I've always had a collectors mentality.. when i moved out of my folks house, age 18.. i left with not much more than what i could cram in a rucksack .. oh! and my precious vinyl collection (i didn't even take a record player to play it with) i lived in some absolute shitholes for years, until in the late 90s the house prices were cheap because the UK was in recession and folks were in negative equity so i bought my first home.. a 16th century grade II listed barn conversion.. it looked lovely but it wasn't an easy house to live in.. the open plan living, dining and kitchen space was in the apex of the roof with exposed beams, 25' high ceilings in the center but low around the internal perimeter meaning you couldn't fit furniture up to the walls.. the bedrooms were downstairs .. The back bedroom had a low ceiling (due to splitting a single-story building) with a long slot window but like all the rooms in this house..t'was fkin massive!
While living in said shitholes and trying to maintain a social life.. i'd started vintage shopping / buying vintage clothing as opposed to wasting money on new.. i'd amassed a sizable collection of vintage late 70s era Nike running shoes.. vintage Levi's and such, these went in the spare bedroom.. long story short, 8yrs after moving in my mrs fell preggers but by this point the back bedroom was almost inaccessible..

.. it had 2x rails running the full length of the room which i'd crammed full of vintage 1950s / 60s era Champion sweatshirts, vintage Levi's, vintage Gore Tex jackets.. ect.. there was 3x mid-century sideboards, piled high with Nike shoeboxes up to the ceiling, 3x 1950's Belmont barbers chairs, vintage hi-fi equipment i'd bought from Richer Sounds 'trade-ins'.. a vinyl cocktail bar, numerous 1960s Dancettes, a vinyl collection which i never played because the room had become something Mr Trebus would have been proud of.. just opening the door caused shit to fall over.. outside this crazy hoarding room the house was super-minimalist with whitewashed walls and exposed woodwork.. in my minds eye, i wanted something akin to
@pete_mcc lovely home but the layout of the house wouldn't allow it, i suppose i had thoughts towards the collection furnishing our next property but with no thoughts towards moving house..
Alas, I had 9mths to change this chaos into a child friendly nursery which meant 90% of it had to go.. some of it sold for good money, some of it sold for naff.. (two of my friends had mid-century design studios on Abbeydale Road, so they just took a commission to sell the big stuff while the small stuff sold on eBay) the tragedy is.. all of it is now worth 1000% more now than it was in 2008.. but it did have to go.. i now appreciate how easily i can fall into this hoarding mindset .. it's one of the reasons i keep my bike ownership to riders only!
I bought this 1971 Rotobar by Curver in NL for £240.. sold it on eBay a decade later for £450
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Now they're £2k on
1stDibs .. folks often lose the serving tray.
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Darn it!