How to Collect American Crafts

American crafts, or Americana as it is sometimes called, include anything that involves American cultural artifacts such as the various types of American flags or military recruitment posters. American crafts for collectors can be found anywhere from the local antique shop to large online craft retailers.

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Books about collecting American crafts

1. Know what you are looking for. Search for anything that has to do with American culture. Think of major American events such as the world wars, Vietnam, the Watergate scandal and items such as American flags or bald eagle statues.

2. Buy a book. If you are new to collecting American crafts, a book such as Matthew Bowyer's "Collecting Americana" will help you begin your collection. The book includes all types of Americana, from firearms to stamps, and will give you ideas for the type of American crafts you should seek for your collection.

3. Visit an antique store. Big or small, all antique stores have American crafts for sale. Try beginning your search with coins, posters and postcards, all of which are highly collectible.

4. Find a used bookstore. You will find a lot of Americana books at a used bookstore for reasonable prices. Books are also highly collectible.

5. Watch for Estate sales. Estate sales are a great way to find American crafts like old American flags and antique war or military recruitment posters.

6. Browse eBay. Many sellers of American crafts hock their wares on eBay. Look for items sold in "lots." These often offer the best deals on purchasing multiple items at once.

Tips & Warnings

• Start small. When you are just beginning your collection, start with small items like postcards and posters. This way, you can decide how much you like collecting before sinking a lot of time, money and effort into your collection.
• Bargain. Make an offer on higher priced items at estate sales to get the best deal.
• Be sure you know what you are buying. Don't take someone's word for it that a particular item is valuable or expected to go up in value. Look into the value of an item on your own before opening your wallet or unscrupulous sellers may take advantage of you.
• Take good care of your items. This is especially important for paper items such as posters and postcards. Put them in acid-free "sleeves" or ephemera boxes. If you don't do so, the item will become worn, damaged and lose its value.

Resources

• Find rare Americana books at Americana Exchange.
• Buy Matthew Bowyer's "Collecting Americana."