One of a Kind - Not One of a Million - Reminiscing of past Christmas Holidays brings us such joy and all of all our special decorations, lovely holiday dishes and most of all - our treasured Family Christmas Traditions add to the celebration. This is the time of year when we re-discover our Christmas Jewelry too, which also brings back wonderful memories.

Almost all of us have, at one time or another, sent or received a Christmas card. These printed holiday greetings are a mainstay of the Christmas season in the United States and many other countries around the world. But did you ever stop to wonder how this tradition got started? Who sent the first Christmas card?

QUESTION: I have a breakfast set consisting of six cups and saucers, six cereal bowls, 6 plates, and a creamer and sugar. The color transfers feature a pair of Dutch children walking atop a dike with a canal and windmills in the background. The plates are marked “ZELL” on the bottom. An Iowa grandma collected them and believes they were made in the mid-1920s in Germany. I have looked and looked for years in an attempt to find additional pieces but without success. What is my breakfast set worth? – AW, Modesto, CA

Autumn is a great time to get out and visit your favorite antique mall, flea market or local estate sale. For those that like antiquing, this is a favorite Fall past-time. But, if you've never had an interest in antiquing let me give you a few reasons why this is fun, economical, and a great way to recycle.

Hi Jewels, just want to warn you about a very deceitful practice in the antique watch industry concerning the marking of watch cases as "14K" gold. The best way to do this is through images. Take a peek at these two watches, I will show you the watch first, and then the mark.

Waltham hunting case ladies watch:

Few garnishes are needed to compliment the Holiday bird when artfully displayed on a beautiful platter.

Ruby Lane Customer Care & Share: Think like a 4 year old!

1. How do you put a giraffe into a refrigerator?

The correct answer is: Open the refrigerator, put in the giraffe,and close the door.

This question tests whether you tend to do simple things in an overly complicated way.

Wednesday, December 3, 2008 --San Francisco-- As retailers impatiently wait to see how the economy will affect their holiday sales, savvy online retail mall Rubylane.com, who began to implement several proactive strategies in early 2008, is watching the rewards of their efforts materialize.

Cyber Monday (December 1, 2008) recorded the highest traffic day in the 10-year history of Ruby Lane. Sunday, November 30th saw the second highest online traffic for the site.

According to revised online retail statistics, online sales will peak somewhere between December 12-22nd.

To help with holiday sales and to bring our 10-year anniversary celebration to a successful close, we are pleased to offer Ruby Lane shops a free listing day in December.

Free Listing Day is December 9, 2008.

==================================================
Beginning at 12:01am PST on Tuesday, December 9th, add as many items to your shop as you would like. That’s right, listing is free on December 9th up until 11:59pm PST.

The first red flag is a booth in which objects are not priced. I have no desire to be “sized up” based on what a dealer thinks is my potential to pay. A marked or listed price is the dealer’s offer to sell. I have no respect for dealers who hide behind a “verbal” price. If the price is not on a sticker or tag, I walk away.