Podcast
Pyrex With Bex
Hosted by Bex Scott · EN
Discussion about vintage pyrex and other vintage home items as well as interviews with collectors to chat about their stories.
15episodes
Episodes
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My Adventure at the Goodwill Bins
Dec 6, 202400:12:55Tap to summarizeBex Scott shares her adventure thrifting at the Goodwill Impact Centre blue bins in Calgary, Alberta. The Goodwill outlet bins are where items like clothing, small home decor, fabric, toys, and similar donated things go to be upcycled if they don’t sell or can’t be used in the store. Bex explains what her very first visit was like, the treasures she found, the bin etiquette, and tips for other thrifters wanting to visit the bins themselves. Admittedly nervous because she is a shy and introverted person, Bex visited the Calgary Goodwill bins on a hot Sunday during the Calgary Stampede which likely made her visit less crowded than it would otherwise be. She was initially afraid of confrontation over items but while each new bin wheeled out was immediately pillaged by eager thrifters, there is a code of conduct that Goodwill enforces. Bex talks about the vintage Cabbage Patch Kids, vintage fabric, World War Two DVDs, and other treasures she found during her visit. She details exactly what happens when new bins roll out, where to leave shopping carts, how to check out, and how items are priced. She also divulges that some Whatnot sellers get permission to live-sell right from the bins. This episode is a how-to guide for Goodwill bins and an absolute must for thrifters wanting their first visit to be a success.Resources discussed in this episode:Goodwill Impact Centre of AlbertaGoodwill Outlets Location Finder for America—Contact Rebecca Scott | Pyrex With Bex: Website: PyrexWithBex.comInstagram: @pyrexwithbex—TranscriptBex Scott: [00:00:02] Hey everybody, it's Bex Scott and welcome to the Pyrex With Bex podcast, where, you guessed it, I talk about vintage Pyrex, but also all things vintage housewares. I'll take you on my latest thrifting adventures, talk about reselling, chat with other enthusiasts about their collections, and learn about a bunch of really awesome items from the past. Subscribe now on Apple, Spotify, or wherever you love listening to podcasts so you don't miss a beat. Bex Scott: [00:00:31] Hey everybody, this is Bex Scott and you are listening to the Pyrex With Bex podcast. On today's episode, I wanted to talk to you guys about my adventure at the Goodwill bins. And for many resellers I know in the States, the bins are a common thing, they've been around for a while. And in Canada, at least where I live, the closest city to me is Calgary, and Calgary got the Goodwill bins in April of 2023, and I had never been to them. It's always been something that I wanted to do, but, to be honest, I've heard some stories about how savage it is and seen some videos, so I've been putting it off. It's also an hour away from me, so being able to just go and have somebody watch the kids isn't as easy as it used to be. So I finally decided to go. I went on a Sunday and it was a Sunday during the Calgary Stampede, so I'm pretty sure that helped. A lot of people were out at the Stampede. If you don't know what the Calgary Stampede is, it's like a big Western fair that happens every year. Bex Scott: [00:01:48] It was also very hot that day, so there were a few things working in my favor. But I decided to go. And I want to give you guys a little bit of a background about what the bins are first. So the Goodwill bins are where all of the items, the clothing, everything that Goodwill sells, it doesn't sell in the retail stores so they bring it to their big warehouse and they put it in these big blue bins, and you have to go and you sort through everything in hopes of finding some treasure, which makes it really fun. So where I went in Calgary, you pay by the pound and it was $1.45 per pound of items. And it's very great if you're going for clothing. Clothing is relatively light. You can stuff a whole bag full of clothes and have it be super cheap, but if you're going for hard goods, it can get a little more expensive faster than it would with clothes. So most of it is the bins full of just the random stuff that didn't sell. And then there's the other part of the store that is furniture like lamps, large decor, and that's all priced individually. So that isn't by the pound. You have to just pick it up and pay what they've labelled it as. Bex Scott: [00:03:19] So I pulled up to the Goodwill bins. I was honestly very nervous. I wanted to bring somebody to go with me, but didn't have anybody that was available. So I'm a very introverted, shy person. I was hoping that I wouldn't have to get my elbows out or get into a confrontation with somebody over something amazing. Luckily, I didn't have to. So you walk in and you see just rows and rows of these huge blue bins, and I walked up to a few of them. It's mostly clothes on one side. I was looking through some things, and I saw this group of people at the back, and I honestly must have looked like I'd walked into the strangest situation I've ever seen because I stopped and I was staring at all these people that were just standing around in a rectangle. No idea what they were doing. And then I realized they were waiting for the next bin to roll in. So there's these yellow rectangles on the floor, and you line up at the designated yellow location marks. You're shoulder to shoulder with these people, and they roll the bin in between you and the person who rolls it out, they say you have to wait until - I think there's three bins to a row - you have to wait till all three bins are there. You have to have your hands above the bin. You can't touch anything in it. And once the last bin is rolled into your row, they say you can go and everybody just goes nuts. They dive in, clothes are flying everywhere, like you're hitting people's elbows. You're just hoping to find something that's in this bin. Bex Scott: [00:05:03] And one of the suggestions on their website is that you wear gloves. I thought about this before I went, but then I forgot to bring them. But I 100% understand why you need to wear gloves. Because the stuff in there is not clean. It's dusty, it's dirty, and you can feel it after when you leave. Your hands are grimy, but everything can be washed, totally fine. But there's people in there that are wearing gloves, sorting through things. It's a great idea. So if you're going to go to the bins, make sure you bring your gloves. So next thing, you can use a shopping cart, but you can't have your shopping cart by the bins in the aisles at all. So everybody leaves their shopping carts on the side walls. They're just lined up in rows and rows and rows, and a lot of them have people waiting by them so that things aren't taken out of the carts. There's a rule that if it's in a cart, somebody claimed it. So a lot of people push their carts to the side and they pull from the bins, and then they go dump it in their cart and they go back. They have these little wheelie baskets that you can bring. So that's what I tried to do. I originally went in without a basket and then my hands were all full. I realized that's why you need a shopping cart. So you just keep going until you're done. And at the end, you go up and they have this massive scale on the floor. Bex Scott: [00:06:28] You either roll your little cart up to the scale and they weigh it for you, or you dump everything into this shopping cart that is on the scale as well. So I ended up getting, I think it was $15 of things. And for $15, I got a full set of World War Two DVDs. What else did I get? Two Cabbage Patch Kids, vintage ones. My kids were not happy about those because they terrify them. I got a little dress for my daughter. I got a Roots hoodie, brand new. What else? What else? Oh, I got a huge pile of vintage fabric. Now I'm blanking on what I got. Oh, a box set of Playmobile. There was one tiny little piece missing, but that was a great find. And there were a few other things I got. So most of it was for my kids or my family. Not a lot of stuff that I could resell there, but there were a ton of dishes like pots and pans, clear Pyrex. If you need housewares like that, stuff for your kitchen, it is definitely the place to go. Oh yeah, I got a pot for camping. That was another one that was pretty heavy, so that bumped my price up quite a bit. Clothing there, there's a lot of like underwear in there that you have to sort through. A lot of the clothes are not in the greatest shape, but if you're looking for something really cheap and affordable for your family, great place to go for that. Bex Scott: [00:08:05] Handbags, tons of handbags and backpacks, if you have the time to sort through them there's definitely some stuff that you could get in there to resell or even just to use for yourself. Toys for kids. This was the most exciting part for me. I think that they had some really great toys for kids. Some of the parts may be missing, but once again, if you dig through you can find some great toys, either to resell or for your kids to play with. And then the home decor. I was really surprised at the amount of picture frames and posters and paintings that they had, so that was a really great deal. And then just little decor pieces. And I think maybe because I went on a Sunday, they didn't have as much there as they would during the week. So my next trip would be definitely to go during the week, probably when it is more busy, unfortunately, and see the difference between a weekend thrift and a weekday thrift. Bex Scott: [00:09:10] So one of the most shocking parts of the bins for me was the age range that was there. I'm 35 and I felt ancient. I swear I walked i...
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Dariya from the Thrifty Fox Shop
Nov 22, 202400:32:39Tap to summarizeBex Scott welcomes guest Dariya from The Thrifty Fox Shop to talk about her love of Pyrex and how many vintage collections she maintains. Bex met Dariya on Instagram and credits her with getting Bex onto Whatnot. They talk extensively about Pyrex, from their favorite pieces to their greatest finds, but as Dariya has an enthusiasm for a great variety of vintage items, there’s more than Pyrex to explore in this episode. Dariya, like many collectors, got into vintage collecting via her mom. She truly leaned into Pyrex around age sixteen and hasn’t stopped since. Pyrex and thrifting for vintage items is a family affair for Dariya too, as both her mom and sister are as avid about collecting as she is. She shares some of her most memorable Pyrex finds with Bex and they discuss their most and least loved patterns as well as which Pyrex dish both their husbands manage to explode during use. Beyond Pyrex, Dariya introduces Bex to her love of crewel embroidery, vintage mushrooms, glass animals, lucite flowers, vintage linens, brass, and many more of her very eclectic collections. Dariya’s philosophy is to collect what makes you happy and decorate the same way, so tune in to find out just what pieces bring her the most joy in her home. Resources discussed in this episode:WhatnotPink Butterprint PyrexStarburst PyrexAmethyst Viking swung vaseZodiac 475 casserole dishOld Orchard PyrexCatherine Holm turquoise bowlStrawberry Hill pottery mouseWabasso Flower Power floral sheets“Stranger Things” rainbow sheets@ThriftersDelight on InstagramFika Coffee House in Camrose, Alberta—Contact Dariya | The Thrifty Fox ShopInstagram: @TheThriftyFoxShopPoshmark: @dariyasimsEtsy: The Thrifty Fox ShopContact Rebecca Scott | Pyrex With Bex: Website: PyrexWithBex.comInstagram: @pyrexwithbex—TranscriptBex Scott: [00:00:02] Hey everybody, it's Bex Scott and welcome to the Pyrex with Bex podcast where, you guessed it, I talk about vintage Pyrex, but also all things vintage housewares. I'll take you on my latest thrifting adventures, talk about reselling, chat with other enthusiasts about their collections, and learn about a bunch of really awesome items from the past. Subscribe now on Apple, Spotify, or wherever you love listening to podcasts so you don't miss a beat. Hey everybody, this is Bex Scott and you are listening to the Pyrex with Bex podcast. And on today's episode, I have my friend and fellow vintage reseller Dariya from the Thrifty Fox Shop. Welcome, Dariya. Dariya: [00:00:43] Hello. Bex Scott: [00:00:44] How's it going? Dariya: [00:00:45] Oh, good. Bex Scott: [00:00:47] Nice. I see you have your awesome Halloween display behind you. Dariya: [00:00:51] I do. We couldn't wait to start decorating for October, so we started in mid-September for decorating Halloween. Yeah. Bex Scott: [00:00:59] That's how my family is but with Christmas. Dariya: [00:01:01] Oh, fair. Bex Scott: [00:01:02] My mom starts decorating the day after Halloween for Christmas, so I've kind of-- Dariya: [00:01:05] -- oh, wow-- Bex Scott: [00:01:06] -- got that Christmas bug from her. Dariya: [00:01:08] Yeah. That makes sense. Bex Scott: [00:01:10] Mhm. So I wanted to start off kind of with how we met. So we met on Instagram. I was following you for a while. And then I came across your Instagram story about your Whatnot show. And it was a Christmas show which is one of my favorite things obviously. And I watched your show got some amazing things from you and you helped me get into the Whatnot selling, which I'm very grateful for that. Dariya: [00:01:37] I actually didn't know that. Bex Scott: [00:01:38] You're the first person I found out about Whatnot through. And you made selling look so easy. And I remember a while back in some of the episodes I was talking about how I thought Whatnot was difficult because you have to be, like, on for an entire hour and talking and kind of, I'm a very severe introvert, so doing Whatnot is kind of stress-inducing. But I've loved it so far. Dariya: [00:02:05] Yeah, once you get into it, then you find yourself more comfortable and stuff. Yeah, because I'm also an introvert and I never thought I'd ever do lives in my entire life. But hey, look at us go. Bex Scott: [00:02:16] Yeah, yeah, yeah. Your one year just passed on Whatnot. And I think mine is coming up sometime soon, so. Dariya: [00:02:23] Yeah. You'll have to do a show. Bex Scott: [00:02:24] Yeah. For everybody listening, come find us on Whatnot. We have an awesome group of Canadian sellers. So how did your Pyrex and your vintage collecting begin? Dariya: [00:02:35] With my mom. She's always, yeah, it's always someone in the family that gets you hooked. Yeah. My mom always loved, like, antiques and vintage. And so, you know, growing up around that. And then I kind of got my own style going, which has changed drastically over the last, like, years. When I started collecting, which was probably when I was 16, I started collecting, I've always like collected knickknacks, like ever since I was a little girl. But Pyrex was when around 16 when I started collecting all the Pyrex and I've never stopped. Bex Scott: [00:03:09] It's good. A good collection you have going. Then for all that time, I. Dariya: [00:03:12] Think of all the stuff I left behind at that time when all the prices were good. So many regrets. Bex Scott: [00:03:17] Yeah, that's what a lot of collectors I've talked to say. Like, if they would have known that, they should have just grabbed things when they saw it. Yeah. Dariya: [00:03:26] And the stuff that I started collecting nowadays and just thinking about what I could have left behind back then. Oh, man. Yeah. Bex Scott: [00:03:35] So your mom kind of got you into it. Does your mom still collect Pyrex? Dariya: [00:03:40] She does. Yeah, and so does my sister. So all three of us collect Pyrex and other collections we kind of share the same love for. So we're either fighting or finding each other stuff. Bex Scott: [00:03:52] Yeah, I was going to say, when you go thrifting together, how do you decide who gets to keep what? Dariya: [00:03:56] Basically, whoever finds it, gets it. Or else if one of us has something, then we'll, yeah, let whoever has it get the first dibs. But it's a competition sometimes, that's for sure. Bex Scott: [00:04:09] I guess I'm lucky that way that I don't have any family competition. If anybody finds anything, they know to just give it straight to me. And I don't have to fight my mom over anything. Dariya: [00:04:19] Well, and whenever one of us starts a new collection, we all get hooked. So then it's like there's no winning. Bex Scott: [00:04:26] That's awesome. Dariya: [00:04:27] Yeah. Bex Scott: [00:04:27] I guess on the flip side, that would be really fun if you had people in your family who you could go thrifting with and kind of had the same interests as you. Dariya: [00:04:35] Yeah, exactly. Yeah. Bex Scott: [00:04:37] Cool. And what have been your best Pyrex finds so far? Dariya: [00:04:42] I think my best one was the two pieces of pink Butterprint at a garage sale and, in Alberta, which you never see pink Butterprint? And it was posted online and I, like, messaged them because it was a bit of a drive and I had like two little kids, so I was like, okay, like I'd love to get these, but would you be able to hold them? Because I don't want to drive there and get there and them not being there. So they held them for me and I paid 60 bucks for two of them, which is high for a garage sale. But like, again, pink Butterprint. Bex Scott: [00:05:13] That's good. Dariya: [00:05:14] Yeah, yeah. So I kept one and then gave one to my sister. Bex Scott: [00:05:18] Lucky sister. Dariya: [00:05:20] I know. Would have been nice if there was three. An...
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Salt & Pepper Shakers
Nov 8, 202400:22:09Tap to summarizeBex Scott is back for a new season of Pyrex with Bex and in this first episode of the season, she’s diving into the rabbit hole of collectible salt and pepper shakers. Her own collection started when she found lots of them in an online estate sale and discovered that her favorites are the kitschy anthropomorphic shakers. Why were so many made? When were they popular and why? Which ones are most valuable now? Bex reveals what she learned in this episode. Salt and pepper shakers were easy to collect because of their size, small, and they were also very affordable. They date back to around 1858 though there is some dispute over the exact person who created them. Strangely, the kitschy eye-catching salt and pepper shakers were one of the few things whose sales didn’t dip during the Great Depression. Because they were small and cheap, they were easy to continue producing and still affordable to collect or gift. Bex explores how salt and pepper shaker designs reflected the time periods they were created in, the themes that became most popular, the rarest and most valuable salt and pepper shakers to look for now, and a family who collected 80,000 sets and started a museum just to house them. You don’t want to miss this episode. It will make you look twice at salt and pepper shakers when you come across them.Resources discussed in this episode:Lefton Bluebirds salt and pepper shakersExtra long dachshund salt and pepper shakersPink poodle chef salt and pepper shakersHolt Howard pixieware salt and pepper shakers“Would You Like Some Salt and Pepper? How About 80,000 Shakers’ Worth?” by Derek Workman, Smithsonian Magazine, January 23, 2012—Contact Rebecca Scott | Pyrex With Bex: Website: PyrexWithBex.comInstagram: @pyrexwithbex—TranscriptBex Scott: [00:00:02] Hey everybody, it's Bex Scott and welcome to the Pyrex with Bex podcast, where, you guessed it, I talk about vintage Pyrex, but also all things vintage housewares. I'll take you on my latest thrifting adventures, talk about reselling, chat with other enthusiasts about their collections, and learn about a bunch of really awesome items from the past. Subscribe now on Apple, Spotify, or wherever you love listening to podcasts so you don't miss a beat. Hey, everybody, this is Bex Scott and you are listening to the Pyrex with Bex podcast. And on today's episode it's salt and pepper time. We are talking all about salt and pepper shakers. And for me, this is a super fun topic because I have been collecting salt and pepper shakers on and off for the last couple of years. I don't have a huge collection, but they are one of the easiest things I've found to collect and to unfortunately amass in large quantities. Bex Scott: [00:01:04] So my salt and pepper shaker collection started back when I found a bunch of huge lots of them in an online estate sale, and I didn't actually know how many I was buying until I picked them up. And I probably had three moving boxes full of them, and unpacking them and cataloging them and photographing them was a massive endeavor. But one of the most fun things you can do as a collector, as you guys probably know, is unboxing and seeing what's inside, what you've bought from a sale or an online auction, and finding the little nuggets of maybe a really collectible item or something that you really love. Bex Scott: [00:01:53] So most of these salt and pepper shakers that I did buy, I ended up selling online on Facebook Marketplace or on Poshmark and some of them even on Whatnot now. And I've had a few friends on Whatnot who have had full on salt and pepper shaker sales, and it's so fun to watch them go through each of the shakers and to see just how fun they were. My favorite ones, hands down, are the kitschy salt and pepper shakers, and my great grandma had an absolute love of Lefton Bluebird, so I've been lucky enough to inherit some of her bluebirds. I have the salt and pepper shakers. I also have some of the more kitschy anthropomorphic ones. I have little kittens that are sitting on balls of yarn. I have some skunks that are sitting on logs and they're just very fun, cute, and you can store a lot of them in a small place. So this led me down a hole of looking into salt and pepper shakers, their appeal, their history. And I actually learned quite a bit about them. Bex Scott: [00:03:07] So. Salt and pepper shakers were easy for people to collect because of their size, and they were so affordable and they were just really easy to come across as well. They held on to them or passed them down. And you could, before, get a figural set of a dog, a cat, a bird for 5 to $7. Now the prices have gone up a little bit because they are in higher demand. People are reselling them and there are more that are collectible, some more than others. Salt and pepper shakers, they go back to about 1858 and they were created, some believe, by a man named John Mason who also created the Mason jar. So some people kind of refute this and are questioning whether that's actually true. But this is what I've found so far in my research. And before the salt and pepper shaker came to be, people used a bowl of salt called a salt cellar. And I've come across a lot of salt cellars in my collecting days, and a lot of the really cute ones are the little hens on the nest. I didn't actually know the purpose of a salt cellar. I knew that it was called that and you scooped the salt up with a spoon. People often added rice to it to keep the moisture at bay. And then it wasn't until 1911, when the brand Morton Salt Company introduced magnesium carbonate into salt that helped it to not clump, which is why people don't often put rice into their salt shakers now. Bex Scott: [00:05:02] So with these cute little kitschy and fun sets on home and restaurant tables, there was a high demand for the aesthetically appealing styles, and it was important for homemakers to have these on their table to show them off and to just have fun collecting them. So many people purchased them on road trips back in the day. One of the most popular types of salt and pepper shakers was the souvenir shaker that you got on your road trip that may have said the location it was from and where you got it. Now the Great Depression came along and there was no dip in salt shaker sales because it was one of the cheapest items in the kitchen. And during the 1930s and into the 1940s, the salt shakers went from glass and tin containers to the ceramic or plastic figurines. Most were from occupied Japan after a halt in production during the war. And the kitschier the better. So salt and pepper shakers became more cute, more eye-catching, and the number of salt and pepper shakers sold at local five and dimes and the fancier stores was just increasing. So some of the fun ones that you could find were the anthropomorphic fruit, fish, dogs. There's a set called the Extra Long Daschund that is really cute if you want to look up these funny little skinny wiener dog salt and pepper shakers. Bex Scott: [00:06:45] So by the 1970s, these cute figural shakers had completely gone out of style, out of production, and they were replaced by what we now have, which is a more standard boring cylindrical-style salt and pepper shaker. Don't get me wrong, there's some beautiful salt and pepper shakers out there now still, but it's just not the same anymore. And some of the ones that they were replaced by that people still collect are the Tupperware salt and pepper shakers, which were really popular during that time and not so much the conversation starters of all the cute, anthropomorphic, kitschy ones that you used to be able to find. So by the 1990s, people started to realize that the salt and pepper shakers were worth something because of the demand that collectors had made for them. And some of the most popular ones are cute little ones hanging from trees that have little baskets. I just sold a set. It was an adorable little dog that had two hanging baskets on the left and the right that you could remove, and those were the salt and pepper shakers. And the baskets were filled with flowers. Lots of kissing and hugging shakers. I have two little bears that when you put them together, their arms wrap around each other. Lots of Christmas ones. And some of the most sought after are from Lefton, Napco, Holt Howard. Bex Scott: [00:08:18] So a lot of this information that I found from my friend Worthpoint, and in this article that I was reading they went through the most collectible shakers from Lefton, Napco and Holt Howard, which I thought was super interesting because as a collector, I'm always wondering which ones I should be on the lookout for. So if you want to start the hunt, Lefton's most collectible are Bluebirds, Christmas angels, Miss Dainty, which is the girl with the red and white hat, Mr.Tootles the Maltese dog, Miss Priss the Blue Kitten, Thumbelina, The Green Fairy, Kissing Santa and Mrs. Claus, Christmas birds which are green, the Puppy Pal dogs wearing blue hats,...
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"Whatnot" with Kim, the Red Rooster
Apr 12, 202401:08:32Tap to summarizeBex Scott welcomes guest Kim, owner of The Red Rooster Shoppe on Instagram and Whatnot, to the show to discuss everything to do with Whatnot. Kim, who has accumulated quite a following on Whatnot and is practiced at live shows, shares tips and advice on how to make Whatnot both fun and valuable. She also talks about all the vintage delights she collects and the many thrift stores she visits in Ontario. Whatnot, according to Kim, is a social selling platform that combines entertainment and thrifting. It’s a buyers and seller social marketplace where live auction shows are commonplace. Kim and Bex talk about exactly why Whatnot has become so valuable to their vintage resale endeavours, not just as a sales platform but as a place to make like-minded friendships and support circles. Kim dishes about her childhood growing up with collector and reseller parents, her time as an auctioneer, the extensive vintage collection she has amassed, and exactly how to get started on Whatnot and in vintage collecting in general. The conversation is fun, full of laughter and tips, and a great way to get a feel for Whatnot as a platform.Resources discussed in this episode:WhatnotValue VillageReStore: Habitat for HumanityOwl Always Love VintageBlue Mountain Pottery Goebel Friar TucksHibid.comMaxsold—Contact Kim | The Red Rooster Shoppe:Instagram: The Red Rooster ShoppeRed Rooster Shoppe at Twindmills Antique MarketLinktr.eeContact Rebecca Scott | Pyrex With Bex: Website: PyrexWithBex.comInstagram: @pyrexwithbexContact Bex on her website—TranscriptBex Scott: [00:00:02] Hey everybody, it's Bex Scott and welcome to the Pyrex with Bex podcast where, you guessed it, I talk about vintage Pyrex, but also all things vintage housewares. I'll take you on my latest thrifting adventures, talk about reselling, chat with other enthusiasts about their collections, and learn about a bunch of really awesome items from the past. Subscribe now on Apple, Spotify, or wherever you love listening to podcasts so you don't miss a beat. Hey, everybody, this is Bex Scott and you are listening to the Pyrex with Bex podcast. On today's episode, I'm going to be chatting with my reseller friend Kim, also known as the Red Rooster, all about Whatnot, what we love about the app, and how to get started on it as a new reseller. Bex Scott: [00:00:49] Thanks for tuning into another episode of the Pyrex with Bex podcast. Today I have the pleasure of introducing you to Kim from the Red Rooster Shoppe. Welcome, Kim. Kim: [00:01:00] Hello. How are you? Bex Scott: [00:01:02] Good, thanks. How are you? Kim: [00:01:03] I'm good. I'm good, very good. Bex Scott: [00:01:06] So I met Kim through a fun little platform called Whatnot, and we'll get into Whatnot a bit later. But I wanted to start off with you telling us a little bit about you. Kim: [00:01:17] So my name's Kim. I live in Hastings, Ontario, Canada, or just outside of Hastings, technically. I'm a full time dementia caregiver, but I used to be an auctioneer and my parents were big collectors and resellers. So when I was a kid, that's all we did as vacations was go to flea markets and meets, and weekends were spent in some gym, in some school somewhere in Ontario selling things. So it's just kind of what I'm used to, and I enjoy doing it now as kind of like a fun activity. Bex Scott: [00:01:56] That is very cool. I didn't know that about you. Did you love doing that as a kid when you were growing up? Was that something that you really enjoyed doing or what were your feelings around that? Kim: [00:02:07] I was an only child. I am an only child. So I don't think I knew anything different. Right? Just this was my normal. It was a little boring sometimes. But then mum would get me making crafts in the background, which of course we'd sell. You know, we had these pencils you could rub between your hands and they were your frustration releasers and they would go all funny hair. So I would sit there and--. Bex Scott: [00:02:31] -- oh I remember those. Kim: [00:02:32] Yeah, yeah, I forget what they were called, but, or the anger busters, I think we used to put labels on them sometimes is that. The only problem with them was because I used to take them to school with me, they were my fidget toy, but the eraser gets covered up by the hair and it's really hard to correct your mistakes. So you can't make any mistakes when you have that as your pencil. Yeah, but it was so normal that in grade seven I did speech arts, which I don't know if you did, but where everybody has to write a speech and then everybody goes in front of the classroom. It's probably too anxiety driven to be done anymore for kids. Bex Scott: [00:03:12] Yeah. That was my worst. Fear. Kim: [00:03:14] Yeah, it's it probably ended in like the late 80s, early 90s. But in the 70s and 80s, it was the thing you, every single kid had to do it. And I was good at it. I was, I was good. I could memorize and I could perform a little bit, but then I would get up on stage, and usually I would do a five minute speech in 2.5 minutes, because I would get really nervous and I would just go through it really, really fast, which took away from points. So I never went to like regionals or anything. Anyways, in grade seven, I wrote a speech. The first line of it is, have you ever gone to Pennsylvania for a screw? And it was so normal to me and I, and I was, I was like 13. I had no idea what a screw like that, what the connotation of that was until I was up on stage in front of the entire school. And the moment it came out of my mouth, like a millisecond later, I'm like, oh, I know what I just said, but I have to carry on. I have to carry on. But we would go like, we went every year to this swap meet for classic cars because my dad, who never finished building it, but he was building a 1928 model A coupe, which is kind of like a truck. Bex Scott: [00:04:32] Very cool. Kim: [00:04:33] But he never finished it because he wanted it to be 100% original, which meant every single part down to screws. Which is why we would go all the way to Pennsylvania, because that's every October at Hershey, Pennsylvania there's a meet for classic cars, antique car enthusiasts. And it's just, it's mud. It's an entire field of mud that you trudge through because it always rains, it always rains and there's so many people and everyone's pulling their wagon with their car parts in it, and I would have to trudge along in the mud holding on to a precious screw or something. But I just thought it was normal. So I wrote, in grade seven I asked the entire school if they'd ever gone to Pennsylvania for a screw. Bex Scott: [00:05:25] I love it. That's very cute. Kim: [00:05:27] It's a little embarrassing now. Bex Scott: [00:05:30] Oh, so you had the childhood of flea markets and auctions and being an auctioneer. So how did the reselling side of what you do now begin? Kim: [00:05:41] I had to close my business as an auctioneer. Auctioneering was actually like the last career I had before I got sick. I have what's called central sensitization syndrome. And so it's like fibromyalgia and chronic fatigue put together into one. So I was pretty much laid up in bed for a few years. And then the pandemic hit. And then my mother started to have the signs of moderate dementia. And so it got to the point where I had to move her in with me. So we moved here to near Hastings on the Trent River. And it's beautiful here and there's lots of activities for her to do. But I was looking for another outlet and mom and I always loved thrifting. It was our thing to do was to go thrifting. And I love that treasure hunt. But then you get the stuff home and it's like, oh, I don't really need this. And I had a huge, I had when I was sick and laid up at home, I had started trying to, like, ADHD really, because I never really completed anything, but I would get into a whole bunch of different crafts. So I had a whole like room full of craft supplies, and I was on Instagram and it wasn't even related to reselling, the woman that I was following. Kim: [00:07:06] But she posted that her son and daughter-in-law were doing some, you know, Funko Pop sale on Whatnot. And I went, what's Whatnot? Like, I need to Google this. So I didn't use the referral code or anything, so I didn't get my little your bonus of using a referral code from a seller or another Whatnot or... But I looked into it and I was like, this sounds cool. This is fun. I think I want to do this. So first it was just to kind of get rid of my craft section, and then it was like, nah, you know what? I like these vintage decor people. The people who do vintage decor are fun. And I love these sellers and I love that community. So that's where I want to start, I started buying from there and then I wa...
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Thrift Store Addict
Mar 29, 202400:20:21Tap to summarizeIn today’s episode, Bex Scott uses her confessed addiction to thrifting to share the top six items that she always seeks out at thrift stores. Bex lives in Canada so the availability of items, and store names, may vary from country to country, but the general categories of vintage items Bex looks for are a great guide. She walks us through what to look for, why, and how to value an item if you do find one. Bex’s list of items she frequents Value Village, Goodwill, and Salvation Army to find wouldn’t, of course, be complete without Pyrex occupying the number one spot. She tells stories of lining up before the store would open to be one of the first inside and she divulges some of the greatest Pyrex finds she’s experienced. Her six top sought-after items after Pyrex are brass, Blue Mountain pottery, cross stitch and crewel patterns, vintage linens, and kids' books. Why does she search for these specific items? Bex tells all in this episode: the why, their collectible value, and some of the pieces and brands to be on the lookout for. Tune in and then share your own top ten list with Bex on Instagram @PyrexWithBex.Resources discussed in this episode:JAJ Cherry Blossom PyrexWhatnotBlue Mountain Pottery blue glaze bowlBrass lounging frogs“Blue Mountain Pottery Angelfish - A Star is Reborn” by C. Biernacki & T. Milks for Antique67.comCrewel curtain c 1696, English leaf detail—Contact Rebecca Scott | Pyrex With Bex: Website: PyrexWithBex.comInstagram: @pyrexwithbex—TranscriptBex Scott: [00:00:02] Hey everybody, it's Bex Scott and welcome to the Pyrex with Bex podcast where, you guessed it, I talk about vintage Pyrex, but also all things vintage housewares. I'll take you on my latest thrifting adventures, talk about reselling, chat with other enthusiasts about their collections, and learn about a bunch of really awesome items from the past. Subscribe now on Apple, Spotify, or wherever you love listening to podcasts so you don't miss a beat. Bex Scott: [00:00:30] Hey, everybody, this is Bex Scott and you are listening to the Pyrex with Bex podcast. Today. I wanted to go through the top six items that I always pick up at the thrift store if the price is right. That is the most important part of this. If the price is right for you to resell, if you're a reseller, or if it's right to you as a collector. So for those of you who know me, I am addicted to thrifting. And I realized that I had an actual addiction this year when I took all of January off of thrifting and buying anything vintage, and it was so difficult for me, I had no idea it would be that hard. But it really brought to light the fact that I love going to Value Village. I love going to Goodwill. And it is a huge part of my life. It's become a hobby, something that I like to do when I'm feeling stressed, and it's really helped me to connect with an amazing group of people on Instagram and whatnot, and it's just something that's really fun to do. Bex Scott: [00:01:41] So when I go to the thrift store, I usually have a few things in mind that I'm always on the lookout for. And for those of you who are new to thrifting or new to reselling, I thought I would bring up these six things so that maybe you could start taking a look when you go to Value Village, Goodwill, Salvation Army. And I'm located in Canada so what I'm finding might be a bit different than what you're finding in the States or different parts of the world, and I would love to know what your top ten items are as well. So feel free to find me on Instagram @PyrexWithBex to let me know your opinion of what I'm going to go through in this podcast episode, and what you would add or maybe take out from what I'm going to mention, because price has a huge impact on what you pick up when you go out thrifting. If you're a collector, that price may have a lot higher of a ceiling, because you'll pay a lot more to have that piece in your collection. I know I'm like that with Pyrex. If there's a piece that I absolutely need to have and I find it at the thrift store and it is a bit higher than I would usually pay, especially if I'm going to be reselling it. I don't hesitate to invest that money in it. But if I'm looking to make some profit off of it, then I'm looking for a lot lower of a cost. Bex Scott: [00:03:15] So let's get into it. The first item that I have on my list is obviously Pyrex. I would be feeling pretty weird if I didn't have Pyrex on this list. Unfortunately, it's becoming harder and harder to find good Pyrex in the thrift stores, and I'm sure all of you know this. It's the same across the board with all of the collectors that I talk to, and those of you who have been collecting for quite a long time, not myself, you have mentioned to me how easy or how much easier it used to be, even 5 or 6 years ago, to find good pieces at the thrift store. So before we had our daughter, I would wake up early a couple of times a week to go to Value Village and Goodwill. Those are the ones in the city that I lived in that I like to hit up, and I would line up before it opened, so I'd be there super early. It was cold a lot of the time. I was still going in the winter. And this was the only way that I could find good Pyrex at the thrift stores, and it was definitely worth it for me. It was pretty funny because the same people lined up every single morning, there were about 15 or 20 of us, and I always try to be maybe 4th or 5th in the line. Any earlier than that and I was not awake enough to be out there. But you would start to recognize the people who were in line and start chatting with them, and you'd get to know them. And there was always a teacup lady. She was always ahead of me. There was always a video game and book guy. And then you had your handful of what I like to call vintage generalists like myself. And those ones were my main competition. You'd see the doors open and everybody would pile in all at the same time, and then kind of disperse into the store. And if you were fast enough, you could grab a cart. But sometimes there wasn't enough time because people were in it to win it, and you'd all rush towards the same shelf and kind of scan the shelves that you pass to see if there's anything good on your way back, and you would hope that you got there first. And some of the best finds that I've had at Value Village and the Salvation Army have been an almost full set of the Friendship Cinderella bowls. The 441 was dishwasher damaged, but it was, the rest of it was in amazing condition. I found a charcoal Snowflake divided dish, a Friendship divided dish, a full primary set. I found a few full primary sets at the thrift store. And a bunch of other just random, little less desirable pieces here and there. Bex Scott: [00:06:01] Something that I see all the time is the JAJ Cherry Blossom, and those ones I always leave behind. When I first started reselling, I would pick them up, but they are so common now that they've kind of lost their appeal to me. Those are the ones that I would buy if I needed something to cook in, that I wasn't going to put into my collection or my display, or if I wanted to gift somebody something. I've heard that people, they make their friends and their family casseroles, and they gift them the dish that it comes in and I think that's a really great idea to do with some of these less desirable, more commonly found casserole and pieces of dishware. Bex Scott: [00:06:46] Next up is brass, and I only pick up brass if the price is right. And depending on what it is, that price is usually $7 or under for me. And my favorite have always been the animals, especially deer. Our baby's nursery was full of deer. I even put some brass deer in there. And I know I always mention this on my podcast, but my husband despises brass and I try not to put it around the house. I love it at Christmas. I've purchased huge brass deer for Christmas decorations, and I've also found large seagull wall hangings, a massive brass easel, a set of lounging frogs. The frogs were probably top of my list for my favorite. I like to call them the sexy frogs because they're both lying on their side with their arms under their head, lounging like they're striking a pose on a beach. And I've been pretty lucky as well with brass at online auctions. Just this past week, I won a box of 11 pieces for $17, which I'm pretty excited about because the Whatnot Canadian group of resellers that I'm a part of, we're thinking of having a brass, glass and wood seller train coming up, and I'm hoping to join that one to sell a bunch of brass and glass goodies. So most antique brass items are solid brass, and something that I've learned, a way of identifying solid brass pieces is by using a magnet. And if you feel a pull when you put the magnet up to it, then the item is brass plated and not solid brass. And a lot of the vintage or antique brass pieces, they don't have the display stamps or maker's marks to depict the place and year of manufacturing, so that's not as common. So usua...
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