Just Jake Jr's Place

Beyond the shadow of a doubt, the best times are spent with a good friend or family member.  Why not have both in the same person…or should I say dog?

When walking my dog in the morning, I often find a garage sale that hasn’t been listed in the local paper, or on the internet.

The best tip that anyone could get is to keep an eye peeled where you live.  You could possibly find that garage sale that has a great haul that is just waiting for you to find.

Harold Bell Wright

One name that has remained popular here in the Ozarks is Harold Bell Wright, an author that wrote books about my area.

One such book that he wrote is called “The Shepherd of the Hills”.  This story is based mainly in the Branson area, and at one time was second in sales only to the Bible.

Even to this day, you can still catch a play at the park that has the same name as the book.

All of his books are still well received here in the Ozarks, and you can still find them in just about any flea market or antique mall you go to here.

The Fourth Of July Mega Sale

With the Fourth Of July right around the corner, the best time to shop at my Etsy store is absolutely right now!

Up until Monday morning on July the 9th, you can get 20% off of anything listed.  All that you have to do is to use the coupon code STORESALE20 when you checkout to get the discount.

So do not delay and check out my Etsy store here for some really great items.

Fun Facts For Coins

Sometimes there are great little tidbits that make you stop and just scratch your head, or even pause in amazement when you hear them.  It’s true for every collectible area on the market.  Here’s a few about coins:

 *Did you know that the cents that we carry around in our pockets today didn’t start out that size?  When the cent was first introduced in 1793, it was about the size of  a modern half dollar.

*The United States Mint produced what is now called odd-denomination coins.  These include the half cent, the 2 cent, the 3 cent, and the 20 cent coins.

*The United States Mint is currently is located in San Francisco California, Denver Colorado, and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.  Did you know that they also had mints in Carson City Nevada, and Dahlonega, Georgia?

*The 5 cent piece, which is commonly called the nickel, didn’t always go by that name.  It was introduced as the Half Dime.  It started in 1796, and was used with a few breaks until 1873.

As you become more and more invested in a certain area of collecting, what kind of fun facts will you come across?

Another Lesson Learned

While shopping at one of the local antique malls in my area, I happened onto something that could be a very good thing. It happened to be an R S Suhl shaker, or even possibly hat pin holder.



With the price being right, and some wear being present on the bottom of the shaker, I went ahead and bought it.  When I went to find out what I could about the mark (so I could list it online), there was a little voice in the back of my head that was saying that something was not right.

And then I found a shaker just like the one that I have.  I was thrilled!  I started to read what was posted online about it, and sure enough, that little voice I was hearing was right.  The thing was a fake.

 
The lesson I learned?  A little research and knowledge can go a long way in the long run.

Handmade Primitives

The great thing about the Ozarks is the great selection of handmade primitives.  Whenever someone has seen an item that has outlived its usefulness, a great idea hits them like a ton of bricks.

Why not turn it into something else?

Take this pitcher, for instance.  The body itself is one complete piece with no noticeable seam, and has an applied handle, probably from another pitcher that has become obsolete, and a lid that is also from somewhere else.

Who ever made it even went that extra mile and made a spout as well.

That’s the great thing about this area of collectibles, you never know what kind of great things that could be used differently.

Collectibles Of A Different Sort

Every area of the country gets the benefit of enjoying collectibles that other areas don’t get to see that much.  In my neck of the woods, primitives are seen here more often than things like Chippendale furniture.

There’s a wide range of primitives here in the Ozarks that you could run into, like this scythe.

 When you travel to another part of the country, it would be fun to see what kind of collectibles you run into.

A Great Way To Start A Collection

When walking through an antique mall as a new person to the world of antiques, you start to form ideas on what is out there for you to collect.  When you start any collection, you quickly become aware how large of a field it could be.

 One way to collect is to focus your collection in a certain area.  It could be a character in a comic book series.

It could be coins from a certain mint.

Or it could be a certain china or glassware pattern.

The best piece of advice that you could remember is to have as much fun as possible while looking for the latest piece to add to your collection.

Maxfield Parrish

Have you ever heard of a guy by the name Maxfield Parrish? 

Maxfield Parrish (1870-1966) is very well known American painter and illustrator for the colors and images that he used.

Some of the illustrations that Maxfield did were used in the books “Mother Goose In Prose” by L. Frank Baum (1897), “Poems of Childhood” by Eugene Fields (1904), and “Arabian Nights”  (1910).  He also illustrated everything from a magazine cover to ads for Jello.

If a print by him should come up at either an antique mall or auction in my neck of the woods, you’ll have to pay a pretty penny for it.

An entry that covers Maxfield Parrish’s life can be seen on Wikipedia here.

You can see two of his covers in my Etsy store here and here (don’t forget to use coupon code STORESALE20 to get 20% off if you would like to buy one).