December's snows are still upon the ground, we've just experienced one of the coldest Januarys on record here in New England, and now it's snowing AGAIN. I feel as though I'm living in a snow globe.

So, why would I want to write about globes?

First, because they're fun. Just about everyone has had the pleasure of shaking a globe over and over again, watching the "snow" fall. (If you have a somewhat sadistic streak and would like to see little animated people careening around inside an animated globe, try http://ww10.e-tractions.com/snowglobe/globe.htm. It's a scream!)

Second, they're an "easy" collectible. They're everywhere; they're affordable; they display nicely; they're popular. Also known as snowdomes, waterballs, and snow scenes, globes are collected around the globe. Tourists pick them up at every destination. Some collectors browse department stores and gift shops for elaborate affairs of glass, ceramic, or wood, while others derive pleasure in the kitschy plastic domes found at drug stores and gas stations. There's even at least one Internet site that will preserve "the ashes of your departed loved one...in their personal globe" http://www.bullworks.net/invest/globe.htm. (As author and collector Nancy McMichael has noted, snow globes can be categorized as "the Good, the Bad and the Tacky. And the Truly Tacky" http://www.sacbee.com/24hour/home_garden/story/1105392p-7732104c.html).

Third, sheer variety. From one the earliest known globes, an 1889 French Exposition souvenir of the Eiffel Tower, up to the present, there are globes to satisfy almost any acquisitive interest. Australian collector Ian Gordon has said that globes are collected "because they're not as flat as stamps" http://www.sympac.com.au/~redunion/business.htm, but they certainly rival stamps in their variety. There are political, geographic, and historical globes. There are character, figural, and advertising globes. Flora, fauna, planes, trains, and automobiles-you name the subject and you'll probably find a plethora of globes. This, of course, allows globe collectors to concentrate on particular themes. It also affords individuals interested in particular subjects to buy globes as "cross collectibles." Thus, for example, a collector of all things related to Lord of the Rings will find globes of Ringwraiths, Frodo, Gollum, Galadriel, etc., while someone who collects Barbies will find dozens of Barbie globes, both musical and non-musical.

As with any collectible, condition counts, but don't throw away that broken piece. Globes can be repaired http://redding.com/currents/feature/stories/20040109cu062.shtml or http://home.earthlink.net/~hrabbin/index.html. If you'd like to try repairs yourself, or even make your own snow globe, you may be able to purchase the necessary supplies through your local hobby shop, or try http://www.nationalartcraft.com/group6.htm.

For more information on the world of snow globes:
"Snow Biz" - The Newsletter for Snowdome Collectors - Nancy McMichael, P.O. Box 53262, Washington, D.C. 20009 - write for subscription rate

Books:
Snow Globes: The Collector's Guide to Selecting, Displaying, and Restoring Snow Globes, by Connie A. Moore, Harry L. Rinker
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1577150775/auctionbytescom

Collectible Snowdomes
by Lelie Carnot (Author), et al http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/2080108891/auctionbytescom

Snowdomes (Recollectibles)
by Nancy McMichael
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1558590366/auctionbytescom

Web sites:
http://toyscollectibles.allinfo-about.com/features/snowglobes.htm
All Info About (Toys/Collectibles): interesting links to sites on the "Snowdome Ring"