How to Start an Ephemera Collection

There are those who would say that the collecting of ephemera is an activity achieved by anyone who has junk in their homes. To some degree, this is true--but ephemera is SPECIAL junk, and therein lies the difference. Ephemera is written or printed material that was not designed for collection--it was meant to be "ephemeral" or short-lived. Collecting something that was not designed to be collected may sound odd, but ephemera is a window to other times and places.

Difficulty: Challenging

Instructions

1. Check the website of the Ephemera Society of America to get an idea of the broad range of items that have been collected.

2. Explore your own home for ephemera. If you have parents or grandparents, explore their homes, looking for old or unusual day to day printed material--forgotten manuals for unusual appliances or old autos, old magazines with classic ads, old calendars with unusual artwork.

3. Find one or two areas that interest you or where you have found personal sources of material. Concentrate on collecting in these areas first.

4. Buy "The Encyclopedia of Ephemera" by Maurice Richards to further expand your possible areas of interest. Ephemera can even be extended as a concept to include emails.

5. Begin your own ephemera website either specializing in a single area or serving as a clearinghouse where you buy, sell and exchange.

6. Collect ephemera until it is filled with junk--but SPECIAL junk, elucidating, instructive and hopefully profit making.

Resources

• Ephemera Society of America website
• Catalog of general ephemera