| Original Message: Re: How did you first become interested in beads? |
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My path was through coin dealing. I started at 16, in the 1960s, selling US and foreign coins as an easier way to make money than caddying, and a way of satisfying my collecting habit on a kid's income. The more exotic the foreign coins, the less competition, the better the chance of finding unknown rarities in bulk lots, the more to learn and explore, so I gravitated to Asian and African coins, and from there went totally off the deep end - ethnographic, or "primitive" monies. Someone introduced me to an Africa Trader who had kissie pennies, hoe money, "Togo stones," Ostrich eggshell beads and other things that were sought by the far-wandering numismatists who were buying from me. I liked the looks of the Venetian and Bohemian trade beads but got involved slowly, beginning in the 90s, daunted by the sheer variety. Now I'm spending more time on the beads than the coins, enjoying them more, and have found a whole new customer base made up of both collectors and crafters - assuming there's much of a difference. These are truly the wild and wooly early days of bead collecting, which doesn't even have a name? - no established bead nomenclature or categorization, no really comprehensive catalogs even of limited series, no presence in major auctions, prices rising steadily but still short of the spike that will happen when Africa begins to seriously dry up, or some outside event brings the hobby to wider public attention. Of all the beaders out there buying inexpensive, glittery new Asian beads, a fraction will work their way backwards to the old stuff. I've watched the various national coin markets evolve, as well as the comics / cards hobby, and see it coming here. Lots of new people dazzled by the beauty, the age, the wonder of handling objects valued by generations, asking the same old questions, needing help from the old timers. Peoples for whom bead wearing has been traditional entering the "hobby" via rising incomes and the internet. More beautiful books, more catalogs, lots of collectors putting images online. Investors. Long-time collectors will bemoan the rising costs but begin to see their holdings as a nest egg, college for the kids, a retirement fund. I made the transition from dealer to casual collector years ago - got to keep a strand or a few beads for reference, for comparison, eventually . . . heck with it, just 'cause I like their looks, or their place in the history of bead crafting. So how did I get started? Trying to make a buck - getting seduced, and now I'm hooked. All rights reserved by Bead Collector Network and its users |
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