With Friday here and a summer weekend soon to follow, some people are getting ready to hold garage sales, but others are asking “Who’s going to buy all this stuff?” Well, I might, and you might, too, if you’re a committed collector like I am.

If you’re getting ready to head out on your local garage sale trail, you might be one of the kinds of collectors I described in my last post: There are professional collectors as well as hobbyists, like I am. Some are specialists, while others are generalists, and some are omnivores, but all are materialists.

And there are even more, as far as I can tell after 25 years of serious collecting, so in this second of three posts, I’ll describe another six of my favorite kinds of collectors.

Collectors include…

7. Fanatics: Some people readily describe themselves as crazy about their fields of collecting. They shop frequently, buy regularly, keep faithfully, and always appreciate their collections, which could include Buffalo Bills’ memorabilia or Syracuse china. They usually want at least one of everything in their field and go to great lengths to acquire new pieces. Quite often, the objects they collect bring them happiness and add a sense of fun into their lives—as a collection of frogs or ladybugs would do.

8. Opportunists: Conversely, some collectors are quite casual about acquiring new pieces and are non-committal about building their collections. They don’t hunt down additional pieces, yet if they come across one at the right time and right price, they’ll pick it up. That’s how I’ve put together my partial set of Anchor Hocking’s clear glass dishes in the pattern called “Sandwich,” and that’s why it’s merely a partial set: I add pieces only if I come across them and if they’re priced reasonably.

9. Bargain Hunters: Related to opportunists, bargain seekers are interested in putting together collections only if they can do so at rock-bottom prices. They are usually well versed in their areas, so they know a deal when they come across it. They also put things in perspective, know that the cost of collecting can get out of hand, and remember that collecting is supposed to be a hobby. After all, the majority of collections are of interesting things, not priceless ones, such as a large assortment of Mid-Century Modern ashtrays acquired for no more than $1 each.

10. Preservers: Some collectors have less emotional attachments to their collections and more objective reasons for collecting. They are natural-born archivists, historians, and record-keepers, and often become professional ones, too. These collectors spend part of their time in the past because they especially appreciate bygone eras and the information and records generated then, so they might pursue logs, diaries, and other historical documents whose value lies in their content.

11. Nostalgists: Another kind of accumulator who focuses on the past, some collectors drawn by a sense of nostalgia to acquire certain things because those objects remind them of earlier times. Sometimes they feel deep, personal attachments to things like items from their own childhood, and sometimes they are simply attracted to the aesthetic styles or cultural events of previous eras. Such collectors often seek out toys, games, fashions, music, and movie posters from decades past.

12. Sentimentalists: Some sentimental collectors, too, focus on the past, and are the ones to preserve family heirlooms and collect things like Valentine’s cards and wedding cake toppers because of their old-fashioned charm and romantic nature. Other sentimental collectors, however, acquire items in the present to serve as reminders later on. Collectors like this buy mementoes of events in their lives and hold on to these souvenirs of their past celebrations, travels, and other experiences as tokens for the future. By joining their emotional connection to their life experiences with their attraction for a particular thing, such collectors might end up with an assemblage of party favors or Christmas ornaments or magnets, paperweights, or snow globes from their annual vacations.

Once again, I see a few of these traits in myself—that must be why I like people who collect so much. Anyone who likes to preserve history, feels nostalgic or sentimental, appreciates a bargain, moves on opportunities, and is a little crazy about collecting is my kind of person.

As I like to say, “the more, the merrier” in a collection and in a circle of friends. How about you? Are you like one of the collectors I’ve described, or do you know of another kind? If so, please comment and let us know.

See you Tuesday with the last of my list of who we collectors are. Until then, happy collecting.
Patti

© 2018 The Collectors of Western New York Museum & Gallery. All rights reserved.

Considering my background in journalism, I’ve always found the reporter’s questions to be a useful tool. Brainstorming the who, what, when, where, why, and how of a news story generates many initial questions that journalists can then use when they interview the people involved.

In addition, posing these questions ourselves and then coming up with our own plausible answers leads to a valuable analysis of almost any subject, especially one we know well. In this case, collectors and collecting are subjects I know very well, so my answers to the following questions can form the basis of a series of posts on collectors and collecting as I see them.

Today’s post, then, will be the first of several working through the basics of who we collectors are, what we collect, and, perhaps most important, why we collect.

If I were writing a news article and heading to an antiques shop or collectors’ convention to interview people who were there to acquire items for their collections, I’d jot some general questions like these beforehand:

• Who collects things? Who collects these things?
• Who are collectors in general, and who are they specifically?
• What kinds of people collect things?
• What are they like?
• How can collectors be categorized?

Using my own experience as a longtime collector as well as my own observations of family, friends, and acquaintances who are also avid collectors, I’ve answered these questions and come up with a number of different kinds of collectors.

Although my list is not necessarily comprehensive, and the classifications aren’t necessarily applicable to all collectors, I think many of them describe me and the collectors I admire quite well. I’ve come up with 18 different kinds of people who collect, and I’m going to divide them up over the next three posts, so let’s get started.

Collectors are…

1. Materialists: My first thought was to say that only one kind of person collects, for collecting is about possessing things—and lots of them. Accordingly, the vast majority of collectors appreciate tangible items that nature has created or humans have produced. We collectors like things. We are tactile beings and want to see and touch and ultimately own the objects of our desire. We are very rarely minimalists, so we collectors are much more often materialists. My husband even says I’m a maximalist. Hmm.

2. Professionals: On the one hand, some longtime collectors have amassed so much, that they turn their hobby into their career, and they become antiques dealers or flea market vendors. Others have professions that allow them to amass things. Museum curators, gallery owners, college librarians, and interior designers are expected to buy for their employers or clients and often end up collecting additional pieces for themselves.

3. Hobbyists: On the other hand, most collectors are amateurs and pursue collecting as their favorite pastime. They enjoy going to swap meets or flea markets on Sunday afternoons, and they spend evenings checking local classified ads or online auction sites. Like me, they collect simply because they enjoy going, looking, finding, and acquiring.

4. Generalists: Quite a few collectors develop a fondness for a broad field of collecting, such as glassware or postcards, so they gain some knowledge of their large areas of interest and build quite wide and varied collections. They usually have numerous types of items in their collections, and they often identify themselves by name as dish collectors or Barbie Doll collectors or Star Wars collectors.

5. Specialists: Many collectors, however, concentrate on their particular fields and limit themselves to fairly specific collections, such as Depression Glass candy dishes, antique medicine bottles, and real-photo postcards. These enthusiasts are fascinated by the variety within their areas of interest, so they develop specialized knowledge and expertise, and assemble collections that are unified and cohesive.

6. Omnivores: And then there are the avid hunters and gathers who appreciate almost every kind of collectible they encounter. They find value in antique treasures and new merchandise. They appreciate the fine arts as well as the mass produced. They’d happily have one of everything—or, better yet, two or three or more. The only limitation I’ve found for omnivores is typically along gender lines, with some collectors (like yours truly) pursuing only what I’d call feminine items, while others (like my big brother) collect masculine ones.

Although I’ve only just started, I’ve certainly described myself in one or two of these first six categories of collectors.  As a materialist, and the committed collector, I’ll just say “the more, the merrier” and sign off for today.

Patti

Check back on Friday when I’ll post the next half dozen kinds of collectors you might encounter—or might be. In the meantime, please leave a comment and let us know who you are as a collector.

© 2018 The Collectors of Western New York Museum & Gallery. All rights reserved.