Post by Collector's Connection on Apr 26, 2006 1:04:13 GMT -5
From ducks to bars of soap, kids collect the darnedest things
By HIROKO SATO, Sun Staff
Alixz Beauvais sleeps every night underneath a wooden shelf running all across the wall behind her bed with dozens of yellow rubber ducks lined up on it.
The 15-year-old Dracut High School student's treasured collection includes Pissy, Prissy and Sissy, the "ducks with attitude," perched atop the shelf, a pair of duck-print flannel pants, duck-motif slippers and gloves, and a piece of wood her boyfriend cut out in the shape of a duck as a gift to her.
The cover of a notebook placed on her bed reads: "Be aware of the duck."
"There really should be an 's' there (at the end of the word duck) if you look around the room," says Alixz, who likes surrounding herself with the images of the "cute and cuddly" animal because it makes her feel like a little kid.
"I don't want to be grown up yet," she says.
Stamp collectors and antiques fanatics used to have the "collectors" market cornered. But times have changed. Thanks to the online-auction boom, more people than ever are getting into collections, and those gathering non-traditional items are becoming a larger part of the collector community, according to Larry Krug, spokesman for the Association of Collecting Clubs and the National Association of Collectors.
Just ask Karl Rassmann, whose obsession is bars of soap.
Karl started when he was just 3 with trips to the malls with his mom. At the end of each trip, Jane Rassmann would have her children wash their hands at a Bath & Body Works store so that they'd be sucking on clean thumbs on their way home.
Karl, now 9, liked the scents of the soap bars he found there, and the collection began.
"I just think about how good they smell," Karl says as he showed off some of his 110 soap bars at the 12th annual Collectors Night held recently at the Harrington Elementary School in Chelmsford, where he's a student.
From Lever 2000 to a more than century-old antique soap bar to an "eyeball soap" that makes his friend Josh scream, Karl gathers them all.
"When I smell it, it just smells happy," he says.
People used to consider collectors as those who have rows and rows of shelves packed with salt and pepper shakers, Krug says. But these days, he says, there are "a lot of new collectors really collecting (items in) not one single area but a lot of different areas."
For example, many collectors between 25 and 35 make trips to auctions in search of decorative items to adorn certain spaces in their homes or offices, Krug says. To them, collecting isn't about compiling boxes and boxes of similar products, but about gathering the stuff that suits their lifestyles. It's an idea made popular by Martha Stewart, Krug says.
And it was the Internet that made it easier for people to connect with similar-minded folks all over the world. They could discuss collectibles of their common interests -- from sugar packs to bars of soap -- and exchange them via the Internet.
Thus, the term "collector" now ranges far beyond its traditional definition, although coins, particularly state quarters, remain the most popular collectibles.
"Antique collectibles have a lot of tangent right now," Krug says.
People who visited the Harrington School for Collectors Night clearly saw the diverse world of collectors. There were stuffed raccoons, bottle caps and fishing tackle, and the kids were proud to showcase them.
Fourth-grader Joseph Landry isn't just a collector; he's a builder.
"I think I'm impressed that I made them," says Joseph, proudly displaying the Ferris wheel, grandfather's clock, and CD and tape holder that he built using K'nex brand blocks.
Second-grader Thomas Doherty's collection grew from his favorite passion: baseball.
"I collected these things. I feel good about myself," says Thomas, who has collected hundreds of baseball cards.
Krug bets everyone collects something. Many of those who collect books and magazines don't even realize they are collectors, he says.
So, what makes people collect stuff?
There may never be an answer to that question, Krug says.
"Collecting is so personal," he says.
Dave Marchessault, a fourth-grader at Harrington, started collecting miniature boats because he likes imagining what he can do on a ship, such as fishing.
Alixz's collection started with a pair of rubber ducks that she named Matthew and His Mom when she was little. Now, she has more than 100 duck-related items, including several half-inch rubber ducks that she can keep in her pockets and backpacks.
Alixz collects them because "ducks are fun," says her mother, Kathy Beauvais. "Life for her is all about fun."
Hiroko Sato's e-mail address is hsato@lowellsun.com.
By HIROKO SATO, Sun Staff
Alixz Beauvais sleeps every night underneath a wooden shelf running all across the wall behind her bed with dozens of yellow rubber ducks lined up on it.
The 15-year-old Dracut High School student's treasured collection includes Pissy, Prissy and Sissy, the "ducks with attitude," perched atop the shelf, a pair of duck-print flannel pants, duck-motif slippers and gloves, and a piece of wood her boyfriend cut out in the shape of a duck as a gift to her.
The cover of a notebook placed on her bed reads: "Be aware of the duck."
"There really should be an 's' there (at the end of the word duck) if you look around the room," says Alixz, who likes surrounding herself with the images of the "cute and cuddly" animal because it makes her feel like a little kid.
"I don't want to be grown up yet," she says.
Stamp collectors and antiques fanatics used to have the "collectors" market cornered. But times have changed. Thanks to the online-auction boom, more people than ever are getting into collections, and those gathering non-traditional items are becoming a larger part of the collector community, according to Larry Krug, spokesman for the Association of Collecting Clubs and the National Association of Collectors.
Just ask Karl Rassmann, whose obsession is bars of soap.
Karl started when he was just 3 with trips to the malls with his mom. At the end of each trip, Jane Rassmann would have her children wash their hands at a Bath & Body Works store so that they'd be sucking on clean thumbs on their way home.
Karl, now 9, liked the scents of the soap bars he found there, and the collection began.
"I just think about how good they smell," Karl says as he showed off some of his 110 soap bars at the 12th annual Collectors Night held recently at the Harrington Elementary School in Chelmsford, where he's a student.
From Lever 2000 to a more than century-old antique soap bar to an "eyeball soap" that makes his friend Josh scream, Karl gathers them all.
"When I smell it, it just smells happy," he says.
People used to consider collectors as those who have rows and rows of shelves packed with salt and pepper shakers, Krug says. But these days, he says, there are "a lot of new collectors really collecting (items in) not one single area but a lot of different areas."
For example, many collectors between 25 and 35 make trips to auctions in search of decorative items to adorn certain spaces in their homes or offices, Krug says. To them, collecting isn't about compiling boxes and boxes of similar products, but about gathering the stuff that suits their lifestyles. It's an idea made popular by Martha Stewart, Krug says.
And it was the Internet that made it easier for people to connect with similar-minded folks all over the world. They could discuss collectibles of their common interests -- from sugar packs to bars of soap -- and exchange them via the Internet.
Thus, the term "collector" now ranges far beyond its traditional definition, although coins, particularly state quarters, remain the most popular collectibles.
"Antique collectibles have a lot of tangent right now," Krug says.
People who visited the Harrington School for Collectors Night clearly saw the diverse world of collectors. There were stuffed raccoons, bottle caps and fishing tackle, and the kids were proud to showcase them.
Fourth-grader Joseph Landry isn't just a collector; he's a builder.
"I think I'm impressed that I made them," says Joseph, proudly displaying the Ferris wheel, grandfather's clock, and CD and tape holder that he built using K'nex brand blocks.
Second-grader Thomas Doherty's collection grew from his favorite passion: baseball.
"I collected these things. I feel good about myself," says Thomas, who has collected hundreds of baseball cards.
Krug bets everyone collects something. Many of those who collect books and magazines don't even realize they are collectors, he says.
So, what makes people collect stuff?
There may never be an answer to that question, Krug says.
"Collecting is so personal," he says.
Dave Marchessault, a fourth-grader at Harrington, started collecting miniature boats because he likes imagining what he can do on a ship, such as fishing.
Alixz's collection started with a pair of rubber ducks that she named Matthew and His Mom when she was little. Now, she has more than 100 duck-related items, including several half-inch rubber ducks that she can keep in her pockets and backpacks.
Alixz collects them because "ducks are fun," says her mother, Kathy Beauvais. "Life for her is all about fun."
Hiroko Sato's e-mail address is hsato@lowellsun.com.