Brookfield/Elm Grove Monthly

Page 4A • Freeman Brookfield & Elm Grove OCTOBER 2016 www.consolidateddoors.com GARAGE DOORS Sales & Service DISTRIBUTOR FOR THE FOLLOWING BRANDS Visit our Showroom & See It Work! Consolidated Doors SAME DAY SERVICE - 7 DAYS A WEEK Serving SE Wisconsin Over 50 Years - Fully Bonded & Insured West Bend 1327 S. Main St. 262-334-8008 Across the street from Kohl's Dept. Store Milwaukee 11709 W. Dixon St. 414-453-8448 Waukesha 2111 S. West Ave. #56 262-542-9099 Also available on other models: 9200, GD2SP, GD2SU SAVE UP TO 50% OFF SEPT 19 THRU NOV 17, 2016 Window Sale for your Garage Door Clopay Model 4300 16x7 $949 SSB Windows $120 $1069 SAVE $120 Model 8355 - 7' LiftMaster OPENERS 2 Transmitters/Keyless Buy a door & operator, Take $30 OFF operator Installed for........... Model 8365 - 7' 2 Transmitters/Keyless Buy a door & operator, Take $30 OFF operator Installed for.............. LiftMaster $359 (reg. $369) $329 (reg. $339) LiftMaster 2 5 2 1 0 5 0 0 6 An exceptional juried craft fair and arts sale with 180 exhibitors! *Great Holiday Shopping *Delicious food & desserts! Sunday, November 13 10am~4pm B R O O K F I E L D E A S T H I G H S C H O O L F R I E N D S O F F I N E A R T S 41st Annual Admission ONLY $4 – N0 Strollers Allowed – Brookfield East High School 3305 North Lilly Road, Brookfield, WI Proceeds benefit BEHS Fine Arts Programs For more info, visit our website www.brookfieldeastffa.com 252054002 Mourning jewelry's value a reason to celebrate Q.: This pin was hidden in an attic and discovered when the homestead was being cleaned out. Please tell us about it. — Eugene, Oconomowoc A.: During the middle to late 19th century, less expensive jewelry was pro- vided by the rapid develop- ment of a worldwide jewel- ry industry. One mass pro- duction technique was electroplating, allowing a thin layer of gold or silver to be deposited over a layer of base, lesser quality, metal. This mechanical bonding forever changed how and why jewelry was sold. Great numbers of pieces, using nearly every type of material — both real and imitation — were manufactured. Countless designs were patented and jewelry became an ornate mixture of assembled alloys and combination of elements. This "mourning jewelry" brooch has a blending of Etruscan Revival and Victorian style. Mourning jewelry, especially horizon- tal brooches, was posi- tioned on a high-neckline blouse. It was perpetuated by England's Queen Victo- ria after the death of her beloved husband. Often mour ning jewelry had a lock of hair tucked into a hidden compartment under the pin-back clasp. It almost became a cultural tradition and was not con- sidered morbid. Mourning jewelry items could be rings, pendants, bracelets and hair accessories, just to name a few. Your sash brooch is in the original fitted box. The center medallion covering the storage well is a gem material called carnelian. This example has an intaglio cut that fills the bezel area. The profile depicts a Roman emperor, a popular design at that time. Where a cameo cut stands out above the back- ground, an intaglio cut design is below the sur- face of the background and often could be used as a signature stamp. This jewelry falls into the folk art category of collecting. Your 2 1/2-inch-long brooch has a value of $250. A benchmark for value: Identify the metal, how deep and smooth the cuts are and if they have multi- ple layers. Look for the original box and above all, the jewelry's condition and material used. A clue to a moder n machine-made piece (often plastic) is the cut lines are sharp to the touch. Q.: I brought this pair of figurines back for my wife after serving in World War II. I actually traded them for two cartons of cigarettes. — T.E., Oconomowoc A.: Hummel figurines were born from a simple Bavarian girl in early 20th century: Berta Hummel (1909-1946), who became Sister Maria Innocentia. From an early age people marveled at the drawings on her delightful little cards. Porcelain manufac- turer Frank Goebel negoti- ated a licensing agreement with Sister Maria and her convent in 1935. It was then her acclaim spread throughout the world. Part of the agreement was her signature would bear her stamp of approval on every marketed piece. The famous bee mark on each creation is the image of a flying bee with the letter "V" (her name in German means "bumblebee"). Early literature named these two figurines "In Safety" but eventually they were renamed "Umbrella Girl & Umbrella Boy," marked with numbers 152 and 153. They come in several heights and your 8-inch-tall examples are the most desirable. As WWII came to a close, American G.I.s sent or carried Hummels home from Ger many to wives, mothers, girlfriends and sisters. Items were pur- chased for very little through military PX sys- tems and often bartered in the marketplace. Millions of Hummel items have been collected and this nostalgia category endures largely because of the high sentimental value. It is now known that over 2,000 Hummel molds were made. Thousands of these fig- urines are currently flood- ing the market. Since there are not many new collectors buying, there is more supply than demand. Many small pieces can be purchased for under $10. Factors impacting value would be fading and any cracks or chips would make it unmarketable. On an average, larger pieces have retained a stable value — a few examples, like "Har mony in Four Parts," some full Nativity sets, a few lamps and the 8-inch Umbrella Girl & Boy, like yours. If this pair is in perfect condition, the value is $400-$500. (Barbara Eash is a mem- ber of the Certified Apprais- ers Guild of America, specializing in appraisals of antiques and collectibles and has extensive experi- ence writing and speaking about antiques.) Submit an item for consideration Do you have an item or col- lection of items that could be shared in a future newspaper column? Let Barbara Eash hear about it! To have your item or collec- tion considered send the following information: up to three, sharp, well-lit photos of front & back of the item(s), measurements as well as any history or hearsay, length of ownership and your full name, address and daytime phone number. Mail: Wauke- sha Antique Shop, ATTN: Barbara Eash, 1427 E. Racine Ave., Unit E-2, Waukesha, WI 53186 or email: beappraisals @gmail.com. If your item(s) are considered for a future column, we will contact you. No photos can be returned and no purchase of items will occur. Hummel figures common; value varies with model Submitted photos Hummel figurines flood collectors markets, but variations like an 8-inch model like this can fetch up to $400 to $500. This brooch, an example of mourning jewelry, is estimated to be worth $250. BARBARA EASH Antiques Appraised Testing tips from the top By Lauren Anderson Freeman Staff WAUKESHA — Kreigh Knerr is in pretty high demand around the Wauke- sha County area. The Delafield-based SAT and ACT tutor has built a name for himself guiding area teens through what can be an anxiety-inducing expe- rience — and often helping them boost their scores in the process. With a decade of test prep tutoring experience under his belt, Knerr says nearly all of his clients come to him based on referral from the family of another satisfied test taker. But that's meant he's ended up having to turn away hundreds of families each year. Wanting to share his tips with more than just his lim- ited number of clients — and offer an alternative to those who couldn't otherwise afford his tutoring — he put his program to paper in a new book, "Tips from the Top: A Tutor to the 1% Reveals His Tricks." Using a conversational tone, Knerr patterns por- tions of the book after his own tutoring sessions. Some chapters are even written as a dialogue between him and a hypotheti- cal student, c o n v e y i n g the back-and- f o r t h e x c h a n g e Knerr often has with clients dur- ing his first session. "What's important to me is trying to humanize the pro- cess and treating students as individuals instead of treat- ing them as numbers," he said. Knerr refers students to plenty of outside resources to help them in their prepa- ration, including Malcolm Gladwell's "Outliers" and William Strunk and E.B. White's "The Elements of Style." "The idea is that, working through the book, someone should be able to replicate 90 to 95 percent of studying with me for under $100," Knerr said. While students and teach- ers are often attracted to mass-marketed test prep resources, Knerr said, a common problem is their advice is too general. What's different about him, he said, is that he offers his approach to standardized test reasoning and the research behind it. It lends itself to tips like covering the answer choices when completing a reading section. He also encourages stu- dents to pinpoint their habit- ual mistakes on the test and how to overcome them. Knerr said he's seen suc- cess with his program. He's had multiple students regis- ter perfect 36s and many oth- ers score in the 99th per- centile. And while those scores may be impressive, Knerr said he also celebrates the more challenging cases — clients who may start out scoring a 16 and see multi- ple-point gains by the end of the program. Knerr said a consistent piece of feedback he receives is that he offers more than a score boost. "A lot of tutors will do drill and kill and give their students a full ACT or SAT every week," he said. "My goal is to say, what's the fastest way we can get from A to B with gaining more than just 'here's how to fill in the bubble.' It's really excit- ing to me when my students leave as better problem solvers, better readers, bet- ter writers." Email: landerson@conleynet.com Area test-prep tutor shares his tricks in new book Knerr Safety award Submitted photo At a meeting earlier this month, Chris Kraemer, a Waukesha-based SawStop representative, presented Dr. Tracy McCall and current Waukesha County Medical Society president Dr. Lau- rie Gesell with a certificate of appreciation for the work done in the community through the Safe Saw Initiative.

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