(NewsInsights.org) – Thrifting, the process of buying used items from secondhand stores, garage sales, or flea markets, has become a trendy pastime for many and a necessity for some to make ends meet. However, for one diligent woman, the hobby recently provided her a windfall when a bauble she purchased for $3.99 fetched more than $107,000 at auction, netting her more than $83,000 after the auction house took their cut.
Jessica Vincent, 43, has frequented secondhand stores since she was a child when she visited them with her mother. She developed an eye for prizes others might miss. It didn’t hurt that she became an avid fan of the “Antiques Roadshow” or enjoyed researching her purchases to learn more about them.
So when the polo horse trainer went browsing at her local Goodwill store in Hanover County, Virginia, in June, it wasn’t electronics or clothing that caught her eye. She kept coming back to a bottle-shaped vase with red and green swirls. She noticed an “M” on the bottom of the piece, and previous research gave her reason to believe that might stand for Murano, an island off Venice, Italy, that has specialized for centuries in glassblowing and fine art glass.
At that point, Vincent told The New York Times she thought the vase might be worth a few thousand dollars. “I had no clue how good it actually was until I did a little bit more research,” she added. She liked the piece well enough that she decided to buy it, take it home, and research it, as long as it wouldn’t cost more than $8.99. It had no price tag. Fortunately, the cashier rang it up for just $3.99.
After contacting a Facebook group about the vase, members suggested it looked like a design by Italian architect Carlo Scarpa, and they advised her to contact the Wright Auction House. On December 13, the vase, in pristine condition with no chips or cracks, sold at auction to an unnamed private collector after specialists authenticated the vase as part of Scarpa’s “Pennellate” series.
Once she knew the history and value of the vase, Vincent was happy to sell it and ensure it returned to the art world where it belonged, safe from any mishaps that might befall everyday secondhand glassware. She hopes to use the windfall to upgrade the 1930s-built house she bought in January 2023. It needs a furnace, and she’d like to add a dishwasher and fencing.
Who knows, maybe with a bit of extra cash, she’ll go thrifting again.
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