Goodbye clutter, hello cash

Friends, I am beside myself with barely contained glee.

It seems if you have old jewels cluttering your panty drawer, there is an answer that doesn't involve seedy pawn shops, annoying Web listings or complicated consignment policies. And the answer doesn't mean keeping said clutter forgotten in said drawer.

Rumor has it, the next big thing in decluttering our lives and upping our cashflow is something called resale. What is this mysterious source of increased cash liquidity?

The root of resale
Well, I sheepishly confess I actually had no idea beyond mutterings I heard 'round the watercooler, so I had a chat with Jamie Forman, a former Dateline producer and executive vice president of Red Swan Jewelry Appraisers. "Red Swan is a service that offers women the opportunity to sell their dusty unwanted gold jewelry from the privacy of their own home," she explained. "They have no interaction with a pawn broker or retail jeweler, totally avoiding the haggle and hassle of selling their goods."

By way of example, lets say that you and your once-"true"-love break up. You are smart enough to hold on to the jewels (all women should), but you don't actually want to look at it and remember the times he left his skanky socks on the floor or forgot to put down the toilet lid. You decide to sell it, and use the funds for something you actually need. Like a hot new outfit for landing your new man.

But... where/how to do this?
At first, I thought this sounded sort of like a venture to eBay (a world I actually am familiar with...), when Jamie pointed out that while eBay is indeed the most successful online marketplace in the world, for selling individual pieces of jewelry, it can be time consuming, laborious, frustrating, and in the end, there is no guarantee that your item will even sell, and if it does, you have to sit around waiting for some stranger to pay you. Good point. And even if it doesn't sell, you pay listing fees!

Jamie says the Red Swan customer knows that a certified appraiser is determining the value of their submission and then she is paid a fair market value. In less than two weeks, the check arrives in the mail and if she chooses to accept the payment, the transaction is complete. If for any reason she is unhappy with the amount of the check or has second thoughts about selling her jewels, as long as she contacts Red Swan within 10 days of the date of the check, Red Swan will send the items back, no questions asked. And the entire transaction process is free...

Avoid that embarrassing "uh-oh"
Also, the broken-hearted (but jewelry-savvy) woman in my tale has no worries of her jewels being resold in her local jeweler's window or seeing a friend of family member while she is making her transaction.

I love this...I don't know about all of you, but this economy is kicking my butt - especially during the holiday season - and I'm one of the lucky ones. (I have several close friends laid off in recent weeks, and a service like this could literally help them avoid living on packaged noodles.)

What about pawn shops?
I know that, for generations (before eBay even existed!) many women would turn to pawn shops for such a purpose. I couldn't help but ask Jamie why that isn't still just as viable an option. "Pawn shops are traditionally located in low-income neighborhoods and one must walk into the pawn shop, jewelry in tow. Not safe," she says.

Ew.

Seems worth a try, but I'm curious: has anyone else tried this sort of service with their own not-so-sentimental goods? What do you think of it?