This week I am buying in North Wales.
the picture shows some of the items bought this week
Day one
Monday morning up at 6am, an early start, through the Mersey Tunnel and by 8.30 am I am high in the North Wales mountains having breakfast with a room full of Welsh speaking farmers and I hope with old barns with disused family furniture housed with in. It does not take long before I make my first cold call of the day. Di Evans Farm. Good time to call on him. He is annoyed with the English because of the way the Welsh economy has gone over the last few months. He sells me an English chair dated 1676. He said with a smile on his face " you can take this back to England with you and tell Mr Brown we do not need his chairs". I paid him in English cash money, each note with the Queen's head on it. For the foreign readers Wales do not have their own bank notes unlike Scotland and Northern Ireland...................A good start.
By the way when you enter Wales using the side roads the vehicles coming out of Wales have to give way to the English Traffic entering Wales.
I know some American antique dealers that actually paid an English man to smuggle them in to Wales at night to buy some antiques because they had left their passports in the hotel room in London.
Next I bought a Union Jack Flag off an old seaman that sailed on the Empress ships. Then it was down to the village to see an old friend who had a Staffordshire figure to sell. It turned out to be Minerva (Britannia) it seems that Wales wants to sell anything that is English. Next I did buy a Welsh spinning wheel. It turned out to be a good day. The items I bought are for sale now .....BID ME
Tuesday.........A beautiful day. I could retire to Wales. What a lovely place.
Just heard on the News that all the Worlds Leaders are starting to arrive for the Summit. Here I am on the Summit of Mt.Snowdon, the summit of Wales. The views are breath taking and I am all alone no US President Barack Obama, no Prime Minister Gordon Brown. In fact no G20 leaders to be seen. I must be at the wrong summit. Well back to buying antiques.
Just bought a nice music cabinet. It looks satin wood but is mahogany, bleached by the sun. Bought another spinning wheel and a nice reproduction chase longe and a fabulous collection of early 20th century street signs including James Street, Carlisle Street and many more. I will list them tomorrow and then research what towns they came from.
On the SEARCH ..........type in SIGNS
Wednesday
First call today is a visit to a derelict barn overlooking Isle of Anglesey and a surprise purchase of 27 candlesticks. The candlesticks it would seem where relegated to the barn the same year as Cardiff was relegated from top flight football. The old lady told me that her husband had played for Colwyn Bay FC part time and full time a sheep farmer. When electricity came to the farm in the 1960s the candle sticks where wrapped up and put in a box and eventually ended up in the barn.
Thursday
Decision day for many of the people I have called on. Send your items to auction and gamble. Pay up to 30% commission and wait for your money up to 3 month + pay VAT or accept my very fair offer.
Well the young couple with the Chippendale Chairs accepted my offer, So did the solicitor with the mahogany tilt top table and so did many others.
I have now got to get back to my showroom in Southport, a 70 mile drive and the Van is full. A Chinese gentleman has flown in from China to buy some up market Chinese ceramics. He has just turned up at the showroom and says he will call back in 2 hours. I can not miss an opportunity like this. The man also speaks very little English. May need Ling from Lings on Kings to translate for me.
Sorry Wendy, bad luck about the Isherwood Oil Painting. I had sold it just a few hours before you email me. BEST TO PHONE MY MOBILE. When I am on the road I can not answer emails, but I can answer a mobile phone.
Friday
Quite proud of my self this morning, doing my bit for England and the export market. Closed a nice deal with our Chinese friend last night. He bought 51 items all to be destined for Main Land China. He turned out to be a very nice chap. From what I could gather from his English he had come down from Scotland and was staying over night in Southport before going to visit the Victoria and Albert Museum.
The main business of the day is to buy a painting of a famous horse. This I think will make good reading. More later.
This week end it is the Grand National, the worlds greatest horse race and it is held just 10 miles away from Southport in a district of Liverpool called Aintree. The greatest horse to win the National was Red Rum he won it 3 times. In fact Red Rum before winning the National the First time in the early 1970's would regularly eat the grass on my lawn when I lived in Birkdale. So racing is the theme of one of my windows to day. I have a nice pair of bronze Racing horses and a bronze jockey on a horse and I have 2 Arthur Dooley sculptures of two fine horses and many other items. |
