A surprisingly good start to 2024, despite the wet weather!

I feel it is time for an update on how the fairs have started in 2024....despite the very wet weather and the continuous sad worldwide news, the fairs have been much better than anticipated....my first fair of the year was Ardingly in January....it is always a gamble as you never know what to expect the weather to do....as it was the weather was cold, but dry.... so customers were pleased to come into my hall which is always warm and they like to stay....my first purchase was a superb pair of 18thc brass and steel herb choppers, which had been left out in the rain and were going rusty....they soon polished up and sold very quickly....I sold a very nice sycamore dairy bowl and also a very good 17thc English bronze mortar by A. Rundall ....the beauty of still doing the fairs is that they work so well along side the website, bringing in "new" customers, who I would never usually see....this time it was a Japanese business man who bought a fine pair of 17thc English carved corbels....he loved my stock and said he will keep a very close eye on my website....

The next fair in February was Newark and the first day was hard going as the weather was appalling ....constant heavy rain....I sold an unusual early Prattware money box with two gentlmen standing outside the house, instead of a man and his wife....Yorkshire C1810-20....it went to the trade, along with a very good walking stick dated 1888 and another fine dairy bowl....second day was better with dry weather and surprisingly the buying public came in determined to buy....and they did...buying a very good carved "green man" panel, a treen nutcracker and a wool bowl in lignum, which turned the fair into a profitable one.....plus I also bought a good 18thc Persuader and steel 18thc shot flask....which have to be added to the fairs profit, when they sell....

Last week...5th - 6th March it was down to Ardingly and despite all the weather forcasts saying it would be a very nice couple of sunny days, the first day was horrendous with constant rain....I have to say when you are sat outside your hall at 5am, watching the heavy rain, you do start to question what you are doing...and I really thought this would be a complete disaster....not to be...it all went very well....the first sale came from my website, when a delightful gentleman had seen my 17thc oak gateleg table on my website and wanted to view it in person....luckily he came from south London and so he came down especially to see the table with his family and of course loved it and bought it....I maybe biased, but it was a very good early table with no restoration at a very affordable price....as early oak furniture is at the present time....another example of the website working hand in hand with the fairs....the second day was sunny, thank goodness and the public came in large numbers....this accounted for many good sales.....especially of treen, including an unusual pounce pot, a french glove powderer, an apothercary lidded jar, a 19thc "codds" bottle opener, two spice jars and the best large Sycamore bowl I have bought....also very pleasingly I sold a fine example of an 18thc bronze bell, probably for a heavy horse, cast with the initials W.G for William Glynn of Aldbourne in Wilshire C1770....brought in by a very good collector, who is "down sizing" his collection and is sending me some more bells from his collection which will also be for sale....watch this space.....

Overall a very pleasing start to the year and this week starting on Friday 15th March to Sunday 17th March, I will be travelling down to the west country to do one of my favourite fairs at Shepton Mallet to be held at the Bath and West showground....come along and say hello....I think you will be pleased with the selection and quality of antiques at this fair....

Thank you for reading my latest ramblings....keep in touch and if you can, come and say hello at the many fairs around the U.K I attend...and to my worldwide customers thank you for your kind e-mails about my blogs and your many purchases ....and to my many customers in this beautiful country, thank you for your constant support and loyalty....take much care and speak or see you soon....

Mark.