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19 February 2011

Collections: Magnets

The lovely Magdalena over at The Craft Revival is asking us to show off our collections.  I can completely relate to Magdalena's love of collections, so I am playing along!  

Looking at all my bits and pieces, it seems that I have quite a few collections - some intentional (owls, teapots, shoes), and some almost accidental (postcards, butter dishes, foreign language craft books).  I'm going to share them with you, gradually, and I'm kicking off with the ubiquitous fridge magnet.

It all started when I went to Perth on a work trip, many many moons ago, and I stumbled across this gorgeously retro magnet.  And then I went to Europe for the first time and magnets seemed the perfect souvenir - they're portable, relatively cheap and they come in a fabulous array of styles, from chic to garish and back again.

My favourite kind of magnets are these mini-plate ones, which are sadly increasingly difficult to find.

I've imposed some rules on my magnet collecting: I can't buy a magnet for a sight or attraction I haven't physically been to (unless there's no other choice), and I can't buy a magnet for a place when all I've done is hang out in the airport for a few hours (unless it's an airport magnet, of course!).  I can't buy a magnet when I live in a place, but if I go back as a tourist I can.  I can't buy more than one magnet from any one place, unless they are really irresistible.  But even with these rules I've managed to accumulate close to 100 magnets.  Yikes.


10 comments:

  1. Wow!! That is an amazing collection. I collected magnets on my travels too as they were lightweight and easy to carry around in my backpack. I have already spotted a couple in your collection that I also have... thanks for sharing! x

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  2. Your rules for magnet-collecting are about identical to my rules for patches. Hasn't stopped me from ending up with three or four from places I've spent one night (they were all irrestible!).

    Does it irk you when you can't find one for somewhere?

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  3. Maxabella - thanks and please show us your collection! I'd love to see it!

    ht - YES! It drives me (and who ever I'm traveling with) completely mad. My focus suddenly becomes finding the magnet, and I leave no tacky souvenir shop unvisited. The husband always breathes a sigh of relief when I eventually find one...

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  4. Wowsers Em! That is an awesome collection! I am impressed! I love the rules too, especially that they can be stretched!
    Have a great weekend.
    xx

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  5. Fun! My collection is over at my parents' place and my current has is made up 99% handmade magnets :D

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  6. That is cool post. I will consider posting my collection sometime in my blog as well.

    Great collection!

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  7. I love your magnet collection! From what I can make out in the pics, my fave is the baguette... so adorable, but I am a sucker for miniature things. Thanks for playing along :)

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  8. Nice collection! I've managed to break all of your rules, though. I wish I'd imposed those rules on myself when I first started my collection.

    And you're right! Those little plates *are* harder to find!

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  9. Joy - your collection is very, very impressive (over a 1000!), you put mine to shame!

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  10. Eh, not really. Yours is much more discretionary, and therefore means much more.

    Grass is always greener, I suppose!

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