Dear Lee,

It’s 2012, a new year and a time to look forward and backward at what’s happening in the world of collecting. We all know the economy has changed since 2008. And the changes have had conflicting effects on those who collect, buy or sell.

Many antique malls have closed, which I think is partly because a lot of malls were run by people who were not longtime antique buffs. They misunderstood our thinking. The ones that remain have attractive space, good service and great dealers.

The life of a dealer has changed. Many have given up stores and become either online sellers or “show only” dealers. Those who are changing their stock to match demand are doing well. There are fewer shows, but professional dealers are doing OK. Not as well as they did before 2008, though, when profits were higher and fads like limited edition plates resulted in quick sales.

Demand has changed. Some buyers want old standbys, like historic Staffordshire, spatterware or Victorian jewelry—true antiques more than 100 years old. But others look for “younger antiques,” like Eva Zeisel dinnerware, ’50s furniture or modernist silver jewelry. There are even shows that feature collectibles and decorative arts made since 1900.

Decorating has changed. Mix-and-match is in style for everything from dishes to chair sets. “Comfortable” and “unique” is the goal, rather than “highly decorative” and “romantic.” Decorators search for special pieces for clients. But almost no one is buying average “brown furniture” like period Chippendale desks or round oak dining room tables.

Then there is the part of the collecting world that makes headlines: Record prices for paintings, usually 19th- or 20th-century, not Old Masters. Designer fashions and accessories, like Hermès handbags. New categories like “outsider art,” the unfamiliar work of untrained artists. Plus rare toys and mechanical banks, old advertising and posters, early cans and boxes, and historic flasks, which are really just old whiskey bottles.

But the biggest change is the way we buy. Almost all auctions are now accessible to online and on-land bidders, so the marketplace is the “world” instead of your community or even your state. Many of us who are over 50 are still uncomfortable buying something we cannot touch, but younger shoppers are buying everything from pills to pants online, so buying antiques that way is OK, too.

There are fewer new printed books and magazines to use as references, but millions of new sources of information are on the Internet. Are the changes good? Will collectors find a way to save music when CDs disappear? Will we want great art projected on the wall, not chosen and carefully hung? Whatever happens, I predict that there will always be collectors, dealers and some kind of auctions—because collecting is in the genes. It’s part of us and will always “find a way.” Happy New Year and Happy Collecting!