16D
Wednesday, August 22, 1979
University Daily Kansar
Used, antique furniture good buys
By MARY JO HOWARD
Staff Reporter
KU students trying to furnish their apartments will find better values in used furniture and antiques than in new furniture. The owner of Emerald GREAT Antiques, 418 N. 260p
Fair said used furniture was a better value because the quality of construction and materials used was higher than that in furniture made today.
Jeff Grund, owner of Restoration Hall, located in the same building as Emerald City, said that furniture construction today was poor.
Instead of using real wood furniture instead which are shellacked, furniture is made from recycled materials, a composition material and then put a photograph on top which is just a photograph of wood. The joints in today's furniture are held together not glue and nails, rather than wood, he said.
"In a couple of years, furniture made with nails and wood will start to fall apart, because metal and wood do not wear the same."
Grand said that this was not a problem with older furniture, because it had a finish of real wood polished with shellac, and its edges were made of wood pegs fitted together.
Buying antiques as an investment is impractical, Fair said.
In the first place, a real antique must be
100 years old, and there aren't that many of them around. In the case of old or used furniture, it takes decades for a piece to have a significant increase in value," he said.
"Share holdings and real estate are the only true sources of wealth. People should collect antiques because they genuinely like them."
However, Fair said money could be made on antiques and old furniture by following trends of certain styles of woods.
The trend in old furniture for the past 10 years has been oak pieces, but Fair said that the interest was starting to move away from oak now, and towards walnut and maple.
A piece that comes into vogue will have a 400 percent price increase from what it had cost when it was not popular. Fair said,
"Demand determines value," he said,
"not ae."
The demand for a style of furniture from the immediately preceding generation is usually poor, Grand said, because the next generation is tired of it. However, by the turn of the century, the style may be "recovered" and made popular again, because it seems "new."
Probably the best piece in the Emerald city shop is a handmade bread which we bought from a local territorial governor of Kansas. Fair said, it was custom made in St. Louis, and sells for $10.
One area of antiques which Emerald City is just beginning to drive into upsets. Fair said he has been buying up quits from dealers in the years, and is now beginning to market them.
There are many smaller markets within the large quilt market, Fair said. For example, there are some collectors looking at the large quilt market and are looking for specific colors or materials.
The quilts are purchased in this area, then shipped to the West Coast and Texas to be sold there. The quilts are abundant in those areas as they are in the Midwest, Fair said. The quilts sell for $40-$50 each.
The old belief about Grandmother having thousands of dollars worth of rare artiques in her attic is part myth and part reality, Fair said.
"Most of the really rare, valuable pieces of antique furniture have already been discovered, and people know where they are," he said.
However, Fair said, there could be quite a few, small valuable pieces tucked away and overlooked because they are so small.
"For example," he said, "an iron bank about the size of an eight ounce drinking glass could be worth thousands of dollars.
"Pewter is also commonly found around the midwest because pieces of it were small and easily packed when settlers came from the region. It can also be worth thousands of dollars."
Plants excellent for decorating dull dorm rooms or apartments
By VALERIE HOWARD Staff Reqsten
Staff Reporter
A green thumb may provide the added touch needed to give a room or apartment a new look this fall.
Plants are a healthy and inexpensive way to decorate, according to local greenhouse employees.
"Due to the balance of nature process, just put just a room back into an air conditioner," Ms. Cain said. "E. 9th S. st., they 'take in the carbon dioxide and give off oxygen that freshens
"Blooming plants and small evergreens act as room deodorizers and add practicality to the aesthetics of a beautiful house plant."
And plants are inexpensive to buy and share, according to Donna Hill, of Alexanders Gift Bath and Flowers, 826 Iowa St.
"Just trade the shoots or starts of your plants with your friends," she said.
All the greenhouse workers agreed that prices for plants ranged from less than $1 to more than $100.
Fred Pence, owner of the Troy house 1101 Massachusetts St., said the price of plants depended on what kind and size of plant the customer was looking for.
"Students should look for around and healthy small plants," he said. "The Garden Center has a large greenhouse where students can browse and compare prices."
Pence also owns The Garden Center, at 15th and New York streets and Pence Garden Center, 914 W. 23rd St.
Wilson said plants also were inexpensive because they really did not require any special equipment. Plants can grow in any type of pot.
"Drinking glasses can replace fancy watering cans, and they can also be used for your light sources," she said. "I do suggest some type of plant food to be used when watering them."
An easy way to decorate your bathroom and keep a healthy plant is to hang a plant. "Plants love showers, anytime," Wilson said.
"You can share the flowering plants by breaking off a section the joint and setting that portion in water for about a
week when roots will appear," she said.
"Then plant the baby plant in notting soil."
If the plant appears to give shoots, and most cacti and succulent plants do, carefully split the off-shoot and plant it in fresh soil. Wilson explained.
Accessories seem to be the added expense that adds ingenuity to horticulture. Plants can be enhanced by the pots they are grown in. This allows them that make simple house plants unique.
"Deserty, Indian pottery pots are quite popular," Wilson said, "or clay saucers can be used." We've seen people use decorative dried flowers, wood bowls, basketed birds, small ceramic animals, shells, bark chips, macramé hangers, and anything else to decorate a vase.
The plant lovers agreed the biggest downfall of college-aged green thumbs is their eagerness to grow plants. "They bring in plants that are over cared for." Hill said, "they water the plant too much or put it in the hot sunlight, all the time caring so much."
A plant must have enough drainage through a hole in the bottom of the pot, and should not stand in water, she said. "Let the roots be moist to ensure the roots are not rotted in moisture."
"Students put their plants too close to the window in the morning on the west side of a building leave their plants in the window in the afternoon and they get burned," he said.
Another problem is moving a plant that has been in a dark environment to a light one. Pence said. This is a problem at the nursery where students learn when plants bring plants from home.
- Cactus (starting at about $1 for 3-inch plants) have a good life source and only need watering once. They are very easy to maintain. Employees assured. Complimenting pots
The employees gave the following as plants that would be inexpensive and easy to care for on a college schedule:
and accessories are available at all Lawrence plant shops.
"We even have a $100 floor cactus for someone looking for the unusual," Pence said.
- Philodendrons (priced by the pot size starting around $1.25) of any type do not require much sunlight. Allow them to dry before watering.
- "You can get a nice philodendron for under $10, and they practically grow by themselves," Wilson said.
- Aloe Vera ($3-$4) the medicinal plant for burns or stings. Although not beautiful, the Aloe Vera will be handy for sunburn and provide a speedful sunlight and infrequent water.
- "My little girl was stung by a bee recently and I immediately broke off a piece of my vein. She was soaked, but she did not swell." Wilson said. "My plant is not pretty because I use it all the time like we do."
- Swedish lvcei (pried by pot size, but very easy to cut and share) is hard to mishandle. They live with any type of light, root well, and in general take abuse well.
- "This is an old type of plant that we see all the time, but it can grow and wind around poles, or walls," Hill said.
- Ferns (on sale frequently, and piced according to size) are quite popular and are seen hanging and sprouting from any size of straw decorative basket, just to mention a few idea. Asparagus Ferns are the easiest and the Boston Ferns are the most nongular.
"These plants need high humidity and must be misted once a day," Wilson said, "they do very well in bathrooms."
Quantill's Flea Market, 119 New Hampstead, has an extensive collection of smaller antiques, according to Randy Davis, owner of the Flea Market.
One sure bet for beginning horticulturists is terrarium. Jars with or without lids can be used to make a small collection of plants, and to maintain the moisture level.
"I have had one jar for a year without touching it," Wilson said, "of course, if the lid is off you might have to water the thing on it." You could easily a very easy way to start a green thumb.
Books on horticulture are available at most plant stores. Other locations in Lawrence: Owens Flowers Plaza, 84 Indiana St.; Lawrence Floral, 939 Massachusetts; Westbury Floral, 210W. 28th St. Terrace and Westside Warehouse, Nursery, 440 Florida.
Quartrillite is a genuine "tea market" that sells some of independent markets housed under one door. We were sellers of antique furniture, jewelry, coins, clock faces, and books all working with them.
Fair said that it was easy to be duped when buying antiques and used furniture.
"Antique auctions are a big rip-off. Some social outing, People come out to bargain hunt and get caught up in the excitement of the auction. Before they know it, they've been running themselves they really don't want or need. That's not much don’t a bargain," he said.
"Dealers get together, rent old houses and bring all the stuff they haven't been able to sell, and bill it is an estate sale." he said.
To determine a genuine estate sale, Fair said, it is necessary to come into the sale with a wide focus.
"I look at everything as a total. See how things fit together, whether they look as if they all belonged in the same house," he held up one out as a big picture and not item by item.
Fair gave several guidelines for students looking for good values in antiques or old furniture.
"Look for something you'd like," he said. "Don't buy something that needs more money or that costs too much to good to waste your money on bad stuff. Finally, if you don't think it wilt it worth, it won't."
IF YOU'RE GOIN' OUT TO DINNER, C'MON IN.
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Larry's Auto Supply Inc. WELCOME JAYHAWKS
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Come on out soon and see us for parts on your car. We carry foreign and American parts. We also give student discounts. new and rebuilt machine shop service Speed and custom equipment.
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