I would venture to say that if you talked to many antique collectors of any genre, you would find that the thread that ties them all together is history.  In fact, knowing an item’s history can turn it from ordinary to spectacular.  Human nature, I think.  History can bring added value to an item.  I love old stuff and have always had a special place in my heart for it.  Having antiques in my home makes me feel tied to history in a very tangible way.  I distinctly remember being about eight years old and shopping with my mom for the perfect bedding to go on my great-grandmother’s bed that I had inherited.  Even at that young age, I remember being amazed that my new bedroom set was almost a hundred years old.

Now, as you know, my dear hubs is quite fond of thrifting and bringing me gifts from those dusty old stores that he so often frequents.  A couple of weeks ago, he brought me this (I must pause here to apologize for the slightly blurry Ebayesque photography):At first, I didn’t know what it was.  I mean, is it a sugar bowl?  It wasn’t the prettiest piece of milk glass in my collection, but it looked old, so I was intrigued.  A bit of internet research (okay, a lot of internet research, because apparently these things are quite rare) told me that this is an Atterbury mustard bowl in the swan pattern, circa 1880.  1880!  I think that is so neat!  When I found that out, this little baby shot right up the appeal-o-meter.  I really do love it.  It’s not perfect – you can see a tiny chip on the bottom, the back of one of the handles has a larger chip on it, and at one time it had a lid that is long gone, but it’s almost 130 years old.  It has seen the sinking of the Titanic, both World Wars, The Great Depression, the assassination of JFK, and countless other events during the latter half of the 20th century.  Not to mention the personal lives of those who owned, used , and admired it everyday, and yet, somehow it found its way to a Goodwill in North Georgia and into my home.