what do you collect?

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Started 3 months ago by EraserGirl
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EraserGirl
Member

what are you still collecting? are you uncluttering it? is it exempt?
did you use to collect and stop?
i couldn't find an old thread that tackled this as a confession thread.

As much as i unclutter, declutter, divest and unload...i still have a serious serious weakness for bags, backpacks, carryalls, book bags.. don't get me wrong, i don't collect every one i come across, i just like a good bag for a particular purpose. But somehow i have a hard time giving them away..or selling them as they are all pretty costly when new. I just tell myself "it's okay, i will declutter everything else first" and it will make it easier to part with some of these.

Seriously...i have an expensive name brand 22" carry on that sold for over $200 new and i bought for $20 but i have never used it to travel. Now it sits in my closet holding summer clothes; but i can't bring myself to part with it. For some weird reason it holds some symbolism for me, but i can't tell what. It's the same through the closet, L L Bean overnight sized messenger bag, Lands End briefcase, Eastpak weekended backpack, and it goes on.

Aside from that collection, all my other collections are up for grabs, keep the best items, and get rid of the excess, in my mind it makes the items i keep that much more special.

Posted 3 months ago #
RebeccaL
Member

I collect snow globes- the cheap, tacky, travel tchotchkes. This interest probably came from the one my grandmother had and I was fascinated with as a child, and an adult friend's "tasteful" display of travel souvenirs (the mini Eiffel Tower, etc). I created a shelved shadow box to display them in, with maps decoupaged (sp?) in the background. Traveling is one of my greatest passions, and this collection always makes me smile.

Posted 3 months ago #
poodle
Member

I collect turtles! All kinds. Stuffed, glass, plastic, garden fixtures. And, white miniature poodle figurines - I have a mini poodle who's 16 1/2 (hence my username!). I'll get rid of anything before I even think about which if any of my turtles or poodles will find another home. I don't know how many turtles I have, but there's about 3-6 in every room of my house, and some in storage (they're Christmas ones). My mom collects nativities. This past Christmas, she had 96 nativities in their house! Everything from ornaments, figurines, table runners. She even has a necklace!

Posted 3 months ago #
sleepykitten
Member

@poodle - I love turtles!!! (though I don't collect them).

I sort of collect scarves - I only have 6, but even the two that I don't wear frequently, I would have a difficult time getting rid of. And scarves always catch my eye if I'm shopping.

The one collection that I have that I have absolutely no intention of uncluttering is my collection of public transit cards/passes. I never learned how to drive (which is a bit unusual in the United States), and several years ago I started saving tickets or cards from when you pay the fare to take the bus or subway. When I uncluttered my sentimental papers a while back, I ran across a couple older transit cards from when I was young and I added those to the stash - I wish I had consciously started collecting them back then, as the aesthetics on some of them are gorgeous. And transit passes also make nice souvenirs from when I travel to another city. I have no intention of purchasing these - I simply collect what I, personally, have used. (Although if a well-meaning relative gifted me some, I would certainly add them to the stash.)

The beauty of this as a collection is that hundreds - even thousands - of them fit in a shoe box!

Posted 3 months ago #
smallLife
Member

I collect knowledge, friendships, and memories :-) The only material thing I have that could be considered a "collection" is embroidery thread (for cross stitching). My grandmother gave me her ~900 color collection when her arthritis got too bad, and I've added some as I've worked on pieces. Thankfully it fits in two small boxes (I gave duplicates and some of the higher numbers to my sister, who just started).

Posted 3 months ago #
Sky
Member

I collect hedgehogs. I mostly have crystal ones and a few other kind. I have 10 total so they aren't overwhelming but I know they could be if I'm not careful. I've made it clear to family and friends that I'm not interested in the dollar store or cutesy type. That may sound mean but I would only get rid of them so best to stop it before it starts.

I also collect flow blue china. I have 7 plates that hang on the wall and a few dishes I use as soap dishes, etc. They are beautiful and useful but I don't want any more.

I've gotten rid of everything else I used to collect....knic-knack crap that just collects dust. I also used to pick up Christmas decorations every year but quit that and downsized what I have.

DH collects Hemingway stuff. Mostly books, a few vintage magazines, date stamped postcards and some momentos.

Posted 3 months ago #
ninakk
Member

I have a collection of one tiny and two normal paper weights but don't plan on expanding. I do, however, love glass as a material and would very much like to have my collection displayed in cube-shaped boxes (but with glass doors and proper lighting from most directions) like here:
http://www.marthastewart.com/267663/living-with-collections

Right now it's filling one mid-sized moving box, I'd estimate. I don't plan on expanding it that much either, but some Nanny Still, Tapio Wirkkala, Timo Sarpaneva, Saara Hopea and Kaj Franck might find their way to me still.

From grandma came a smallish collection of porcelain pitchers etc., which now sit on top of the two office (kitchen) cupboards. Have to dust them, they need it.

The wall art in the entryway consists of various metal plates or whatever they are called, of the same type of material that car plates may be. They are remakes of old advertisements such as chocolate and coca cola, but I've had them around for quite some time and might want to take the down at some point.

Should the books be called a collection? Then I still have closer to 2000 of them. These are probably one in one out from now on.

And what about fridge magnets? My collection was described in the photos on fridge thread, although I found one of a 60's lady sitting in her kitchen peeling apples; "Gloria had not noticed her apples were self-peeling" (GM apples, suitably geeky for a biochemist). Most likely no more magnets into the house, unless some cool one happens to be found/received.

Grandma also left behind a nice collection of various porcelain plates, which I intend to display in a future kitchen or dining room. Won't add to it I think.

Can't think of anything else, but when written like this it is more than enough.

Posted 3 months ago #
candy
Member

I collect ceramics/pottery. I don't have a huge collection, I have around 2 dozen items that are purely decorative and on display, and some that are not only decorative but also used for serving food. I have gotten rid of a lot of what I used to have, nowadays only the best enter my collection and I don't anticipate that it will grow with more than a couple of items. I've been collecting ceramics for approximately 30 years, and I still have the two first items I bought.

I guess I could also say that I collect drinking glasses. I have just about every known model of a vintage Orrefors series called Rhapsody (smoke grey glass). I also have a slightly ridiculous quantity of vintage Kartio glasses by Kaj Franck in various colours. I use them every day, though, so I don't really consider them a collection.

Posted 3 months ago #
grey
Member

i don't know if i collect bags, per se, but it is the area i have the hardest time purging. i can totally relate to the ridiculous attachment, erasergirl. i've mostly stopped buying new and if i do consider buying another i have to donate one. i did buy a new purse last fall that trumped two others in my closet so it was easy to let go of those when i got home.

otherwise, if i were going to collect something it would be vintage pedestal cake plates. i have one and adore it, but haven't come across any other that call to me in the same way. should i find others i love as much, i'll make space for them in my home, but until then it's a collect of one.

Posted 3 months ago #
chacha1
Member

Oh dearie me. We collect ... a lot of things. Trying hard to achieve one in - one out on movies and books. Music, no such luck, but am working on minimizing the space the CDs occupy.

I have a gigantic collection of beads, jewelry, and craft supplies, including semiprecious stones. As many of us would attest, the urge behind this collection is the impulse to make things. However, I think many of us would also attest that one invariably ends up with much more than one needs for the initial project idea. Things ... accrue.

Fossils, pottery, art of various kinds, a few "family" bits and pieces ... our home is a cabinet of curiosities!

Posted 3 months ago #
Nina
Member

To my own surprise I realized the other day (prompted by the fridge question) that I don't collect anything (anymore). Well apart form the magnets from our travels on the fridge but those can only be bought at a place we visit while traveling so that limits the number of things coming in. Plus they are small so don't take up much space. They each have a memory attached so that is why I don't see them as clutter I guess.

Posted 3 months ago #
lucy1965
Member

Hmmm *looks thoughtful*

The closest I come, I think, are the toys: three date from our childhoods, three were gifts to accompany children's books, and three were because I could not resist the last witch bear at the now-defunct Starbucks up the street; a small marmalade soft toy cat for a familiar was the logical next purchase, and the wooden dragon pull-toy was too handsome to leave in the consignment shop.

They take up one shelf in the built-in bookcase; we love them, they make us smile.

Posted 3 months ago #
candy
Member

Hmmm... music. I have a LOT of music, but I'm not sure that I consider it a collection. Not even when I have all (or nearly all) the CDs of an artist, which is the case of 3-4 artists. I wonder why I don't consider this a collection?

Posted 3 months ago #
Anita
Member

Hmmm... I can think of two collections at the moment. If we're talking "things I have lots of and a hard time paring down", then I collect scarves. I have a big basket full of them. I wear them all. I know perfectly well that I don't need that many, but I love having them and picking a different one to wear each day. I go through them regularly, trying to cut down, but can never find any to part with.

If we're talking "things I'm purposely acquiring and take pride in owning, displaying and using", then I'm building a collection of mismatched antique tea cups. Not the white-porcelain-with-pastel-flowers kind, which I find dated, but antique cups that stand out to me in terms of design. So far I have two, and I'm looking at buying 2 more. I've set my limit at 8, though at the rate I'm finding ones I really love, I doubt I'll reach that any time soon.

Posted 3 months ago #
lottielot
Member

Children's picture books, I really love them, though I did give away 4 bags of them the other day. I'm trying not to think about it... I used to collect earrings, but I gave up some time ago, I should probably purge some of them.

Posted 3 months ago #
candy
Member

I guess I make a difference between "things I collect" (ceramics) versus "things I happen to have a collection of" (music by certain artists, some jewellery).

Am I crazy?

Posted 3 months ago #
Secret Squirrel
Member

Saw the title, thought I didn't have any collections.. Then read the posts and realise I have rather a good collection going of bears and square silk / long cotton scarves! Ah well. I get a lot of enjoyment out of both.

Posted 3 months ago #
Ella
Member

In college I started a collection of Alice in Wonderland books and ephemera. Then I joined the Lewis Carroll Society and saw the great Alice collections and libraries around the world. My own tiny grouping could never compare, so I left off acquiring new things. I still have that small collection and treasure it.

Later I started collecting Arts & Crafts pottery with the purchase of a rare signed early Rookwood bowl. But shortly after I started, a number of celebrities' homes who were also collecting A&C were featured in magazines like Architectural Digest. The A&C market suddenly became inflated beyond reason, and I could no longer afford to add to my collection. Three years ago I sold off all but three pieces.

My mother was the great collector in our family. I'm so glad I didn't inherit the collecting gene/bug from her. But I did inherit her collections of American decorative arts from the early 1800s. Some I've sold (decoys. whirligigs), some I plan to sell (dolls, toys, lighting, hearthware), and some I love and intend to keep (copper, pewter, glass, blue&white). For the keepers, I'm more of a curator than a collector since I'm not actively adding to the collection. Oh almost forgot... she collected coin silver spoons of all sizes, and I've added a few pieces and would love to continue if funds ever again allow such indulgence. I use the spoons all the time. Love them.

Posted 3 months ago #
Zora
Member

Cats, dangnabit. I live on the ground floor of a condo built in the middle of a large city block swarming with feral cats. Sooner or later, a feral kitten or half-grown cat will show up on my lanai (patio) looking thin and pathetic. I will feed it and then ...

Right now I have three indoor cats (all former ferals) and I am feeding three ferals outdoors. One of the ferals is semi-tame and likes to spend time inside my house, sleeping on the sofa.

I told one of my roomies, "I didn't mean to have this many cats; they just happened." He said that should be carved on my tombstone.

Posted 3 months ago #
candy
Member

LOL Zora :)

Ella: nice to see that I'm not the only one who likes beautiful pottery. But I know that already, I seem to remember that you posted about an exhibition that you had seen recently.

Posted 3 months ago #

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