Other Things I Collect
Well I've gotten some pictures scanned in however, I've got more to post (don't I always?!).
I have a vast amount of things I like to collect. Maybe this will inspire you to begin your own collection or maybe you have one. If you have a site let me know and I'll post a link. We collector's have to stay together! =) Books
I have since started to collect old copy of books I treasure or like.
Although they are not old in most cases they are at least 50 years old which by book standards is a considerable age. I started finding them at the charity shops for pennies really and the collection has just grown. I have a few by Jane Austen, Louisa Alcott, etc. Some books I got simply because of the cover - it appealed to me and it was cheap. I figure they didn't cost much and I got the enjoyment of reading them yet again.
My oldest book is from 1885 and is called 'Home Words for Heart & Hearth'. It cost me £8.00 at a charity shop and I thought that was an excellent buy for a 116 year old book. That's about 0.07p a year! All the pages are there although they are foxed a bit but the spine is still tight.
Dishes/Glassware
I didn't really have much of a dish collection as I'm not the best around glass (it always seems to break!). However, I found a few bowls in a yellow and green colour which I fancied and being in a charity shop I paid less than £0.50p for the lot. So I bought them and later when viewing one of my vintage British magazines in the back was an
advert for the dishes I was collecting (found the time and beware it is a rather large file - 350+k). Well this peaked my curiosity and so I now am on the lookout for more. I recently found a big stash of them in a different
charity shop but feared the price would be too high. However, I just couldn't let it go without asking for the price. When the lady who ran the charity shop came out she told me "Well they were marked at £2.50 but if you want them you can have them at £2.00." Can you guess what I did? Yep, paid and *ran*!
The dishes are Pyrex, not really valuable but they are a cheap replacement for
Jadeite by Fireking which thanks to
Martha Stewart is
now terribly expensive.
I'm also into old mixing bowls. Unfortunately most are priced out of my range but occasionally I find a gem. I recently found one, which had
"Santa Claus" printed on the bottom of it - will have to get a picture of that one too! I also collect old crocks and use them for kitchen utensils
and other bits. I believe some were used as jam jars but because they have no lids they are not wanted by
collectors. Well that never stopped me! As my friend Vicki says you have to have vision about the item and
its use rather than what is presented in front of you.
The other thing that has taken my fancy is Vaseline
glass. It is a special
glass that glows under ultraviolet light. It has of course grown in
popularity and is quite expensive. However, when I had more disposable income I collected a number of pieces. Most are now in
storage back in Florida as I didn't want to take the chance having them
break in the moving cycle. I sold off a few when moving as they were
newer pieces but I kept the older ones.
The reason it is called Vaseline is because it tends to have this
lemon-lime yellow appearance which resembled Vaseline (this must be
before we knew it as Vaseline!). There is a book that I found and it's
called 'Yellow-Green Vaseline - A Guide to The Magic Glass' by Jay L.
Glickman. Vaseline glass contains uranium oxide which glows under
ultra violet light. This is really the only true test for Vaseline glass.
Although, there are many new pieces being made with the old moulds so
you have to be careful when people date them. Also because of the
uranium shortage during WWII they had to cease production for making
the bombs. Bit of history for you there!
Furniture
I was out one day and found (purely by accident - isn't' that when the best
things happen?) this charity shop that sold second hand furniture. Me
never wanting to pass up a good look round went in. I had been in the
market for a wardrobe
cabinet, which as luck would have it, found one
right before my eyes. The price was good (£20.00) and it still had all of
the old style tags on the shelves. Well naturally this was *sold* after I got
my hands on it. I have since found a number of older style pieces which
again didn't cost me much and they have what I call character.
Some I even rescued from the garbage (yes I know it's not totally legal
here in the UK). Most had nothing wrong with them and I found them
useful so why not? I guess that's being environmentally friendly huh?
I
have a wonderful night stand that I got for a fiver.
I then got into the big time as I call it and found this older
kitchen cabinet
which wasn't my favourite colour (however it still is yellow till I get sick of
it!). It cost me £35.00 which is a lot for me however I loved it and had to
have it as they say! I have a newer cabinet which I hope to soon have a
picture of as well. It's in a great 'Martha green' colour! Ooooh can you
stand the wait?
Glass Buttons
I have found on occasion glass buttons which have found many uses in
my wardrobe. At one antique fair I went to I found a whole huge coffee
jar full of glass buttons for a fiver. Well I *had* to have them so , yes they
sold! Thankfully there were plenty of sets and now all I have to do is find
the time to sew them onto my clothes.
About 4-5 months ago I saw a movie with Geena Davis in it called "Earth
Girls Are Easy" or something like that. Anyway, Geena wore a jean
jacket that had buttons all over the collar. So I thought 'neat' I've got to
make one of my own but with glass buttons. Well the news is that after a
long search of jackets I found one - reduced of course - and it has all
manner of buttons on it. From glass to
Bakelite and everything in
between. As promised here is a few pictures of my jacket!
Also there are some pictures of the jean jacket I did for my
friend and a denim purse that I did for myself.Update:
I did two purses that I intend to sell on. One has
sold and the other hasn't but I as yet haven't put it up on
eBay. I have another purse that I got recently that
I'm working on as well. I'm a busy bee! You can find
pictures of them here.
Gloves
It seems I always find things in groups. I haven't found any gloves for
ages but at one time I found a whole bunch of them for under a pound
each. Not bad on the price and I use them in conjunction with my purses
to give the effect that they've just come off the hands. I'll try to get a
picture or two of those posted as well.
Miscellaneous
Old boxes of stuff is about the only description I can give you. I found a
rather old box of candles for a pound at the charity shop (can you also
guess where I find these great things?). It was rather sweet and so for
the cost I got it. I've also gotten a box of old knives, a box of
powdered
eggs from around WWII time. I also collect old tins. My best one so far
is an old powdered milk container. I'll post some pictures soon!
I have a hostess set that I got for cheap money and it wasn't even used!
I also collect canning jars. I have several green/aqua blue Ball canning
jars. My friend Vicki also gave me a freezer canning jar which I didn't
ship because I was afraid it would break. I also have several gallon size
old Ball jars which I put my rice, beans and such in, which also have the
old zinc lids. I'll try to get a photo of those soon!
I have a whole bunch of old what I call advertising paraphernalia which
includes an old box of Ivory snow flakes (full and unopened!), Ivory bars
of soap, an old box (again unopened and full of the product) starch. I
used these item in my laundry room in Florida but again didn't pack
them, because well I could take only so much you see.
I recently got an old
cake stand
that I can rotate when decorating cakes.
I don't do them that often but it seems I go
in cycles and when doing a whole bunch this
comes in real handy! But what about my
mixer from
the 1950s? Yes, I am a sad git and
have one of those too! Oh and you know I had
to get the
original cookbook too!
I also got an older cast iron tortilla press. I
have it in my head that everything homemade is better.
I have as yet to try it out but I had to find a supplier of
Masa Harina which took me a while - over here in the UK it
is always so behind at times!
Vintage Cookbooks
To find out all about them and you can view the cookbooks
right here.
Vintage Gardening
I also collect vintage gardening items although I have no garden. Weird
huh? This is my wash tub which I filled with dirt and then put some plants
in it. I got the tub for yes, a bargain of £0.50p! You can hate me later. =)
I also have a gardening can, for which I paid only a few pounds. Will
work on a picture.
Vintage Hats
I'm working on this one but as usual I'm being cheap. Goodness, how I
can make money squeak! Although I do have some vintage wooden hat
stands just waiting for the hat!
Vintage Magazines
Again a new collection sprang up mostly by mistake. When visiting a
second hand shop near the flat, I first saw at the back of the shop buried
in a pile of junk this basket. I was at first thinking laundry basket or linen
hamper as I needed one at the time. However out comes this (I have no
better name for it) nanny
cart. So for a fiver I thought I'll take it. It will
come in handy for grocery shopping in town when its a bit too heavy to
carry.
Well in the same shop he had a magazine from May 1937 called
'Woman's Journal'. Well of course I wanted it and the guy sold it to me
for a pound! Well I paid and *ran* nanny cart in tow I might add.
Since then I have found a few others to compliment the
collection. All
have cost me under the two pound mark so for me a good investment.
These days unfortunately most old magazines are ripped up and put
under glass for the colour adverts in them. I abhor this practice and wish
more people would leave them for future generations. My oldest
magazine is from 1898 and is an American edition called 'The Ladies
World'. Some of the articles are very interesting to read and give you a
snap shot of daily living.
Vintage Purses
Well you all should know about this love! You can find my
lovely purses here!
Vintage Sunglasses
This is a new area for me but I figure if I don't spend much on them then
that's even better. I've put together a page but for the time being its a
rather large graphic so you are fairly warned! And the answer to your
question is 'yes' I wear them! I believe that they are to be used within
reason. To just sit around gathering dust isn't my idea of fun. I have
enough things to dust. =)
Vintage Linen/Tablecloths
My girlfriend Vicki calls me the tablecloth Queen. I suppose I do live up
to this reputation. I still find ones for Vicki and use them as packing
material when I mail her packages. She then cleans them up and sells
them in her antique space she rents in Tampa.
I have a varied collection some I've inherited from family members while
others I've bought. Most of the tablecloths I have are from the 50's and
have prints on them of various subjects. I also have a sizeable number
of Damask cloths, which I love however they are somewhat of a pain to
clean.
I also collect tatting and crocheted doilies, which are getting scarce to
find. Most are priced out of my range however I do occasionally find a
bargain. I also have a vintage hanky collection most of which came from
my Aunt. I kept them mostly for sentimental reasons. However, recently
my friend Vicki had a rhinestone hanky which I *had* to have to
compliment my rhinestone disco ball clip-on earrings I found for a buck
at home. Oh my, how tacky that sounds but really it isn't. You'll have to
wait for a picture to find out though!
Another collection that sprang up was
pot holders. Weird I know but
they are quite nice some of them. I've posted a page with
some pictures of them so you can see what I mean. They
seem to be an exclusive US phenomenon as I can find nothing
quite like them here in the UK.Wicker Baskets
I collect wicker baskets and then invariable put
something in them - usually books and stuff like that.
I am lucky to have the basket my grandmother used for
shopping and for carrying the family meals to church to be
blessed. I think its a Polish/Catholic thing but I can
remember doing this each Easter and at Christmas time.
I don't have any pictures of my
baskets (yet) but I do have one of my largest basket,
which I use for taking large items back and forth to work.
It holds quite a bit and I had a friend install a wooden
board so I have two tiers to the basket.
Revised: 25 March 2007. |
