One day late and a dollar short! I was saving this email story for the right time....
photo via JunkDrawerLoveEtsy
but due to my allergy reactions and sciatica injury I am posting a little later than I had scheduled.
Anyways, I have a bunch of these in blue and red as part of my Religious Mexican Folk Art decor as a repetition artist. I just love seeing these all lined up in all blue, all red or any other pattern using both colors! Unfortunately, they mainly end up being stored, rather than used, so I'm letting them go on by one.
Religious Mexican Folk Art has influenced my home decor since I was a child. One of my first trips to Tijuana I was mesmerized by all the tiny miniature handmade nesting pottery pieces and tiny clay fruits and vegetables and brought home miniatures from every trip.
In the 80s I collected all kinds of Religious Mexican Folk Art from milagros to nichos! Back then they weren't as plentiful as now, even in Tijuana and finding an exceptional piece was a thrill!
I like this candle holder because it can also be used as a vase. As a matter of fact, the first one I found had a bunch of bright yellow plastic roses in it and I don't like plastic flowers usually, but almost bought them too!
I looked for yellow flowers for the listing photos and have some yellow
hibiscus in our backyard, but they weren't in bloom and settled for some
deep pink bougainvillaea.
photo via JunkDrawerLoveEtsy
Here is the email I received from a thoughtful Etsy buyer:
Hello!
I bought this lovely vase from you a while back. I know hoarding is a tough habit to break, so I thought you'd like to know that a member of your collection found a good home. Attached is a photo.
Best of luck!
This Etsy buyer made my day back in August and is making my day again today. Not only did she send an email, but it also came with a photo update!
photo via JunkDrawerLoveEtsy
And how amazing is that? It's even with bright yellow carnations! I love the wall shelf too!
Saying Goodbye: I've collected at least 20 of Our Lady Guadalupe candle holder vases in blue and red and if I think about how difficult it will be to find that many again, as a repetition artist, it does cause me some dismay and if I think of it as a recovering hoarder, it does cause me some conflicting discomfort too because I don't think I can ever find that many ever again!
However, I have to remind myself that I've moved on to collecting other religious Mexican Folk Art that doesn't take up so much room to store and perhaps, I'll figure out a way to display them without causing so much dusting maintenance.
photo via JunkDrawerLoveEtsy
What I Learned:
1. I've been collecting many things since I was a child. I think it might have been a way for my parents to keep me busy, but I'm not sure, since I come from generations of borderline collectors and hoarders from both sides of my family.
Anyways, I haven't added much to my collections lately and now that almost 1000 hoarded items have found new lives and homes. I've noticed that the empty space makes me uncomfortable and the itch to hoard again is growing, so I've allowed myself to collect again, but to keep it down to 3-5 areas, instead of over 100.
It was making a list of my collections that got me to realize that perhaps I was leaning a tad towards the hoarding side and that perhaps the hoard was interfering with my life! Read my list here. What a wake up call!
2. Now that I'm collecting again, I have found that not all Etsy shops are user friendly! Yes, I was more than surprised and in shock when I bought something on Etsy that showed I was getting 60 small items, but when I got them there were only 45.
When I inquired about it and asked what happened to the other 15, they shop owner told me that she hadn't bothered to count them and they were sold as used and not as mint. Lastly, she thanked me for bringing it to her attention! And that was it!
So I emailed her back and wrote saying that would have been nice to know before I bought them and none of what she had just emailed me was in the description and certainly did not show that in the photos and that I'd take reimbursement for the 15 missing ones.
Guess what happened next? Next thing I know the entire shop is gone! Luckily the transaction was less then an Andrew Jackson, but it still shocks me when I think about it. So buyer be aware, when a shop doesn't have very many items listed and doesn't take paypal and only credit cards, they can just close up and leave the buyer high and dry!
I know it can happen to anyone, but I didn't think it would happen on Etsy. The silver lining in this lesson? I will pay more attention to who I am buying from and will only use paypal for big ticket items now. And I'll have to wait and see how much it slows down my latest collection binge! Collecting is so fun!
Has an unexpected experience rattled you lately? and how did you manage to land on your feet? I am thankful that my unlucky experience didn't cost me much and instead, I gained insight on how to be a better shopper.
Cross nine patch quilt washi tape card here
photo via Hoarder Rehab
Thank you Etsy buyer for your thoughtfulness and email story that inspired mine! Our Lady Guadalupe vase pops with yellow flowers in it!
Thank you Etsy for the ever evolving experiences and adventures!
Thank you US, UK, Qatar, Slovakia, Canada, Germany, Russia, Mexico, Netherlands, Thailand and many others for taking part in my HoarderRehab and The Destiny of Things!
My new goal is to keep listed at least 200 items from my hoard on each shop until the Christmas season! I've already met that goal at The Destiny of Things, Hoarder Rehab and VintageToGoEasy! I'm going to try and list new hoard daily at each shop and keep at least 200 items listed on three shops!
My new goal is to keep listed at least 200 items from my hoard on each shop until the Christmas season! I've already met that goal at The Destiny of Things, Hoarder Rehab and VintageToGoEasy! I'm going to try and list new hoard daily at each shop and keep at least 200 items listed on three shops!
Click on the shop names to visit my new hoard listed daily: HoarderRehab with 200 items, The Destiny of Things- 197 items , VintageToGoEasy - 200 items and now JunkDrawerLoveEtsy - 182 items! Maybe you'll find something to take home and share your story too! Thanks for looking!
Ladder to Success: framed mixed media art, available here
photo via Hoarder Rehab
"The Universe is change; our life is what our thoughts make it."---Marcus Aurelius
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