What is a monkeybox?

When I was a little girl, we had a pet monkey named Amanda. My Dad worked in the produce business, so each night he brought home that days culls in a big box - spotty cucumbers, pithy apples, limp celery, moldy oranges and the like. We called it a monkeybox. It was really just trash, but my Mom would take each piece of fruit and trim it, pare it and cut it up to make a beautiful fruit platter for Amanda. Even though it was deemed trash by one, it still had life left in it and was good for the purpose we needed it. That's how I live my life - thrifting, yard saling, looking for another's trash to be my treasure.

Monday, March 14, 2016

What? Another Auction? Okay!

I went to an auction on Saturday that was in a closeout store that was going out of business.  It was all new stuff - pallets and pallets of new stuff.  Lots of tools, registers, shopping carts, pallets of industrial toilet paper and paper towels, security systems, a scissor lift, pallet jacks, ladders, extension cords (SO many extension cords!) and on and on.  As I did a quick run through I spotted two vintage items in the whole place - an old metal milk crate (which had been on my wishlist) and a handmade tool cubby shelf.  I decided that they would be mine.  (Insert maniacal laughter here).

After about an hour and a half they got to the pallet with the cubby on it.  It was hidden in the center of a pallet and not very noticeable.  The auctioneer had been doing "choice" on each pallet, so I assumed that is how it would go.  But, Noooooooo.  The helper guy plucked that cubby right out of the middle and twirled it above his head - "Let's auction this beauty off!" he said.  Ugh.  


As it turned out, it was a different mindset of bidders and no one wanted the old stuff.  There was one older man standing right beside me interested in it.  But, he and I were the only bidders.  My stomach was in knots.  I bid $5, he bid $7.50, $10 to me, $15 to him, $20 to me and then he stalled and dropped out at $25, so I got it for $20.00.  There was a 10% Buyer's Premium (I hate those kind of auctions), so I paid $22.00.  More than I like to pay since I am CHEAP, but still a good deal.  It will go in the booth eventually full of doodads, trinkets and tchotchkes.  


It has adjustable inserts so I can make them whatever size I need.  I know it looks like there is no bottom, but that's just the color of the bottom.  It was chock full of stuff when I bought it - saw blades, wood putty, screws, nails, WD40, utility knives, lamp parts, bolts, screwdrivers, tape and all sorts of stuff.  Most of it was new which was a bonus.  Lots of odds and ends will go to Goodwill and Lara is getting a big jar full of weird screws. nails and findings for her projects.  

I was able to get "choice" on the next pallet for $5.00, so I got the metal milk crate too.  It had three nice vintage wire bail canning jars in it (priced $6.00 each for the booth), a bunch of brand new rubber jar rings (listed on ebay) and fifteen brand new packages of click pens that The Breadman uses at work.  So, $5.00 was a deal for all!  

I made a rookie mistake and thought I was bidding on one thing, but I was really bidding on something else.  I ended up with a teak waste basket, a flower pot you put a patio umbrella in and a small metal stool for a total of $2.00.  At least it was a cheap mistake!  


The little stool had a vinyl top with some bleach spots on it so I thought it was a goner.  But I manged to take the top off and recover it with some groovy vintage fabric I thrifted not long ago.  Sadly, that justifies my theory of buying things and hoarding them "in case I need it."  :)  My $2.00 mistake turned out pretty good.  It's headed to the college booth along with the other two items.

I spent $28.00 after the Buyer's Premium was added.  (Luckily I had cash because there was a 5% credit card fee too.  If you spent $1,000 (Which people were doing easily) you would pay a lot more after both of those fees.)  If I sell everything at what I have it priced, I will sell it for $104.00 (minus the $28.00) for a profit of $76.00 and I will still have the cubby and the milk crate to keep which is all I wanted in the first place!  I guess I did pretty good after all.  

So, where's the next auction?  Here's a hint......a 7,000 square foot mansion!

I bet I don't buy anything there, but it will be fun to see!

10 comments:

  1. LOVING YOUR MINI-STOOL!! Nice 'MISTAKE'!!

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  2. Yay! That cubby is pretty cool. Wonder if the guy bidding for it wanted the tools that came in it? Guys are weird like that!

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  3. Typically I only want the container that holds tools and such. I have managed to do some "joint" buys with folks to either split the cost, or just get it free as I got to it first. Tool guys are cray cray at sales here.

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  4. That stool is so dang cute!! I haven't been to an auction in forever. They are pretty few and far between here.

    Have an awesome week!

    Erica

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  5. Sounds like it was a fun auction and looks like the next one will be fun too!

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  6. I'm so glad you got the cubby and the crate. The stool turned out super cute and should sell. I've never been to an auction but maybe one of these days.
    hugs,
    Linda

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  7. Great job getting the things you wanted. Love the stool re-do. I'm sure it will sell! I used to go to auctions on a nearly weekly basis, but they're pretty scarce these days. They bring back good memories of a fun time with my best friend who has passed away.

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  8. I get impatient at auctions because of the long waits, but they can be fun and profitable. You did well for what you spent and your stool turned out so cute. :)

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  9. Auctions are fun, but I don't usually buy much because some of the bids/bidders are crazy!
    Are you going to the Mansion auction???

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  10. Salivating over the cubby!

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