It's all just temporary.

They made an appearance in an earlier entry and now it's time they have their own entry. I have always had a real fascination with tattoos, but never the kind of commitment that a real one demands. So, this summer, I decided to start collecting temporary tattoos and wearing them as sleeves. My first attempt ended up looking like this.

My sleeve was a collection of dinosaurs, animals, and glittery flowers and hearts. I found the entire situation really humorous. I mean who wouldn't I am a 22 year old girl running around with a sleeve of temporary tattoos. The best part would definitely be the amount of people who thought they were real. I mean they were glittery and weird images, how on earth would these be real. Actually, that entire thing worries me as well. Since then I have gotten many more for my next sleeve or two. My favorites have to be the "furry friends" pack I bought full of puppies and kittens with cute sayings. I am exciting to wear those!

I'll let you know how the public reacts to this one.

-The Collector

What kind type are you?

Daguerreotype.

Get it? I'm so punny.

As mentioned, I collect old photographs, including daguerreotypes. I got three new ones early November.
I am pretty sure the first one (the oval case) is actually just a wanna be daguerreotypes and is actually a tin type of an older woman put in a case, but it's just so cool I had to get it. The other two are definitely daguerreotypes. The middle one is a young soldier and the third one that was killed in the glare from the flash (I'm sorry!) is a young woman. Both of them are hand colored and have beautiful rosy cheeks. I love them! I'm trying to come up with names for them all.

-The Collector

Cameras

As a photographer and collector of anything interesting, it makes sense that I would have a collection of antique cameras. This collection is actually made up of of my dad's old cameras and a few cameras owned by my grandparents. The kind of camera ranges from the very first kinds produced known as Kodak Brownies, to medium format twin reflex cameras and the first kinds of Polaroid cameras. I even have a few 16mm film cameras which are pretty cool. Most if not all of the cameras are fully functional. I keep them displayed around the room, but here is a photograph of where most of them are kept.

(don't mind the antlers and small toys, that's another whole story entirely)

-The collector

Joke Update!

Honestly, I think this is one of my favorite collections. The jokes have really helped me out in awkward social situations. Anyways, here are two of my new favorites.

"Where do numbers go to do their homework? The times table"

I actually got this next one on Thanksgiving, which was really fitting!"Why did the turkey have to leave the supper table? He was Gobbling his food"

-The collector

What do you write with?

I know it's been awhile, but bare with me, it's been a rough semester. But, I'm back and that's what matters. One of my collections that I get teased about is my typewriter collection. Two years ago my ex left for basic and I was writing letters everyday, so it seemed to make sense to get a typewriter. I bought just one, an antique black one. (it's actually in the last post if you look carefully at the picture!) It's really beautiful and I will always love it. But, that purchase prompted the collection and my mom would bring 2 or 3 home from yard sales every couple weeks that people gave her. Right now, I have 10 typewriters. Most of them don't work, but they're beautiful and scattered around the room. Here is a picture of most of the collection.

Each typewriter has a name and I love them. I love the classic feel of a typewriter and the aesthetic they provide. I also use them to type directly on my photographs. Because the way a typewriter works I can see the photo and where I'm typing while doing it, making it much easier than using a computer. You can see more of the collection in the flickr set that includes the above photo.

-The collector

What are you listening to?

This is one of my first collections, my vinyl. I started after watching "Almost Famous" when I was 15. In the beginning of the film, the main character, William Miller, gets a collection of vinyl from his sister and something in his brain clicks. The same night that I watched the movie, I went into my dad's study and took the Simon and Garfunkel record "Bookends" and it was just beautiful to me. Not so much the sound, but the album art and inserts. From then on I collected vinyl, both old and new, but mostly new. My first record of my own was "More Adventurous" by my favorite band Rilo Kiley. Every time I buy one, it's like a surprise what is inside. I love finding out what the band chose to do with the insert if they have one at all. At this point my collection has about 150 records. I haven't bought one in a really long time as prices have spiked, but I keep a list of ones I want in my purse so I make sure to look for them.
This is the most recent picture of my collection. I hung up my favorite album art. The bottom left album is actually the first one I had that I mentioned. My record player is the brown box on the right.

I started the collection because the idea of vinyl seemed cool, but I stayed for the album art. I really enjoy the size of the artwork/print and being able to see every detail. Album covers are such a crucial part of an album, it helps the artist/musician get their voice heard.

-The Collector

Quick Joke

As introduced in my first post, I collect joke popsicle sticks. Well there has been a few additions to the collection, but this is by far my favorite in a long time.

"What is a trombone's favorite thing to do on the playground? Slide"

I don't understand why, but a huge part of me enjoys terrible jokes. I will make sure to tell this one to everyone I know, and even some people I don't.

Does anyone have a favorite bad joke? Leave it in comments! I always love hearing new ones.

-The Collector

Who's that?

I figure now is a better time than ever to introduce one of my main collections. Which also is the one collection that people I meet are confused by. The collection is antique photographs, mainly portraits. I have a hefty collection at this point, maybe between twenty and thirty photos. I display them on a wall in my room and my friends like to refer to it as "the dead people wall." It's become a running gag among my friends. However, when I bring new people over there is always that awkward "oh are these your family?" conversation that ends in a "nah they're just random dead people." Although, I guess I do like being weird from time to time.

Without further adieu, here is my collection!

This is the collection before I put it up on the wall. It is mostly strangers except for the young girl on the bottom row. That's my maternal grandmother.

This is an up close picture of my first haul (a haul refers to everything I buy in one take)

I also like collecting daguerreotypes which are one of the first types of photographs. It's basically an exposure on a metal that was then packaged in a little book type case. This is my only one. Lately, it is really hard to find one at a good price. Many dealers over price them because they are antiques and look interesting.

I bought this one because he's very dapper looking. This one cost about 20 dollars. Which compared to the photos above is kind of expensive. I never pay more than two dollars for a photo.

This collection is one of the ones I am most proud of. I really like to see how photography was used when it first became public. How the portraits are so composed and cold. They very much resemble portrait paintings. They don't really tell much about the person in the photo. They are more of a documentation than a piece of artwork and as a photography major in university, I find it all very fascinating and beautiful.

This collection has been taking the back burner lately because cost of the photos has gone up, but I always keep my eye out for additions.

-The Collector

What is life if you can't make a bad joke?

As the first entry to this blog, I would like to introduce myself. I am Leah, a 22 year old art student concentrating in photography. I spend most of my time in awe of the world around me. A symptom of this is my growing collections. Throughout the time of this blog you will learn about my collecting and its growth.

I'm going to start with my newest collect, joke popsicle sticks. This summer I realized how the small things really made me smile. I keep them in a mug behind me and if I'm talking to someone online and can't think of a response I'll pull one out and use it. You would never guess how many times a corny joke has gotten me out of really uncomfortable conversations and into fun ones.

"Why did the pitcher not like caves? He was afraid of bats!"

This was my first one of the season. I have about 30 now. (oh and those are not real tattoos) Although this is not a main collection in my life, I think starting with the small ones might be best. It seems that to me it is more about the mentality of collecting than the actual collection.

-The collector