~ King Hoppel
Description
Hello. I am not what you would consider a traditional "collector", but I rather assemble Carnival Glass in a wide variety of worth, country of origin and availability and offer it for sale to traditional collectors and, increasingly, to the casual buyer in hopes of creating a new collector.
When I first started collecting, my mentors were the individuals like David Doty, Mike Carwile, Bill Edwards, Carl Burns, James Measell, Bill Heacock and all others who had taken the time to assemble what was known about Carnival Glass, added photos to bring their text to life, and then made it accessible to the average Joe like me wondering what it was that he had just purchased at the Antique Shop.
Their reference material was and is invaluable. When I moved to Portland, Oregon, I met and became friends with Kris & Deb Remmen. They afforded me the opportunity to see more pieces of Carnival Glass than I expected to see in one lifetime, to work with them and to pick their brains about Carnival Glass, collectible glass, auctioneering, and photography.
Kris was a master at portraying Carnival Glass at its best, both with his photo lighting and through his unique cleaning methods. He also had a keen insight into what motivated buyers and how important presentation was to good sales. A treasure trove of information, both factual and anecdotal, disappeared when we lost Kris Remmen.
While Kris & Deb were significant influences for me, I really consider anyone a mentor, who is willing to share information about Carnival Glass. That is especially true of the members of the Pacific Northwest Carnival Glass Club, the Thistlewoods, the Frys, and certainly Ms. Christina Katsikas, creator of Carnival Glass Showcase.
~ King Hoppel
