Tuesday, January 24, 2012

Looking For Antique Shopping In Springfield, MO ?

Here is my latest WorthPoint.com article about an antique mall that got started in an unusual manner. Actually it is more about doing what you have to do in this economy to make a living even if it involves stepping off in to uncharted territory.

Enjoy and as always I appreciate your feedback and suggestions for future articles.

Making it Work: Mike’s Unique Collectible & Antique Flea Market | WorthPoint:

'via Blog this'

Thursday, January 05, 2012

A Few Words of Caution About Antique Appraisers

** DISCLAIMER - This post by no means relates to ALL antique and personal property appraisers. It is based on observations and conversations with numerous people who are 'certified appraisers' and TV personalities related to the antiques field.  **

I am not a certified appraiser nor a member of an appraisal related association or group, all of my knowledge comes from 'field' work, I am out in the shops, reading publications, doing research for myself and others pretty much on a daily basis. I was raised around antique dealers and have been an active dealer for 30 years. While I do get paid for doing appraisals and my appraisals have been recognized by insurance companies, moving companies, courts of law, etc.

With that said, I want to warn folks about antique and personal property appraisers and how not all of them know jack about what they are seeing or saying. Due to my professional affiliations, job and interactions I have found a substantial amount of mis-information being given to people by "certified" appraisers.

I frequently do paid appraisals for people and also free appraisal services for non-profit groups and some non-profit thrift stores. The reason I felt the need to write this post is based on a recent experience I had assisting a group preparing to have a big boutique sale of donated item. I have worked with this group for about 20 years in helping them price items for their sales but this one in particular floored me.

Fighting Against the Misuse of the Rare, the One-of-a-Kind and the Antique | WorthPoint

If you have been following my blog for any period of time you are familiar with my rants. Here is a good one for you about the misuse of the words 'rare' and 'one of a kind' when describing antiques, collectibles or memorabilia.

For the new collector the use of these words are very misleading and it also shows the ignorance of the seller in most cases.

Read on and enjoy.

Fighting Against the Misuse of the Rare, the One-of-a-Kind and the Antique | WorthPoint:

'via Blog this'