Many of us leave seashells and sand behind on the beach when we travel instead of bringing them home as souvenirs. This is a great thing, since this helps preserve the natural biodiversity of coastal areas. But what about pieces of driftwood that wash up on the shore? Whether you found it on the beach or even in a gift shop, U.S. Customs and Border Protection highly discourages bringing driftwood back. In many countries (and in some parts of the United States), it’s illegal to take driftwood from protected ecosystems. But the main reason is pests may be living in the driftwood, and you could introduce a non-native species to wherever you live.

While the price of used romance novels and biographies isn’t high, the resell value of college textbooks can be significant. If you have some textbooks at home, you may be sitting on a gold mine of educational tomes. Simply enter the ISBN number (it’s inside the book on the copyright page) on the website cash4books.net. The site will list the value it's willing to pay for the book. Once you compile the books you want to sell, the site generates a free shipping label, and in a few days, you’ll get a check or PayPal payment for the value of your old textbooks.

If you aren’t sentimental about holding on to your wedding dress, you can use it to make someone’s wedding day extra special and make yourself money, too. The online bridal consignment site preownedweddingdresses.com lists lightly worn wedding gowns available for sale at a fraction of the original price. You can buy or sell wedding gowns, bridesmaid dresses and accessories. With thousands of brides shopping on the site, you have a high chance of selling your gown to someone through this giant digital marketplace.