There are stages to creating a collection, starting with methodically accruing treasures over time and ending with displaying them in a way that reflects your personality. According to Fritz Karch and Rebecca Robertson, authors of Collected: Living With the Things You Love (Abrams; $40), many of us avoid the final stage simply because we don’t know how to show off our hard-earned finds. Whether it’s retro dish towels, Hermés boxes, balls of yarn or well-polished copper pudding molds, Karch and Robertson prove that with curating and creativity, even the ordinary can be magical. The authors, who hail from Martha Stewart Living, devote the pages to 250 collections and the 15 collecting personalities many of them represent. From the Modest-ist to the Seasonalist, the book features the vast, varying styles of hunters and gatherers who show no fear when it comes to their bounties. What advice would you give to someone who is struggling to display his or her objects? See where you like having them and then start thinking about how they could be displayed — are they best hung on the wall in a grid? Cluster and group the collection in one location, like a cupboard, a wall of shelves or one entire room. Fill a fireplace off-season or use hallways, porches or the interior of a garage. Do you have any tips and tricks for arranging collections? Mix pattern with plain solids. Or I like to juxtapose ... opaque with solids, clear glass with aged metals. What kinds of collections are trending right now? Anything gold color, midcentury, imports made of brass, cast animals and boxes. [...] barware: anything relating to cocktails, bar carts, cocktail shakers, ice buckets, drink tools. Can you share some ways (or your favorite example) in which a collection can or has inspired an entire space? In our Machinist chapter we have a collector who has collected over 600 different vintage toasters. The toasters offset the modern vibe of his loft space. Use them in unexpected places like ceilings, on bookcases, and horizontally on tables and case pieces. [...] truth be told, all 15 except for the Minimalist. If we were to peek inside your respective homes, what kinds of collections would we find? Robertson: I collect ’60s and ’70s magazine purses, antique mother-of-pearl objects (spoons, inkwells, compacts, boxes), vintage jewelry (all styles), vintage glassware, lighting and vintage coats, just to name a few. What do I collect? A shocking number of diverse things, from chairs, to rocks, old tin ware, flatware. Give each type a personal space: a closet or entire room designated for the Maximalist. Chantal Lamers is a San Leandro freelance writer. From balls of twine to matchbooks and rustic clothespins, they prove it is creativity, not money, that’s most important to a collection. More is better to these consumers whose commitment can result in a collection of 500 vintage metal-bodied Thermos bottles. Shelves filled with bright, vintage enamelware, stacks upon stacks of cafe au lait bowls, a few dozen well-worn Converse All Stars are terrifically more magical when arranged by hue. Restrained palettes quiet these collections, whose diversity comes in varying patterns, textures and patinas. The utilitarian clack of typewriters, the beauty of galvanized buckets, even rusty old tools and factory stools make the hearts of these collectors flutter. Woven-wire bird baskets, white-glazed fish dishes, ceramic elephant figurines, chicken-themed miscellany — such objects populate the zoologist’s happy menagerie. From food domes to baskets, strongboxes, snuffboxes and vases, too, these sorts of collections are often also functional. Botanical prints, marble grape clusters, crocheted foodstuff and foliage-print metal dishes entice these collectors. The collector’s natural habitat is typically the flea market or vintage shop. Proudly rocking vintage bunny containers, American flag rhinestone pins and vintage celluloid fauna when the season calls. Functional objects are at the heart of these gatherings, from industrial lab ware to cast iron baking molds. Stuff has floors of treasure — all very well organized and displayed. There are a lot of dealers with great taste who really pull out all the stops when setting up their booths. Cookin’ (Recycled Gourmet Appurtenances) is an amazing shop with vintage kitchenware. #SF #News #49ers
Posted on: Tue, 16 Dec 2014 12:09:41 +0000
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