Wednesday: Collectibles to Consider

In this weekly post, I will discuss different collectibles that you might want to consider collecting.  It is in no way meant to be an authority on any of the items discussed, but rather just something fun that might inspire you to start or continue on the vintage path.  I will feature items for sale that I find online, mainly from Etsy.  These will be from multiple sellers and may or may not include an item from my own shop.  I will not be able to update the postings to remove items that are sold, so if one item is no longer available when you reach the seller's shop, please take a few minutes to browse their other items, as you might find something else that charms you!

Vintage utensils and gadgets are good examples of how things used to be made to last which is probably why many have survived so long despite heavy use over years or decades.  And a high survival rate translates into lower costs for the beginner collector.  Collecting need not be limited to fans of kitchen items, either; many of the older gadgets are mechanical in nature and so may be of interest to those who collect hand tools or other mechanical items who are looking to branch out their collections.

One thing is for sure - it seems that even back in the day, ladies of the house had a gadget for just about everything.  There were flour sifters, apple corers, potato ricers, pasta cutters, tomato slicers, cake breakers, cake servers, graters, mashers, egg beaters, egg scramblers, pastry blenders, and pastry wheels, in addition to peelers, grinders, scoops, whisks, and choppers. And that doesn't even include spatulas, ladles, tongs, flatware, knives, etc.!

Given the variety, you have the option of collecting all of one piece (e.g., all rotary beaters), all pieces of one era (anything from the 1950s), pieces of similar color despite the type or age (all green handled items you can find), or pieces made from the same material (tin measuring cups or melamine spatulas). As with many people who start a collection, you may initially buy whatever you find as you find it and then decide what you like best and narrow your focus from there.

Following are a few of my favorites from Etsy to whet your appetite for these great items:

Le Petite Flea is featuring these lovely green handled pieces

TinsAndThings has this cool tomato slicer

REtroGalore has this SUPER cool egg timer gadget

Vintage & Co is featuring this great flour sifter

And, finally, from my shop, a potato ricer



Happy hunting!