Back to Newark

A little late in the posting, but I thought I’d share my trip to the August Antique Fair at Newark. As with my last trip to the fair, I was really lucky with the weather. It rained heavily on the previous day and I really felt for the outdoor stall holders who definitely suffered. But on the Friday I went, the sun came out again and it was a really pleasant day.

There were a lot of European stalls this time:

Threshing Sledge

This threshing sledge would have been pulled over the dried corn or wheat. The base is studded with stones to separate the wheat from the chaff.

Dutch Trucks

Dutch Trucks

This Dutch company had brought several truck loads of goods.

Rolling pins

Rolling pins

There were random mixtures of items all over the place.

Wicker Pram

Wicker Pram

I loved this wicker pram, I’m guessing that it dates from the 50s.

Bottles

Bottles

The wicker braiding on these bottles was beautiful.

Fairground Bikes

Fairground Bikes

These bikes were probably from a fairground ride.

There was quite a lot of industrial vintage on offer as well:

Lampshades

Lampshades

More lampshades

More lampshades

Piles and cages of metal industrial lampshades

Life Buoys

Life Buoys

Nautical items:

Fortunately, or perhaps unfortunately, as we are still living in a small rented flat, I only bought a few small items:

American Pie Plate

American Pie Plate

These plates would have been sold with the pie, and carried a deposit to ensure that they were returned to the manufacturers.

Paper Bag Cook Book

Paper Bag Cook Book

I was intrigued by this cook book dating from 1911, particularly as I’ve just discovered how simple it is to cook vegetables in a roasting bag. I thought that I might be able to use the same bags to try out the recipes in this book.

Recipes

Recipes

Written by a former Chef at the Reform Club, it has 132 pages of recipes from meat to sweets, so it will keep me out of mischief for a while.

Buckles

Buckles

And finally, I snapped up this lovely selection of vintage buckles. I’m not sure what I’ll use them for yet, but I’ll definitely do something.

Exploring Close to Home

I’ve been so busy exploring the area around my new hometown I have neglected to look for the vintage opportunities closer to home.

Newark does well for antique shops – which may be something to do with the famous Antiques Fair I blogged about here – but it’s not so easy to find vintage. Anyway, as I didn’t want to stray too far from home in this gorgeous weather, I decided to stay close and explore what Newark had to offer.

Tucked around the back of a tattoo parlour, I found a decommissioned church which is now home to the Newark Antiques Centre. This varied centre rents a series of ‘booths’ to independent traders, guaranteeing a wide range of items over the two floors.

Here are a few of the vintage items I found:

Tin tubs

Tin tubs

A nice collection of galvanised tin washtubs.

 

Painted Sledge

Painted Sledge

 

Completely the wrong subject for our current baking hot weather, but I love the painted detail on this sledge. Because of the steering mechanism and the painting, I am guessing that this is probably from Austria.

Shelving Unit

Shelving Unit

 

I really liked this idea of a shelving unit made from vintage wooden boxes. Just the thing to display your vintage treasures – although maybe not these novelty corn cob vases!

Corn cob vases

Corn cob vases

 

I liked these enamel jugs – I could have a serious enamel habit if my purse was deep enough, and I thought that the set of drawers (made of cardboard covered with vintage wallpaper) were also cute.

 

Enamel jugs

Enamel jugs

This lovely child’s rocking chair has seen a lot of use:

Childs rocking chair

Childs rocking chair

I like the contrast of the metal jelly mould on an old set of wooden steps.

Jelly mould

Jelly mould

It would be fair to say that although there wasn’t any dedicated vintage stands, there was enough vintage items spread across the stalls to make a vintage visit worthwhile. There is also an interesting looking café that I didn’t have time to explore, so now I have found it, I shall certainly be back to visit on a regular basis.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Newark Antique Fair

It has been an interesting few months in our household. As part of a job change, I’ve moved to Nottinghamshire and the ensuing upheaval has meant that my vintage exploits have been put on hold for a while.
But one of the joys of moving to a new area has meant a whole new set of vintage opportunities to explore and I look forward to sharing them with you.
This weekend was one of the best known and biggest fairs in Britain, the Newark International Antiques Fair.

This enormous fair takes place over two days at Newark County Showground. The first day is supposed to be the best, with an 8 o’clock start for the dealers and the really keen. Unfortunately I couldn’t make it until Friday which was the second day.
This was the warmest and sunniest day of the year so far, so I slathered on the Factor 50, slapped on a hat and made an early start.

The view of the fair from above (from the Fair's website)

The view of the fair from above (from the Fair’s website)

I quickly realised that there was no way I was going to be able to see everything. As well as stands in the showrings, there were smaller and pricier stalls in the indoor areas, rows of tents each with their own stand, and stalls set out in the livestock sheds.

Arcade of tented stands

Arcade of tented stands

But, as I like a challenge, I set off to cover as much ground as possible.There really did seem to be something for everyone, from interior design pieces and Art Deco, to vintage garden tools and European antiques. Here are a few things that caught my eye:

Unusual jointed male mannequin

Unusual jointed male mannequin

I’ve seen shop mannequins before, but never a male one that’s jointed, or quite so anatomically correct.

German Opera Hat Box

German Opera Hat Box

There were a lot of antiques from Europe, including this German opera hat box which was about an inch thick.

Hungarian enamel and zincware

Hungarian enamel and zincware

There were vans from eastern Europe, including an articulated lorry from Hungary that had brought over this load of bottles, enamelware and galvanised items.

Large Coloured Glass Jars

Large Coloured Glass Jars

Also from Eastern Europe, I loved these coloured glass jars. And only £25 each!

Vintage cart

Vintage cart

I’m not sure if this came from Eastern Europe, but it certainly looks as if it could have.

Vintage Dining Set

Vintage Dining Set

Imagine this in a retro kitchen!

Kitchen Cabinet

Kitchen Cabinet

Or if you prefer something a bit more vintage, this painted cabinet.

Candles in the Heat

Candles in the Heat

Did I say it was hot?! Look at what it did to these candles!

Enamel Ice Cream Sign

Enamel Ice Cream Sign

Such a shame there wasn’t an ice cream stand to go with this sign!

Enamel Advertising Signs

Enamel Advertising Signs

Plenty more enamel advertising signs.

I had expected to be able to wander round until the end of the fair, but many stallholders started packing up after lunch and the grounds rapidly emptied. That said, it was a great time to get bargains and I even saw stock left on the field after stallholders had left.

This is definately going to be a regular event on my calendar, but next time I’ll know that it is definately worth paying the extra to go on the first day of the fair.