Whether you are a serious collector or just enjoy antiquing for fun on the weekends, you will probably hear the words vintage and antique over and over. They are often used interchangeably when people refer to older items or collectibles, but are they really the same? There are clear distinctions between the two.

What is considered vintage? The standard here is that a vintage item is most commonly considered to be 20 years old or older. Although most people use the standard of 20 this is often a matter for debate. Some people say an item needs to be either 30 or 50 years old to be considered vintage. Generally speaking, this term is used for things between 20 and 100 years old. People say the term vintage was originally derived from the dating of a bottle of wine, where the vintage date, or the date the grapes were grown, gives some added information about the value of the wine. Over time, the term has evolved to describe various types of old and out-of-date items, such as vintage clothes, vintage guitars, vintage toys, etc. As time goes by more and more things become vintage and possibly collectible. In keeping with its original intent with wine, when describing vintage items it is best to refer to the year or era that the item is from, for instance "vintage 1965." The word "Circa" can also be used when describing items. It is appropriate to say "circa 1965". Circa in this context usually means around or roughly 1965.

What is considered antique? This definition is easier. Items can't just be old to be considered antique, there is a minimum specific timeframe that must be adhered to. Nearly everyone agrees that an item must be at least 100 years old or older to fall into the antique category. In fact, U.S. Customs set their own legal definition of an antique as being older than 100 years. U.S. Customs takes their definition further by adding a quality standard that states that while it is acceptable to repair or restore an antique item, it must retain its original character and be less than 50 percent restored to qualify as antique. Though the guidelines are fairly clear, this term is still often used incorrectly. People will say "antique records" when the records were made in the 1940's. These should be described as "vintage 1940's records."

It doesn't matter to me what you call them though! Have things to sell? I buy many types of vintage and antique collectibles in the Santa Cruz County, CA area. Contact me if you have antique or vintage collectible items you would like to sell.