When I first started on eBay in 1998, the second item I put on was an egg beater. That's right, an egg beater. My first item was a Pflueger fishing reel I found in our new to us house and the second was recovered from a drawer that came from my Gramma's house when she passed away. I listed it basically to prove to my wife that it had no value. "Put it on, it'll sell"
"Nope, who wants an old egg beater?". So on it went. $65 later, I apologized for being wrong. Who knew?
Nostalgia sells. Many people's fondest memories came from the time they spent in the kitchen. they want to recreate that feeling by surrounding themselves with things they remember.
Take the black striped bowl in the picture. My gramma had the same one, filled with jellied candies for Christmas. I remember the bowl from the time I was 5 years old.
These bowls are made by Cathrineholm (yes. one word, no e). The set above sells for about $300.
Griswold cast iron is another name to be on the watch for. Some of their frying pans sell upwards of $1000. Pyrex, Fire King, even the ubiquitous Tupperware. They all have a certain stayng power. There are literally thousands of highly collectable kitchen items. Here is a link to this weeks' top eBay kitchen items.
http://www.collectorsweekly.com/kitchen/overview