Collector or Hoarder?

There is a telelvision show called ‘Hoarders’ my sister likes to watch, and lately the question has come up – When does a Collector become a Hoader? Actually, it was my husband and my sister that began the discussion. About me, I think…

I’ve been collecting for many years from farm sales, garage & yard sales, flea markets, Salvation Army stores (Sally Ann) and Value Village (the V.V. Boutique). I love to find items at a ‘good’ price when I know the value is more. To me, it is a treasure hunt. I’ve found some really great things over the years.

But, there is no room in a normal home for the items a diverse collector collects. So where do you put everything? How do you organize your stuff? How do you inventory all those items? Research them. Place a value on them. Sell them…

I’ve opened a small booth in a local Antiques Mini-mall hoping to sell off some of the items I’ve collected over the years. And what I’ve found is that a seller needs diverse and eclectic merchandise in one’s booth. So I’ve been hunting in the usual haunts for a different kind of merchandise. After all, pottery and ceramics, vintage prints and lace just doesn’t cut it for display and sale items in an antiques booth anymore.

I’m collecting more than ever – glass and ceramics and prints and vintage clothing and textiles; BMP and West German mid-century pottery, folk art and handmade wooden items. TV lamps from the 50′s & 60′s are a good buy… and on and on. I love it!! The finds and the research and the valuations.

So back to the debate…When does a collector become a hoarder? My sister says when you can’t keep your house clean. My husband says ‘last year…’

I’ve decided that I need to balance my passion for collecting with practicality – what can I easily manage in the little time that I have to indulge my passion for collecting? As tempting as the treasure hunt is, I must keep it to a manageable level – manageable in time and in the physical space I have in my home that I can call my own, where it does not interfere with the free movement necessary for everday life.

I guess one of my personal goals will be to find the balance …
(a hoarder I could never be)