TOD:
Ah, collecting! I am a real collector/pack rat at heart. I've always had a strong interest in art. When I lived in Santa Monica in the 1970's I began buying antiques--not priceless pieces, mostly used furniture that had good lines. Like many DRs, I picked up quite a few items dirt-cheap that are now worth far more. One of my LA friends had a house at the top of Pacific Palisades that he'd had built to his own specifications. In it he had both furniture from St Vincent de Paul thrift shop (he had both money and a sense of value) and art by up-and-coming artists. I have no doubt that his art collection was partly responsible for my soon-to-be art purchases.
My aunt and uncle (for JRand's benefit, Eddie Fitzgerald and his wife) had a home in Cheviot Hills. One Thanksgiving or Christmas, while visiting, a neighbor on Aiken Ave (Jane, any memories here?) was having an art show in his home, selling works of local artists. I attended and fell in love with a signed print by Helen Mollar Mallet, called "Steambath." I bought it--my first "real" art purchase. It's in storage at the moment with most of my things, but I still love it. I soon learned that LA had at that time a sizable population of very fine artists, many of whom just weren't big names yet. Using that strategy, I continued to buy works by lesser-priced artists when I moved to DC. I have not sold any of them, but I do feel that having a few lovely antiques plus a small art collection helped to sell my house.
