mastering
26
art
the
of
upscale resale
annually in over 80 ca tegories, including all areas
of fine and decorative arts, jewelry, photographs,
collectibles and more - and consignment guru
Ann Siner, founder of My Sister’s Attic, a business
dedicated to re-selling high-end furniture and
household goods. As a result, we discovered
insights into evaluating the value of heirlooms
and selling through consignment in addition to
the most popular and coveted household goods
each avenue affords.
How to Determine
the Value of Your
Family Heirlooms
By Megan Breinig / Photos by Kimberlee Christiansen
One-of-a-kind furnishings and luxury décor ar e
certainly a collector’s dream, bringing a sense of
nostalgia, homage and history to a home. But, what
if you are not a collector and inherit these upscale
household goods and works of art? With auctions,
antiquing and estate television shows at the height
of popularity, it can be a challenge to naviga te all the
ways to appraise and sell family heirlooms.
Selling fine china or an armoir e from generation’s past
may seem like a popular way to r ealize a return on a
family’s investment, but just as impor tant, is identifying
the right avenue to sell.
The truth is, unless you are a collector and seek
upscale auction items, the majority of today’s
consumers looking to furnish their homes ar e seeking
a different type of product than the traditional onceprized
possessions from years past.
Given that information, there are essentially two
distinct paths for resale:
- High-end auctions
- Upscale consignment
Exploring these upscale resale paths, we took a deep
look at Christie’s, one of the world’s premier luxury
auctioneering companies - which hosts 350 auctions