What do you collect?

[Aggie_Ama]

With all the talented people I didn't want to completely thread jack that but what do you collect? Anything odd, something you love that you have?

I have a few:
Cookie Jars. This started by accident, I was accumulating odd ones as presents. Nothing expensive that I know of, just quirky ones. A pineapple, a crab, a cable car, some 70's era glass Liberty Bell, also 70's era mushroom my Nanny had, a Christmas cottage, a panda bear and Winnie the Pooh. I am running out of room on the top of my cabinets but I love the cookie jars!

Lennox Dolls- I don't collect these anymore but my Nanny and Pawpaw bought me a total of 10 when I was younger, about 11" tall, porcelain and exquisite. Husband says they are creepy but the live in the top of the china cabinet with Nanny's china.

Christmas Ornaments- We get one when we travel or to symbolize something significant. We started this the first year we were married.

Smooshed pennies- Don't know what you call them but those ones you put in the crank machine and it gives you a penny with an imprint. I just started getting these: Memphis Zoo, Houston Zoo, Muir Woods, Taos, Disneyworld. My husband finds it silly but he will help me find those little machines if we are traveling or somewhere touristy. I love them and I don't know why but they make me giddy like a little kid!

[gingerale]

Just 2 things for me:

1) I Love Lucy Barbie dolls

and,

2) Old Dr Pepper memorabilia (old bottles....I clean them and have them refilled and capped; I have a Dr Pepper machine from the late 50's or early 60's that still works; Dr Pepper collector trucks, etc.).

[Eden]

I have a small collection of teapots. I even found a majolica one in Italy - which seems a bit unusual as drinking tea is not common there. I have several from China that friends brought back for me, several from Japan and one proper British teapot from my own trips. Tea seemed pretty non-existent in Spain, so no pot from there....

[nancielle]

I collect Betty Boop items. Became enamored of her when I was a little girl because she wasn't blonde haired & blue eyed (just like I wasn't...and still am not :D)

Snowmen. Started as a fluke. I received one as a gift many years ago and thought it needed a companion. They've just been invading ever since :D. They freak out my dog though(all decorations with faces do). :(

[Zen]

Antique telephones

Tin containers- candy, food, whatever as long as it has nice graphics.

Teapots

Postcards-the old ones that look hand-colored

[tulip]

bikes (of course). I have a Luna Eclipse, a Bike Friday Pocket Rocket Pro, and a Jamis Coda Comp. I lost the 1952 JC Higgins 3-speed and the 1980s Vitus road bike in the divorce. Oh well.

Teapots, me too! I love cast iron Japanese teapots. I only have two, but I'm always on the lookout for more. I also have three ceramic teapots--one from England and two from China. I drink tea, and I notice differences in taste depending on the teapot that I use.

Wire bicycles. I haven't made any myself yet, but I plan to. I have only three at the moment.

Photos of cool bikes that I have seen on my travels. I don't have them framed yet, but I have the wall picked out where they will hang. Utility bikes from Nicaragua and Brazil are my favorites, and a Mardi Gras adult trike from N.O.

[Irulan]

I collect post cards mailed from country of origin. Some of my more cools ones are Everest Base Camp, Bhutan and Mongolia.

[Aggie_Ama]

Here are some not so high quality photos of the cookie jars. None of them are expensive but I love each one.


The glass Liberty Bell my husband's stepmother found while cleaning out his Grandmother's house and thought I would like it. It is hideously ugly but cool in a "what the heck is this" way. His stepmom seems to think this brand of glass stuff is of value, I have not clue what it is but the weird cookie jar is cool in its own way, I guess. The other is a Mushroom I found at my Nanny's when we were moving her to assisted living. It always had Chips Ahoy in it when I was a kid, I had forgotten it existed and am proud it is in my possession now.
http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y258/AggieAma/70sjars.jpg

The Panda Bear was a gift from my mom because I love Pandas. The Crab was a gift from one of my closest friends because she knew I collected cookie jars and it was just kind of weird.
http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y258/AggieAma/panda.jpg

Pineapple was a gift from my Mom, she saw it at Garden Ridge and thought of me. We have a Palm Tree theme in our kitchen and the pineapple is tropical. That combined with the Christmas jar got me on this cookie jar collecting thing. The Cable Car was a birthday present I bought myself in San Francisco this year. It is the Hyde Street cable car.
http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y258/AggieAma/pineapple.jpg

And here is the one that started it all, the Christmas Jar. My husband's stepmother knew I liked to bake Christmas Cookies and bought me the jar for them. The Winnie the Pooh one was given to me by my mother because I like Winnie the Pooh.
http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y258/AggieAma/pooh.jpg

[SlowButSteady]

License Plates. Trying for fifty states and then some.

Mammalian skulls (really).

Wild turkey hunting calls. I have one of the very best ever made. And a pretty good collection otherwise.

[Eden]

Teapots, me too! I love cast iron Japanese teapots. I only have two, but I'm always on the lookout for more. I also have three ceramic teapots--one from England and two from China. I drink tea, and I notice differences in taste depending on the teapot that I use.


I love my cast iron Japanese pot - I only have one - sooooo expensive, but very beautiful.

Most of mine are Chinese Yixing pots. They come in many shapes and sizes. I tend to like the more subtle or traditional designs than the fanciful ones that are made to look like something else - like a log or an animal.

The largest one is Chinese too, its an antique pot that I found at an estate sale.

[tulip]

Ooooh, nice teapots. I have an iron Japanese one like yours (squished) but it's black and red. My other one is square and all black. Once I get a kitchen back I'll unpack them and take a picture.

I love your little teapots.

[Biciclista]

I collect bikes, we used to collect violins. I try not to collect anything (except for bikes now) because it just starts to take up space. One might say I collect books too.

[shootingstar]

I used to collect more different types of stuff. But now I just get books, with great restraint...:D I learned the hard way when I had to relocate to British Columbia. And ended up selling 40 bks., plus gave away over 150 books. Right now tend to lean on travelogue books. And yea, I do have quite a number of cycling travelogue books.

Tight space is a problem where we live.

I also seem to amass new art supplies. Yea, me the great procrastinator ..to use up those supplies.

[Aggie_Ama]

We are starting to collect bikes, so we had a storage shed built today. Not for the bikes, they need to be locked up much better but so half our two car garage can be dedicated to bikes. The lawn mower, camping stuff, yard stuff, etc... will live in the Mini Barn out back. We are at 7 bikes and I am still trying to figure out how long it will take to save for a Full Suspension Mountain Bike for me. :D

[yellow]

Memories and wishes! :)

[Brandi]

Friends!
Ok ok I also collect fiesta ware bowls,tea pots, cats,and just odd nick nacks from my travels. I have pottery from so many places and know all the artists. That is way cool. And there is a story to almost everything in my house being from some place I have been. So maybe those things are collected memory's?
So deep!

[dex]

Cameras. Old, toy, and "junk" cameras. I have several shelves full of them, all functional, though I don't take them out to play as often as I used to.

And doll heads. Just the heads.

[snapdragen]

Dragons -- all kinds, Chinese, European, toys, statues. I have a dragon tea pot.

Pins - the kind you get at souvenir shops, I try to get one when ever I travel someplace. It started when I was in Alaska, I'd buy a pin at whatever town I was in and stick it on my camera bag.

I also seem to have a small collection of silicone bracelets -- Livestrong, MS Society, Pancreatic Cancer, Livewrong, End Doping, AIDs LifeCycle, Team in Training, HTFU, Breast Cancer......

[bikerchic]

I collect cows mostly the black and white ones. The herd has taken over my kitchen and many boxes as I've packed up a lot of them. Everyone knows I love cows and I get lots of cows from friends and relatives.

I also collect Hard Rock Cafe shotglasses (http://l.yimg.com/g/images/spaceball.gif). I have nearly two dozen from all over the world, again friends and relatives buy them for me in their travels.

Lets see I collect post cards, stamps, bike related "stuff", teddy bears, bird houses, pink flamingos and diamonds! Well not so much diamonds, I can only wish, sigh.

[LoriO]

I collect children's horse books. It started after college when I was in a used book store and saw a couple of horse stories that I remembered reading as a child and I had to buy them. I know have bookshelves filled with horse books!

I also have a collection of Breyer horses. most of them are ones that I got when I was a child. I till occasionally add to my collection but not as much as I used to.

[wildhawk]

Awesome collections everyone!! And wow - I have some similar collections too. Aggie: I will get you a smashed penny from Florida first chance I get too.

Let’s see: I have a collection of teapots - a few - loves the pics of yours! I love old kitchen gadgets, have quite a collection of the little vintage wooden handle cookie cutters from the 30s and 40s. I have a collection of old cameras and camera equipment (been doing graphic art since the 70s and most of them I have used at one time or another - now trying to get into digital more). I am an avid collector of old books - especially ones about nature and art. I used to live on a farm and own horses, so I have a living room that has several saddles, various tack and horse stuff lying around and the biggest collection of mine is my Breyer horse collection. My “herd” numbers just over 300 - I will get some pics for you LoriO. I have a collection of Roy Rogers memorabilia to go with the horses. I even constructed a miniature leather saddle and bridal set for one of the horses - hard work, but very detailed. My DH and I also love model trains, so I used my art skills to hand paint tiny little N-scale train houses and people. My DH has a collection of bikes - five of which are in our family room right now - looks like a bike “stable” with them all lined up! Two older drop-handle racers, two new Schwinn hybrids and my Giant hybrid. I collect patches from state parks - that is my touristy collection thing to get. My sister calls us packrats, but we are “collectors” and our house is definately eclectic and weird. Thanks for sharing your hobbies everyone - very fun getting to know you all better!

[tulip]

I used to be an avid Bryer horse collector, although I didn't make it to 300! I think had 40 at the peak. Most are still in my parent's attic, I think.

When I travel, I collect cookbooks from the region where I'm traveling. I've just started this in the past couple of years, so my collection is still pretty small.

[GeoCam]

I collect cows mostly the black and white ones. The herd has taken over my kitchen and many boxes as I've packed up a lot of them. Everyone knows I love cows and I get lots of cows from friends and relatives.

Do you have one of the Terry "Moo" bikes? It would fit right in!!

http://www.arcfile.com/cow/graphics/moo.jpg

[LoriO]

I used to have about 80 or so. AS much as I hated to, about 2 years ago I had to sell some to help pay some vet bills for the real horse. As much as I loved my plastic ones, the real one had to come first.

If you love Breyers, check out my barn managers website, she does beautiful horse resin sculptures that you would just go ga-ga over. The paint jobs on some of these are just mind-boggeling, you would swear that horse was real that is how realistic they are. www.artbymorgen.com

[wildhawk]

LoriO: I completely understand that - real horses are expensive - both of my Appaloosas had various health issues - my favorite was a rescue - she was practically starved to death when I got her - took quite a while to regain her health but she turned out to be an awesome trail horse and was a joy to ride! Some of my Breyer collection was given to me too - several of my friends gave me their vintage Breyers so my herd kept growing. I love the new sculpts - the detail is incredible. Thanks for posting the link - you are right, I went nuts!! Wish I could afford to purchase one of hers!! Since my shelves are very full, I am very selective on which ones I purchase now. I also have all the dogs/companion animals and several of the wildlife Breyers - the deer family, bison, mountain lion and moose. They are addictive!! DH loves the story of me and my first bicycle - a vintage Rollfast - I used to keep rope tied around the handlebars and when I got off the bike I would tie it to the maple tree in the front yard - my Mom thought it was to keep my brother from messing with my bike, but I finally fessed up that my bike was my “horse” and I didn’t want it to run away! I even took clothespins and folded my Beatle cars over the fender straps to make a clip clop sound when I pedaled. I sure wish I had those beatles cards now - they would be worth something!

[sundial]

I love hats. I like formal hats, casual hats, workout hats.....

My favorite winter hat last year was the Terry snow leopard beanie type hat. :) I have a Polartec purple pill box hat too.

[LoriO]

DH loves the story of me and my first bicycle - a vintage Rollfast - I used to keep rope tied around the handlebars and when I got off the bike I would tie it to the maple tree in the front yard - my Mom thought it was to keep my brother from messing with my bike, but I finally fessed up that my bike was my “horse” and I didn’t want it to run away! I even took clothespins and folded my Beatle cars over the fender straps to make a clip clop sound when I pedaled. I sure wish I had those beatles cards now - they would be worth something!

LOL, my bike was also "my horse" Shadows across the streets and crosswalk lines were jumps to be jumped over. LOL, omg the memories!!

[jobob]

Pillsbury Doughboy stuff :cool:

[alpinerabbit]

dust under my bed.

for real: some old books, some tea accessories (I own an antique english tea caddy), some japanese or "chinoiserie" stuff. we own half a dozen japanese woodblock prints.

[GeoCam]

LOL, my bike was also "my horse" Shadows across the streets and crosswalk lines were jumps to be jumped over. LOL, omg the memories!!

I just had a conversation about this when I visited my younger brother in Boulder. We both remember this very well, but we were really little - still riding tricycles. We tied them up to the fence of the chicken coop after a long, hard ride around the yard! I remember vividly being SO jealous when my brother got Marvel the Mustang for his birthday, so he had a "real" horse and I still had to use my trike. :(

[roadie gal]

I collect turtles - plastic, ceramic, etc. not the real live ones.

I also collect gods... well, it started out as Buddhas, then I got a Ganesha.. I have a few others but it tends to various Buddhas and Hindu gods.

[emily_in_nc]

It might seem like it from the number of books, clothing items, kitchen items, etc. I have in the house, but I truly don't collect anything (except maybe fitness wear -- oh, and plants, for outside) Actually, I'm trying very hard to de-clutter and sell stuff on ebay that I'm not using since our house is just too full. There's too much to dust and nowhere to put anything new (heaven forbid anyone gives us a gift that needs to be displayed somewhere!!)

[bikerchic]

Do you have one of the Terry "Moo" bikes? It would fit right in!!

http://www.arcfile.com/cow/graphics/moo.jpg

LOL GeoCam!
I really wanted to get that bike for a long time but atlast it isn't to be, sigh.

Boy y'all really have some neat collections and LoriO your friend sure does do beautiful work on those resin horses!

[RolliePollie]

Lunchboxes! I think I have 32...mostly from the 60's and 70's. Unfortunately they are boxed up in my garage right now.

Like these...

[spindizzy]

Bowing to my Taurean nature, I have a collection of small, smooth rocks and I also have sand collected from the different beaches I have been on. I have the sand in small antique bottles.

[Mr. Bloom]

Waterford Christmas Ornaments. We've accumulated every "disk" ornament and prism ever (I think) made.

[OakLeaf]

I have a T-shirt from every motorcycle roadrace I've been to. Some of the MXs and flat-tracks too, but not all of them. They live in a big plastic tub and I need a bigger one!

Trouble is, the one from the first race I ever went to will always be the oldest one I have (and so, one of the coolest). So I want to wear it more, making it prone to wearing out. :( Then there's all those "nothing special" shirts that I don't really have any reason to show off (but will wear just to spell the oldest shirts and the ones from the international races). Gotta ration 'em.

[wackyjacky1]

Swatches:

http://i212.photobucket.com/albums/cc71/wackyjacky1/l_57b2f36fb04cb8a538297fbcd41cdf-1.jpg

and fountain pens:

http://i212.photobucket.com/albums/cc71/wackyjacky1/IMG_0001_72-1.jpg

[Irulan]

It might seem like it from the number of books, clothing items, kitchen items, etc. I have in the house, but I truly don't collect anything (except maybe fitness wear -- oh, and plants, for outside) Actually, I'm trying very hard to de-clutter and sell stuff on ebay that I'm not using since our house is just too full. There's too much to dust and nowhere to put anything new (heaven forbid anyone gives us a gift that needs to be displayed somewhere!!)


That's why I love mine, ( postcards) they fit in a shoebox. I'm with you in that anything that collects dust or needs to be dusted, no way at this house.

Funny to read about the horses. I too had tons of Breyers as a girl, and collected porcelains also ( Beswick, Hangen-Renaker, Lefton) I even use to "show" them in model horse shows! ( how crazy is that??) Anyway, I'm getting ready to eBay the porcelains. I haven't added to them in 30+ years and yep - collecting dust.

[malkin]

Oooooh! I love collections!

The lunchboxes are lovely! My husband sold a perfect Roy Rogers one on ebay for a small fortune.

I do love hats too, and re-homed a vintage pile of them when my grandparents passed away. After dusting and vacumming them on my walls for about 15 years, I took them off to preschool where they are worn daily, but somewhat more roughly tended.

So in our current house of cards, if you look for 'things of a kind' you could find lots of marklin trains, steinbach ornaments, red things in the kitchen, and 'wedding' china (mostly from ebay, and after the divorce), and lots and lots of loosely associated stuff that probably is best suited to the discard pile.

[Delta7]

I have a collection of dolls ...and in the last few years, I've managed to collect several iPods :eek:

3G (sold)
4G Photo 30GB
5G Video 60GB
2 nanos (lost one and replaced it)
1G shuffle (gave to my niece), a 2G shuffle (traded for an Airport Extreme) and last month I managed to get my brother's hand-me-down iPhone (1st G) :p

[GraysonKelly]

Hi!
Wow! What a great group of people and so diverse!!!
I partly answered this in the "what are your hobbies thread, but I'll expand a bit"

Post cards: I've gotten them from almost all 50 states and one from australia, 2 from new zeland, 3 from england

Rocks: When I go somewhere and am outside exploring or if the place means something to me I pick up an interesting rock to remind me. Inspired by a story I read called "A Rock for Remembrance"

Knives: Like I said before, I collect them. Some of them are new and shiny. Most are old. I go to antique stores, flea markets, or people who know about my hobby just give them to me and I clean them up, sharpen them and occasionally carry them. My favorites are the old whittling knives. I've still got the one my granddaddy gave me when i was 8.

Books: Lots and lots of books. Especially old ones. I'd be happy if my only furniture was a chair and bookshelves but my partner would probably shoot me.;)

Zippo Lighters: I love 'em! I've got 5.

Oh! And baseball hats. I have 34.
Gray

[sundial]

http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y186/2dogcrew/Sallitahat.jpg

My husband surprised me with this original created by Sally Faith Steinmann (http://www.maggiemae.com/bio.htm). It's a cinnamon corduroy cloche accented with russet velvet. A vintage brass button accents the velvet bow. I just love the detail and fine craftsmanship that went into this creation.

[Crankin]

Pretty much the same as Emily; nothing that is a "real" collection. I buy too many clothes, athletic gear/equipment, restaurant meals, etc. to spend any money on collectibles. I hate clutter and tchakes. I am running out of room for all of our books, now that I am collecting more from being back in school.

[Miranda]

On a grumpy p.m.s. tainted note:mad:...

I'm currently collecting ill fitting bicyle saddles. But, I'd seriously like to stop:(. OK, a different post with something not so grumpy... (that's what came to mind first, I just had to get that out:o).

[Miranda]

The Waterford post made me think of my ornaments. I collect Hallmark Christmas ornaments.

I have a couple GFs that we have exchanged ornaments for all the years we have been friends. I have special ones I buy every year to signify different events that have taken place in the family. DS for example, has a crisp red two wheel bicycle ornament the year he ditched his training wheels. When the time comes, I will pass them down to the children to have on their own trees.

The pics below are part of DD's collection. These are the completed series of moving wind up music boxes. They have small jewely drawers in the front, and each plays a different tune.

Every year I hand write a small note to DD expressing my love for her. It gets placed in the drawer. The individual ornament pic has a tiny piece of jewelry that was given to me as a baby shower gift for DD. A beautiful 24K gold heart/cross infant size necklace. It's in the drawer with the note for that year. It's DD's favorite:).

http://i249.photobucket.com/albums/gg230/rotarydial/IMG_1084.jpg

http://i249.photobucket.com/albums/gg230/rotarydial/IMG_1086.jpg

[invsblwmn]

I have two collections, books and female action figures. My name came from the elusive figure below that I have not been able to find at an affordable price in good condition. Books, I just love em and have a whole wall full of apple crates loaded with them. The action figures are mostly in storage, but there are about 400 of them-all women!.

[Zen]

I still have mine from sixth grade. The thermos, while not original, is just llike the one that came with it.
http://i206.photobucket.com/albums/bb14/zencentury/Lunchbox2.jpg

[bacarver]

Banana stickers! How did I ever get started on this? I don't know, but I have a really cool little assortment.
Barb

[emily_in_nc]

Banana stickers! How did I ever get started on this? I don't know, but I have a really cool little assortment.
Barb

OMG -- my dad and step-mom used to have a HUGE collection of banana stickers all over their kitchen phone when we were growing up. Everything else in the home (they were both architects) was "perfect" and "tidy", so the stickers were sort of their little area of rebellion and cutting loose. :D

Last time I was at my step-sister's house, she'd started the same thing on her kitchen phone. I don't eat a lot of bananas, but started putting all my organic apple stickers on my terminal display at work, just to funkify it up a bit. I don't know what my co-workers think. No one has commented. :D

[bnylo]

My small blades. The one on the bottom is a beauty, mammoth ivory and damascus steel, a birthday present.

[bnylo]

Not sharp, just a training sword for Iaido. Fear the Kitty!!

[Aggie_Ama]

Wildhawk- You gave me the idea to start another collection, much to DH's disgust. I bought a patch from the state park we camped at this weekend. Now I want to go back to the others we have been to in the past couple years and get patches. DH said I should sew them on a camping duffle, not a bad idea since I have been looking for a nicer bag for camping. :)

[short cut sally]

I collect 1930's-1950's stuff. I have a collection of chrome appliances (toasters, blenders, coffeemakers), painted mixers, blenders, 3 green/cream porcelain stoves, dishes, advertising, cupboards, and the real deal jadite glass-shakers, canisters, bowls, and dishes. My kitchen and dining room runneth over. My dining room table is a chrome and yellow crushed ice pattern of formica and vinyl. OH, and can't forget the plaster fruit collection too. I want to achieve the ultimate of tackiness in my kitchen and diningroom...and I love everything in it.
I have decorated my bedroom in sorta the paris/french feel. I got lots of those 50's porcelain pink spaghetti poodles, and they all wear the cat eye glasses or have rhinestones on their collars. I have the cheap prints of ladies that look like they came from paris, with the parisols, lovely hats, gloves..

[beccaB]

Longaberger baskets. I have about 300, in a 1,000 sq foot house. I might be selling some soon!

[emily_in_nc]

Oops, I forgot, I do have a collection! Refrigerator magnets from all the places we travel to. Inexpensive and easy to display. And no dusting required! :D

[OakLeaf]

Banana stickers! How did I ever get started on this? I don't know, but I have a really cool little assortment.
Barb

Oh geez...
DH will stick them on ANYTHING other than the garbage! It's hard enough trying to get him to take them off at all and not throw them in the compost (plastic, non-biodegradable) but then they wind up on the range hood... the compost bin (where they will eventually wind up clogging the dishwasher drain)... the countertop... the refrigerator...

Stickers ALONE are half the reason I've been trying not to buy non-local produce. Unfortunately that's much tougher (aka nearly impossible) in Florida :mad:.


.... Zen, that's a FANTASTIC lunchbox! I love that!

[Pax]

Not sharp, just a training sword for Iaido. Fear the Kitty!!
I'll have to remember take a pic of mine, I have a WWII Japanese NCO's samurai sword...very sharp and very lethal looking. My Great Uncle was a Catholic chaplain in the South Pacific during the war, he brought it back when he came home and gave it to my dad.

[crazybikinchic]

Dreamsicles, although it has kind of morphed into angels in general.
My sisters and I exchange Christmas ornaments for the past several years. I enjoy that because every year when its time to put the tree up, I have ornaments that I have forgotten about.

Last, nail polish. I do my own nails, and I love funky colors.