An antique is something collectible. It may be a piece of antique furniture that you want to collect to enhance the look of a room, or a piece of antique pottery to decorate a corner cupboard, or some antique books, antique camera and photographs, antique jewelry, antique money, antique car, antique clocks, or antique watches that you want to hand down to your grandchildren but the items must be rare enough to be considered an antique. The others are just secondhand goods junk. Most people have a common misconception about an antique: the older they look, the more antique they must be. Appearance has nothing to do with it, just because a piece looks like it came out of grandma's attic does not necessarily mean that it's an antique. The value of an antique is based on demand due to suitability and limited supply.
Most people become fascinated in an antique for two reasons; either they have an interest in collecting antique purely for personal enjoyment and are willing to shell out money for antique restoration or they inherited it from a family member. The most common are antique pottery, antique car, antique furniture, antique books, antique camera and photographs, antique clocks, antique money, antique jewelry and antique watches. However they came about it, everyone wants to be sure of one thing that what they buy or inherit will escalate in value as time goes by. That is what antique collection is all about.
There are two main principles that apply when collecting an antique: The first is to know everything that you can about the antique that interests you and second is to obtain them at the lowest possible price. Doing so will not only give you satisfaction and enjoyment, but at the same time you will also be assured that your investment will appreciate in value.
Some people only developed an interest in antique because they inherited an item or a whole house full of antique from a relative. The dollar signs started to appear and they began their hunt for some antique appraisals and antique auction. But what most failed to consider is that much of what Great Grandmother had is probably just junk, unless she was a seasoned collector who's into antique restoration or an expert in antique appraisals.
It's true that people could have bought a piece of furniture to decorate their home a long time ago and that furniture, if it were of fine quality, would now be worth something. But only a professional appraiser can guarantee that, and appraising costs about $100-150 an hour. So if you are keen on bringing you item in an antique auction and contemplating about asking someone how much an item is worth, be prepared to shell out a few bucks for the information. Appraisers charge so much because they shoulder the lion's share for insurance companies and lawyers settling estates. Although appraising is not an exact science, it still requires an appraiser to do lots of research and then prepare a detailed report that's acceptable in a court of law.
Some people even have a bullet for each variety of snuff and take several different snuff bullets out with them daily, as they're small and convenient to carry.
Perhaps the early rise in snuff bullet sales can be attributed to other more 'hedonistic' practices; but with the recent UK wide smoking ban, (which into effect in July 2007) the sales of snuff related products, including all manner of snuff dispensers have seen a rise, as people look for a smokeless tobacco alternative.
Most popular amoung the snuff bullet selection are the metal varieties, which are tagged under names such as; the posh, schnifters, the bullet, snorters and snojems.
Snuff bullets also come in acrylic as well as glass and are manufactured in a variety of colours, so there's bound to be a snuff bullet for every individual's unique taste.
Snuff bullets come in all different shapes and sizes, most are about 5cm to 7 cm tall, so can be easily carried in one's pocket and several allow for changes in snuff dosage measurement adjustments, which allow snuff to delivered in convenient single shot doses as determined by the individual user at the turn of a dial.
Most snuff bullets hold about two grams of snuff, which is usually more than an adequate daily snuff supply - any more and the snuff may go off before being used, any less and the user may face the unfortunate situation of running out of snuff during the day!
The snuff is then tapped from the bullet and sniffed from the wrist, or the bullet is taken to the nostril and the snuff sniffed directly into the nose - snuff bullets have a little 'air hole' in the side that allow for easy sniffing.
Using a snuff bullet is an easy skill to master. As long as the snuff isn't too damp, one only has to turn a dial and the snuff in a single shot dose should flow easily out of the bullet.
Care should be taken when sniffing directly from the bullet. One should aim to sniff hard enough to get the snuff to the back of the nostril, but not so hard that the snuff is sniffed to the back of the throat.
Snuff bullets allow snuff users to indulge in their snuff taking in an inconspicuous manner. They're tactile, in-expensive and perfectly engineered objects.
Throughout history snuff taking has had many hidden rules of engagement and these have often been seen to signify social status. Used widely amongst noblemen and the common man alike, the more elegantly snuff was taken, the higher the social status of the snuffer.
This also materialised in the snuff boxes carried at the time, with many fancy designs and materials such as gold, silver, ivory and rosewood being used to create elaborately carved snuff dispensers.
Historically, the giving of a snuff box as a gift was seen as an ideal present for any gentleman or lady - no matter their social class. It would appear with the rise in snuff usage, that the snuff bullet will soon replace the snuff box as the ideal present to give to any gentleman or lady in the twenty first century.
Both Jerry Goldfarb & Tim Love are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.
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