It all started because I’d signed a lease on a shop and needed coffee cups – fast. Selling coffee wasn’t part of the original plan, you see. Originally, I was going to open a shop in my home town and I wouldn’t have sold coffee there – I wouldn’t have been able to face the owners of my local café! But when I ended up signing a lease on a shop in a different town, it became a possibility. But because I hadn’t planned on it, I hadn’t been collecting for it. The very next Saturday, however, while I was in Watsonia, I found a box of assorted amber cups and saucers in an op shop for $6. They’ll do, I thought, until I manage to find something else. But then my reconditioned espresso machine was delivered, and it turned out to be maroon. I loved the look of the amber against the maroon, so I decided to stick with the amber coffee cups. And it has since inspired me to start collecting and stocking other pieces of amber glass. After all, I've always wanted to be a collector. Of something.