Trash or Treasure?

Could you have some hidden treasures in that attic or closet?

That tacky heirloom could be worth something! Forbes magazine has a list of things to dig up and dust off:

• Gold and silver jewelry -- The real stuff is often thrown in with costume jewelry in a shoebox or dresser drawer. With gold and silver prices so high, even an ugly piece that doesn't qualify as a valuable heirloom can be sold for its scrap value. Since most refiners won't take retail customers, you'll need to get bids from a few gold-buying stores in your area.

• Tacky heirlooms -- Don't underestimate the value of old stuff, even if it's not to your taste. Have it appraised.

• Special magazines -- There's a market on eBay for specialty and vintage design magazines that sells for about $20 a copy.

• Old posters -- Check those cardboard tubes you thought had old dorm-room posters in them. Vintage travel posters, used as advertising for airlines, ships and trains, and movie posters can sell for $500 and up.

• Oriental rugs – Don’t just roll up all of the carpets and sell them at a tag sale. There could be a rug, worth thousands, in your collection. So what if it's old and worn? It could still be valuable. Don't know what you've got? Call in an expert for a consult.

• Vases -- Valuable old vases often get overlooked.

• Old stocks and bonds -- Do you have U.S. savings bonds you got when you were born that are now stuffed in an envelope in your home safe deposit box? If they've stopped earning interest, cash them in. If you're helping an aging parent downsize, look for uncashed insurance and dividend checks, stock certificates and even cash in shirt and coat pockets, unworn shoes -- pretty much anywhere.

• Vintage sporting goods -- Vintage Schwinn bicycles, from the 1950s or earlier, are now peddled as collectibles for $1,000 and up. Check your attic too. Leather football helmets, wooden tennis racquets, duck decoys and even old folding kayaks have second lives.

• Electronics -- Online outfits that specialize in your old gadgets make getting rid of this stuff a snap. Gazelle.com buys items in 20 categories, including desktop computers, cameras, cellphones, even Wii videogames you're tired of.