No two days are ever the same in this business. The pressure to keep the shop full of new and interesting items means I’m always hunting down fresh stock - following up leads, visiting trusted contacts and making new ones. This takes me far and wide and this week I’ve been travelling through Wales where I was able to buy a fabulous collection of Welsh Blankets. Sheep farming and the wool industry has shaped Wales’s economy for centuries and the production of blankets can be traced back to the 12th Century! Originally made at home on a small loom, the industry grew in the 18th and 19th centuries when commercial mills were established. A particular feature of Welsh blankets is the woven double cloth technique which produces a pattern on both sides, making the blankets reversible. Each region and indeed each mill had their own distinctive patterns, some of which were carefully passed down through generations. For example, the Caernarfon pattern is one of the most iconic and traditional with its geometric design featuring a series of interlocking portcullises, usually created with two to four colours. Plaid Blankets were a popular design and colours became more bold over time with the introduction of synthetic dyes. Traditionally, a pair of Welsh blankets were given as a wedding gift and they were believed to capture the feeling of ‘Hiraeth’, a Welsh word for homesickness and longing for home. Queen Victoria was even gifted a Welsh blanket on her wedding day in 1840! At its peak there were more than 300 mills in Wales producing Welsh blankets but the industry almost disappeared in the 20th century and now just a handful of mills remain. However they are continuing this important tradition and the Welsh blanket maintains its cultural significance as well as being a very collectable, usable and decorative item.

The antiques world is full of jargon - from cabriole legs to ogee feet and dentil cornices to boule work - it can be difficult to get your head around some of the vocabulary! I’ve gotten used to the lingo over the years and some of words can actually be found when talking about architecture or buildings and tend to describe different styles of moulding or decorative shapes. However I realised recently, whilst talking to a customer about a bachelor’s chest and seeing their look of confusion, that perhaps not everyone is as familiar with the terminology as I am so I thought it might be useful to cover a few common terms. To begin with, a bachelor’s chest refers to a small sized chest of drawers, usually dating from the Georgian period. What particularly makes it a bachelors chest and not just an ordinary chest of drawers is the brushing slide - which is another great piece of terminology in itself! A brushing slide is the flat shelf that pulls out from the top of the chest and was simply used for brushing your clothes. An odd notion now perhaps, but if you were a bachelor in the 1800s and did not have a wife to brush your clothes for you, you would have to do it yourself. This shelf meant that your clothes could be laid out and brushed to remove dirt, hair and debris before getting dressed - all very useful for a Georgian gent long before the days of hoovers! This bachelor’s chest also has cock beading - another favourite phrase! Cock beading refers to the narrow strip of wood, usually rounded or slightly moulded, which is applied around the edge of a drawer front. It has two main purposes - both aesthetic and functional. The cock beading adds depth and elegance to the drawer front enhancing its appearance but it also helps to protect the veneer on the edge of the drawer from chipping. It was time consuming to produce and required a lot of skill from the cabinet maker so it is a good sign of quality. Cock beading can be useful when trying to date a piece of furniture because it was particularly used on pieces dating between the mid 18th and mid 19th Century. This chest also has escutcheons which refer to the metal plates fitted around keyholes. Some are set discreetly into the keyhole to protect the edges from chipping and some sit around it to act as decorative features as well. They are most commonly made from brass and usually match the style of the handles. Of course it’s not necessary to speak the lingo to enjoy buying antiques. It’s interesting to learn some different terms and maybe you’ll be able to name a few features on pieces you already own but don’t be intimidated if you don’t know your parquetry from your stringing! I’m always happy to share my knowledge and answer any questions and even now I’m still learning new things!

Treen is one of those words that’s quite specific to the antiques trade and it’s simply the name we give to small items made entirely of wood. Before metal and ceramics became widely used, most household items were made from wood. Highly skilled woodturners and carvers could create almost anything with only manually powered lathes and hand tools. These two items, a dairy bowl and a cream skimmer, would have been used daily on a farm in the production of cream and butter. Fresh milk would have been poured into the bowl and left to sit so the cream would naturally rise to the top. Once the cream rose to the surface, it was skimmed off, using the skimmer, to make butter or clotted cream. Both of these items are turned from Sycamore wood that would have been carefully chosen for its non-tainting and close-grained properties, which made it ideal for food preparation. Sycamore would not flavour or taint the milk and the tight grain made it easy to clean and more resistant to bacteria compared to other more porous woods. There would be nothing to stop the bowl and skimmer being used for their original purpose today but more often than not items like this are used as beautiful decorative pieces - perhaps a fruit bowl or somewhere to put your keys or loose change. There is a good collectors market for pieces of antique treen and it’s easy to see why.

The quality of antique furniture speaks for itself in the simple fact that it is still here all these years after it was made. Great care, time and skill went into making antique furniture and, whilst the quality is always good, there are some pieces that really are in a league of their own. There are a couple of particular names that we look out for which always guarantee the finest quality, one being “Howard & Sons”. Howard & Sons were founded in London in 1820 and quickly grew to be one of the most prestigious and respected makers of luxury furniture in the Victorian and Edwardian periods. They supplied furniture to aristocracy, stately homes and prestigious institutions, furnishing many major country houses and clubs in England. They could even include Royalty on their client list! They were particularly well known for their armchairs and sofas but this Oak extending dining table is also a Howard & Sons piece. There are telltale signs that suggest it might have been made by someone special - from the quality and cut of the wood to the weight and the construction. Howard & Sons would usually sign most of their pieces and this table also has the maker’s stamp and serial number.

This pair of Delft plates date from the late 18th Century and were made in the Netherlands. Delftware production began in the early 17th century as Dutch potters sought to replicate the fine Chinese porcelain that was being imported by the Dutch East India Company. Delft plates are made from earthenware coated with a distinctive white tin glaze, which gives them a smooth, porcelain-like appearance and are traditionally painted in blues. Delft pieces often have some form of signature or mark but it’s not always a straightforward ‘Delft’ stamp. These plates have the 'hatchet' makers mark for De Porceleyne Bijl (The Porcelain Axe). There is a good collectors market for early pieces of Delft, especially pieces in good condition and those with rare or unusual patterns can command a good price.

tyles and fashions are always changing through the years and antiques are a tangible reminder of what life was like in different eras. I recently bought this lovely silver chatelaine - an object that is rarely used or seen nowadays but was once an essential everyday item. The word “Chatelaine” is derived from the French for “Keeper of the Castle” or “Mistress of the Chateau” and essentially referred to the lady in charge. Over time, it came to describe the decorative clasp or hook that such a lady would have worn at the waist, from which various household tools or accessories were suspended on chains - think Mrs Hughes in Downton Abbey! Chatelaines were popular during the 18th and 19th centuries, during which most women’s clothing did not have pockets and women did not traditionally carry handbags like we do today. A chatelaine was essentially a sort of key chain, somewhere to keep the keys to the larder or tea chest but also somewhere to keep other daily essentials such as small embroidery scissors, a watch, snuff box or perfume vial. This very practical accessory would hold all of these and other essential items, which a head of house, a nanny or nurse might need at a moment’s notice. As with most items, Chatelaines eventually became a symbol of a person’s wealth. A wealthy person might wear a very decorative and ornate Chatelaine made from precious metals such as silver and adorned with precious stones. As handbags became the fashion, the Chatelaine shrank in appearance and functionality, but was still a popular ornamental piece. Men began wearing them from their waistcoat to carry their watch and women began wearing them more as a decorative accessory around their neck and even around their wrist - perhaps this was the origin of the modern day charm bracelet?

I have always championed antiques as being a very sustainable way to shop and buying antique, vintage or second-hand is truly the ultimate way to recycle. However these paperweights really take recycling to the next level and are a true champion of a ‘waste not, want not’ attitude. They are called Stourbridge Dumps after the famous glassmaking region of Stourbridge where they were made in the 19th Century. Unlike the more refined and decorative French paperweights of the time made by Baccarat or Clichy, Stourbridge dump paperweights are a unique type of glass paperweight created using leftover molten glass at the end of the day. Literally ‘dumps’ of leftover glass were roughly shaped into paperweight form rather than be wasted. They are more rustic and substantial in appearance with some natural flaws but there is beauty in this and often flower designs can be found inside.

I’ve always had a fondness for antique Samplers and the story they can tell. For those who aren’t familiar with them, a Sampler is the name given to a needlework or embroidery that was traditionally created as a way for young girls to practice their needlework skills. In times gone by it was an essential skill for a young woman to be able to sew and this was often taught at home in the form of Samplers. Traditionally girls would be given a square of cloth or canvas on which to embroider a design to practise their skills and it was not unusual for girls as young as 4 or 5 to do this. They would most commonly sew the letters of the alphabet, practicing both upper case and lower case and rows of numbers. They would also embroider small pictures of trees, animals or personal things such as their home. Nearly all samplers were finished with the name and age of the child who made them and the date when they were made so they give a real insight into the past. This one was sewn over 200 years ago by Mary Brown in 1811. Some of the earliest samplers date back to the 1400s but they are most commonly found to date from the 18th and 19th century. As well as age, condition is key when it comes to collecting and valuing samplers. We always look for vibrant colours and make sure there are no holes or tears. I wonder what the children would have thought if they knew hundreds of years later their work would be collected and displayed in homes and museums all over the world?!

The Antiques Trade is always evolving and some fashions change just as quick as laws and regulations do. Just like with any trade there are rules and regulations that we must abide by, whether that is in terms of insurance or VAT or the actual legalities around what we are selling. In June 2022 the Ivory ban came into force in the UK which fundamentally changed how we sell ivory pieces and we’ve had to learn to adapt to the new rules since then. Prior to the ban, it was legal to sell worked ivory pieces that predated 1947 but now there is a blanket ban on ivory sales, regardless of their age. There are a few minor exceptions including portrait miniatures and items which have an ivory content of less than 10%; for example an item with handles or inlay may be exempt but a licence from DEFRA is still needed in order to sell it. Now, from the 28th of January 2025, the Government have further extended this ban to include the sale of Marine Ivory such as Scrimshaw and Narwhal tusks. Scrimshaw is the art of engraving or carving intricate designs into materials such as whale teeth or walrus tusks or bone from other marine animals. This craft is traditionally associated with sailors who began practising it during the 18th and 19th centuries and there has always been a strong collectors market for such items. Ivory is a difficult topic and always evokes strong feelings on both sides of the argument. It is hard to get the balance right between preserving and respecting these historical items whilst also being able to protect the wild animals at risk as a result of the trade. If you are concerned that you might own a piece of ivory or scrimshaw there is no need to worry, it is not illegal to own the items it is only the sale and purchase that has been restricted.