The Declutter Country Auction

This is a different kind of auction. Around here it may be an evening auction or a Sunday afternoon auction. It is marked by what a seller determines they can live without while they clean house or open a closet door full of stuff. Or better yet what they have tucked away in cupboards, drawers and closets that may still be new in box --albeit the box a little yellowed around the edge.

Who needs three sets of flatware, or two of those Frybabies so popular in the 1970s. How about Sampsonite suitcases, you know the prestige ones that are way too heavy for air travel and too bulky for the trunk of the car. Pencils, pens, flashlights, rulers and wrapping paper. It amuses me that some people sell (and others buy) old sets of sheets, old pillows and bathroom towels. Then there is plastic containers, with and without lids, boxes and boxes of them.

For decades we've been accumulating, collecting, and building equity in what we save. Now we look around and think, "I've got to get rid of this stuff." The "stuff" may not work, it might be a piece of broken crystal or a floor lamp that wobbles when touched. Or it may be boxes of patterns and fabric that once had lofty intent.

I have to smile because I'm one of those people looking to declutter 40 years accumulation and once I get started I'm going to let you watch me do it in this blog. Getting started is downright hard and I empathize with people who have gone through the process and are finally getting rid of it through auction, estate/garage sale and eBay.

So this Thursday I'm going to a country declutter auction and we are going to see how well the items sell and what people are willing to pay for all that clutter. Maybe even find out where the items will end up.

So tune back in Friday, August 28, to have a look at what one declutter auction had for sale and what people pay for it.

Keep watching because I'm taking my credibility into my own hands and heading for the attics to let you see what real clutter looks like in the "before" state. oh my...

At the Auction Part 2 Rohleder Auctin Service

The auctioneer is Randy Rohleder (leaning on the chair), he is interesting and fun to watch. He keeps his good nature and humor all through the auction and sometimes imparts some brief but funny comments to keep us interested. His entire family is involved, dad, mom, wife, son and daughter. His grandfather was an auctioneer also.

When Randy had his first auction he called me for consignment and I managed to come up with a load of items.

Today we are walking in the door of the Russell County 4H building on a Thursday evening auction that started at 5:05 PM and looking at what some people buy and what they pay for their purchases

The auction was snappy and interesting. The seller was a woman who was moving into assisted living and selling contents of her house. Sadly we see a lot of these auctions nowdays

Randy called the auction "I have $25 do I hear $30" - his dad trekked up and down in front of the buyers with the old wooden phone which had the insides intact. Note the lack of a dial. In those days people turned the crank and asked the operator for the intended recipient by name or two digit number. The phones were on party lines and each person had unique rings (one short two longs or three shorts, etc) everyone could hear the rings and everyone listened to the lines enjoying the gossip.

This was the earliest form of community interaction via technology. During severe thunderstorms it wasn't unusual for lightening to spurt out the mouthpiece when it struck lines so you kinda made a wide berth around it when lightening was nearby: The phone sold for: $105.00

Two boxes of Photographic Dry Plates were a good find and in another market might have sold for more. They brought $45 for both boxes. Some of you may remember how these were used during the days when studio photography was an art.

Here was an entire box of goodies, ahhh such treasures which pleased many relevant junque collectors. The box contained Mrs. Stewart's Bluing bottle (full) used to whiten clothing (no they did not use it to whiten and tint grey hair *g*). Tetley's Tea tin and I'll bet those tea leaves were well aged. To top it all off were the insulators (obviously copped from some unknowing telephone pole). The entire box: $8-maybe some of these will end up on eBay.

10 years ago these primitive washboards might have brought $75 to $100 at auction but in today's country auction market Randy worked hard to get $13.

Maybe without the party line on the telephone to break up the monotony of lye soap and sore knuckles from scrubbing overalls on the washboard lost it's luster.

The washboards might have lost some of their luster but country auctions still have drawing power, people chat, mill around looking at the potential treasures, get a number and bid, bid, bid. Next we will talk about why people buy what they buy and what they do with it. Thanks and share some of your memories about these primitive items sold at Rohleder Auction in July 2009. Food supplied by Fairport market