Monthly Archives: September 2010

Is it Collectible, Vintage or an Antique?

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Collectibles tend to be items that are highly sought and are valuable because they also tend to be rare or there are limited quantities of them on the market. Not all collectibles however have to be “old” or made many years ago to be “collectible” take for example the Webkinz plush toys that were very recently introduced and they are extremely collectible (the Webkinz Cheeky Dog is on eBay for nearly $1,000) as are the Zhu Zhu Pet Hamsters that were a top 2009 Christmas toy (the rare ones are still selling on eBay for over $300!) and then you have vintage collectibles like the Holt Howard Pixies and Pixieware from the 1950s to Lefton’s Toodles and the Lefton Bluebirds that were made 50-60 years ago and are commanding prices of $100 upwards of thousands of dollars for the very rare items.


Antiques are items deemed by the government, sometime in and around the early 1930s, having an age of at least 100 years. So, if your collectible is 100 years old or older it is actually an Antique. Remember though that it technically must be 100 years old or older to be classified as an Antique…..I see a lot of items on the market described as antique when actually it is not antique but “vintage” and something needs to be at least 20 years old or older to be properly classified as Vintage.




Another collectible arena is items that were Made in Occupied Japan or Made in Japan. Items stamped or marked “Made in Japan” were typically made prior to the First World War and after the Second World War as Japan was much like China and Taiwan are today; countries where items can be cheaply manufactured and mass produced. The term “Made in Occupied Japan” refers to the period in history right after the Second World War when the United States, Australia, British India, United Kingdom and New Zealand were involved in re-building Japan and were a main presence. In 1951 a peace treaty was signed that was enforced in the spring of 1952 when Japan became an independent state again. Items produced in Japan during this short time frame are stamped/marked “Made In Occupied Japan” and considered more desirable and valuable by many collectors.





I hope this information is helpful and I wish you all much fun in your treasure hunting, junking, flea marketing, antiquing, and thrifting!!



Big “TEX” Here We Come!

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The Texas State Fair is here and we are heading there for some deep-fried fun! This will be our first year visiting the Texas State Fair and we are pretty excited as we keep seeing pictures of “BIG TEX” the welcoming giant Texan that is stands over 52 feet tall and wears a size 70 cowboy boot and we keep hearing about how the state fair is also known as the “Fried Food Capital of Texas”.


Here are a couple of the fried food winners:

2005 Most Creative         Viva Las Vegas Fried Ice Cream
2005 Best Taste             Fried PB, Jelly and Banana Sandwich
2006 Most Creative         Fried Coke
2006 Best Taste             Fried Praline Perfection
2007 Most Creative         Deep Fried Latte
2007 Best Taste             Texas Fried Cookie Dough
2008 Most Creative         Fried Banana Split
2008 Best Taste             Chicken Fried Bacon
2009 Most Creative         Deep Fried Butter
2009 Best Taste             Fernie’s Deep Fried Peaches & Cream
2010 Most Creative         Fried Beer™
2010 Best Taste             Texas Fried FRITOS® Pie

Delights at The Happiest Place on Earth

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Just returned from the Happiest Place on Earth and had a Blast! Disneyland Park in California was so busy……. Seems like it is always the right time to visit and we saw so many darling children of all ages especially little “princesses” all dressed up as their favorite Princess character complete with hair and makeup, jewels and high heels. California Adventure park is getting some new attractions in the next year – Little Mermaid and Cars in 2012 looks like it will really knock your socks off when it opens!




















Disneyland is all ready for Halloween and everywhere you look there are Mickey Mouse shaped pumpkins and decorations. Even the restaurants had cupcakes with pumpkins and Mickey’s and lollipops too. The Haunted Mansion had just re-opened and is so fancy with its Nightmare Before Christmas theme with Jack Skellington and if you go on the ride you get a great insight into how Jack has wrecked the halls…..Spectacular!!































Okay, some of the neat collectibles available only at the park are the cool mouse ears like this popcorn pair and lots of little boys were wearing the Pirate of Caribbean Mickey ears. Mickey ears come in every single Disney theme from Cars, numerous Princesses, Nightmare Before Christmas, Alice in Wonderland etc…The Mickey Mouse ears can also be personalized right in front of your eyes with your name embroidered onto the back. Also, the park had the most amazing little works of art by artist Robert Olszewski and his miniature Galley of Light creations like this Pinocchio and Mickey Mouse/Minnie Mouse. Robert Olszewski also has a line of “PokitPals” that are these lovely little trinket/keepsake boxes. Christmas decorations were just being put out and some cute figurines and ornaments were in some of the stores and the most colorful ones were from artist Jim Shore. Some artwork that was amazing was the mosaics that were made into famous Disney scenes and they were pricey but really amazing with their detail.

































Hope you all get to visit the Happiest Place on Earth soon!












					

		
		
	


				
					
	

		

						
Happiest Place On Earth

			
						

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We are heading to the happiest place on earth! I am so excited to get to spend a couple days with my husband in Disneyland.  One of the first attractions we will go see is the Haunted Mansion as it should be ready for visitors as it has been undercover being decorated for the holidays and Halloween is indeed one of the holidays! I will post pictures and let you all know what some of the “exclusive” new Disney collectibles are and many are only available at the park so please stay tuned!



					

		
		
	


				
					
	

		

						
Thrift Town a First-Class Second Hand Store?

			
						

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I had never heard of a chain of thrift stores called “Thrift Town” but it was the weekend and I was looking for something new and exciting to do and was in the mood for some good junking and treasuring hunting so I plugged in some basic criteria into Google and bingo – the Fort Worth, Texas, Thrift Town appeared. 






















Thrift Town touts themselves as the “First-Class Second Hand Store” and the sheer size of the location sounded amazing so I plunked in the address into my car’s navigation system and nearly 4 miles later was at Thrift Town (had no idea it was so close to me). The parking lot was packed! I had to drive around for a while till I could get a parking spot. 


























Walking in through the front doors I immediately notice that it is super bright in here. And being so bright means you can really get a look at things and then my eyes are drawn down to the floor and OMG! – Crickets! Living in the Texas we have some AMAZINGLY huge crickets (you can put a saddle on them and ride them) and I hate these critters and there were several of them right in the doorway.  I mustered up my courage and forged ahead. 
























OK – sections of the store are well indicated via signs over head so you know right away where things are. The store is really huge and immediately I see clothing is what Thrift Town specializes in as that is what there is most of….racks upon racks of clothing. The housewares section was sorely lacking in merchandise and I was utterly disappointed and was kinda surprised at how pricey the stuff was. The furniture section however looked ok, as there seemed to be some decent looking items in fairly good condition. Accessories section was not impressive either and things were also pricey. There was another giant area of the store for children’s items that I did not go through but it was huge so who knows if it would be worth the browsing. I decided to look through some of the clothing and lost interest pretty quickly as most of it was OLD, FADED, and Expensive! I feel that prices of $7.99 – $9.99 for a basic no brand named top that is already shrunk, faded and old is too expensive when I can go to Ross or TJ Maxx or Marshalls and get something brand new for that price.  Customers were lined up at the registers so apparently I was one of the few that were not impressed with what Thrift Town offered as I left empty handed and deciding to most likely not return. 











Thrift Town



					

		
		
	


				
					
	

		

						
Vintage Enesco Prayer Lady & Mother In The Kitchen Figures

			
						

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Prayer Lady


Mother in The Kitchen and Prayer Ladies are vintage kitchen accessories and made by Enesco and are turning out to be a pretty “HOT” collectible today. Prayer Lady/Mother in The Kitchen items were made during the 1950’s & 1960’s and sold primarily in five and dime stores, department shops and also gift shops.



























What Do They Look Like?


These collectibles are of a lovely lady with a very sweet and delicate face with her hair pulled up into a bun and hair coloring can range from dark brown, light brown and even a rare reddish-blonde. The lady’s eyes are closed in prayer and her hands are in an upright prayer position with palms together fingers pointing up.  The lady wears a long pretty dress with feminine collar and an apron with a prayer inscribed on it and you can see her shoes from under her long dress.



























These ladies were dressed in different colors and the most common color is Pink. They also came in these colors:


•    Blue with white trim

•    Turquoise with white and she has puffy sleeves

•    Rose white and with puffy sleeves

•    White with blue trim

•    Yellow with brown or green trim

















How Many “Prayer Lady” Pieces Are There to Collect?


•    Air Freshener

•    Bank

•    Bell

•    Bud Vase

•    Candle Holder Set

•    Canister set:  Flour, Sugar, Coffee and Tea

•    Clothes Sprinkler

•    Coffee Cups

•    Cookie Jar

•    Crumb Brush and Pan

•    Egg Timer

•    Flower Pot

•    Instant Coffee Container

•    Napkin Holder

•    Picture Frame

•    Ring Holder

•    Salt and Pepper Shakers

•    Scouring Pad Holder

•    Spoon Rest

•    String Holder

•    Tea Pot, Sugar Bowl and Creamer

•    Toothpick Holder



























Finding & Caring For These Ladies?


You can find these lovely ladies in antique shops, online shops, eBay and Rubylane, Tias.com. eBay tends to have the largest selection and you can pick them up at reasonable prices. The ladies I have seen at my local antique shops tend to be priced at top dollar but maybe the shops in your area are more affordable.



























Delicate parts of the Prayer Lady tend to be their heads and they can very easily brake off so be careful when handling your little ladies. Ladies in MINT condition fetch higher prices of course than ladies that are damaged. Do your research and buy your ladies from reputable dealers and sellers.  We hope this little lady brightens your days as she does ours!