so just when the world shows new visions of Batman(DARK KNIGHT) the old collectibles seem to pop out of the wood work and are for sale.How things change to suit a new generation stretching to the limits that tintalating excitement which sends the imagination to new heights of fantasy.Its a case of we want more bigger better faster more "stylish"designer sleek etc and gives one the feeling that thats not even enough for some.There are dark knight collectibles on the market but only available in two countries...future collectibles
as seen in the picture this mobile has been truly played with and no doubt long hours of play with the wildest imagination doing its fair share of crashing and the like...see the paint work
lacking its original box lowers the price and of course the damage does lowers the price...serious and dedicated collectors want it in great condition and will be willing to pay a good price.So heres the trick....for a future collectible...buy one or some of the toys that are available from the concerned counties were they are available...as these would be considered ...a first issue...and pack them away for the years to come.this may just turn out to be your investment for the future.An idea that i rather liked was...a customer that was so delighted with his first born...a son,,,that he set out buying a large sea chest and started to fill it with great collectibles(each birthday and xmas) and this would be the coming of age gift ...so 21years of the best collectibles....Rolex oyster watch(gold ofcourse and a whole variety of goodies.what a stunning investment he had made for his son as the prices that he paid have risen in somecases more than 600%.It was with great excitement when Greach opened his treasure chest and well we were all enthralled with viewing the treasures with yelps and huge smiles.Dad had even taged where each item was purchased and a bit of history.One of the items i do remember was a George Jensen teaset and tray purchased from my store some 23 years ago at the paltry sum of 300 dollars...well today i guess if on the open market it would fetch a sum of 20,000 dollars.
Also featured here is a stunning WMF Batman teaset on tray and all in great condition there is a small repair on the sugar bowl.Now this piece is a true collectible and as far as i know there are no reproductions around...so its a case of find another.This one came out of an estate and the two girls hated it and also needed to raise some capital and were delighted with the sale price.
so long live the Dark Knight and get to see this great movie!!

The time is drawing close when The Golden Frog opens in Zurich and you will find a great collection of english antiques ranging from porcelain,silver,art and glass from 1750 to 1960.
there is also a large selection of reto collectibles including designer names and ranges of furniture glass and ceramics.(German and Swiss potters and furniture)
As from previous blogs you will notice that a large collection of Fat Lava will be represented from small pieces to those magnificent large floor vase in strong colors with crazy fat lava drips...certainly a great collectors item for the future and prices have gone up in the last year.The reason being that the BBC road show featured them on one of their shows and it has been noted by dealers that there has been a run on the Fat Lava selection.
from bight blues,reds,orange,browns,green and the rare yellow with a black lava drip and some totally encrusted, these(west germany) are extremely difficult to find and are in high demand and then there is a large selection from east germany where collectors are seeking the better fava encrusted examples.
i would also like to introduce you to a Dr.who has his Ph.D in zoology and tropical ecology from zurich and may i suggest you visit this site and scroll down to view his CV and give his efforts your support in saving The Golden Frog.....save the frog
and little did i know that there is even an award given to artists and very different to the oscars...and with super reading and a list of whos who in the business here is The Golden Frog ..awards...........The Golden Frog awards
and then for the tourist mile there is that walk which is most probably common to all ...The Bahnhofstrasse....the street not lined with gold...but go here and read what it is all about...........true
so be sure if you have the time to visit the new and exicting "The Golden Frog" 201 Birmensdorfstrasse kreis 3 Zurich...between Schmiede Wiedikon and Goldbrunnenplatz opening on the 30th july 10am to 6.30 See you there!

For many years i have surrounded myself with golden frogs and these delighted visitors... asking why frogs?.As we have the fairytales of the frog and what can truly happen if you wish to kiss one always being a romantic at heart.i never really had to opportunity but let me assure you there were so ugly frogs about (lol)I remember as a child whilst they were building our swimming pool there appeared a huge bullfrog that was said to be pretty dangerous and these frogs attacked cows and caused the cows to die....scary stuff as a 7 year old and ofcourse the scare stories followed.
then we have the near extinction of the Panama golden frog which are unique with the females being totally gold and the males having some black stripes/markings has extrodinary behaviour and a delight to watch...so i give you a fab link to U-Tube showing these amazing creatures...go here.......Golden frog
there is a huge amount to be learnt about these little mites and a good read.
according to legend it is said that when they die they turn into pure gold.
so then a visit to the following address.....The Golden Frog...201 Birmensdorfstrasse Kreis 3 Zurich and you will be able to enter into the new opening of..The Golden Frog....and who knows the good fortune may just rub off on your visit.So tag this address for the forth coming opening.
Opening 30th July from 10am to 6.30pm
see u there!!

there has been so much on the go here in switzerland with all the soccer so exciting and yeah tons of people.The heat has been too much and found myself eating so many icecreams...like that would really help to cool down,,but my favorite summer snack so why not.
i was on one of my grand tours of the shops and markets and came across this delightful russian silver milk jug dated 1908-1926 by vasilii ivanovich andreev who worked in moscow.it stood behind an ugly metal bowl and for some reason i just had to move the bowl and lo and behold when i saw the handle i recognized what presented itself...went to find out the price and to my delight it was a dismissive price so i dashed off with my little treasure eager to get home and research the maker and date.It is in such wonderful condition and has hardly been used...a gold wash interior and fully marked on the underside as well as on the lip of the jug.
the next day i found ...lying in a box of mixed metal ware a tiffany studio bowl...a rather small piece...and it did put a big smile on my face as one mans junk is anothers treasure and to crown off the trip i came across some scandinavian designer furniture at a bargain price and all in stunning condition...i guess if one keeps looking one finds....this does not happen every week but it sure happens from time to time and thats why i love the business i am in.
so this week is the burkliplatz market back at full steam and hopefully there will be some great treasures to be found.visit us there and see what we have to present.
the shop is also full of goodies .....shop
further news as to a new venture so please keep an eye here as in three weeks....we present...The Golden Frog.

So its being some time that i have had a blog entry as i have been travelling for awhile firstly to austria .a villa that welcomed u to extensive gardens and a grand drive way of trees.The host being a perfect gentleman and a delight to share some time with i guess with the wonderful cook(heidi) who took care of us with sumptious meals and prepared small eats the whole day long.dressed rather conservative but yet relaxed she ran the villa like a well oiled clock.the gardener was also a scream and proudly showed off his handy work.
Books music and style filled the villa and i had a smashing time...when i think back my nostrils flair with that smell which filled his home.all over too soon...but yeah perhaps i will be going back.
then back for a day and off to geneva to visit friends...wow the place has changed so much since my last visit and the traffic was crazy.It rained and rained.once again good food and enough french champagne and wine that flowed from the time i arrived till i left.Then was invited to visit a quaint chalet in the french alps and i jumped at the idea so left my car with friends in geneva and was hosted for three days in the alps.An all wooded experience surrounding the house filled with birds and a stunning owl...it was raining, once again, so a large open fire was burning and on the floor was a large black bear rug ...with head and paws...eeegh!! but so uhmmm
welcoming and sexy.champagne was the order of the stay so i was really spoilt.i was then driving back to collect my car for a long 5 hr trip home only to find that someone had smashed my window and grabbed whatever they could.geneva ...geneva!
the charger shown here is really an indication of how i feel after an amaxing time...it is from west germany...the worpspede factory which has an impressed owl as a factory mark.
vist the shop for a large range on german fat lava and other fine antiques....fat lava shopping

It has been some time that i have showed some german ceramics and i thought that this new find deserves a showing as it has a wonderful red fire over glaze lava with the base color being a strong sky blue.Scheurich was started in the early 1950s and achieved great noriety in the market with their stunning glazes and a huge stock of shapes and sizes.They were prolific in consideration of other factories of the time and this also meant that the rivals looked at the glazes being produced and rather designed their wares accordingly to what was being sold on the market.So throughout the german ceramics of the time one can see how competitive the market was as weird and wonderful shapes were created with glazes that no two are exactly the same.here we can say if u have a fat lava piece it is one of a kind and collectors are rushing to find great examples which are getting difficult to find.Collections are awesome when seen the shapes and lava drips that appear giving a glorius color range and even more difficult is finjding the same in different sizes right down to the minatures.i have previously posted an article on minatures so browse through as these are extremely difficult to find...especially those in the fat lava range and fetch a handsome price in the open market.
two years ago i was able to find plentiful but of late there has been very little available and i have noticed that the fleamarkets have up their prices to that of the serious sellers...ok a little cheaper...but then one also has to check condition very carefully as these ceramics are prone to cracking easily.

there will be a new book coming out in three months covering all the german ceramics of this ilk and those who are interested can e mail me for further information.I do believe that this will be one of the early bibles of fat lava.Do visit the shop for a large selection of fat lava.....Shop fat lava