Antiques and Collectibles - Let's Talk

Looking For Antique Shopping In Springfield, MO ?

2012-01-24T11:30:00.000-06:00

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:

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A Few Words of Caution About Antique Appraisers

2012-01-05T14:26:00.000-06:00

** 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.
For some reason this group had paid a certified appraiser to come in and assist them for this particular sale upon reviewing the prices and information they were given they knew something was not right so they called me to come in and double check the information.

I saw a Warwick IOGA lady portrait pitcher valued at $20, a praxinoscope in near mint condition labeled as a 'magic lantern' and valued at $50, a fully functional mint with box Charley Weaver bartender $10 and this went on and on. I was sickened an appalled that anyone claiming to be an expert could come in and be so ignorant. Or maybe they were pricing these items so low because they had plans on coming to the sale and purchasing the items. The ladies in charge of the sale still had the business card of the 'appraiser' and believe you me I was on the phone with this person as soon as I got the mess straightened out and returned home.... fuming.

We then set out on a mission to bring in several appraisers to appraise and give the history on a variety of items such as porcelain, jewelry, books, china, toys, sterling silver, coin silver and furniture. We did not do works of art simply because that is... or should be, a very specialized genre. All appraisers were paid for their time and out of 13 people only 2 knew what was what and had any knowledge of the items. One of the appraisers was honest with us when it came to the books and told us that she did not know enough about books to give an appraisal. This is after a 1949 printing of A.A. Milne's "When We Were Very Young" was appraised at $6,000 and we were told that it was a very rare first edition..... REALLY?!?! This particular book was first printed in 1924 and the book that was appraised even stated that it was the 59th printing.

I asked each appraiser how they gained their knowledge and stayed on top of the market and values and the were same two who gave reasonable appraisals and information said they regularly attended antique shows and stores and subscribed to a number of print and online publications and databases. The others told me that they read about trends and prices. Reading is good but it needs to be combined with field work.

I actually came across an article that said the following; "Developing your own library is probably the single most important part of becoming an appraiser," The reason, is that large numbers of reproductions complicate the antique world. Books, with their pictures and descriptions, can help separate the real thing from the impostor. The beginner should buy books and more books. "There are no bad books in an appraiser's library,"

Anyone that has any dealings with antiques, collectibles, memorabilia or vintage items needs a good, healthy library of reference books but if you never venture out to shows and stores, handle items, look at reproductions that are on the market, fully inspect furniture and do all the things that a dealer or good appraiser does you don't know jack.

It might interest you to know that appraisers are not licensed they are certified and one can become certified through online courses and about $2,000.

If you need an appraisal for insurance purposes I highly recommend getting a referral from a friend or get references from the appraiser you pick to work with. An antique dealer who has been in the business for a number of years can probably serve you just as well and at a much lower cost.

I am prepared for the 'hate' mail I will get from this article. As I stated at the beginning of this post, this does not apply to all appraisers as a consumer YOU need to know what is going on out there.

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

2012-01-05T13:14:00.000-06:00

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:

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Thrift Store Shopping for Antiques, Collectibles and Bargains | WorthPoint

2011-12-28T21:00:00.000-06:00

Thrift Store Shopping for Antiques, Collectibles and Bargains | WorthPoint

I am just pumping out the articles!!! Actually I am behind on posting links to them here on my blog.

Tomorrow I leave for Springfield, Missouri to interview a former construction contractor turned Flea Market / Antique Shop owner. I will get to work on that particular article right away and then will churn out another on running your antique business like a business. I am also thinking we need a comprehensive article on where and how to sell your antiques collectibles and the like.

See you again soon

Try Your Local Antique Store Shopping for Last-Minute Gift-Giving Needs | WorthPoint

2011-12-28T20:54:00.000-06:00

Try Your Local Antique Store Shopping for Last-Minute Gift-Giving Needs | WorthPoint

Another one of my fab articles for WorthPoint. Of course I cannot take all the credit, my words would be nothing without my editor Greg.

Enjoy

Antiquing Across Western Kansas, My article on WorthPoint.com

2011-12-13T19:29:00.001-06:00

In November I made a trek to Colorado, no timeline just me, the open road and what I hoped to be... lots of antique shops. Boy was I ever disappointed.

Here is my article on Worthpoint.com

Oh, and by the by if you own an antique shop on I-70 or 50 highway I would love to hear from you because I am planning on going back out that way and would love to stop in and visit.

Do You Want Your Antique Business To Fail?

2011-10-03T22:21:00.000-05:00

This is my latest article for WorthPoint.com it was prompted by a real life situation I encountered. I have to say that I see more antique shops/malls running their business in such a shoddy manner than I see shops run and treated as businesses.

Many people think they can open an antique shop or mall and they will start seeing money roll in like the tide. To be a success you must have a passion for what you are doing, a good working knowledge of the antiques and collectibles field and some business sense.

To assist those who own or manage antique shops, thrift stores, consignment shops and similar businesses I have started a consulting firm so that we can see more of these types of businesses thrive and survive.

I welcome your comments and questions.

When Antique Shopping Is About More Than The Goods - Latest WorthPoint.com article

2011-09-22T12:45:00.000-05:00

I so enjoy writing for WorthPoint.com, who would have ever thought that I would write anything anyone would care to read. It just goes to show you never know what life will hand you.

I had proposed a series of articles on antique shopping across several states one of which was Texas. Well, Mother Nature decided to burn my home State of Texas up therefore my travels have so far been pretty limited. I am hoping that a trip to Colorado and possibly Georgia will be coming soon.

Please enjoy my latest contribution to WorthPoint.com - http://www.worthpoint.com/article/antique-shopping-more-than-about-goods

How To Turn Your Antique Shop In To A Profitable Business - Blog Edition

2011-07-26T13:45:00.001-05:00

I hope that you have read my articles on WorthPoint.com with the same title as this blog post. Here is Part 2 of the article - http://www.worthpoint.com/article/how-turn-antique-shop-profitable-business-part-2 , but I have so much to say on this subject that I decided I needed to add additional points here on the blog so that I can move on to other topics in my WorthPoint.com articles.

Too many antique shop owners, especially live store front owners are not treating their business as a true money making business. I get the impression that the attitude is "if we build it they will come" in a sense this is true but do you just want to get by or do you REALLY LOVE what you are doing and want to make it a success, you will be the expert, the go to shop for all that is antique and collectible.

I opt for the go to shop owner myself and that is why I have been successful in my chosen field as an antique dealer for over 25 years. I am not wealthy by any means but I love sharing my knowledge and sharing my wonderful finds.

Ok, down to business. First read the WorthPoint.com articles, you will find Part 1 in a previous post and as I said Part 2 is coming soon.

You have to jump on the social network bandwagon by creating at the very minimum a Facebook page for your business. This is free to do and the only time money enters in to it is if you decide to create an 'ad', which from what I have seen and heard is not worth the money. There is very little ROI or Return on Investment.

You put hour upon hour in to your store front. Your displays are stunning from the street, you have quality merchandise and great prices but people are just not buying the wonderful wares that you have and the traffic count is low. Here are several things you can turn a critical eye to;

Does your shop look cluttered? If a customer feels overwhelmed by eye candy when they walk in your store they will leave without making a purchase.
Is everything clean and dusted? No one likes to pick up a beautiful piece of depression glass that feels dirty and has a layer of dust covering it.
Are your prices as low as they can be? Yes, we all want to get the most money that we can from our merchandise but you have to take in to consideration the current economy. Face it, we sell items that people can live without. People buy what we sell because they love owning these pieces so make it affordable for them to do so.
You just don’t know what the problem is? Step outside for a few minutes then walk back in to the shop and sniff. To be honest, people are turned off by smells both good and bad so if your shop smells dusty, musty, old or overwhelmingly of flowers because of the candle you are burning. Take care of the problem then get your favorite furniture oil out and clean all the wood, that is what people enjoy smelling when they walk in to an antique shop.
What are your customer service skills? You need to greet every single person who walks in your door and thank every person who leaves. Ask if you can help them find something special. Don’t hover but be sure to check on them as they go throughout the shop and ask to take their purchases to the counter. Get them on your mailing list and hand them the brochure you made showing the monthly calendar of events. Remember the magic words – Please, Thank You and Come Back.
Is your shop well lit with accent lighting on important pieces? You do not want to have dark corners. Tuck inexpensive thrift store purchased gooseneck desk lamps in among your displays and have them aimed at the expensive items. Put your colored glass ware in front of a window or other lighted source (you really have to dust now) so that people can see the beauty of the colors.

Online shop owners, you can use the same critical eye on your website. Is it visually appealing?

Do the 2 or 3 colors (no more than that) that you have used in your design look good together?
Can a customer easily navigate your website? Use breadcrumbs at the top and bottom and make sure that your navigation links are visible on all pages.
Can a customer see a large image of an item? You need to have a large detailed photo of each item so that a customer can get a good look at what they are interested in.
Details in the descriptions? You have to be the eyes of the customer, describe everything on the items, give dimensions and if there are any defects be sure to include them. Describe the colors and any designs. Pattern names are very important so if you don't know the pattern name please look it up.
When you ship an item clean it up first. Once again no one wants icky dirty stuff. Your reputation on the details can make or break your business.

Plan ahead for the holidays but not too far. Even though all the big box stores are already putting out Halloween items I just could not do it in the shop, put up pumpkins in July, not on my watch. So I had a small area of the shop that was filled with upcoming holiday items and then when we got closer to holiday, say for Halloween I would display more items in September then they are featured in the windows in October.

Online, you can display holiday items year 'round with a 'Holiday Category.' Then feature items on your home page as the holiday gets near.

I was actually pretty upset on a recent shopping trip to a very well known store in a town near me, the birthplace of Amelia Earhart. I thought that I was going to see unusual, unique, amazingly wonderful items but I walked in to a Halloween store. All the really neat items that are so often shown in this particular shop ads and articles in the local newspaper were no where to be found AND there was absolutely no sale area for the Spring and Summer items. Customer lost.

I welcome your questions on marketing your business and will be answering those questions in a future post.

Let your passion show others will see it and draw from it.

My Latest Article On WorthPoint.com - How to Turn Your Antique Shop In To A Profitable Business

2011-07-19T11:27:00.000-05:00

This article applies to store front shop owners, online sellers and even those who sell through venues such as eBay, etsy, etc.

Part 2 of the article will go in to using social networking, making educational videos, fun things you can do in your store front to make your shop a destination instead of just another antique shop.

I love doing this....

Preparing for a Short Shopping / Road Trip

2011-07-18T13:55:00.000-05:00

Dear hubby has taken this week off of work and along with the usually 'honey dos' that I have planned for him he proposed a one day short trip. I picked Atchison, Kansas, it is only about 90 miles from home so we can get on the road by 9:00 a.m. and my first antique shop stop is only about 45 miles up the road.

I will take photos and tell you all about my great finds, the ones I purchase and the ones I wish I could purchase.

Until later....

Test One Two

2011-06-29T13:55:00.002-05:00

I have to make a post with this VMDM4EAFT92S in place to verify my site for inclusion on a website.

What Amazing Items Have You Bought This Summer?

2011-06-29T13:02:00.000-05:00

I loved show and tell when I was a kid in school and I love it even more as a dealer and collector. I enjoy seeing the wonderful items that others have found at sales and auction. By the same token I enjoy sharing my finds.

The half tester bed that you see is one that I have had my eye on for many years. You don't come across them very often but whenever I see one my heart skips a couple of beats.

Do I have a room with a high enough ceiling in which to put one of these beds? Yep, in the dining room. If I ever find one that is affordable it will be mine.

Please share your recent acquisitions, I would love to hear about them.

Finding Some Great New Inventory, Unusual Too

2011-06-24T12:10:00.000-05:00

Anyone who has followed this blog is well aware of my issue with all the boxes from my antique shop. I have made some pretty good headway the past two weeks in sorting the boxes in to new inventory for the shop, donate and send to auction.

My eldest daughter and I had a garage sale last week with the first lot of boxes and I was actually able to part with some items I did not think I could let go. We advertised it as 'Antique Shop Liquidation & Garage Sale' so people came to the sale knowing that not everything would be priced at garage sale prices. Dealer's were able to find great inventory and still make a nice profit.

I like the unusual, and tend to purchase items that are a little odd looking. The item shown in the photo is an early stapler of sorts. It has a very sharp metal tip under the plunger and apparently you would place some sort of crimper item in the 3 circular areas, place your paper under the metal plunger and WHAP the plunger and your stack of paper would be held together by the little crimpers. Or at least this is what I think the process was.

If you know what this item is please let me know. It will be up for sale when I get the new website up and running in the next couple of months.

I Have Been Published on WorthPoint.com

2011-06-14T13:21:00.000-05:00

Please be sure to read my very first article on Worthpoint.com - http://www.worthpoint.com/article/summer-antique-shopping-smarts

I am working on my next article for antique dealers. What I have learned over the years and how to survive as a dealer in this economy.

Please leave comments on the story and I really appreciate your support.

New Antique Show on the Horizon

2011-06-08T11:33:00.000-05:00

Rumor has it that the infamous Keno Bros. from Antiques Roadshow are going to have a 'reality' show on Fox. The title is "Buried Treasure"

Here is the concept - "The brothers will travel the country hunting for hidden gems in peoples’ homes. Using their expertise and technology to determine authenticity and condition, the duo will reveal each item’s estimated auction value and gives the family a chance to sell. In some instances, the Kenos will bring the items to the world’s top buyers. At the end of each episode, you’ll learn if the item sold and for how much."

What do you think about this? There used to be a show with this very same concept and I personally don't think the Keno Bros. are going to make any difference.

I have heard rumblings of another American Pickers type show. In my opinion this is all getting a little out of hand. Come up with a new concept, of which I have seen many, and quit redoing what is already out there or has been done.

What To Do, What To Do

2011-06-07T15:02:00.000-05:00

Have you ever just hit the wall with a big project? It is staring you in the face day after day and it just seems like it is just too massive to do anything about?

Well I am there. I still have a couple hundred boxes in my house and garage from the closure of my antique shop a year ago February. I believe I have already talked about the massive mess and it isn't getting any better.

I know how crazy it sounds when I say that it is just a project that is so massive I don't know that there will ever be an end in sight and it won't improve as long as I have this screwy mindset about it. I just wish I could go to bed at night and wake-up and it is all gone. Actually, when we had tornadoes tearing through Kansas and Missouri I secretly wished that one would hit my house... of course I wanted my family and pets to be okay but the storm would just suck all this crap out and scatter it all over the city. Knowing my luck it would all get returned to me plus some more.

We were going through the boxes looking for some platters that a consignor decided she wanted back and I came across box after box of stuff that doesn't even belong to me. It is old consignment stuff that was never picked up by the consignors.

For pete's sake, I have a stove sitting on my patio it has been there for well over a year and the owner will not come and get it. It is a nice stove made in the 1970's by Sears, it is made to look like an antique stove and has a lot of cast iron on it but now it is probably a rusted mess. I have tried all venues I know in an attempt to sell it. The owner will not return my phone calls.

I am revamping my online antique shop to where I don't have so much in inventory and trying to focus on the items that sell quickly and are more worth my time and effort. All the little knick-knack stuff is going away as are the books and art.

Another garage sale is in my future and I guess that everything else will be sent to auction. Now I just need to get off my butt and go into attack mode and 'git r done.'

Educate yourself before you buy antiques or collectibles

2011-05-09T15:30:00.000-05:00

The description on this pair of "antique leather panels" read as follows; "Pair of 19th C. Framed Embossed Leather Panels
Continental circa 1800's-Leather Panels
Pair of fine leather embossed panels that are mounted on an antique gold colored silk background. The leather pieces are framed with the most exquisite silver leaf frames. These panels can be hung as artwork in almost any location of your home." The price for the pair, a whooping $7,500 and this was the sale price.

I was asked by the purchaser of these "leather panels" if the price she paid was fair and she asked me just exactly what are these "panels."

Once I recovered from seeing the price she paid I began my expert appraisal of the "leather panels."

First I looked very closely at the edges and noticed the tack holes and by looking at the overall shape I knew immediately that these were leather chair bottoms. Beside the tack holes along the edge you can see where the leather was folded around the edge of the chair and tacked to the bottom.

They were probably painted after they were removed from the chairs because of the overall evenness of the paint color; there are no visible signs of wear as there would be if they were painted while in use on the chairs.

They very well could be from the 1800s and probably European from looking at the design. I think what happened is someone owned the chairs that these seats were on. The chairs were falling a part so they removed the bottoms, painted them and had them framed. You cannot see the frame in the above photo but it is a very contemporary frame, I actually have a couple of botanical prints in the same frame. I had them framed at a large craft store about 20 years ago.

These leather seats have been around for a long time, at least since the mid 1800s.Some were put on as the original seat in a chair but many more were sold as replacements for damaged cane seats. One could go to the "General Store" and buy one of several shapes and trim to fit over the broken cane seat and attach with the brass upholstery nails. You can get new leather or a leather "look a like" today but the choice of designs is limited.

As to whether or not these framed leather chair seats are worth $7,500.... hell no. I guess I should not say that as someone paid that very price for these items. I believe that the "dealer" who sold these pieces did not reveal the whole truth about the items, or did not even know the truth and just put a price on them and happened to luck out with someone purchasing them.

This is what gets under my skin, with the Internet we have so many un-educated people professing to be antique dealers when they don't carnival glass from depression glass. They then take advantage of buyers who are trusting the so called dealers to know what they are selling and putting the right price on the item.

Needless to say once the buyer got the inside skinny on the leather chair seats she was pretty pissed off.

*** I am an expert in the antiques category of JustAnswer.com, there is a small fee for asking questions but please feel free to check it out using the box on the sidebar here on this blog.

My Antique Blog

2011-05-04T16:48:00.000-05:00

For several years I have tried to maintain a couple of blogs related to antiques and collectibles but due to problems with Wordpress and probably my hosting company I have decided to keep only this blog up and running.

It is really a shame that you pay a company to keep your website - antique shop in my case, up and running on their servers but they don't take any measures to make sure no one can hack your site. This is what is happening on an increasing basis with my website and the blogs I had on my hosted server.

Now that I have the blogs off of the server maybe the hacking will stop and I will be much more productive in keeping 1 blog updated instead of trying to keep several updated.

Welcome to all

I will update the photos and template on here tomorrow

2011-02-26T22:56:00.001-06:00

I am just plain bleary eyed from working on my hacked website and updating templates that are now pictureless, I love vintage photos.

I will get back on it all tomorrow.

Night all

Storage Wars TV Show - What Is Your Opinion

2011-01-23T16:00:00.000-06:00

I will give any TV show a chance especially if it deals with antiques and or collectibles, even junk at times. American Pickers has been crossed off my list of must see TV shows, if they "picked" something other than the same old stuff it might be interesting, also the dark haired guy gets on my last nerve.

Pawn Stars, I will watch it if nothing else is on they do get some neat stuff. I have even been to their shop in Vegas.... talk about over priced.... WOW. Anything that has been on the show is marked "As seen on TV." There is lots of it around too.

Storage Wars... give me a break. I have bought a few storage sheds at auction and it is loads of fun, like any auction. Storage Wars has a shill, this is the rich guy who runs the price up on lockers he has no intention of purchasing. I don't think this is illegal but it is certainly unethical, and the auctioneer knows that he is running the bids up. Have you wondered why there is rarely anybody but those on the TV show at these auctions? 1) Made for TV, not exactly reality TV 2) the auctioneer has a piss poor reputation because he allows shill bidding.

I have seen auction houses go under when they get the reputation for shill bidding. This makes it no fun for anyone and if you aren't getting a bargain and having fun at an auction, why attend.

I would love your input on this show and whether or not you have ever been to a storage auction.

Happy collecting.

Dealing With Backstabbing Antique Shop Owners

2010-08-13T20:32:00.000-05:00

First I need to apologize for not writing in so long, it has been one helluva crazy year so far and it just doesn't seem to be getting any better.

I hired the worlds worst antique auctioneer to get rid of excess inventory, since he did not sell anything I just finished a marathon 7 day garage sale in 100 degree temp. The neat thing about the garage sale was seeing some of my shop customer's and old friends.

As to the topic in the title....
What is up with some of these antique shop owners? They will lie to you, steal from you, talk about you to other's and in general act very immature and unprofessional. I am too old (50) to play these teenage girl games with folks yet I am currently embroiled in a little kid piss fight and actually had the police called on me today. Thank goodness the police didn't see me as a real threat to anyone (I think they were more concerned about the shop owner) so I didn't see the inside of a jail.

So Michelle, what happened today? I will give a very condensed version:

My shop closed at the end of Feb. 2010. I was approached by 2 women who were opening an antique shop and asked to come on as a consultant, help them price items and basically teach them the ropes. For my time and effort I would get a free booth. I talked to my consignor's and all of them were in agreement to move over to the "new shop."

In the midst of closing my store, coping with the grief of my moms passing, raising children, sorting inventory and life in general I still managed to put in about 60 hours at the "new shop" pricing and advising.

One day I had several boxes of my inventory returned and was told "we don't have room for you to sell in our shop." Okay I want my reference books and personal inventory returned and I am out of your hair. Frankly I was ready to focus on my website anyway.

That was 4 months ago, I still don't have my personal inventory nor all my reference books and today I find out that the "new shop" is using my contracts with my name on them thereby making me responsible for items I have no control over.

So today I created a contract for the "new shop" in their name along with a letter demanding that they cease using my personal and business names in their dealings.

I go into the shop and present these to the owner... she goes bonkers.. calls the police. Mind you, for once, I was not yelling, cussing or otherwise throwing an adult fit, I simply presented the info and told her I needed to move on with my life. I guess we will end up in court over this stupid mess.

As if that is not childish enough, for the past hour I have had most of my former consignor's calling me asking why I "was picking on the shop owner."

I don't understand why the signing of new contracts has not already taken place and they are still accepting new consignments under my name.

They are the ones that backed out on our verbal agreement so why are they so angry with me? My guess is that they realized it was a pretty stupid move on their part. Neither of them are antique dealers or business people now they are stuck with what could be an amazing shop in a terrific location and don't know what to do with it.

Does anyone have a similar story?

Antique Shop Auction Shawnee Mission, Kansas

2010-05-28T20:05:00.000-05:00

The time has finally come to auction off the items from my antique shop.

If you are in Johnson County Kansas please be sure to attend.

June 6, 2010
1:00pm
13501 W. 90th Place
Lenexa, Kansas 66215

This is my home.

I can't bear to be here to watch my items sell so I am going to Vegas on the 3rd returning on the 7th. I am leaving all the work up to the auction company, my good friends and family. Boy they have their work cut out for them too.

Numerous items. Hope that you make it by.

Happy Mother's Day

2010-05-08T23:11:00.001-05:00

Happy Mother's Day to all the moms, sons, daughters, fathers and husbands who read this silly blog.

The cutie in the bug picture is my adorable granddaughter.

This is my first mother's day without my mom and the entire week has been very difficult. She just passed away Jan. 13, 2010. Then today I went out to pick up a couple of mother's day cards and the water works turned on pretty quickly. I did get my mom a card, we are going to the cemetary tomorrow and I will leave it with her.

I was a little discouraged from reading my last post.... I have made little to no progress on clearing the hundreds of boxes out. I don't have any place to put anything. I think we have come to the conclusion that we will have a massive garage sale Memorial day weekend with 75% off everything (it all has price tags from the shop). The deal with the other local antique shop fell through as they are still not open and don't have room for any of my items and most of my consignment items. I wish that I would have gotten something in writing to insure that I got a booth... but I didn't, yet they still expect me to give them my knowledge and help them to get open. One of the owner's even went so far as to blame me for them not being open by now. Give me a break.

I can now admit that I am and have been very depressed. And like the commercial says "you wind yourself up" everyday and keep winding yourself up. Depression does cause physical pain. Well enough of that.

I plan on completing the new website within the month and get lots of new inventory up for sale. Items such as a wood Danish cheese press (an amazing piece), lots of copper kettles, Charming Chatty doll in the box with records, numerous vintage little girls clothes from the 1950's and 60s several with the original tags and much more.

I appreciate all of y'all hanging in there with me. This too will pass or atleast get easier with time.

Enjoy tomorrow with the ones you love.

Is It Ever Going To End.... ARG....

2010-03-25T12:32:00.000-05:00

We got moved out of the antique shop on Feb. 26th., a month ago. I am still buried in boxes (the photo is not an actual shot of my pile of boxes but close). My living room, dining room, garage, patio and overflowing into the backyard, it is driving me bonkers and to make matters worse the weather has been horrible so I can't even get out and sort things.

If it isn't raining it is snowing therefore, I cannot take the tarp off the items stored outside and I can't work on the garage because I have to move those boxes to the driveway.

I have some really amazing new inventory to put on the website but I can't get to it. Also all of my books are packed up.

Some of the items will be going to the antique shop in Shawnee, quite a few of the items the consignor's have now decided they want their items back (not the way the boxes were originally packed) and the rest stays here at the house to be sold online.

Truckloads have already gone to auction and I have a feeling that when I am able to finally get to work on the boxes even more will be going to Sharp's auction.

All I can see are dollar signs sitting around in boxes making me crazy and costing me sales.

There is a season for everything.

2010-03-03T21:28:00.001-06:00

My life changed in January of this year, sometimes life will just kick you square in the teeth to get your attention and that is what happened to me.

My mom passed away suddenly on Jan. 13 and this made me stop and analyze my life, my priorities and my purpose for being on this planet.

Several changes are underway but the big one was the closing of my live antique shop, my dream. My last day of business was Feb. 20 I then had 5 days to move out of a very large business with (now I find out) nowhere to go. My overhead was ridiculous and the lenders and landlords would not work with me. The economy of course sent the business over the edge.

The online shop will be bigger and better than ever once I get it moved over to the new site with loads of new inventory. This should happen toward the end of the month. At the moment I am so overwhelmed with all the "inventory" piled all over my house, patio and backyard. I am behind on getting orders shipped and as if this weren't enough I am sick as a dog.

What else will I be changing in my life? Spend time with my family; the shop sucked up all of my time and energy, start eating better and exercising again; both of which went by the wayside with the store, garden; oh my gosh how I have missed working in my garden, try and get through the mourning process; this was very hard to do with the shop.

I will miss all of the paranormal energy and spirits that kept me company in the store - www.mygrannysatticantiques.com/hauntedantiqueshop I felt a great attachment and fondness for the spirits especially the little boy who was ever present. Who knew that I would ever feel a fondness for at least 10 ghosts but I spent more time with them than I did my family. I hope to be able to get back into the shop and investigate again soon while there are no antiques in place.

I will miss my many wonderful customer's I met some amazing people through the shop.

I got to live my dream for over a year and that is more than many people get.

Be sure and visit the shop online 24/7 and come back often.

Thank you for the response to my last post

2010-01-21T00:18:00.000-06:00

WOW, I didn't realize how many people really read my ramblings and rants. The comments were amazing and I only published a few. The support is equally as outstanding.

To those who took the time to leave a comment please know I am behind you rooting and pushing you all the way to success.

My biggest downfall was going into debt with bank loans, who would have thought those folks would have wanted their money back.... the fact that the bank would not restructure the loan was a bit unacceptable to me to put it mildly. Especially considering the fact that the bank CEO was in on meetings with our Prez discussing how to "help" small businesses. Downfall #2.... high rent in a very old drafty house which meant high utility bills. Despite what the SBA says in their mission statement and the reams of paperwork I had to complete in regards to working with "my" technical advisor... my TA was never available to help me along the way and help me navigate and negotiate in some of these areas.

Sadly it is too late to save my dream but I will carry on with the best damn online antique shop you have ever seen. It is being revamped as I type this post. I will have different dealers and the consignments will continue with my ever present eye for quality control.

I do not consider this a failure on any level, I would do it all over again if I had the funds.

Oh my gosh how I will miss my regular customer's. I am going to keep my mailing list and have a couple of sales a year here at the house just to stay in touch and they are always welcome to come shop in my basement storage area.

I did not realize until this past week with the passing of my mother the bond that had been formed with a great number of my wonderful customers. Notes were taped to the door under my note about her brain aneurysm. There were even more notes and cards taped to the door when I put up a note about her passing and funeral. For this I thank you from the very bottom of my heart.

In a month or so I may not have my dream shop but I will have such wonderful memories of the many people I met in the past year and a half.

You have to follow your dreams; sometimes it goes as planned and other times they fall flat but you have to pick yourself up, dust off and keep moving forward.

If you are a small business PLEASE join the 3/50 project and maybe together we can keep a few doors open.

Thank you again for the outpouring of comments and thank you for reading my blog.

All my best to you all, Michelle aka Granny

What Community Do You Support?

2010-01-10T18:34:00.000-06:00

I am watching my dream, my antique shop, die on the vine. I have come to a place of acceptance with it. I know that I have not done anything wrong. My business is well managed, we advertise as much as financially possible, we provide above excellent customer service, our books are in order, we do not pay ourselves... we work to pay the bills. We have fought the good fight but despite all of this people don't take the time to stop in and see the many wonderful, affordable items we have for sale.

The problem is the community mindset; "walmart charges less for a better quality item, they will make my life wonderful and worth living again." Of course the big box stores can afford TV commercials to brainwash the public that they have their best interest at heart, we are all in this together b***s***. They don't tell you how much of the money you spend in their big box stores goes off into another community probably in another state, they don't tell you that your hard earned money will give their CEO another million dollar raise, they don't tell you that they are getting tax subsidies in your community (they don't pay taxes on their property) and will move on to another area when it comes time for them to start paying their taxes.

My little shop can't afford television ads to let the community know that we, the owner's are struggling just like they are and will do anything in our power to provide them with a high quality item on whatever terms they can afford. When we make a purchase on inventory we buy from other American small businesses and try to buy from local businesses when possible. Several of my wholesaler's are in Johnson County.

I won't get into how my city, Lenexa, Kansas has one set of signage rules for businesses in my area and another set of rules for the rest of the city which boils down to I cannot have a sign on my shop that can be seen from the street. Or the fact that they have allowed the Lenexa Parks and Rec. to raise the facility rental rates at the community center which makes it impossible for the antique show promoter to have his antique show across the tracks from my shop (this show has been held for over 20 yrs.), I am sure it will also impact in a very negative way the other smaller shows that are held there year round which bring business into my shop. I think the city has cut its own balls off in spite of itself, they don't see the revenue that these shows bring into the community... but that is not the point of this post. We all know how I feel about this stinking city.

What can YOU do? Have you asked yourself what YOU can do about the current state of the economy? YOU are helpless, YOU can play a major role in the recovery of YOUR community. You might even save a small independent business or two while you're at it.
Pick 3. Spend 50. Save your local economy. . . . . .
(1) Pick 3 independently owned local businesses to actively support through purchases. Those transactions are what keep small business IN business, after all;
(2) If half the employed U.S. population spent just $50 each month with independently owned local businesses, more than $42.6 billion would be generated annually. Imagine what would be possible if 3/4 of the population did that;
(3) For every $100 spent in independently owned local businesses, $68 returns to the local economy, as opposed to only $43 from purchases made in chains, big boxes, and franchises. Purchases made online bring nothing home. . . . . .

The 3/50 Project is all about positive momentum, building consumer loyalty to independent, locally owned businesses through plain talk and voiced appreciation while simultaneously building their local economies. . . .

http://www.the350project.net/

YOU can make a community-changing decision the next time you pop out to do a little shopping. Drive or walk right past the big box stores and seek out a locally owned small business. You might be very surprised at the prices you find as well as the quality of wares they have for sale.

In the end we will all benefit.

Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays & The Merriest of Days

2009-12-24T12:22:00.000-06:00

I hope that each of you has the very best Christmas or whatever holiday you celebrate.

Enjoy your family, friends and loved ones, tell them that you love them.

Be safe, happy and healthy.

From the staff and family at My Granny's Attic Antiques to you. We wish you the very best that life has to offer at this special time of year.

It Was A Good Day

2009-11-28T19:06:00.000-06:00

It was a good day to be me.... an antique dealer that is. Tired, yes; weary, just a little, but it was just one of those days filled with good customer's, good friends, lots of laughter and a shop filled with boxes loaded with new and exciting incoming consignments.

Bruce Rodgers with Discover Mid-America came in to drop off the latest publication, it is always a pleasure to see him. Be sure to read their blog - http://www.discovermid-america.blogspot.com/

A customer came in to show me the beautiful brass National cash register that he purchased for next to nothing. I simply love when people get excited about a purchase and are kind enough to share it with me.

A gentleman was in purchasing items for his lovely wife "because he knew that she would enjoy looking at them." The items are not a Christmas present they were a "just because" gift and those are the best kind.

A dad came in with a terrific idea for a collection of small gifts for his daughter and I am going to do the very best that I can to help him pull it all together.

Everyone was laughing or smiling today, good moods abounded. I love seeing customer's sitting in the living room sharing their antique and collecting stories it adds to the homey, comfortable feel of the shop.

One of the consignments I took in today contains a few items made by local artists from artifacts and finds from New Orleans post Katrina... they are pretty cool. There are also so shabby chic or country items in the lot.

Another consignment and one I cannot wait to start pricing and getting on the floor contains loads of wonderful Victorian items as well as antique kitchen ware, antique lighting, a National cash register (not brass) but pretty awesome anyway, and much more.

Yes, it was a good day.

The Holiday Season Is Here, Where Have I Been...

2009-11-09T21:42:00.000-06:00

This year has flown by. I just can't believe that we are getting ready to decorate the antique shop for the holidays.

I think part of my problem is that we did not have a real summer. Oh sure the temp got up into the 90s for a week or so here and there but I LOVE a good hot summer that is what makes one look forward to the cooler days of fall and the approaching winter.

What ever the reason tis now the season and boy do we have some wonderful items coming into the shop for you.

Don't just think "new" this holiday season. Give a gift that has already stood the test of time and one that will have special meaning to the receipient. We are always willing to wiggle a little on prices and if you rush in and sign-up for our mailing list you will be invited to the holiday preview to get the goodies before everyone else.

The countdown begins.

What's Going On At The Antique Shop?

2009-10-18T14:43:00.000-05:00

We have dealer space available for anyone in the area interested in renting space. Selling the antiques and collectibles, refurbished shabby chic or country cottage created pieces is a great way to generate some extra income. My rent is the best you will find in the area and I don't tack on any additional fees or percentages. Some of the shops charge anywhere from 5% to 20% on top of the monthly booth rental fee for a wide variety of things such as tags and labels, credit card fees, bags and protective wrappings, tape, cleaning, etc. I have heard of some pretty wild extra charges that shop owner's are placing on their dealer's.

Anyone who knows me or has been in the shop will tell you that I am very particular about what I allow to be sold in the antique shop. I want quality, ready to use items but I am open to anything. I believe that there is a buyer for just about everything we put out for sale. For the items that don't meet my "quality control" standards there is the option of placing your items in our monthly BASEMENT SALE.... that's right, we have moved our parking lot sale to the basement so that we can have special sales throughout the winter months.

The new antique shop website is finally just weeks away from going live. This has been a 2 year struggle for me to get the new site developed and functioning. I have given away quite a bit of money to people who claim to be able to give me what I want but in the end don't deliver.

Items from the store will be available for purchase on the website, this includes consignments and dealer stock. I am really excited about this and can't wait to get the new site up and running.

Don't forget, we take items on consignment and have the best prices you will find on quality antique furniture, vintage furniture, giftware and new items. If I don't have it in stock I can probably find it for you through our extensive network of dealer's and consignor's.

I am very excited about several items we have recently taken in on consignment; a 1920's bedroom set including a bachelor's chest, a coverlet dated 1852 from PA which includes the name of the weaver and the person it was made for, a beautiful antique chaise lounge chair that has been beautifully recovered, a 1800s girls sampler, vintage Hummel figurines and many more wonderful items.

We are holding a class in November on how to determine the value of your antiques and collectibles. The class will cover resources available and professional's that you can turn to. We still have our free antique reference library in the shop which is available for use during normal business hours.

Speaking of business hours, I will soon have the shop open on Sunday afternoons and our days off will switch to Monday and Tuesday. I have to be closed sometime to keep up with my online sales and shipping.

Please stop by or call if you are interested in renting space. I look forward to meeting you.

My Antique Shop and the Ghosts Within

2009-08-21T22:11:00.000-05:00

I have come out of the closet about the "living history", spirits or ghosts that live in my wonderful, now 1 year-old antique shop.

If you would like to read a recent newspaper story, albeit not entirely accurate, you can do so on this website - http://sunpublications.com/200907222512/news/haunted-house-eery-things-are-happening-ghost-hunters-confirm.html and yes that is me in the pink shirt who looks like she is about to fly away.

If you would like to hear some of what they have to say you can do so on this site - www.mygrannysatticantiques.com/evps/ be sure to turn your computer speakers up loud and listen closely.

Soon to come to the shop, after we work out a few glitches, is a Victorian Dress-up Parlor for little girls and a tea room.

I would love to hear what you think about all of this. I was a healthy skeptic about these types of things until I opened the shop and started spending most of my waking hours there.

Have fun and please stop by whenever you are in the area.

Here is the group that has come out to the shop and performed 2 different investigations. They captured the EVPs or voices on tape that I have linked to as well as the most recent EVPs or voices on tape that I have yet to post. Paul, Michelle and their team are great people to work with, they have been sweet enough to allow me to stay on both investigations and I did rather well thank you very much. Link to Missouri Paranormal Research - facebook: http://www.facebook.com/home.php?ref=home#/profile.php?id=100000141578156&ref=ts myspace: http://www.myspace.com/mopararesearch

Haunted Antique Shop, Cliche but Mine Is

2009-07-30T22:17:00.001-05:00

It is official and I have gone public with the fact that my lovely, wonderful Lenexa, Kansas antique shop has what I refer to as "living history" aka ghosts or spirits. You can now read about some of my experiences in the shop - Haunted Antique Shop Lenexa, Kansas

It was difficult for me to finally accept and admit what I had been seeing, hearing and feeling for almost a year now was real. I had too many people having experiences in the shop for me to simply ignore what I knew to be true.

There are not scary, jump out and say "boo" spirits they are gentle, playful and at times very noisy energies that for whatever reason have decided to stay in the shop (formerly a home built in the early 1900's) either because they lived there and love it or are just hanging around for the heck of it.

You see this type of thing on TV and never think that it will affect you, bully to that. Thank goodness I have been documenting almost everything that has happened from day one and now have hardcore evidence to prove it.

If you are interested in hearing some of the spirits that inhabit my shop you can do so at - www.mygrannysatticantiques.com/evps you need to turn your speakers up full blast or put on headphones to hear what is being said. I have new evps to post from a recent investigation by the same group that caught these.

I have never been afraid of the occurrences nor have I felt threatened. I have come to be fairly protective of the spirits that reside in my shop to the point of having a few toys out for the children to play with. I have learned what they like and dislike such as me vacuuming the floor is not a favorite activity especially for the children.

So if you are ever in my neck of the woods drop by and say hi to us all.

The location of my antique shop

2009-06-07T15:41:00.000-05:00

In response to a comment I received concerning the location of my antique shop and where one might find other Kansas antique shop listings;

Mike, I look forward to seeing you. I am located in a suburb of Kansas City
our town is Lenexa aka Shawnee Mission. The address is 9230 Pflumm Rd Lenexa, Kansas 66215

As for a website with other antique shops in Kansas I am not aware of one but I have a free publication in the shop "Discover Mid-America" and it lists quite a few antique shops. Each region of
the U.S. should have a version of this newspaper which is free to the public and
can be found in most antique shops.

Thank you for visiting, Michelle

Neat-o Site I Found

2009-06-05T15:34:00.000-05:00

I just came across a pair of Hall-Mack mermaid towel holders, they are wonderful in their goldtone glory.

Then I came across this website and highly recommend that you take a gander if you are into the 1950's retro movement - http://retrorenovation.com/

When I get some batteries I will post these towel holders for all to behold.... and yes they are for sale.

Parking Lot Sale Season Starts at the Antique Shop

2009-05-18T12:35:00.000-05:00

We have started our parking lot sales at the shop. We have items from the store, furniture that needs some TLC as well as good usable furniture and much more.

Many of the dealer's and consignor's from the shop participate and it is also open to the community to bring their stuff and a table and set up shop. There is a $5 fee for setting up but it is well worth it. We get a lot of traffic and have a great time.

The June sale is on the 13th from 10 am to 4 pm. The sale is in the shop parking lot behind the building so you need to park across the street.

If you are interested please call and reserve a space or just come on down and find some great bargains.

You never know what you will find!

I still have room in the store for dealer booth rental. I am looking for antiques, collectibles and quality crafts.

We are in the process of opening up the basement where you can find bargains on items, mainly furniture that need a coat of paint or refinishing and other items that need small repairs or just don't meet my QC for wares in the shop.

Classes start this week at my antique shop in Lenexa, Kansas

2009-01-18T17:16:00.001-06:00

This week we kick off our monthly classes at the antique shop.

Thursday January 22 at 7 pm. we will make an altered art valentines day card using vintage graphics that I have.

If you are interested in attending please call and let us know so that we know how many kits to make. The fee is $6.00 for supplies.

913-825-1938

All classes will be on the 4th Thursday of the month at 7 pm.

Next month we will make a memory pillow.

The antique shop address is 9230 Pflumm Road in Old Town Lenexa, Kansas. Parking is behind the store.

Happy Holidays To You All

2008-12-21T13:46:00.000-06:00

Happy Holidays to all who take the time to visit and read my rambling blog.

May next year bring us jobs, a better economy, health and happiness.

From my family to yours,
Michelle

P.S. Starting tomorrow.... Dec. 22 all holidays items in the live antique shop are 10% off.

9230 Pflumm Rd. Lenexa, KS

We Have Been Open 5 Weeks and I Love the Feedback

2008-10-26T12:11:00.000-05:00

The shop has been open for 5 weeks now and the feedback has been amazing.

"It looks like Grandma's house" and I guess it would since the house/shop was built in 1920 and still retains the original woodwork, pocket doors, inset glass front cabinets and hardwood floors. The kitchen, even though it has been redone in white formica still has the original pantry lined in bead board. I put shelves in the bead board lined broom closet and use it for display too.

We held our first free appraisal clinic last week and it was a huge success even though the weather was a bit nasty.

Our November class will be "How to sell online" I don't have date set as of yet but will get that decided on next week. Of course this is free to the public.

Yesterday I finished my candy counter with a few of the popular yummy candies and of course Double Bubble Bubble Gum. I will soon be adding a "fudge of the week" which will be a speciallty fudge made by a local candy maker. I will have only one pan of fudge and it will be available until sold out then you have to wait until the next week for a new flavor. I also have sunflower seeds, trail mix, chips and biscotti.

New inventory for last week includes Victorian antiques and English antiques. As soon as my new website is up I will be adding some of these items for purchase online.

Next week we will start bringing out the Christmas items and begin our holiday decorating. I can't wait to work on my windows for the holidays. The store will be amazing. We have a Dept. 56 Santa's Village which will be on display and also for sale. It will be stunning.

I promise to get photos of the shop uploaded next week, they are at the shop on the shop computer.

My Live Antique Shop is Now Open in Lenexa, Kansas

2008-10-12T22:09:00.000-05:00

We are located at 9230 Pflumm Road in Lenexa, Kansas। I will post some photos soon, they are on my computer at the store. I still have dealer space available but it is going quickly, I accept consignments in the shop especially that of local artists, I would love to have some folk art pieces or handcrafted furniture pieces. Yet I am open to seeing what you have.

On Oct। 18 we are having a "community garage sale" in the shed behind the shop. Many people are bringing items to sell. We will also be recruiting members for FOOT or Friends of Old Town. On Oct. 23rd. I am doing a free appraisal clinic at the shop from 7-8:30 pm. Additional classes and community activities will be on a signboard in front of the store and here on my blog. We are working with a group of families who have kids and adult children with special needs and hopefully our first project will be creating beautiful Christmas ornaments that will be for sale in the shop.

I welcome any group who needs a place to meet in the evenings or Sunday to my shop। I want to give back to the community and this is just another way I can do that.

Oh my gosh what an adventure this has been। Many late nights getting inventory cleaned and priced. Obsessing over the way furniture and display fixtures were placed. Ironing aprons, doilies, table linens, cleaning windows, cleaning up from the road construction and the dust created from that, cleaning up from the leaking roof.... and on and on. I loved every moment of it and it has been very well worth the time spent.

I still have SO much more inventory to bring into the shop. My consignments have been wonderful from a Tom Seely sleigh bed to Bart the stuffed bear (he is pretty fabulous).
I kept somewhat of a journal about my experience of the month and a half it took for me to get to the point I was ready to open the doors and will work on getting that posted along with photos of the store।

My website is still being redesigned but I have found a terrific young man who is doing an amazing job and I hope to have the new site online in November with loads of new inventory.

We Are Opening A Live Store In the KC Metro Area

2008-07-13T20:32:00.000-05:00

My Granny's Attic Antiques and Collectibles is going LIVE.... if you live in the Johnson County Kansas area and are looking to rent "booth" space please contact me.

This is not going to be your traditional antique mall with partitioned off sections, garage sale stuff and oodles of trashy crafts. Our shop will be set up much as a department store with your kitchen section, tableware, textiles, bathroom and vanity, etc.

I have a relatively new line of clothing Muze Clothes that we will carry as well as items from Funky People. Wonderful scented soaps and lotions and much more.

We will have a "recycle center" an area with used, not vintage, clothing, good used small electronics and furniture items.

There will be an antique resource library where you can come in and research you antiques and collectible using our resource books and once or twice a month we will hold classes on a particular topic relating to antiques and memorabilia.

I am also hoping that we will be able to lure unknown artist's in to sell their works especially outsider art or tramp art. I have always wanted an outsider art gallery.... this might be it.

I go into this with very mixed emotions. I am finally expanding my business and getting my inventory out of my home, I will be able to reclaim some of my space at home. But after working at home for 8 years it will be difficult to get up and go to work everyday.

The online shop will of course still be around.

If you are ever in this neck of the woods please drop by. The address will be here on the blog as well as the website.

Read an Interview That I Did....Interview With An Antique Dealer

2008-06-22T21:27:00.000-05:00

Nancy has several great websites and blogs.

She recently interviewed me on what it is like being an antique dealer. As usual I tell it like it is and be sure to read some of the other interviews she has done.

I Will No Longer Make Referrals To Craigslist To Sell Items

2008-02-03T02:11:00.000-06:00

The other day I was trying to post a few items to craigslist and as soon as I would get them posted they would get "flagged" taken off of the list. This continued, even after I changed wording, read all of the TOS, Terms of Use, etc.

I ran this through their forum and after being treated rather rudely, I started looking at some of the listing and noted that the same people tend to have numerous listings on the craisglist site.

There is no policing of who is flagged and who isn't. If your post is flagged it is removed... no questioned asked and it is the user's that do the flagging.

For many years I have recommended this as a site to sell your antiques, collectibles and memorabilia items but no longer. I do not recomment using this forum, it has a Gestapo feel and I think that the time has come for it to dissappear.

I am in the process of creating a venue for people to sell antiques, collectibles and memorabilia for a very small fee. I will be the only "monitor" and it will be a fair and respectable place to do business.

I expect to have it up and running in a couple of weeks.

My online antique shop site shoots craps during the holiday season

2007-12-10T22:14:00.000-06:00

I am so upset over the fact that my website is not fully functioning at the busiest time of year.

It started out 5 months ago as a simple redesign of the website and has turned into a complete mess that I am being billed for.

My side menu is gone... where, I don't know but I cannot get it to reappear. I have not been able to add new inventory for all these months either.

So if you happen to need something for the holidays please email me and I will see if I have it in stock.

I apologize for any inconvenience this has caused any of my regular customers.

What Is Up With the Postal Rate Increase?

2007-05-18T13:17:00.000-05:00

I realize that prices go up. I mean we are paying almost $4.00 for a gallon of gas. Thank goodness I work from home and a tank of gas will last me about a month.

But this Post Office rate increase is horrible if you ship packages. They are doing what UPS, Fed Ex and DHL have always done, charge by volume instead of weight. But they have gone overboard with it. A package that used to cost me $7.00 to ship through USPS now is double that amount plus insurance. At least with the other guys they cover you for $100 in insurance.

I raised the rates on my website when the postage rates went up but I think I am going to lower them back to the old rate and ship through DHL instead. I will also implement free shipping with a certain dollar amount purchase, I have not decided yet what that will be. It isn't fair to my customer's to have to pay such a HUGE shipping cost.

It will be interesting to see if the Post Office looses any shipping business or if they will increase their services.

Seven experts say objects not genuine antiquities - News

2007-04-29T16:01:00.000-05:00

Seven experts say objects not genuine antiquities

This is in reference to the Tseng Family Collection of Chinese Antiquities in the Oviatt Library at California State University, Northridge.

What a shame, who got scammed was it the family who owned these items or the library? This just goes to show you must do your research before you make a large purchase.

What Is An Antique Dealer To Do?

2007-04-23T22:28:00.000-05:00

Where does my responsibility as an online antique dealer end and the responsibility of the customer begin?

I have been selling through my own online shop for 7 years, prior to that I had an antique store and sold on eBay. I loved the customer interaction with the store life got in the way and we had to close it. Selling on eBay became a huge problem just because of the way eBay is going.

I have learned many lessons selling through my own website but for the most part the customer's have been amazing and I have had very few problems.

When I first started the website I automatically tacked on the cost for insurance, this was a carry-over from my eBay days, but I had quite a few complaints from customer's so I made purchasing insurance an option. On occasion if I was shipping something really fragile I would go ahead and pay for the insurance out of my pocket just to be on the safe side and there were a few times where this was a good thing.

UPS owes me a few hundred dollars for items I insured that got demolished in transit and they did not make good on the insurance I purchased but that is just their way.

But what do I do if someone makes a substantial purchase on a non-fragile item and then says it has not been delivered to them, yet the Post Office shows that the item was delivered? What is my responsibility in this situation? They opted to not purchase insurance on the item and I have proof of delivery.

If you live in a neighborhood where packages are apt to get stolen from your doorstep then I recommend you purchase insurance on purchases. As a seller I cannot know what your neighborhood is like. Or do like many of my customer's and have the packaged delivered to you at work.

I really need some help on this because I do not know what to do. Am I being scammed? It has happened to me before. I appreciate all input on this situation.

Create an inventory of your antiques, collectibles and memorabilia FREE

2007-04-06T22:00:00.000-05:00

It is very important to catalog your antiques, collectibles and memorabilia. As well as anything that you own of value or items that, in the event of a disaster, you might be called upon to itemize.

Believe me, in the heat of the moment, it is difficult to remember what you owned much less how much you paid for it.

You can now use this free program on my antique shop site to catalog you items room by room. You can then either print it out or store it on your computer and as you acquire new items you can upload the list to this program and add to it.

This was provided by an insurance group who is no longer around and I have been looking for this software for quite sometime.

So please feel free to visit this page on my shop site and start getting your items listed.

There are no strings attached, I promise but feel free to shop after you get your goods listed.

Create an inventory of your antiques, collectibles and memorabilia FREE"

Good Auction Season is Here

2007-03-29T23:03:00.000-05:00

There are auctions year-round but the warm weather brings out the terrific auctions. I'm talking about the all day, stand in the sun out in a field, pee behind a bush auction. NO BUYER'S PREMIUM auctions.

I find some of my best items at auctions that last all day, if it is raining the deals are even better.

We also take more buying trips during the warm weather and you never know what you are going to stumble upon when you are out and about.

You might consider just taking a short day trip to some town near you and pick up a local paper to see if there are any auctions or sales that sound promising. It might prove to be well worth you time and effort.

I always come back more relaxed and ready to tackle the chores that are waiting at home for me.

How the Find the Value of Your Antiques, Collectibles and Memorabilia

2007-02-18T13:44:00.001-06:00

So you have decided which method you will use to sell your antiques and collectibles now you just need to determine the value of the pieces. I have quite a few resources on my website that you can use to find the value but I will also give you some tips below.

If you want the value to insure an item I recommend getting a written appraisal. This way if you do need to make a claim on this item you already have the appraisal in place. If you want to find the sale price of an item then you will need to do some research.

Get our and visit some antique shops and see what the same or similar items are selling for in your area. This is especially helpful if you are planning on selling through the local newspaper.

If you are going to sell your wares online you need to research what you have so that you can write a good description of the item. There are books on just about every type of antique and collectible so your first stop should be the local library or large chain bookstore.

Once you know what you have you can then look online and see what others are selling the same or similar items for. If you are going to sell your wares on eBay look and see what it is selling for there. Don’t look at what folks are asking for a particular item, look at the closed auctions and see what prices the item has brought in the recent past. Some of the large live auction houses will post their closed auction prices. These prices include the buyer’s premium which is a cost the auction house charges the buyer on top of the closing auction price. The buyer’s premiums have gotten out of control and some houses charge as much as 40%

You can always look in published price guides to get a “guide” on what something might bring but remember that price guides are simply that…. Guides to prices. This is often referred to as “book value.” I am a tad cynical about book values and feel that price guides are simply a means of running the price up on a particular line of antiques and collectibles.

How to Sell Your Antiques, Collectibles and Memorabilia

2007-02-18T13:44:00.000-06:00

I get at least 20 requests a day from folks looking to sell their antiques, collectibles, memorabilia and assorted other items. They are usually asking me to purchase these items, and on a very rare occasion I have purchased from such solicited requests, but for the most part I do not.

Why, you may ask.

The request is not accompanied with a selling price, including shipping. It is not my place to make an offer on these items. The seller needs to know how much they want.
Those that do come with a selling price as asking me to pay the retail price for the item. This is not feasible. I pay wholesale otherwise I cannot make a profit. This is my business, how I pay bills, and if I cannot make a profit I might as well just hang it up. If I am selling an item for $12.00 I cannot pay $12.00 plus shipping for the same or similar items. This is not good business sense.
The last time I made a purchase, sight unseen other than the submitted photos, when I received the set of dinnerware most of it was chipped and broken. I had repeatedly asked the seller about flaws and she adamantly claimed there were none. Therefore, most of the dinnerware was unsellable and I lost quite a bit of money on the deal.
Finally, I love to go to auctions and sales to purchase wares for my online antique shop and buying blindly does not afford me this opportunity.

So, what is the best way to get the maximum for your antiques, collectibles and memorabilia?

Selling through your hometown newspaper is still the best place to start, run a classified ad. Place your ad so that it will run for at least one Sunday and I will almost guarantee that it will sell. You will still need to do your homework to find out what the best price is but this method will bring you the most money for your item. Cost – about $25.00 for a good ad running for one week.

Most areas have at least one consignment shop that sells a little bit of everything. Where I live we have several and I sell antique furniture through one with great success. They do charge 50% but I am able to set the price that I want to get and whether or not I will take less on the item. Most of the shops take in small items as well as large furniture pieces. Be sure to read the contract that you sign, and if they don’t have a contract ask for something in writing specifying the percentage that they take. Just look in the phone book for Consignment Stores or Shops. Cost – 40% - 50% of the sale price.

Live auction houses are a good way to sell items especially if you have something of significant value. Auction houses often hold auctions in one particular category of antique or collectible these are heavily advertised so that they bring in bidder’s that are interested in the collection. They also have auctions with a hodge podge of goodies. Some towns have local weekly auctions, these are fun to sell at as well as attend. Some will allow you to set a reserve but you then run the risk of the item not selling. There is no way of knowing what your item will bring at auction but if you are just looking to get rid of a houseful of items this is a great way to do just that. Cost – 10% - 40%.

eBay stores are a growing small business opportunity and most areas have someone who will sell your items on eBay. You simply drop the item off and they take care of writing the description, taking the photos, packing and shipping. When your item is sold they mail you a check. Once again, be sure that you understand the fees involved. Some places charge a per item fee as well as an end of sale percentage. Be sure that you have these fees in writing before you leave your items with the business. You can set a reserve price, this is the minimum amount that you will take for the item or you can just take your chances on the eBay Gods and let fate take control. eBay is a fickle selling venue and you can never be sure what an item will bring or even if it will sell. Costs – varies from business to business.

Sell the item yourself on one of the online auction sites. It is not difficult to do but you do need a digital camera to get photos of your item posted with your auction. You need to write a very detailed description, including all flaws and defects but highlight the wonderful characteristics of your wares. Take good quality photos. Remember, shoppers cannot touch the item you are selling so you need to allow them to “touch” it through your photos and words. Cost – about 12% of the selling price in auction fees.

You can sell your items through an online antiques and collectibles shop through consignment or direct posting. I offer an online consignment where for a small fee you send me photos and a description, I post the item to my website and you take care of customer relations and getting the item to the consumer. I have several regular sellers’ using this method on my antique shop site. I have been offering this service for 4 years and have noticed more and more online shops starting to offer the same service. Just be sure that the shop you pick is established and not going anywhere once you get your items online and have paid the fee. Cost - $5.00 - $10.00 per item.

Online classified ads such as Craig’s List. The service is free and you can advertise it in your local area. I am not sure how many people actually make purchases through this venue but it is similar to placing an ad in your newspaper. Live Deal is an online classified ad service with a small fee if your item sells.

As you can see there are a great number of methods to get rid of your items. Some require more effort on your part than others and some will bring you more money than others but choices abound.

I don’t recommend selling to a dealer unless they are actively soliciting for specific items and please always include a dollar amount when you do ask them to purchase your wares.

Next I will tell you how to find the value of your antiques, collectibles and memorabilia.

Antique Glassware

2007-01-28T01:26:00.000-06:00

If you are looking for information on Antique American Glassware please go to the new extension of my online antique shop, the antique and information center.

I just added several articles on Antique American glassware companies and several types of glass ware made in America. I will be adding more as time permits.

Good Antique, Collectible and Memorabilia Shopping This Week

2007-01-28T01:11:00.000-06:00

I have a great week of shopping for items for the shop. Over the next few days I have about 8 boxes and 5 or 6 bags filled with goodies to get ready to post online.

Also, when I went to the doctor on Wed. to make sure that my pneumonia was cleared up my Dr. of 15 years, gave me some antique and vintage medical books to sell for her. These books belonged to her grandmother and when Dr. F. started medical school she gave the books to her. They all pertain to sex. One of the books is dated in the late 1800s and the other two are from the 1940s. One is all about sex and the married couple.

She also included "Margaret Mays Twelfth Birthday", it is a little booklet from Kotex dated in the 1930s or 1940s (I don't have the books in here with me.) Girls, you know what this little book is about. It will not be for sale, I am going to frame it for her but only after I make a copy for myself.

I purchased several vintage composition dolls, one is a Madame Alexander Baby McGuffey. I also have Tubsey and Cheerful Tearful. I have quite a few pieces of vintage glassware from the 1950s such as large glass bowls for potato chips, I have a porcelain poker chip bucket, 8 Anchor Hocking Nautical themed drinking glasses and scads of other items.

I purchased some new reproduction colored aluminum drinking tumblers in a carrying basket, I have the pitchers and ice cream dishes that match. I love these.. I still have my Granny's vintage colored aluminum glasses that we use all the time. that is why I could not pass these up.

Be sure to check into the shop often, as I am always adding new items. Also the vintage hats will be posted this week. I finally got all of the photos and descriptions written. These are vintage hats that I have taken on consignment and I can't wait for you to see them.

I Survived Another Holdiay Season in the Antique Retail Business

2006-12-29T21:33:00.001-06:00

I love the hustle and bustle of the holiday shopping season. It can get a tad hectic when you are the retail store and all of your seasonal help has grown up and have "real" jobs with "nicer" bosses. But we survived and I think that everyone got their gifts in time for Christmas.... I haven't heard otherwise.

The vast majority of folks are amazing to work with and my regular customer's know that I will do whatever it takes to get their orders to them as quickly as possible. 6 trips to the Post Office a day was the norm there for a few days and I even went looking for a few special gift items for some customer's.

Each year there seems to be at least one person that is just insane... there is no other way to put it. They are rude, crude, out of control, insane.

This year a family had me send a gift to a woman. They did not want to pay to have it gift wrapped just a little note that it was from them with love. It was a $12 copper colored aluminum mold.

I wrapped it first in white tissue (I do this on all items) bubble wrap and then I wrapped it in a festive decorative paper. I attached a pretty card with the requested text in it. Packed it carefully and mailed it to the recipient.

Well, the next week I checked my email and there was one of the nastiest emails I have ever seen from this gift recipient. The mold is cheap looking, the wrapping looks like I took it out of the trash and I am an idiot.

I am pretty heavily medicated on cough medicine and Benadryl due to some nasty bug I had picked up so I decided that I really didn't want to deal with this wacko. I contacted the folks that bought the item and sent them the email. I asked them what they wanted me to do about it.

Later in the day I have 5 more emails from angry lady and no response from the customer. I decided I had better say something to her and told her that I would refund the full price plus shipping - TO THE PEOPLE THAT PAID FOR IT, but I needed my mold back ... in the same condition as when it was mailed to her. She responds that she is not going to do anything for me and that includes send the mold back.

I just took another swig of cough medicine and went back to bed.

What do you do with people like this? Obviously her family bought her a token gift, I have some beautiful copper molds on my website and they picked the least expensive one for her. Also, I was taught that it is the thought and not the gift so just accept it graciously and either re-gift it later or donate it to a charity.

When I opened my email the next day, there were at least 15 more emails from this loony toon. She was making personal attacks on me at this point and I was angry. She is the kind of person that will say these things in an impersonal forum such as email but I bet you dollars to donuts she would not make statements such as this to my face. She is a bitter, angry, no self-esteem, rude person.

I contacted DHL to see if they could pick the package up and send it back to me, sure they would but the nasty lady would not cooperate, she would not even sit the mold on her front porch for them to pick-up.

The end result was, I refunded the buyer all of his money while his mother stole my mold. I did tell her son that he needs to ask her to donate it to a charity so that someone who would appreciate it could have it.

Later I began thinking... this might be a scam. Person #1 buys a gift for person #2, #2 hates it and goes through the above process until the seller just gives in (like I did) and lets them keep the item and they get their money back.

In this case we are not talking about anything worth much money but it is the principal and it could evolve into "keeping" wares that are valuable. Legally I did not have to refund the money until I had the item in my possession, I was just too sick to fight them on it but be aware of situations such as this especially if the recipient is in North Carolina.

I also believe in Karma, so what this woman did and said WILL come back to her threefold.

Watch for a redo of my online antique shop site

2006-12-29T21:33:00.000-06:00

The new year will bring a new look for the antique shop site. Be sure to check in for all of the changes.

Speaking of eBay

2006-11-05T13:56:00.000-06:00

A very good friend of my oldest daughter recently purchased on eBay for the first time. She and her significant other hand blow amazing glassware items and found a piece of equipment they needed at a great price. Isn't this what eBay is all about.

She won the auction and the seller would only accept checks.... so they paid by check, over $1,500. 2 weeks pass and no item so she contacts the seller and was informed that "she had to order the equipment."

3 weeks later she receives notification that the equipment came with additional parts and the price would be more. Our friend argued that they already had the other parts and did not need those, only the equipment originally bid on and paid for.

The seller then files a non-payment claim with eBay!!!! So B. sent the crazy loon seller the extra money for the parts she doesn't need.

The item and all parts finally arrive over a month later yet the non-payment claim is still appearing. B finds a phone number for eBay and a human (wonder of wonders) sends them a photo along with all email correspondence and they remove the non-payment claim. But the seller has left her bad feedback.

It appears to me that the seller is running an extortion racket and not only should be banned from eBay but have criminal charges filed against them.

Granted, B should never have bid on this item for this amount of money with the seller not accepting Paypal or a credit card. To me this just reeks of scam or shady dealings.

Our friend B. is turning all contact information over to me for me to get involved in this matter and I do plan on contacting the authorities.

I think that I might just start my Wall of Shame with this jerk. Anyone that would take advantage in such a way needs to be shut down atleast temporarily. I abhor people that take advantage of others.

Karma comes back on you threefold........

eBay and Non-Payors.... I have had it

2006-11-05T13:42:00.000-06:00

I have been buying and selling on eBay for 10 years. Granted, in the past 5 years or so I do more buying than selling because it is generally less of a hassle and because I have my online antique shop. Yet, recently I listed a few items of teen clothing and children's VHS tapes that I had picked up for my teenage daughter and grandaughter. I also listed a few items I had not posted in the shop such as an Eric Clapton store display and some sports items.

Of course, the teen hated the clothes and the wee one had the tapes already.

Several items of clothing sold and one of the Magic School Bus tapes as did some of the antique things. Everyone paid or atleast made contact with me that they were going to send payment, which they have all done.... except for one person.

I have got more "Terms and Conditions" on my auctions than you would believe. One of which is, "by bidding on this item you are entering into a contract to buy this item if you are the winning bidder."

Well, little Miss 13 feedback has decided that she just isn't going to pay for her $4.00 name brand shirt. She is going to break this contract.I, on the other hand will have to pay eBay because of her decision. It will cost me about $2.89. In the grand scheme of things this is not a lot of money but at this point it is the principal. Everytime I put items up for auction I have atleast 1 person that doesn't pay for their item so I eat their violation of the TOS.

This time I have decided that I will send the violator a bill everyday through Paypal. Each day I will add 28% interest to the amount. Her only option will be to change her email address. I will leave negative feedback on eBay for her and I will file the non-payor claim ... which means crapola.

I am also going to change my future auctions so that no one with feedback under 25 can bid on my auctions. It seems that only those with a low feedback score tend to not pay for their auctions. At this point in time I don't see eBay auctions in my future.

I only hope that I don't end up being the one that gets in trouble for this but she has broken a contract with me and I am doing what I can to recoup damages and expenses.

I am also going to create an online auction function on my website. I will be no competition for eBay but it will make me feel better. Non-payors will have their names, email addresses and other personal information posted for all to see.... just like retailer's post returned checks.

If you can't play by the rules, then don't play at all.

Memories....

2006-11-02T00:29:00.000-06:00

You have got to read some of the memories of heirlooms and childhood that have been submitted by visitor's and customer's to my antique shop website.

We are slow in getting started but I LOVE the few comments that have been contributed.

Please take a moment and visit and please submit a comment with your favorite memory of growing up, your Granny's favorite perfume, Sunday supper, the bowl that was always used for mashed potatoes or fruit salad... whatever it is. It gives you a good feeling to think back and reflect on these wonderful memories.

Antique Memories

Vintage Hats and Ties... Coming to my Antique Shop

2006-10-27T09:58:00.000-05:00

I am so excited about this consignment that I just took in. Vintage hats, in the original hat boxes, or atleast most of them are in their original hat boxes.

The man I am selling them for, his 83 year-old mother recently passed away and she was a hat lady. When I went to his garage sale I noticed a mink trimmed hat that he was selling for $3.00. I offered him my card and told him that any hats he did not sell, I would be more than happy to sell for him.

He asked me what I thought they were worth and when I told him... he pulled them all from the sale. This past Wednesday he brought them over to me and it looks like there are about 40 hats, he sold about that many at $3.00.

I guess that I could have taken advantage of his lack of knowledge of the price of vintage hats... like atleast 1 dealer that I know of had already done. But there was just a little voice inside me that day that lured me in another direction.

When he came over the other day to drop the hats off, he said that the dealer came back to buy the rest of the hats and when he told them that he was putting them on consignment with someone she became rather beligerent and said something to the effect that he would probably get ripped off by the person doing the consignment, you can't trust those people. He said that his reply to her was that he doubted that because I had been honest about the true price of the hats in the first place and didn't just swoop in and buy them all up.

Most of the time I just go on about my business and purchase items for myself or that I can resell without a second thought as to what price might be on them. But there were just so many of the hats, he also had a full length leather coat and a tea length black mink coat, and I just did what I felt was appropriate for the situation. Right or wrong.

I just can't wait to get into these vintage hats and get started putting them in inventory. Red and purple seem to have been her favorite colors, so all of you Red Hat Ladies... you need to keep and eye on my shop over the next couple of weeks or email me to be notified when I get them posted.

Some of these old hats are pretty outlandish as well, which in my mind makes them all that more amazing. She is / was an African American lady and I can just visualize her wearing these.
We have camel hair, straw, satin, beads, feathers, felt, veiled and one that has a lampshade look to it.

Now to the vintage men's ties. I have had these vintage clip-on and regular ties for quite sometime and just never got around to getting them posted in the antique shop site but while I post the hats I will also get the ties listed as well.

I also have some faux suit pocket handkerchiefs. These folded satin hankies are attached to a piece of thin cardboard and you just slip that down into the pocket of you suit coat pocket. It looks like you have a perfectly folded hanky in your pocket. I have a variety of colors and styles.

I will be adding more vintage infant and children's clothes too.

Reproducing my vintage ephemera for scrapbooking

2006-10-23T19:37:00.000-05:00

A wonderful reader of my blog.... yea, I have one! Asked me for more details on the reproduction of the vintage paper pieces I have.

I do want to respond to the question of why I would reproduce it versus sell it as it is. I feel that some of the pieces I have might be either in very limited quantitites, such as the newspaper's, letterheads, magazines (especially the children's magazines for the 1800 and 1900s). I would rather reproduce these pieces in high quality scans and have those cut, glued and pasted than have the originals destroyed. One of these days, if a museum or other entity has any interest in the originals they can have them, but for the time being... they are mine, all mine.

I also have some amazing old photographs. I will be selling these but only after I reproduce them. I have been collecting these for over 20 years.

This is going to be one of my winter projects so look for these wonderful items in the Spring.

Compiling a Book of Blog Sites - Let me know if you want your site listed

2006-10-18T09:47:00.001-05:00

I am compiling a book of blog sites. It is in the final stages of being written and I have loads of sites but I want more.... I always want more.

If you would like to have your Blog considered for publication in this .... publication please email me or leave a comment and I will check out your Blog.

Current Categories Are:

Funny
Politics
Sad
Inner Beauty
Informative
Internet Related
Computer Related
War / Veterans (I might have to break this down into the different wars if I get enough for each
Music
Art
Poetry
Recipes
Medical
Decorating
Antiques and Collectibles
Hobbies
Gaming
Sports
Family Blogs - they must be great
Lifestyles
Religion
News
... Open to suggestions ....

Please be sure to give me a way to contact you and please don't submit a site that will not be maintained and will be offline in 6 months.

Thanks for your assistance on this, it will be fun.

New Shop Inventory & Coming Soon

2006-10-18T09:47:00.000-05:00

I have taken in some wonderful Homer Laughlin Dinnerware. A few of the pieces are considered hard to find such as the Orleans shape. I am slowly getting them put in the shop because I am desperatly trying to find all of the pattern names.

I also have several vintage cook books such as The Boston Cooking School Cook Book or Fannie Farmer Cook Book, 1930, a two volume set of cook books from the Culinary Institute and a multi-volume set of cook books from the same. These are just a few of the vintage and collectible cookbooks that I have to offer. I have so many of these that it will take awhile to get them listed but if there is something you are looking for please let me know.

Antique and vintage hats….. Next week I am taking in a consignement of vintage hats. These belonged to the 83 year-old mother of a gentleman. I went to his estate sale and noticed all of these wonderful hats for $3 each (one of them had a mink trim) I just couldn’t let him sell them for $3. I gave him my card and also the names of several ladies of sell vintage clothes but he called me yesteday and we will be meeting next week so that I can look them over more closely. The ones that I have seen are stunning. So if you are a hat person please keep an eye on the shop or email me to be notified when I have them all posted. I will also be selling her beautiful black mink coat.

As I was leaving the sale a woman approached me and asked why I didn’t buy them all for $3 and sell them myself. I guess I could have done that and it would not have been wrong… he did set the price. But why take advantage of someone and their lack of knowledge in a particular area? The consignment situation will be mutually beneficial.

In the Sports Category on my website I have a vintage fishing reel, hubby has gone through a few of his NASCAR collectibles and found a 1999 Chase Car collection. These are mint in the box and I think there are 12 Chase Cars. I will finish getting the antique and vintage baseball gloves listed in the next week or two. I also found a KC Royals child’s poncho still in the package that I will get posted and I have 2 suitcases full of ??? who know’s what but I think it is old Boy Scout stuff.

Vintage and collectible books are running out of my ears. I just can’t seem to get them all posted. So please let me know what you are looking for and I will see if I have it.

I have decided, after all these years to start buying wholesale items but I don’t want to purchase the usual stuff you see everywhere. I will be posting a poll on the antique forum to see what types of items you want to see in the shop.

I am getting more of the Raggedy Ann and Andy Nutcrackers. We sold out but are getting more. The company that makes these has come out with a new line of Inspirational collectible items, I haven’t seen them yet. But I am sure we will all love them.

I have more vintage sheet music sitting right beside me that I will be adding to the shop in the next couple of days.

One last thing, I have gobs of vintage ephemera that I will be creating high quality scans of for all of you scrapbookers. I have some very unique pieces. Including a couple of newspapers for the early 1900s and a large pattern book from the 1800s. I am getting it archivally photofinished but have to share this wonderful piece and since I don't want the original damaged or cut up I decided to reproduce it in a limited run. Email me if you want to purchase this when it is complete.

Be sure to browse the new items that have been added. Please excuse the mess, I am still trying to revamp the shop site.

Thank you for being so wonderful.

Slide show.... I guess it's not working

2006-09-13T22:02:00.000-05:00

Sorry about that, I must have coded something wrong. But you can see my full inventory on my website at www.mygrannysatticantiques.com.

I have about 20 boxs of inventory sitting in my dining room that I will be adding over the next couple of weeks and I also have antiques and memorabilia that I have purchased over the past 20 years that has been packed away and recently "uncovered", it to will be added to my online shop so that we can all begin our holiday shopping.

We have some great items, crocks, a vintage gum ball machine, vintage sheet music, books.... oh my gosh you would not believe the vintage books that I have, and so much more.

View a slideshow of some of my antique inventory

2006-09-04T20:49:00.000-05:00

RPM Backstamp on Antique Porcelain and China

2006-08-27T10:59:00.002-05:00

I have another update to the RPM porcelain mark, this is in our new Antiques and Collectibles Information Center. Hopefully this update will take care of any questions that should crop up about this backstamp.

It does indicate that one needs to closely evaluate the antique china piece in order to determine when it could have been created.

An old piece of china will show signs of wear whether it is utensil marks on the surface from years of eating from it or rough places on the rim from a plate hanger from being on display. The underside will also show signs of wear. Whereas a new piece will not have these age spots. You might have to get a magnifying glass out to really study the piece.

Antiques and Collectibles Information Center

2006-08-27T10:59:00.001-05:00

I am working on a new component to my antique shop website. It is the Antiques and Collectibles Information Center.

You can catch-up on the latest antique news via RSS feeds from several different sources. I will be posting vintage recipes, you can read articles covering a variety of antique, collectible and memorabilia topics such as Early American Pressed Glass, Kitchenware, etc.

This area is to educate and inform. My hope is to make you a more knowledgable collector. In this day and age of mass reproduction of so many antique items I believe this is very important to us all.

Be sure to drop by and let me know what you are interested in learning more about.

Here is a great article for us accumulators....

2006-07-21T08:35:00.000-05:00

I thought that this article was great. I have posted the link but I am also going to post some excerpts because I just can't stand it when you post a link to a website and the site goes away and you are left wondering "what was it all about."

I have always been called a "pack-rat" I guess that this is why I became an antique dealer, my accumulating had become out of control and in order to accumulate "new" items I needed an outlet to rid myself of the old.

I love what I do, I love the research and the history of each piece, but I also love the collecting and the shopping. I display and use my antiques and collectibles, very few items are behind glass or out of reach. I wouldn't have it any other way. But organization has never been one of my strong suits.

Anyway... back to the article

"Creative people's clutter needs to be organized too"
Sonja HallerThe Arizona RepublicOct. 6, 2005 12:00 AM

"A right-brainer likes to leave things out where they can see it," Silber said. "They're more comfortable juggling many things and flitting from one thing to another." Nakone says creative people fall into either the "harmonizing style" or "innovating style" of operation and organization. Harmonizers struggle to set limits and may lack focus and structure, while innovators have a hard time with follow-up and dealing with details.Both authors say the benchmark of when organized chaos becomes disorganized chaos is the point where creative people can't find what they need when they need it. The emphasis is on the word when, since right-brainers often claim they can find what they need, but not often in a timely manner. Thus, they are wasting their time, their employer's time and their family's time. Nakone cites a statistic that the average office employee spends the equivalent of six weeks a year looking for things. "

This article refers to a "piling not filing" system of keeping clutter in control... this is my method. My daughter's and He Who Lights Up My World tease me about my "piles" of stuff. My piles are neat and orderly stacks of items and I know what is in each and every one of them.

Here are some methods offered for staying organized:

Pile, don't file: Right-brainers loathe filing. So they shouldn't have to. They should, however, have a method to their madness: Pile by projects. All papers pertaining to the writing project piled in this location. All bills needing to be paid, piled here. Or pile by zones. All messages that I need to return are filed by the phone. All things that I don't want to forget to take with me are piled by the door. "Or if you work or live with an extreme left-brainer, find a clear container with a lid and pile everything in there," Silber said. "It's the same pile. It's just that now it's contained."
Set limits: Right-brainers don't want to spend precious time organizing, filing and sorting. That's OK, Silber says, but they still need a simple system to stay ahead of the paper avalanche and a left-brain spouse's recriminations.For example, a right-brainer could decide to answer or dump all e-mails once they reach 15 in their in-basket.
Make duplicates: Duplicates are an efficient way for the right-brainer to keep life moving because they're likely to misplace those small, loose items. Buy extras of loose items that get lost often such as keys, glasses, pens and tools. Keep them in the car, in a work desk or a special drawer where all duplicates go.
Find an organizing buddy: People who can't stop collecting and are sentimental about possessions need a buddy to help them purge. "Someone who isn't a family member is best," Nakone said. "This person should guide them and let them know that what they're getting rid of is going to a good place, such as a charity."
Buy a big clock: Right-brained thinkers often get immersed in a single task, which can result in accomplishing the impossible. But it can also result in missed deadlines and appointments and tardiness. Sometimes having something as simple as a giant clock can keep creative thinkers on task and organized. "

I don't know if I will change my way of doing things but it is good to know that there is help for folks like me...

Antiques and Collectibles

2006-07-12T09:13:00.000-05:00

This photo is a Balinese shadow puppet. I have a couple of small ones that I acquired in the mid-1970's when I lived in Singapore that I will be posting in the shop to sell soon. They are fabulous works of art, great decorative pieces and don't take up much room. I think that I even have the original box for atleast one of them.

At a recent sale I purchased some vintage books and tucked away inside were some ephemeral pieces from the old Fred Harvey House Restaurants. I have 2 original bookmarks and a piece that might have been letterhead, it shows a Harvey House Restaurant and has the Santa Fe RR logo.

If you aren't familiar with Fred Harvey, when he was only 15 years-old he came to New York from England. The time was the late 1800's. He began working in a restaurant but along came the Civil War and this hit the restaurants pretty hard but was a boom for the railroads. Mr. Harvey began working for the railroads and quickly climbed the ladder. He saw a need for drastic improvement in the food department.

Upon his arrival in Kansas in 1870, Mr. Harvey met Charlie Morse, President of the fledgling Atchison, Topeka, and Santa Fe Railway. For the next near century, Fred Harvey's company would bring good food at reasonable prices in clean, elegant restaurants, to the travelling public throughout the Southwest. They also brought civilizaton, community, and industry to the Wild West.

Mr. Harvey hired only young women to work in his restaurants, the Harvey Girls. They wore uniforms, he gave them a place to live and paid them relatively well for the time.

There were many ups and downs for the Fred Harvey Houses. Mr. Harvey died in 1901 and his sons took over the business. By the 1950's railroad travel had slowed, all the Harvey's had passed away and for all intents and purposes the company was defunct.

I believe that there is one Harvey House Restaurant still around that is in operation and here in Kansas City there is talk of redoing the old Harvey House space.

Anyway, be sure to check out all the new inventory coming into the shop. I have taken 2 wonderful consignments filled with many amazing items including vintage costume jewelry.

TaTa....

RPM Porcelain Marks

2006-05-30T21:25:00.000-05:00

I need to make a correction to the RPM porcelain comment in a previous post.

There was a manufacturer that marked their wares RPM.

For more information please see my Porcelain Marks page for this specific mark.

Be Careful About What You Buy On eBay.... Lot's of "Hot" Loot

2006-05-28T07:48:00.000-05:00

The days of selling stolen goods to pawn shops and fences is coming to an end. The new way to sell hot goods is online at the auction sites, preferably eBay.

The Tiffany Co. filed a lawsuit against eBay sometime ago to stop the sale of reproduction Tiffany items and this lawsuit brought to light just how lax eBay is in their monitoring of the posting and sales of items that should not be allowed to be listed in the first place. But along the same vein, they are quick to pull items for what they term "keyword spamming" and other nonsense things that don't bring harm to anyone.

Back to the sale of stolen goods..... Folks are stealing things such as giftcards, clothes, razor blades, teeth whitening systems and other small items then selling these things on eBay. The innocent buyer doesn't know that the items are stolen so they bid their hearts out and life is good. But when they receive their giftcard in the mail and try to use it, guess what, it is worthless.

Several of the large retail stores are stating that eBay needs to be held somewhat accountable, I agree. They can monitor new accounts for a period of time and the items that these folks are selling. After all eBay is aiding and abetting in the commission of a crime by allowing the sale of these items on their website so I think that they do need to assume some responsibility.

If they can shut down an auction because of the words a person picks to use then they can monitor for illicit activity. They certainly have the $$$ and they can get the manpower. Hey for $45.00 per hour I will monitor the auctions for them.

So once again it is buyer beware.

Garage Sale Season, finding that one perfect collectible or antique

2006-05-19T07:48:00.000-05:00

Garage sale season is here in full force... YIPEE. Even though I don't need to add to any of my personal collections, I am always on the lookout for that one missing item.

You learn how to drive by a house and from the street tell if it is a sale worth stopping at or not. In general, I avoid the new high dollar homes filled with young families. They will sell baby items, clothes and cheap junk at high prices.

I head for the older neighborhoods and the wealthy... extremely rich should I say. This is where you will find the real treasures.

Since I do tend to have the "itis" I can't throw anything away, I have had quite a few garage sales of my own over the years, and very successful ones I might add. So here are a few tips if you want to attract a large crowd of people ready to spend money.

Put a price on everything, yes it takes some time but folks don't like to ask how much an item is. This is a personal pet peeve.
If it isn't for sale.... get it out of the sale area or cover it up.
Put a variety of nice large items close to the street to looky-lous (like me) can see them when the cruise slowly by.
Be willing to bargain just a little, I never expect to get a great item for nothing but I don't want to pay antique shop prices at a garage sale either.
Donate your clothes to a charity, or atleast only put out the best. I personally will not dig through dirty old clothes.... and I have run across some rank stuff.
Baby clothes are great to sell.
Have newspaper or tissue for wrapping fragile items and bags or boxes for putting purchases in.
Let the kids sell lemonade or sodas, especially if the weather is really hot. I always have a few extra lawn chairs scattered around for folks to have a seat and rest (or the men while the women shop) this keeps folks around longer... and the longer they are there the more they will buy.
When your sale is over please remove your signs from the area. How many times have your driven around and around looking for a sale that ended 3 weeks prior.
Have a free bin of toys for the kids, one toy per child.
Have fun and make you sale fun

Maybe I will stop by this garage sale season.

Antique Estate Sales - UGH

2006-04-24T14:41:00.000-05:00

I sell antiques online. This requires that I spend several hours a week attending sales and auctions in order to maintain my inventory. For the most part I don't have any complaints about the way folks conduct their sales and their business. I know who has the best estate sales, who has fair prices, high quality antiques and collectibles, knows their antiques, etc. But this past Saturday I met the dregs of the estate sale lot.

The first sale we went to seemed a little odd... 5 complete dining room sets, very few items were priced and those items that were priced were HIGH. It just did not look like a true estate sale or atleast any that I had been to before. I went into the kitchen of this house and it was piled with boxes filled with holiday crap, not antique or vintage not even collectible, it was all cheap new stuff heaped and piled in boxes. I counted 23 boxes. You couldn't move in this room much less rummage around through the items to try and find anything to buy. In another room there was a MELTED plastic doll with no head with a $10.00 price on it. I did find a few items to buy... all not priced offered them $10.00 and left.

As we were walking to the car I overheard 2 gentlemen talking behind us about how the items in the sale didn't belong to the man who lived in the house. I turned and asked what he meant and he said that he knew the family the wife died several months prior and the man recently moved. The gentleman I was talking to had been in the home on numerous occassions and recognized very little that was offered for sale. Evidently the "company" conducting the sale just hauls stuff from sale to sale in hopes that they will eventually get rid of it. There is nothing wrong with this stuff is stuff, I don't care who it belongs to as long as it's okay for you to be selling it. ATLEAST HAVE THE COURTESY TO PRICE THE CRAP!!!!!! I think that this is the deal, they don't put prices on items because some neighborhoods may be able to bring in more than others and if you have priced something then you may be cheating yourself out of a quarter or two. I do know that I will not be going to anymore of these folks sales.

The next sale was amazing. It was a family run estate sale plus it was 1/2 price day. Everything was clean and neatly displayed. I found numerous items, visited with the ladies, all sisters, they told me the stories behind most of the items I purchased and we had a great time. I really found some treasures both to sell and to keep.

Here's the downer.......
The 3rd sale, turned into our last one. It was in a fairly well-to-do neighborhood and from the outside the house looked very nice. I found a few items on the front porch, all unpriced, but at that point I was okay with it... I started a pile by the "cashier". I entered the kitchen first. OH MY GOSH it was gross. Grease was on all of the dishes, nothing was pulled out of the cabinets or on display so I reached up into a cabinet and pulled out a plate and mouse turds fell out onto my head. I flipped the plate over and it was Wedgwood. It looked like there was service for 12. There was some antique ironstone dishes but I didn't touch them they were almost black with grease and grime.

I ventured on through into a den of sorts and noticed boxes filled with family pictures. There was a stunning portrait of a lady dressed to the nines. I started wheezing..... there was mold on the walls. I found a cookbook I was interested in and grabbed it and warily made my way to another room.

The living room had several broken boxes and figurines. I went into what looked like a childs room and all of the surfaces were covered in dirt and grime and there was mouse crap on the stuffed animals. The carpet was covered in trash throughout the house.

Mind you none of this stuff had a price tag so you didn't know what they wanted for this dirty stuff and you weren't really sure what disease you were going to catch simply by touching it but I have found some great buys in worse places so I trudged on into the final room.
This room had a sign "all books in this room $2.00", cool I'll look at the books. I love books, I love selling books and I collect vintage first edition books. By this time I was having a very hard time breathing because of the mold and mildew so I was moving quick. I spyed a print on the wall that I was interested in and found 8 books that I also wanted.

I hit the front door at a dead run straight to the cashier. I grabbed my pile and asked for prices.
She grabbed and I do mean GRABBED the books out of my hands, I told her that these were in the $2.00 book room. "We won't sell anything with an inscription in it." I'm stunned but okay with that. She hands me back 3 books. I ask for the price on the print.... $25.00, I tell her to keep it. And so it goes. They wanted retail +++++ prices for this dirty, infested, greasy, crap that they couldn't be bothered with pricing beforehand or even pulling out the items they didn't want to sell. I was angry I felt that we buyer's were there to clean up and bring out the "good stuff" so that they didn't have to ruin their lungs and health by going into that nasty house.

THE REST OF THE STORY.........
When I was in the den I noticed quite a few framed letters signed "The Eisenhower Brothers", the books that they would not sell to me were inscribed to Mrs. Eisenhower and there were numerous Dwight Eisenhower items in the house (there probably were not for sale either).
DD Eisenhower was from Kansas but I know it was not Mamie Eisenhower's house. So I did some research. President Eisenhower had several brother's all of whom left the area except for the eldest, Arthur. Arthur had a wife Louise, Lousie had a daughter from a previous marriage, Katherine that Arthur adopted. Katherine married Berton Reuche (sp?) (I did buy one of his books at this sale) and they had a son. So my deduction leads to me believe that it was the home of Katherine.

Then I start feeling sorry for her. I cannot find an obituary and the family tree I looked at doesn't show her as deceased so she is probably in a home. Where were these 3 people conducting the sale when she was living in the house? Why didn't they care as much for her "name" when she was living in squalor as the do now that they are "selling" her life and letting folks tromp through her filthy house? I would bet dollars to donuts that they books and other items of note that they would not let us buy they will try to sell on ebay thinking that they will bring big bucks. I am really upset with these folks that I don't know and will probably never see again as long as I live for allowing this person to be shown to the world through the filth in this house, they could have plugged in the vacuum cleaner and taken a couple of swipes. No wonder they were sitting on the front porch.

I do believe in Karma and I know that what you put out there come back to you 3 fold. I don't want to be anywhere near these 3 ladies when their Karma catches up with them for this instance.

Shame on you and God bless you Ms. Eisenhower where ever you are.

2006-03-17T15:09:00.001-06:00

What has happened to people? It seems like everyone has become flat out lazy, take the easy way out, put no effort into anything and to hell with whoever it hurts along the way.

This ideology is driving me up the walls. I am not just seeing it in a certain age group either. It is spread pretty equally amongst every age group, race, religion, etc. Laziness and ineptness has become epidemic in the United States. Let someone else do the work as long as the proverbial "I" benefit from it.

I see it quite often among so called antique dealer's. They find themselves a "treasure" that they are unsure about and instead of researching it they slap a name to it, put it up for sale at a ridiculous price and some poor soul buys this piece ... believing and trusting in what the "expert" says about it. Then come to find out the "expert" has sold a piece of trash that was made yesterday in China.

Every item I am unsure about that I offer for sale, in my online antique shop or the online auction site, has been researched. It does not go public until I am satisfied that it is what I think it is and until I know something definative about it. If I have any questions I am humble enough to admit that I don't have the answer or that I don't know the pattern name of the china, whatever the case may be. But I can certify that it is an antique or a vintage piece.

It might take me months to find the information I need but I am going to make that effort.

I recently had a very pleasant yet unsettling conversation with an avid and educated Limoges collector and seller. He had purchased 2 different pieces on ebay from two different alleged "antique dealer's." When he received the first piece he knew straight away that the piece was not an antique. The second piece was not as easy to identify as a new piece. It took him several months to locate the information he needed to verify it as piece recently made in China.

The marks on these allege antique Limoges pieces were PMC Limoges and PRC France. I am sure that there are pieces out there with variations of these two marks. PMC is Peoples Mainland China and PRC is Peoples Republic of China.

When the buyer contacted the ebay seller to inform him of the ripoff he was informed that the seller had purchased the piece from an local antique shop... as an antique. So the lie is being perpetuated by so called knowledgable experts. I prefer to call them lazy assed fools who just want to make a fast buck and not take the time to do a little research.

Another mark that has caused some confusion lately is the RPM Germany mark. As it turns out this is a decorating firm established in 1980, it is in Germany. But I have seen several online antique dealers and ebay sellers listing these items as being made in the 1930's and 1940's. Once again, folks are not taking time to do their research. The mark has the crowned eagle and looks like a KPM mark BUT IT ISN'T KPM IT IS RPM... there is a difference. None of the mark reference books list RPM so this is a clue that there is a problem.

Use some common sense. Any real dealer in antiques has a vast library of marks books, reference books of all types, magazine subscriptions, etc. A weekend seller of antique or ebay seller that occasionally dabbles in antiques does not have thousands of dollars invested in these resources so they guess or rely on work of mouth.... or websites such as mine.

I will get off my soapbox for now but this is a burning issue with me so I am sure I will bring this topic up again.

Association of Small Collector's of Antique Silver - ascasblog

2005-10-14T15:39:00.000-05:00

ascasblog

This is a great resource for information on antique silver, and the pictures of the items these folks own are astounding.

I highly recommend joining this very informative group.

Thanks,
Granny

Live Auctions -vs- Online Auctions

2005-09-26T20:29:00.000-05:00

I am an auctionaholic.

I actually stopped going to live auctions for quite sometime because they were costing me a fortune and we were running out of living space in our home. They can become very addictive but they are oh so exciting!!

Well.... I went to one over this past Memorial Day weekend, I justified it because it was only a block from my house and it started at 10:00 am. I drove by the evening before and it didn't look like there were too many items sitting out so I figured that I would be home by 3:00 pm. Plus, it was a teaching experience, my husband had never been to an auction.

Right off the bat I bought the first item that came up for bid. A great set of 1950's tumblers in a wonderful metal holder. Lot 2.... also went to bidder #73, that was me. There were a few items in this box lot that I needed and I also sold a couple of items I didn't want to some folks so my $5.00 box lot only cost me $2.00.

That is the beauty of live auctions. If you win a box lot of items, invariably there will be atleast one person in the crowd that will buy one item from you out of that box. Several of my box lots this day included crochet thread, I wasn't all that interested in the miles of crochet thread but several ladies were.... they bought the thread from me and I kept the goodies that I wanted.

I also bought a 1920's oak 4 poster full sized bed for $110 and a bachelors chest with beveled mirror for $40. 2 vintage cans of Phillips 66 grease in metal cans, a copper boiler for $5.00!!!! And a bevy of many wonderful items.

It got to the point if an item wasn't getting any bids the auctioneer would look out into the crowd for bidder #73 (me) and ask me for $1.00, if I would bid that 1.00 others would jump in and start bidding.

Hubby left the auction at noon and told me to call him when I was ready to come home. We finished up at 4:30 pm. It took 3 FULL pickup loads to get my treasures home and my wallet was about $350.00 lighter. But all in all it was a magical day and one I will be repeating again soon.

This kind of fun is not to be missed by anyone and I will not deprive myself I will just learn to budget.

Recent Antique Auction Prices

2005-09-26T20:26:00.000-05:00

Recent Auction Prices:

Current prices are recorded from antiques shows, flea markets, sales and auctions throughout the United States. Prices vary in different locations because of local economic conditions.

¶ Sterling-silver berry spoon, Versailles pattern, gilt scalloped shell bowl, c. 1888, Gorham, 2 1/2 inches, $110.
¶ Nutmeg grater, tin and cast iron, Edgar Mfg. Co., 1891, 7 inches, $135.
¶ Vasa Murrhina water pitcher, lobed body, white-and-amethyst tortoiseshell, gold speckling, applied amber handle, 9 inches, $175.
¶ San-Nap-Pak advertising counter display, women’s sanitary products, woman in long red dress standing by clock, “For Hours of Extra Protection,” c. 1890, 23 x 16 inches, $190.
¶ Victorian beaded bag, geometric pattern, red, green and blue, metal closure, silk lining, 13 1/2 inches, $270.
¶ Betty Boop doll, jointed, composition, green dress and shoes, Fleischer Studios label, 12 inches, $310.
¶ George III child’s armchair, Hepplewhite, mahogany, shield-shape backrest, leather seat, square tapered legs, late 18th century, $825.
¶ Ice-cream dipper, nickel-plated brass, flat metal handle, wood insert, handle marked “Clipper Fountain Supply Co., Troy, N.Y., pat. Feb. 7, 1906,” 9 1/2 inches, $990.
¶ Sterling-silver loving cup, 3 loop handles, cylindrical, chrysanthemum stem, domed foot with embossed acanthus, c. 1910, 19 3/4 inches, $1,410.
¶ Carved ivory cane, seminude woman with harp, seated in pensive pose, c. 1880, 12 3/4 inches, $1,765.

Lots of new inventory coming soon

2005-09-09T13:49:00.000-05:00

I have been really busy this past month with going to sales, 1 auction and taking in some great consignments. This means terrific inventory for you.

I have antique player piano roles, vintage acetate victrola records, Bavarian porcelain dinnerware and lots of other wonderful items.

My daughter has also started her own website - www.hippieartclothes.com filled with her amazing sewing creations.

I am working like crazy to get everything online but if there is something that you need please let me know.

One Campaign Members in the Shawnee Mission Area, Let's Meet

2005-09-03T10:26:00.000-05:00

I am a participant in the One Campaign and I am always running into "fellow" white banders aka One Campaign participants. Yet it seems like we are not getting together here in the Shawnee Mission area and if there are meetings going on, the word is not getting out.

I would love to be more active but don't know where to go or what else to do.

I am more than willing to create a page on my website devoted to a calendar or whatever is needed to keep everyone informed.

Let me hear from others that are interested so that we can get this started.

American Stoneware Exceeds $400,000 at Maryland Sale

2005-08-19T10:03:00.000-05:00

Antiques and the Arts Online

What has happened to honesty?????!!!!!!

2005-06-29T11:05:00.000-05:00

This is off topic but I have to vent!!

I made a mistake, a huge mistake and I will assume full responsibility for the error. I mailed a package to the wrong address.

It was an eBay item and I had already mailed one item to this person, person #1. The last names were very similar and I screwed up and put wrong address on the second parcel. When the non-delivery to person #2 was brought to my attention I started going through my Post Office receipts and discovered the error.

Person #1 had been in receipt of the wrong package and their own package for almost a month and has not said a word even though an invoice to the correct person was enclosed in the package. Fortunately the item was insured.

Regardless, according to the Post Office this is a felony offense. They should have refused delivery of the item or at the very least returned it at my expense. The Lt. General for this person's Post Office will now go and attempt to retrieve the item from this thief and I will leave very negative feedback about them on eBay.

I am shocked and appalled that our morals have degenerated to this level. I am angry that someone has to stoop to theft in order to obtain a stinking birdcage.

I believe strongly in what you put out there comes back to you threefold, call it karma or what you will. This is why I strive to do good, be kind and treat others as I want to be treated. But.... there is another side to me.... you DO NOT WANT ME MAD AT YOU. I can be mean and spiteful if crossed or if you mess with my family. I do not like liars, cheats, people that harm children or that don't pay their child support. In my eyes these are the lowest forms of pond scum there is on this earth and I have a zero tolerance policy with these folks. There is no excuse for this type of behavior and this includes people that knowingly steal mail.

Comments anyone????

Reproduction Alert - Buyer Beware

2005-06-28T11:34:00.000-05:00

Here are the most recent reproduction alerts that I have caught wind of.

How can you tell a reproduction antique from the real thing? Educate yourself. Visit antique shops that carry authentic antiques and collectibles and touch, smell and examine them. Read, read, read.

We are never too old to learn new things.

Cobalt blue Shirley Temple glassware with a white graphic of Shirley Temple has been being reproduced for quite sometime. The original glassware is thin and delicate with a fairly good image of Shirley Temple. The new glassware in heavy and thick and the graphic doesn't really look like Shirley at all. The original glassware was made by the Hazel Atlas Glass Co. in the 1930's therefore, most of the original glassware will show some wear to the white image.
30 inch Gulf Oil Signs. The repros have smaller hanging holes than the originals and the shading is uneven.
19th Century Shenandoah Valley pottery was being faked by a woman in PA. The original pieces were made by John or Solomon Bell from Maryland and this loony woman was recreating these pieces with the intent of duping collector's into thinking that these were originals. Shame on you!!!
Dazey glass jar churns.
Any toy or game marked Schylling is probably not old.
The above mentioned company is selling reproduction tin robots and other tin toys.
Hen covered dishes have been reproduced for quite sometime. The new ones have a few clues that you can look for. New dishes are made in patterns not originally made by Imperial or Westmoreland. The tails don't have much detail. Most look like carnival glass. The top and bottom don't fit together tightly.
Holt Howard Pixieware is being remade but it is marked differently. It is being made by the original designer Curt Blanchard and is in several new designs.
Old fashioned kitchen towels with vintage looking designs are back and cute as ever.
McCoy Pottery is being reproduced and the marks look the same only the item has some differences

Vintage and Antiquarian Books

2005-06-28T11:28:00.000-05:00

Vintage Books Childrens Antique Books Adult Collectible Books

I adore vintage books especially antique and vintage children's books. I recently purchased a 1902 Reader that has the most amazing Victorian graphics in it. I still don't know if I am going to sell it. What I will probably do it enjoy if for awhile and then pass it on for someone else to admire.

I also enjoy the old books on etiquette and books that instruct girls and boys on moral behavior, I have several of these that will be going in the shop soon.

Homemaking books and vintage cookbooks are also favorites of mine. I have learned quite a few very practical new skills by reading these wonderful vintage books such as how to make slipcovers for chairs. You will find these in my shop.... the books not the slipcovers.

Vintage magazines, I have quite a few dating back to the late 1900's. Several of them are children's magazines. The stories, poems, graphics and ads are priceless.

These are wonderful for framing and this is what I originally purchased them for but I can't bring myself to deface them by cutting the pages out of them. So atleast once a year I pull them out and read them.

What are your thoughts on vintage and antiquarian books and magazines?

What is an antique?????

2005-06-28T10:57:00.000-05:00

This is an age old question. A columnist's in one of the antique related magazines I subscribe to has decided that an antique is anything that is 30 years old. I frankly think that this is absurb.

My personal feelings are that an antique is atleast 100 years old. In my online shop, www.mygrannysatticantiques.com, I classify items as follows:

Antiques - 1904 and earlier, this includes most Victorian collectibles
Vintage Collectibles - 1905 - 1949 (this included art nouveau and art deco)
Mid-Century Collectibles or Mid-Century Modern - 1950's (depending upon the style
Retro Collectibles - 1960's - 1980's
Modern Collectibles - 1990's to present

This is just my own personal system of dating and naming antiques and collectibles and I don't expect the "professionals" to agree or adopt my little system. But you will also never find me calling a 30 year-old item an antique.

What do you think?