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Figurines of all sizes and styles decorate our homes and apartments. For every animal there seems to be a figurine, and for every cute little creature there is a collector. We heard recently from our writer, Val Ubell, that the Hummel franchise of sweet little children is going to be back in production which surely will bring out the enthusiasts for the latest edition of that long running series of small children.

And our fellow writer, Colin David, informs us of the latest figurines from the comic and movie world on an ongoing basis. And any peek inside an antique store will let you feast your eyes on dozens, nay hundreds, of collectible creatures.

Our own household has several series, one is the Enesco Precious Moments, the others are sweet little mice, small in size but very cute. Oh! we do have the usual dogs and one cast iron pig, plus many pieces rotated with seasonal décor’.

But this collection gathered over some twenty years, has all sorts animals made from many different materials. Common are the china ones, some even bone china, others are pottery, wood, metal, plastic, sirocco, porcelain, glass, cloth and rubber. Most have painted on features or coloration. They were also produced in a variety of countries and differ in age by decades. Most are marked only with the country of origin, Japan, China, England and Germany with Occupied Japan usually bringing the most interest as it identifies a set time period. Many of these were sold at omni present Five and Dime stores and drug store novelty counters, so quantities of unbroken examples should be easy to find.

The dogs and cats have the most admirers, and certain breeds of doges are more collectible, with Scotties always a good seller.

A few years back we purchased the contents remaining from an estate and had set our price offer based on the antiques in the collection. Part of the estate was a not rare – newer collection of giraffes, which were probably a bit pricey new but I did not see a market for them. Yup, wrong again Lone Ranger, the next flea market every one sold with screams of delight at finding “such a wonderful animal”.

I mention our one cast iron pig, which sits atop our ice box with other farm and primitive collectibles. They remind me that whenever we sell at the Elkhorn Antique Flea Market a gentleman stops and asks if we have any pigs. A true collector with hundreds in his collection and not a ham between them.

Our eye doctor has examples of all animal figures, each one wearing a pair of specs..

The wonderful thing about figurines, they fit into every decorating scheme, with sizes and price ranges to meet all budgets, are easily changed with the seasons, and specialty collections can follow any theme you choose.

Naturally, the various holidays have vast amounts of figures and model train collectors have a passion for decorating their track layouts with “to scale” figurines, cows in a field, dogs herding sheep, etc.

So look around your place and see where a new collection or addition of little animals could reside and brighten a shelf or wall space. If you prefer whimsical, you’re in luck, you can find plenty of charmers.

Then when you’re out on the hunt, keep your eyes open to search for your favorites, you are bound to see many examples of “Must Haves” to fit your own style. 

It all started rather innocently. I had NO intention of beginning another collection or even purchasing more jewelry (I am constantly teased about all my boxes and drawers full.) But this charming pin just ’spoke to me.’ It said “I’ll brighten up anything you wear; I will bring an early spring to your wardrobe.” And so I paid the lady at the garage sale her $2 and pinned it right on my jacket.

My next stop was at an estate sale and both the ladies behind the check-out desk commented on my cheery little pin. They asked if it was a piece of art. I was not sure, but thanked them for their compliments. Another lady waiting to check out said “what a lovely copper enameled pin.” I guess I had not even considered what it was made of. But it sure made for a lovely morning.

My next find was not until a few weeks later, at a flea market in Florida. I love all-things-ocean and a fish pin was right up my alley. It has seen a lot of wear, especially on my jean jacket.

So as not to make this a true collection (which has to be at least three items), I purposely held off buying any more. I was truly disciplined in this matter. But then the strangest thing happened. I noticed an obituary in the newspaper (yes, I am at the age where I read them often.) It was the mother of a former co-worker and even though we had not seen each other for a few years, I thought it would be the right thing to do to pay my respects. Hubby and I went to the funeral home and offered our sympathies. We chatted for a bit and then a lady we did not know asked if I had taken anything from the ‘ goodie basket.’ I was not sure what she meant but then moved to a small table near the casket. It turns out the deceased lady was a real ‘jewelry nut’, (now who does that sound like?) She had a lot of costume jewelry that no one wanted and I was told to pick a baggy with a little treasure. I was reluctant at first, but was told there was more in the back room. So, I grabbed one, not knowing what was inside until we got into the car. To my surprise, it was a copper-enameled necklace! Well, now we are talking about FATE. It was just meant to be that I continue with the collection. Who am I to argue with destiny?

My next find was an awesome pendant, found at a thrift store. So colorful and bright, I simply had to have it. It has a lot of character and you just know it can be worn with anything! Then I added a bracelet to finish off the ensemble. These pieces just have such a glow and warmth. I may just take up a hobby of making them…yeah, right, just like the scads of beads, findings and books on jewelry making, languishing in my closet.

These were meant to be enjoyed and I will continue to hunt for them, especially with my favorite time of year coming up – rummage season!

Standard Gauge on Shelf - "O" below

My last post introduced you to Jerry, the founder of the Milwaukee Lionel Railroad Club and other locations in St. Louis, Chicago, Racine and San Francisco, as he moved to these cities over a 33 year career in the military. I mentioned a collection the club is acquiring from a benefactor for their museum and library. While the club is dedicated to Lionel products, the quality and enormity of the collection is adding a new and exciting dimension to their facility. With various manufacturers, some of these train sets date back to the beginnings of model railroading in the early 1900s. Sets include early Lionel, Ives, American Flyer, and Buddy L all made of tin before the use of plastic made realism easier to duplicate.

Garden Gauge Buddy L

The early models were larger, first designed for children to sit on and push with their feet. Called Garden Railways and later shortened to G gauge. I was quite shocked when I picked up this garden railroad engine, it weighed a ton, made of cast iron and responsible for my next hernia operation, it was made by Buddy L as was the little red caboose.

The early pre-war indoor trains were considered Standard gauge, large even by the the popular post war O gauge size and monsters next to the HO size of many of today’s hobbyists. I loved the size of the standard gauge trains that this new collection features but wonder how large a room it would take to house even a simple circle of track. As a pure collectible they probably sit on shelves without running in circles. I found that was part of the thrill of this club house, they have track for running the Standard Gauge.

Let me show you some of the collection. As Jerry pointed out some of the sets, he listed the manufacturer, and described detailing that makes some brands and items more expensive than others. It was easy to spot this American Flyer passenger coach with decal doors, but Jerry pointed out a door on one model that swung in the wrong direction, making it less than authentic to the real rail car.

Since the locomotives are the collectors’ money rides, these two engines were from Ives, as is the copper colored passenger car, a company that was later purchased by Lionel.

Lionel Locomotive

The proliferation of railroad museums, most with rolling stock, model train shows, swap meets, fairs, trade shows, flea markets and fests, as illustrated by the assortment of brochures of local interest including events at Milwaukee School of Engineering, and national venues advertised in the assortment of model train magazines published by Kalmbach, prove this is an area of collecting for family fun, pride in ownership and stable investment.

The Milwaukee Lionel Railroad Club, and its sister locations work with the Lionel Train Co. each year to design and distribute train cars built by Lionel, with the Milwaukee club producing Milwaukee Road replicas. This helps to sustain the library, museum, teaching and other activities of the clubs. If interested contact one of the members.

Located at the West entrance at 2721 South Calhoun Road, New Berlin WI 53151-3513, (262-754-9900). The club welcomes visitors, on Fridays from 2-10 pm and on Sundays 1-5 pm. Please call to confirm before driving any distance or check for times and days if you’re closer to one of the sister locations in Racine, WI, Chicago, San Francisco, or St. Louis.

I want to thank Jerry again for his insight into the the world of model railroad collecting and his enthusiasm for his hobby.

I love museums and history, so I was thrilled to be contacted by Sean Hooley a few weeks ago.

Hooley is part of a team working on The Launch at the historic Hingham Shipyard. The shipyard, located in Hingham, Massachusetts, once played a large role in World War Two and the Allied victory. The story begins on December 7, 1941, when Japan attacked the US naval base at Pearl Harbor. At that time all other shipyards were already working at full capacity so it was clear that a new shipyard would have to be created and within weeks the small town of Hingham was selected. One hundred and fifty acres were cleared and one of the largest shipbuilding centers in the entire country was built, with over 2500 women working to put out over six ships each month — in less than two years.

The shipyard has been largely unused since it was shut down after the end of the war. Now it’s being redeveloped — but the town wanted the story about the shipyard and what happened there to be told. So the development project includes an educational exhibit commemorating the history of the shipyard.

The Hingham Shipyard Historical Exhibit will be a series of panels located along pedestrian walkways and parks on the site, creating a walking tour. During his quest for images for the panels, Hooley had come upon my blog post on life on the home front during World War Two, and this image of “How Your Discarded Stockings Go To War” (from Volume 12, Number 2, 1943, Modern Woman Magazine, George M. Wessells, Publisher) seemed perfect for the historic project.

Naturally I was thrilled to play a part — no matter how small — in the project. It’s history for Pete’s sake! But first, we had to be clear on a few things, such as the fact that as a collector I had scanned and posted the image for informational purposes but I do not own the rights to it. Once we were rather certain of the intellectual property issues, it was a matter of me sending him a good scan.

Now I just sit and wait while Hooley and his cohorts add the image (along with an image of a woman having fake stocking seams painted on) to one of the panels. The images are to appear on a panel called “Home Front Sacrifices”, which will cover such things as victory gardens, conservation, and rationing — including the story of nylon stockings in the war effort.

Once it’s open, I’ll have to make plans to travel to Massachusetts to take the walking tour of the Hingham Shipyard Historical Exhibit. I’d love to see the exhibit I’ve been a small part of.

***

I also wanted to mention that I’ll be at the joint “Meeting In The Middle” 2008 annual conference for both the Mountain-Plains Museums Association & the Association of Midwest Museums this week; I’m part of the panel discussion on Wednesday, October 22, Session C2 titled Museums & Web 2.0. Maybe I’ll see some of you there?

Scooby-Doo Collection

About 12 years ago I got a Great Dane puppy. I named him Saltheart Foamfollower after the gentle giant in Stephen R. Donaldson’s books; but he was called “Salty” for short. Like most dog owners in love with their dog’s breed, I began to gobble up Great Dane collectibles. Being the parent of a then-six-year-old, I also had to include Scooby-Doo things. That is how & why I began collecting Scooby-Doo items.

Great Danes, like many giant dog breeds, are called “heart-breakers” because they live very short lives. After just six years, Salty went on to doggy heaven leaving me too heartbroken to get anything else with a Great Dane on it. That is how I stopped buying Scooby-Doo items.

Grandma’s bought the kids Scooby things, but in six years, I’ve not bought anything with another Dane on it. The clothing, all but one denim shirt with Scooby embroidered on the pocket, are all long gone — wash worn, faded, or if the kid out-grew it but it was still in great shape, donated to another child with a love of Scooby-Doo. There’s also one watch which, like the shirt, I still cannot bear to wear. But mostly what remains of my Scooby-Doo collection are the decorative and kitchen items, like the vase, milk jug, soap dispenser, and Wilton cake pan. Sometimes they still are hard for me to see & use. Boy, I miss my dog.

1999 Scooby-Doo Cookie Jar

You might have noticed that the ceramic Scooby-Doo cookie jar is damaged; he’s missing one of his ears. As a collectible he would seem to have little-to-no value, right? But in this case it’s just the opposite. That missing ear is the very reason I love that cookie jar.

As any Dane owner will tell you about the breed, Salty was a gentle giant like his namesake. But, as any pet owner will tell you, Salty also had his own personality. One of this dog’s quirks was that he had a thing — a hatred — for images of Great Danes with cropped ears.

At first it seemed coincidental when he chewed all the upright ears off the rubber Scooby-Doo dog toys. They are the parts which stick off the toy and are easily chewed away, right? But then Salty learned to flip his toys into my other Scooby-Doo collectibles, eventually, after much loss of other ceramic & glass items, developing a remarkable knack for hitting them just right to remove one ear at a time. I have to say, for the record, that the dog never broke anything but Scooby items, and always the cropped ears. As fascinating as his statement on the cropping of dog’s ears was, it became too expensive to keep those anyplace other than in a cupboard or on top of them, way out of sight.

Now, whenever I see the one-eared cookie jar with lolling tongue goofily peering at me from atop the refrigerator, I smile a sad, wistful smile for the dog who left the cookie jar thus. It’s like the dog is still speaking to me through that cookie jar.

While it’s true the cookie jar has no value as a collectible, I’m sure my eldest child will want it. She remembers the day that ear was swiftly removed from the cookie jar; she remembers the sweet, goofy, giant dog who hated cropped ears on Danes.

1997 Scooby-Doo Drinking Glass

I’m still not ready to get another Great Dane — yet. But, enough time has passed, my heart has healed enough to now consider getting more Great Dane and Scooby-Doo items.

I think I’ll need to start by replacing the Scooby-Doo drinking glasses; twelve years of use and washing has left them rather faded and with the image worn-off in spots.

I know they don’t make the same ones anymore — in fact, Scooby’s popularity as defined by availability in merchandise offerings seems to have waned quite a bit since the late 90’s. So I’ll have to really search for them. But it’s time I started being happy looking for those goofy gentle giants again.