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Hampton Antiques are specialists in antique boxes & accessories. We exhibit at major antiques fairs across the UK and are recognised as being the country's leading experts in our field. Due to our knowledge, experience and passion, we are often asked to vet for various fairs and auction houses. A few names you may be familiar with are Penmans Fairs, Antiques.co.uk & Antiques Now.  For you as a customer this means reassurance and an absolute guarantee that you are buying an authentic antique from true experts.

So how do we know our stuff?   Our Unique Selling Point is that our vast knowledge in this field is not due to buying and selling alone - we have been restoring these beautiful items for over twenty years which means we literally know (most of what we sell) inside-out! This makes us quite unique in the antiques trade. As a team we collectively have over 80 years experience. We have handled thousands of boxes between us....the more we work with, the more we learn!

Restoration   Our restoration skills mean that, for example, we can take a dying Tea Caddy and restore it to its former glory by painstakingly re-cutting joints piece by piece. We also do intricate inlay work on Mother of Pearl, Ivory, Tortoiseshell & delicate Veneers, and then finish either with a wax polish or french polish. Working on the antiques we sell enables us to spot a piece which may not be what it claims to be. We can easily spot a bad restoration job - for example, a 'restorer' may have used wrong veneers, woods or polishes. A quote that Mark always remembers, told to him by a fellow cabinet maker when learning his apprenticeship is: "A good restorer is someone who can work on a piece and make it look like it's never been touched" - this is always our aim with any restoration work we do and we try as much as possible to adhere to that rule.

Buying online  The internet is a wonderful thing, however this makes the antiques trade open to many fakes and cons. There are Antique websites popping up every month where ANYONE can list their 'antiques' for sale. Unfortunately this is where many people get duped into purchasing an item that appears to be good value for money... they may be taken in by elaborate descriptions and pretty pictures. What they do not know is that the person selling it may not know anything about antiques, the item may be fake etc. Facts the buyer may not be aware of until they try to sell the item on, or get it valued for insurance purposes etc.

Valuations & mistakes   Our last, important piece of information is to be wary of valuations on TV antiques shows as demonstrated in 2009 on the BBC Antiques Roadshow. We were staggered to see a Pear Tea Caddy on the show described by an 'expert' as a genuine Georgian caddy "with lovely patination, its original key and lead lining intact". As an expert & someone who is passionate about Tea Caddies I was disgusted that a show broadcasting on national TV was allowed to get it completely wrong - not only was the caddy a reproduction, it was a poor and obvious one! This is and was damaging to our business for many reasons. We immediately contacted the show & began to liaise with them with a view to a resolution to their error - this unfortunately took a very long time but eventually they agreed to re-film a valuation of the Caddy and admit to their mistake - this was aired in September 2010. When we say we are passionate about eradicating antique fakes, we really do mean it!

Guide to spotting fakes Click here for all the information you need to know before you buy an antique anywhere. We are probably the only dealer in the world who is willing to supply this information freely.... which is why Hampton Antiques are unique!

So.... buy with confidence from Hampton Antiques: vetters and specialist dealers registered with BADA, CINOA and CADA