Who has a great collection of antiques listed a Hull vase for $1.88 to start and it sold for just about that. Research is important huh.

Years ago I bought a great, decorated redware bowl at a church bazaar for 50 cents. I didn't know up from down at the time and the thing sat on my kitchen counter with bananas in it. Eventually I got into antiques and collectibles and rented space. I was about 1 trip away from taking that bowl to the booth for $20 when I stumbled upon it in an antique book. It sold online for $750.

to know what you sold.

Don't want to post info that could allow the stalkers we have here too much detail.

A whole load of D&D computer games at a garage sale once. I bought three of them for $5 each, leaving the rest because my mother was running short of money that she had brought. I didn't even think about asking her if she would go to the nearby ATM to restock. I began to regret it a few days later, especially when she "berated" me for not speaking up, saying that I probably could have gotten an even better deal if I had just asked how much for the entire box.

I've since been able to acquire a good number of the games that I didn't pick out, some for more than what I would have paid for them then, some for much less. I still haven't been able to find as good a copy of Pools of Radiance: Return to Myth Drannor as they had at that sale.

Was quite pleased with myself until the man got done explaining exactly what I'd just sold him. He said it was the first bicycle made in America after the high wheeler.

Oops!

That hurts.

I couldn't find anything about it anywhere on the internet (badge read 'Century' though it was much older than turn-of-the-century) but I should have gone to the library and researched styles of bicycles and pinned down exactly how old it was as well as its features. The man who bought it from me understood the features (IIRC leather straps for handle grips, block type chain? etc) and knew exactly what it was.

He supposedly was going to restore it and put it in his bicycle museum in MN. Me, I've moved on as it was 5 years ago. ARGGG!

Edit to add the word grips.

That one hurt. I'm sure I've sold lots of stuff for less than I could have too.

My best sale was a figurine for $750 that I paid $10. And last year I picked up a couple small filthy pottery pieces for $6 each. I saw something interesting in the glaze at the bottom where it wasn't so dirty so I took a chance on them. I washed them up and they are absolutely exquisite, it turns out that one of them is by a famous potter who has written books on glazing.

We just can't know everything and sometimes things fall through the cracks. That's exactly what happens in our favor sometimes as well.

My best sale was so ridiculously lucky and had nothing to do with knowledge or research and they weren't even old or 'cool' or anything. It was 7 knitting machines for $3 at the very end of a long auction. I knew nothing about them at all but it looked like a value to me. IIRC there was even other stuff on the table thrown in! I don't remember how much the total was but I do remember one sold for $900 and another sold for only $250 as I accidentally put it as 'buy it now' instead of auction. By the time I realized my mistake, it was sold!

Happy hunting!

I accidentally put a set of books on buy it now instead of auction. They were really hot at the time and should have gone for at least $75. They sold within 2 minutes for $1.00 and I honored it. Then the person that bought them didn't even have the courtesy to leave feedback.

I've had to remind myself to double and triple check EVERYTHING since I am a bit of a space case.

Ebay is a strange place. You really have to protect yourself as there are a lot of scammers too and Ebay seems to always back the buyers.

I once sold a 3M anti-theft device out of a library. The buyer quit ebay right after paying for it and was no longer a registered member. A few days before it was 90 days after the sale, they filed a complaint on Paypal (not a case on ebay) and though everything was in my favor, Paypall gave back the $244 and charged me $20 for the process.

At minimum I should have received the item back. I decided it was too much of a pain to pursue it legally.

I lost a little money this week because when I relisted an item at a lower price, I should have stopped the "free shipping" option and charged the buyer for shipping. I forgot to do that. So I had to eat the shipping cost.

eBay has a new wrinkle to look for, too. There's an automatic relisting up to three times for items that don't sell. You have to check a box to escape that automatic relisting.