Wednesday, February 27, 2013

It’s Completely Different Than What I Had Originally Thought It Was—It’s Arabic Made!

A while ago, I talked about what I thought was a handmade and unique coffee pot in a blog post.


An eagle-eyed shopper dropped me a line and told me that the pot was actually Arabic made, and it was from the 1930’s to 1950’s.

It always pays off to do your homework before you post something for sale online, but it’s also extremely nice to have someone also help out and catch an error with a listing.

As for the pot, it’s listing has been corrected and can be seen in my Etsy store here.

Wednesday, February 20, 2013

Types Of Sports Cards

Think a sports card is a sports card?  Far from it.  There are a ton of different types of cards that you could find.  Here’s a few:

Retail Card—these are cards that are sold to major retailers like Kmart.  The cards will often have the name of the store printed on the card as well.  You might even find a card from a now-defunct retailer.
 
Insert Card—these are cards that are inserted into packs at a staggered rate (like one card being inserted into every 24th pack).  There is also a number on the back of every sports card.  The number on the back of the insert card will be different than the normal set numbers.  The normal set numbers will appear as 1-400 (or however many cards are in the set), the insert cards will have a number like ST1, or PL1.  When you buy a pack, you never know what kind of insert card could be in there.  There even could be a player who became much more famous later on.

Sell Sheets—these are not cards at all.  They’re ads that are sent to distributors for cards that are for sale to the public.  This would show what cards you could get in the set, and would show the players that are featured in the set.  You could get these ads from a sports cards dealer for pretty cheap, or even free if the retailer is going to throw them away (it never hurts to ask them if it’s possible for you to have it).  They’re also great to display along with a complete team collection!

So what’s the rarest card that you’ve ever found?

Monday, February 11, 2013

Great Ideas For Valentine’s Day Gifts

With Valentine’s Day right around the corner, I’m sure we’re all thinking about gifts for our loved ones.  Jewelry remains a classic, ever-popular Valentine’s Day gift.

You can see some great jewelry pieces in my Etsy store here.
 
 
 
Another fun idea is to send a vintage Valentine card.
 
You can view these great examples of vintage Valentine’s Day cards in my Etsy store here and here.
 
With so many ideas are out there, there’s no telling what you might find for Valentine’s Day.  What kinds of gift ideas can you think of?

Saturday, February 2, 2013

There’s A New Hot Item Just In Time For Valentine’s Day

Starting in 1953, Fenton produced a line of glass called “Black Rose.”  The best way to describe this line is that it is a combination of Peach Blow and black crest glass.


The original line only lasted two years, and was discontinued in 1955.  Since the line wasn’t around that long, the pieces are more sought-after by collectors.


There have been some pieces made to be sold QVC, and the pieces were marked with a paper label.  If the pieces have been hand-painted, the artist will sign and date the bottom of the piece.  Items that come from the original line will either be unmarked, or have the Fenton name embossed on the bottom.

A picture of the original base can be seen here:


The basket that I have listed in my Etsy store dates to the 1950’s.  With a pink interior, it would be a great item for Valentine’s day.  It could be given to someone holding candy or even a small piece of jewelry or some flowers. 

You can see the Fenton “Black Rose” basket that I have listed in my Etsy store here.