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hat many collectors of especially antique cars, bronze statues, many forms of lamps, and
vintage/antique stuffed animals and dolls look for and desire is patina. This
oxidization is a natural process of aging for say a bronze statue. It is valued
and prized by many collectors, and should not be cleaned. As an example, the Statue of Liberty has
a rich green patina that has occurred over the years. Nobody would suggest cleaning
it up by removing the rich green patina created by the oxidization of the
bronze. This adds to the character of the statue and is not considered dirt.
Patina for items like stuffed animals and dolls would be natural wear and tear
(some would call this the love a child has by hugging and playing with the
stuffed animal or doll) – for example loss of some of the hair or fur.
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hen there is cleaning. Cleaning is designed and intended to remove dirt
and oils – both being undesirable. Many oils have corrosive elements that can
be destructive with whatever they come in contact with. For example, touching
and handling stuffed animals with oily hands will leave that oil on the fur of
the stuffed animal. Over time, you will notice the corrosive elements at work,
slowly eroding away the fur and stuffing. Then there is dirt. Not only does
dirt make an item look dingy and less bright, it can also act like sandpaper,
slowing grinding away at an item. One way to alleviate (though not eliminate)
this is to wash hands thoroughly before touching items susceptible to
deterioration from oils and dirt. Another option, especially for the older more
rare items is to wear clean white cotton gloves while handling these items.
On occasion, these items should be cleaned. Some items can be easily
cleans at home using a very weak solution of water and gentle dish
detergent. Other times – depending on
the degree of dirt or complexity of the cleaning an item – you need to have it
professionally cleaned.
Why cleaning almost all vintage
collectibles - is so important. There
are four main reasons.
First, obviously, is
appearance. Dirty items simply look
worse and less cared for than clean ones.
Second is structural
integrity and longevity. Dirt and dust
are not good and can weaken the materials over time, possibly decreasing the
item's lifespan.
Third, with some items dirt
can also attract moths and other bug pests, and everyone knows the havoc and
sometimes irreversible damage these insect pests can create.
And finally, when you
bring a vintage item into your collection, you really don't know most of the
time the conditions in which it was loved, kept, or displayed in any of its
previous lives - or what might be hidden in the item. It is never a bad idea to
thoroughly clean a vintage item before introducing it to the rest of your collection.
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he second part of this article
addresses repairs and restoration. Opinion is divided on this depending on who
you talk with. There are plenty of businesses out there in the repair and
restoration field that have their own take on the issue. Bear in mind that
their job is to sell their product and service. To some degree the approach
depends on the category of collectibles. There are three schools of thought
regarding repair that I am aware of:
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chool of thought number one is do no repairs. This train of thought
says that repairs will negatively alter the value of the collectible.
Collectibles should be appreciated for the wear and tear they show. I know of a
person who has two Steiff Zotty Bears. The smaller of the two was fine, but badly
needed some cleaning from years of play and love. After his bath, he looked like
a new man – er? – bear. The larger of the two not only needed to be cleaned,
but had a sizeable tear around the neck area. It is believed that the Zotty
Bear was attacked by the pet dog when the owner was a child. A poor attempt at
stitching the Zotty Bear was made at the time, but it was VERY poor attempt.
After consultation with a teddy bear/Steiff repair specialist, the end result
was that now not only is he a very clean bear, you are not able to tell that
there were any repairs made at all. It is safe to say that not only has the
life of the Zotty Bear been dramatically increased (the repairs prevented Zotty
Bear’s wounds from getting worse and ripping open even more), he looks better
and plays better.
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his dovetails into the second school of thought. Repairs should be made
to restore the collectible. Material and processing technology typical of the
time period the piece was originally manufactured should be used to make
repairs. The above Zotty Bear story perfectly illustrates school of thought number
two. This will increase the life of the piece should you want to keep it, and also
the fair market value should you want to sell it.
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estoring a ’57 Chevy to something other than the original factory
specifications would epitomize school of thought number 3. This would mean
putting in an engine from another entirely car or even from a different
manufacture. I have seen a Mercedes Benz “SL” outfitted with a Chevrolet
engine. Another example would be adding modern day dashboard electronics not
yet invented when your car was originally manufactured, leave alone not
original to your restoration vehicle. Another example is using modern day car
paint on restoring a car 75 years old. This school of thought is fine if you
plan on keeping the car. However, if you plan on selling the car, you may find
difficulty in selling it for anything close to what you invested in it. Your
taste in restoration may not match up very well with what is out there in the
market – be it the car market or any other market.
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or another real life application on whether to restore a Teddy Bear or
not, please read ” To
Restore Or Not To Restore, That's The Steiff Question” for one author’s
take on the question. For a third source on the issue, please see the 28
February 2016 airing of “60 Minutes”, “Preserving
the Past”.
Harald Mallwitz
Coppell Collectibles, L.L.C.
Coppell, TX
A Teddy bear does not come to life until he is loved, but once
loved he will live forever
http://coppellcollectibles.blogspot.com/
