Our annual "Valentine Chat" takes a new form this year, as a special "Valentine Exchange". For twenty-four hours, from 5 PM on February 13th Pacific Time, until 5 PM on Valentine's Day, February 14th -- stop at the Ebay Valentine Exchange to send your special greetings of love and romance. Photographs, cards, any expression of your creativity -- are encouraged... make this your Valentine destination! This site will be visible around the world, so plan to send notes to anyone on the planet!!

It will be my pleasure to make an online visit with eBay at noon on Valentine's Day, Pacific Time -- that's 3:00 in the afternoon Eastern Time! I will be happy to answer any Valentine questions. Think hearts and chocolate, balloons and flowers -- make this a special place and don't forget -- this is Leap Year! Ladies are invited to propose ALL YEAR LONG!!

Happy Valentine's Day!

Welcome message at the Valentine Exchange:

Welcome to the Valentine Exchange! arlene@ebay.com View Listings | Report       Feb-07-08 15:17 PST

Hi everyone. I'm Arlene, an eBay Senior Editor. For the past 8 years, I've had the pleasure of hosting "Valentine Chat" with special guest Nancy Rosin, vice president of the National Valentine Collectors' Association. This year, YOU are our special guest! You'll be able to surprise your favorite buyer, seller, or other eBay friend with a valentine poem, picture, or heartfelt words of appreciation. And guess what? Nancy will be stopping by to check out your cards and creativity.

The Valentine Exchange will be open 24 hours - February 13, 5 p.m. Pacific Time, through February 14, 5 p.m. Pacific Time - so people around the world can join the fun.

Hope 2 C U here!

On January 31, 2008 I spoke about my forty years of collecting before the Ephemera Society, the Printing History Society, and the Friends of St. Bride's, at St Bride Library in London, England, the foremost printing history library in the world. Here is the beautiful advertising card prepared for the talk. See the Library's page about the event, "A tribute to love: five centuries of heartfelt design".

See the January 2007 issue of Victoriana.Com - The Victorian Era Online -- and read Nancy's beautifully illustrated articles for Victoriana for free online. Don't miss another article, in the February 2007 issue, which will be all about VALENTINES!

I am pleased to announce that I am participating in the wonderful craft classes being presented at New York City's famous Tinsel Trading Company, a virtual treasure trove of unique vintage trims, inspiring extraordinary creativity. The store is an explosion of magic and is an experience in itself! You may email me or email Tinsel Trading Company directly. Class size is limited, so that everyone will have an individualized and memorable experience. The shop is conveniently located in the heart of the Garment District. Information on past classes is also available.

Valentine's For a Day class (information from the site)

Nancy Rosin, a national authority on Valentines, has shown some of her fabulous collection on television on Martha Stewart Living, Treasures in Your Home, and The Incurable Collector. She will share her passion and show some of her cherished collection at this special event. Learn about the history and enchantment of these incomparable treasures, view actual examples from the 18th to 21st centuries.

After show & tell, inspired by these Victorian valentines, you will create your own heart-stopping and sensational card.

Love will certainly be in the air when Cupid delivers your spectacular handmade creations.

Saturday, January 20
1:00 - 3:30pm
$50.00 materials included

Images of St. Nicholas from the Nancy Rosin Collection have been chosen by the Philatelic Bureau of the nation of Gibraltar for a series of national stamps of Gibraltar for Christmas 2006, our second year! The beautiful designs are available from the Philatelic Bureau in various sets, see the website. Here is a high resolution view too!

It is an honor to be presenting a program at New York's prestigious American Museum of Folk Art, on Wednesday, February 21, 2007. If you are in the area, I hope you will join me for a unique experience. I am thrilled to be able to bring Valentines into mainstream art -- were they belong!

The date has been set for our annual eBay chat! The date is Monday, February 5, 2007 at 11:00 a.m. PST (that's 2:00 p.m. EST). This year is going to be special, see eBay for more information!

   Nancy Rosin will be hosting a one hour live chat on the Decorative & Holiday Discussion Board on auction site www.eBay.com, to be held on Monday, February 6, 2006, at 2 p.m. Pacific Standard Time (5:00 p.m. on the East Coast).
   This popular chat is our seventh on eBay and their longest running chat. In it you will find information on the history of Valentine's Day and valentines themselves, posted images, and one-on-one conversations. Come ask any questions you may have and join in the conversation!

   How to get to the chat:

2006 Valentines's Day Chat (may not be available until chat starts)
Decorative & Holiday Discussion Board

   Related links:

Ebay.com's chat magazine, The Chatter
Meet Arlene Brenner, a Senior Content Manager at eBay, who runs the annual Valentine's Day Chat.
Last year's chat (archived on EBay from Feb. 2005)

   Invitation message from eBay:

*** Valentine Chat 2006 With Nancy Rosin ***
arlene AT ebay.com
*** Valentine Chat ***

Hi everyone,

I am Arlene, an eBay Senior Content Manager, and I'd like to invite you to eBay's 7th annual Valentine Chat with special guest Nancy Rosin. The chat will be held Monday, February 6, from 2:00 to 3:00 PM PST.

Nancy is the vice president of the National Valentine Collector's Association and she is on the Board of Directors of The Ephemera Society of America. She has thousands of valentines that she's been accumulating for more than 30 years. Nancy's expertise includes:

• Guest starring on A&E's "Incurable Collector" and the Martha Stewart Living TV show
• Authoring five books
• Producing a documentary that traces the valentine's evolution over 17 centuries

I hope you can join us for this delightful "heart-to-heart" discussion!

Arlene

Over the past year, I have had the pleasure of working with Sterling/Chapelle Publishers, in creating five books! Four are part of a series called Memories of a Lifetime, the fifth is from a series called Instant Memories.

Using items from my personal collection of ephemera, the books cover the subjects, Love, Angels and Fairies, Christmas, Birds and Butterflies, and Vintage Labels from a Lady's Dressing Table. Complete with projects to make, and a CD-ROM so you can use the images on your computer, they are a 21st century resource for crafting and scrapbooking, in all its forms.

The images are versatile, and unique. I do hope you will look for them on the internet or in your local stores, or find them on Amazon.com.

I am pleased to announce that I am participating in the wonderful craft classes being presented at New York City's famous Tinsel Trading Company. Marcia Ceppos' establishment, begun by her grandfather more than 75 years ago, remains a virtual treasure trove of unique vintage trims, inspiring extraordinary creativity. The store is an explosion of magic and is an experience in itself! Listed below are the details for the Christmas and Valentine classes. You may email me or email Tinsel Trading Company directly. Class size is limited, so that everyone will have an individualized and memorable experience. The shop is conveniently located in the heart of the Garment District. Click here for more information about the classes for Christmas craft (in November) and Valentines (in January).

Images of angels from the Nancy Rosin collection have been chosen by the Gibraltar Philatelic Bureau for a series of national stamps of Gibraltar for Christmas 2005! The beautiful designs are available from the Philatelic Bureau in six different sets, for 18 months from their issue.

Click on the following link to view an article at Martha Stewart Living, entitled Collecting Valentines with Nancy!

   UPDATE: Due to technical problems at eBay, the chat began late -- if you missed it, please check the eBay Archives for the entire event. Anyone with questions should not hesitate to email me personally.

   Nancy Rosin will be hosting a one hour live chat on the Decorative & Holiday Discussion Board auction site Ebay.com on Feb. 3, 2005, from 5:00 to 6:00 p.m. Pacific Standard Time (8:00 to 9:00 p.m. Eastern Standard Time).
   Also why not read "The Object of Their Affection is Valentines", an article on eBay Life from 1999 about valentines and their collectors, with words from Nancy Rosin.
   Last year's chat (archived on EBay from Feb. 2004) is here (click "All Msg" button)

Here is eBay's announcement and a message from Nancy from the above page.

*** Valentine Chat ****

Please join us for a Valentine Chat on Thursday, February 3rd, from 1700 PST to 1800 PST. Nancy Rosin, vice president of the National Valentine Collector's Association will be here for eBay's longest running yearly holiday feature to answer your questions about current and vintage valentines, and general ephemera (paper collectibles).

For more than 26 years, valentines have been a passion for Nancy. She has been featured on A&E's "Incurable Collector" and on the Martha Stuart Living TV show. She has authored numerous articles on valentine collecting and has produced a documentary that traces the valentine's evolution over 17 centuries!

We hope you will enjoy this light-hearted discussion!

Regards,

eBay

From Nancy:
01/28/05 04:24 PM(#1 of 3)
***************Hi Everyone!**************

Please join me next Thursday at five PST (eight EST) for our annual Valentine Chat! This is a great opportunity for old friends, and new friends, to share a common interest, ask questions, and learn about the fascinating area of collecting! Since eBay is such a great resource for the materials, it is also a great place to meet and chat about all kinds of Valentines, as well as collecting, preserving, and the ways people celebrate the "Day for Love".

So, please bookmark this site, mark your calendar, and meet here next Thursday for a very special hour!

Happy Valentine's Day,

Nancy

   Nancy Rosin will be hosting a one hour live chat on the Decorative & Holiday Discussion Board auction site Ebay.com on Feb. 4, 2004, from 5:00 to 6:00 p.m. Pacific Standard Time (8:00 to 9:00 p.m. EST).
   Also why not read "The Object of Their Affection is Valentines", an article on eBay Life from 1999 about valentines and their collectors, with words from Nancy Rosin.

See Antique Handmade Valentines featured on the Martha Stewart Living television show! The show will be broadcast February 13, 2003 - the day before Valentine's Day - on CBS at 9:00 am EST. In California it should be at 9:00 am as well; please check your local TV listings here.

Tune in to the Live Chat on eBay with their Valentine Expert, Nancy Rosin: Monday, February 3, 2003 at 8:00 pm EST (5:00 pm PST).
   Nancy Rosin will be hosting a Valentine Chat for one hour on the Decorative and Holiday Board. To get there, first go to eBay.com, click "Community", then "Talk", "Discussion Boards" in the Navigation Bar. You'll find the link to the threaded Decorative & Holiday Board on the right side of the page. Or, just click here!
   Also why not read "The Object of Their Affection is Valentines", an article on eBay Life from 1999 about valentines and their collectors, with words from Nancy Rosin.
   From the eBay announcement..

"Nancy Rosin.. will be answering all of your questions about valentines and general ephemera (paper collectibles).. For more than 25 years, valentines have been a passion for Nancy. She has sought examples of every kind of valentine that ever existed, and in the process, uncovered the valentine's history. She recently produced a video documentary that traces the valentine's evolution over 17 centuries! We hope you will join us for a lighthearted discussion of valentines!"

Watch The Incurable Collector (an A & E Network show), with a segment on Nancy Rosin's Valentines on Saturday, January 18, 2003 from 12:00 Noon to 1:00 p.m. EST. From the TV Listing: "..We examine Nancy Rosin's collection of 6,000 vintage valentines.." Be sure to check the time in your area.

Collectors should also look for the Winter issue of Firstcuts, the magazine of the Guild of American Papercutters, for a Valentine article by Nancy Rosin. (Scanned version here.) From the Firstcut homepage: "Youthful Valentines and Gifts from the Heart -- An indepth look at historical Valentines from young cutters and the place of papercutting in Friedrich Froebel's (Germany, 1830's) teaching concepts by Valentine historian, Nancy Rosin."

Also for collectors, an article by Nancy Rosin is featured in the February issue of Ephemera News, the journal of the Ephemera Society of America. A scanned copy is available in our Library.

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