General Discussion

@Ibreakteacups
It's just the printing in a darkroom, you know transferring your images to paper with the chemicals and stuff. I can't do that, the equipement is super expensive and I don't even have room for them D:

Whenever I or my family needs some furniture we try to get antiques; for design reasons and that things just arent made like they used to be~ (though modern fluffy things like beds and couches are the way to go [: )

@Harvestable
A good way to start collecting teacups actually is to buy them from goodwill! I just got a very valuable one from the 20's that is hand painted and has gold leaf for $3.99. Always check thrift stores and estate sales!
OMG I LOVE death portraits! They're so hard to find today! So many of them got destroyed in the 1900's because people thought they were creepy. When the world wars happened a lot of houses got abandoned along with a lot of family goods, like death portraits. Then people would buy the houses and discover them in the attics or basements. At the time death portraits were no longer being taken, and hadn't been for a long time, so everyone was like, "*** IS THIS?!" And would burn them. Though even today death portraits still happen, but mostly in eastern Europe (by the Eastern Orthodox Church).
Most of the time people accidentally sell portraits of their loved ones.
Some elderly people that are only children and are the last of their family and never had children, will pass away. Then their photos will get donated to their church or get sold in estate sales. Sometimes it's sad, but it's also a good thing if you look at it this way:
Photos are a window to our past, or a window to their past. We remember them that way. Even if we don't know their name, or who they were. We enjoy their image, or their smile. May be we like the coat they're wearing.
My mother has this photograph of this lady from the Victorian era in the most hideous dress you could ever imagine and she's making the most disdainful face, as if she was forced to hold a tablet of soap in her mouth as she posed. We have no idea who she was, but she makes us smile every time we look at her, even if she herself isn't smiling and that's what matters. Sometimes I wish she could have known that she made dozens of people happy just by taking and losing a picture.

@OpalWisteria
Ooooh! That makes sense. Yeah darkrooms are hard to get and to keep up. I've heard bathrooms can be converted, but then you're tripping over your toilet.

@Gunnar
(fluffy things are the best) Antique furniture is the best. Is there a particular era you collect from?

If it counts, I have a pretty sizable collection of old magazines that I've picked up from local antique stores because I'm the biggest history geek ever and I love old stuff. Most of them are WWII era Life and Newsweek magazines, but the oldest ones I have are a pair of Life magazines from 1895, which are really cool to look at. I also have a Collier's that I'm especially fond of because the cover art is by Leyendecker and he's my favorite illustrator.


@Catdetective

That microphone is fantastic! I'm pretty jealous in all honesty.

@Exsanguinate
That's fantastic! Magazines are honestly one of the best ways to look into history. Crusty scholars would say history books, but people that truly know the times would say news papers and magazines because they actually showed what the culture was feeling and expressing. What a slice of history! You are so lucky to hold those! I bet most of them have been lost or recycled by now as well, I'm very jealous. You should totally scan them and make a website dedicated to them if you ever have the time. Especially since one of them holds your favorite illustrator.

We don't have much antique stores around here, but whenever I get the chance, I tend to look for interesting bits and bobbles, clothes and accessories, tea sets, and practically anything I might be able to use for crafting or decorating

@SnowDrops
It's always hard whenever you don't live by any right? What type of crafts do you do with your antiques?

@Ibreakteacups
Yeah, it is x.x
Sometimes I repair them and place 'em somewhere
Other times I completely remake them into different objects
Some doorknobs and handles end up being made into additional parts for steampunk-ish or fantasy props
Broken accessories get deconstructed and their pieces used to make new accessories or decorate containers :33

@SnowDrops
That's awesome! Making steampunk jewelry is really fun. I always love re-purposing antiques, especially when it's broken because it's like exhuming it.