Momomatic Jewelry on Etsy. And Batman Legos.

Every once in a while, I check out the Etsy store of my new friend, Lotta, who I met at BlogHer. Her store is called Momomatic and she makes jewelry out of vintage buttons, beads and other nifty parts.

I ordered a necklace from her. It arrived in this pretty little package, complete with a black scottie dog tied to the purple string:

Upon closer inspection, I noticed the words Scrotum, Glans and Urethra on the wrapping paper.

And then I remembered that she bought one of my sex books at the BlogHer Swap Meet in July: Picture Stories of the Sex Life of Man and Woman. This was one of the pages from that book. Surprisingly, I just found the same exact book at an antiques store in Lancaster, PA yesterday. That sex book is a like one of those cats that gets lost, and finds its way home after two years and 500 miles.

Anyway, beneath the ball sack was my necklace:

Isn't it gorgeous? Lotta warned me that it was missing one of the rhinestones, but I didn't care. I receive so many compliments when I wear it (which seems like every day). It is one-of-a-kind, but she has many other fabulous jewelry pieces for sale, and frequently updates her shop with new items. Thanks, Lotta!

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Do you remember my Lego craziness a few years back? When I found five Lego sets at a thrift store for $12 and sold them for over $500 on eBay? Well, the insanity has returned with a vengeance. 

I was at a yard sale last week with my sister, Heather, and I spotted the Batman Batcave Lego set, one of those enormous sets that sells for around $100 in the stores. I tried to hide my excitement, but I'm not very good at that. I literally "called dibs" on it to the homeowner and went in search of any other Legos. Heather hid behind an old fridge in embarrassment. I ended up buying the Batcave set and three Indiana Jones sets for $15.

When I arrived home, I made the grave mistake of giving the Batman set to my seven-year-old son who is obsessed with Legos. I know - what the hell was I thinking? I did this once before with a $100 Harry Potter Lego set and I ended up regretting it.

Finn immediately ripped the top of the Batcave box off. Unlike most moms who wouldn't care if their kid ripped a box, I yelled at him, "You just slashed the resale price by ripping that box!".

Fortunately, he started playing with one of the Indiana Jones sets and didn't start bonding with the Batcave. A few hours later, I checked eBay to see how much the Batcave sells for on eBay.

$300!

That's when I had to have a 30-minute-long conversation with Finn about selling the set on eBay. There was some yelling. And tears. Then I told him about his 15% commission. It is hard for a seven-year-old to understand percentages and commissions. But he understood perfectly when I said he could pick out any toy that he wanted, including a game or two for the new Nintendo DS he got for his birthday a few weeks ago. No more tears.

And so began the four-hour process of checking that all 1075 pieces were in the box. I printed 20 pages worth of inventory listings from Peeron. Maeve helped me sort by color:

The set was missing nine pieces. The ripped box and the missing pieces will bring down the value, but not by much. I am guessing that we will get around $275 for the set. You can follow along with the auction here: 7783 Batcave: The Penguin and Mr. Freezes Invasion Lego.

And here's the bonus: inside the Batcave set was this little boat from an other Batman set, the Hunt for Killer Croc. That set also includes Batman's Batboat, but we only had the Killer Croc's boat.

It recently sold on eBay for fifty bucks! The little crocodile man alone sells for $20.

To recap, your lesson for the day is: If you find boxes of Legos at a yard sale or thrift store, BUY THEM. Also, if you find a big disorganized bin of Legos at a yard sale, dig through them and see if there are any minifigs (those are the little Lego people). They are worth big bucks on eBay!

And don't forget about my 15% commission.

Comments

[Jennifer (Savor)]

That necklace is gorgeous and I am still kicking myself for not buying her stuff right then and there! The nbeckalce rocks!!

[Kaye Prince]

I love that necklace - it's beautiful! I was laughing so hard while reading the Lego portion - at least Finn is starting to learn early about the importance of economics and bargaining!

[Fine Estate]

Holy Jumping Leaping Minifigs...who knew...Not I said Fine Estate...

[georgiapeachez]

That's right, I forgot about the Lego's, thanks for the reminder! The beauty of eBay, gotta love it. xo, suzy

[Erin]

under the ball sack... great line.

[Alli]

Wow, I had no idea that legos sell for so much! I'll have to start keeping my eyes open for them. Thanks for the tip!

I love the necklace, and the wrapping, haha!

[Lotta]

You're pumping me up to hunt for more vintage celluloid. You know the hunt is the best part of making the jewelry!

[ella]

Sweet! I'll be keeping my eye out for Lego's and minifigs.

Love the necklace!

[Wendy]

That wrapping is too funny! The necklace is really pretty though.

Thanks for the Lego tip! My son loves them, so he would probably do the same thing Finn did.

[Elizabeth H.]

You are hilarious...under the ball sack...totally sitting at my desk laughing. Thanks for brightening up my day!

[Theresa]

What a score with the batman legos! My son would love them--I'd be hard pressed to give them to him too but man oh man--childhood is fleeting!
;-)
Glad you could convince him to reap the benefits of their resale value!

[Erika]

loooove this packaging! too many retailers don't take enough pride in the power of packaging. there is nothing more fun than anticipating a beautiful present wrapped beautifully!

[Theresa]

I had to come back to see how you scored on the batman legos and WOW! You guesstimated the value of those alright! Congrats! SAve it for the kiddo's college education!
HAHA

[Deborah Non Blogger]

Runnning to check the large Lego box that the 28 year old left behind when she moved out several years ago....I kid you not!

...and when a daughter leaves them behind and mockingly says,"Keep them for the imaginary grandchildren."
...well she deserves whatever is coming, unless she produces said grandchildren.
...and I bought them in the first place, so there!!

[Annoyed with Mean Parents]

I think it's terribly awful that you gave that Lego set to your son and then took it away. How mean! I am searching all over the internet to find my son Batman Legos for Christmas because it's all he wants. I will not pay the jacked up ebay prices and it makes me sick that you took it away from your son just to make money. Mean.

[Vintage Jewelry Store]

Nice necklace, very beautiful. It can underscore the beauty of every woman. I will present such a necklace to my wife. Good Luck!

[Tammara]

Love vintage jewelry, and also the items made from buttons like your friend makes. Vintage jewelry really is a passion for those of us that can't seem to stop collecting it - lol.