I often come across stuff at auction that I have no intention of buying, but they still strike me as interesting or unusual.
They may have a different shape, or they may have been built from uncommon materials. They may be lovely in their breadth, or they may be fantastical.
Take that tall shimmering clock I saw at auction recently. Its body looked like silver tinsels. It reminded me of one of those 1960s room dividers that you’d wiggle your fingers through to part it.
An up-close view of the silver-tinsel clock.
A novelty piece, it would be a crowd-stopper and a conversation-starter in any home. I doubt if it was one of a kind. It looked to be commercially made and I could find no maker’s name on the dial.
Here are a few other items that willed me to take a closer look recently at auction:
Two other angles of the shimmering tinsel clock.
Plastic stained-glass chandelier shades. Their huge size was impressive.
An old metal cabinet that has seen better days. It reminded me of a Hoosier cabinet. This one would require a lot of work to bring it back, but would be worth it once set up in a kitchen.
A souvenir wall clock whose numbers are represented by dice from the Grand Hotel in Las Vegas. Battery-operated.
A ceramic head sculpture with fingers masquerading as hair. The fingers look like white church gloves.
A billiard-ball wall clock ready for a man cave. In the center is a picture of a pool table.