HOW TO IDENTIFY FIND and BUY Antiques and 20th Century Vintage Collectibles
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Knowledge Is Money
Everyone collects something from the latest CD to treasures of the past. Read as much as you can on your collecting subject matter. Company & product history search is a must to start your hunt. Buy reference books--a photo is worth 1000 words! The more knowledge you have, the better your leverage when making a deal to purchase. Ask the seller questions about the item=see if they know the history of the house/estate it was found in. They should be knowledgable, friendly & eager to share. Bring your books & lists with you when shopping for quick reference for ID & pricing. Keep a list of what you already own & its condition. Upgrade whenever possible & consign your cast offs to a local dealer or sell them yourself on eBay. Buy from a reputable dealer who provides a receipt & knowledge of the item.
BUY the Best you can afford. Go for the signed piece or MIB mint in box, whenever possible/affordable. The rarer & better conditon the item, the more it will appreciate in value in years to come. Hunting & searching for the hard to find items is what keeps our passion for collecting exciting and alive.
If you didn't Find anything in "that" antique shop or web site the past 3 times, Try again. Stop in often & let us know what you are collecting. Our inventory changes daily & sought after hard to find items are sold quickly! Leave your phone # or e mail address. The squeaky wheel gets the grease.
After 20 years in the business, we have 1000's of items in stock & take requests. We will gladly photograph the item & e mail description for your viewing. We have a Huge assortment of Antiques, Primitives, Estate & Vintage Jewelry. Linens, Old Books, Toys, Games. No Longer made items, Unique Oddities & Rare Vintage items for sale. 1880's - 1970's collectibles.
Feel free to e mail requests and wants lists.
fondmemories@comcast.net
CHECK OUT OUR SALE ITEMS CLICK HERE
www.FMAntiques.com
COLLECTING OR INVESTING? A GONE WITH THE WIND STORY
FUN way to make Money
COLLECTING OR INVESTING A GONE WITH THE WIND STORYFred Crane, the first actor to speak in the 1939 movie Gone With the Wind, collected memorabilia from the classic film for years. He displayed it in his bed-and-breakfast. In February, after his health declined, he sold the house and collection. Total windfall, US$750,000. The collection had become a huge savings account. All that money spent for collectibles turned into a retirement fund. So remind your family that you wisely spend time and money "supporting your hobby." It just might support you in later years or help pay for your children's/grandchildren's college education.
ZIP CODES & DATING COLLECTIBLES
The United States Postal Service "ZIP Code" began on July 1, 1963. Use of the new 5 digit code became mandatory for the general public's use in 1967. Most large manufacturers began using the zip code on their products & packaging by 1964.Check your collectibles original box, label or imprinted signature & see if there is a zip code to help ID the accurate age of your item.
Two & 3 digit city section codes had been used in large cities like New York, Boston, Chicago and San Francisco during the 1940's early 1950's when consumer goods were still being shipped by railroad. By the late 1950's & early 60's smaller cities adopted the 2 & 3 digit code for their shipping too as trucks took over delivery until the USPS started the 5 digit zip code delivery system almost 35 years ago.
Now we have a 4 digit street code added to the 5 digit zip code. This 4 digit code at the end of your zip tells the Post Office what street you live on in your town along with house #. We all have a different 4 digit code for our exact location.
The Creation of Mr. ZIP
USPS Launches Mr. ZIP
In the early 1960s, the U.S. Post Office was in trouble. They had devised a new scheme for the efficient delivery of mail, but this system relied on postal customers adding an unfamiliar 5-digit number to each address. Now we have the unfamiliar 4 digit code added to the 5 digit Zip code=9 digits!Enter Mr. Zip, the wide-eyed mascot of postal efficiency. To the rescue comes a dashing figure in blue, Mr. Zip, delivering his mail in rain or hail, to the tune of "Zip-a-dee-doo-dah" sung by Ethel Merman. Mr. Zip's charming delivery of the new zip code campaign changed the way America mails its letters, and made zip codes a household name. He was retired in 1986 when the Zip+4 campaign was introduced. Are Nine digits really necessary?
Mr. Zip was arguably one of the greatest salesmen in history. With this friendly public servant presenting the ZIP Code, the new program was a stunning success -so much so that today there is greater than 95% compliance with the ZIPCode Program.
Mr. ZIP was based on an original design by Harold Wilcox, son of a letter carrier and a member of the Cunningham and Walsh advertising agency, for use by a New York bank in a bank-by-mail campaign. Wilcox's design was a child-like, stick figure sketch of a postman delivering a letter. The figure was used only a few times, then filed away. Later, AT&T acquired the design and made it available to the Post Office Department at no cost.
Post Office Department artists retained the face but sharpened the limbs and torso and added a mail bag. The new figure, dubbed Mr. ZIP, was unveiled at a convention of postmasters in October 1962. Until January 1986, his image was printed in the white area outside of the stamp, known as the selvage. SEE photo of stamp in Zip Codes & Dating Collectibles above.
Mr. ZIP Today:
Currently undergoing a renaissance, Mr. ZIP is being updated by the Postal Service for licensing and other purposes, extending his cultural icon status to a new generation of Americans. This is a photo of the 2003 Mr. Zip who is busy having a face lift, tummy tuck & liposuction for his rebirth.
INTERESTING DATES & HISTORY UNITED STATES POSTAL SERVICE
United Stes Postal Service Chronological History
1847 - U. S. postage stamps issued
1855 - Prepayment of postage required
1860 - Pony Express began
1863 - Free city delivery began
1873 - U.S. Postal cards issued
1874 - General Postal Union (now Universal Postal Union) established
1893 - First commemorative stamps issued
1896 - Rural free delivery begins
1913 - Parcel Post® began
1918 - Scheduled airmail service began
1950 - Residential deliveries reduced to one a day
1957 - Citizens' Stamp Advisory Committee established
1963 - ZIP Code inaugurated
1970 - Experimental Express Mail® service began
1971 - United States Postal Service® began operations
1971 - Labor contract negotiated through collective bargaining, a federal government "first"
1974 - Self-adhesive stamps introduced
1982 - Last year Postal Service accepted public service subsidy
1983 - ZIP+4® Code began
1993 - National Postal Museum opened
1997 - Postal Service%u2122 launched public internet site
1998 - First U.S. semi-postal issued
2002 - President's Commission on the U.S. Postal Service® established
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ALWAYS A UNIQUE VARIETY
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Better Retruns Than a Mutual Fund!
When the N.E.A. (Newspaper Enterprise Association), a syndicated news and photo service founded in 1902 closed its Cleveland office in 1978, they took the old files and dumped them. A few clever collectors carted away literally a ton of old sports photographs, original comic strip art, photos of celebrities and important news events and more.The rescued items were sold at the flea markets (not good enough for a real antiques show) for pennies to dollar value.
Times change. Last week Philip Weiss Auctions sold a Sunday "Peanuts" page from 1963 for $37,000. The seven original "Peanuts" strips offered in the sale totaled $152,550. Charles Schulz, the artist, would be proud. Collectors should remember yesterday's trash is today's treasure.
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We have 25 years experience buying & selling antiques & collectibles.
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Posted August 08, 2007
MY FAVORITE LINKS
- Great BUYS!
- A random sampling of vintage items we sell.
- COLLECTOR INFORMATION STATION
- GO TO LEFT NAVIGATION BAR & CLICK ON COLLECTORS INFORMATION STATION. Fantastic Research Source!
by morefondmemoriesantiques
1860-1970
Antiques, Collectibles Primitives, Old, Tools Victorian, Depression, Home, Patio, Decor,
Art Deco, Vintage, Retro, Space Age,...
