Sunday, February 14, 2016

When Collecting and Connecting Creates Love

People can meet each other at any place and situation, never to know what relationship can develop from that one chance meeting. Though love is famously blind, and can spark between people of different interests, the love that grows between two collectors can be made especially strong by this common passion. The couple we'd like to introduce you to is just such a couple. Please welcome Mariola [eowyna] and Mirek [bacenty] :)

Mariola and Mirek, please introduce yourselves to the community!
My name is Mariola Chutkowska nee Pyka and my husband's name is Mirek Chutkowski. We are collectors from Poland. I am a court jury and a cosmetic consultant. Mirek works as a security officer.
We got married in 2002, but I decided to change my name on Colnect only a couple of months ago.


Kisses-St_Valentines_day-Lattelecom-Latvia
"Kisses", from the Colnect catalog

How and when did you meet? 
We met at the local collectibles fair in our town, Jastrzębie-Zdrój in the summer of 1998.

What do you collect and for how long?
I collect Polish phonecards, tea & coffee mugs, books and beer glasses. Also shoes and handbags.
Mirek collects worldwide phonecards, chipcards of all provenance, books, beer glasses (and some other beerophilia), as well as various collectibles related to the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant disaster.


http://colnect.com/postcards/postcard/47252-Bananas_Love-Humor-Russia 
"Bananas. Love", from the Colnect catalog 

Was there anything or anyone that inspired you to start your collection?
I was inspired by my late father who had collected stamps for years, also beer glasses. The albums are still at my mother's apartment in memory of him.

Do you have some favourite items in your collection?
Yes, there is the 1-liter volume beer mug of our collective favourite beer "TYSKIE" that was given to me by my father years ago.


http://colnect.com/stamps/stamp/590897-Valentines_Day-Together-Finland 
"Valentine's Day", from the Colnect catalog 

Do you have some favourite items in each other’s collections?
I like some phonecards from Mirek's collection. Especially the ones with flowers and landscapes.
Mirek likes my beer glass collection - our collections complement one another.

Do you have any other hobbies?
I like to embroider, love good books and music. I like movies too, but books are better.
Mirek likes to play billiards and is an amateur archer. He also reads lots of books and likes music.


"Symbol of Love", from the Colnect catalog
 
How do you store your collections?
We both use some kind of albums (like for business cards) A4 or something similar. Beer glasses are stored in a multi-shelved cupboard.

Do you exchange collectibles between two of you?
Not really, but sometimes we make each other some presents.


"I love you", from the Colnect catalog 

How did you get to be on Colnect?
Mirek found Colnect surfing the net and he liked it so much he registered the same day. Later he convinced me to join Colnect too.

What is your advice for collectors only starting the hobby?
We wish them to enrich their collections, to meet nice and helpful people, to swap a lot with other colnectors. And (of course) may the force be with them ;)



It is always great to find your soulmate that shares interests with you, whether it is art or politics, languages or video games, sports or puzzles. From Mariola and Mirek's example, we can see that not only can you collect collectibles, but also collect memories and experiences with each other.
Happy St. Valentine's Day! 
We hope each of you have an amazing significant other :)
May your home be full of love, laughter and happiness!

http://colnect.com/stamps/stamp/47870-Valentine-_Peace-Valentine-_Peace-Finland
"Valentine - Peace", from the Colnect catalog

Saturday, February 13, 2016

Marking 56,789+ Coins on Colnect!

Good news, Colnectors! Our Coins Catalog has increased significantly, and now you can see over 56,789 coins there.
To highlight the recently reached milestone, we can take a look at the new features of the catalog.
http://colnect.com/coins/coin/40059-5_Kwacha_Conservation_-_Kafue_Lechwe-1990~Today_-_African_Wildlife-Zambiahttp://colnect.com/coins/coin/40059-5_Kwacha_Conservation_-_Kafue_Lechwe-1990~Today_-_African_Wildlife-Zambia
"5 Kwacha (Conservation - Kafue Lechwe)", from the Colnect catalog

Some useful changes were implemented on Colnect since last year, when we reached 50,005 coins. These changes make the Coins Catalog easier to browse and edit. 
Most awaited feature for many coin collectors was Coin Year Variants.

http://colnect.com/coins/coin/9420-20_Cents-NZ05_-_20_Cents-New_Zealand 
"20 Cents", from the Colnect catalog

The possibility of Sorting By Face Value, Quick Year Change List and Improvements to the Collectors Comment System were also added.
Moreover, a couple of months back we saw Multi-value Fields 'joining the catalog', letting editors' work be more pleasant and less time-consuming. 
You can share your opinion of those features on the relevant forum threads.

In addition, some small changes, like Longer Item Names Approved, were brought to life. 
To follow any other small milestones of the Colnect Coin Catalog, make sure to subscribe to the Coin Collection and Numismatics forum
But for now, we would like to thank our category coordinators - Hernan Bofill, [hbofill12] and Angelo Parlo, [angelo13] for making the category so popular and diverse. Another big thank-you to all the contributors that made an impact on the catalog.

http://colnect.com/coins/coin/13247-20_Rubles_Kalyady-Festivals_and_rituals_of_Belarusians-Belarushttp://colnect.com/coins/coin/13247-20_Rubles_Kalyady-Festivals_and_rituals_of_Belarusians-Belarus 
"20 Rubles (Kalyady)", from the Colnect catalog 

Want to become a coin catalog contributor? Read How Can I Contribute to Colnect? page and the Catalog Contributor's Guide for Coins and start helping Colnect now!
 
Do you have a favourite coin in your collection?
Share with us in comments here!

Friday, January 15, 2016

99,999 Gift Cards on Colnect!

We have reached a new milestone  - 99.999 gift cards in the catalog! You cannot believe how diverse the category is. 

"Fruits", Lithuania, from the Colnect catalog

73 countries, 270 themes and 58 currencies - that's the Gift Cards Catalog! 1,300+ registered collectors have developed the catalog, making it one of the biggest categories on Colnect.

"Hannukah candlestick", Canada, from the Colnect catalog

We are incredibly grateful to the Category coordinator - Claude Martin [Claude]. Our catalog would not be as unique and as interesting, without your help.

"Pilipinas Eagle", Philippines, from the Colnect catalog

Additionally, many thanks to our dear category contributors for adding so much amazing content.

"Clef", France, from the Colnect catalog

And surely, we are thankful to editors for keeping everything in order - editors Dieter Siedel [jrds26], Eyüp Güçmen [kolleksiyon], Hans Meeuwisse [steamtrain], Irina Alferova [alfcard], Karl Heinz Degener [neizi] and others.

"Calendar", Japan, from the Colnect catalog

Our catalog constantly requires help from you, our dear collectors. Please take a look on The Contribution Guidelines and develop our community!

"KaDeWe Berlin", Germany, from the Colnect catalog

You are welcome to participate in our gift card collectors poll -  How often do you use gift cards?:)
"B&G Store", Turkey, from the Colnect catalog 

Happy Colnecting! :)

Thursday, January 7, 2016

66,666 Postcards on Colnect!

Is '666' considered a devilish number in your country? Today we're putting all our stereotypical thinking away to commemorate a nice milestone we've recently reached - 66,666 Postcards!

The Postcards catalog has been present on Colnect for roughly 6 years, so that's a lot of 6-s for one day, which is also the 6th of January of 2016! How crazy is that?


http://colnect.com/postcards/postcard/67325-Tokyo_Station-Tokyo_Night_View-Japan
"Tokyo Station", from the Colnect catalog

First off, we are sending a huge thank-you to the category co-coordinators, Vadym Sulimenko [Dravec] and Grzegorz Pająk [quarteris] for working hard on one of the most popular categories on Colnect! :) 


colnect.com/postcards/postcard/64540-Niue_Island_–_Polynesia-Landscapes-Niue
"Niue Island – Polynesia", from the Colnect catalog

Moreover, thank you to the translators that have made the postcards collecting available for 799 collectors from 70+ countries.

Another group of colnectors we are sending our regards to are editors, they have done an impressive work, keeping the category organised. 
"Tallinn. Spire of Town Hall with "Old Thomas" Weathercock", 
from the Colnect catalog
And, of course, the catalog would not be so diverse without the help of each and every one of contributorsThank you for every postcard added onto Colnect! The Postcards catalog is currently divided into countriesauthorsissuerscoloringsorientationsviewsyearsthemes and newly added.  
http://colnect.com/postcards/postcard/42479-Torshavn-Torshavn-Faroe_Islands
 "Torshavn", from the Colnect catalog
                         
The catalog currently includes postcards from 250+ countries. Check them out! Do you have a favourite postcard from your country? By the way, the country that the most postcards are from is Soviet Union! Here's an example:  

"Baikal. Lake in Winter", from the Colnect catalog

So, to sum up, we are really thrilled to see the category growing. We encourage you to study the How Can I Contribute? page to add more postcards, to edit information or to add missing photos/data. Note that many contributors on Colnect enjoy having a free Premium Membership simply by helping the community.
http://colnect.com/postcards/postcard/66874-Awaiting_the_days_catch-Mozambique
"Awaiting the day's catch", from the Colnect catalog 

 Thank you for being a Colnector! Let's make an even  bigger number of postcards!

Monday, January 4, 2016

Surprising Lego Facts


It wouldn’t surprise us if we see a stack of Lego sets at our friends’ places. Lego, the universal game, has become probably the most popular entertainment for children and adults. Various difficulty levels, numerous collections, different theme parks around the world and many more features make this game such a great investment as a collectible.
http://colnect.com/lego_sets/lego_set/2954-Spider_Monkey-Ben_10-Ben_10
Spider Monkey, from the Colnect catalog
Today we would like you to get familiar with some of the most impressive facts about Lego that you probably never heard of. Even if have heard those before, come and brush up your memory! :)
Let us know which fact gripped you the most in the comments below.

1. The Lego group got the patent rights for the standard brick in 1958. All 2x4 Lego bricks ever produced have been exactly the same.
2. Statistically, there are ~1140 elements made per second (!). 
 Small Pre-School Basic Set Minitalia, from the Colnect catalog
3. On average, every person has 83 Lego bricks. Crazy, no? 
4. Almost 28 Lego sets are sold each second during the Christmas season.
5. If you lay together all Lego bricks sold in a year, the line would stretch around the Earth 20+ times. 
6. The world's tallest Lego tower is 28.7m high (made from with 465,000 bricks).
http://colnect.com/lego_sets/lego_set/59-Sears_Tower-Architecture-Architecture 
Sears Tower, from the Colnect catalog
7. Willing to reach the Moon? You'd need a column of around 40 billion Lego bricks!

8. Since the first Lego minifigure was made in 1978, more than 4 billion have been manufactured – making it the largest population group in the world. In addition, every minifigure is exactly 4 bricks tall (without a hat).
http://colnect.com/lego_sets/lego_set/3975-Day_1_-_Minifigure_Drumstick-2008_Advent_Calender_-_City-Holiday 
Day 1 - Minifigure & Drumstick, from the Colnect catalog 
9. The exact number of combinations you can get from connecting 6 eight-stud bricks (2x4) is 915,103,765!

10. Currently there are Lego theme parks in Denmark, The UK, The USA, Germany and Malaysia. The construction work is still ongoing for new Lego theme parks in The UAE (opening 2016), South Korea and Japan.
LEGOLAND_Picture_Frame_-_Billund_Edition-Legoland
"LEGOLAND Picture Frame - Billund Edition", from the Colnect catalog
Colnect’s Lego sets catalog currently has more than 6.700 sets. To find out more about the history of the toy and our catalog, have a look at 80th Anniversary for the LEGO name post.

You are also welcome to participate in the Lego poll!


Thursday, December 31, 2015

Summing Up 2015

It is 31st of December and we are saying goodbye to 2015. How did it go for you? Colnect had an amazing and eventful year and we would like to share our memories with you.

2016-Gold_Series_2015-Starbucks-United_States_of_America
"2016", from the Colnect catalog


Colnect by the numbers

To begin with, it is important to note that we have reached several important milestones in 2015. For this, we'll let the numbers speak for themselves:

http://colnect.com/gift_cards/gift_card/102287-2016_year_of_the_Monkey-Christmas-Starbucks-China_Peoples_Republic
"2016 Year of the Monkey", from the Colnect catalog
Coins - 55,555+, Stamps - 538,538+,  
Bank Cards - 16,160+, Banknotes - 64,640+, 
Beer Coasters - 30,003+, Bottle Caps - 31,310+,  
Casino Cards - 1,180+, Drink Labels - 12,120+, 
Functional Cards - 16,160+, Gift Cards - 97,970+, Hotel Key Cards - 55,555+, Kids Meal Toys - 10,600+, Lego Sets - 6,700+, Lottery Tickets - 15,150+,
Paper Clips - 34,434+, Phonecards - 561,561+,
Pocket Calendars - 21,800+, Postcards - 65,656+,
Sports Cards - 26,626+, Stickers - 54,545+,
Sugar Packets - 35,535+, Tea Bags - 75,750+,
Tea Labels - 3,333+,  Tokens - 5,555+,
Trading Card Games - 52,525+, Transportation Tickets - 31,313+,  Video Games - 3,000+.


This year we also saw around 30.000 collectors joining our community and overall  
1,960,000+ items added to the catalogs, isn't it great?

Highlights of Colnect's life in 2015

This year, as every year, we have worked to make Colnect a better community for collectors, so it was our aim to implement numerous features and new designs. 
One of the biggest improvements was adding a Sales Forum, where you can trade your collectibles.   


http://colnect.com/stamps/stamp/573618-Happy_New_Year_booklet-Best_Wishes-France
"Happy New Year, booklet", from the Colnect catalog

colnect.com/pocket_calendars/pocket_calendar/13735-Happy_New_Year-Russia
"Happy New Year!", from the Colnect catalog



2015 was about anything from adding ancient coins to the catalog, re-designing category's main page, bettering navigation with a quick year change list, having a new Colnect Map to an opportunity of giving Premium Membership as a gift for the winter holidays. 

This year we have also carried out Colnect Growth Survey, where you commented on your Colnect experience. 



 
http://colnect.com/postcards/postcard/62708-Happy_New_Year-Greetings_cards-Soviet_Union_USSR
"Happy New Year!", from the Colnect catalog

Frognector and Colnect have their own VK pages now, and therefore we are welcoming more collectors from Russian-speaking countries. What is more, we are bringing more life to our Facebook and Twitter pages. 

Join our Social Media pages and be up-to-date with news from our community, as well as other interesting content all about collectibles! Keep an eye for any new changes on our Announcement Forum.

 

 

What to expect next year

Looking forward to 2016? We sure are! Next year you will see new categories adding, such as Holy Cards, ComicsBookmarks, Admission Tickets and more. Stay tuned to hear about new features being added as the new year unfolds, it will be totally worth it :)
 
http://colnect.com/sugar_packets/sugar_packet/36165-2016-Festivities-Spain
"2016", from the Colnect catalog


Finally, Colnect wishes all collectors a fruitful 2016! 
May it be filled with happiness, love, luck 
and unforgettable experiences! 
Thank you for being a part of Colnect's community! 

 Happy New Year and See You in 2016!

"Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year", from the Colnect catalog

Sunday, November 22, 2015

Welcome our brand new Sales Forum! :)

Hey, did you really want a sales-only forum on Colnect? Well, we do have it now! :)
Our Sales Forum has only been launched, but we have high expectations of it. Here you can post information about the items you want to sell, and, in addition, everyone can look through offered stuff to choose a new memorable collectible.

We already have a separate exchange forum for every category of collectibles (e.g. Notaphily, Casino Cards, Lottery Tickets and so on), as well as a General Exchange Forum, where you can find messages from many collectors that are willing to exchange their duplicates for something more meaningful.

Colnect's numerous forums are all about communication and experience exchange, so please don't hesitate and drop a line there. Your feedback is more than welcome, as we always seek to improve.

Please note that it is very important to read our guidelines before using this forum, though.

If you are not very familiar with the way our forums work, please look through New To Colnect Forums page.

See you on our new Sales Forum! Enjoy your experience there :)
Happy Colnecting!

Saturday, October 17, 2015

10.000+ Kids Meal Toys Reached!

It hasn't even been 2 years since Kids Meal Toys category was created, and now we are honored to announce that it has increased its size to more than 10.000 items! 
The catalog dates back to as early as 1974, and has a big variety of groups, brands and types of toys. 


"Ballet Dancer", Italy, from the Colnect catalog

We would like to thank our coordinator Jorge Jara [Zonnyc], who has been making an outstanding progress in developing the category and its catalog.  Also many thanks to Frens Bosman [Digger] and Hans Meeuwisse [steamtrain] for editing and contributing to the Kids Meal Toys catalog.

 "Chef", People's Republic of China, from the Colnect catalog

The category wouldn't be so successful without our precious translators Dino Delfar [dino92], Haard Mehta [Haard-Mehta], Petyo Shopov [PShopov] and [eleonxam].Thank you for making Colnect more international and accessible all over the world!



"Nounours, Nicolas, Pimprenelle, Oscar", France, from the Colnect catalog



We are grateful to every member of our community that has done their bit in the category's improvement. Now most of the items on the catalog have images and details about the origin and the type of the toy. It is not a secret that Kids Meal Toys are really different, so that makes the collecting process even more exciting and gripping.


"Snail", Italy, from the Colnect catalog

The Kids Meal Toys catalog currently includes 2.000+ toys available worldwide, as well as other toys from 19 countries. Interestingly enough, the Netherlands holds the highest number of toys.

"Simba and Nala", the Netherlands, from the Colnect catalog

Would like to join as a contributor on the Kids Meal Toys on Colnect? Please see our Catalog Contribution Guidelines page. Interested in helping on other categories? Start at our Contributor Guide help page.

Monday, August 10, 2015

22,222 Paper Clips Reached

Growing to 22,222 unique items in less than 20 months since its inception, becoming 11 times its original size, the Paper Clips catalog has proven itself to be a plentiful, varied and interesting collectible category on Colnect.

"Beemster electrotechniek bv" Netherlands paper clip, from the Colnect catalog
We would like to thank the category coordinator, Ton Bax [tontoos], who has been making great progress on the catalog, advancing it at a high rate and improving it. Thank you to Els Van Gastel [leeuwin], helping as an editor on the category and to the contributors of the category.

"Logo 4 coloursNetherlands paper clip, from the Colnect catalog
Founded by the initiative of Bruun01, the category has been supported by Colnect collectors from the very start. As such it was well constructed, an advantage that this catalog benefits from now as well. You can see the whole process on the original discussion.

"LogicaNetherlands paper clip, from the Colnect catalog 
The catalog boasts complete coverage of images, there is no clip left without a picture to showcase its advantages.
"Philips Vips" Netherlands paper clip, from the Colnect catalog
As Paper Clips come in different Styles of structure and different Models of form, they are a fun collectible to deal with, coming in many different shapes and manufacturing methods.

"van den Broek" Netherlands paper clip, from the Colnect catalog
The catalog displays clips from 70 different countries (!), covering the world far and wide from the Netherlands to Bahrain, from Puerto Rico to Finland, from France to Azerbaijan.

"Musée de la Création" Netherlands paper clip, from the Colnect catalog
Would like to join as a contributor on the Paper Clips on Colnect? Please see our Catalog Contribution Guidelines page. Interested in helping on other categories? Start at our Contributor Guide help page.
"Amstel hotel" Netherlands paper clip, from the Colnect catalog

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