Collecting

I am a thrift store shopper and a flea market regular. Anyone who has shopped at either knows that it can be overwhelming. I spent years buying things with no rhyme or reason. I ended up with an eclectic mix of things. In some cases eclectic can be good. In my case it was bad, very bad. Everything just appeared hap hazard and random with little styling. Not a bright spot in my decorating history. I am a firm believer in buying what you love and figuring out where to put it later, but within a few limits. For me if I am browsing a thrift store and I see something that catches my eye it must meet one or more of the following criteria:

1. Am I currently collecting the item?

2. Do I love it?

3. Is it vintage?

4. Is it in a color that would coordinate with my house?

If I answer "yes" to number one then it goes in my basket. If I answer "yes" to number two I must also answer yes to one of the other questions or it goes back on the shelf. The same goes for questions three and four.

By asking myself these questions it helps to assure what I bring home is something will be a part of my house for years to come. Take a look at a few of my collections. Pardon the crappy camera phone pictures. I am having a hard time locating my normal camera.

Here we have my globe collection. By default you can also see my vintage typewriter collection. I only have two so far but I plan on adding more as I come across them.

Here is a close up on one of the typewriters. If you look below the typewriter you can see my collection of Strawberry Shortcake Miniatures from 1980-84. Of course there is my vintage jewelry collection. I also plan on adding more to the wire lady. Eventually I expect she will be covered in costume jewelry.

For those of you wondering about the Strawberry Shortcake Minis this is a picture of one of the 64 that are available. This image and mini are from the Etsy shop Trunkofprettys.

I have many many more collections. I'll post pictures soon.