I collect…
…secondhand cowboy boots. I now own five pairs! My black lizard Noconas with embroidered tops were just $28; Pete’s Tony Lama kickers a mere $12. I have truly appalling fashion sense, but these always make me feel dressed up…
I collect…
…Swarovski crystal beads. I adore the sharpness of their facets and the clarity of the lead crystal. My collection includes a wide selection of contemporary beads, as well as a few treasured strands from the 1940s (White Givre and Starlight, in case anyone’s interested).
Jewellery making is my passion, and I love the creative aspect of it. All my pieces are made with precious metal wire and crystal beads – here’s a sterling silver bridesmaid bracelet that I made for Vanessa’s wedding last year…
I collect…
…fossils. We don’t have many, but the highlights of our collection are this large ammonite fossil, 65 – 400 million years old…
…and this mammoth’s tooth – a gift from my little sister. True to form, she haggled down the archaeologist who excavated it. If you’d like to see a truly amazing fossil collection, please have a look at the photos from our visit to the Somerville Museum in rural NSW.
I collect…
…Muppet memorabilia. As a long time fan, I was pretty excited when the original tv series was released on DVD! My sons have grown up watching it, much to the amusement of their peers.
Are you a collector too? If so, I’d love to know what your passion is!
Fig Jam and Lime Cordial 
Cowboy boots……and Swarovski crystal beads………hmmmmmm..I could get into collecting those things as well.
Great idea…..there is so much more to you than just great cooking!!!!!
Oooh, I’d bet you’d find some really interesting boots where you live, Jude…
Celia, you are so talented – a jewellery maker as well as everything else! The bracelet is lovely. The ammonite and mammoth tooth are amazing. The muppets I was never a fan of. The only thing I collect are chocolate books, but as I’m a bit fussy about these, I don’t have that many.
Choclette, thank you! Hmmm…I have a few chocolate books as well… :)
I think “collecting” is a state of mind – once I have more than two of anything, I reckon that’s a collection! :)
I collect buttons…..I love to decorate cushions with them. I love fabric because I love to sew…and haven’t for over a year now. I love paper, especially handmade – I used to make handmade cards….about 7/8 years ago. To be honest, I hate to throw things away, so I collect many other things too. I have to say I’ve been blessed by your jewelery making talent. Thanks
Oooh buttons! My friend Joy used to have a very impressive collection. And fabric…sigh…we don’t talk about that in our house. ;-)
I’ve never been much of a papercrafter – never got into scrapbooking or stamping or card making – although I do enjoy origami and my friend Marilyn’s paper toys.
B has a very fine ladder collection in the garage :)
You know, I would love to see a photo of those, Jo!
Thanks for sharing your collections with us! That 65 – 240 million-year-old fossil looks incredible – the sheer power of Mother Nature is just humbling.
And I look forward to reading more about your jewellery making talent!
Wink, I wish you could come over and take photos of it all for me. Your pics are always sooo good. Fossils and rocks are hard to snap – strange reflections etc… :)
What a lovely diverse collection Celia. The cowboy boots are great. I have always fancied a pair!
I collect kids picture books. Specifically fairy tales and nursery rhymes. So many beautiful pictures.
Hippy, the boots are often going for a song on Ebay, although the US shipping is hefty. There used to be a seamail shipping option from the States, but I think that’s been scrapped now.
Fairy tales and nursery rhymes! What a lovely thing to collect! :)
Eleven items are the official ‘I am a collector of’ that qualify, so you have some way to go with the boots, so when you reach the target, where are you going to store the 10 pairs whilst wearing the 11th?
C’mon Roz. Pete isn’t going to be happy if you talk me into buying more boots.. ;-)
My rules are three of anything makes a collection, although that probably means I collect hundreds of different things! :D
I collect turn-of-the-century applied arts and paper craft books. I also collect scarves and that’s about it. The wonderhub has a nice collection of Vargas pinups as well as model helicopters.
Marilyn, my boys would love those model helicopters. I knew you’d collect something interesting!
I had to google “Vargas pinups” – you’re a very patient wife.. :)
My daughter will just die of envy when she sees those boots!! She has just received her first pair of cowboy boots for her 14th birthday on Saturday. She has a horse and plays polocrosse so she fancies herself as something of a cowgirl – I can see her aspiring to a collection!
Amanda, tell her to keep an eye on Ebay. Lots of stuff on there at dirt cheap prices, although as I said above, the shipping can be outrageous. She might also like this website: http://www.dimlights.com/boots/
Only five pairs of cowboy boots…? Of course having been the lucky recipient of some of your beautiful crystal collection (in the form of gorgeous, well crafted jewelry)… your secret is safe with me. Hahaha. Harness the mania baby!!
Stop it now, woman. :)
Yeehar!
Get off your hoss’ & drink some milk!
What time is it with you Celia? Is it cowboy time?
= ten to ten to ten ten ten ten (William Tell music)
OK, I’ll stop there.
Your jewellery looks beautiful, aren’t you clever.
Hahaha…you’re all just jealous.. ;-)
Thanks for the kind words about the bracelet, I was really happy with it. It took a while to get right, because Vanessa was adamant she wanted it on silver, not gold, and most Swarovski brown has a yellow cast to it. It took a while to find brown stones with a grey rather than gold tone. I made four for her in total, and now most of those colours have been discontinued, which is a bit of a shame!
hehe I think it’s fascinating learning what people collect. As for me well it’s a few things. It used to be makeup, then skincare, then shoes, then hats. Hmmm I guess I’m definitely a collector!
Hats! I could definitely become a hat collector, there’s such a diverse range! :D
I’m not allowed to say I have a bracelet and two twinkly angels am I? :) So I know how lovely they are!
I try my hardest not to collect anything, and I fail. I have a collection of krenit bowls, a collection of things to cut dough with, things to hold dough in, an ever changing flour collection, and a collection of a certain cut of £10 t shirt in every colour that comes out each year….
My desk is littered with origami cranes…and the odd ammonite, but smaller than yours…
The poodles have a simply enormous collection of squeaky toys, that do everything from quack to howl ‘Merry Christmas.’ Are there ones that have Aussie accents I wonder for Aussie dogs?
Celia, If I could get to the ladder collection, past the trug and old plant pot collection, the pieces of wood collection, the dog agility seesaw, the in progress dog a frame, (and that’s only a selection of what lurks in the woodshed) I would try and photograph it for you of course! He doesn’t admit it’s a collection, he says, ‘you never know when it might come in handy.’ The piece de resistance is an antique wooden ladder of his Dad’s which spans the length of the garage. It will only ever move when everything else is taken out of there. It’s in dry dock really.
Jo, the squeaky toy collection looks in remarkably good nick given that it’s regularly mauled by poodles! The ladder collection sounds fascinating – all the more so because it’s so inaccessible! :D
The seesaw is gone! It went to a dog club this week… I had forgotten that I sent you this photo…. hee hee…
I think you should have more boots though, they look really good!
Celia,
All of my favorite people are collectors of a sort.
Collecting keeps you on the look out for that next special item. I collect tea pots and cups, vintage books from the 1930’s and 40’s, treen ware, especially solid wooden rolling pins and large wooden spoons.
And I have a large stash of wool and knitting needles that is going to qualify for a collection unless I get back to knitting, soon!
I love your bracelet- it is always good to have a collection that keeps us creative and involved!
I also collect cookbooks- but I may be going to dissolve that collection soon- no space!
Thanks for sharing and asking- this was fun!
Heidi
Heidi, here in Australia we even have a weekly tv show called “Collectors”, dedicated to people’s obsessive collections. It’s so much fun to watch. I think people with passionate interests tend to be happier, and collectors certainly fit into that category!
You’re sent me to google to find out what treen ware is! :)
I had a wool stash for years, but both my boys are allergic to dustmite, so neither can wear wool! I’ve since passed it on to a good home.
Beautiful bracelet! Loved it!
when I was a very young child, I got into the habit of collecting wrappers for bath bars, from all over the world. Did not last very long, but I remember that opening the notebook where I glued them all was pretty cool: wonderful smell!
Since then, I never collected anything, I am in fact an anti-collector type. Well, except for cookbooks… but that’s a whole different story…. ;-)
Sally, I used to long to be an anti-clutter, anti-collector! Didn’t work though.. :)
You’re a passionate bread baker though, which I guess makes you a collector of recipes.. :)
When I read this post yesterday I wondered if I was a collector (officially) of anything. My husband is sure to say I am a collector/horder…of junk. But he classes anything as a dust collector aka junk. I certainly have a lot of ‘stuff’ but not sure if there is anything I openly admit to ‘collecting’. Hmm. Perhaps cookbooks….and bake ware. I have shelves of cookbooks and have to consciously try and restrict myself from buying too many. And my bakeware huge drawer is a tad shameful just for its size. It all fits in like an intricate puzzle which nobody in the family can manage other than me (since my rule is that I now have to get rid of something from that drawer before I can add any more in it).
I love those cowboy boots though. I have been drawn to them on occasion but never indulged…yet! I think you should add chocolate to your list as you certainly seem to have an amazing collection of different types of chocolate in your house.
The problem with collecting consumables is that your collection keeps shrinking! :)