old keys, please

I love vintage components and odd little antique pieces. Why? Because every little piece of history has the potential for a spectacular story.

And I'm always looking for a story.

Like the little keys I find...I really know nothing about their history (other than the fact that they're pretty old). But what doors have they unlocked...or locked away? What treasures have they buried? What attic doors have they shut away? What secrets does it possess? Whose clock has it given life to...and on what mantle?

How about old tokens...the ones for trades, or mint packages. Whose pocket did those once sit in? What were some of those 5 cent in trade tokens really used for? I came across some school lunch tokens (some of which I have for sale in the shop) and my mind wondered to a time when kids actually carried tokens to use in the school cafeteria. (Let me just say that I shared that idea with my mother, who quite indignantly informed me that she was one of those kids who carried cafeteria tokens, lol!)

So I search out these little interesting pieces...and the search is usually a lot of fun! And a lot of times, I share my finds...other times I hoard them away in my secret stash.

And sometimes, a really spectacular story comes from them.