Collecting is the beginning of madness

[Glen]

Dang. I feel so ...normal.
Glen

[nmrocks]

Eric, I am sorry you feel that way but I am not sorry for you!
It is a very lucky man who can surround himself and fill his life with what he loves.
It is obvious you have the heart of a collector and the eye of an artist, so my friend, you will never be satisfied ( which is not necessarily a bad thing).
Just know that one mans curse is another mans blessing, I have seen your work and would give much for your talent.
As for your collection of great painters... well that is the top of the mountain for me, so excuse me if I do not pity the man who has it all! 
Ray

[willie]

I understand . My library is full up with books, I am running out of room Not to say all the flats I have  My wife understands yet I feel like that show hoarders, with so much I will never ever finish it in my life time . There comes a time when you have to say to your self do I really need this or do I have this in my collections or library already. Then you say to yourself I am going to get ride of it or sell it. Ill take it to a  model shops will they have vanished if you have one you are in luck. So I will take it to a show, I have haled  around enough lead to make bullets for a whole regiment. As for books and paint if I see another book on World War II  I will go nuts. The same uniform books over and over again . So take a deep breath and soldier on.  Willie

[marko]

This is delightful - I too have a sad story though it ends not as happily as yours.


I started out doing round figures and the occaisional plane or tank.  I have enough rounds to last a healthy life time in the backlog.


I gave away 5 garbage bags full of unbuilt planes to a local model club for young modelers.  I currently have a literal closet full of WWI plane models with a smattering of armor models.


I also have several hundred delightful flats still to paint along with about 100 or so I have finished.  Mine range from the Middle Ages, to Flower Fairies with everything in between.  I too would love to collect but, my ability is limited due to access.


I also have a literal library which has it's own room as well as a model room with it's library. 


My wife is long suffering but, she knows where I am.


Mark 


P.S. I recall a thread on an airplane modelers site where some confessed to putting multiple kits in the same box, useage of the attic as well as in one case a hidden trap door in the model room to hide the growing collection from the spouse.  The winner was a gentleman in Holland who collected kits and had several warehouses full at his death.


P.P.S Eric my brother I too feel that little twinge.  So little time, so many little discoveries to make.

[errant49]

This is absolutely true and you can never know where collecting will take you
I am still wondering what is the most turmenting : loving or collecting, knowing that you can love without collecting, but you can't collect without loving !

And I love flats and the world of flats
I discovered it long ago , nearly fifty years back, but I really started in the 1980's
After painting a few rounds I went to flats after reading the famous Jim Woodley article in Military Modelling; it was quite a revelation for me
I will not tell all the story because it would be boring
I will just say what my collection became

First : 2 or 3 thousands of unpainted flats, most 30mm; I always tried to buy high quality figures, well designed and engraved (Mohr, Frank, Maîer, Frauendorf, etc...)

They go from antics to the XIX° century, military and civilians, but nearly no figure about the napoleonic era; I have a special interest in a period from 1450 to 1650

But in fact I like nearly any nice figure and there is no particular logic in my choices

Of course, having unpainted flats I paint some ! I have maybe 300 figures painted by me

Second : I collect flats painted by good painters : Douchkine of course, but also Leliepvre, Alexandre, Hamel, Terana, Brandt and others; when I can have a very nice piece or set I try to get it; I also like to have some figures from old collections or collectors as an illustration of the "history" of flats

For instance I had the opportunity to buy some figures painted by William Snyder who was an american collector and seller of flats; I also have a set from the collection of Noël Noël who was a well known french actor

I will show some pictures in an other post later

Third : I collect old flats, mostly civilians; go and have a look at the gallery in the "flat figures collector forum"

As I have got enough unpainted figures, this part of my collection is growing

A consequence of this third part is that I bought and keep on buying several books on flats and there history; most of them are in german, so I only look at the pictures !

I will have to make a list of them with a little comment

Fourth : When you buy a round figure you usually have with it a lot of information, pictures etc... to paint it

When you buy flats you have.... nothing !

Nowadays internet helps much; but not so long ago you had to gather your own documents; so I started to buy old books about costumes, uniforms, history and so ....and I now have quite a nice collection

But this is another story ...

As I come older I could hope to become less addict to flats world; I can tell you it is just the reverse

Eric