Number 10 Upholstery » Auction Tittle Tattle

One for the Lovers

Kay Wright — Tue, 22 Mar 2016 18:33:13 +0000

“In our life there is a single color, as on an artist’s palette, which provides the meaning of life and art. It is the color of love” Marc Chagall

It’s not just chairs we love. Sometimes we come across items at auctions that just catch our eye or imagination. Recently we found a rather large original poster for a Marc Chagall exhibition. The picture is a copy of “Over the Town” and shows Chagall and his wife flying above Vitebsk, which is a small town where he grew up.

Whilst Chagall was in Paris, he moved into a studio on the edge of town in the ramshackle settlement for bohemian artists that was known as La Ruche and here he met many other painters who were destined to become famous. This included Robert Delaunay, husband of Sonia.

Bargain Hunting

Kay Wright — Tue, 01 Dec 2015 22:56:56 +0000

Where have the bargains gone ? We’ve noticed it everywhere – online auction sites, local auctions, classified adverts…there is definitely a shortage of furniture and other related goodies.

A few months back, we could get our mitts on most items, now though we’re lucky if we find one chair at the auction that isn’t going for a silly price.

Our local auction houses have a tendency to describe items incorrectly. Whether it is a misspelt artist or a single line with a wrong description, this generally means that we can spot a bargain if we attend viewing days and register these facts. Recently on one of these viewing days we noticed a sewing machine in the auction, well it was listed as being a sewing machine but in real life it was in fact an overlocker. Now we already have one overlocker but you can never have too many…to be honest it was the idea of having one threaded up with a light colour cotton and one threaded up with a dark colour that appealed…anyone who threads overlockers will know exactly what we are talking about.

We never leave a commission bid if we really really want an item which meant trundling back to the auction on the day. It was raining and we were so confident that it would be ours for less than £20. Unfortunately some blokes girlfriend knew exactly what it was too which meant we went up to £70 but could not justify anymore – still a bargain but add on commission and a service and you may well as buy a new one. This was the story of the week at all the other auctions too. Although not as bad as an oil painting going for well above the estimate (£20-40) – It went for just under £9000!! Wowser

When even the dealers look frustrated, you know its bad.

The Armchair Holy Grail – Howard & Sons

Kay Wright — Mon, 12 Oct 2015 23:04:52 +0000

We’ve all heard the stories…Howard sofas appearing in auctions and selling for less than £100, Howard armchairs discovered in a barn – like an old classic car. Now usually we would laugh at these tales and put them down to just another upholsterers urban myth but even we have our own tales to tell.

We do know the upholsterer that was called to a local farm to see if they wanted any furniture before it went on the bonfire. Even from 50 paces they recognised the Howard and Sons lining and kindly told the friend they would take it off their hands for free. Another colleague at a local evening class witnessed an iron back being ripped out and asked if the owner would mind if they could have a piece of the “original fabric”…. which again was the iconic Howard and Son lining.

So what is it about Howard and Sons armchairs which allow them to achieve such high prices at auction sales ? They were aimed at the top end of the market and the company displayed their designs at the important exhibitions of the time. We’ve never been lucky enough to work on a specific Howard sofa or chair so we can not comment on the upholstery techniques involved but we have traditionally reupholstered many many Victorian chairs which are just as comfortable and extremely well made. One could argue that other makers that produced chairs for the wealthy middle class market had greater influence and it should be these manufacturers which we should be looking out for at auctions; William Smee & Sons, J. Schoolbred and Company, and C. and R. Light to name a few. Perhaps these offer a great alternative especially as the high prices which Howard and Sons command bring with it the not so genuine sellers on online auction sites.

What is important when buying any antique Victorian chair is that it must be fit for purpose. If it looks great, feels comfortable and you really love it, then this must be the driving force regardless if it is stamped or not. In fact, surely that it has survived over 100 years is testament to the quality…..so rather than purchase that mass produced armchair from the high street retailer go make friends with the local upholsterer. They’ll even throw in a cup of tea.