Cardboard Masterpieces, Pt. 20

2011 Topps #451 Livan Hernandez

In the blogosphere, the range of topics widely varies from blog to blog.

That's one of the main reasons I'm such a fan of it. I never know what I'll be reading on a day-to-day basis.

However, every once in a while, something comes along that brings that topic diversity to a temporary halt.

For the last few weeks, that little something has been a place called Listia.

I'm not sure who started the whole Lisita craze. The first I'd heard of it came from a post on Adam's blog, "Thoughts and Sox".

Ever since then, it's been rapidly growing in popularity. Lots of bloggers have already made the plunge into Listia's cardboard depths.

As a result, I figured I'd at least give it a shot. If the rest of the blogosphere loves it, than it's worth a look.

For anyone who is not familiar with how Listia works, members use credits instead of actual money to sell items. If you sell something, you can use the credits to "purchase" something else. 

They give you 500 credits just for signing up. 

Once I officially became a Listia member, I set out to see what kind of cardboard was available. 

After a couple weeks of searching and a few failed bids, I finally won my first-ever Listia auction.

For 150 credits, I purchased a card I'd had my eye on for a long time, a copy of Livan Hernandez's 2011 Topps issue. 

Actually, I didn't "purchase" anything at all. This "masterpiece" was absolutely free, thanks to Listia.

With this one in my collection, I can now say that I own a Nationals "throwback" card, a major feat given my love for that sort of thing. 

After finally being able to see it in person, I'd rate it as one of the best cards of 2011.

To date, it's my only Listia "win". I've been outbid on a few items since.

I may very well start selling some of my unwanted cards on Listia in the future. There's probably a lot more great cardboard to be had, but it's going to take more than 500 credits to get.

There's been a lot of talk about the possibility of Listia competing with Ebay as the best source of online cardboard.

For me, it's pretty simple.

As far as single cards go, Listia is much, much better than Ebay. I can't remember the last time I bought a card off Ebay, mostly because I'm not too keen on paying three bucks' shipping for one single card.

If I bought this "masterpiece" off Ebay, it probably would've set me back at least a couple dollars after shipping and everything.

Between the "welcome" bonus credits and the free shipping, it cost me absolutely nothing on Listia. Nada. Zilch.

As they say, the best things in life are free.

If that's true, then I'd plan on Listia being around for a long, long time.