Creative director/editor/stylist Fritz Karch‘s official bio begins:“he became an active collector at age eleven and has always been an ardent believer in the benefits and pleasures of hunting and gathering.”

Many years ago, Karch threw a dinner party in his tiny studio apartment to which I was lucky enough to be invited. A beautiful table was set by the huge window. To get to it, guests had to walk through a path of AMAZING THINGS: chairs stacked with interesting bowls, tin ware, boxes, books, rocks, primitive paintings…all of them wondrous. Since that evening, Fritz, who helped create the Collecting Department at Martha Stewart Living Magazine, has continued to open my eyes to the endless possibilities, joy and meaning of collecting.

Recently,Fritz collaborated with Rebecca Robertson on Collected: Living with the Things You Love, a tour of fantastic, often eccentric collections around the world, and an entry IN.

The book will make you look differently at the most ordinary objects. Who knew that used teabags could be so compelling?

…or “Found Disks Collected in NYC”, a display at one of Collected’s launch parties…

…or that feathers or hangers could make such lovely displays?

…

Dig the tin foil sphere in this collection of “Mystery Items”, featured at Collected’s book launch:

The book is organized into 15 collecting personalities: Modest-ist, Exceptionalist, Minimalist, Maximalist, Miniaturist, Colorist, Neutralist, Machinist, Zoologist, Containerist, Artificialist, Naturalist, Seasonalist, Pragmatist and Fantasist. When asked in an interview with SFGATE “Which one are you?“, Karch responded:

What personality am I? Actually, truth be told, all 15 except for the Minimalist.

 

He had some sage advice for a Minimalist who lives with a Maximalist, and vice versa, that addresses the worries of “clutter-o-phobes”:

Negotiate and compromise. Give each type a personal space: a closet or entire room designated for the Maximalist. All communal spaces should be calm and clear.