Q1:  Very interesting items, where do you find them?

A1:  Garage sales, antique shows, local shops and of course online auctions.  As I have continued collecting, I find that I am attending more live events rather than using online sources to look for additions to my collection.  It it tougher and tougher to find things that I haven't seen yet, but nothing can beat being able to examine an item in person.

Q2:  Any chance that you might be interested in selling any of the items shown in your guest room?

A2:  Not at the current time, but like any good collector/decorator there are always oops items.  I was thinking of adding a for sale page in the future, but my husband sells other things through ebay, so I have been using his id, for reselling.  Check out leafsfan47, to see if I have anything listed.

Q3:  (This is an actual question that I got as an email), I have a vintage bed tray that I found at my local thrift store, any idea of its value?

A3:  I have never found any published sources on the value of these trays.  Generally I have paid between $10 and $45, for the ones that you see pictured.  As I have been collecting for a while there are some trends that I have noticed:

- Green and Yellow seem to be the most common colors.  Pink and Blue are tougher to find, thus slightly higher in price.

- Handles (both cut out and attached) and trays with curved edges are slightly more popular and thus cost slightly more.

- The more detailed the design either by hand painting or decal again makes the item more popular and thus slightly higher in cost.

- Original paint is always best and condition does matter.  The rougher the condition the lower the cost.

- There appears to have been at least 3 main manufacturers, Stober (1920s to 1930s), which generally is solid in color without floral decorations (I don't have any of this brand pictured), General Wood Products, the Golden Rule Line (Rockford Ill or Cedersburg, WIS) (1950s to 1960s, before zipcodes), and an unmarked newer manufacturer (1970s to 1980s) maybe from overseas (the pink striped tray from wall one and the cream with purple flowers from wall two, are both examples of this mfg).   The newer trays feel heavier for their size than the older ones leading me to wonder if they were made of either  plywood or particle board.

If anyone has any additional info regrading vintage bed trays, please email me, jen at jendecorates.com.  Remember to replace the at with a @ and remove the spaces.  Thanks.