The latest auction purchases - Old Bleach to Paisley

Last week took me back to Yorkshire for the Vintage Costume, Textiles, Dolls and Teddy Bears sale.  I don't buy dolls - I hope the doll collectors out there forgive me if I say that I find old dolls a bit scarey.... I think it's the eyes that seem to follow you about and they often have a very self-satisfied smile on their faces. However, I was very glad that I am not a doll buyer as this sale had some very expensive ones....

This Jules Steiner doll  was estimated in the catalogue at £400 - £600 but actually sold for £4900.. when commission is added on that will be £5780!

These 19th Century Miniature Dolls were estimated at £120 - £180 but sold for £2100. 

This German wooden toy laundry set, including mangle, clothes stands, wooden buckets, in a pine box did appeal to me - I'm glad I have an automatic washing amchine to wash all my linens now however! I need it to wash all the white linens that I bought. Several unused linens with the original paper labels

I also bought a box with a number of Christening dresses and a beadwork and tapestry screen

And an antique paisley shawl and other shawls including the edging from a paisley shawl - perfect for crafts. 

And finally, two Durham quilts... one plain pink and the other a pink patchwork one

  

A lovely day out ..and lots of new stock.

I had a lovely day on Wednesday. OK, so I had to set off at 7.15am to the depths of the countryside, sit in a very cold, draughty cattle market shed and then concentrate very hard on the "machine-gun" delivery of a sale by a cattle market auctioneer (if you have seen sheep or cattle being sold you will know what I mean!). Some of the locals who attend bring their own cushion, blanket, flask of coffee and sandwiches and have a day out ( sitting in a cold, leaky wooden shed for hours?) ...they are made of stern stuff in the Northumberland countryside.  But I bought some great textiles....quilts, linen sheets and pillowcases, damask cloths, lace, tapestries, blankets and embroidered tablecloths. There will be more but I haven't unloaded all the car yet!

A bit like this one but fortunately (given the weather in the North East) it all fits inside!

This is a sample of some of the quilts - very typical of the Victorian period and now very sought-after roses and paisley designs.

And superb hand stitched quilted designs - the hours of work involved is incredible.

At this auction the lots are all tied up very tightly into bundles so it is impossible to really view any of the items before buying. It is really like buying blind  but it does make it interesting when you get your purchases. Have I bought a bundle worth twice or three times what I paid for it?....or do I just have a lot more cleaning cloths!  (Let me tell you I need more cleaning cloths like a I need a hole in the head). So now to explore some more lots - fingers crossed these ones have some treasures amongst them!

Exhibition of Vintage Costume & Textiles

An auction house in Yorkshire,Tennants,  is hosting an exhibition and sale of vintage costume and textiles. Whilst there are only a couple of the type of items that I buy to sell - quilts and Victorian whitewear - the catalogue has been a delight to look through.  This is loveliest quilt that I have seen for a long time

Too good surely to sleep under!

And this one is a fabulous example of an Elizabeth Sanderson Star quilt. Elizabeth Sanderson lived in the North of England and developed a school of professional quilt markers (called stampers) in the 19th century and many of these quilts survive especially her favourite design which was the eight pointed star. She was a pupil of George Gardiner of Allenheads who developed a reputation for marking out the patterns on to quilt tops. The quilts would then be sold and would be stitched by another person.  I have some Durham and patchwork quilts for sale at the moment but nothing as good as these!

The other lot which took my eye is not a textile or costume item but it is remarkable.

A perfectly proprtioned 1930's doll's kitchen room set. It is complete with dresser, table, chairs and the tiniest detail has been remembered - cheese grater, whisk and rolling pin! (Click on the photos to enlarge)

This exhibition is well worth a look if you are in the area.

Textiles auction fever!

I've spent the last two days going back and forward to Yorkshire to Tennants auction house - yesterday to view and today to go to the actual sale. An absolute feast of textiles and very well attended (too well maybe as I was out-bid on several lots!).  There does not seem to be much evidence of a recession in the auction world - lots of high prices paid for items so I was pleased to be successful with the lot below -

There is a lovely quilt made up of padded hexagons all in gorgeous pink roses and lilac floral fabrics and the rest of the lot is lace trimmings, lace flounces and ribbons.  Perfect for all those crafts.

I was tempted by the lot below - I love "rooting" around in mixed lots like this and coming across unexpected finds.  It had needle cases, thimbles, old perfume bottles, old tins

Another temptation (if only they would fit!) were the Yves St Laurent suit and the Panache dress and matching jacket. Clothes make up a large portion of the sale; everything from hats to shoes, mens clothes to baby's, 1800's to present day.

I resisted the suits and went for the collection of baby clothes and bonnets. Now I have to sort them all, wash them, repair if necessary and then list them for sale.................I may be some time!

1940's style - accessories are everything!

I bought a large quantity of 1940's era hats last week at a local auction.  These three are some of the twenty-odd that all came from the same house. They were in old hat boxes which are also for sale on eBay at the moment along with the hats. I think that a hat box is essential to stop damage, dust and denting and you can keep all the accessories in one too - gloves (a must for a lady of the 40's), little clutch purse, maybe a little spotted scarf.

The 1940's look is still very popular, both as a fashion statement and for re-enactment or fancy dress. These hats in fact came a little too late for my own use unfortunately! In June I was invited to a 50th birthday party which was themed in 1940's wartime style. It was a great party, held in a period village hall all decked out in patriotic bunting and everyone stepped up to the mark and dressed in period. The culinary masterpiece was the Fish & Chip van that had been booked to provide supper and the cake table (the Party Girl was invited to judge on the best cake!) provided dessert.

As a present, 24 girlfriends had each made a square which (with help!) I put together to make a patchwork quilt. Each square is different obviously - from embroidery to sequins, applique to screen print. Then a border and backing in black velvet and "tied" with glass crystal beads at the corners of each square for a "bit of bling"

We managed to keep it a secret from her and I think (hope) that it was a lovely surprise and a keepsake to remind her of the night and her friends.

 

First antique textiles & linens of 2011.

Finally, now that the snow has all gone and the world has gone back to normal after the Xmas/New year hols, I have been to my first auction of 2011.  I managed to buy a couple of quilts - a paisley and floral Durham and an antique patchwork. The patchwork is grubby but looks in good condition for a 19th century textile - this is a variation on the Tumbling Blocks pattern. The design does not show as well as the colours on the paler cottons have faded leaving the very dominant red.

                       This is a better example of the design - but using modern fabrics.

I also bought a couple of eiderdowns - these still seem to be popular through every season - the flowers remind you that spring and then summer are coming.

And then finally, some vintage/antique clothes.  The hats were a bit of an indulgence (and yes, that is a wig in there!). The large hat is a serious Race Day Hat - very dramatic!

And the baby clothes and other garments are always popular. Amongst the dresses, there were also ladies bloomers, ladies high neck cotton and lace nightdresses, antique camiknicker/bloomer combinations and mens waistcoats - a real mix of antique clothing. The photo below just shows the baby clothes

 So now just the task of sorting, washing, ironing and checking each item before deciding what to sell this coming week.

Antique Durham Quilts

The Antique Linen Cupboard has  a number of Durham quilts for sale at the moment. These two both use red as the prominent colour and would give real country cottage charm to any bedroom. The one above has red and white patchwork and the other is a traditional North Country "strippy" quilt. As I have had a number of people contacting me through this blog to ask about purchasing items I have included "The Antique Linen Cupboard Shop" in a separate page (see the link on the right) There you will find more details about these items featured in the blog that are available for sale and the prices.

These two quilts came from different house clearances but both from the same area. When they were made the houses were in County Durham so genuine Durham quilts too! (The county boundaries were changed in 1974 and much of County Durham was taken to create the Metropolitan area of Tyne and Wear.) If you want to make a purchase contact me through the blog. 
N.B.Both of these quilts are now sold!

Patchwork & Durham Quilts

I have been buying a lot of quilts over the past month. There were several good examples at a textiles auction down in North Yorkshire recently - from Durham wholecloth and strippy quilts to English log cabin patchwork and American patchwork.

Whilst the tradition of patchwork quilts is well known across both the UK and USA, the Durham quilt is perhaps less well known and I am often asked about what "makes" a Durham quilt.

Durham is a town and a county in the North of England and the Durham style of quilts originates from the Northern Counties of England. However "Durham" quilt is now used to describe a quilt made in a specific manner rather than one that originates from Durham. The basic construction of a Durham quilt does not differ from those made elsewhere - they have a top and bottom layer and  a layer of padding in-between. The three layers are then stitched together - usually by hand. However the feature that makes a "Durham" is the quilting pattern which is used to give a sculptural quality to the surface of the quilt. These patterns can involve a number of different named designs - Running Feather, Cable, Rose Motif and very often a central circular deisgn thought by many to represent the Pit Wheel that would so dominate the skyline in the North-East coal mining communities during the 19th century however "strippy" quilts are a paticular feature of North Country quilts. The quilt top was formed by alternating strips of plain fabrics - usually white alternating with red, blue, pink  or yellow and then the quilting was carried out up the stripes.

                                I will be selling some of the Durham quilts that I bought over the next few weeks on Ebay - I just have the task of washing them first!