To celebrate Fall (and clear out the closets and not spend any money on decor),
my girlfriends and I had a party.
A Nickel Auction.
In our basement cafe' and cinema room.
What is a "Nickel" Auction, you ask?
Well, basically, it is a group of women bidding on another woman's stuff
in increments of 5 cents, until one woman outbids all the other women
to win the one woman's stuff that she is auctioning.
Clear as mud.
It goes like this:
Everyone brings in $5 worth of nickels and 3 items to auction off.
Each person takes turns standing with their items, describing them, and their benefits
to the bidders, as the bidders raise their paddles, the price goes up in increments of a nickel.
When you have sold your own items to the other ladies, you have more $ to buy the other ladies' items.
So, the nicer the item you bring to auction off,
the better chance you have to make more money.
You can either keep your income or re-spend it on the other ladies' items.
We started the late morning party with a brunch I prepared.
(If you should host one of these, you could also ask the ladies to bring a dish to share.)
my girlfriends and I had a party.
A Nickel Auction.
In our basement cafe' and cinema room.
What is a "Nickel" Auction, you ask?
Well, basically, it is a group of women bidding on another woman's stuff
in increments of 5 cents, until one woman outbids all the other women
to win the one woman's stuff that she is auctioning.
Clear as mud.
It goes like this:
Everyone brings in $5 worth of nickels and 3 items to auction off.
Each person takes turns standing with their items, describing them, and their benefits
to the bidders, as the bidders raise their paddles, the price goes up in increments of a nickel.
When you have sold your own items to the other ladies, you have more $ to buy the other ladies' items.
So, the nicer the item you bring to auction off,
the better chance you have to make more money.
You can either keep your income or re-spend it on the other ladies' items.
We started the late morning party with a brunch I prepared.
(If you should host one of these, you could also ask the ladies to bring a dish to share.)
Fresh fruit.
Quiches.
Yogurt parfaits. Layer in wine glass:
Vanilla yogurt, granola, vanilla yogurt, granola, and top with fresh berries.
Triple berry scones and triple chocolate scones.
The teenagers played a game on the floor
(because they're young and can still get up off the floor easily)
while they waited on the adults to finish their food.
(I apologize for the pictures being so dark, our Cinema Room has no windows.)
Some items up for action:
pictures, a chair, trays, antique gessoed picture frames, eyebrow waxing, clocks,
planters, candlesticks, lamps, greenery, clothing, china, and holiday ware.
A terracotta fish being auctioned.
Bidding. Although we all had auction paddles, Karen liked using her finger instead.
(Rachael, her daughter is next to her, and I'm the one on the right.)
(Rachael, her daughter is next to her, and I'm the one on the right.)
My Miss S (College girl) and her friend (my other daughter, Amber).
Gangstas.
Ann can't decide if she wants to bid or not.
She does, she does want to bid!
(There's that gangsta, again.)
Suzanne auctions off a genuine, authentic, antique reproduction
of the Declaration of Independence.
Which fetched a fair penny, ahem, nickel.
The teenagers fought over it, believe it or not!
This is Mary Ann, she is Miss S's roommate at Furman University
(and one of my other "adopted" daughters).
She is a History Major.
She is one of the teenagers who fought over the D of I.
My Miss A keeps track of the auction totals for each item in the ledger book.
Chelsey decides how high she'd like to bid on the D of I.
This is Amara. She sees something she likes.
It's this.
An apple pie.
I believe it went for $7.00.
That's a lot of nickels, folks!
Then the clothes came out!
I have a screen that I found at a flea market a few years ago, that we tried things on behind.
It's in the middle of the picture below.
See all the nickels on the table?
(There's a colander, baby formula can, ceramic POPCORN bowl, and a Rubbermaid container.)
Bidding on clothes.
Sweaters, dresses, jeans, dress pants, shoes. All sold for between 5 cents and a dollar!
My Miss S was the model for some things. Here is a Tommy Hilfiger pale blue sparkly sweater.
Hi, Sandra (she is the artist of the Eiffel tower and table/chairs on my cafe' chalkboard wall)!!
(I see you creepin', Mary Ann!)
Jenni and Catherine fight over a tray or a chair or something.
Catherine scoots in to get a better look.
HEY!! I'm dressin' here!
Just noticed the crown over my head.
We had loads of fun!
Everyone came with something and everyone left with something.
Here's what I won, for $6.50.
An antique gessoed frame, which is now in our Master Bedroom.
Other pictures from the Cafe' de Sous Sol (Basement Coffee House).
Why sew a banner if you can draw one?
I also drew some frames, and Miss S made the art inside them.
She also wrote a love letter to all of us.
Caffeination Station.
I made the auction paddles from card stock, on which I printed numbers,
traced around a plate and cut out, glittered the edges with copper glitter,
black glittered the numbers, and hot glued to Lowe's paint sitcks.
I pray you are having a glorious Fall, thus far!
Give thanks!
Give thanks!
What fun!! Looks like a fabulous time... Great idea!!! xoxo
ReplyDeleteWhat a neat idea! Looks like lots of fun :)
ReplyDeleteMight have to borrow this idea!
Jennifer
Fun oh man oh fun!
ReplyDeleteLOVE this, Leslie. Fun, fun, fun.
ReplyDeleteTell me about that little black shelf above your coffee pot in your caffeination station. Did you make it yourself? If so, how'd you do the gingham background? Always love your ideas.
Blessings to you today.
Hey I want to live next door to you...you are WAY cool!! How fun that looks! what a fun time!!
ReplyDeleteLooks like the girls had a great time!
Suzanne
You explained your 5~Cent party very well.
ReplyDeleteCan you explain the Teen Game also?
Dee
What a wonderful idea! It sounds so fun! And I love your coffee room!
ReplyDeleteAnd, I missed it.. :-(; maybe if you do it again for a Spring nickle auction I can come? Love Sarah's letter...she is so sweet...so are Miss A and Miss E.
ReplyDeleteWhat fun, Leslie! Such a great idea, too, because if you don't have enough stuff for {or aren't into yard sales} this is such a great way to trade out stuff you want to get rid of for new stuff. It looks like everyone had a great time! Love the frame you got! What a bargain! : )
ReplyDeleteOMGOSH...what fun! Your chalkboard wall drawings are so cool. Looks like a fun time.
ReplyDeleteHugs♥
Linsey
Love it! Looks like so much fun ~ and lots of great items to try for. It's neat that the teens wanted to be there and participate too. I'd love to have been there, especially for the brunch! :-) It all looks delish...
ReplyDeleteOf course, I adore your basement cafe. Such a great way to entertain.
xo
Pat
You are such a hard worker......all of that cooking but oh, how much fun!
ReplyDeleteWhat an awesome idea!!! Looks like you all had a blast! I LOVE your "buy", too!!
ReplyDeleteHope you had a wonderful Halloween!
Big TX Hugs,
Stephanie
Angelic Accents
Wish I could have been there! Fun, fun, fun!
ReplyDeletevery very cool!!!! love this post.... friends having a great time and "stuff" to take home too!!!! thanks for sharing Leslie... Never heard of this before!!! I WILL be back tomorrow!!!! :) Terri
ReplyDeleteOh, I wish I'd been there! I'll give you a nickel for the fruit bowl - love that! You always amaze me with your creativity - I want to show this idea to some friends.
ReplyDeletegreat idea & the treats looked divine! jealous!
ReplyDeleteLOVE your site and inspirational ideas...thanks so much for taking the time to share ~ you have a beautiful gift we all can be motivated by. I especially love this auction idea and can see my friends and teenage/college grad daughters having so much fun with it...Bless you for all you do to inspire and make the world a better place ~
ReplyDeleteThat looks like such a fun party. You have a lot of good ideas I'm excited about. I'm so glad I found your blog.:)
ReplyDeleteLeslie, this sounds like a lot of fun! I'll have to remember your idea...
ReplyDeleteMan, that looks like fun Leslie. I have never heard of that auction. My bunco gals would love it.
ReplyDeleteI absolutely love this idea. Can't wait to try it with my friends!
ReplyDeleteGreat party and awesome blog! Thanks for stopping by to say hi, I am following you now!
ReplyDeleteHi Leslie, You stopped by recently & left a sweet comment on my blog. Thank you! I enjoyed my visit & I love this "auction" idea. It looks like such fun & your food looks fantastic! And I'm crazy about those chalkboard wall drawings! That made me smile.
ReplyDeleteWarmly, Michelle
Loved this idea so much that I have one planned for this coming Thursday! I can't wait! I will let you know how it went. One question though, does everyone pay as they go? Or do you keep a record of who owes who and then settle at the end? Thanks for the inspiration. Love your blog.
ReplyDelete