Antique planning guide

If you are going to start collecting antiques, it is helpful to have a plan or a guide. This can be as simple as ideas you have in your head, or something written down that you can refer to and add to as you think of things. This will help you keep on track and remember certain things you should look for and avoid when searching for antiques.

First, you need to decide what you want to collect. This is something that may change over time, but it will give you something to focus on when shopping. As you shop, you may change your mind and add new things to your collection – items you might not have previously thought about collecting. That is part of the fun of antique shopping!

You should know where you plan on keeping your antiques in your house. Some people buy curio cabinets to hold their precious finds while some people scatter their items throughout the house. Before you buy something large, think about where it will go and if you really have room for it.

You also want to think about a theme to your antiques. While you can add or stop collecting certain things, it is nice if your entire collection compliments each other. While a 1940’s Disney cookie jar is cute, it might not look nice in your kitchen if the rest of it is filled with pink Depression glass. It is good to think these things out before you make an impulse purchase, only to have the item end up in your next yard sale because it just doesn’t look right in your house.

If you keep a notebook, you can jot down helpful notes while you shop. If you go to one store and find a beautiful Japanese vase that costs a little more than you want to pay, make at note of the size, color, price and mark on the bottom. When you go to another store, you may find the same item at a lower price. By checking your notes, you can make sure it is the same, rather then just going by memory. Notebooks are helpful to if you think an item might be a reproduction. Say you pick up a Tiffany lamp, but the mark doesn’t look quite right to you, but you are really not sure. You can make a note of the mark then go home and research the item further. Because it is impossible to remember the marks of every manufacturer, a notebook comes in quite handy. You can even draw certain marks in your notebook for reference when shopping. If you are not only buying antiques, but selling as well, you can write down prices of items like yours to give you an idea of what the market price is. Finally, your notebook will be good for keeping track of which antique stores are specializing in your items, owner names, addresses and phone numbers.

Find out what options, other than antique stores are available to you within your area. Search the newspaper for auctions, estate sales, even garage sales. They often list what is going to be for sale and you can find incredible deals there, whereas purchases at antique stores will usually cost you what the item is worth or even more.

Part of your mental planning guide may be looking for organizations of other individuals that collect your antiques. For example, there are many antique radio organizations throughout the country. Most have newsletters that will keep you up to date on current prices, auction dates and other important news. When going to the meetings, you may learn how to repair a radio you have from another individual and people within the organizations often buy from and sell radios to each other. This gives you your own network of collectors you can swap with and gain knowledge from.

It will be of an advantage to you to talk to others while you shop. This will be hard if you’re a shy by nature, but it will be a great advantage in the long run. You can talk to antique store owners, other shoppers, fellow collectors at auctions – the possibilities are endless. By conversing with these people, you not only gain knowledge, you also may make some new friends!