Not just on the internet, but read books, too. Before setting out on a buying trip, decide upon a style of antique that (a) you like and (b) you can afford.
2 .but not too much
If you’re learning about different art styles and movements, stick to one at a time. Visit the Victoria & Albert Museum, and do Art Deco one day and Art Nouveau another.
3 Be suspicious of codes
Some dealers don’t put a price label on their antiques, they put a numbered code instead. When asked the price, the assistant looks in the code book and sees another figure. This is what the dealer paid for it, but also expressed in code, so you, the buyer can’t see. The suspicion is that they vary the price according to who you are.
4 Turn left
When you’re visiting an antiques fair, turn left once you’ve passed through the entrance. Everyone else will turn right, which means you can get to the bargains before them.
5 Get protection
If you’re visiting an event organised by BADA (British Antique Dealers Association; www.bada.org) or LAPADA (London and Provincial Antique Dealers Association; www.lapada.org), you can be sure that the antiques on sale have to be what their sales tickets say they are. If they aren’t, you’ve got comeback. BADA and LAPADA are useful sources for information on fairs, exhibitions and events.
6 Appreciate the advantages of Art Deco
Not only a very recognisable look, but at the same time very diverse. Styles range from simple to highly decorated, from geometric to Tutankhamun. So you have more scope than with most other art movements.
7 Give Chinese a miss
Kept in the cultural dark for decades during Mao’s reign, China’s newly-created billionaires are making up for lost time and buying up whole museums’ worth of precious artefacts. Thereby pushing up prices to eye-watering levels. Best to leave the field to them for the moment.
8 Bide your time
If you’re at an antiques fair, and have been unable to beat the dealer down earlier in the day, pay a return visit at the end. They may be more inclined to accept your offer, rather than having to pack the piece up and take it home.
9 Go for quality
Take, for example, the ball-and-claw foot of a chair, or table leg. Don’t just go for a claw that clasps the ball tightly. And don’t just go for a claw which is raised above the ball. Go for the claw which is both raised above the ball and showing raised sinews, i.e. the best example of its kind.
10 Pick off stragglers
Dealers always like to sell chairs in sets of four, six, or eight. And they charge a premium for supplying the whole set. Individual chairs, though, go for much lower prices, and if you carry around a reference photo of the chairs you want, you may be able to build up a cut-price collection, chair by chair.
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