In spring, hubby and I had a dream-come-true! A trip to England that we had talked about for over 15 years, but never got around to taking. The recent passing of a dear friend prompted us to ‘rethink our priorities’ and we decided we were just going to do it!
Dear hubby got on the internet and checked flights, car rentals, and accommodations. Our daughter’s friend, Lynne, had lived in the Cotswolds area for years. She shared a lot of stories with us and said it was the perfect place for antique-lovers like us. Boy, was she right!
After much researching, we booked our flights, chose a bread & breakfast, made arrangements for the dog and house sitter and poured over numerous books on the U.K. We remembered that you should contact your credit card companies so they are aware of your travel plans. We also checked with our insurance agent regarding car coverage (we had to buy it from the Europcar folks), learned that we would have to pay for any medical expenses in the U.K., then send receipts to our health insurance company for reimbursement, etc.

Knowing what our purpose was (fun, relaxation and hunting for antiques!), hubby emailed a lot of shops that had sites on the net. They confirmed hours of business, helped with directions to their location, some even sent us pamphlets on other places in the vicinity and antique fairs nearby too!
Our main goals was to find some ‘bargains’, both for our home and re-sale. (This was especially tough to do with the exchange rate.) Airline weight limitations meant we could bring back only ‘smaller items’, and we packed lighter than usual. We knew each of us could have a carry-on and two large suitcases. We packed our carry-ons about half full, and only one suitcase was close to the weight restriction. Another was less than half full and the third actually held only a large duffle bag and lots of bubble wrap.
The BIG day arrived. Our flight was long but uneventful. We landed at Heathrow Airport, got in the rental car and started to drive. (Hubby had driven on the opposite side on our trip to St. Kitts, so it was not a big problem.) It took a few hours but then we arrived at our B&B in Blockley.

We were staying at the Arreton House. It turned out to be as wonderful as their site proclaimed and our hosts, John and Gloria Bayliss were fantastic. They were avid collectors too and were so helpful! From the moment we entered the ‘common room’ of this 400 year old house, we saw that they too had a love of the hunt. This B&B was a real step back in time, but up-to-date where you want it! Private bath (in suite), but antique furnishings and décor.

They loaded us up with brochures on shops in the area, gave us tips on negotiating, told us dates and locations of an auction and a few “boot sales.” It was our first time hearing about a “boot sale”, which is similar to our flea markets. The trunks of cars in England were called ‘boots’ and they would just show up in a field, pop open the trunks, display their wares and have a sale!

Our plan was to stay at their delightful B&B for the full two weeks, taking day trips to the small towns and villages. It was an incredible trip and we loved everything about the countryside, its gorgeous scenery, friendly, helpful people and fantastic antiques! More to follow on our adventures in antique hunting!

I started my love affair with books as a reader. Readers are just that — folks who love to read, but once the publication is read they can and do happily move onto the next one with no need to keep it. Readers, often frequent users of libraries, do purchase books, however once a book is purchased they will either pass it along to a friend (who likely is passing books along to them too) or they will sell it. Readers have no attachment to the book itself.

In the beginning libraries were where I found all my friends (as I called my books). But once I got my first job and I went to the mall to spend my first check and I discovered the book store, things changed. Suddenly here was a new idea: I could live with my dear friends instead of just having them over for visits. I became a book owner.

Book owners are the next level of bibliophiles. Sure, book owners are readers, but they feel more than the need to read — they must keep (at least some of) the books. While these folks certainly have more than three objects (my official definition of a collection) and are usually dedicated to specific authors, genres &/or subject matter, they usually do not consider themselves collectors.

Of course I still used the library but owning books was exciting. So exciting that I soon realized my wages as a 16 year old part-time employee wasn’t going to be enough. This is when I re-discovered the joy of rummage sales. Here my paltry pay check went further. Oh the days of 50 cent hardcovers and 25 cent paperbacks, I miss you so…

At rummage sales I discovered another kind of book: the out of print book. Here were books that one couldn’t get in the mall book stores. I couldn’t understand why not — these books were equally fascinating. Many had much more wonderful boards, bindings, illustrations, typefaces and, even if they were often tanning, had a better page quality.

Once I discovered out of print works visits to thrift stores and used book shops weren’t far behind. I even dabbled in those book exchanges — you know, where you can trade your used books for other used books — but after doing that twice and finding myself wishing I had still had the books I traded, well, I gave that up in a jiffy. But I continued to buy books.

One of the neatest things about books is that they so often come with a list of other books you must have. Even if they didn’t have a bibliography or a list of resources, if you loved the author you suddenly had a new list of works to look for. Book buying literally can never end. And I have the sagging shelves, with books double and triple-rowed, to prove it.

Amazingly, I still didn’t think I was a book collector.

Book collectors were those who sought first editions, or antique tomes which should be in museums; I was just a reader who preferred to have books near at hand. I didn’t seek a first edition of Moby-Dick or any other great whale of a prize; I just want books to read.

I don’t think it was until I moved in with Derek that I realized I could be considered a book collector. He called my books a ‘book collection’ — and as I was unable to let my books remain in boxes as he could, I decided my books must be at least as much of a collection as his were.

Derek and I joke that we many never read all the books we own (well, at least not until the kids move out!), but like most book owners we believe that book ownership provides a sort of learning or enjoyment via osmosis. Just having them around us means the knowledge and stories must seep into our beings somehow… Or maybe we are just rationalizing buying books faster than we can read them. Then again, maybe we are rationalizing by calling our huge number of books, old and new, ‘a collection’.

But I don’t think that anyone, no matter how they define a book collector or a book collection, would hesitate to call either of us bibliophiles.

We’ve entered the fourth and final day of the San Diego Comic Con, the largest and most extravagant geekfest of the year. Somewhere out in sunny California, fidgety nerds are eyeing up new toy lines, meeting demi-celebrities and shaking sweaty palms, and finally mustering up the necessary wherewithal to drop some serious coin on that back issue they need to complete their collection.

And I’m sitting at home, on the internet, playing a game of anxious nerd catch-up. The news is fast and furious, and I struggle to keep on top of it, jumping from site to site, scanning photos for hints and wallet-redefining prospects for the rest of the year and beyond. Sure, I‘m usually the guy reporting live from Toy Fair or the New York Comic Con - both sacred destinations for collectors of my inclinations - but it’s mildly disconcerting to be stuck at home while the plastic, articulated world continues to turn…. without me.

Here’s the thing about conventions, though : I hate them. Maybe ‘hate’ is a strong word, but I have an intense discomfort with crowds and noise. It’s not debilitating as it once was, but I cope with it through distraction and keeping escape routes in view . I don’t like being randomly touched and brushed up against, and I don’t enjoy finding myself squished to the back of a Marvel Legends kiosk with the warm, eau de hot dog breath of a thousand nerds entering my facial passages as my muscles tense in potential fight-or-flight energy. Hearing this year’s message board reports of some of the behaviours at this year’s Comic Con has almost completely allayed any regrets I have about being stuck in upstate NY for the time being.

These reports have included, among other things, shameless nerds of the portlier variety deciding that shirts were just far too warm for a San Diego day. This, plus left-than-deft navigations of the cheek-to-cheek crowds in the convention halls, have resulted in some less than pleasant, and fairly moist, situations. At least during Toy Fair, everyone’s in February-sensible suits. The worst we got there was a guy in a suit holding a Water Wiggler in front of his groin and shouting, “C’mon, Jen, it’s only me!” across the Con floor.

Of course, despite this well-known unpleasantness, us distant nerds commiserate and get a telling twinkle in out eyes at the mere mention of ‘San Diego’. San Diego has almost always been the only opportunity for collectors to see the new wares in person before they hit the shelves, since Toy Fair is an industry-only event, and New York Comic Con is still relatively brand new. With the meager showing at this year’s Toy Fair, though, and many companies (including the comparable and omnipresent Sideshow Toys) simply not going to Toy Fair next year due to the associated costs and relatively low yield of visitors and buzz, let me say that SDCC is the new Toy Fair. I’ve said it. Toy Fair is a dying animal, and we’re only going to find it under the canoe in the back yard in a few years, looking for a cool place to spend its last moments on this Earth. While Toy Fair was always a place to get great photos in relative tranquility, at least we’ll have the shuffling, shoving claustrophobia of the Comic Cons to score our worthwhile press coverage.

I’ve personally been watching San Diego Comic Con coverage for news announcements relating to the things I collect. NECA’s Castlevania figures are on display for the first time, including a mysterious strip of obscuring tape covering up the chest of the Succubus figure, leaving collectors asking, “nipples?” It would seem unlikely that a company would cover up a small patch of cleavage, but stranger things have happened.

The biggest announcement of all came with the revelation that Mattel is now allowed to make action figures of any DC Comics character they want, when previously they were limited only to characters relating directly to Superman and Batman. Indeed the DC Superheroes line was the best of 2007, featuring great articulation and sculpting, even if many of the more interesting figures were near impossible to find. Now, with the addition of Red Tornado, Etrigan the Demon, Orion, and a build-a-figure of my favorite, Metamorpho, the possibilities seem endless. I just hope that my local Wal-Mart, which hasn’t restocked the DCSH line since late May, will deliver this gold unto me. Additionally, Mattel’s animated ‘The Batman’ line will begin to incorporate additional DC Characters, such as Hal Jordan and Hawkman, into its lineup.

In further DC Comics news, my very recently-voiced prayers for Jack Kirby New Gods action figures have been answered by DC Direct, and we’ll be getting a line of those before too long. Also, a 13” Green Arrow just about makes my life complete… never mind that he comes with more arrows than I’ve ever seen together in one place.

Hasbro’s also landed one of the most requested movie properties of all time : Indiana Jones. SDCC had a display of these figures in both regular and ‘Galactic Heroes’ forms. For those of you who don’t know, and I bet there are many since our readers tend to be of the ‘have a life’ demographic, they’re cute-ified 2” figures of various characters from Transformers, Star Wars, Marvel Comics, and whoever else Hasbro has the license to at the time. So, for everyone who’s always wanted a 2” Indy… here’s your chance.

Along with a handful of interesting comic book announcements which are probably too obtuse to go into detail about here, (because this IS a comic con, remember?), SDCC seems to be a volcano of information the likes of which we’ve never seen.

And as long as I can absorb it without absorbing the volatile essences of perspiring, agitated people jostling around me, that’s okay by me.

It’s been two years. Two whole years since the release of the first season of the Muppets - all 24 inaugural episodes wrapped up nicely in their charming green, flocked package. As a DVD collector who is obsessive-compulsive enough to both need to complete entire sets of things and also collect them in order, the release of season two is like a gentle sigh of relief from between two nerdy lips. Goodness knows that ‘nerdy lips’ don’t get much action besides that.

I think that you’d be hard pressed to find a living human being who wasn’t at least partially charmed by The Muppets in some form or another, and if you do meet one, please introduce me - I’d like to test a theory I have about soullessness and buoyancy. This second season of The Muppet Show, packaged in a fuzzy pink Miss Piggy theme, includes the 24 episodes that comprised the second season of the show, spanning 1977 to 1978. The Show would ultimately last for five complete seasons of 24 episodes each, with a few specials thrown in here and there for good measure. Whereas the first set included un-aired pilots and pitches, this set includes a rarely-aired special, ‘Valentines Day Special, The Muppets on The Muppets’ pseudo-interview feature, and the ever-popular Weezer & The Muppets Keep Fishin’ video.

The Valentines Day show is actually similar in appearance the theme to the pre-Muppet show pilot episodes - Kermit isn’t much more than a supporting character, and the whole show seems to take place in a bed and breakfast (or possibly a boarding house) with highly developed environments, and without the typical laugh track that accompanies the later episodes. It’s a completely different creature when it’s not being presented as a live show, and it definitely has its own charms, and it’s definitely a great surprise for any Muppet fan who’s seen it all. Similarly, the ‘Muppets on Muppets’ feature is a series of a dozen or so minute-long interviews with Muppets (or pair of Muppets) that seem largely ad-libbed and are fairly hilarious. All of them are obviously recently taped, and I’m not certain if they’ve ever aired anywhere before.

Each season of the original Muppet show inevitably presents me with guest stars that were simply before my time, as well as jokes that are bizarrely dated - but that’s a great deal of the appeal. The idea of a show involving puppets being so firmly contemporaneous at the time, as well as incorporating musical bits from well before their OWN time, is pretty neat to witness. Season Two has a few indelibly classic episodes, always defined by their notable guest stars : Steve Martin, Zero Mostel, Peter Sellers (who was the only guest star to always be in a character, and refusing to appear as himself), George Burns and John Cleese among them. Sorry, nerds, the amazing Star Wars episode doesn’t happen until season four.

I spent many, many years collecting the complete set of Muppets action figures and displaying them around my room. Indeed, a Statler and Waldorf still reside in their comfy balcony chairs and critique my questionable television choices. There’s an extremely rare Jim Henson action figure (in puppet form) around here somewhere, a kind of demigod to all of us puppetry and art enthusiasts. It might be silly, but there’s a true sense of reverence for the show and the man alike. So, my heart is really in the Muppets. I think that any one of would happily spend a day hanging out with them. While it pains me severely to admit this, I actually borrowed the Muppets’ ‘Time in a Bottle’ sketch and decided to perform it for my classmates in Elementary School, complete with tape player and props. I don’t know what compelled me, and these were the days where I was still outgoing and had not yet been destroyed from the inside-out by the ravages of humanity… but I did it. And I can’t think about it without feeling slightly nauseated. But that’s how much I loved the Muppets, learned from videos borrowed from my local library on hot summer days, and watched repeatedly on our prehistoric VCR and wooden TV. You remember those. Those guys were stylin’.

As far as recapturing the Muppets on DVD, I cannot attest to the completeness of the discs, since the first season had to drop about six musical numbers with Jim Nabors, Vincent Price and other guest stars due to licensing rights. I’m not expert enough to know what might have been omitted, if anything, but some of these missing bits can always be YouTubed, or pieced together from the original release of the randomly assorted Time-Life discs from many years ago. This second season set will be released on August 7th, and it’s a gem, coming with my highest recommendation. It’s fun, it’s all-ages, it feels nice, it’s well assembled, and it looks great on a shelf.

Among our most valuable collections, one that has proven priceless at times, are the antique collectibles books we have in our home library.

The collection, with over 130 volumes, consists of four types, price guides such as the Kovel’s Antiques & Collectibles Price List ( Ralph and Terry Kovel) or Warman’s Antiques and Collectibles Price Guides, (Krause Publishing Co.)

Product specific books aimed at the more serious collector that provides a narrow focus with greater depth of knowledge on the items and manufacturers, giving clues to help identify and date a piece.

Third are the encyclopedia types, U.S. Marks by Lois Lehner (Great Book), Antique Collector’s Dictionary by Donald Cowie and Keith Henshaw, Kovel’s New Dictionary of Marks.

Last are the pretty picture books featuring items we only hope to find, two on Tiffany, one on Lalique.

Many of the volumes are produced by two companies, Collector Books, PO Box 3009 Paducah, KY 42002-3009 (CB)

and Krause Publishing Co., 700 East State St. Iola, WI, 54990 (KP)

The price guides are useful for comparisons of value between items (Heisey Acorn & Leaves Plate, Flamingo 8” $25.00 – Heisey Bonnet Basket 16” $345.00 in Kovels 1995 Price List of over 50,000 items and 500 photographs) but give little detail and only very limited pictures to confirm what item you have.

On the other end of the spectrum are the specific guides giving much more detail of the products. Often providing dates of manufacture, lineage of the company, company logos or marks, condition gradings, even variations of like products and reproduction warnings. Examples include KP’s Antique Hardware, CB’s Depression Glass, CB’s Pressed Glass. (Glass books in black and white photographs are more useful for pattern identification) CB’s The Cambridge Glass Co. and a Waterford Crystal sales catalog are in B&W.

My best example of a great product book would be McKeown’s Price Guide to Antique and Classic Cameras by James & Joan McKeown. If you ever have an opportunity to peruse their book (check your public library or used book store), you will see the value in the knowledge provided.

My copy is from the late 80’s and contains 6,000 references in 672 pages.

Today’s edition (12^th) with 1,248 pages 40,000 camera models and variants, has 10,000 plus photos. (Good to have photos in a camera book.) I’m due for a new copy.

Descriptions, pictures and variations in models are well documented, but the book includes information on how to judge a camera’s condition and how that affects the price structure. One section also gives advice to new collectors.

Condition issues always seem lacking in most price guides, and collectors know you buy what’s rare in any condition at the right price, selling off if a better one comes along.

McKeown’s book states this advice for camera collectors:

1.“If you pass up the chance to buy a camera you really want, you will never have that chance again.”

2.“If you buy a camera because you know you will never have the chance again, a better example of the same camera will be offered to you a week later for a much lower price.”

3. “The intrinsic value of an antique or classic camera is directly proportional to the owner’s certainty that someone else wants it.” - Dan Adams.

These observations should apply to any item, just substitute your obsession for camera.

A great piece of advice at the front of my copy of the book reads: “McKeown’s Law; The price of an antique camera is entirely dependent upon the moods of the buyer and seller at the time of the transaction.”

All the most useful books show great pictures, e.g. the “Hummel” book from 1976 (by Eric Ehrmann, Portfolio Press) shows large photos that makes it easy to identify your purchase. Comparisons of real and reproductions are in a special section in back. Newer fakes can be spotted when you have studied the quality of the casting and painting in this book.

Our book collection began with the general price guides and as we accumulated items for our collections or resale, the library grew.

I had the camera collection started, so McKeown’s was a natural for me to purchase. Many of the books were new and ordered at our local big box book store. Some were acquired at auctions and some at a local used book store. One book was ordered on line when our local book store suggested their web site after the book was highly recommended by another collector.

Our latest addition is Warman’s Roseville Pottery by Mark F. Moran 2006 (KP). What took Wifey so long to buy this one?

Current prices of items in most category’s are obtainable by watching web auctions, so pricing in older books are viewed with a good laugh, and again we see the truth in McKeown’s Law.

The price of an antique or collectible is entirely dependent upon the moods of the buyer and seller at the time of the transaction.

Think of that rule next time you dicker pricing with a seller.