As an antiques dealer, I am always on the lookout for treasure! However, on this occasion I was looking for some basic cabinets for our home. My friend mentioned to me that their mum was moving and had lots to get rid of beforehand - the more she could clear herself the less the house clearance cost would be. Great, I thought and off I went to collect a nice but basic cabinet for my project!

I was greeted by his lovely but rather stressed mum with sellotape in one hand and scissors in the other. The hallway was lined with boxes and I could hardly pass through. As we approached the next room, my antique radar was starting to sound off, and so did my curiosity. I asked a few nosey questions about the future of her antiques, and the answers were a light bulb moment for me. 

“You have some lovely things, are you taking them with you?”, I asked.

“I dont have the room where I'm going. I'll keep a few of the items that are most important to me but the rest will be cleared. I suppose they will be donated to charity shops or sold at car boot sales”, she replied.

“So has someone come to view everything?”, I asked.

“Yes, a couple of companies have given me quotes to remove everything“ she stated

I was shocked to hear she was being charged! As I toured her boxed up home, I had already seen some really nice pieces, a table worth around £300 - 19th century, oak, with the green man carving, not as popular as they once were but just as beautiful. I did some mental calculations and came to the conclusion this table must be worth nearly the amount of time and money that it would cost to dispose of the less appealing items 

Then she opened the door to heaven… the cabinet I was collecting was in front of me but my eyes were drawn to what was inside it and on the surrounding shelves. Chinese porcelain, Lalique glass, mother of pearl curios the list goes on. 

I asked excitedly if i could take a look at this, pointing to a glass vase, she sensed my excitement and asked quietly as if we were in trouble .. ‘ is it valuable?’  I said ‘yes! but not as valuable as this’ next focusing on a Chinese porcelain jar. 

Well to cut a long story short she made a total of £2391.07 to be exact from this house clearance (she was going to pay £465 so quite an impressive turnaround). Some items I bought outright and others I sold for her. I also got a free cabinet and bottle of wine!

Charm & Country was born.