here this one day.
Otherwise, I found a cool “Man and his world” (post Expo 67) vanity plate at that spot in Villeray I blogged about recently. I’m trying to figure out whether I should sell it or put it on my car.
I found a collection of slides in Outremont, all of which contain pages from two old comics.
One was À quand notre tour?, an anti-communist comic book first published in 1947. For this shot I used a little plastic slide viewer I found a while back, it did a pretty good job!
It definitely provides an interesting look at Cold War era politics.
The other was Cidopey, a trippy looking comic by well-known illustrator Richard Corben. Cidopey first appeared in an underground comic in 1971, but since these are in French they’re likely from the first issue of Métal hurlant, which is the French version of Heavy Metal magazine. I’m not sure why these comics would be in slide form – if you have any ideas, let me know. Regardless, these might be of interest to a collector.
Next to the slides was an old society sash. It was made to be reversible, with green fabric and red / gold illuminations on one side, and red fabric with green / gold illuminations on the other. I’m not sure what society this comes from, and I’d appreciate any input you might have!
I happened upon a bag in Villeray that contained a bunch of old stocking, and also a little ring box. Underneath the little ring holder part were two 10k gold Catholic pendants with chains. Maybe the previous owner didn’t notice them, but it was pretty obvious that something was inside the box.
There were many other bags around, but all of them were filled with actually gross garbage. This jewelry made getting my hands dirty worthwhile, however, as the scrap value of 8.5 grams of 10k gold is about 185 CAD$. If anyone wants these, I would sell them for a bit above scrap.
I found a ruined Victrola cabinet in St Michel. It wasn’t worth saving, but I did remove the top (which I thought could be repurposed) as well as this old badge. It’s worth around 15-20$, but I might just keep it myself.
My friend and I happened upon some great stuff from an eviction in Westmount the other day. It’ll take a while to process all that, but I’m excited to get it figured out. In the meantime, I have other recent finds I can share with you.
The weather is looking good for this weekend, so expect my real last yard sale to happen on Saturday or Sunday. I’m considering doing both as well, with Sunday being a kind of “pay what you can” kind of thing. I really don’t want to store a bunch of stuff over the winter, and I hope that by the end of it I’ll only be storing a bunch of empty suitcases. I’ll keep you posted and let you know by mid-week.
Relevant links
1. Facebook page
2. My eBay listings
3. Etsy store
4. Kijiji listings
5. Contribute to garbagefinds.com
6. Follow me on Instagram
Email: thingsifindinthegarbage@gmail.com. I often fall behind on emails, so I apologize in advance if it takes me a while to get back to you.
The hook is an antique shoe button hook. Nice finds!
The little silver hook from the vanity set is a shoe button hook used to assist in buttoning shoes.
That sterling vanity item is a button hook used when ladies were dressed.
The “society” sashes appear Catholic priest garb. I am the Alpha And Omega and the pax, Latin for peace, I think that’s what the P means.
The sterling silver hook I believe is a girdle or corset hook to pull together both sides in back.
Button hook sounds right!
Interesting, thanks. I’d never seen one before.
The sash is a priest’s vestment. The hook is a button hook. The Victrola badge is from a 1925 Victor Consolette. Hope this helps! 🙂
You know your consolettes eh? Thanks!
I believe the silver hook is for buttons, on shoes or clothing. Love your blog!
OMG, I totally want the Fischer Price Dog!
Just a note of caution, the paper £10 notes are due to have their legal tender status withdrawn in the Spring http://www.bankofengland.co.uk/banknotes/Pages/about/faqs.aspx so get it changed quick!
Good to know, thanks. I’ll bring it to the bank today.
Dang, that’s quite LITERALLY throwing money away, eh?
Your vanity silver piece with the hook is a button hole thingy. Or so I was told when I bought one years ago. People became experts at pulling those numerous Victorian tiny buttons through the holes. By the way: hello from Fredericksburg, Virginia. I enjoy reading your posts.
Wow! I just read the responses to your question— and apparently I was told wrong!Delighted to know now!
Oops! I read further… sigh. I am betting it was for any old button that was difficult! I use mine to open small drawers that have key holes but no knob.
Get finds! Imagine throwing away money, gold and sterling silver antiques. You were in the right place and the right time..good for you!
Nice variety! Alas … I’m feeling curiously sorry about all those humble pennies going to the landfill.
It looks like I’ll have a job rolling more coins, next time I’m down for a visit. 😀
That walking toy dog is sweet.
Some good shoes there. What size are they?
Did you try the Three Ginger tea? What was it like?
Yup. I see a lot of pennies unfortunately, I take them when they’re clean and easy to pick up, but I have to draw the line somewhere.
I do have a fair amount of coins already, lol.
The shoes all seem to be around size 38 (only one is marked, but the others are around the same). The three ginger tea was good, very healthy I think. The box is mostly full and the original price was almost 8$, so that’s a good find!
As others already mentioned, that hook is for shoe buttons. They are so common where I live, it seems like every flea market, yard sale, auction, etc has boxes of them. Not because we wear Victorian era woman’s shoes but because NO One throws anything out, ever.
I had that Fisher Price dog!
The hook thing is a button hook. Used on clothing befor zippers were ubiquitous, and on shoe buttons.
Mimi
Another terrific post, with all sorts of items juxtaposed in fascinating combinations. Who knew that people would throw away money?! Hurrah that you found it.
What is the silver studded piece with the purses, I’m interested
It’s an Aldo purse if I remember right. Nothing super fancy but solid enough. If you’re interested let me know by email.
Good luck with the big sale this weekend. Those stuffed animals look clean and I love buying those at sales so my dog can tear them apart. The pull-along dog looks vintage, though, so you might get some real money for that online? Nice finds! I can’t get over the fact that people throw money away, even if it is just pennies.
Good for you Martin!
I remember those walking Dogs (also walking ducks) from my childhood.
I recognize the priest’s stole. I also have that exact gold metal with the Virgin on it.
I assumed it wasn’t vintage, but maybe it was. I’ll take a closer look at it. Thanks for the word “stole”, that seems to be the specific term. They sell for between 30-100$, so maybe I can make some money off it.
Came to tell you to swap the £10 note quick but I see someone’s already told you! Great blog though, I love reading it
Did it today, thanks!
Hi,you mentioned in the previous blog post reply that Cote St.Paul has a garbage/recycling pickup Friday mornings.Not any more.Since the last six months,all of Cote St.Paul has recycling/garbage pickups on Thursday mornings.Ville Emard continues to have garbage pickup on Friday mornings.(For six years Ville Emard and Cote St.Paul had garbage pick-ups on Friday mornings).Since April 2017,the borough decided to shift Cote St.Paul’s pickup to Thursday mornings to make the work easier for the trucks.So the time to go to Cote St.Paul now is Thursday morning.
Good to know, thanks for the info! I haven’t been there since they made the change I guess.
Good finds, Martin! I remember that hound dog pull toy from 55+ years ago. If you are getting lots of pennies you should sell them as well. Some people are collecting them.
What a great batch of finds, particularly the gold and the money. it’s crazy what people throw out. Love your blog. Your pictures are always fantastic.
FYI, if the hand puppet is in good condition (clean, no major wear, etc.), they do pretty well on eBay…esp the Folkmanis brand if they are vintage and discontinued. Neat finds, thanks for sharing!
Thanks. The only one I kept was the Folkmanis squirrel puppet because I thought it was funny, so that’s good to know. It also looks near mint. I gave the rest of the stuff to friends and the nearby charity shop. They didn’t do well at the sale.