Where to even start this post… I know that Rae Dunn is all the rage right now. Most people have caught on to the trend, but there are a few lucky ones who have not. My whole life I have always been a collector of something. For instance, Holiday Barbies and their matching ornaments. Boxes and boxes and boxes of Barbies never opened. I have carried on that tradition with Covington, so every year Santa brings her a Barbie. Anyway, I’ve never taken a “collecting” hobby so seriously. It has definitely gotten worse over probably the last year and a half. Instagram and all of the pretty farm house accounts have made the addiction spread like wild fire. And yes, it is a full fledged addiction.

I’ll start with a few of commonly asked questions I get:

1. When and why did you start collecting? August/September of 2014 I started collecting. I only know that because the first few items I ever got were Halloween. My mom sent me a picture of some mugs from Home Goods Instagram account that were so cute and she had tried to find everywhere. I bought the black boo mug, the spooky mug, and boo ovals. I remember leaving ovals on the shelf because I thought I didn’t need many of the same type plate. IDIOT! Which leads me to my next question…
2. What is your favorite piece? Definitely those first couple of Halloween items. Those mugs and ovals are one of the top most wanted items to most collectors. I have seen a $4 Boo mug sell for over $100. Also, my Hocus Pocus and Witches Brew Bowls.
3. Why do some things not have Rae Dunn on the bottom? Older items are marked with a M for Magenta. I’m not sure when they started actually putting her name, but I’ve got a lot of stuff that has the M on the bottom.
4. How much does everything retail for? Obviously, everything is different but everything is pretty cheap. Since the popularity spike most things have gone up a few dollars. The most popular item, mugs,  are $5 or $6 a piece.
5. Where do you find it? Home Goods, Marshalls and T.J.MAX. Her boutique line is carried at “boutiques” . I mainly only collect the large letter line which are sold at those three stores.
6. These items are hard to find, how do you find them? I do not find like I used to. My mom also collects so we help each other. Enlisting a friend to help or joining a local Facebook group would be super helpful! I seriously used to find stuff and leave it for my next trip because I didn’t see the need to buy everything at once. You can’t do that anymore. If there are one or 100 items on the shelf they will be gone as soon as they are put out. Soooo many people buy to resell them. I have realized that a lot of it is pure luck. Being there at opening sometimes helps, but it’s usually being there at the right time.
7. How many items do you own? Truth be told, I do NOT know and I’m scared to count. I do NOT own duplicates of anything! I really don’t want my husband reading this haha. But, I’ll give an estimate of when I last counted. Mugs- Over 60; Canisters-10; Human Bowls-20; Platters-6; Ovals-5; Planters-3; Spoon Rests-3; Cheese Boards-3; Cake; Loaf pans-3; Tea Pot; Butter; ok…. this is sounding pretty bad and I have a lot more that I cant even think of…
8. Are you still hunting for more? Really, new stuff comes out all the time so I can’t say no. I truthfully need a Big and a little Sugar and I can be happy with my collection. I can’t for the life of me find either. Other than those and a few Holiday things, I’m tapped out. I have NO room for anything else, especially mugs.
9. Do you use your RD? Yes! I have used every single piece except for my Teapot. I’m not purposely not using it, I just use the same pink one I always have.
10. What is your craziest encounter while shopping for RD? Apart from literally sprinting into a store for an opening, (hello Lilly for Target) it happened recently and is what made me want to write this post. I’ll start with the store opening which wasn’t crazy just exciting. I have been to one store opening, like a brand new store opening for the first time. Store opened at 8:00 am I believe, and my friend and I were there a little before 5. Most people came 30 minutes before opening I’d say, and were super mad that we were able to have pick of the liter and get what we wanted. I say fair game. If you want that privilege… be there at 5 am (: People are cray cray about this y’all. So… here comes the cray one.  I happened to be out close to a Marshalls around opening time, so I decided to go. About 15 until opening I walked up to the front of the store where stood an older gentleman, around 80 years old… and another elderly woman. These two both had shopping carts lined up at the door, and I thought to myself that surely that’s not what they were there for. WRONG. I did find out that they were not together though. So… the doors open and the old man, that could hardly walk, starts trucking it to the back of the store behind an employee that I over heard say to him, “Follow me I’ll show you where it all is.” I follow him and the other lady that was in front of me to that back. He is on the end of an isle throwing everything in his cart, and blocks us with his cart. The lady in front of me told him that he could not block us could he please move his cart. After he didn’t, she moved it for him.. he then started screaming at her to not steal his cart. There wasn’t much I wanted but I finagled my way around him and got a few plates for my mom and me. He grabbed two of the same Christmas canisters, so I asked him if he needed two of the same or if he would share. He went on to tell me how he looks for his daughter blah blah don’t they all say that?! At this point I was over it so while carrying Covington in one hand and few plates in the other, I started walking towards the front to check the mugs. I guess this old dude thought I saw something and he full fledge threw his cart in front of me, the pregnant woman carrying a 3 year old, and started sprinting towards the front. I could not make this up lol. Jokes on him because there was nothing, but seriously. Having to outrun and 80 year old man has made me step back and say this is not for me.

I was into this before it was crazy popular. All these loony people are trying to ruin it for everyone. I only look when I go to a store. I don’t make special trips and I just never expect to find anything. I still get excited to find new pieces and I love everything I have, so until the day comes when I’m over it…I won’t stop. My advice to everyone… don’t start!!