the following question was posed to me by email today: What would be your advice –should I save up and buy better (the best is out of my league) or buy more items?
Most advisers would tell you to buy only the best but I believe that we all have to start somewhere. There is no way to go through the process of becoming a better collector without some mistakes and bumps along the way. But, you should proceed maybe more slowly than your excitement would make you do otherwise. If you force yourself to slow down before buying many things for your collection, you will grow with it and you will be happier with it in the future.
First, invest in some books!!! I have a book list on my site and books are relativley cheap and you will learn an awful lot from just looking at photos! I used to carry a reference book with me to auctions of lace so that I could compare the item in front of me with photos of “real” lace. It took time and, of course, as a beginner, I seemed impossible to identify the lace, but the important thing was the exposure to different textiles and the looking.
Second, buy only things that “speak to you.” Chances are, even if they are not the best or the finest, your visceral response to them means that you will love them for a very long time.
So! books first and then… buy some of the items that are calling to you!
April 18, 2009 at 1:45 am |
Or you can be lucky enough to find someone whose things speak to both her and yourself.
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