Latest News Articles by Joan Porter
Léa Stein jewellery design sparkles at Grays
11 December 2017One of the most innovative vintage costume-style jewellery designers is Frenchwoman Léa Stein.
Cracking idea now providing esoteric collecting field
11 December 2017Tom Smith (1823-69) was the man who made Christmas go with a bang. His entrepreneurial invention of the Christmas cracker delighted Victorian families with the sheer variety of the crackers’ contents as well as the decorative boxes they came in.
Old textiles fuel folk art
11 December 2017Folk art has many admirers. Kent-based Anne Kelly specialises in recycled textile folk art, much of it inspired by nature, particularly birds, and her world travels.
Plate on offer at Welsh fair recalls the elephant in the court room
11 December 2017A child’s plate that celebrates a performing elephant which was bizarrely accused of murdering her keeper will be an unusual highlight at Towy Events’ last antiques and fleamarket of the year.
Father and sons provide family value as toy events keep on track
04 December 2017Barry Potter is surely the king of toy fairs: he and his sons Ellis and Simon run toy, train and model collectors’ fairs in seven venues across the country – in Surrey, Bolton, Coventry, Doncaster, Birmingham, Stafford and Rugby.
B2B itching to open the doors to a festive flea
04 December 2017“This year the Malvern Flea has been the prize in our portfolio,” says Helen Yourston, director of B2B Events.
Online antiques business branches out to hold a fair
04 December 2017A new fair organised by an online antiques business putting down fresh roots launches at a country house venue in Surrey on Sunday, December 10.
Presents with a purpose are clear direction in Woodbridge
04 December 2017Before Natalie Smith opened the Woodbridge Antiques Centre 10 years ago in the pretty Suffolk town, she told ATG that she was given a great piece of advice: never compromise on quality and presentation.
Fleamarket Insiders: spotlight on the website bringing reviews and tips
27 November 2017When he was tired of his Paris apartment looking like an IKEA showroom and wanting to expand his interest in antiques, Nicolas Martin set out to investigate the trade.
Artist’s sister act in Norwich
27 November 2017Russia-born Tanya Goddard is one of the 35 exhibitors at the upcoming two-year-old Art Fair East in Norwich, which runs until December 3 at St Andrews Hall.
Dealer takes up his pens for fair sales
27 November 2017Mark Twain said that his Conklin Crescent Filler fountain pen “was a profanity saver as it cannot roll off the desk”.
Rare card from c.1910 emerges at Ephemera Society fair
27 November 2017This lady’s expression says she might be trying to add some gravitas to her Christmas outfit, but it is difficult when decked out with bits of fir tree, assorted crackers, baubles and tassles plus a mini-tree on her head.
IACF: future is bright in Newbury
20 November 2017Berkshire venue has more growth potential than Sandown Park, says the fair organiser
Bath vintage and antiques winter events offer Christmas present heaven
20 November 2017Plenty of choice for possible Christmas presents is on offer at the upcoming Bath Vintage and Antiques Markets on Sunday, November 26, and Sunday, December 3, held at the old Green Park Station in the city.
Hicks’ design is a highlight at next PBFA event in London
20 November 2017Worlds End Bookshop, one of the dealers at the PBFA’s Christmas fair in Bloomsbury on Saturday, December 2, will be featuring a set of first editions by design icon David Hicks.
A slapstick selection at the Ephemera Society's winter fair
20 November 2017Performing arts dealer Sarah White is just one of many setting up at the event in London on Sunday, December 3, bringing with her some unusual panto playbills.
Capital double fairs showcase out west
13 November 2017London is thick with antiques events this weekend and here we pick two specialist fairs in Kensington.
Swallow heads to Stoneleigh for winter
13 November 2017Pictured is a happy customer making a purchase at Arthur Swallow Fairs’ first monthly Monday winter drive-in indoor antiques market held in the Blackdown Building at the Stoneleigh Park Estate, near Coventry, in October.
First cruise control, then a sprint as GNB Fairs chooses unusual venues
13 November 2017Gary Sheridan of GNB Fairs is powering forward and expanding his six-venue portfolio.
Holt event brings touch of glass to Oxfordshire
13 November 2017As the annual Christmas-gift jamboree gets under way and exhibitors at fairs and markets across the UK bring out their best stock, all kinds of antique delights will be for sale this weekend in Oxfordshire from 40 mostly local dealers.