I thought I'd do something different and talk about my Star Wars collection, most people I know are surprised I have any SW stuff and well, I have a lot of rules about collecting this stuff that I almost always follow.
Do you have collecting rules you follow? Let's hear them in the comments section.
My only rule is if I like it, I buy it. The problem with that is unfocused collections. This ranges from toy soldiers mounted on horses because it's fascinating how a sculptor has chosen to capture a horses stance to die cast toys that appeal, to anything Dan Dare. That last one could be original artwork, actual comic appearances, reprint items or merchandising.
Then there's collecting toys that one had as a child. I now have room to have a permanent layout including OO trains from the 50's where I have added to my original items.
I know all about trying to keep the collector in me under control. Re-collecting lost items from our childhoods- I've got that covered. I recently spent more than I should have on the original Stretch Monster and Stretch Armstrong heads. I'm only an amateur at customizing, but I gave them Hulk and Intruder bodies. Knockoffs and foreign action figures are a joy to collect also. I've recently added Robot Man, Lili Ledy Princess Leia, Ensueno Superman, Bionic Big Jim, Popy Spider-man, and inflatable Imperial Superman. My little nephew really liked the Popy Spider-man when I showed it to him today. I saw a lot of nice and familiar items in your video, including the Superman curtain. It's on my bedroom window right now. I've also taken good care of my Star Wars collection. Despite an unfortunate incident back in the mid 1980's when some of my Star Wars items were donated by mistake. It took years and $$, but I managed to find everything (thanks to Ebay) except for the posing stand (too expensive). I'm sure I'll find one!
This Anon has a few silly idiosyncratic rules, but one is deadly serious. It's carved in stone and came straight from the Burning Bush on Mount Horeb and applies to every collectible:
Never, ever, ever buy something when you know the seller is stiffing you on the price. It will poison your enjoyment of the item every time you look at it.
There's a fine line between paying a lot for a desirable item and getting gouged because the seller -knows- he can gouge you and you'll pay it.
In my case, I won't.
For me it's better to do without (even for a few years if need be), than to put up with that pleased smirk a dealer gets when you just became his patsy and you both know it. I'm actually thinking of a more "ghetto" sort of slang for "patsy", one with roots in the prison system.
There's nothing out there worth "biting the pillow".
Due to recent events, I'm limiting comments to google account holders only. Sorry if you're a decent person affected by this but the spam has gotten weird.
My only rule is if I like it, I buy it. The problem with that is unfocused collections. This ranges from toy soldiers mounted on horses because it's fascinating how a sculptor has chosen to capture a horses stance to die cast toys that appeal, to anything Dan Dare. That last one could be original artwork, actual comic appearances, reprint items or merchandising.
ReplyDeleteThen there's collecting toys that one had as a child. I now have room to have a permanent layout including OO trains from the 50's where I have added to my original items.
It would be nice to know how to focus!
My onlyest rule is: don't overdraw the bank account!
ReplyDeleteI know all about trying to keep the collector in me under control. Re-collecting lost items from our childhoods- I've got that covered. I recently spent more than I should have on the original Stretch Monster and Stretch Armstrong heads. I'm only an amateur at customizing, but I gave them Hulk and Intruder bodies. Knockoffs and foreign action figures are a joy to collect also. I've recently added Robot Man, Lili Ledy Princess Leia, Ensueno Superman, Bionic Big Jim, Popy Spider-man, and inflatable Imperial Superman. My little nephew really liked the Popy Spider-man when I showed it to him today.
ReplyDeleteI saw a lot of nice and familiar items in your video, including the Superman curtain. It's on my bedroom window right now.
I've also taken good care of my Star Wars collection. Despite an unfortunate incident back in the mid 1980's when some of my Star Wars items were donated by mistake. It took years and $$, but I managed to find everything (thanks to Ebay) except for the posing stand (too expensive). I'm sure I'll find one!
This Anon has a few silly idiosyncratic rules, but one is deadly serious. It's carved in stone and came straight from the Burning Bush on Mount Horeb and applies to every collectible:
ReplyDeleteNever, ever, ever buy something when you know the seller is stiffing you on the price. It will poison your enjoyment of the item every time you look at it.
There's a fine line between paying a lot for a desirable item and getting gouged because the seller -knows- he can gouge you and you'll pay it.
In my case, I won't.
For me it's better to do without (even for a few years if need be), than to put up with that pleased smirk a dealer gets when you just became his patsy and you both know it. I'm actually thinking of a more "ghetto" sort of slang for "patsy", one with roots in the prison system.
There's nothing out there worth "biting the pillow".