The 'view' of the 'collectibles business/market' for many of us is narrow - we only collect Harbour Lights.

Some of you collect other lines. So let's hear from this group -- what have you seen happening to other product lines in the past few years? What can you observe about the condition of the other producers?

What has been your actions with regard to these other lines in the past few years? Collecting MORE, collecting LESS, no longer collecting them at all?

Perhaps putting Harbour Lights into perspective with other producers will help us understand the bigger picture and marketplace in which Younger & Associates has been operating for the past 3-5 years.

I only collect HL's, JC. I did speak with my dealer in Oregon yesterday about how they were doing. They carry about five different lines of lighthouses. They do good during the tourist season but slow in the winter. She didn't say who the better sellers were but I guess the various lines maintain a following.

Bob

I collect HL's, Lefton lights, I really like the new rotating beacon lights. I have a lot of their mini lights that have the name and location of the light stamped on the front. I also have some of the spoontiques collection, I like them because they look hand made, not the best detail, but unique.

Only non-HL major line thing I have is a Scassis Sea Girt. Wouldn't give it up. It was given to me as a thank you present from the Sea Girt Lighthouse Citzens Commitee for my helping out at the 04 Challenge. (I spent 2 full days there, doing all the lantern tours, climbing up and down probably 30 times/day.)

It looks like my assumption was right -- that Collectors of Harbour Lights aren't much into collecting anything else.

If true, that means we're not as knowledgeable about what is going on in the 'collectibles industry' beyond our favorite.

Guess I'm the only one who misses Cheryl Spencer Collin...

No, I also miss Cheryl Spencer Collin! :rolleyes:

I guess I'm #3! I had the pleasure of meeting Cheryl in 1995 at the collectable show in South Bend, In. She is a classy lady!

Have collected Dept. 56 Snow Village for years, and display the villages during the winter months. Makes for a warm and cozy holiday season in our home.

Swarovski crystal is another one of my passions!

Then there's the spouse's hobby (s)..........

Bright eyes - so what do you see happening with the Dept 56 and Swarovski lines?

The Swarovski collectables are strong, and the Collectors Society has a dedicated following worldwide.

Dept. 56 in the "village" category has produced too many pieces the past few years, and sales in part have decreased due to the "overcrowded closets and storage rooms", and "no room to display all" syndrome.

Like with other collectibles, the older/rarer piece to find is desireable, and the hunt and find is the "fun" of the collection.

That's also true with Harbour lights. The hunt and the find are all part of the collecting excitment.

bobo

For a few years I was hot on buying Steiff - those cuddly but extremely expensive German stuffed animals. The market for Steiff tanked 1-2 years after Harbour Lights LE's started their decline. Ebay prices were high so one couldn't blame the auction site. Seems the dot com bust and the market slump certainly took the stuffing (pardon the pun) out of the Steiff market.
When my adult son got into some financial problems I gave him most of my Steiff collection to sell on Ebay. I have no idea how he did - figured he was embarrassed enough without me asking.

My wife, Alaina, collects Harmony Kingdom 'Treasure Jests'. The local dealers dropped them before they did HL. She has nearly as many of the H-K's as I do all of my HL's... and several of her's were hundred's of dollars. Oddly, her 'fortune' resides in one display case, as many of them are small.

Other areas of collecting are going strong... knives and firearms! I am a bit of a 'nut' for pocket & hunting style knives - particlarly hand made. I also am partial to S&W revolvers. Sadly, I have no way to safely display either. Unlike other such collectors, my meager collection gets some use, albeit whittling with the knives and plinking with the handguns. Collecting in both areas is increasing, as are the prices.

Another oddity. The increasing interest in handmade woodworking hand tools (planes, spokeshaves, drills, saws, etc) still exists. The collectors of earlier woodworking handtools had to suffer the increasing interest in 'old tools' for that 'country look' that drove the prices higher than current new stock. Prices have slowed their meteoric rise, but so has the availability of used and new items. I buy them to use, as they don't produce the volumes of dust my powered tools did - and the resurgence of my childhood asthma appreciates them more.

The 'collectible' nature of nearly everything has increased - sometimes, of course, merely as an advertising ploy. My model trains - the German-made LGB G-scale from whom I borrowed my 'Stainz' handle - started making 'collector's editions' several years back. That actually drove me away... and I started with the H-L's. In fact, I made my shelves the proper width for the huge trains - thankfully, just wide enough for most H-L goodies. I miss the trains... anyone want another H-L collection? Hmmm, I do need targets for my revolvers...

Stainz