Purchasing at thrift shops, flea markets, and property gross sales will be overwhelming. With the sheer quantity of stuff, how have you learnt the place to begin? How do you see gems amidst all that…nicely, junk?
As knowledgeable reseller who has been scouring thrift shops for nearly 30 years, I might help. For those who’re prepared to chop your purchasing time in half, snag greater bargains, or stroll away with boastful finds which you could flip for money, learn on.
From hard-to-find home items to resale money-makers, something featured in my Thrift Store Like a Professional sequence qualifies as a BOLO (Be On the Look-Out for) merchandise. For those who discover it, purchase it!
Chosen discover: Martz lamps
A lamp is a lamp, proper? Not at all times. Some lamps are particular. For the final 20 years, Martz desk lamps have been on my listing of “dream finds”.
Lately, my hunt got here to a cheerful — no, ecstatic — finish when I discovered an unmarked $20 Martz lamp within the wild.
In 1949 Jane Marshall met Gordon Martz on the New York State School of Ceramics at Alfred College in Alfred, New York. Each have been school college students and each had a powerful sense of design and inventive exploration.
In 1950, the 2 married and determined to mix their artistic abilities by becoming a member of Jane’s household enterprise in Veedersburg, Indiana. Her grandmother, Jessie Talbott Marshall, based Marshall Studios in 1922.
When Jane and Gordon got here on board, the corporate was producing hand-turned wood lamp bases and painted by hand lampshades. The younger couple expanded the product line to incorporate stoneware lamp bases, dinnerware, sculptures and small tables with inlaid tiles.
In 1953 a Martz lamp was a part of the Good Design exhibition at New York’s Museum of Fashionable Artwork.
Jane and Gordon bought their curiosity in Marshall Studios in 1989 and retired. The corporate was bought by Genesis Wooden and Stoneware and its property liquidated within the mid-Nineteen Nineties.
Why purchase?
Lots of the up to date lamp designs we see at this time are based mostly on the Martz aesthetic. The couple made modernism accessible to the plenty, selling a simplicity of kind that remodeled on a regular basis objects into artworks.
For those who’re fortunate sufficient to discover a Martz lamp, dwell with it for some time. It will probably encourage a wholesome obsession with discovering your subsequent Martz masterpiece (and the following…and the following).
In case you are considering reselling Martz lamps for a revenue however are unfamiliar with Marshall Studios or Martz, go forward and money in. This pair of Martz lamps just lately bought on eBay for $2,145 and this monumental desk lamp is listed on Etsy for $3,500.
To prime it off (pun meant), even unique Martz lamp knobs delight collectors. (Finials are the often-ignored threads that connect the lampshade to the lampharp.) This teak finial was just lately bought on eBay for $41.
the place to look
Lamps have been often hand signed “Martz” close to the facility wire opening on the lamp base. The Marks Challenge – an exquisite useful resource for ceramic collectors and resellers – exhibits a number of variations of the engraved signature.
However like those I discovered, not each Martz lamp was signed. (That might make life too simple, would not it?) It took a stable hunch and sifting by previous on-line product catalogs to verify my buy was legit.
Listed here are a couple of different options that may aid you decide in case your discover is the actual deal:
- Diploma: Though historic data on Martz knobs is restricted, we do know that many lamps have been topped with stable walnut, oak, or teak.
- glaze coloration: Other than vibrant blue, most Martz lamps have been glazed in earth tones. The usual coloration palette included chocolate brown, mild gold, cream, moss inexperienced and black.
- The shade: Though unique lampshades are sometimes changed, an aged pure fiber shade is one other clue that may assist affirm an genuine Martz piece. And for those who discover an orphan shade, purchase it. Critical collectors pay a premium to match their Martz lamps with Martz shades.
- Underwriter label: Martz lamps have been examined and accepted by Underwriters Laboratories. Many lamps nonetheless bear the Underwriters paper label, co-branded with “Marshall Studios Inc., Veedersburg, Indiana”. Search for the UL label on the underside of the lamp or close to the etched signature.
Professional tip: Seventy years later, mid-century Martz lamps are nonetheless extensively used within the American Midwest. For those who dwell in Indiana, Ohio, Iowa, or Illinois, you’ve got a greater probability of discovering one regionally.
Disclosure: The data you learn right here is at all times goal. Nevertheless, we generally obtain compensation whenever you click on hyperlinks in our tales.