Fabulous thread.....and I am quite excited about the news of the Elgin building.....I live in California, but spend my winters here in St. Joseph, Mi, which is straight across Lake Michigan from Chicago, it's about 60 miles away, you can see the city on clear days and night .....
But a field trip to Elgin ! we have just put it on our list of things to do next year.....and as it happens I am a big fan of Elgin watches ........
.....And I am saddened by the old photos of those magnificent buildings as they fall into metal scraps......I am a huge fan of "Top Gear", the UK version, and the 3 guys were each driving a fine old English sports car around England, and at the end of the show, they went to each of the former factories of those cars, ....just as sad.....After WW2, the English were known for their fine sports cars.....
.....and most of my experience has been with antique furniture.....I have been in that field for more than 30 years.....and I have had hundreds of pieces pass through my hands, ususally needing some help of one kind or another.....but you can re-finish the old stuff, it's made of WOOD ! ....they can be structurally fixed, and cosmetically re-done.....(although, with the genuine antique stuff, get a professional opinion as to whether or not that's a good idea)
....But a piece of any furniture made of wood, whether it's veneered over hard or soft woods, or solid wood of any of the vast variety of woods they used....is going to last....just like our beautiful watches do......
.....ever tried to re-glue a piece of furniture from a place like Ikea ???? ah no, can't do it, glue doesn't stick to glue, and that stuff is made from sawdust and glue mixed up and formed into "furniture like" pieces.....
and like watches, there are some boutique furniture people, and lucky for us there are still a few furniture companies that make real wood furniture.....expensive.. true....
.....and can't help but say here, if you need a piece of furniture, go to a second hand store, or an antique store, you will get a lot better quality for less money....and any member who goes that route can PM me for directions on how to re-finish it!
....sorry about this, got carried away, but as a creative person, whose greatest joy is in making stuff, I am a "arts and crafts movement" thinker, and the joy in creating items of beauty and usefulness, and/or restoring them to their orginal beauty from a watch to a house is quite fulfilling, .... It's so very sad that the aquisition and amassing of consumer goods till the house bulges is the American way of life these days.....
....Not that I'll give up my laptop mind you !