Twitter - Short Blips of My Life

Just added Twitter to my blog, my Facebook page, and to my Red Moon Antiques webshop on Ruby Lane. (Just click on "Twitter" or "Red Moon Antiques webshop" for more info.

Twitter is an application which allows you to write a quickie note (limit 140 characters) which can be set to show on your blog, your website, or several other internet places you use.

I'm just getting started with it and haven't learned all the different possibilities, but it's fairly simple to set up and allows me to keep in touch with my friends, family and business contacts.

It's sort of like a mini-blog - no photos, not a lot of room for writing - just a short few words to tell folks what you are up to. You can even work Twitter from your cell phone (that's a bit too complicated for me, though). Fun application, easy to use, nice way to stay in quick contact with the people you like - I give it a big thumbs-up!

June = Weddings, Vintage Style

For those who are traditional, June always means weddings. Since I love early photography, I thought I'd share some late 19th century wedding pictures with you.

Early wedding photo documentation is not easy to find. These were cabinet cards meant to last a lifetime, and in this case, they lasted much longer as they are more than 110 years old.

The first pair of photos shows a studio shot of about-to-be-husband and bride, dressed in their finest. Only those enjoying financial comfort could afford a professional studio photographer to document the beginnings of their new life.

The second pair of photos shows a very young bride - she looks so tiny and so delicate. She's almost child-like, and probably not much older than 17. A whole new world is facing her as a young married woman, and you can see that determination on her face as she faces her new life.

Collecting early photography is fascinating. The subject matter is endless - portraiture, everyday life, special occasions, clothing styles, early homes, animals, babies and children, occupational - if there's a particular topic you love, it can be found.

Some subjects are easier to find than others. If you like "instant ancestors", it's simple to locate studio photos of men, women and children, whether in single portraits, or in family groups. Possibly you yourself are a twin, and would enjoy hunting for early photos of twins - they can definitely be found. Or maybe you like photos of young children with their toys - keep a sharp eye, for they are available.

Wedding-related cabinet cards are a bit of a challenge to find, but if you hunt regularly, they cand be found in antiques shops and shows, on the Internet, and even can be discovered at estate sales. If you find an antiques dealer who specializes in early photography, that's even better - let them know you are searching for specific topics, and be sure to give them your phone number or email address so they can contact you when they find something.

Collecting cabinet cards is a fun hobby, and they don't take up much space when on display. Cabinet cards are 4-1/4 inches by 6-1/2" inches in size, and look grand when displayed in a group. Fill a little niche corner with these small pieces of art - you'll be amazed at the attention they'll attract from family and friends. Framed or unframed, these cards are a documentation of early times throughout America, and wonderful to see.

Look for clarity and sharpness in these photos.
In pictures of adults, it's usually not a problem when the shot was taken by a studio photographer in a controlled environment.
Outdoor photos were another matter - weather, groups of people, and animals all presented the possibility of unexpected movement and complications.

Children's cards regularly show a bit of movement - fidgeting babies just don't cooperate (even today!!!). Motion showing in children's cards is not uncommon, and if it's otherwise a good-looking card, don't pass it by because it might have a touch of softness or motion. Good quality, interesting children's photos are very desirable, so if it speaks to you, buy it!

One of the nice surprises about collecting cabinet cards is that they are generally not expensive. They can be had for under $10 regularly for the more common portrait photos. Uncommon subjects - outdoor scenes, large groups of people, occupational photos, animals, just to name a few categories - can range upwards of $50 to $100 each. But compared to other types of antiques, these cards still lean towards the more affordable range in the world of collecting.

About Me

I just received an email from someone who had read my blog and wanted to know what I looked like, also a bit about my background.

Yikes! It's hard to write about yourself, but I'll give it my best without being horribly boring. Posted at the left is a recent photo of me, taken by my husband on a glorious Spring day. We were out shooting, as we are both photographers specializing in selling our photos on the Internet. Not my best photo, but at least you get the idea of what I look like.

For the last 28 years I've been an antiques dealer. Originally I concentrated on 19th century furniture and home accessories, but have expanded over the years to include textiles (everything from lace to quilts to hooked rugs), sewing tools (the more unusual the better), and anything country and old, especially in old paint. I just love the colors used long ago - the reds, greens and blues are so vibrant, and look so wonderful being used in a modern home for both decoration and for practical use.

I truly believe that antiques should be useful, and search diligently for old things which still can be used today. Shelves, bookcases, tables, mirrors, art, quilts, rugs - these are just some of the things I love to find. Little did those folks in the 1800s realize that their everyday items would be so cherished one hundred years later!

My latest somewhat-weird passion - vintage cufflinks. That one I can't really explain - I don't own a single blouse that will accommodate cufflinks - but there's just something about them that captures me. They are easy to collect, since they don't take up much space, yet fun because there are so many different kinds to be discovered, in so many different shapes and styles, and in so many different price ranges from expensive to quite reasonably priced.

I never tire of hunting for them. They are just one of those fun little treats, and lately have become quite popular in my webshop. Since I sell to customers all over the world, they ship so easily because they are small. Sold the set on the right not too long ago - they were 1930s, quite Art Deco in style, and made of mother-of-pearl in a goldtone setting.

If you like antiques, be sure to drop by my little webshop at Ruby Lane. I'm always adding new stuff, never know what I might find.

Here's the link - wander and browse, and if you have any questions, feel free to email me.

Facebook Fun - Owned!

I've been playing on Facebook a bit, and discovered the application Owned, which is quite popular and offers photos from people all over the world.

Being a photographer, I see many of the photos are just plain-jane self-portraits, some good, some not so good. But the breadth of variety in subject matter has been absolutely amazing - pets, wild animals, scenics, studio work (some of it very good), fractals - it's been a fabulous source of ideas and just good old fun and laughter.

The dog photo above is one of those - can you remember the last time you saw a flying dog? And for a photographer to shoot at the exact moment that both dogs are flying in mid-stride?

If you want some good laughs and really interesting interaction with others across the world, take a look at Facebook. It's geared towards adults rather than teenagers, which is what attracted me in the first place. I've used Owned to show off some of my antiques, as well as some of my photography, and have had a lot of fun connecting to folks throughout the planet.

Identity Theft

After being stung - not once but twice - with identity theft on eBay, I finally moved on, giving up on selling on eBay for the past two years.

I was lucky - the first time my ID was stolen, I caught it almost immediately, and was able to cancel my credit cards and change my eBay info, so I didn't lose any money. It was just plain luck that it turned out that way, since the thieves certainly could have done me some serious harm.

The second time was a bit more stealthy. Instead of taking my credit card info, they (probably a different "they" since it was a year later) took over my eBay selling site, and attempted to sell a computer on my site, using my good feedback rating to create trust in potential buyers.

I was in the habit of checking my eBay sales daily, sometimes more than once a day. When I saw that there was a computer listed on my site selling for more than $1100, I immediately emailed eBay.

In almost 10 years of selling on eBay, I've never once sold a used computer. Ninety-five per cent of the time, i sell only antiques and collectibles. But trying to convince eBay to pull the computer listing took more than 45 minutes of emailing back and forth, since they were not convinced that bad guys had slipped into my eBay listings and selling a computer under my name.

They had listed the computer as a one-day sale, hoping to have it complete before I'd notice. They'd set it up so that payment would be made directly to them, not me. They even included single photo, shown in very poor lighting from the side, to encourage people to bid. More than likely, they shot a photo of the very computer they were using to perpetrate this fraud.

Finally, after 45 minutes of wrangling with eBay, I was able to convince them to stop the computer auction. The eBay representative even asked me, "How do I know you aren't the bad guys?" When I responded, "If I were the bad guys, would I be asking eBay to pull an auction that would bring me more than $11??", she didn't have an answer.

Again, I was lucky. the auction was closed by eBay, and my feedback and seller reputation was saved. Even better, the about-to-be bidder didn't wasn't scammed into buying a computer which I didn't have. After all that arguing with the eBay rep, she couldn't tell me how someone managed to get into my site and list that computer. I immediately changed my password, but then decided that maybe eBay just wasn't a good place for me to sell.

So I've moved on to a better selling location - Ruby Lane.com. Haven't had any problems there with scammers, fraud or bad guys. I've now been with Ruby Lane for nearly three years, and have met so many nice sellers and buyers. It's been a joy to sell to people from all over the world through Ruby Lane, and I hope you'll visit my little antiques webshop and browse around a bit!

It's been a while . . .

Haven't been here in a while - lots of things happening in my life, and I'm just now starting to catch up on it all. My newest goal is to continue to add to my Red Moon Antiques blog as often as possible.

Antiques are keeping me busy. My Red Moon Antiques shop on Ruby Lane is still going strong, and I've found lots of interested old things to list there. Lately, I've been out shopping for more fresh antiques, so if you have a chance, do stop by and browse. Recently I've been adding vintage jewelry, especially my latest fascination - vintage cufflinks. I have both women's and men's cufflinks, many of them from the early 1900s. Click on my cufflinks link to see what's new in the shop!

Hate Junk Mail and Pesky Telemarketers????

Seems like every day my junk mail increases, and the piles are getting larger and larger. Mostly it's solicitations from credit card companies, banks, and sales flyers from all sorts of stores. Luckily, we heat our home with wood, and all of this miscellaneous paper makes for great fire-starters.

In the summer when we aren't heating with wood, we just save it all in a paper bag, ready to be used in late September when we again heat with wood. It's a shame to waste all those trees needed to make the paper for this junk mail, but at least I have a practical use for all this excess paper.

Click here for a
1) website
which will help you lessen the amount of junk mail in your mailbox!

Click here for
2) another site
which will allow you to opt-out on junk mail for five years.

To eliminate those telemarketers who always seem to call in the middle of dinner (or your favorite tv show),
3)click here.

It only takes a few minutes to fill out the forms, and is well worth the time. Do all three if you can, and you'll see a noticeable difference in the phone calls and useless mail you've been receiving.

A couple of years ago I got rid of nearly all the aggravating telemarketing phone calls by adding my phone numbers to the Do Not Call list, and my phone has been blissfully silent ever since. You can find the link to the government's Do Not Call list on the 3rd site.

The Ann Arbor Antiques Market

Stopped by the Ann Arbor Antiques Market today. The April show is the first of the new season, and it's always worthwhile to shop it since so many dealers have accumulated lots of fresh inventory over the winter.

In April, it's a two-day show (September is also a two-day show), while all the other monthly shows are one-day shows. All are held on the 3rd weekend of the month. The show is ever-changing in it's dealer roster, with anywhere from 200 to 300 dealers there each month. The show runs from April through November. These dealers come from many different states, with some traveling more than 1000 miles to exhibit at Ann Arbor.

Sometimes customers think that the same dealers are there every month, but that is not true. I overheard the following conversation:

Shopper to a dealer: "Can I get your card?"

Dealer: "Sure - can you tell me what you were interested in?"

Shopper: "Well, there were a couple things . . ."

Dealer: "Which ones?"

Shopper: "Well, let me have your card. You'll be here next month, right?"

Dealer: "Actually, no, I won't be here next month. Might be here in September, but I don't know yet for sure. What can I help you with?"

With that, the shopper turned and walked away before the dealer could hand her his business card. She assumed that all dealers return each month bringing the same items! She then decided that if he wasn't coming back for several months, she was no longer interested in talking with him. Such a shame that she wasn't comfortable with further discussion, but by the time he gets back in the Fall, he probably will no longer have the items she liked.

The Ann Arbor show has changed management recently, and there were plenty of new things I noticed at the show.

One of the changes is the location of the outside tent dealers - they were moved to a completely new location. Many of these dealers were quite unhappy about this new placement; they felt that they weren't getting the customer traffic they have received in the past, and therefore, not the sales. Also, it was quite cold and very windy, which usually means that customers prefer to stay in the heated barns, shopping the inside dealers. The old tent location was quite near the barns, and people often moved through the tents and then went back into the heated barns to warm up. The new tent location is a quite a bit farther away than previously, and I suspect that many shoppers just didn't want to walk so far in the cold and bitter winds, knowing that they wouldn't have the respite of warming up in the heated barns unless they walked all the way back to them.

Another change is the good look of the show - many more booths were walled and papered this time. It's a distinctly more formal look, and gave the show a good visual appearance. It made many dealers' merchandise look fabulous. Several dealers mentioned that they liked the look very much, and that they were given the walls and paper at no additional cost. Not all the booths were given this treatment. It appeared that it was mostly the dealers in the front few buildings only.

There didn't seem to be as many police officers at Ann Arbor this time. The local sheriff's department has for many, many years had an agreement with the show to provide law enforcement for a specified fee each month, but they were noticeably less in number this year. That might be a problem - Ann Arbor has had a reputation in the dealer community for shop-lifting problems. The clearly visible uniformed police officers walking around in past shows were quite helpful in limiting crime, also in helping find lost children, controlling traffic, answering questions, and generally being available if needed for any emergencies. Hope they bring back more officers!

The new July dates were a problem to many of the exhibiting dealers - they do not want the July show to change into a 2 day show. Historically, July is a tough month for sales at Ann Arbor. So many customers are on family vacations, and the heat can be unbearable at the show. Attendance is down, along with sales. Adding a second day to the show means adding more expenses for dealers - more hotel cost and food expenses for that second day add up, and most of the dealers feel that the second day does not produce enough extra sales to offset the added overhead.

Even though I was there primarily to research an article I'm writing for an antiques trade publication, I just couldn't help it and found myself shopping for antiques (okay, so I'm an addicted antiques-shopaholic). I was able to pick up two lucky finds - a pair of Shaker-made wood scoops (my husband collects Shaker items, so he'll be happy since he doesn't have any scoops in his collection), and a lovely mid-19th c small grain-painted table in a wonderful Hepplewhite style. I'll be taking this with me to Maine soon, where it'll be appreciated and won't last long. It's form is super - delicate yet straight, tapered legs, and good graining overall. It's not very big, but a bit taller than average, so it can be used just about anywhere in one's home. I just love early furniture which is practical too!

Reminiscing about the Antiques business

When I first started in 1980 as an antiques dealer, I was very fortunate to befriend a couple of dealers and collectors who taught me the basics of the antiques trade. As we all know, this is one weird business. It's both wholesale and retail at the same time (how many businesses do both?), and the negotiating price thing can be outrageous (at one time or another, most of us have sold something for 30-50% off - and it's expected now!). How many other industries do you know buy things, clean and repair them, and then try to make a living from them? And that's not to mention the long hours, unusual characters, and strange working conditions many of us have endured . . .

The antiques business is most unusual, and without the help and direction of some very good and faithful friends early in my career, I wouldn't have lasted this long. They gave me the joy and laughter of finding wonderful old things, and made the tribulations so much more tolerable. They explained the hand-shake part of this business, and that one's word is their absolute reputation. And from the beginning, I vowed to pass on the same help that they gave me so long ago.

Anytime I can pass on assistance to my fellow dealers, I try to do so. I certainly don't have all the answers, but if it's something I've already done, or somewhere I've been, I'm very happy to share info.

Nowadays, I'm seeing more and more cut-throat antiques dealers, and it confounds me - why would anyone want to be alone in this business, being known as a poor excuse for an antiques dealer and having a bad reputation for treating others badly. Or being know for back-stabbing business techniques. Or taking advantage of newer dealers' inexperience. I just don't get it. I'd much rather be happy sharing with my dealer friends, laughing and giggling, learning new ideas and sharing life and business experiences.

I've had the good fortune of loving this business for nearly 30 yrs (more, if you count my collecting times prior to becoming a seller), and the pleasures of the antiques trade has given me many wonderful life stories not only here at home, but across the country and in several other countries too. Weird businesses bring together new friends, allow us to learn really odd information, and provide for much laughter and many smiles as we think back over the years.

I'm not the only one who thinks this way. Two weeks ago, a dealer friend who's been in this business as a nationally-recognized show dealer for more than 40 years told me that he just couldn't sleep the night before the four day show we were doing. He was so excited about the show he stayed awake a good part of the night! He has exhibited at this show for more than 30 years, twice a year, and he still has that inner sense of wonder and thrill, not knowing what awaits him at the show.

His open mind and willingness to just be himself has brought him many customers over the years, and many of those customers have turned into true friends. He is such an engaging person, and he's enjoyed his full-time life as an antiques dealer. The fact that he'd had not one but TWO flat tires on his van on the way to the show (a 1000 mile trip away from his home) didn't faze him one bit. He just took care of business (flat tires are a nuisance, but do not have to be a major problem) and was smiling and laughing the next day while telling his story.

Nothing slows him down. He's dedicated, happy, looks forward to every day. He can make a family of snowmen out of a ten foot deep snowstorm. That's the kind of antiques dealer I want to be!

The Winds of Texas

We just returned from Texas, where we exhibited in an indoor antiques show known as the Original Round Top Antiques Fair. It's quite large, having more than 100 dealers at the building we were in, plus two more buildings and one large tent for additional dealers.

The last night of the show a huge thunderstorm came rolling through the area. We weren't too concerned since our booth was indoors in a relatively new, well-built steel building. We heard the storms at 5 am, after an all-night rain, but since we were safe inside our hotel, it wasn't anything to worry about. Of course, we didn't know about the tornado that hit a Houston building about an hour east of us, taking off it's roof but luckily not injuring anyone.

If you sell at antiques shows, weather is always a consideration. Show dealers are a hardy lot - they come prepared for all kinds of unexpected weather. We bring different kinds of clothing to cover both hot and cold temperatures, always have rain gear with us, and in general are pretty well prepared for the various extremes we might face.

The pictures here show the force of the strong Texas winds. The same storm that ripped the roof off a large building in Houston was responsible for destroying this 30' x 40' brand new tent. The tent had been staked outside our show building with 3 foot steel rerod stakes. When the winds hit - estimated at approximately 50-60 miles per hour, it lifted this heavy-duty tent straight up twenty feet into the air, and then blew it across our building, landing it 200' away. The tent rolled across the top of the building, still attached to it's stakes and 3 inch diameter aluminum poles, tearing the edges and punching holes in the roof.

Down the road from our show, several hundred exhibitors at some of the tailgate antiques shows were showing in large tents. Many of them lost merchandise as their tents collapsed in the high winds. We heard that at least five tents were destroyed.

The tent next to our building flopped it's aluminum poles like legs, tumbling across one dealer's cargo trailer and then finally landing on another dealer's van. It covered the van like a giant spider, with it's aluminum poles splayed across the van. Some of the poles remained on the roof, while others were torn off and landed in various pieces on the ground. Both the van and trailer suffered some holes and dents, but neither was severely damaged.

Wasn't it fortunate that this didn't happen during the day, when patrons could have been eating lunch in this tent or walking around outside??