Ordinary Wonderment

Vintage Luggage Sitting Atop My New Antique Cedar Chest


“Everything I buy is vintage and smells funny. Maybe that's why I don't have a boyfriend.”
~ Lucy Liu

Today's Joy: An Estate Auction Adventure.
If you've been reading my blog long enough, Reader, you're aware of my love for estate auctions and all the antique & vintage wonderfulness they bring. Right up there with garden nursery-hopping and flea marketing, estate auctioning is one of Mom's & my favorite things to do together.

Mom has been looking forward to this particular auction for a couple weeks. I arrived to pick her up bright and early this morning to find her standing at the door with a big grin on her face and a well-read auction flyer rolled up in one hand.

Once there, we perused piles of would-be treasures and inspected 70's-style modular furniture. I immediately spied a black, vintage make-up case with cream piping that would coordinate beautifully with my black and white toile luggage. Mom found a few goodies too--including 2 gorgeous cedar chests, so we registered for our number (as relatives of the auctioneer, we have a highly-coveted permanent number) and found a shady spot to sit and wait for our would-be possessions to come up for bid.

In less than an hour, the crowd gathered around the pile of luggage where my make-up case lay. But, with no one else interested in buying old suitcases, I got the whole lot for $1!

Later on, the first cedar chest came up for bid. Another auction patron, with plenty of money to burn, made a big show of intending to buy it. Aunt Chef and Uncle were assisting with the auction and, as most items were going for very little money and the cedar chest was worth about $400, we decided to up the anti a bit. I jumped right into the bidding and had things well in hand at $65. Then, the wealthy auction patron joined the fray and we just kept right on bidding in $5-10 increments. She wasn't going to give, and I figured, if she wanted it, she was going to pay for it. I bid her up to $110 and then let her have it. She was ecstatic with the thrill of the win, thinking she got a deal. And I felt pretty smug, having netted a few more proceeds for the estate owner's family.

Elsewhere at the auction, a 2nd cedar chest awaited. Mom, knowing that I had wanted one of these lovely chests for years, won the bidding and presented the chest to me as an early birthday gift. I was so excited! All in all, it was a wonderful day at the auction--full of fast-paced bidding, good deals & on-the-spot decisions. If you've never had the pleasure of bidding in an auction, Reader, you should definitely check it out!


Got four pieces of vintage luggage and a gorgeous
old make-up case (not pictured) for a $1!