Treasures that are worth saving
I started my shop because I found lots of nice things that were worth saving but did not exactly fit in with my collections. At first, I left them at the fleamarkets I visited.
But later I found Etsy is a way to make it work both ways. I can buy nice items that will be bought and enjoyed by others. And with the proceeds I can expand my own collections.
And I find I just love my shop. I always dreamt of having one, but life took me another way. And now I have that dream come true. I stock my virtual shelves with pictures of my items.
I have customers coming around at all times of the day and night. They can have a look around, even when I am not there. And when my day job is too busy, I can just leave it for a week and still keep the door open and no need to dust the shelves!
I hope you like my shop and any comment is gladly received. I try to write useful and interesting information about my items and to answer any questions that emerge. So feel free to browse about and ask me whatever you would like to know.
And if you don't find anything today, come back another time!
Some time ago I was interviewed by etsyspot.com.
As the interview is now long lost in the maze of the internet, here is a small part of it:
Why vintage?
When I started collecting ceramics the word Vintage didn’t even exist in that way. I was the one that collected funny vases in odd colours. We never had these vases at home, maybe that made me more aware of them. The things that you grow up with are not immediately the things you may think of as special, they are always there and common in a way. At the time I did not know that what I collected would one day be special, but some of my best finds are from those early days. I like colour, I like craftmanship and I find all of that in vintage ceramics. My passion for German ceramics was strengthened by the fact that I live so close to the source.
What is it about Etsy?
Owning a shop does it for me. As a child I used to wake up to the sound of my grannies shop bell next door. Every day after school I joined her to unpack the wholesalers boxes and stock the shelves, to help customers and giftwrap items. I just loved it, that very oldfashioned shop with a real counter, wooden shelves and a real shop bell. I always dreamt of having a shop myself. And now I have that dream come true.
I can potter about my shop at any time. Nip and tuck, add stock, change pictures or texts, have a chat, answer a question. Make packages to send all over the world. And on top of that, I can do just about every other thing I like most in the world. I can buy more than I need just for myself, I can take pictures of items in the nicest possible way, investigate and research items and then sell them to be able to start that whole process again. Retail therapy in optima forma!
Whats been your most interesting selling experience?
Interesting or amazing? The most amazing thing happened some time ago. Even when I go on a trip with my family, I always want to do a bit of bargain hunting. This time we were in London and I found an Arabia pot in the Oxfam shop in Kensington High Street. We traveled very light, so my daughter had to put some of my stuff in her case to enable me to fit that pot into the maximum Ryanair free bagage limit of 10 kg. I put it up for sale and it was bought by someone in London who – as I found out from the address - lived just around the corner from that Oxfam shop. I had even passed the house in getting there. Isn’t that amazing?
I later had another interview, this time with Rachel from raindropsandrotini.
So if you want to read a bit more:
Can you introduce yourself to my readers?
Hi, my name is Pauline, I’m Dutch and live in a very small village on the Dutch and German border. Our house is actually the last one in The Netherlands, the hedge around the garden is also the border between our countries. I have always been interested in ‘old’ things, even in ‘old’ people: I grew up in the same little town as all my grandparents, I even lived next door to them, and loved their stories of the old days and old ways. In my day job I am an concept developer and copy writer at an advertising agency. But I have also studied art and history, so all these things come together in my hobby’s: finding retro items and then finding out as much as possible about them!
What sparked your interest in vintage?
It wasn’t sparked, I guess, it was just always there, in my genes. I used to be more interested in antiques and vintage, say more romantic, more french style objects. Since I live here, my interest has been caught by more retro and designer items. It is just a small change in interest, but it brought me into a complete new world to explore. I like the history of things. The everyday history of the people that have used the items as well as the history of the development of an item, or the designer or potter that made them. But I also can enjoy the shape or colour or design.
