Some didn't take Ric Wallace seriously when he sold charms he said would help people win lotteries. Perhaps they should: Wallace won a home, car and other prizes yesterday worth $775,000 in the Dream of a Lifetime Lottery. "I expect to sell a lot more (charms)," the London man said in the stylish foyer of his new home.

Wallace and his wife, Sheila Tofflemire, were the grand-prize winners in a lottery that raised about $1.2 million for London's hospital foundations.

While that would be a windfall for anyone, Wallace thinks he's well-positioned to turn his huge win into future earnings.

Wallace, a Web designer who has tried novel ways to make a buck, is the creator of a site that sells pins and fridge magnets he believes helped him to cash in on lotteries.

The site -- www. lotterycharms.com -- sells charms he designed as souvenirs to commemorate white squirrels in Exeter and black squirrels in Victoria Park.

Convinced the souvenirs marked a turning point in his life, Wallace began to market the items as lucky charms that would help buyers tip the scales of fate in their favour.

"I do believe in the power of positive thinking," Wallace said. "We consider ourselves money magnets. This will help us support our claim."

But before yesterday, not many embraced his belief, at least when it came to the charms. Richmond Street merchants mostly passed on the novelty, while Web sales numbered only a few hundred.

All the while, Wallace believed all he needed was one big win.

"When we hit the jackpot, the sales of these will go through the roof," he recalled thinking.

A user of Tarot cards and psychics, Wallace was certain he would win the home lottery, in part because his left hand was itchy, a sure sign, he said, that unexpected wealth was around the corner.

"It's always right," he said of his itching.

The home couldn't have gone to a more deserving couple, friend Dolores Hunter said. "They work like crazy for everything they have."

Wallace, 43, has twice battled illness and injury, remaking his career when stomach ailments left him virtually confined to a bathroom. The illness led him to change careers, turning to work he could do on a laptop computer.

Then, nearly 18 months ago, Wallace fell from a ladder while removing snow from his Quebec Street home. The fall shattered his hand. He recovered movement in his hand thanks to doctors at St. Joseph's Health Care.

The medical intervention led him to buy a home lottery ticket, he said.

The grand prize, valued at $775,000, is a 3,282-square-foot home by Wasko Developments in a new subdivision north of Lambeth. It includes a Mazda MX-5 Miata, $25,000 in cash, a year of housekeeping, $110,000 in furniture and more than $17,000 in kitchen appliances.

Lottery organizers sold more than 96 per cent of tickets, a marked improvement over last year, when 82 per cent of tickets were sold.