Surprising Kitchen Items That Could Be Worth Money
You wouldn’t toss money in the trash, so why would you throw away your home goods without checking their value? Every room of your house has the potential to make you money, but the kitchen can be especially lucrative. Do you own any of the following kitchen items? If so, you may want to cash in soon.
1. Ball mason jars
Look for: certain colors and errors
Mason-jar collectors know a vintage Ball container from the ones you can buy these days. If you have one of the more rare styles — like the green jars with amber swirls — in the back of your cupboard, you may be able to dust them off and sell each for $400 or more on a secondhand site.
Next: Keep the cookies, sell these.
2. Cookie cutters
Look for: extra-large and extra-small sizes, unusual designs, or collector’s sets
It may be worth sorting through the bag of old cookie cutters in your kitchen drawer. Baking aficionados will buy vintage and collector cookie cutters for a lot of money. Coveted ones involve the size (either extra-large or extra-small) and design. According to Delish, the most coveted antique cookie cutter is the “Heart in Hand,” which can sell for over $1,000 in mint condition. Multi-piece sets, like Martha Stewart’s copper editions, can sell for $50-$500.
Next: “Shake” the dust off and sell this item for big bucks.
3. Cocktail shakers
Look for: chrome, silver, or Art Deco designs
Still making cocktails with a shaker from decades ago? Your drink-maker could be worth a ton. Vintage shakers of the silver-plated, Art Deco, or colorful varieties are especially valuable, as Gates Interior Design explains. The rarest cocktail shaker to date, made by International Silver Plate and perfectly preserved, is valued at $23,900!
Next: Your grandma’s mint-green kitchenware is back in style.
4. Jadeite
Look for: the McKee, Jeannette, and Fire King logos signaling original, antique jadeite
You may recognize these mint-green dishes from your grandmother. Known as jadeite, the distinctive kitchenware popped up in the 1930s, getting more popular after World War II. Beware of modern reproductions; many stores sell updated versions as the dishware complements the popular farmhouse-style home design.
Next: Certain colors are worth the resale.
5. KitchenAid stand mixers
Look for: limited-edition colors and the classic white style
Perhaps your KitchenAid stand mixer is worth reselling and you don’t even know it. If you have the classic white KitchenAid stand mixer or a limited-edition color, there are likely people online looking to pay you $100 or more. Some KitchenAid fans want a color from years ago; others seek the classic white version in good condition. Why the latter? It matches everything.
Next: Get paid for these pop-art products.
6. Michael Graves for Target collection
You may be familiar with Target’s partnerships with designers. One of the most sought-after kitchen collections was released from 1999 to 2012. Designer Michael Graves created modern, functional kitchenware, and fans still seek it to this day. The white Pop Art Toaster in white is worth roughly $200, according to Oprah.com. That’s about eight times more than its original price.
Next: Many families inherit these beautiful collections.
7. Antique silverware
Look for: brands like Tiffany, Gorham, and Oneida
Antique silver forks, knives, spoons, and serving ware can be quite valuable. The key is finding flatware that’s truly silver, which tarnishes over time and needs to be polished. True silver will also make a ringing sound when you tap it. Sellers on eBay list rare sets of silverware for thousands of dollars.
Next: Even 100 years ago people needed coffee.
8. Coffee mills
Coffee collectibles can be lucrative, according to Collector’s Weekly, especially if you own a vintage coffee mill. Also called a coffee grinder, it can be square or round, wall-mounted or tabletop. Look for specific brands, like England’s Kenrick & Sons and France’s Peugeot Frères. Home mills lost popularity in the 1930s, so grinders before then may be especially valuable. Online resellers list vintage coffee mills for $300-$4,000.
Next: This dishware brand has a loyal following.
9. Pyrex kitchenware
Look for: certain patterns, including Lucky in Love, Pink Daisy, Butterprint, and Gooseberry
Visit your local thrift store and you’ll likely spot some opaque Pyrex dishware. While the brand’s clear bowls and pans are highly sought-after, certain old-school patterns and brightly colored kitchenware sell for hundreds. If you have a full set of milky white Pyrex, you can make even more money.
Next: Some people still prefer to do it by hand.
10. Hand-mixers
Look for: hand mixers from the ’50s and ’60s
Don’t pass off your old hand-mixer to your adult child. While you may prefer to beat eggs or whip batter with a stand mixer, manual styles from the mid-1900s can sell for $75 or more online, according to Delish.
Next: Do you have cookware in this discontinued color?
11. Enameled cookware
Iconic kitchen brands often discontinue certain colors and styles of enameled cookware. One of the most popular discontinued lines is the Azure Blue collection from Le Creuset. Not only do Le Creuset collectors want these pieces, but others simply love the specific sapphire color. An Azure Blue Dutch Oven can sell for $300 on eBay.
Next: Brew some tea and then list this on eBay.
12. Old kettles
Vintage kettles were built to last, especially in the 19th-century when they were made of copper, steel, or cast iron, according to Collector’s Weekly. These varieties, as well as early 20-century kettles, may make you a hefty profit. One copper Swedish style is selling for $150, and an 1889 sterling-silver Reed & Barton kettle is $3,999.
Next: This popular cooking item gets better with age.
13. Cast-iron skillets
14. Depression glass
Look for: popular colors like pink and cobalt blue; patterns like Mayfair and Cameo
These brightly colored bowls, platters, and other dishware brought joy to Americans during a tough time. From the late ’20s to early ’40s, the mass-produced glassware wasn’t known for its high quality; frugal shoppers bought Depression glass from dime stores or received it as a freebie with a purchase elsewhere. These days, buyers love how the dishware adds cheer to kitchens. One green fish design sells for more than $2,000 online.
Next: Toasting bread is easier these days.
15. Old-fashioned toasters
Look for: Art Deco toasters from the ’20s and ’30s, like Ledig’s Toaster-Cooker and the Toast-O-Lator
The ability to toast bread with electricity first occurred in 1905. “Over the next 100 years, toasters became works of art,” explains Collector’s Weekly. “Made of metal, wood, porcelain, and Bakelite, beautiful and inventive toasters became the centerpieces of matching kitchen sets.” If you own a unique, vintage toaster, check the brand and style online; it could be worth hundreds.