EstateSales.NET Blog

Now that we’ve taken a look at antique pencils and how they changed the history of correspondence, we’re going to fast forward a few years. We’re going to dive into the collectibility and value of another invention that would change the way words would appear on paper forever, the typewriter . I could spend the next few hours going through the history of the typewriter, but I think I'll let the fine folks over at The New Yorker give you the lowdown. I’m here to highlight a few typewriters that changed the history of writing and maybe a few that could bring a serious payday with collectors. Hansen Writing Ball If we’re going to talk about value, let's begin with something many collectors consider to be the holy grail of typewriters: the Hansen Writing Ball. Resembling an oversized pincushion rather than your traditional typewriter, the ergonomic design and ease of use made the Hansen Writing Ball the first commercially successful typing tool. So, what are the odds of you running onto one of these bad boys in a sale? Unfortunately, not very good...

I was perusing the EstateSales.NET Marketplace a few days ago, and I came across a gorgeous antique Magic Chef stove and instantly fell in love. It looked like something you would see in “A Christmas Story” or an episode of “Leave it to Beaver.” Seeing that beautiful piece of culinary history sent me down an antique stove rabbit hole, and I had to learn as much as possible. We’re going to look at a few of the manufacturers that brought these works of art to kitchens across the country. Magic Chef Starting as a tin shop in St. Louis in 1850, Magic Chef eventually came about from a collaboration between ten different stove companies across the country. Magic Chef has changed hands several times over the years and was ultimately bought by Whirlpool in 2006. After seeing a growing interest in nostalgic brands, the MCA corporation repurchased the Magic Chef name from Whirlpool in 2010. Magic Chef continues to churn out quality appliances to this day, but it’s their vintage stoves that enthusiasts are after...

Now that you know some of the guitars you should be on the lookout for, you’re going to need something to bring that guitar to life! Today we’re going to be talking about vintage guitar amps. Guitar amplification has been around for nearly 100 years, and there have been a ton of technological advancements in that time. However, the vintage stuff is still king when it comes to guitar amps. There are quite a few online resources where you can find a complete history of amplification, so I won’t dive too deep into it. If we’re going to go back, let’s go all the way back. The first amp and speaker sets were initially designed for PA systems and movie theatres. They were too big and very expensive, so it wasn’t practical for touring musicians to use them. After a few failed attempts and making a more portable solution, Stromberg-Voisinet developed the first amp/stringed instrument combo. Anyone who played through this combo, however, found it to be pretty unreliable and it just didn’t sound very good...

The year is 1959, and you have just settled in to watch the latest episode of The Mickey Mouse Club . All of a sudden, a commercial comes on that unveils a toy that will change the world. This toy would go on not only to be the most popular but also one of the most valuable to collectors. This week we will take a look at Barbara Millicent Roberts, known better to the world as Barbie. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Melissa Ashe (@melissasdolls) on Apr 29, 2020 at 7:57pm PDT Using the EstateSales.NET Treasure Tracker or searching our Marketplace is a great way to find which sales feature these world-renowned toys. Love all things estate sales? Us, too! Head over to our blog to learn about all things vintage, DIY, and more! Searching For a Company Looking for a company to conduct your sale? Go to our Hire a Company page to find a company in your area. Find a Company Get Notified Sign up to receive free email notifications of estate sales in your area! Subscribe Now...

On Christmas morning in 1993, I received a gift that would change my life forever. The very last present I opened was Elvis: As Recorded at Madison Square Garden on vinyl , and I would never look at music the same again. That morning also marked another significant milestone; it was the first time my dad let me touch his beloved stereo. Fun Fact: I’m writing this article on June 18th, the 48th anniversary of the release date of Elvis: As Recorded At Madison Square Garden! View this post on Instagram A post shared by Joakim Jax (@jaxvinyl) on Jun 18, 2018 at 11:13am PDT There was something about dropping the needle on that record, hearing the crackle in the speakers as Elvis’ orchestra started playing Also Sprach Zarathrustra (Theme From 2001: Space Odyssey.) I knew at that exact moment music would never sound better than that. Over the years, I added vinyl records to my music library here and there but never became an avid collector...

Let’s take a stroll down memory lane, shall we? It was the summer of 1996, and in the small town that I grew up in, there wasn’t much to do. My friends and I would spend most of our time just riding our bikes around our neighborhood and spending all of our parents’ hard-earned money at a local mom and pop movie store called Movie Time. We would gather all of the change we could find and spend hours at the arcade there. While my friends were playing Mortal Kombat or Street Fighter, I always gravitated towards the bank of pinball machines in the back. If I had a quarter for every time I played the Lethal Weapon 3 machine, I could probably afford to buy my own. We recently discovered that pinball was one of the top searches on EstateSales.NET, so I wanted to delve a little deeper into the topic. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Arcade Game Sales (@arcadegamesales) on Mar 31, 2020 at 10:08am PDT What pinball machine would you most like to add to your collection...

Did you know pool lounge chairs could be so beautifully designed that they become pieces of art? I didn’t, until about a year ago when I stumbled upon a yellow and blue pair of Fibrella lounge pool chairs. I was hooked and begged my wife to let me bring them home. This fascination with vintage fiberglass/plastic furniture inspired me to see what other unique pool loungers were waiting for me to discover them. Here are four pieces of vintage outdoor fiberglass furniture to keep your eyes out for when estate sale hunting (some a little easier to find than others)! Fibrella These were my first love, the Fibrella poolside furniture pieces by Le Barron Pool & Patio Furniture. Information about the history of Fibrella is limited, though, according to retrorenovation.com , Aquaslide 'N' Dive of El Monte, California may have had their hands in the manufacturing of these pieces through the 60s and 70s . View this post on Instagram A post shared by Kelly Golightly (@kellygolightly) on May 25, 2015 at 10:36pm PDT You are not limited to just the above four brands...

This week, we will take a deep dive into the comic book collection and take a look at a few of the comics that might be worth a small fortune. I’ll admit that I wasn’t into comic books very much as a kid, but I loved hanging out at my local hobby shop. There always seemed to be someone feverishly thumbing through the stacks and looking for that winning lottery ticket disguised as a comic book. Knowing what I know now, I would have been searching too. I’m going to start this by saying that there are a TON of comic books floating around out there. We are always seeing sales that feature not only single comics but oftentimes entire collections. If you’ve been to an estate sale or auction, you’ve seen a table full of comic books and just kept walking. Hopefully, this article will make you take a second look the next time you find yourself surrounded by a stack of comics. X-Men #1 (1963) In September of 1963, legendary comic writers Stan Lee and Jack Kirby gave us our first look at the mutant superhero team, the X-Men...

We’ve all imagined what it would be like to strap on a guitar and stand on stage in front of thousands of screaming fans, right? Well, maybe not all of us, but I know I have. I have been playing drums for over 20 years, but both of my grandfathers were guitar players and collectors. I have always had immense respect for anyone that can play. While I may not be an expert in vintage guitar collecting, I do know someone who is! I recently had the pleasure of sitting down with Adam Hellman to talk about everything vintage guitars. He is an avid collector, a great guitar player, and just so happens to be my bandmate. Adam has a wealth of knowledge when it comes to guitar collecting, and he is going to guide you through what you should look for next time you come across one of these six-stringed beauties at a sale. How did you get into guitar collecting? “Like most collectors, I started as a player. You gravitate towards certain instruments because of the sound you want, or a player you admire used a particular model. And then inevitably you get carried away...

While my knowledge may be a touch limited when it comes to things like egg chairs and depression glass , if there’s one thing I know about, it’s bobbleheads! My goal for this article is to help you know what to look for the next time you’re lucky enough to find some of these at your next estate sale. The first bobbleheads were religious figures called temple nodders. They were produced in Asia in the early part of the 17th century. The bobbleheads that made their way to the United States were produced in Germany. These bobbleheads gained a lot of popularity in the 1950s. The first sports-related bobbles came about in the 1960s in the likeness of baseball greats like Willie Mays and Mickey Mantle. They were initially made out of painted papier-mache instead of the more modern porcelain, resin, and plastic. The baseball craze really started in 1999 when Candlestick Park was celebrating its 40th anniversary. Most sports bobbleheads are distributed as SGA (stadium giveaway) and are made to commemorate a special event or celebrate a particular player...