Special Hummel Figurines

I find old Hummel figurines at art auctions all the time.  I’ve been collecting them for my mother and her sister for a long time.  They don’t have the time to go to art auctions, but they have the money to buy nice figurines.

The Apple Tree Boy Hummel figurine I found for my aunt last year was so cute.  I attended an art auction about an hour away from my house and they had lots of decorative collectibles.  I was able to find several items for my mother and also for my father.

My mother and her sister both want to have an Umbrella Boy Hummel figurine.  I have only been able to find one at all of the art auctions I’ve attended.  They share the piece equally while I’m looking for a second piece.

The whimsical Hummel figurine called Pleasant Journey is so cute.  It was the first Hummel that mother and my aunt ever received.  The scene is of two children pulling a third child in a wagon.  My grandmother found it at an art auction and it reminded her of her children.  She gave it to her two daughters on their shared birthday.

My dad sings in a barbershop quartet.  My mother asked me to find an appropriate Hummel figurine at one of the art auctions I attend to give to him for his birthday.  I actually was unable to find just the right item for over a year.

My mother was thrilled when I found the Harmony in Four Parts Hummel figurine at an art auction in our hometown.  She presented it to him on his birthday and he really liked it.  I think she may have liked it more, but that is okay with him.  He has always been very supportive of my mother’s collecting.

My mother gave my son a Hummel figurine when he graduated from high school.  I thought it was an odd gift to give a kid that had never expressed any interest in collecting them.  She did choose a nice piece from her collection that I had purchased for her several years ago at an art auction.  She gave him the Hummel figurine Little Fiddler because he plays the violin.

When my aunt went on a cruise, I decided to find her a nautical Hummel figurine.  I had to attend four art auctions before I found one.  I ended up purchasing the Hummel figurine called Land in Sight.  She loved it.

Hummel figurine Let’s Tell The World was a special piece.  It is really pretty and it depicts three children ringing a bell.  My cousin has been going with me to art auctions looking for it.  She thinks that we need to give it to our mothers to share like they do the Umbrella Boy.

I don’t usually collect Hummel figurines.  I leave that to my mother and my aunt.  The only exception to this is the “Can I Play?” Hummel figurine.  I found it at an art auction and it reminded me of playing at my grandmother’s house when I was a child with my brother and my cousin.

The most expensive Hummel figurine that I’ve found at an art auction in the last couple of years was a vintage piece called School Girls.  I got into a bidding frenzy with another collector and ended up spending a thousand dollars.  The piece was celebrated with a party at my aunt’s house.

Native American Art Auctions: Art Antiques

Whether traditional or contemporary, Native American artwork is both highly collectible and universally appealing. Native American art forms the basis of many exemplary public as well as private art collections.  People that collect Native American artwork can be very passionate about their collections.

Older, more traditional Native American artwork and cultural artifacts are not merely revered and / or emulated by modern artists, they are also held dear as parts of art collections the world over.

Fine Native American art done by well known American Indian artists, such as Nampeyo, the Hopi potter, can raise the caliber of a private or public art collection quite significantly. Iris Nampeyo lived on the Hopi Reservation in Arizona. She made a good income making pots and selling them at local trading posts.

A remarkable aspect of Nampeyo’s work is that over time she became more ad more interested in making pots according to ancient ways, as opposed to the modern pottery that was being made by people at the time. The quality of her work, as well as her interest and use of ancient pottery techniques certainly add to the demand and high price tags of her work.

If you find yourself in the market for Native American art antiques, be prepared to pay the price. Particularly with Native American art, availability doesn’t correlate to demand or cost, as is the case with many other highly collectible art types.

Items such as early Plains beadwork or late nineteenth century basketry are certainly examples of what would be considered extremely rare finds in the world of Native American art auctions.

When choosing from various art pieces, compare styles, read and research. This is really the only way to educate oneself about the various types of American Indian art. Then it’s time to shop around. Just like anything else, you won’t know what’s available unless you take the time to comparison shop.

During the 1900s many of the Native American art and crafts that other peoples associate with American Indians began to be commercially produced, especially by Asian nations. These Native American fakes became so widely purchased that several millions of dollars were taken from the American Indian artists in the form of cheap imitation Native American art.

Before purchasing Native American art antiques it’s a good idea to perform additional research has to the authenticity of the piece or pieces. Unless you’re highly knowledgeable on the topic and have experience spotting fakes, this type of art can be extremely hard to verify by inexperienced sight alone.

All in all, collecting American Indian art antiques is just like collecting any other antique, the definitive and primary timeframe is anything that is pre-1950s. Although a name that is well known can seriously increase the value of an object, condition, workmanship and prevalence are factors that are just as important.

Increasingly, even seasoned art dealers that deal in American Indian art find it difficult to discern authentic art antiques from imitation pieces. For this reason, it is particularly important to opt for dealing with reputable sources. In order to ensure that your perfect Native American art antique  is the real deal it’s worth taking the time to locate such a well known art dealer or museum.

There are specialized art museums and dealers that offer Native American art pieces. These organizations generally are most interested in promoting Native art and cultures. The better of these institutions and organizations directly invest many of the profits gained from the sale of art pieces back into the Native American community.

When it comes to collecting Native American art antiques or any other type of art, don’t buy it unless you absolutely love it. Your best pieces are going to cost a pretty penny. If you don’t fall in love with a piece, chances are you’re not going to like it any better once it’s on your wall. So hold out for the perfect piece, you’ll be glad you did.

Improving Your Art Collecting Skills

Being able to collect good art is one exceptional talent. Although you may think good art collectors are born, this is not the case at all. The truth is, the skill of collecting art can actually be learned! Yes, and that is one good news for you. So, if you want to improve further with your collecting skills, here are some things that you can do to attain such goal.

Get Some Exposure

Getting some exposure on different disciplines of art is one way to enhance your collecting skills. There are a lot of national and international art expos and art fairs that you can attend to. Try attending such kinds of events to broaden your horizon on different kinds of art disciplines and forms.

This is also one way to discover not so well-known aesthetic pieces that have potential on getting a huge value in the future. However, most importantly, it is one way to see artworks that can move you and probably be part of your collection in the near future. Know Your Kind

Although collecting art can be a personal endeavour for you, there is nothing wrong with talking to other art collectors and knowing more about them. In fact, doing this can be beneficial to you, since you can learn more about how other collectors started and what other helpful information they can give you.

They can also give you recommendations like galleries to visit, events to go to, artists to see works of and other art related things. Some art collectors even have clubs or organizations that you can join in.

Read On!

Reading in any aspect can take your knowledge another level. Thus, reading books about art history and art collections would definitely improve your skill. There’s a lot to learn with collecting that you can actually find not only by looking at pictures, but also through reading texts about so.

Reading old published literature on the subject is good, since you can learn the basics of the field and the essentials of collecting. However, it would still be better if you are up-to-date with your reading materials. If you want something fresh and new regularly, then subscribing to some art magazines would do the trick!

Magazines, just like books, are helpful resources where you can learn more about collecting and collections. However, these magazines standout since their content are always up to date and new, unlike with books that may contain faced-out and irrelevant data.

Reviews: Seeing Another’s Perspective

Seeing art in the perspective of another person is bad at all. Remember that art is relative, thus, something may be beautiful in your eyes, yet ugly for another’s and vice versa. That is why you should learn to utilize reviews done by international or local art critics and channel them into something positive. Instead of being too much influenced by what they say, try learning from them and see if what they say about the artwork is true. You should also learn some points on how they critic a piece, since being able to critic is yet an important skill to develop collecting skills. Get Some Help

A little bit of guidance would not hurt if you are really interested on learning how to make a great art collection. You can work with a professional art consultant / art advisor, if you please since for sure they know what they are doing. They can also teach you about collecting and even guide you to the whole process of buying art.

Finding The Antique Car Show Of Your Dreams

If you are looking for a great antique car show you are certainly not alone and there are dozens of shows each year that are ready and waiting to satisfy your craving for gorgeous old cars.  There are car shows in almost all locations around the world that focus on older cars and this is the perfect opportunity to get your fill of these beautiful cars.  But how do you really locate the show that you are interested in?  There are plenty of great car shows that are available and with some tips and suggestions, you are sure to find the show of your dreams.

Start looking on the internet.  There are thousands of shows listed on the internet and with some decent research skills, you can move past the hot rod and street shows and are merely left with the antique car shows.  If you are determined to really put forth a good effort, you can typically find a show for each weekend for a year or more.  Finding the car show online can allow you to easily narrow the search down to just your particular area, and it can also allow you to search for shows that are only in a particular area you choose or during a particular time of year that you specify.

Another option that you have is looking in the antique car magazines.  There are always shows going on, and the antique car magazines are typically only going to list the antique car shows that are going on.  Additionally, many of the magazines are able to usually offer these lists broken down by both month and region in which they are held.  This can help you to easily organize several trips at the same time, rather than cross referencing information to even schedule a single trip.

One of your other options is to check with the antique car clubs that are in your area.  Many of the members are likely to participate in these shows so they generally know exactly when the shows are, where they are located and plenty of other useful information.  Always look for the clubs that are particularly specializing in antiques in order to get the best results.  If you call just a general car club, they may not be able to help you with antique car shows since most of their information will be lumped together by date, rather than type of car featured.

Look at your local newspapers as well as city calendar to help you as well.  Often these resources will list car shows that are coming up and are great sources of new car shows.  The good news about these is they are usually in your local region as well, but the options that are listed tend to be very limited this way because there is almost nothing that will be listed in different regions or even states.  The options will be much smaller, and additionally they are not generally announced as far in advance using these methods.  This can make planning in advance a bit of a hassle particularly if you are trying to organize numerous car shows for the same weekend, or fill up an entire summer with tons of antique car shows.

If you have a membership in a car club yourself look to your monthly newsletter to give you a bit of information.  These newsletters typically list all car shows that are coming up in the near future and will only list basic information but generally give you the information several months in advance.  This can allow plenty of time to plan out the trip if you need to travel and can be a huge timesaver.

Your last option is to ask around at each car show that you attend.  Most car shows are going to know about other shows that are around the same time.  Asking some questions of the organizers or even looking for a program of the car show will generally be a great way to help locate the next great antique car show that you are interested in attending without having to do hours of research.

Make Money Selling Antiques on eBay

It’s been said that antiques and collectibles are some of the hardest items to start selling on Ebay. It’s also known that these items have potential to become the biggest sales. So what should an Ebay newcomer know before they list their first antique or collectible for auction?

First, the market for antiques and collectibles is a slow moving market. If you need to turn a fast profit, you would do better with seasonal, general, or limited lifetime items. Ebay is a wonderful marketplace for antiques and collectibles, but these items aren’t usually fast sellers. This is because there is such a limited supply of rare items, coupled with the fact that demand is also limited to people who both want and can afford the items. As you can see, you should prepare for certain antiques and collectibles to be with you for a long time before the right buyer comes along.

Another obstacle for new Ebayers is the high buy-in cost of an antique business. This merchandise doesn’t come cheap. Furthermore, finding a great deal on a rare item has a lot to do with luck and connections. Merely wanting to be an antique dealer isn’t enough. You need to have a passion for, and strong knowledge of, your merchandise. To offset the high cost and limited sales potential of antiques and collectibles, use a variety of sales channels. Listing on Ebay is a good decision, but Ebay alone might not clear out your inventory. Look for online and offline auctions dedicated to antiques. Get to know your local dealers. They are often a good source of information.

If you do have expert knowledge of your items, make sure buyers know. They will be more likely to buy from you if they know you”re experienced. They want to know that they are getting an item of value, not a cheap (or expensive) imitation. By demonstrating your knowledge of antiques and collectibles, you are reassuring buyers that their money will fetch them something rare and wonderful. Buyers will also be more likely to spread your name and bring repeat business if you treat them well. Be known for your outstanding customer service as well as your high quality items.

Finally, stick to brands and trends that have lasting value. Certain brands are known for their rarity or their resilient workmanship and beauty. These will always be in demand. As for market trends, watch out for hot fads that are here today and gone tomorrow. If you know enough about your product to capitalize on a buying frenzy, go for it. Just be aware of the risk you”re taking. You could end up with an inventory full of merchandise whose proverbial ship has sailed. A safer bet is to ignore the rises and falls of the market and focus instead on items that will always be wanted.

Ebay is famous for its antiques and collectibles, and for good reason. This nontraditional marketplace with its enormous global following is the perfect setting in which to list hard to find items. And sellers who deal in antiques are some of the most satisfied merchants on Ebay. Often, they get to buy and sell items that they are fond of, which makes their online auctioning seem more like play than work. Each transaction does take some effort, but the rewards are worth it.

Ebay Sellers: How You Can Use Completed Searches To Your Advantage

Are you an eBay seller? If so, are you successful at what you do?  Perhaps, the better question to ask yourself is if you are making a profit selling on eBay?  If you aren’t, there are a number of steps that you can take to increase your chances of making a sale.

When it comes to improving your chances of making a sale on eBay, your first impulse may to be change the way that your eBay items are listed for sale.  For instance, it is often suggested that you upload detailed pictures of your items, provide detailed descriptions and such. While you will want to try doing so, you will also want to focus on the items that you are trying to sell.  Your problem, with making a profit on eBay, might be the items that you have listed.  If you have a poor quality item, you may not be able to sell it, but you would still be responsible for paying your eBay fees.  In this case, you will not only be unable to make a profit, but you may also end up losing money.

When it comes to knowing which items you can profit from selling on eBay, there are many sellers who think that it is impossible to do.  While it may seem impossible, it isn’t.  Before actually trying to list a particular item for sale online, like an old music CD, you can check to see if that item has been sold on eBay before.  If that particular item was sold before, you can also figure out exactly how much money it sold for!  This will give you a good idea as to whether or not it would be worth it for you to spend the time creating your auction listings and paying eBay’s fees.  Although the decision as to whether or not you still want to post your item for sale is yours to make, it may give you inside information; inside information that you will want to take into consideration when making your decision.

To perform a search of completed auctions, you will want to perform an advanced search. The link to the advanced search form can be found by eBay’s traditional search box.  The only thing that you will to do differently is check the box labeled “Completed Listings Only.”  Your results will include auctions that meet your searching criteria, but that have already been completed.  If an item sold, its price will be outlined in green print. If an item did not sell, the asking price will be outlined, but in red print.  As previously stated, performing an eBay completed search gives you the ability to tell whether or not you have a good seller on your hands.

In fact, you can not only use a completed listing search to determine if an item you already have is worth money, but you can also use this eBay tool to help you make money.  If you are like many eBay sellers, there is a good chance that you are always on the lookout for great deals, bargains, or antiques.  Familiarizing yourself with popular eBay items, ones that can be considered “hot sellers,” is a great way to make yourself a profit on eBay.  Should you have the ability to do so, you may want to have a partner at home looking up eBay completed listings, while you are out shopping for items to sell at yard sales, flea markets, or thrift stores.

Performing an eBay completed listing search will only take a few minutes of your time.  Despite only taking a few minutes of your time, eBay completed searches can help you make money as an eBay seller, not lose it.

The Best Selling Items On Ebay

It’s an EBay seller’s most frequently asked question: What should I sell? If you’ve got a hobby you”re passionate about, this question is a no brainer. But if you”re not sure which items to list, take a look at the characteristics of Ebay’s best selling items: collectibles, limited lifetime goods, and seasonal items.

Limited lifetime goods are products that are meant to be used, not put on a shelf and saved. Because of rapid changes in technology or fashion, these items will probably become obsolete before they lose functionality. They won’t last forever, but they can be put to good use in the meantime. These goods typically include electronics, clothing, and the latest and greatest installment of anything in a rapidly evolving market. Current promotional posters and products from popular movies and television shows also fall under this category.

To make the most money by selling limited lifetime goods on Ebay, you have to act fast. Pre-released electronics and game titles are among Ebay’s hottest sellers ever. Timing is important with these products; sell them before the competition does, but after there is a definite demand. This window of opportunity can be very slim, so watch the market carefully. End-of-cycle merchandise can be bought at low prices, but make sure there’s still enough demand to justify such a purchase.

Seasonal items include holiday decorations and cold- or hot-weather clothing. The key to making money with these items is to list them before the competition does. Start a month or two ahead of time and write a convincing auction title and item description that will convince shoppers to buy early – from you.

Antiques and collectibles are a challenging market to break into due to the limit of both supply and demand. You might find a rare item that only a handful of people are interested in. Even then, one of those people would have to have enough expendable income to purchase the item. That can be difficult to coordinate, so allow yourself plenty of time to make a sale. Use other avenues of sale, too; Ebay might not be enough to move some items.

The key to making a good living selling antiques and collectibles on Ebay is to know your market. Buyers will be more likely to purchase from someone with expert knowledge. Customer service is also paramount. Remember, these high-ticket sales depend on quality over quantity. Buyers will not part with their cash if the seller ignores their questions or acts rudely. Cultivate a strong, well-deserved reputation for excellent service.

The best selling items on Ebay tend to fall into one of the three categories mentioned above. Sellers who pay attention to the fluctuations of the market, who time things right, and who don’t hesitate to snatch up a good deal for later resale, will likely find great success with their auctions.

American Antique Furniture

I have always loved American antique furniture more than anything. When I was a kid, there was an antique furniture store that specialized in American colonial furniture. While most owners of furniture stores would have balked at the idea of a rambunctious little tyke like I was running around their stores, the owners of this particular antique American furniture store welcomed me with open arms – and a few words of caution, of course. They were true collectors, and as such, they liked nothing more than to see someone take an interest in their passion. They would take me under their wing, and from an early age, they started to teach me all that they knew. They would teach me a lot about antiques in general, and American antique furniture in particular. I would love every single minute of it, and that is the truth!

Of course, as I got over, I forgot about American antique furniture for a while. I went off to college, and  so I could no longer hang out around that antique store of my childhood. I was immersed in bigger and better things, and used the furniture that all college kids use – stuff garnered from Ikea and Target. Yet, I would still love, every now and then, to go down to the local antiques store and spend an hour or two just browsing through all of the varied American antique furniture, admiring every little thing that I could see. It was really a fantastic time for me, getting to indulge my passion for learning, but sometimes I longed for the world of my childhood.

When I got done with college, I almost immediately went off to start a family. I had met a girl who I was madly in love with, and together we started a house. She was an architecture buff, so I left all of those matters to her. In turn, she let me indulge my passion for decoration. As a result, the house that we first occupied was crowded top to bottom with – you guessed it – American antique furniture.  There is a sofa from the turn of the century, an American empire dining room set, and an antique coffee table for the tv stand. It is really my dream home, and that is no lie. I think that I made the right choice in who I married – someone who would let me indulge my tastes.

Where Antiques Originate And How You Can Find Them

It’s important to understand where antiques originate. Many antique buyers make the mistake of mis-understanding the process by which antique items are found.  Many collectors and dealers waste valuable time searching in places where they believe that these items are in great abundance.  But a true understanding of where antiques originate seems to have eluded many well meaning antique dealers and collectors.

It’s elementary Watson!

If you want to find fresh-to-the-market antiques and collectibles,  you need to go where they are in great abundance, and where they originate!  Antiques do not orginate at auctions, or at flea markets, or at antique shows.  Antiques originate in people’s homes.  This is a fundamental truth for 99% of all antiques that you will ever see.

Another truth that many people overlook.

The other simple fact, is that most antiques that you are most likely to get a great deal on reside in the homes of people who are older.  Young people do not, as a general rule have antiques in the abundance that older people do.  Why?  Because older people came from a generation that saved everything, and you will find that a majority of the time they have kept it all!  From the 1950′s toys in the closet to the old toaster that was just too good to throw away,  older folks still have most of everything they ever owned.

Where will you spend your “prime-time?”

Knowing these two fundamental truths about where antiques originate,  begs a big question.  Knowing that antiques originate in people’s homes, and that antiques are most likely to reside in older people’s homes, where will you be attempting to spend a majority of your prime time?  It tooks me years to understand the following principles.

1.  To buy more fresh antiques you have to see more antiques.

2.  To see more antiques, you must look at more household accumulations on a consistant basis.

3.  To accomplish this, you simply must get into more people’s homes where the antiques originate.

Knowing and understanding these principles will put you light years ahead of your competition!  Believe me,  I know antique dealers and collectors, and most of them find their antiques through one of only 5 methods.  They find them through garage / estate sales, auctions, “goodwill” type stores,  flea markets and “pickers”.

Knowing and understand the above principles will help you to focus on where you will find the most antiques…in people’s homes.

If you want to be incredibly successful,  you have to go where the antiques originate.  It’s time to focus on that and only that!  That focus will take you farther than you ever thought possible!

Where To Find Antique Toy Trains For Sale

Collecting antique toy trains is a hobby and passion for many people. Perhaps they started the hobby on their own, or it all began back in their childhood. Toy trains have long been a popular gift and source of entertainment for many children, going back generations. Toy trains are still a well-liked item among children and adults, whether they’re for playtime or collecting. But when you’re looking for a specific antique toy train, you can’t easily run to Wal-Mart or Toys R Us to find what you need. You have to scout out your options and know where to look to find antique toy trains.

The first and most useful place to look for antique toy trains for sale is the internet. While you can’t be completely sure what your item will look like until it arrives, there are steps you can take to ensure you are getting the best quality for your money. Start by searching eBay for antique toy trains. eBay is notorious for having unique items for sale and you can typically find just about anything by utilizing this online auction. Simply type in “antique toy trains” and you’ll be provided with a complete listing of toy trains up for bidding along with pictures and a description of the item. However, before you place a bid on your desired piece, take a look at the description and pictures in detail. Does the seller guarantee the item? (Meaning will you get your money back if the item arrives damaged or doesn’t arrive at all?) Next, examine the pictures to determine if there is visible damage to the toy train.

Most reputable sellers on eBay will specifically add damage to the item in their description and provide a photograph of the damage. If there are only one or two pictures, ask the seller to email you personally more pictures. Let them know you are not interested in purchasing a damaged or scratched item if that’s the case. Also, be sure to look at their seller history and ratings. This will tell you what other buyers had to say about their business transactions with them.

Another great place to find antique toy trains for sale is none other than antique stores. The problem with looking here is that you may have difficulty sorting through all of the antiques to find the toy train you are looking for. Consider asking the owner of the store of they have your desired item, and if you have a picture, show it to them. Most owners or workers of antique stores will have a database of the items for sale and can easily tell you if they have it or not. If not, keep in mind antique stores get unique items in on a daily basis. Ask them to let you know if your toy train comes in.

Finally, you can do a search on the internet to find antique auctions across the country. More specifically, you’ll be able to find auctions held just for antique toy trains. You may have to travel, but if you are able to attend one of these auctions the chances of finding your toy train are very good.