Anyone into Antiques/silver?

[Kimbers 1,781]

Over the past couple of years I have slowly been accumulating antique silver of all kinds, from pendants and watch chains to cutlery and tableware, bon bon dishes to rings. My wife tells me I am a hoarder.....and I am. However I do have some things I don't want or need, such as the rings and jewelery, table ware I am not so keen on, but I do love the BonBon dishes so will be keeping those.

My collection has spilled into numerous cardboard boxes now after filling the display cabinets.

Anyone else collect such things? More importantly anyone got any advice on where is best to sell them? Ideally I would like to make a profit so auctioning is not an option, unless it's maybe ebay, but even then not so keen.

Someone mentioned that some of the jewelery I have is very sellable at "Antique fairs".

Any advice in selling is appreciated. Whilst I sell cars for a living and buy Silver as a compulsion, Selling silver is alien to me!!

[C8RKH 6,254]

I only have one antique. The wife!  Don't want a collection of them as too much like hard work 

She does polish up well though....

 

[Barrykearley 6,856]

Silvers a proper funny game.

if you buy the right stuff it’s worth a fortune - wrong stuff it’s still worth good money as scrap.

Bit like cars really

[Kimbers 1,781]

If anyone ever has any Silver to dispose of please let me know. Auctions take a %, shops offer trade money so I am your best choice  plus my plan is to start my own online Silver antique shop when I have enough stock (Which Wendy says is now....) 

[dcmp 35]

Kimbers,

I buy a lot of antique pottery on ebay and spend a fair bit of time at aunctions and antique fairs. I have experience of all and found the following to be true;

1. What you think something will go for is not always the case. Some peices you expect to pay a lot for can turn out cheap and vice versa.

2. You will only ever sell/buy something for what it is worth at that point in time. Past history in relation to what I collect is irrelevant to a point - even if recent. I suspect silver maybe more stable and reliable.

3. In order to sell, you need to know what you are selling. The expertise generally comes from an auction house or local dealer. Because of this placing through an auction may actually get you more money than at an antique fair if you don't know what you are selling.

4. Auctions, whether ebay or physical have the ability to create a bidding war where two or more people want your items. This isn't possible at a fair.

5. By going to an antique fair you risk being run down by dealers who buy stock and they tend to get there earlier than the general public or collectors. Ideally to maximise your return you want a level playing field where collectors and dealers are going for your items at the same time.

I could go on, but my advice is take it to a local auction house when they have a valuation day. This is normally at the weekend. They do this in order to get stock for the next auction but you don't have to enter it and could just walk away with the knowledge. Remember that the more money something goes for at auction, the more they make as a % in commission. So its in their interest to highlight any items of worth. Then armed with this knowledge, you could decide to ebay, antique fair it or auction it. And finally, there is always google to understand the markings.

Here's hoping you have some exceptional bits and that we see you on Antiques roadshow :-)

Hope that helps.

DCMP.

[Kimbers 1,781]

Haha. I know my silver David. You won't see me on Antiques roadshow but I do attend an auction normally every week if I have the funds.

I am very strict and rather than bid and it get out of hand I leave a commission bid  and won't go past what I put on there. I bid on 40 items in the last one and got 8, but those 8 I got at well under what they are valued at and where the auction house saw them. For example 1930's set of 6 silver teaspoons with Art Deco style design. Normally those will go for 30-45. because of the art deco design these were valued at £45-60. I left a bid of 25 and won them cause they were at the end of the auction when most people had come offline or left. I could sell those at £50 tomorrow and they are 100g of 925 Sterling even as scrap.

I really like pin and bonbon dishes but silver cutlery goes for silly money. And like you say Silver is always a safer bet than many antiques because of its scrap value if nothing else. I started buying it because a friend of mine who is a commodities dealer said Silver is better in the long term than gold because of its stability. Plus it is always needed as it's used in most electronics and medical uses!

 

[Buddsy 1,622]

My old man is right into silver pin cushions. He buys and sells. Man Ive trying to talk into buy classic cars or something but he just keeps spending thousands on silver pin cushions!

Sometimes even silver hat pins too!

Fagin we call him!

 

buddsy

[dcmp 35]

Didn't mean to suggest you didn't Kimbers

Auction rooms, strange places. Spend almost all the time the bidding is going on bored out my skull...but when my lot comes up I get a huge head rush lol

Sometimes the value of buying something is of a lesser importance than having it in the collection which is why occasionally I overpay.

antique shop guys?!?

[Kimbers 1,781]

Maybe we should set up a co-op online business? 

I was looking at a Specialist Silver sales site, the biggest in the UK and they take a large % plus you have to be a registered business with years of trading experience. 

[dcmp 35]

3 hours ago, Kimbers said:

Maybe we should set up a co-op online business? 

I was looking at a Specialist Silver sales site, the biggest in the UK and they take a large % plus you have to be a registered business with years of trading experience. 

Always open to new ideas Kimbers

[Kimbers 1,781]

I'm going to bump this @dcmp. Mainly because I have now set up my business "Ant's Antiques and Jewelry". I have sold my first items, quite a few actually, but mainly by word of mouth. 

I am going to set up a website to either sell items directly from it or to display my items so people can look through them and contact me about them. I will also set up social media pages.

So my questions:

1. I can get a free website to display items and price. This is the cheapest way but it doesn't have a "Shop" facility where people can buy stuff. Is this important? Because many people don't buy antiques at advertised prices so this would mean they can look at my goods and then contact me to haggle for the best price. Your suggestions

2. @Bibs has mentioned website makers and especially ones where you can sell things from. Any thoughts from you guys? I just looked some up: Square Space, Wix, Shopify, Big Commerce....it's a mindfield

3. Be aware this is an "At home business". Anything more than a few pounds and I won't make anything. We are talking 10 items a month or so, with a profit of maybe £50-£100. (This is a way to build things until I retire, and can do it full time).

4. I want something that isn't clunky and takes ages to put things on (Wendy's Art page was free but takes forever to download things and present them properly).

Sp any advice is greatly appreciated.

And if anyone wants any antique or vintage Jewelry, Bon bon dishes, Salts, Mustards, Spoons etc etc etc please let me know. Happy to take pics and show you what I have. Some examples below:

[march 814]

Whilst ripping out a built in wardrobe we have discovered a small stash of high quality glossy antique publications of a rare and exotic nature, I was wondering of anyone on here may be an aficianado or collector of such antiques and would be interested in procuring such historical documentation. 

Photographs of said publications have not been included in this post to ensure none of the older members of this forum get over enthusiastic and do themselves a mischief.

Complete discretion is assured in any transaction. 

[Kimbers 1,781]

So you have porn then?

[C8RKH 6,254]

Vintage porn, if you please.

[march 814]

Antique Porn! I would love to say it has artistic merit but I think that would be pushing it a bit although I have not looked too closely yet.

We also found 7 mummified rats, 1 mummified mouse, a shrunken head and a wasps nest the size of a beach ball (we were ripping everything out including the floors).

[Barrykearley 6,856]

6 hours ago, march said:

Whilst ripping out a built in wardrobe we have discovered a small stash of high quality glossy antique publications of a rare and exotic nature, I was wondering of anyone on here may be an aficianado or collector of such antiques and would be interested in procuring such historical documentation. 

Photographs of said publications have not been included in this post to ensure none of the older members of this forum get over enthusiastic and do themselves a mischief.

Complete discretion is assured in any transaction. 

Is there lots of hair on display or is it clean shaven - it’s like counting rings on trees to date.

1 hour ago, march said:

think that would be pushing it a bit although I have not looked too closely yet.

Hmmm.... liar liar pants on fire

[march 814]

13 hours ago, Barrykearley said:

Is there lots of hair on display or is it clean shaven - it’s like counting rings on trees to date.

Complete Forests Barry. I take it from this you may be interested? I offer a gift wrapping service as well free of charge if they are for that special person in your life.

[C8RKH 6,254]

@march you'd have gotten @Barrykearley more excited if you'd said they were covered in feathers and liked a good cluck!

[Kimbers 1,781]

So while this post is out there here's an update on my little business I started. It's going so well I will have to do some accounts next year. Because I buy right I can sell right and many of my pieces, vintage Jewellery etc, is very well priced against buying something from a shop or retail! If you don't see it please ask as I do have several thousands of pieces from Silver cutlery to Silver salts, dishes etc. Then lots of mainly silver, jewellery.

Please feel free to let me know if you fancy anything as a stocking filler or a gift. I am happy to withdraw from sale as long as it hasn't got a bid. I will also be putting lots more on this weekend!

https://www.ebay.co.uk/sch/kimbers34/m.html?_nkw=&_armrs=1&_ipg=&_from=