The very best part of being an antique dealer is the thrill of the hunt. Yes--the hunt for items to sell but a big part for Dear Husbola and me is the ability to add to and update the items in our home. When we find a keeper, it means something is plucked from our house to sell.
All the January magazines give a million suggestions of how to divest yourself of clutter and no longer wanted or useful items. The smartest advice I have seen breaks it down very simply. As you clean and sort ask yourself an easy question about each item--Do I use it?? Do I love it?? Do I need it???? One additional criteria of letting go could be if you don't remember where you got it-time to let it go. Or for clothes, if the last time you wore it, Jimmy Carter was president, DEFINITELY time to let it go.
The next few days are serious stay inside weather days in Northern Illinois. Great time to tackle that drawer or piece of a room and fill a box or bag for the Salvation Army store.
Only 8 percent of people have kept their New Year's resolution by the end of the month. Evaluating our collections is an easy one to keep.
I've been doing the same thing for the last week, moving through my shop in Richmond, and filling two cartons with things that haven't sold in over one year. They will go to Purple Heart tomorrow and my workroom and shop shelves will be ready for new finds. Eighty-five percent will be things that came in box lots. You know how it is, there will be one lovely thing in a box from the 1970s. I've noticed at auctions this summer, auctioneers insisted bidders take home the whole lot where we used to leave them for others to go through. That was something new.
ReplyDeleteI enjoy your blog and it is always interesting to see what you've been up to.
-Ginene
Thanks Ginene for your readership and your comments. One thing is for sure--customers want fresh, not yesterday's stale stuff. This hard work will keep us young!!
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