Collecting things is fun – a lot more fun than putting your money in the bank or in a pension scheme. If you like the idea of collecting things that appreciate in value rather than other forms of investment, but are not really interested in the most obvious ones like antiques and art, then there are all manner of things that can end up being valuable if you know what you are doing. Some of them even have the added advantage of being things you can use before you eventually sell your collection, or at least nice objects to display in your house.

Here are three examples of fun and interesting things to collect that also make good investments:

Wine

Wine can become very valuable, for the simple reason that unlike most of the other things that are collected for their age or rarity, you can’t really replicate an exquisite wine – the only way you can ever taste a given wine is to have the real thing, and once all the bottles ever produced of a vintage are gone, nobody will ever taste it again. Collecting wine does require both knowledge, and restraint, because obviously your wine can’t appreciate in value if you drink it. However, when you have some bottles you believe are worth something, it is easy to get a wine valuation and sell them, and then buy some cheaper plonk you can actually drink!

Vintage Designer Accessories

Vintage designer accessories like bags, gloves and costume jewellery can fetch a lot of money. Whether you opt to seek out things that are already vintage and keep them pristine so that they will appreciate further in value over time, or trust your eye in picking out new items from designer labels that you believe will be worth something as vintage pieces in 20 or more years’ time, if you are a fashion lover this can be a great hobby. You can use your vintage accessories too, as long as you are really careful that they stay in the best possible condition.

Books

First editions of books and signed copies can be another thing that become valuable. If you can lay your hands on first editions of old classics they can even be worth tens of thousands. Whether you have the resources to do that or would prefer to try buying new books as first editions and hope that some of them go on to be big sellers, it is a great way to invest that also allows you to read the books in question. If you want to take it seriously, try going to book launches wherever you can and getting new books signed by the author, or if you are more interested in old books, look online or at auctions for rare books that are only likely to go up in value as time passes and they become even rarer.

These are just three things you can start collecting even on a fairly small budget which can become investments you can cash in on in the future.