This time, make it Osborn

Greetings and happy Spring.  This is the time for Spring cleaning and I've noticed my cages are not exempt from dust.  It's time to take them apart, gently dust and maybe move them to another part of the house.  Changing them up gives me the opportunity to have them in different parts of the house and gives them more opportunity for different emphasis and viewing.

I've been looking at my Hendryx trade catalogs and thought I'd bring something to your attention.  There are several cages in the catalogs that are labeled as Osborn cages.   There are patents in my patent book that refer to patents by Leon but attributed to Hendryx Co.  This evidence shows me that the Andrew B. Hendryx Co. was a company which employed known competitors at certain times in its history. Leon cages come up for sale every now and then on ebay; Osborn's also.  I've seen no evidence of neither Crown nor Lindemann being part of the Hendryx Co. from the trade or patent catalogs I have.  But, once again, my trade catalogs end at 1930.

Today I'd like to show you an Osborn cage and will ask you if you have any feeders to match that you are willing to sell.  I have a cyber cage collector contact who is looking for feeders for her Osborn cage.

Let's get some pictures in here before we go much further.

I've never seen an Osborn cage before and am intrigued with the feeder entry sites.  I haven't seen that kind of opening before and hadn't seen any of the feeders that fit.  There was an Osborn that just sold on ebay that I lost the bid on.  The feeder is embossed with an "F", an "O", and an "M".  It's kind of a short, stubby feeder and very distinct.  My cyber friend is looking for a pair.

I am always on the lookout for interesting old/antique feeders.  If you have any that you want to talk about and/or sell, and share some photos, please feel free to do so.

I will talk more about feeders in my next entry.

Happy Hendryx hunting.

Barbara

"HENDRYX" Modified

Happy Valentine's Day.  It's a lovely Spring day in southern Oregon and a good time to reach out to others with like interests. 

There have been some marvelous Hendryx cages on the internet lately.  I love to watch the cages come and go, sell or get relisted. 

There's a gentleman 'out there' who is refurbishing the Hendryx scalloped cages.  He's taking off the rust, refinishing them, stocking them with feeders and perches (original if available), and selling them on ebay as usable cages for feathered friends.  He even includes a copy of the original care pamphlet that came with the cage when purchased.

There is a woman 'out there' who has impeccable taste in brass cages.  I drool over the cages, bid on them, but she wins the bids.  I'd love to see her home with the cages I've seen her purchase lately.  Some are the best of the best.

Just when I think that I've seen the full array of Hendryx cages, something new comes up.  Today I'd like to share with you an interesting, modified Hendryx cage.  A woman contacted me recently about a cage she had.  She was requesting information about the cage.  She gave me permission to use it on the blog so that is what we are going to discuss.

Let's get some pictures in here first.

OK, what are your thoughts?  What do you see?  Interesting, isn't it?

The size of the cage is 12.5 X 15 X 15.5 inches.  From base to top of scroll work is 24.5 inches.
The door tag has  patent dates ranging from Oct. 27 (18)74-Dec. 20 (18)81.
The base has the Hendryx name on it.

I'm going to tell you what I see when looking at these pictures.  You see if you agree.  If you don't (remember, I'm just a Hendryx hoarder, not a professional), please write in and discuss what you see.

I see:

• an antique Hendryx cage that has after-market modifications by a metal artisan.  A person with a creative mind and a careful hand modified this cage.
• I found this cage (unmodified) in my Hendryx trade catalogues from 1891 and 1904. 
• The top scroll work has been added as you can see in the last photo.  There's a nifty screw latch that holds the scroll work onto the cross bar of the cage.
• The bow has been added.  On an enlarged photo, one can see solder marks on the cage near the bow.  The Andrew B. Hendryx Co. did not use solder on their cages.  They revolutionized cage making with their riveted construction.  Bird vermin could collect and hide in the solder work and the company was very careful to build cages without using solder.
• The feet have been added.  Although I haven't seen the attachment site on top of the base, my guess is that there is a screw to hold the feet in place.  I've checked out my 4 Hendryx trade catalogues and haven't seen any cage with feet like this.  The most elaborate cages had bases with open-lattice work or wooden bases.  Most had the simple base with the slide clasps as seen in the photo, with either short cone-like feet or round nub-like feet.
• The finial has been added or modified.  Hendryx finials incorporated a loop for hanging if the owner wished to do so.
• The in-bent wires where the feeders go have been cut to allow generic porcelain feeders to fit.  This cage would have used the "T" feeders or the open opal glass feeders.  This cage comes with Japanese feeders.
• This cage was well cared for.  All the wires are intact except the feeder wires.  The 4 slide clasps are present and in working order to hold the cage to the base.  The scroll work was made to the size that would fit between the wires of the roof requiring only a little separation of the wires.  The clean-out tray is still present.  Most of the time these trays has been tossed by the time these cages come to market.

That's all I can think of at this time.  It's a unique cage in excellent condition and it's for sale.  If you are interested in talking with the owner, let me know and I will put you two together.

I would really appreciate comments on this cage.  What are your thoughts about cage modifications?  I talked on an earlier post about painting cages.  What do you think?

Have a great Valentine's Day and a wonderful week.  'Til next time,

Hendryx Hoarder, 

Barbara

It all began...

Hello.  Happy New Year.

     I appreciate that you are interested enough to read this blog.  Maybe you'd be willing to add a comment?  What I am looking for is the story of how you started collecting Hendryx cages or items.  Why not O. Lindemann?  Why not Crown?  Why did you choose Hendryx and how did you choose?

     As a seller on ebay, I have contact with a lot of people from all areas of the country.  I've conversed with folks from AK to FL and NY to CA.  Each person willing to share with me has a story.  I've told you mine.  I'm still fascinated with Hendryx and continually search the internet for cages.  Winter weather has decreased my travel to the antique stores on I-5, but spring is coming.  I have 18cages now in my apartment.  Each cage has a story too, but I'm interested in the overall picture now.  If you just purchased your first Hendryx and are just starting the 'drooling' for more, share it with us, please.

     I know a gentleman who raises canaries and only houses them in Hendryx late Deco, mid-century hatbox and scalloped-top chrome cages. My friend has a globe cage and 2 metal ones that work well with her distressed, primitive home decor.  A woman in Alaska only collects cages from the late 1800s up to the 1920s.  I've conversed with a gentleman who buys them strictly for resale.  It's business.  And yet another man collects them for the art and fun of it all.  He's got high expectations and great taste in cages.  I've purchased several from him.

     What's your story?  Are you willing to share with the rest of us?  Can you admit that you are a "Hendryx" hoarder or that you just got the 'fever' and are headed down that path?  We'd appreciate hearing from you.  It would be fun to get the stories out there so all of us can enjoy them.

     I must go.  I've found another Hendryx for sale that is in my 1906 Andrew. B. Hendryx Catalogue.  Hope to get it.  The anticipation, the 'drooling' and the hunt are great parts of the experience.  I'm going to check out my catalogue again.  

     Have a great day and 2013.

I'll take mine plain.

     I like to go to antique stores with my friend, Cathy.  We poke around, reminisce about the things we grew up with that are now 'vintage', and look for bird cages.  With me being a  Hendryx Hoarder, my eyes can usually find a cage from 20 ft.  If I miss it, Cathy calls it out.  There are usually only one or two in the store at a time and mostly they are the brass beehive style.
     I recently went North to Grants Pass, OR with Cathy.  We hit a few shops and spent most of the time in our favorite one.  I'd thought about renting a space here for my cages but it was too expensive as well as 30 miles away from home.  Anyway, we wandered and looked and chatted.  We had a great time.
     I saw something that I don't understand.  I nearly backed into a h-u-g-e Hendryx globe cage. It was probably 15" at least in diameter.  I kid you not. It was on a stand which made it about eye level, maybe a little lower.  I didn't recognize it, at first, as a Hendryx, as it had been painted.  Not only painted, but painted and wiped off.  I don't understand it at all.  Why take a perfectly good brass treasure, paint it with creme puffy paint, and then wipe some of it off until the brass shows through?  Is that shabby chic?  I don't get it.  I stood there, jaw dropped, and stared.  I couldn't believe what had been done to it.  Without the paint, the cage and stand would have been in my car in a flying second.  I have two globe cages, but this one was different.  Maybe it was the height, or the stand, or the tray around it...I'm not sure.  
     It's disconcerting when cages scream at me in the store.  I'm sure that I'm the only one that hears the voices, and certainly I'm the only one who talks back to the cages.  "No, I've got 10 beehives.  I don't need another one, even though you are in remarkable condition."  Things like that.  Cathy just shrugs and goes on.  I examine, I look, I handle, I talk...then I go on my way, ignoring the pleas I hear.  This cage didn't talk very much.  It just sat there.  It was like it whispered "save me" or some such thing.  My logic was quiet.  Everything was quiet around us.  I heard the buzz of others in the store, but I stood and just stared at this masterpiece with it's dreadful 'do'.
     I know me.  I have the best intentions.  I will get this cage.  I will remove the paint.  I will...  I will... It would never happen.  I don't have the space or the inclination to get elbow deep in paint remover.  And what would paint remover do to the old brass underneath?  Important question that one.  Very important.
     "Beauty is in the eye of the beholder".  Margaret Wolfe Hungerford (née Hamilton), is widely credited for coining the phrase in 1878 according to the internet.  It literally means "the perception of beauty is subjective".  Whoever 'improved' on this Hendryx cage must have thought it would look neat.  Cool.  Great.  Chippy.  Whatever.  But why is it here now?  Did it not work out as expected and was left here to find a good home?  I saw no beauty in it except what I knew was underneath the puffy paint and streaks.
     In my early days of trolling ebay for Hendryx cages, I didn't have enough knowledge to ask appropriate questions of the buyers.  Needless to say, I received some real shockers.  There were two that really stick out in my mind and on my shelves.  One is a mission style Arts and Crafts cage.  I bought it cuz it looked in good condition, clean brass, intact wires, etc.  What I got was a cage that had been spray-painted gold.  The paint was bumpy.  Maybe with texture?  Or maybe a terribly horrible job of painting.  The seller hadn't offered that it had been painted.  I hadn't asked.  Stuck.  Close to the same time I saw a drop-dead gorgeous Victorian cage with crimped wires that had the most wonderful shape.  I bought it.  Did I ask appropriate questions?  No.  Did I get another cage that had been spray-painted gold?  Yes.  It even had globs of paint in the seed guard.  Definitely didn't want to stay on my shelf.  Ugh!
     I don't understand.  I know I'm a purist.  I want my cages to be Hendryx.  I want my feeders to be Hendryx.  I want my stands to be Hendryx.  I'm pretty rigid on those points.  But I don't want to look under gold spray paint or creme puff paint and streaks to see my cage.
     You may think that I only collect brass Hendryx.  That is not so.  I have painted Japanned cages.  But the paint is intended and original.  No added touches.  I have painted stands.  But the chipped paint is the original paint.  No added touches.  And I have painted feeders.  Once again, the original Deco finish.  Intended.  No added touches.
     If anyone reading this can help me understand the idea of 'added touches', I'd really appreciate a comment.  I did just sell a red and a blue painted cages on ebay.  They were mid-century metal cages that had been well painted and designed by a previous owner.  They sold quickly.  But that didn't seem, to me, to be the travesty that this cage was.  Or my other aforementioned cages.  Maybe because they were metal and not brass?  Or Chrome.  I don't know.  I don't like the painted late Deco Chrome ones either.
     Maybe it does all just come down to Margaret Wolfe Hungerford and the saying that allows for individuality and expression of such.  "Beauty is in the eyes of the beholder."  I'll take mine plain, please.
     

Switch 'n' Run

Hi, I'm back.  It's hard to believe that it's been almost 6 months since I wrote something on this blog.  It's not because I'm not 'into' Hendryx, it's because I've been trying to feel my way along with this obsession.  I didn't feel that my stumbles and falls would be of interest to you so didn't write.

     I'm pretty much an 'all or nothing' kind of person.  I make a decision, paint it in black and white (no gray allowed) then run full force in the direction I have chosen.  When I acknowledged my obsession with The Andrew B. Hendryx Co. and admitted that I was taken by it, I jumped full force into collecting.

     My goal, initially and unrealistically, was to own one of everything that Hendryx made.  I started driving up and down the I-5 corridor in WA and OR, stopping at every antique store I could find.  Most of the time, when I asked if the store had any Hendryx cages, I was met with a blank face.  How could anyone NOT know Hendryx?  I was living and breathing it at the time.  I was consumed.  What cages I found, I snatched up and toted home.  I set them in my living room and looked and looked at them.  Then I started planning the next place to buy them.

     I discovered ebay last Fall.  The cages were out and available, and I was in hog heaven.  I didn't know enough, at that time, to choose and shop wisely so I ended up with some real train wrecks of cages.  I quickly realized that all sellers don't spill their guts with everything about a cage.  Some of them describe a little and leave the rest for questions from the unknown audience.  I didn't know enough to ask "Has it been repaired?"  "Has it been painted?"  "Are all the clips present and functional?" "Are the perches original?".  I certainly didn't know enough (or have the guts) to ask for more pictures.  There were cages advertised as Hendryx that weren't Hendryx.  They were Hendryx style or type.  Not Hendryx.  I had a steep learning curve.

     So...60 cages and a storage shed later, I decided that enough was enough.  By early Spring I realized I was in over my head and needed to start selling, not just collecting.  I had some repeats that I decided I could part with.  But with my headlong pace into this collecting path, I hadn't come up with a 'plan B'.  How do I sell?

     I did a 'switch 'n' run' onto another path.  I decided I would have a booth at antique shows.  I started creating ideas, page after page of design and plans.  "Tweet Things" was my name.  As you read on previous notes, this didn't work out.  I PLANNED for it to work.  I EXPECTED it to work.  I WORKED for it to work.  I bought bird cage feeders, bird baths, bird statues and other accoutrements that would round out my booth.  No go.  It just didn't work.  I realized that just because I had a passion for something didn't mean others did.  Oh, I got the raves, the oohs and aahs, and the "I remember when"s  at my booths, and there were plenty of lookers.  But the money didn't come in.  It just went out and out and out.

     So, there I am.  No plan C.  I floundered.  I was paying storage fees for things I couldn't move.  I had cages in several booths that weren't moving.  I floundered some more.

     I am not a flounder-er.  I don't do it well.  As a NICU nurse, I was queen of my castle.  I was in control of what happened to my baby during my hours.  If the unexpected happened, as it often does with neonates, there was backup available.  I was in control.  I worked 30 years of nursing in control.  My personal life was predictable and controlled.  Not a lot of surprises.

     Now, there's no control.  No backup.  It was me and me on this journey.  It was time for another switch 'n' run but I fought against Plan C.  My only option that I could see was to return to ebay.  I was amazed at the packaging creativity that I saw as I unpacked cage after cage in my buying spree.  There was a LOT of work to selling cages and stands.  I wasn't sure if my arthritic hands would be up to the task.  I'd sold my boxes of bubble wrap, recycled the stryofoam worms, and recycled all the boxes I'd received from my ebay sellers.  How would I start?

     I didn't switch 'n' run...I kinda turned in a direction and took a few steps.  I posted my best, my most unique, and some of my most prized items.  I wondered if 'someone' out there cared enough about Andrew B. to buy something with the Hendryx name and history attached to it.

     I've been amazed.  There are quite a few 'someones' out there who appreciate Andrew B and the creative inventors who worked for him.  There's a doc in Texas, an architect in Florida, a computer guy in New Jersey, and a woman in Alaska who all appreciate Hendryx.  They, and others, have their stories, their collections, their 'looking for's.  I've been selling on ebay for a month.  That's all, but I'm at a full run again.  I post new items and for the most part, people buy them.  Economically, I'm making a quarter for every dollar I spent last year.  The prices have dropped that much!!  What I was in a bidding war for last year doesn't even sell this year.

     There is side conversation that I appreciate on ebay.  Buyers share their stories.  I like to share mine.  That's why I started this blog, to share stories, but I haven't been consistent enough to make others want to be a part of it.  So I get the stories on ebay.

     I know, for example, while I am wrapping a box, that this is the 4th cage this person has purchased.  I know the feeders I've sold to him, and I know what he's looking for.  I have a name.  And I have an imagination big enough to envision others' homes and what it will be like to have my items there.  It's good.

     I don't have a need for another switch 'n' run at this time.  I'm here for a while.  If you want to check out my items, search on ebay for 'Hendryx vintage', or 'Hendryx antique', or 'bird cage feeders vintage'.  I'm bkv5353.  

I'm looking through my items to see what I have that you might want.  Who knows...you may just push the "BID" button.  And we can share our stories and the fascination we have with the Andrew B. Hendryx Co. of New Haven, Conn.

I will return.  Sooner than the last time.  Maybe in just a few days or a week.  I'm interested in visiting with you.

Catch up

     I've not written for several months.  I have been discouraged at the lack of sales of my cages and felt there was nothing to write about.  It's time to catch you up on what's been going on.
     I have four cages in a shop in Medford, OR.  They are more of my unique cages: round; stainless steel/chrome; early rectangular brass; and I can't remember the other one.  Three of them have feeders; two of them have stands.  When one adds up the cost of the stand, the cage, and the feeders, it's enough to give one pause.  They can be sold separately, of course, but to have the Hendryx 'full meal deal', a person must be willing to pay $250-$350.  It's just not happening.  Not in these economic times.  Not in such a specialized market.
     I had two stands, cages and feeders in Vancouver, WA.  They didn't sell, and the owner of the booth was ready to change her booth around and for me to take the cages.  Once again, for the 'full meal deal', the price had to be paid.  The cages attract people to the booth, but once the price is seen, the attraction is gone and the viewer moves on.
     I can lower the prices.  I can sell them for what I think they will go for.  I would practically be giving them away and would be recouping about $0.15 on the dollar.  Not worth it to me.  I feel that it is undervaluing the product for what it really is.  
     I have a copper circle 'hat box' Art Deco cage with the original feeders.  I don't know of any other like it.  There are chrome ones out there.  Not copper.  Can you appreciate the value of it as a rare piece of art?  Can you imagine it in the corner of an Art Deco living room?  Can you imagine the workmen making this cage, with a non-soldered patented production; with feeders raised off the floor to avoid the attraction of vermin; with patented perches that fit the feet of the bird, (kind of like a flat figure 8 instead of completely round)?  Can you see the Art Deco glass seed guards that have the definitely Art Deco circles and lines in black and white?  Can you see the plastic, Hendryx-embossed feeders that signal the end of the glass feeders and are just the beginning of the 'explosion' in plastic production?  Can you imagine the gleaming copper on the base of the stand, arching upward to hold the cage in a gentle arc and hook?  Can you imagine paying $450 for it?  That brought you up short, didn't it?  The chrome ones, without/with the glass inserts, without the feeders, and without the perches are going on eBay for about $200-$250.  I will get some pictures of it and add them soon so you can see if the reality is the same as what you imagined.

     To change the tone of this, I recently received a copy of a 1903/1904 Andrew B. Hendryx Co. Catalogue.  Here is a  picture of the front of it.  Isn't that wonderful?  
     I have several of the cages in this catalog and I will show them to you.  

The first one is on the left above.  It is a mocking bird cage so it's on the larger size.  I don't know if you can see them or not, but there are the swivel, cut-metal feeders, 2 on either side.  There is also a drawer for cleaning at the bottom.  It is finished in a specific way that is called "Japanned". It is metal, not brass.

The next one is a little carrier cage. I believe it was used to bring the little fellow home from the pet store.  It's in the picture above in the top right corner.  It's Japanned also.  It's probably no longer than 6".  It has two opal glass cups inside that are embossed Hendryx.  It's just cute.

The last one is a unique cage with metal, looped 'ruffle' along the roof line that I just unpacked today.  I've never seen another one like this.  It's in great shape. It's on the right page above, in the bottom left corner.  Can you see the 'ruffle' on it?  It's great.  And being the Hendryx 'purist' that I am, I have a set of feeders like the ones above that will go on this cage to make it complete.


     Thanks for spending some time with me.  Next time I will add a few more pictures of some of the cages in this catalog so you can see the creative genius behind the inventors and skilled workmen at the Andrew B. Hendryx Co. of New Haven, Conn.

My Second

     Two weeks after my first antique show, I was in another one, this time in Roseburg, OR.  Roseburg is just 2 hours North of me and an easy drive.  The show was smaller than Portland, so I chose to rent a UHaul van instead of a truck and display on tables instead of bringing up my portable booth that I'd made.  A friend of mine, Bonnie, gave me hints and drawings on how I should display the cages so that it wasn't such a regimental and boring booth.  I purchased the items she asked me to, and headed North.
     The vendors I met were wonderful and very helpful.  It was obvious I was a 'newbie' and others were willing to help and give ideas.  Encouragement was plentiful.  I put pink and yellow shred paper on all the tables, wound Apple Blossom garlands around, wrapped empty boxes in pink and yellow paper, and arranged the cages in all of this.  I had an open design instead of having a table in the front, and with the cages on the stands, the colorful paper and accessories, it turned into an appealing booth.
     Plenty of folks dropped by to look and visit and walk down memory lane with cages previously owned by them or family members.  I had several purchases by workers at the show, several purchases of bird cage feeders, and I sold one bamboo cage.  I didn't sell any Hendryx despite the fact I didn't bring my high-end cages and dropped the other prices.
     It's hard to sell much when a vendor has only one product.  That is what I have.  I have things related to birds-wrought iron birds, cast iron bird finial, cards, book marks, porcelain figurines, but my main display is the cages from all ages from 1875 up to the 1960s.  I have "shabby chic" to "rusty rustic" to "WOW! is that in great condition".  No takers.
     I've decided that antique shows are not the venue for me.  Not to say that I am an expert after 2 shows, but I would have thought that I would have seen some real interest (and purchases) if this was the correct venue.  I've got to think of other ways to get the cages out and seen.
     I am enjoying the ones I have in my home and rearrange them often to get each into a better place of emphasis.  Right now I have 15 Hendryx cages in my living room.  They are tastefully displayed and no, I do not live in a mansion.  Just a two bedroom apartment.  But I have wonderful cages that I enjoy looking at.
     I believe I will add some pictures of cages I have for sale and see if there is any interest from this blog.  Bonnie, who gave me display hints, took 4 of my cages to a booth she has in an antique store here in Medford.  I just got a call from a woman I met at the Portland Expo offering me the opportunity to put 2-3 cages in a show she's in later this month, and then into a booth she has in Vancouver, WA.  Opportunities are knocking in answer to prayer and networking.  I look forward to sharing my treasures with those of like mind and interest.