Before you clean out your attic or garage, you might want to take a second look at these surprisingly valuable items.
Vintage linens and handmade quilts
Stained, shredded quilts and embroidered tablecloths are discarded all the time, but to textile collectors and crafters they’re priceless. Patchwork aficionados will pay good money for ratty old quilts if they can use them as cutter quilts to make upscale vintage jackets, pillows, and works of art.
Pre-1965 coins
Coins including the dime, quarter, and half-dollar were made of 90 percent solid silver until 1965 in the United States. Since they resemble today’s pocket change so closely, most people spend them at face value or toss them into change jars, not knowing that the melt value of the metal is worth many times face value.
Rusted cast iron cookware
Old, rusty skillets that have been sitting in an attic or shed for years are often thrown away as trash. Cast iron will practically never rust away; soaking it in vinegar and re-seasoning it will make those antique treasures by sought-after brands such as Griswold or Wagner worth hundreds of dollars.
Old postcards and ephemera
Boxes of old letters, handwritten postcards, antique instruction manuals, and paper restaurant menus are among the most commonly discarded paper-based printed items during home spring-cleaning sales.
Ephemera collectors pay premium prices for vintage postcards depicting lost towns, early flight, bizarre ads, or notable moments in history.
Vintage VHS tapes and media
Ordinary blockbuster tapes are worthless, but copies of rare horror movies, cult films, local wrestling promos, and obscure/unreleased videos on VHS can go for hundreds or even thousands of dollars apiece. Since lots of these tapes have never been converted to digital media/DVD, there’s huge demand for these rare physical copies.
Incomplete board games and toys
Incomplete board games or damaged vintage toys often find their way into the trash can, while individual replacement parts such as original metal game pieces, orphan cards, funky dice, or vintage action figure accessories garner quick sales online to hobbyists trying to fill holes in their collection.
Vintage costume jewelry
Old, tarnished costume jewelry found in dusty boxes tends to be thought of as junk metal. Signed vintage costume by known makers such as Haskell, Trifari, or Boucher can actually be worth more than new fine jewelry. Even unmarked pieces usually hold real silver, gold fill, or vintage glass beads that are collectible.
Discontinued perfumes
When cleaning out bathrooms, we often dispose of half-empty bottles of old perfume. Since fragrance companies tend to reformulate or discontinue popular fragrances, older versions of beloved perfumes such as Chanel, Dior, or Avon are highly coveted by collectors who will pay top dollar.
First-edition books and vintage paperbacks
Library purges frequently include discarded hardcovers whose dust jackets are long gone, and worn paperbacks. Collectors are always searching for first printings, little-known sci-fi paperbacks with amazing covers, and early copies of classic literature that may be worth a lot of money even with cosmetic damage.
Broken electronics and power supplies
Defunct gaming consoles, stereo receivers, and obsolete computer towers routinely become e-waste when tossed aside. Inside their circuit boards are valuable gold, silver and copper. Original OEM power adapters, rare cables and guts are commonly sold as replacements.
Old camera lenses
Old analog camera bodies and manual focus lenses are often discarded, viewed as old technology. Many contemporary digital photographers purchase older manual focus lenses, particularly older M42 or Leica mounts, to mount on current mirrorless camera bodies for their unique vintage glass characteristics.
Mid-century modern hardware
People often throw away original mid-century drawer pulls, brass doorknob sets, light switches, and starburst backplates during renovations to make homes look more modern. However, restoration enthusiasts spend large sums of money on reproduction period hardware to update old homes with period-correct details.
Architectural salvage and old wood
Stained glass windows, reclaimed solid wood doors, wrought iron railings, old floorboards being stripped out during demolition all too often end up going directly to the landfill. But architectural salvage yards and custom home builders will pay premium prices for these vintage high-quality materials that are no longer made.
Vintage advertising tins and crates
Used rusty coffee cans, old oil tins, wooden fruit crates, and soda signs that sit in barns or basements aren’t treasures at first sight. However, people who collect “petroliana” and old Americana pay hundreds of dollars for original vintage advertising products with colorful graphics and intact logos.
Old video game consoles and cartridges
You might toss out classic gaming consoles and boxes of loose cartridges stored in your attic because you think no one uses physical media anymore. However, retro gaming prices have skyrocketed, and even beat-up consoles, boxes, original controllers, and loose cartridges from the 1980s and 1990s are worth quite a bit.
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