Everything happens on accident (or for a reason)

Glass collecting is most definitelly a dying hobby.  From what I gathered online, first collectors of depression era glass appeared in the 1950-ties, and the collecting was increasing in popularity till 1980-ties.  Apparently glass antiques had their peak for prices in the late 1980ties, and then things started changing in the 1990-ties.  What happened was an appearance of the Internet.  In the beginning it may not have affected collecting so much, but once regular people started using eBay, Etsy and other sites to sell directly, antiques became more accessible.  With accessibility came a drop in prices and this also caused disinterest in this hobby.  Many people who knew the prices were dropping decided to sell when they could.  For others, the hobby became less alluring as things became easier to find.  Newer generations got too engaged in gaming and other newer hobbies, which made the market even smaller.

I am not sure how many people collect as an investment.  Although possible to cash out on your collectibles, it is highly impractical, and a big gamble. Do you remember Benie Babies craze?  Some people spent fortunes buying those popular plushies, just to see prices plummet and their collections becoming completely worthless.  I collect for fun, and for preservation of the beautiful objects made by an American manufacturer.  Maybe my collection will be sold at a profit someday, or not, that is completely unimportant to me.

When I started being interested in this, I realized there is very little, if any, online content on this hobby.  Sometimes I talk to antique dealers and they seem to be an older demographic.  I even talked to some people who invited me to a National Depression Glass Association exhibition, and said that I am young, and kindly referred to me as 'new blood'.  While I am not sure why this interest came to me, I conclude it is accidental.  Or perhaps my purpose is to make an online record of my particular collecting experience, and motivate someone down the road to collect and preserve it too. 

The first plate

Here is the first plate I bought on eBay.  When I saw it, it fit perfect with my new living room decor.  I negotiated the price with the seller, and could not quite understand her high asking price.  Turns out this oval plate is quite rare, and I have not seen another one since.  The seller was kind and sold the plate to me for the amount of money that I thought was excessive but still within my financial reach.  I would not be able to tell you what this plate is worth, and what this plate should sell for.  When items are rare, they are worth as much as someone is willing to pay.



Shown: Katy Blue Opalescent Oval Platter