Yesterday we saw Siobhan and her wonderful majolica game pie dish, collected by her mother at the end of WWII. I was looking at the few pieces of majolica I've got, and thinking about the many things I've collected. Quilts, of course, but small, quirky things, too.
Whenever I go out to have a beer, I grab the paper beer coaster. My collection comes primarily from Pacific Northwest microbreweries. Some are warped, and some stained with dark beer, but that's OK. I like seeing the stains because they're from beer I enjoyed. Some of them are remarkably creative and colorful, particularly the McMenamin's coasters.
If I had to limit the collection to just one chain of microbreweries, it would have to be McMenamin's, a favorite in Oregon and the Northwest. I discovered McMenamin's shortly after I arrived in Oregon in 1998, and have enjoyed visiting the various pubs in renovated buildings filled with exuberant works by local artists.
So, that's one thing I collect, but there are many other little collections in progress. I'll write about them at some point, but what I'd really like to know is, what do you collect? How long have you collected? Do you collect more than one type of object? Post your comments below!
I've started to collect antique glass buttons. I don't have very many...they're expensive, now... but I thoroughly enjoy looking at those I do have. Interestingly, I have no interest in using them as embellishments on my work, but keep them separate, as a collection.
ReplyDeleteThat sounds delightful, and I bet they sparkle like gems.
DeleteI collect fabric, for sure. And tacky refrigerator magnets and Starbucks mugs from around the world.
ReplyDeleteLOLOLOL @ collecting fabric. I just love teasing quiltmakers about that. I may have a stash of refrigerator magnets for you, but I'm not giving up my Starbucks Portland mug, which I happen to be using right now. :)
DeleteSEWING MACHINES!!! Vintage ones...no plastic. Totally in love with Japanese imports from the 1950s that looked like their automobile counter-parts. These things can SEW, baby!
ReplyDeleteI have an old Featherweight, so I can appreciate the all-metal, vintage machines. If I had unlimited space and money, I'd collect vintage pinball machines. :)
DeleteBut if you played pinball, you'd never quilt!
DeleteLOL, I hardly ever quilt as it is. But you're right, I'd play Funhouse constantly. That's my favorite. At one point, I had the four high scores on it at the big arcade back in Hamilton, NJ.
DeleteThat's cool..... not many of us have the high score of anything...
DeleteBesides the usual quilting-related collections (fabric, thread, stencils, books, patterns!), I have a wide variety of novelty socks. People never expect to see someone in accountant-clothes to have smiley-face or zebra socks. When I was teaching, my students seemed enjoy gauging my mood by which socks I had on... My family feeds the collection!
ReplyDeleteAll I've got is one pair of Christmas bulb socks. I wear them once every five years, maybe. I have two pair of my Dad's old Argyle socks, and recently retired them to the desk containing family mementos. He passed away five years ago, so I realized I shouldn't keep wearing them if I wanted to hold on to them.
DeletePolitical Campaign buttons...when I lived near D.C. they were easy to find but down here in the south not so much.
ReplyDeleteSomewhere I have an "I Like Ike" button...I'm sure you've got one of those...
DeleteFabric....Fiestaware....vintage and modern...post cards that have been sent in the mail to me or family members.. sure would have loved having a post card from Off the Wall - Maverick but alas there were none...
ReplyDeleteI collect Homer Laughlin, too - but Harlequinware not Fiesta.
DeleteI have a collection of antique sterling silver thimbles, plus the occasional gold or ceramic one that gets included in the auction lot. They're like jewelry to me. Of course, the fabric and a few sewing related items collect themselves around here.
ReplyDeleteNice! I've got my eye out for an old sterling tailor's thimble. I need to find just the right one to use. All the ones I found at the fabric store, too small! And my fingers aren't even that fat! :D
DeleteMy collections are simple and not worth anything...except to me. I collect them just because they make me feel good. Last week I posted them on my blog http://sunshineyellow-stitches.blogspot.com/ thimbles, wood spools, glass and pearl buttons, scissors and tape measures.
ReplyDeleteYou'd be surprised. There's value in a lot of small things, particularly when you have multiples. A single thimble can be worth several hundred dollars depending on what it is. Same with some of the other items. Wood spools may not have as much monetary value, but I don't believe they make these any more, so they have historic value.
DeleteBoxes made from rocks. Guess it's because I'm a geologist, but I love the ornate little granite or marble boxes, and they are good storage for spools of thread that are currently in use (and must be kept away from my thread eating demon, er, cat). They also have the advantage of being relatively inexpensive!
ReplyDeleteVery cool. Would love to see a blog post about that- it's OK to digress from cats and quilts when you've got a neat collection. :)
DeleteAlways enjoying your posts. Just wanted you to know I received my American Quilter issue in mail yesterday and read you article last night. Just to thank you for sharing all your research and love of all things quilting with all of us.
ReplyDeleteRondi
Thank you very much! It's my pleasure to share the quilts. The article was my first for AQS, and I enjoyed writing it.
Deletevintage sewing machines ( Only metal ones) and little wooden dolls that were made in Poland and dressed as characters: nurse, cowboy, bellhop, shopkeeper. I actually try hard to not collect quilts, as I don't have a good storage solution for them. I have maybe nine or ten that I couldn't resist!
ReplyDeleteI know some people who collect all-metal sewing machines, and my only machine happens to be an old Featherweight. Love it!
DeleteI collect old drinking glasses. Souvenirs that have man made things written on them. Like Cooperstown or Bonneville Dam. or States like Michigan or Ohio with the things of interest in those states. I love how they feel and they are so darn cute.
ReplyDeleteVintage and antique sewing machines. My oldest machine is an 1860s New England type handcrank.
ReplyDeleteLove your blog.
Phyllis in Iowa