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Thursday 3 April 2014

C is for Collecting


When I bought my first Trollbead I had no idea I was going to become a Collector of Trollbeads.  I naively thought I'd buy one bracelet, maybe two (one silver and one leather) and enough beads for both with a few to change them over on occasion.

A small selection of my glass beads from 2013

Two years and many hundreds of  beads and quite a few bracelets (& necklaces) later my collecting looks a little crazy to most "normal" people; after all there's only a certain amount of beads and bracelets you can wear at any given point.

I have since had the pleasure of connecting with lots of other Trollbead Collectors and on the rare occasion we get to meet up in person the "Troll Talk" is such a pleasure!

Question for today's blog post...

Do you have any collecting habits that have grown far beyond your original intentions?

That's it for today, thanks for visiting and please feel free to say hi in the comments!

Bonus content if you're not on a whistlestop tour of the A to Z Challenge

I once decided to blog a whole weekend of this with the help of a couple of Guest Authors so if you ever want to take a peak into this crazy world I've created a list of links as a bonus which will open up in different tabs for your reading pleasure.

I have to say the amount that was bought was not a typical weekend of collecting: this was something that we'd all been saving up for especially... just in case you thought yesterday's post on Budgeting was an understatement.

Go make a cuppa, put your feet up and be prepared to enter the world of Trollbead Collectors!

An introduction

The Beginning - Guest Spot

My huge leap from the Bead Wagon

Cocktails and Beads

Adventures in York - Guest Spot

Just a quiet meal...

All good things must come to an end

Behind the scenes at one of the Jewellers - Guest Spot

Right that really is it now... hit the comments or feel free to run away from the crazy bead lady behind this blog!

23 comments:

  1. I don't collect anything personally, but I do love beads and all things beady. When I was little, my mum used to keep stray buttons and there was a big tupperware tub of buttons of all sizes, colours and shapes which I used to love delving into. Your bead photo took me right back there!

    Visiting from AtoZ Challenge

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    1. Aw thanks for sharing that, I always keep the spare buttons you get when you buy clothes, I'm not sure why as I never sew them on on the rare occasions they fall off... I also never quite remember where I've put them...

      Will pop over to see you later, just on my lunch break at the moment!

      Mars xx

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  2. I have loved reading and reliving that special weekend, thank you xx

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    1. Well after traumatising you with the B word yesterday I though it best to give you something nice and shiny to read today :D

      Plus I love that collection of stories!

      Mars xx

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  3. I collect TB since August 2011... I started by collecting beads for one single bracelet with special a special theme : "Fantastic... Lord of the rings" and continue that way I find a theme I love (ex sea sun pirates) and make a special bracelet out of it adding when I find the perfect bead but.... from time to time I fell in love with a bead which doesn't match with my current bracelet... so I put it on a special black leather bracelet where I gather all the ones I don't know what to do with buth that I love :)

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    1. Yay hi Pat!
      (No dear readers I'm not Clairvoyant... Pat got in touch with me to let me know this was her)

      I think that's a great way to collect, structured on a favourite theme but giving yourself room to go "ooh shiny" and still do the random thing!

      I started random all the way for so long, now I'm going through a phase of multiples so I can use repeat beads in designs... I've only ever started off with a theme and bought specifically for one special bracelet... but more about that later on in the alphabet!

      Thanks for stopping by
      Mars xx

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  4. I've been collecting for ummm over ten years now (can't remember the exact year.) They got me straight away too :( It's odd because my fiance repeatedly tells me that he can't understand why I like them as they don't necessarily suit my fashion style. I get that opinion completely but it doesn't stop me turning into a greedy little monster when it comes to beads and charms!

    I refuse to count how many I have. Ignorance is bliss.

    xxxx

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    1. I think that's one of the beauties of the Trollbeads Brand is that it can accommodate some VERY different styles within it as there's enough variety to genuinely make it suit your own style.

      A shop I visited on my travels made much the same comment, they see so many very different customers wearing the same beads but in a totally different way.

      To the casual observer you'd never tell it was the same beads. Obviously to us we can spot a Trollbead from a mile off :D

      Mars xx

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  5. Well, outside of the charm collection that I didn't think I'd have, I also collect garden decorations. Not just gnomes (although I think I have about 6 or 7 now!) but pretty much any garden decoration - other garden statues, interesting bird baths, lanterns. Good thing we have a very big garden!

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    1. I always think about charms, well at least they're very small, quite easy to store and don't take up too much room... I think your garden ornaments could go either way ;) sounds like fun!

      Mars xx

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  6. Oh, those beads are pretty!

    The only thing I've been collecting lately are unread books. I just wish I had time to read them all!

    anna
    Deeply Shallow

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    1. I've just bought one because of the A to Z as someone I'm now following tweeted about it! But I always have unread books, I'd panic if I ever ran out of things to read.

      Just popped over to your blog to read today's C... have bookmarked you to start at A so I can follow the full story!

      Mars xx

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  7. I'm trying to think if I have anything else that would be considered a "collection". Perhaps nail varnish? I'm rather a fan of mugs as well.. quirky, cute, nothing fancy.. I just like mugs :p

    My fiance claims I collect cats..

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    1. I think your fiance might have a point...

      I probably used to collect books before I got a kindle, and I'm fond of vintage clothes... but haven't bought any for a while now. Last one was a fabulous cloak!

      The one thing I do collect is stones from beaches - one should always have rocks in the house :)

      Later on in the alphabet series there is one as I used it to take a photo... won't tell you which letter though, shall leave that one for an extra surprise!

      Mars xx

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  8. Wow, those beads look gorgeous! I love shiny things. I collect everything with a magpie on it (go figure.) I also love beads. BEADS!!! :)
    Fun post!

    @TarkabarkaHolgy from
    Multicolored Diary - Tales of Colors
    MopDog - The crazy thing about Hungarians...

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    1. A huge magpie hopped along our fence in the garden yesterday, we don't normally get them in the garden but I think they are attracted to our neighbour's bird feeder even though they are a bit too big for it.

      I still count magpie's and recite the nursery rhyme

      One for sorrow,
      Two for joy,
      Three for a girl,
      Four for a boy,
      Five for silver,
      Six for gold,
      Seven for a secret,
      Never to be told.

      Funny the things we bring with us from childhood.
      Mars xx

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  9. Ooh, pretty! I don't know what Trollbeads are, but they look very nice.

    My collecting habits these days mostly involve Lego and Skylanders for my son.

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    1. Therein you have discovered the secret of my Blog Title... Trollbeads are...

      Curling Stones for Lego People

      Mars xx

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  10. Oh my! Don't tell me that. I just wet my feet with a few beads and a silver bracelet. Lol. But yes the beads are oh so pretty and oh so tempting. :)

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    1. I do believe there are rare creatures who can resist, you may indeed be one of them... but do stick around for a bit and let us know what happens ;)

      Mars xx

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    2. Any resisting is merely due to the fact that I shouldn't empty out my pocketbook so quickly. hahhaha. So glad I found your blog. Because I shared the same frustration of wanting to see actual beads worn by people. Hence the start of my own. It's actually kind of fun.

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    3. Oh how cool, you've started a blog :) welcome fellow bead blogger!

      Just popped over to have a look, lovely start :) You've also reminded me that I really should sort out a watermarking logo for my pics, I've only been meaning to do this for a year!

      It's not the world's cheapest hobby but I do think the fact they take up little room and you get to wear shiny stuff is rather a big bonus ;)

      Happy Blogging
      Mars xx


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    4. I figured as troll, I could have a "rougher" watermark, so I sketched that out on a piece of paper and took a shot with my phone and used gimp. The only reason I bothered with watermarking is I would hate for my pictures to be used inappropriately somehow as unlikely as that may be. Maybe I'm too paranoid. Can't wait to see what you come up with for your watermark. Artwork is fun. :)

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I love saying hi to people who've read my blog, or are just passing through via the A to Z, or anyone not a spam bot!

P.s. If you use an iPad/iPhone and are having trouble leaving a comment on Blogger, you might have better luck using a browser that's not the default iPad one... Then from the "Comment as" drop down menu choose Name/Url (you can leave URL field blank or add your web address) or Anonymous and (hopefully) away you go! Mars xx