Author: wisdomlaneantiques

I've been going to auctions, antique malls, flea markets, etc. since I could walk. My lifelong love of anything vintage, old, or shabby (everything really is better with age) is now my full-time job.

Photography tip: how to photograph round items

On By wisdomlaneantiquesIn Photography, Selling tips, Tips for the beginnerLeave a comment

It does not matter if you are new to selling online or a seasoned veteran, you will eventually run across a problem that is surprisingly easy to solve.  This is especially true when it comes to photography.

How in the world do I take photographs of an item that is round?  There are no flat spots to keep the item from rolling around.  I mean, EVERY time you set the item down, it starts to roll away and will not stop.

Yeah, this one took me a while to figure this one out.  As you can see with the gear shifter knob shown above, it is completely round.  It dawned on me that there is a washer for that!

I do repairs around the house, and I always have had a surplus of all different types of washers on hand.  So, I realized that the design of a washer is perfect for taking photos of round items—flat on two sides to help elevate your item to keep it from rolling around on you.

Do you know what the best thing is about using a washer?  They are not that expensive, you usually buy them in bulk and are a couple of cents each.

This is just one tip that you can do when it comes to photography.  With there being a lot of tips and tricks out there to taking quality photos, what have you heard of?

What are some of the different types of bowls?

On By wisdomlaneantiquesIn Beginning to collect, History, Item highlight, Kitchen Items, Vintage, Vintage, Vintage!Leave a comment

When it comes to bowl designs, we all have heard about the console bowl, the cereal bowl and even the mixing bowl.  What are some other designs that you might run across when you are out shopping for vintage items?

Cream bowl—this bowl is used by some during a formal event when pureed soups are served during the first course of the meal.  This type of bowl comes with two handles and a shallow bottom on the bowl.

Bouillion cup—also known as a broth bowl, this serving piece is used to served chili, custards and even pudding in formal events.

Tureen—this is meant to hold soups and stews and it is used on the table.  This is meant to hold several bowls of soup that is meant to be ladled out into a bowl.

This is just a handful of the different types of bowls that you will run across.  What kinds have you run across?

What are some different types of glassware that you might run across?

On By wisdomlaneantiquesIn Beginning to collect, Glassware, Tips for the beginner, Vintage, Vintage, Vintage!Leave a comment

When I started going to auctions as a kid, I quickly realized that there are different types of glassware that you will find.  I also found out that it is also very colorful, which is one of the reasons that attracted me to it.

So what are some of the different types of glassware that you will run across?

Milk Glass is one that you will definitely run across.  It is white or opaque in color, and it has been made into a wide variety of shapes.  Not only that, but you will also see a wide variety of patterns as well on the milk glass item.  Dinnerware, lamps and vases have been made of milk glass, and you can even find it in some jewelry pieces as well.

Carnival glass is another area.  Carnival glass got its start in the early 1900’s and is a line of pressed glass pieces that has an iridescent finish applied to it.  The finish was to help catch the light, even if the item was in a darker corner of the room.  This does share the same aspect as milk glass because it comes in a wide variety of patterns and shapes, but the great thing about carnival glass is that it also has a wide variety of colors that it can be found in.  Carnival glass got its name because it was adopted by collectors in the 1950s as items of it were sometimes given as prizes at carnivals, fetes, and fairgrounds.

Opalescent glass is a term that is applied to either clear or colored glass that has a milky white opaque effect that has been applied over the other color on the glass item.  It will be often to either the rim or to the center of the piece, and it will often look like the item has more of a frosted look to it.

Slag glass is another area that you will definitely run across.  Slag glass gets its name from slag, or the byproduct of steel production.  When iron ore is smelted in that process, the remaining product looks like glass.  That product takes on different colors depending on the minerals in the iron.  The visual marbling of this is what slag glass is copying.

There are many more types of glassware that you can find out in the market past what I talked about here.  What have you run across?

What are some glass terms for the beginning collector?

On By wisdomlaneantiquesIn Beginning to collect, Glassware, Tips for the beginner, Vintage, Vintage, Vintage!Leave a comment

When you go out shopping for vintage items, you will hear some interesting terms being said.  It doesn’t matter if you are at an auction, estate sale or swap meets—you will hear something.  It really doesn’t take very long either to hear something interesting like “art glass”, “cased” or even “hand blown”.

Here are a few glass terms that you will hear along the way:

Ice lip—this is a part that you will find on a pitcher.  Ice lips are present to help hold the ice in the pitcher.

Applied handle—this is a handle that was attached to a piece of glass while the glass is still hot.  It is often done by hand and can be quite decorative.

Pontil mark—this is a byproduct of a piece of glass that is made by hand.  It is when the glass is attached to a rod so it can be turned into an item.  When the item is done, it is removed from the rod leaving the mark.

Acid etched—this is a type of finish to create a matte or even a satin finish to the glass.  It is often used to produce a pattern on the glass and can be found on a wide variety of items from bowls to glass panels used in architectural design.

Mold made—this is a type of glass that is completely formed using a mold.  You will see this with more of a mass-produced glass and it is used to help produce items that are exactly alike.

This is just a hand full of the terms that you will hear, and there are many more that you will run across.  What terms have you heard of?

What are some different types of pitchers that you might find?

On By wisdomlaneantiquesIn Beginning to collect, Functional items, Glassware, Pottery, Shopping tips, Tips for the beginner, Vintage, Vintage, Vintage!Leave a comment

When you get started shopping, you will run across a pitcher pretty fast.  You will be amazed how many different varieties there are.  You will quickly start to wonder what the different types of pitchers are.

This was one of the first questions that I ran across when I first started buying and selling antiques and collectibles.

Here are some of the most common ones that you will run across:

Iced tea pitchers—this type of pitcher is pretty large, they typically hold 64 ounces.  64 ounces is a standard size when it comes to Iced tea pitchers, but I have even seen that get close to 70 ounces.  Don’t let the words “Iced Tea” fool you—this type of pitcher has also been called a lemonade pitcher.  The great thing about these is that you will often find them with matching glasses.

Milk pitchers—this one actually threw me off when I first heard this one.  A milk pitcher is half the size of an Iced tea pitcher; it usually holds 32 ounces.  Why such an odd number you say?  32 ounces is how many ounces a quart milk bottle holds.  Milk pitchers are used to give a decorative look to the kitchen table when you are having breakfast.

Creamers—you don’t think of a creamer as a pitcher, but it does fall into this category.  This is the smallest of pitchers that are being talked about here, and they are usually 8 to 12 ounces in size.  One reason that you see quite a few creamers is the fact that you have a smaller serving size of milk when you are having a cup of coffee.

This is a small sample of what is on the market, and there are a few more types of pitchers that are out there.  What kinds have you heard of?

Go Listen to the new podcast!

On By wisdomlaneantiquesIn Beginning to collect, Tips for the beginnerLeave a comment

Hello everyone! I wanted to let you know that Wisdom Lane Antiques has a new podcast, and it is called Pick For Profit!

At Pick For Profit, you will get tips about everything from setting up an antique booth to where you can find inventory that you can sell.

You can find the Pick For Profit podcast here. Head on over and check it out!

What are some tips for the background when photographing items to list online for sale?

On By wisdomlaneantiquesIn Lessons Learned, Photography, Selling tips, Tips for the beginnerLeave a comment

When it comes to taking some photos of an item that is going to be for sale, there will be some things that you will do to make sure the photos come out alright.

You will make sure that the item is well lit in the photos, any damage will be photographed, and you will even put a prop with the item to give a size comparison to.  But what about the background?

If you think about it, the background will often get ignored when you take some photographs.  The background will play as big of a roll as the rest of the photograph.  Look at the two photos and compare them to each other—do you notice the difference?

The most glaring thing about the two photographs is the background.  More importantly, the color of the background.  It makes the pair of Murano candleholders look completely different, almost like they are two completely different sets.

The best piece of advice that I can give you when it comes to the background is that you need something that doesn’t overpower what the star of the show should be.  One of the things I do is to go with a lighter color than the item that I am photographing.

Another thing I do is I might stage the photograph and make it place that they are designed for, like on a kitchen table.  You can even go so far and put a plate and some silverware between you and the candleholders so you can show the potential buyer what it might look like in their home.

These are just a few tips that you can use when you take your photographs for the items you are going to list for sale.  What are some of the tips and tricks that you have come up with?

What were some of the things that happened in 1988?

On By wisdomlaneantiquesIn HistoryLeave a comment

Whenever I buy vintage items to sell, I will look for information on the internet or in a reference book I have about that item.  I always run across some great tidbits about something else that happened during a certain year.

Here is what I have run across for the year 1988:

May 27 saw the release of Windows 2.1.  This was the first version of Windows to require a hard disk drive in the computer.

June 12 saw Rusty Wallace win the last NASCAR Winston Cup race at Riverside International Raceway.

July 15 saw the debut of the blockbuster movie DIE HARD in movie theaters.

October 20—the Los Angeles Dodgers defeat the Oakland A’s on this date to win Major League Baseball’s World Series.

December 31—Extremely dense fog created The Fog Bowl game between the Philadelphia Eagles and the Chicago Bears.  The fog was so dense that the fans could not see the players or the game.

1988 also saw DC Comics run a phone poll asking people to vote on Batman’s sidekick Robin live or die for the famous storyline called “Death In The Family”.

Table Tennis also became a sport in the Olympics.

This is just a few of the things that happened in 1988.  What are some of things that you know happened in 1988?

What are some of the scams that you will run across when you buy or sell online?

On By wisdomlaneantiquesIn scamsLeave a comment

It does not matter what selling site you are on, there will eventually be someone that will try to pull a fast one.  They will try to scam you out of your item that you are trying to sell, the money that you want to get for that item, or even both.

One of the scams that I have run across is that there will be people that you run across that will try to get the item that you are selling for free.

What exactly do I mean with this?  It is simple, really.

They will try to get you to send the item to them before they pay to either try it on or to see how it looks in their home.  After they do this, they will say they will pay.

Do you know what will happen?  They won’t pay.  It does not matter how many times you try to get in touch with them, they simply will not pay you.  And once the person pulling the scam gets the item in their hands, this is when they completely quit talking to you.

Do you know what the bad part is?  It is that you will not have any recourse on getting the money or the item back.

A good rule of thumb is to have them pay before you ship.

This is just one of the scams that you will run across as a seller online.  What are some of the scams that you have run across?

What are some of the things that made their debut in 1939?

On By wisdomlaneantiquesIn HistoryLeave a comment

Whenever I happen to buy an item to sell, I will look either online or in reference books that I have to see what I can find out about that item.  It could be anything from a little history about the item or even when it made its debut.

Here are some of the things that I have found that debuted in 1939:

January 1—the Hewlett-Packard Company is founded.

April 14—The Grapes Of Wrath By John Steinbeck is first published.

April 30—The World’s Fair Opened in New York and ran until October 27, 1940.

May 1—the debut appearance of Batman in Detective Comics number 27 and it was released by DC Comics.

1939 saw The Wizard Of OZ hit the theaters August 15 and Gone With The Wind hit the theaters December 15.

This is just a few of the items that made their debut in 1939.  What items do you know of that debuted in 1939?