Latest News Articles by Joan Porter
Paper butterfly flutters into Welsh fair
23 July 2018The Victorian fascination for natural history led to many a front parlour having as its centrepiece a cased display of butterflies.
Antiques blossom amid flower power at Devon fair
23 July 2018The Royal Horticultural Society’s 65-acre gardens in a north Devon valley form the fragrant floral backdrop for Devon County Antiques Fairs’ quarterly two-day antiques and collectors’ events.
Malvern flea looks for bumper summer
16 July 2018After a slow start to the year, the Malvern Flea and Collectors’ Fair is looking forward to a bumper summer.
Oxford centre back on a high
16 July 2018A well-known antiques centre on the point of closure last year after 20 years of trading – and saved in no small part by the social media reach of ATG – will shortly celebrate its first year under new ownership.
Smaller items creating trends at salvage events
16 July 2018Salvage dealers are increasingly bringing smaller decorative items to the Knebworth Park fair.
Not a great divide… but different
09 July 2018The north-south divide has thrown up some interesting trends that intrigue Arthur Swallow Fairs director Richard Burgoin.
The weather for swimsuits
09 July 2018With the Meteorological Office showing that roasting temperatures are ‘here to stay’ at the beginning of July in the UK, and people sweltering on packed beaches, cooling off in the sea is essential. And what better than in a vintage swimsuit?
Bungay takes to the street
09 July 2018Antiques street markets and fairs are a boon to local businesses, a popular and lively addition to any small well-visited town, particularly in the summer when these are buzzing with tourists.
Bingley Hall fair back and now under IACF umbrella
02 July 2018Most of the UK may be going through a heatwave, but even if the clouds appear IACF’s new three-day antiques and collectors’ fair at the Staffordshire Showground will shine through.
Diss is not the end: shop shuts but showroom opens
02 July 2018The owner of an antiques shop in the Norfolk town of Diss which has been in his family for nearly 50 years is closing the business and relocating a few miles away.
Antiques dealers form new congregation in church
02 July 2018It’s always heartening to hear of redundant churches being put to another use. A Grade II-listed Victorian church in Wolverhampton which has been empty for more than a decade is set to open as an antiques centre later this month.
Salvo organiser keeps busy
02 July 2018Thornton Kay, long-time organiser of the annual Salvo fair, has been in touch to say what he’s been doing on his year’s sabbatical from organising the event.
Make a beeline for West Yorkshire show
02 July 2018Designer Vicki Ambery-Smith is regularly selected to show at the prestigious annual Goldsmiths Fair at Goldsmiths Hall in London.
Buxton Halcyon fair postponed again
25 June 2018The long-awaited return in Derbyshire by Halcyon Fairs to the newly restored Octagon ballroom in Buxton’s magnificent Victorian pavilion has been delayed again due to ongoing works.
Society lays its cards on the table to boost fair numbers
25 June 2018The long-running Antique Scientific Instrument Fair has been given a boost by the Scientific Instrument Society (SIS).
Summer vintage fair supports castle stuffed with relics
25 June 2018Denys Eyre Bower (1905-77) bought for £6000 the 17th century Chiddingstone Castle, near Edenbridge in Kent, filled it to the turrets with his collections of Japanese swords and lacquer, Egyptian antiquities, Stuart and Jacobite history and Buddhism pieces and opened the place to the public.
The UK calls to arms: a selection of militaria fairs
25 June 2018Saturday, June 30, is Armed Forces Day in the UK, an annual event which the contributions of men and women in the armed forces are celebrated through countrywide events in villages, towns and cities. This includes The Battle of Britain Air Show on June 30-July 1 at Headcorn Aerodrome in Kent. A number of militaria fairs also take place during the weekend and the following week – here is a focus on a few.
Oxfordshire fair is now cancelled
18 June 2018A two-day fair set for June 23-24 has had to be cancelled.
Blueberry books place in the trade
18 June 2018In the books, maps and prints supplement in ATG No 2341, Pom Harrington of Harrington Rare Books observed that millennials are now looking at books and thinking they are “cool”.
Textile mill the place for vintage
18 June 2018Trading as Rose & Brown, organiser Caroline Brown’s 50-stand vintage home and fashion fair takes place on Saturday and Sunday, June 23-24, at the Victoria Hall in Saltaire, West Yorkshire.