Merry Christmas From Jake!

Happy Hijacking, err, I mean Merry Christmas!  Yes, it's Jake again and I have hijacked John's blog.  The big guy's celebrating Christmas today, so I decided to do today's blog post.

The great thing about Christmas is that there's a ton of collectibles that you could have.  Think about it, you could do sweaters, ornaments, and Santa is an area that's all its own.

I love the ornaments that John has in his Etsy shop, especially the ornament that was designed by Thomas Blackshear for Hallmark.  You can see the ornament here.

So stay warm and bundle up!  And for me, I have some pajamas that I am going to throw on.

Ben Cantwell And The 1933 Goudey’s Baseball Card Set

When we think of baseball cards today, we think of the packs with bubble gum.  But the packs didn’t always come with the gum.

In 1933, the Goudeys Gum Company released a 240 card set released called the Goudeys baseball card.    This card set is the first one of its kind to be issued with bubble gum in the pack of cards.  Before this set came out, the cards were released in tobacco packs.

The cards also double as advertising for Big League Chewing Gum, which can be seen on both the front and back of the card.  They are also very distinguishable because each card features a drawing of each player. 

The first card that I bought that was from this set features Ben Cantwell.  Ben was a pitcher for several teams starting in 1927.  By the time 1933 rolled around, he was a relief pitcher for the Boston Braves.  This year was a pretty good year for Ben; he came close to winning the MVP award for the year. 

 

The great thing about this card is that it falls into several collectible categories: advertising, baseball lovers, and gum nuts could find room in their collection for it.

I have this card listed in my Etsy store, and you can see it here.

Vintage Sheet Music For Every Type of Collector

It’s kind of scary how big the sheet music collectibles area is.  There are different styles of music like rock, country, and jazz.  When you start to look at each area, there are even sub-categories like rock-a-billy, hard rock, smooth jazz, and even classic jazz.  The list just goes on and on.

Click here to see a piece of WWI sheet music.

WWI is a popular area to collectors.  It’s not just the patriotic song, but the cover as well that people collect.  This type of sheet music was produced to help keep the spirits of the country up when we were involved in WWI.  The covers that feature at least one soldier tend to be the most popular.

Sheet music with great covers are also highly coveted.  Covers can feature celebrities like Joan Crawford, images from famous movies like THE SHEIK, or even famous artists like Norman Rockwell.

Click here to see a piece of sheet music featuring Joan Crawford.

Over the years, I have come across a ton of sheet music.  As with other areas of collecting, the condition is king.  The area that gets a lot of wear and tear are the edges and the spine of the music.  Fading to the cover is also another concern.  Over time, the sheet music could be left in the direct sunlight, and some of the art on the cover has faded away.  Things like writing on or in the sheet music, yellowing or missing pages, or brittle pages can also affect the value of the sheet music.  Price stickers from the retailer could also decrease the value of the music.

Click here to see a piece of sheet music featuring a Norman Rockwell Print.

There are as many ways to display your collection as there are items to collect.  They could be proudly displayed on a vintage piano, put on a coffee table, or even framed.  The list just goes on and on.

 

Click here to see WHAT KIND OF AMERICAN ARE YOU?

 

But do you know what the great thing about sheet music is?  Not only can you find pieces to fit any budget and fit into a fairly small space, you can also play it and get tons of enjoyment out of it.

 

Click here to see THE SHEIK sheet music.

You can see some additional examples of some vintage sheet music in my Etsy shop here.

 

A Truly Special Find

You don’t get any better than this in the collectible world:  thanks to shows like American Pickers, porcelain signs are quickly becoming one of the most sought-after antiques.

This one-sided Mobilgas gas pump sign, which I recently listed on TIAS, is a perfect way to get in on the craze.

Most of the porcelain signs I run into are so big, they literally need an 18-wheeler to transport, and a barn to hang on.  But at 12 ½ by 12 inches—that’s inches, not feet—this Mobilgas sign is the perfect way to begin collecting signs.  It would make a great addition to a garage, or over a bar, a little boy’s room, or in a man cave.

A pump featuring a similar Mobilgas sign recently sold at a Barrett-Jackson auction for $5700.

If you’re in the market for a Christmas present for the man or car enthusiast in your life, or know someone who is restoring an old gas pump, this sign is for you.  Head over to ETSY and get a good look.

Sulphide Marbles—Brief History And Collecting Tips

Sulphide marbles were made in the mid 1800’s until the 1930’s, and they feature a porcelain figure encased in glass.  When this type of marble was being produced, early collectors feared them because they thought that the figure in the marble was made out of sulfur, not porcelain.

The most common sulphide that I have seen is the white porcelain figure in crystal glass.  There are some variations of sulphides out there, and they can be pretty rare.

Hard-to-find sulphides that have colored glass (like green or blue), and the figures in the marble can sometimes be painted.

Another thing to keep an eye out for are different figures.  More common sulphides feature a dog or cat.  Sulphides that feature a deer, lion, pig or even a bear command a bigger price.  Human figures are also rare as well.  Numbers are also been known to show up as well.  Usually, it’s a single digit.

There are two things to keep in mind when it comes down to the condition of the marble.  The glass itself is always something to look at for chips, cracks, and even clarity.  But don’t forget to examine the figure itself.

When the marble was made, it was made by hand.  The figure was inserted into the molten glass, and then the glass was formed into the final shape.  When the figure was inserted into the glass, it could crack or an air bubble could form right beside it.  The crack is usually obvious, even to the naked eye.  I have even seen figures completely split in half.

You can find plenty of modern sulphides for sale.  The difference in new and old sulphides are very obvious.  The new sulphides have an extremely high quality on both the glass and the figure.  The figure will always be perfectly centered.  They were meant to be collected and displayed.

Old sulphides will have air bubbles in the glass, and the figure will be off-centered and sometimes there will be a pontil mark.  They were meant to be played with, and they often were.  Sometimes they were played with to the point where they are chipped and even cracked.

There is an authentic antique sulphide marble in my Etsy store; you can see it here.

It’s Tea Time

When 1971 rolled around, Mosser Glass Company produced a Children’s Set with the “Jennifer” pattern. 

The “Jennifer” pattern is based on the Depression glass pattern that’s called “Cameo.”  The “Cameo” is also called “Ballerina” or “Dancing Girl” and was produced by Hocking Glass Company from 1930 to 1934.  When the Hocking Glass Company made the “Cameo” pattern, they never produced any children’s dishes, so you if you happen to run across a child’s dish in this pattern, you know it was made by the Mosser Glass Company in 1971.

This set happens to have 17 small groupings in it, and each grouping has two or three pieces each sold in their own box.  Each group could have a bowl and a pair of candlesticks, a few grill plates (also called a divided or 3 compartment plate), or even a teapot and cups.  This way you could mix and match what pieces you would want so that you don’t have a massive set on your hands.

 

The groups can be found either loose, or you can find them still in their original boxes.

 

The great thing about having the box for the collections is twofold when you think about it.  Not only do they add value to the set, they are also a great way to help store the items when you happen to pick up some of the pieces.

Be careful, though.  The pieces that you find can be chipped or even cracked due to the fact that children could have used these at tea time, so be sure to check every piece that you are interested in very thoroughly.

I have a collection of the “Jennifer” set in my Etsy store, which can be seen here.

 

 

 

Goofus Glass: Holiday Decoration

The great thing about the antiques and collectibles area is the fact that you never know what you might run across that you could use or display during the holidays.  It could be just about anything, really.

Goofus Glass is a perfect collectible for the holidays.

 



 The dominant colors on many Goofus Glass items, gold and red, would go great with any Christmas decoration that you might have.

 

And the great thing is that you can pick up some pieces that could have a dual purpose.   The powder jar shown below could be used as a potpourri holder (cinnamon potpourri makes any home smell like the holidays), and the bowl above can hold anything from holiday ornaments to decorations for the table.

 

Even a vase could be a multi-purpose item.  Not only could it hold flowers, it could even be used to hold a bouquet of vintage cocktail stirrers.

 

 

Just be careful, though.  The relatives could see the Goofus Glass pieces and want to take them home with them after the holidays are over.

 

You can see all of the Goofus Glass in my Etsy store here.

I'm Open For Business Again!

This past week has been rather chaotic for me to say the least.  The computers at my house all decided to go on strike and completely stop working at the same time.

With this very unfortunate turn of events, I had to find a functioning computer and shut my TIAS and Etsy stores down for a few days so that I could get everything resolved.

I created a new coupon code in my Etsy store to help celebrate the reopening.  All you have to do is use the code REOPEN10 to receive a 10 percent discount when you make a purchase.
 
So hurry!  The coupon code will expire on Monday, November 12.

Just In Time For Christmas

If you are looking for a great piece of jewelry for a Christmas present for someone, here's a few ideas:

 To see some more ideas for gifts, head on over to my Etsy store here.

One-Of-A-Kind!

I am always on the lookout for things that are unique, and I ran into this extremely cool tray recently, and I immediately fell in love with it.

 

 

At least 30 years ago, a person in their garage needed a nut and bolt tray.  They reached for the nearest item, which happened to be a Gargoyle Mobiloil 5 quart oil can made by the Socony Vacuum Oil Company.

Who ever made this tray really did a good job.  They took their time and rolled the edges so that you won’t get a cut, and the compartments appear to be even as well.  It is insanely  well made, and borders on tramp art.  You could even call it Garage Art.

When this tray was made, money was extremely tight, everything had to be remade into something else that was just as useful.  That’s how this tray came about.  The skies are the limit when it comes to finding a use for something like this.

 

If you are becoming a Mobiloil nut like I’m getting to be, check out my Mobilgas gas pump sign here.

To see the blog post on the Mobiloil sign, you can see it here.