Collectors' Clubs

It may seem to those of you who are not into antiques but collect any of the thousands of other kinds of nostalgia and memorabilia items that this column has ignored you and your interests. Granted, my primary focus has been on the world of antiques because I love them and collect them. But I also collect other things, like perfume bottle miniatures and nutcrackers, and my roommate collects Zippo lighters. My sister collects wind-up toys. My mother collects teddy bears. You don't have to tell me about the addictive nature of collecting!

You probably know that there are millions of you around the world who spend considerable time and money adding to and maintaining collections, from cars to stamps to barbed wire (yes!) to Avon bottles to Barbies to Star Wars to cancelled credit cards. In researching this article I was dumbfounded to see the variety of odd things people collect. Transportation tokens, cigarette packs and matchbooks, unopened beer bottles and cans, knife rests, marbles, toothpick holders, Aladdin lamps, cuff links, Smurfs, Jim Beam bottles, and of course, beanie babies and Boyds Bears, just to scrape the surface!

As the New Year begins, let me give you a few links that may help you find your cohorts in collecting. You will find that many of the collectors' clubs provide a newsletter, swaps and classified selling, and since most of them ask for dues to become a member, you often get a lot more for your membership fee: annual meetings, tours of a manufacturer or museum, a special limited edition collectible just for members, and chat forums. Some of the larger organizations have local branches, and you can then meet face to face with others with the same passion.

Suite101 articles links are not intended to act as inclusive directories or lists of web sites. Other "Best of Web" and single-topic web sites do that. However, these directories are being provided to you as a service to enable you to find very specific information. I can't research and review every collector's club because there are thousands of categories, and I'm sure to overlook the very one you want. In addition, not all of them have web sites, though most list an e-mail contact.

Just for kicks, however, let me describe one or two as examples of collectors' clubs. These were found on Collectors.org.

"The American Matchcover Collecting Club (AMCC) promotes the preservation, collection, education and availability of pre-1965 collectible matchcovers though a national collecting club. Members receive the club's publication, 'The Front Striker Bulletin.' National price guide available and written by editor. Annual swapfest held."

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