@thumper1 The one up in our house now sounds like one of the dangly ones that @gosmom described. It came with the house and has never been a favorite of mine. My reluctance comes with what I think younger, newer buyers want. And I’m not sure it is this chandelier I have either. I should clarify that the person I have been dealing with locally is not really a consignment store type person. She is the owner of a reputable antique store, well recommended in our city. Of course, this is not a major antiques hotbed so I agree that a lot of this can be local custom (as I acknowledged in my initial post). I may consider auction down the line when trying to sell the big stuff but that will be another thing I’ll have to continue to educate myself on. I just don’t want to leave all of this to my children to deal with. Big heavy antiques, silver, , etc. seems less appealing these days to the average younger person. Some still want it, would be thrilled to have it but I don’t think most do. My sons both have an appreciation for nice things and we have already given them some nice smaller things that are made of real wood, but I think they may not want some of the bigger, heavier pieces down the line.
@sevmom are you selling this house soon?
No. But hopefully within the next 5- 10 years . My goal is to be downsized more by then.
If you like that light…put it in your house. You have 5-10 years to enjoy it!
Don’t worry about future buyers now. That is far in the future.
I totally agree and do like it- put in our second house with no problem. I think it would look okay in our current one but I am not totally sold on how it would look there in my mind. So, it is not just about future buyers.
Well, you have all gotten me thinking more about what to do about this. I may very well consider putting it up in our current house. It was taken down both times by an electrician and was in good working order at the time so should be okay. It definitely has sentimental value to me. It was the original 1921 chandelier in the first house we bought in 1983, we took it to our next house in 1992 and enjoyed it there and now it has been sitting in two boxes for the last 10 years since we bought our current house in 2006… It seems time to either sell it to someone else to enjoy or for us to put it use again. Not sure what I’ll do yet but thanks for the suggestions and insight.
It has sat in a box for 10 years - use it or lose it! If you are attached, then use it. If you’re not, sell it - one way or another - and let someone else enjoy it. That’s my motto!
I agree @abasket . It is really the only major thing I can think of that is just sitting somewhere out of sight. Furniture I wonder about but it is still where I have to look at . I do have a Cuisinart ice cream/ sorbet maker still in a box though that has never been used- bought it for my mom but she died before I could give it to her. So, I clearly have to work on getting rid of or using things that I have some emotional attachment to!
Sevmom, put the chandelier in your dining room! Life is too short to worry about future buyers of the house. Pull that ice cream maker out of the box, make some ice cream on your mom’s birthday, and celebrate her life.
It does seem regional to me. Where I used to live, NE, consignment stores took 30%. Where I live now, South, 50%. The best deal where I live now would be to have one of the local auction houses come evaluate and remove and sell any items in which they were interested. The auction house takes 30%, but they post the items on-line and it is possible to buy on-line as well as in person… so a much larger potential market. However, I would not use our local auction for anything really precious. I would be contacting someone like the relatives of Alwaysamom or Nottelling.
Another thing we have done is take small items to a shop and trade them. That can be a good value, but not if you are downsizing. Large pieces are frequently difficult for shop owners to have room for till they sell.
sevmom, 10 or 15 years from now your kids will likely be more settled, with spouses, and may very much like to have Stickley furniture. It’s a style lots of people love, and pieces work well in eclectic interiors.
Regarding the chandelier, I’d just put it up and use it. And don’t forget that people who choose to buy a vintage house often do so because they appreciate vintage features, and aren’t looking for cookie-cutter stuff they could buy at Home Depot.
Around here (SoCal), consignment stores usually take 50 - 60%. Ouch. You can do better with auction houses - they usually take 20-30%.
But realize that auction prices are usually lower.
Not necessarily.
A thousand years ago (ok, really only 24) I owned a consignment shop - not antiques however - be very careful reading the contract when you consign. At my shop it was a 60/40 split (my cut was 60) - however I had it in my contract that any item not sold within 30 days would be marked down 25%, and at 45 days a full 50% - at 60 days the owner would have the option of picking the item(s) up (within 5 days) or it would be donated. As a consignment shop owner, it was imperative that I have fresh stock on a regular basis, and my D & I spent every other day rearranging the shop and window (she wasn’t really much help at 4, but she was very creative!) - because we were always redoing the window and interior our stuff moved very quickly. I would say I donated less than 10% of the items.
@sevmom Just to clarify the advice I shared, this was for reputable and experienced antique dealers, not consignment shops.
Yes, @alwaysamom , this is a well regarded antique dealer I have been in contact with, not a consignment shop. She would probably price the chandelier at about $400 to get it sold . For that, with her wanting 50 %, I think I would just as soon hang onto it. @Consolation , Yes, my kids already have smaller things they have been given (solid wood tables, a desk, etc) that they enjoy and are using. One has an old shaving mirror that was his great grandfather’s (the upright kind with wood-it may be Stickley but not 100% sure of that). So, they do seem to have an appreciation for solid wood things and antiques. The Stickley is a settle and two side chairs. Those are the things I most want them to take some day as they have been in the family since the early 1900’s. There’s a desk that may be from that period as well. I think we already missed the boat in terms of any peak money we could have gotten. The rest of the Stickley is what I think is the more recent Cherry Valley (I think ?) from the 50’s - very nice dining room table, chairs, buffet, coffee table ,etc. - all very nice but big. I think they may not have much interest in any of that (but you never know)but one son has said he would like the coffee table, They are just not in the position to take any more stuff right now.
Friends of ours run an auction house. They take 25% off the top. But, selling an item at auction means getting whatever price it gets, but everything does get sold. Maybe this is something you could look into. We sold most of the stuff from my parents house this way.
Having recently done an estate sale and talked with family who did them, it does seem like a generational change- most people don’t seem to pursue antique cut glass, furs, fine china, silver (especially plate), etc. SIL struggled to sell any antiques in theirs. Expensive pieces may or may not sell for anything at all. I was shocked at the “valuable” stuff that did not sell, but went lumped in with everything leftover to an auction guy for $200.
I say use it & enjoy it.
I suggest Doyle New York. Google. It will let you do one of two things. You can either consign it to them for an auction OR you can sell it to the company. It’s been a long time since I had any business with them but way back when Doyle’s offers were usually better than what you’d get if you sold it yourself. Doyle’s will give you a free informal appraisal. I honestly think step one in deciding what to do is finding out what the thing is worth. So, take several good digital photos from different angles and send them in.