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by Rosemary Lee Potter
Special to Tropical Breeze
Collecting adventures just have a way of
creeping up on you. Here I thought I was just waiting in the
Charlotte airport terminal for a plane to Knoxville! Shows you how
wrong you can be. I'd plopped down next to a young woman who was
headed to Knoxville for a holiday visit. I admired what appeared to
be her raccoon coat stretched out next to us both over several hand
luggage pieces. She laughed and said she was babysitting it for
somebody.
Well, after the somebody did not return
for some time, I was becoming concerned that here was a somewhat
scary abandoned luggage scenario. Wrong. thank goodness. Here came
tall, striking Keri Tucker, NY model dressed in a terrifically
eccentric costume of black and pink togs and accessories. Not only
did I want to ask her whence the vintage fur coat, but much
more.
It seems Keri is actually a native of
Cleveland, TN, now headed that way home for the holidays. She
models in Manhattan, shops for vintage clothing at a high-end spot
in Islip, NY. Indeed, she showed me the gorgeous satin lining of
the coat with the monogrammed initials of the original owner.
Despite many of us today strongly choosing
not to wear fur and concerning ourselves with animals, in the world
of classic collectibles 20th century custom furs are desirable for
some folks, as a treasure find and more. Such coats are not
displayed. As in Keri's situation, they adorn, they are worn. Both
in Charlotte and later on arrival in Knoxville, it is quite hard to
ignore a statuesque lady arriving in a truly beautiful fur
coat!
You can bet we had fun talking the whole
way over to Knoxville on the plane. I got to bury myself in the
raccoon coat! I even learned that Keri has lovely mink ear muffs as
well. Brrr! It sure was cold enough up there for'em that
evening.
My interest piqued about furs, when in
January, several friends and I visited once again the Sunshine
Antiques and Collectibles Show at the Coliseum in St. Petersburg, I
wanted to see more vintage fur. As usual the show floors, alcoves
and balcony were teeming with dealers and droves of buyers. We all
had trouble even finding parking, so many antiquers showed up. My
friends split off from me to find a beautiful china teacup and lots
of pretty vintage jewelry all round.
I spotted my vintage fur dealer -- one Vea
Flood of Carter's Antique Asylum in Tarpon Springs. It was hard to
miss the wonderful furs that Flood was offering, each for less than
$200. The most attractive was a red fox cape/stole with tassels and
the most unusual was a brown circle lamb jacket.
Two generations have passed since fur was
middle-class fashionable. I realized that I was really having to be
told fur terms, identify furs I did not know. Later I spotted some
skinny strings -- I'll coin that term -- of mink -- sort of mink
biting the next mink's tail style. I remember well-dressed ladies
at my church wearing such apparel over suits -- yes, some mink, but
more so fox. Soon after we arrived at the Coliseum, I was notably
distracted from fur by a woman happily trundling literally an
arm-load of white porcelain stallion with a Godiva-like nude lady
rider! "Sandra," she said, "simply Venice, Florida," had brought
the large figurine to the show to be appraised. As is often the
case at such antique shows, visitors can pay around a $5 fee for an
expert appraiser to look at an object. Sometimes there is a value
affixed, but usually, as in this case, there is information given,
rather than a price, even to insure the item. I've often advised
those getting things appraised here or anywhere to recognize that
for only $5 there won't be anything in writing. If a piece is
really valuable, the appraisal needs to be in writing before sales
or estate insurance can be appropriately determined.
Anyway, Sharon told me the large horse and
rider had been a gift which her family had originally purchased as
a thank-you gift for a physician. It seems, though, that once
brought home, the family thought the piece so splendid they kept it
and bought another nice gift for the doctor. She is now the proud
owner of the figure.
Sharon went on to tell me that this
porcelain piece was made by Herend. I did a little check later, but
couldn't find anything Herend which came close to this piece.
Perhaps it was custom-made or there is more to the story than what
I heard. Unfortunately, Sharon finished her appraisal appointment
and slipped away before I could find out much more -- like what did
the appraiser actually say? Perhaps a reader of this column can
send us in some more details.
By the way, if visiting large gatherings
of antique dealers (125-300 dealers) and their exciting wares is
part of your life fun, here's another opportunity for your
pleasure. On March 8 and 9, the Tampa Bay Antiques &
Collectibles Fair takes place at the Florida State Fairgrounds in
Tampa. Held in the Special Events Center, entry is at Gate 3. Show
Hours: 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Sat.; 10 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Sun. Fair admission is
about $5. There is also a fairgrounds parking fee. For more
information, call 21st Century Expositions at 727-345-6627.
If fur collectibles do not appeal, then,
there is much else in vintage clothing which catches the
collector's eye -- beaded purses, jewelry, hats. Yes, hats! Think
Lauren Bacall. Picture all those other movie heroines with net over
beguiling eyes, or adorned with sweeping feathers. Think pillboxes
as in Jackie K or O. Consider gloves, shoes, lingerie, how about
original flapper dresses? I once had a lovely green, gorgette
flapper dress with ornate beading at the top. It had belonged to my
step-mother. Unfortunately, I did not plan well at all on its
storage while living in various humid climates. The dress literally
disintegrated to dust.
Keep your eyes out for vintage clothing.
Got some? Take care of it!
Preserve your collecting adventure. It's
hard to enjoy dust, even if memorable!
© 2008 Rosemary Lee Potter. All
Rights Reserved.
Rosemary Lee Potter is a confirmed victim
of the collecting bug and can be reached by e-mail at
This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
or write to her in care of Tropical Breeze,
P.O. Box 585, Safety Harbor, FL 34695.
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