You Can Find Gems in Unexpected Places
If you enjoy the search, you should spend some time checking out garage sales, thrift stores, and other places that sell secondhand items. Finding something good can feel like finding a needle in a haystack. However, you can increase your chances of coming upon a jackpot gem by putting some tried-and-true suggestions to good use.
How Can You Find a Jackpot Gem?
The saying goes ‘one man’s trash is another man’s treasure’ and it’s true! Here’s how to spot the most valuable items at tag sales and thrift stores.
Go At Less Crowded Times
If you want to maximize your chances of success, you are going to need to give yourself more time to look. As a result, you should try to visit these things during less crowded times whenever possible. Generally speaking, weekday mornings and afternoons are less busy than the weekends. Of course, giving yourself more time to look is also great if you enjoy the search.
Certain Kinds of Items Stand Out
There are certain kinds of items that stand out when compared with their counterparts. For example, hardcover books tend to be higher-priced than paperback books. Similarly, first-edition books tend to be higher-priced than their later-released counterparts. If you want to find a jackpot gem, you should check out clothing, accessories, jewelry, furniture, and kitchenware. There is no guarantee that you will find something good. Even so, better odds are still better odds.
Be Thorough in Examining Items
It is a good idea to be thorough when examining items. Certain details can provide a great deal of information about an item’s value or the lack thereof. For example, glassware might have the glassware maker’s brand stamped on the bottom, which should make it much easier for you to figure out what you are looking at. Similarly, bad stitching, poor materials, and an incorrect serial number are signs that a designer item isn’t what it seems to be. Besides these, you should also check for signs of damage. Sometimes, an item can still be a good buy even if it has already taken some damage, whether because the damage can be fixed or because the damage doesn’t detract much from its value. Other times, a once-valuable item has become too damaged to be salvageable.
Study the Items That You Are Interested In
If there is a particular kind of item that you are interested in, you should put some serious effort into studying it. Yes, you can do on-site research so long as you have your phone with you. However, that will take up valuable time. Furthermore, a lack of familiarity will make it that much harder for you to spot items of potential interest. There are numerous resources that can prove useful when you are looking into whatever it is that you are interested in. For example, you might want to visit a library to see whether it has the right magazines, reference books, and other materials. Similarly, you might want to check out museums, online stores, and even online communities. The Internet makes it easier for like-minded individuals to meet one another than ever before, so make sure to take advantage of that.
Focus On Things That You Enjoy
On a related note, it can be very beneficial for you to focus on things that you enjoy. In part, this is because chances are good that you will be more familiar with the things that you enjoy, thus making it easier for you to look through them whether you are at a garage sale, a thrift store, or some other location. However, you can also get a lot of enjoyment out of these things even if they don’t have much monetary value. For instance, if you find old books entertaining or old electronics nostalgic, you can benefit from buying them even if they can’t resell for very much.
Sometimes You’ll Need to Take a Chance
Sometimes, you will need to take a chance on something. It could be a jackpot gem but it could also be nothing particularly interesting. This kind of thing happens because you will often be working with limited information, meaning that you can’t be sure about what you have in your hand. Still, you might want to take a chance on it even though it may or may not work out. If it doesn’t, you can always just donate it if you don’t want it for some reason.
Further Considerations
A lot of people enjoy the search itself. However, looking for gems in other people’s cast-offs is always better when you are actually finding things that you want. There are real methods by which people can make the process less similar to finding a needle in a haystack. Due to this, you shouldn’t hesitate to use them whenever and wherever possible.
