Coffee Table Antiqes:

Buying & Selling
Private advertisements mean you can buy and sell antiques from the comfort of your home. You may find advertisements for antiques in a wide variety of publications, from national newspapers to specialist magazines.
One of the main drawbacks of buying and selling through adverts is the difficulty of describing your antiques with limited words. Make sure whether buying or selling you have a detailed telephone conversation with the other party to establish that you both understand the object that's up for sale. You should also consider personal safety, and the security of your property. However, provided you take the necessary precautions to minimise risks, this can be an effective way of buying and selling antiques.

Buying at Auction
Auctions are one of the most exciting ways in which to buy and sell antiques. Here you will find almost every type of collectable; but it can seem quite a bewildering environment to anyone who has never visited a salesroom or bought in this way before. If you're looking for a wide variety of furniture for your home, a general auction is the perfect place to start. Many London auction houses have sales with weekend or evening viewings. And a catalogue at around £1 is very good value. Auctions are not limited to the big city salesrooms. The London branches of famous firms such as Sotheby's, Christie's, Phillips and Bonhams & Brooks may account for the vast majority of antiques in this country, but they also have provincial branches. There is a network of local auction houses where you can often buy less expensive antiques and bric-a-brac, provided you are willing to sift through the varied goods on offer to find whatever it is you are looking for. Selling at auction can seem every bit as daunting as buying, especially if you don't know the object's history or what it might be worth. You are, after all, taking along something you hope may be valuable. Don't be put off, auction houses actually offer a very useful way of finding out more about your property and their advice is nearly always absolutely free.

Car Boot Sales
All over the country people are limbering up on Sunday mornings for a serious bit of bounty hunting. We inherited car boot sales from Australia and now there are thousands held every Sunday. The great thing is that you don't need a lot of money to make it a worthwhile day. Car boot sales are held in a wide variety of venues, usually fields, school playgrounds or car parks. They may be advertised in the classified columns of certain magazines, local papers, or simply by notices pinned up in your area. Some are regular events, held every Sunday, others are 'one-offs', or held only occasionally. The boot sale is a good way of emptying the contents of your loft or garage, and raising some cash for your collection. For a small admission charge anyone can fill their car with their unwanted property and sell it for whatever they can. You can buy and sell almost anything at a boot sale - old furniture, second-hand clothes, books, electrical equipment and much more besides.

Fairs
Fairs cover a variety of different 'buying and selling' fields, from local markets and church fairs to organised vetted antiques fairs. Most larger fairs operate a 'dateline', which means that only objects made before a certain date may be exhibited at the fair. The datelines will usually be mentioned in the catalogue, but they may vary for different types of collectable.

Online
Since the mid 1990s, buying and selling antiques and collectibles has become one of the major growth areas of online trading. For centuries, this specialist activity was the domain of reputable auction houses and established dealers, but today collectors can buy and sell goods from a plethora of online companies. One of the first companies to trade online was eBay. Although eBay is often likened to a virtual carboot sale, its success has sparked a rapid growth in online auction sites with hundreds of other companies selling a vast range of goods from pop autographs to fine art.
But until recently, there have been few online opportunities for those interested in the higher end of the antiques market. In 1999, Sotheby's took the plunge and became the first major international art auction house to trade online. Online trading by internationally respected auction houses has added much needed kudos to buying and selling online. Online auctions provide antiques collectors with a new and exciting world to explore. However, for the un-initiated, buying and selling online may seem a daunting and risky business. But for those prepared to follow a few simple rules, buying and selling online can offer many advantages and has the added bonus of trading from the comfort of one's own home.

Shopping Around
It's easy to think that London is the only place to buy antiques, but in fact you can pick up good finds all around the country. For a full listing of antiques fairs and events around the UK, try Antiques Trade Gazette Online, Antiques World UK and Antiques Bulletin.

Antiques shops are among the easiest of places in which to begin learning about and buying antiques. They are less frantic than auction rooms, you can buy when you feel like it, and you don't have to compete with anyone else for the object of your choice. There is an enormous variety of antiques shops, from the smart West End galleries to small country and local dealers. Obviously the dealer you choose will be determined to some extent by personal taste and how much money you have to spend. But as in any trade there are disreputable dealers as well as honest ones, and, particularly if you are an inexperienced buyer, it is very important to pick a dealer who is both knowledgeable and trustworthy.

CARING FOR ANTIQUES
Caring for antiques may seem to mean DIY repairs but these can often cause more damage. Looking after your antiques, ensuring they're displayed, stored and handled correctly is essential to preserving them for future generations. The approach to furniture care has changed over the past decades. Instead of seeing all but the most precious pieces as utilitarian items, people are beginning to appreciate that most furniture needs informed care.
It's important to remember that furniture isn't just wood. It can have metal and fabric components and the beauty of the piece is often how the wood is aged. Bad repairs or cleaning with the wrong products can ruin that finish.

Cleaning
The best way to protect the finish of your piece is to use a good quality wax polish, one that has beeswax in it. This should be done once a year, perhaps twice a year for heavy use. The wax should be applied sparingly with a soft cloth and the piece polished with another lint-free cloth. A good shine comes from rubbing rather than lots of layers of wax. Avoid using feather dusters as they could scratch the surface. Intricate areas should be cleaned with a soft brush. Be careful not to catch or pull any decoration that could bend or come off.

How to re-vamp an old cheap coffee table
If your coffee table is solid wood or wood veneer you should be able to make it a darker colour very easily. You need to strip or sand off the entire clear finish that is on the table and prepare the wood for staining. Once you are down to bare wood, stain the entire table with WATCO Black Walnut. This will give you a deep brown colour. Wipe off all of the stain that does not get absorbed into the wood about five minutes after applying the stain. If you want the colour to be darker, put a second application of the stain, repeating the process. Let the stain on the table dry overnight and apply a clear satin polyurethane finish to finish the job.
 

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