Insurance Life: I Collect Things

We've talked about clutter before in the past. We all have it to some degree. One thing we haven't talked about is collecting stuff...the stuff you like to display. If you have more than three of something, you've got a collection. Find out how to showcase your collection and make it look like it belongs...right where it is.

Wrong way to display a collection:

Scattered throughout the house

Your collection is overflowing its space and taking over other areas

Your shelf, cabinet or table is sagging with the weight of your stuff

Right way to display your collection:

Grouped together by some theme (rather than scattered all over)

Curio cabinet or a display case with a light (has the added benefit of keeping the dust away)

Grouped on a table or shelf with small items in the front, tall in the back and leaving some space in between the items; stagger or alternate the heights

If you have too much stuff in your collection, rotate the items (it's always nice to pull out an item you haven't seen in awhile; you can enjoy it all over again)

For flat items, consider getting a piece of cut glass to cover a table and display the items underneath the glass; again, a great dust deterrent; you can measure the space and check the yellow pages for a local glass company that can do this

If the items can be hung on a wall, do that to free up table space; don't overload the wall where it will look too busy; "S" hooks on wooden or metal dowels can be used to hang a variety of items (such as a rolling pin collection); look at this antique baby rattle collection

For small items, try a shadowbox; I have also had luck with antique printer's drawers and putting small collectibles in each little space; check out this belt collection

You can use baskets to display "moldable items" such as stuffed animals or needlepoint pillows

If you have deep shelves, you can create risers out of small boxes; just cover them with artfully arranged linens (napkins, table cloths or sheets); your display will look like something out of a department store

If you are VERY handy, how about a continuous shelf around the top border of your wall in a room (like a wallpaper border); I have a friend who then installed a model train track up there and now has the room to finally run his model trains (yes, it can get loud)

If you have pins or jewelry, get a fancy scarf or other item, pin your jewelry there and either display it in a cabinet, hang it from a hook or attach it to a wall; a quilt also works great for this; if only this guy had used a nice scarf or wrap

A corkboard works nice for pins too

If you have a large collection of small items that look okay in a pile (such as rocks or non-precious gemstones), put them in a decorative glass vase or bowl

If you have an item and want to see the front and back and it is fairly flat, you can get two pieces of cut glass, put the items(s) between the glass and get it framed; you can then hang this from a location in your house where you can see the front and back (such as between two rooms where there is an opening); if you have more than one item, stagger them, displaying one low and the other high and so on; use pretty ribbon or decorative chains to hang the frames; here are some samples of some floating picture frames if you don't want to do it yourself