How Unique is This?

Are you looking for something truly unique? How unique is your hair? You might color it, cut it, curl it, straighten it donate it for a wig,or jewel it ;but have you ever thought of making jewelry out of it? That is exactly what happened between 1850 and 1870. I have a book showing several necklaces from woven hair and valued between one and three hundred dollars! I have some beads made from silk, but never would have imagined jewelry from human hair!

Where do you Find all Your Good Stuff !

I am often asked "Wow, where did you get that? I have learned through trial and error what to watch for and what to watch out for!

The first step to finding the good stuff is learning all you can about collectibles and especially about the ones you love to collect! You can find them in estate and antique auctions, estate sales and garage sales and yes, even in the trash!

1. First start in your own home by researching some of the treasures you have been given in the past or inherited. You may be surprized at what you have and the history behind it.

2. Watch the auctions both online and brick and mortar. Don't go to buy and don't get carried away with it but do watch! Ebay auctions I have found to be a little more reasonable than Brick & Mortar! You have more time to study the listings and make rational decisions.

3. Resale shops can be occationally good places to find the good stuff. Some will be better than others, but be very careful.

4. Estate Sales are usually a little high but you can find some good stuff! Again you will have to be careful!

5. Retail Stores Sales! These will often be too high for quick resale but I have found good stuff in retail stores.

5. Garage Sales usually have the best low prices on their good stuff but you have to go early and in all kinds of weather.

6. People do try away good stuff in the trash! Believe it or not. This is a no risk way to learn what is good stuff and what is not.

The bottom line is you can find good stuff in all these places! The secret is knowing what to look for so study and learn all you can about your good stuff!

Caring for Your Antique Sterling Jewelry

If you collect old sterling or other gold and silver items, you need to know how to keep then in pristine condition. The silver cleaner dips may be great for some silver items but can actually damage old silver and is especially damaging to old jewelry that has been treated with a gold wash or that has a silver or gold plating. Silver cleaning wipes can be used quite effectively anywhere and will not remove the darker tarnish areas in the patterns which makes antique silver so charming. Always use a soft cloth to prevent scratching even if you polish with a paste like Maas Metal Cleaner. Some gemstones can also be damaged by harsh cleaners so avoid getting the polish on gemstones. Dishwashing liquid is usually all that is needed to bring back the sparkle in gemstones and semi-precious stones.

Decorate with your Collectible Treasures

Most collectors don't even think of themselves as collectors.
When most people think of collectors they think of people with homes filled with so much junk there is little room to walk through. There are literally millions of people who decorate their homes with beautiful decorative collectibles. Sellers will store most of their collections, but many can be beautifully and very safely displayed and enjoyed before selling.
When we got our rockwell collectile plates, we walked into this little house in the country. It was small but beautifully decorated with Rockwell plates on special felt lined shelves on the wall and Rockwell figurines and other collectibles in glassed in cabinets. All his collectibles were well cared for and displayed for his pleasure and others. I was in another home where all the collectible dinnerware and silverware etc. was carefully displayed with other treasures in a formal diningroom. That room was only used on special occasions, but the table was always set to show off the ladies decorative collectibles. Collectibles are to be enjoyed.

What's Collectible: Christmas in July Sales

What's Collectible: Christmas in July Sales

What will you make, sell, or buy this Christmas?

Yes it is time to start thinking about Christmas. Ealc is just one place that is promoting Christmas items and collectibles are great for Christmas gifts too! This is especially true if they are in their original boxes and in great condition. However some buyers are looking for unique hand crafted items that say I care enough to devote my time and efforts for you. Then some buyers are looking for patterns and supplies to make these very special gifts.

What is a collectible antique?

By definition an antique is something 100 or more years old, yet when I visit the local antique shops I often see things for sale which are far less than 100 years old. I will often say, oh I have this or I have that. Many of these items bring back fond memories of long ago times, but at the same time many of them are not really antiques but are older vintage and sometimes even younger vintage items. I like to find out the dates for the things I find or sell. It is really a fun way to learn history. Visiting antique stores whether brick and mortar or online is fun as well. If you find a genuine antique, 100 years old, and keep it and love it then it must be an antique collectible. right? Check here for our newest news and updates.

Christmas in July Sales

EALC Christmas in July Sales are ending today with many sold listings but it is not too late to shop early for Christmas. In our store we offer combined shipping as well and Paypal to make it easy any time.
What do collecibles sellers list for Christmas in July Sales? Why not shop for Christmas early. Prices are down. There are more sales promotions and many collectibles are also new or like new items. Some people love to get old collectibles like Vintage or Antiques as well. Why not artisan made items or supplies for making these special personalized gifts. Let's use our imaginations and get creative to find those special unique collectibles. For more ideas and interesting reading you may like to visit these squidoo sites. If you are a jewelry artist, crafter, designer, or just love unique jewelry check this one out The Art of Jewelry Designing for a 15% discount on all Rachel's Design Jewelry, and more.

What to do about The Summer Slump - Tips

At this time of year every year we here the complaints in the selling community! My store isn't getting enough traffic. Looks like my store has become invisible! It was doing good before. Well daah. Every business has its slumps and for the online community it comes in the summer when more people are getting outdoors and vacationing and entertaining children who are off from school.
So what do you do when the dreaded slump hits your e-store?
1. This is a great time to work on your store, re-evaluating your inventory, researching what is selling and what is not. Make it the best it can be for those who do get online and for the selling season.
2. Find new ways and places to advertize so that your store gets seen. Here is a new page I have started atSquidoo.com Let me know what you think.
3. Join a forum and try to help other online sellers.
4. Have a web page to link back to your store, give some information, and show off some products.
5. Discussion boards are also a great place to help others.
6. Have an rss feed of your store and blog.
7. Don't forget to ping your feeds to keep them fresh
For more information on feeds and blogs you may want to visit here
8. Learn a little html and get prepared. Seasons do change and when people can find what they are looking for they will come.

What makes a collectible worth collecting

I have heard it said that everything is collectible. That might be true for some people but not for everyone. Some folk collect just a certain date. Maybe it was a special anniversary or birthday. Not everything is collectible just because it is old though. Old baseball cards were put in bycicle spokes by little boys having fun. This created a scarcity of cards in good condition. Many such items are more collectible because of their scarcity. Uniqueness is another quality that makes an item collectible. Any one of a kind item is more desirable than something made in bulk. Some items are collectible for their artistry. Others are desirable for their quality. I love items with a historical significance. Who wouldn't want to collect anything about a famous or not quite so famous loved one. These are great for studying history or Geneology. This book about Tiger Woods and other golfing pros from the 2000 Open at Pebble Beach should be very collectible as time goes by. It has brief write ups about many of the golfers as well as a list of 100 champians and is a first edition. There is also a page in memory of Payne Stewart.

Elvis Presley

Elvis was wildly popular with teen of the 60's not only for his singing but for his dark hair and flashy costumes. There have been many impersonators of Elvis but this little guy really cracks me up! He is a Fanciful Frog named King Croak from Westland Giftware. Westland Giftware began in 1972 and is still in operation today. Have you kissed any frogs today? That song just kept going through my head.

Feeds and Feed Readers

Did you know you can subscribe to a feed and get regular updates on your blog. When you burn a feed at Feedburner.com you can choose your feed reader. We have been discussing feeds on our Jewelry Designs Forum. Subscribing to feeds is a great way to stay up to date on the blog information you are most interested in. You may subscribe to this blog by going here http://feeds.feedburner.com/blogspot/HnFA

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Collectibles to Honor our Fathers

What does your Father love to collect? Does he have a passion for Jet or Airplanes or Cars? Whatever it is there are collectibles to honor him. We think military memorabilia is great to honor a serviceman or those who love their servicemen. These men and often women go into harms way to protect their children and loved ones and their country. They are very brave and deserving. We love to read about them and remember them. See our store for more Father's Day Gift Ideas.Penney's Collectibles

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Fenton Art Glass Collectibles

Fenton made many very collectble art glass items like this shoe. Many are hand painted. At brick and mortar auctions I have seen many nice Fenton items selling for $30 and up even though Fenton is not a very old glass company. Some people love to collect the ruffled vases while others love to collect the bells or Fenton's fancy glass eggs. The glass art work is so pretty. I like this shoe because it has a little story to tell on the card. And this is such a lovely green glass bell. The Fenton mark is worked into the strawberry pattern on the side of the bell.

Collectible Artisan Jewelry Etc.

What makes an artist works collectible? Every artist starts out in the same way, with a passion for art that can surpass even the need for making a decent living. They just love art and design. We once tried to discourage our budding artist saying sh would be a starving artist and indeed many artist done become popular until after their death. Some artist go to college and study design, as is the case with our budding artist, Rachel.
As a child Rachel loved art more than anything and aspired to have a shop of her own one day. She would make her own jewelry from any materials she could find. She went to work and began spending part of her earnings on art lessons learning all she could about painting green ware. She learned to make green ware with her own molds saving every penny she could to buy materials for her projects. Then she began to put herself through college studying design. She is still primarily a self taught artist and designer but with her drive I believe she can achieve her dreams. I have just given you a short biography for the designer of Rachel's Designs. To see more of her work and the work of other passionate designers check out our forum at Jewelry Designs or go to Penney's Collectibles to see what she has to offer.

Oh you Beautiful Doll Collecting!

We collect all kinds of dolls, artist dolls, porcelain bisque dolls, vintage vinyl dolls; but I think the realistic babies are my favorites. We have a really adorable one up for adoption in our store this week. He is Precious Baby William by Kymberli Durden and is part of the Paradise Garden Collection. To read about or purchase him click on the link here! Penney's Collectibles William will be adopted out by the 21st of Feb. To see all our Beautiful Dolls click hereDolls
Looking for more info on Jewelry, Dolls, Vintage or antique items! Be sure to check out our discussion board!

Vintage Sterling Silver

I love old sterling silver jewelry and especially puff hearts. I wonder how many others share my feelings and how many would rather just buy it to remake it. Here are some I have put up for auction. I think they are very reasonably priced. Auctions Of course Rachel's Designs are unique one of a kind costume jewelry designs. She has sold sold some of her creations to friends and co-workers who really love them. I collect the vintage sterling and regular silver jewelry as well and love the old costume as well as fine silver jewelry. I do hate to see nice vintage or antique jewelry re-created. That to me is a little like destroying a historic old house but the buyer has the right to do what he wants.
Here are some of my favorites.