News East West
NEW YORK: Billionaire and talk show queen Oprah Winfrey on Saturday held a mega garage sale to declutter her life and raise funds for the Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy Foundation College in South Arica.
In the process, she managed to raise $600,000 for her charitable cause.
Oprah sold hundreds of items online and at the site of auction – the Santa Barbara Polo & Racquet Club in California.
With tons of her fans eager to own a piece belonging to one of the most powerful women in the world, many items – hardware pieces, precious furniture, signed framed prints, etc – went for a price which was much higher than their original price.
In fact, a set of six Louis XVI armchairs with exquisite hand-embroidery work was lapped up by someone for a whopping $60,000. Two velvet sofa sets went for $8,750. And a huge print of Oprah’s TV Guide photo fetched $3,000.
“We talk about decluttering. And I realized, I need to declutter my own life. It is very freeing. I am downsizing,’’ the talk show queen said before the auction.
“I’m trying not to be attached to things. I’m trying to live the life that I talk about, like not letting things define you. But it’s hard.’’
The sold items came from Oprah’s three houses – in Hawaii, Indiana and Los Angeles.
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