NFT’s are the latest trend in the art world, but many people do not understand them.
In the world of antique furniture, there is nothing that raises temperatures, or gives a better reason for an argument than the rather broad term of brown furniture, but what does it actually mean and is the market for such items truly as doomed as many people would want you to believe?
Firstly, lets back track about 23 years. The 1990s were coming to a close, Lovejoy had been cancelled, Ikea was becoming a love/hate word in the English vocabulary and traditional antique furniture that had been the mainstay of the collectible and usable market had started to hit hard times. The re-discovery of mid-century modern furniture had started to fit with people’s lifestyles and the necessity for a Victorian gentleman’s compac tum had waned.
At this stage, demand had simply dropped and by the 2010s one c ould buy a Victorian chest of drawers, built by a craftsman, from a fine imported mahogany for pretty much the same as a cardboard box full of Swedish chipboard that you would have to spent hours putting together yourself – it just doesn’t seem right, does it?
However ‘Brown furniture’ isn’t simply the row of beaten-up Edw ardian sideboards in a local auction house, it includes some of the most glorious items ever made as functional pieces – and to place all items of furniture into a single category, jus t because they are made from wood seems a little absurd.
The market today for fine antique furniture is perhaps not as s trong as it was in those days when anyone would pay at least a £1000 for something that start ed with “Georgian” but looking at retail markets now, there are fine and rare pieces a vailable for well in excess of what many people would give them credit for.
So what does the future hold for the ‘Brown Furniture’ market?
Let us not kid ourselves, do we really think that the modern, a lmost disposable lifestyles that people live in 2022 are going to ever need a chest of drawers w ith a brushing slide? Do we think that suddenly every house will need a drop leaf bureau an d that writing letters will suddenly become popular again?
Of course, the answer to both of these questions is no, but – the market for customers that actually do desire these items will only go up as the collector s market still strives to own the best, and only the best.
So when your clients say “we have some brown furniture, but it’ s not really worth anything anymore” it might be worth getting it looked at…
“Following the devastating news of the passing of Queen Elizabeth II, we are rerunning some articles printed earlier this year. As a fashion icon, and loyal servant to our country for over 70 years, we pay tribute”
Walking down Regent Street on a sunny afternoon during the Platinum Jubilee week, one cannot forget how important 2022 is for Her Majesty the Queen. 70 years doing any job is virtually unheard of so a celebration to mark
the occasion is certainly befitting.
Whilst we look forward to not only an extra bank holiday, many celebrations around the United Kingdom and the world, Queen Elizabeth will no doubt take it all in her stride in a simple and understated manner, much
like her handbags.
The Queen has always been known for supporting and almost endorsing Launer Handbags. The Queen Mother had purchased one in the 1940s after Sam Launer had relocated to the United Kingdom after Nazi persecution
in Czechoslovakia during The Second World War, and it is rumoured that the Queen still owns these pieces that date to before she came to the throne. The brand was awarded the Royal Warrant in 1968.
The royal collection of Launer handbags now comprises over 200 individual pieces though, with the favourites reportedly being the Traviata, the Diva and of course, the Royale. It is said that she orders around five pieces per year with custom elements to each, and no doubt Launer will have made sure to make something special for this year’s celebrations.
The values of these bags are almost insignificant compared to many others that we see on a day-to-day basis, with values usually being less than £3000, but they are all hand made in Britain and command a strong following with Lady Margaret Thatcher having been a fan of the brand.
It is hard to imagine, but a considerable amount of time and effort has been placed in providing the Queen with the perfect bag. It must have long handles so it doesn’t get in the way when she is meeting people, it must also
be fairly lightweight as she doesn’t keep much in there during the day – apparently only a pen, spectacles case, lipstick, hand cream and mints make it into the royal handbag.
If you ever wondered why the Queen always had her handbag, even when carrying out Royal duties at home, this was because it served an additional purpose. If she placed her bag on a table and looked around the room,
this gave her staff a five minute warning that she was ready to leave and to prepare!
As we pay tribute to Her Majesty for the 70 years of service, we also appreciate Lauren’s 70 years of being a true British Icon.
Let’s not beat around the bush, one of the most common watches that I have to value is the now almost immortal Patek Phillipe Nautilus 5711 and again one of the most common questions (or statements) is that the value is plummeting but let’s just have a quick look at the facts here – if you bought your watch any time before Christmas of last year, it’s still probably going to have to be insured for more than you bought it for. The timeline of this watch is probably the most extreme, and well known of any of the mid pandemic boomers so let’s just have a look at the statistics;
In November of 2019, these watches were in demand and trading above their retail price, and this flexed around the £50,000 mark with occasional spikes and troughs.
Then when COVID-19 decided to appear, suddenly things started getting extreme with Patek also announcing that they would be ‘Discontinuing’ the watch and around November of 2020 12 months on, they had pretty much doubled in price to a £100,000 watch.
March of 2021 and things had just got to a stage where asking prices were up to nearly £200,000 for what is a stainless-steel sports watch, I even knew of some trading around the £180,000 for sealed examples, which in my opinion is a bit of a nonsense anyway.
Today’s market has changed and now in the summer of 2022 the 5711 has taken a retreat and is currently sitting at around the £150,000 – there are fluctuations and deals being done, so this is a fairly liberal figure so yes, it has lost some value but ultimately those prices could not carry on rising – people were at one stage tipping the Patek to be a £250,000 watch, which quite frankly would have been amazing.
In the same breath, we can also talk about the other big hitter in this market, the Audemars-Piguet Royal Oak – similar style, similar quality and similar demand. A fairly similar course of events has occurred and now a good AP Jumbo can be bought on the secondary market for £90,000 when back in those days of Zoom calls and toilet paper shortages you would be paying closer to £130,000 – still, let’s not forget that this was a £35,000 watch.
So, is the whole market in decline? Absolutely not.
Rolex are still playing the field and keeping their desirability levels at an all-time high…is this because they are slightly more ‘affordable’? possibly. Is it because they are releasing more interesting variations on their ever-expanding roster of watches? Probably.
So why is this happening? The common thought thread seems to be a mixture of the potential economic issues that may or may not be coming into play over the next year, and the other big factor is the massive decline of crypto currencies.
At one time a gold Nautilus went with a large wallet of Bitcoin and Ethereum like it did with a very noisy Lamborghini (usually on The Kings Road) whereas now you are more likely to be heading to your local Casio store.
Whichever way we look at it, the watch market will always be volatile, it’s a luxury item that is really not just a watch, but a collectible, a piece of jewellery, a statement, a piece of art…
it’s everything.
The world of watches is not only a fascinating one, but also a frustrating one. For example in 2014 had I known that the world of Rolex sports watches would have become such a lucrative market place I would have purchased their entire stock and waited for the elevated position that their most desirable watches currently occupy.
There are of course limited runs of pieces that you always would like to own, but only when as it transpires, they are all sold out and you are late to the party – this is a classic situation with the Rolex Submariner with the famous green bezel…
The year was 2009 and a Rolex Submariner was known to be one of the most desirable sports watches on the planet with… wait for it, sometimes a waiting list if the authorised dealer of your choice didn’t have the model you required, fast forward to today – you would almost be laughed out of a dealer if you asked to buy a brand new Submariner – it is that popular.
Rolex had made a bold move, they had issued the fairly conservative Submariner with a green bezel. Instantly every Rolex aficionado let it be known how appalled and disgusted they were that such a great mark could do such a thing.
So, back to that year of 2009 when I happened to be speaking to a Rolex dealer, whom shall remain nameless when I was offered the ‘Kermit’ (I don’t think Rolex nicknames were such a big thing then) for the unimaginable price of £4,800, and if I took two of them then it would come with a discounted price of £9,000.
Fast forward to this moment in time and the green bezel Submariner is one of the most desirable watches on the planet, with similar incarnations such as the ‘Starbucks’ and the ‘Hulk’ offering buyers additional variations on a theme, with secondary market figures varying from £18,000-£25,000 each.
The next incident is actually ongoing and may well change over the next year, but currently one of the hottest pieces on the secondary market is the Swatch and Omega collaboration the ‘Moonswatch’. A ‘bioceramic’ (basically plastic) quartz watch in the manner of the Omega classic moonwatch.
Announced on the internet with 48 hours’ notice, the range of watches instantly became the most sought after item from either Swatch or Omega with Swatch boutiques having to close and call in for police security after mobs started storming the little shops all around the world – the demand was so huge they had to apologise.
Within hours the watches were appearing on secondary market sites for up to £3,000 – and considering this was a £200 watch, it seemed rather sad and cynical however.
The one thing that we can be sure of though is that the watch market will be constantly reinventing itself with new and different ways to attract buyers and collectors and as long as this keeps happening, no doubt I will always be looking to make sure no more items get away!
Walking down Regent Street on a sunny afternoon this week and one cannot forget how important 2022 is for Her Majesty the Queen, 70 years doing any job is virtually unheard of so a celebration to mark the occasion is certainly befitting.
Whilst we look forward to not only an extra bank holiday, but many celebrations around the United Kingdom and the world, Queen Elizabeth will no doubt take it all in her stride in a simple and understated manner, much like her handbags.
The queen has always been known for supporting and almost endorsing Launer Handbags. The Queen Mother had purchased one in the 1940s after Sam Launer had relocated to the United Kingdom after Nazi persecution in Czechoslovakia during The Second World War, and it is rumoured that the queen still owns these pieces that date to before she came to the throne. The brand was awarded the Royal Warrant in 1968.
The royal collection of Launer handbags now comprises over 200 individual pieces though, with the favourites reportedly being the Traviata, the Diva and of course, the Royale. It is said that she orders around five pieces per year with custom elements to each, and no doubt Launer will have made sure to make something special for this year’s celebrations.
The values of these bags are almost insignificant compared to many others that we see on a day-to-day basis, with values usually being less than £3000, but they are all hand made in Britain and command a strong following with Lady Margaret Thatcher being another fan of the brand.
It is hard to imagine, but a considerable amount of time and effort has been placed in providing the queen with the perfect bag. It must have long handles so it doesn’t get in the way when she is meeting people, it must also be fairly lightweight as she doesn’t keep much in there during the day – apparently only a pen, spectacles case, lipstick, hand cream and mints make it into the royal handbag.
If you are ever lucky enough to meet the Queen at a function of any sorts though, be aware if she places her bag on a table and looks around the room….This gives her staff a five minute warning that she is ready to leave and to prepare!
So congratulations to The Queen, and to Launer for 70 years of a true British Icon, may there be many more.
This week marks the long awaited (for me at least) release of The House of Gucci on streaming services around the world. The Cinema release was of course one of those impacted by the pandemic, but thankfully not to the same degree as No Time to Die but realistically, nothing could be that delayed.
The film tells the story of Patrizia Reggiani and her downfall as the long-suffering wife of Maurizio Gucci, part of the much fabled and respected fashion house. Whilst the film takes some interesting turns and slight elaborations on history, what cannot be debated is the importance the house has in the world of fashion – be that in couture, handbags and even jewellery.
There are some things the Italians just do better; fashion, wine, and arguably cars (if you have read my article on Alfa Romeo, then you will understand my thoughts on this subject) and some of the classic designs in the handbag world have evolved from the house.
My personal favourite must be the 1947 Bamboo model, with perfect proportions and the daintiest outline. In a tan calf leather, it can be matched with anything, be it dressed up or down – as comfortable at dinner, as it is at the polo.
The great thing about Gucci, is that it sits at an affordable level, it doesn’t try to be Hermes, nor would it want to, the pieces are unique and instantly identifiable whilst maintaining a mid-level price, and for years have been very affordable, this however has changed in the last three years when the inevitable price increases have hit every fashion house, with Gucci being amongst Chanel, Hermes and Louis Vuitton seeing an almost 25% uplift
in replacement values.
The jewellery that Gucci produces is always bombastic and designed to create (and usually divide) opinions, its sits in a position that knows its place – whilst not high end it is good quality and more about design than its components, and over the years they have produced some stunning pieces, again my favourite pieces are a pair of 1970s silver cufflinks that are simply the definition of Milan in the era, not subtle but with enough flair to
get away with it.
With a lot of ‘fashion jewellery’ it sometimes is relegated to the bottom of the jewellery box along with Chanel and Dior pieces, however again with the price increases we are constantly seeing, perhaps it needs to be looked at in more depth – with the respect it deserves.
£5,000 – it seems like a lot of money to be spending on a watch doesn’t it? A piece of mechanical jewellery that serves pretty much no other purpose than to look good, and make the owner proud to be wearing it… however, in the world of horological collections £5,000 is almost a starting point for many top tier watches.
The watches that I have included today represent the most popular category in the market – the gentleman’s stainless steel sports watch. If you have read my articles on the Rolex Submariner, you will be aware that even trying to look at one of these brand new is somewhat akin to trying to buy toilet roll in 2020, and unless you have the contacts, don’t even think about owning one until you have been on the waiting list for years…
We will however start with a couple of notable mentions – firstly the Ulysse Nardin Diver 8163. It’s a brilliant, strong move from a company that has always had a little bit of an identity crisis – from supplying the majority of the worlds naval forces to releasing slightly risqué watches with different images from the Kama Sutra, Ulysse Nardin have always been a choice for those who wanted something a bit different and this 42mm diver is about as accessible as they will ever get, it’s a great looking watch with a bold dial and bezel, and at £5,600 (I know I am cheating a little) I think it’s a great alternative to a modern Submariner.
Second, is the Grand Seiko Sport Automatic Spring Drive GMT which also comes in at around £5,500. This is a slightly bizarre choice as Grand Seiko occupy the position as the ‘Lexus’ of the watch world – everyone knows they probably make the best product, will work brilliantly well forever and when they need servicing, it will be at a moderate cost. So why aren’t they flying off the shelves? Because of that badge unfortunately. It’s a great shame, but wearing a £5,000 watch, with the same heritage as the digital timepiece I wore to school just doesn’t create the same desire as some of the more luxury brands we all know and love.
So – what would I buy with £5,000?
There is only one option, not only do I think that this is the best watch for the money, I also think that to a certain degree, you would be hard pushed to find a better time piece in many greater price brackets.
The Omega Seamaster – it is frankly, brilliant.
Coming in at £4,450 it’s also about a grand cheaper than my other alternatives, but never looks like a cheap watch. Omega are without doubt one of the power houses of Swiss watch design, Rolex are simply young upstarts when it comes to heritage (in fact Hans Wilsdorf launched Rolex as a cheaper alternative to Omega) and Omega can claim many of the worlds most notable horological moments including the first watch on the moon. Currently though, most people will associate the brand with James Bond, and that’s ok – what better ambassador than a secret agent whom can jump
out of planes, trains and blow stuff up – all with the aid of his timepiece.
The Seamaster, in my opinion is all the watch you would ever need in this category, it’s a proper divers watch with a stunning dial, a comfortable bracelet, 300m water resistance, and a great brand heritage. There are a multitude of colours to buy them in and you can literally walk into a shop and buy one, without having to sell your soul or pay a massive premium to own one.
A great watch, at a great price point.
Finally, this month will see the release of the much anticipated ‘No Time to Die’ – the 25th film in the James Bond series, despite a very long wait since the original release date the world is waiting to see just what Bond can offer in Daniel Craig’s last outing as 007.
It is a phenomenon that in 2021, a character such as Bond can still pull the crowds, but it’s the franchise that always wins and whatever is associated with Bond generally brings in the royalties as well. With a supposed birthday of the 11th of November 1920, he is certainly looking good for his age…
How though, has Bond changed over the years? In 1962 when ‘Dr. No’ was released, it’s doubtful that anyone could have seen just what effect the Scottish/Swiss secret agent (who was named after an expert on American birds, and one of Ian Fleming’s favourite authors) would have on films, products and computer games to name but a few.
Now, what a lot of people don’t realise is that Bond’s car was a Bentley – according to Ian Fleming – the Aston Martin came with the films, but the DB5 is now possibly the most recognisable movie car on the planet, possibly more recognisable than some of the lesser-known Bond actors (sorry, Timothy). Strangely, the most expensive example of this legend is a Bond car, but not as one might imagine. The promotional car for ‘Goldfinger’ (1964) sold a couple of years ago for close to £5,000,000 and was in remarkable condition as Mr Connery had never driven it in anger during production. To put it in context a standard DB5, minus ejector seat and oil slick jets, can be purchased for under a million.
For those with a lesser budget, my choice would always be the Alfa Romeo GTV6 driven by Roger Moore in Octopussy – obviously this was a prop car as when I owned one of these, saving the world from nuclear destruction would not have been on my agenda – just getting it to start was considered a success.
Bond’s watches are another example of how one man (and maybe a great marketing department) can change the course of a product. So, what was the first ever Bond watch on screen? It was the instantly forgettable Gruen Precision 510 (Connery’s personal watch, and worn in many other Bond outings)… but nobody cares about that and so we always talk about the Rolex Submariner 6538.
Again, the source of the watch was reputably Connery, although it has been hinted that it may have belong to production staff… with the passing of Connery, I suppose we will never get the full lowdown… what is true however is the escalating value of the 6538 along with most other vintage Rolex sports models. If you want to` be a part of the ‘Big Crown’ Rolex club, be ready to hand over close to £100,000 for a good one these days.
There are of course, again many other options for classic Bond watches, with Seiko, Breitling and most recently Omega, whom have pretty much rejuvenated a brand tanks to Pierce Brosnan, and Daniel Craig wearing some timepieces that do far, far more than tell the time.
When we look at the clothes that Bond sports, there has always been that sartorial elegance with Bond, with Daniel Craig wearing a symphony of Tom Ford attire, with accoutrements by Sunspel, Orlebar Brown and many others but, for me nothing beats Roger Moore in the Safari Suit though, capturing a moment when being a secret agent required a pair of flared trousers, and preferably with a silk cravat.
So, over the years – many things have changed with Bond from watches, to cars, and clothing manufacturers. Hopefully, ‘No Time to Die’ will be as good as we have come to expect from 007, as nobody does it better…
I would imagine that most of our readers draw a salary from their jobs, but how would you feel if you were paid in salt, rather than currency?
The Hammersley Salt
Well, the word ‘salary’ actually derives from the Latin word ‘salarium’, relating to the quantity of salt that Roman soldiers would receive in return for their efforts… Whether or not they were actually paid in salt is debatable, but the value of their pay was certainly linked to the value of salt at the time.
The ‘salt cellar’, or correctly termed ‘saler’, came about due to the need for a receptacle to hold the wondrous gift of the sea, and was a huge status symbol in the Middle Ages. In fact, your social standing could be easily recognised as to where you were seated at the table in relation to ‘the master’s salt’ – either above it for the higher ranking of the seated guests, or beneath it for those deemed less important.
In advance of our upcoming webinar, due to be broadcast on location at the impressive premises of The Worshipful Company of Haberdashers on Thursday 1st July 2021, we are honoured to announce that we will be talking about one of the most important salt cellars in the United Kingdom, possibly the world.
Dutch silver standing salt by Adam van Vianen, (Utrecht, 1621), estimated at £600,000-800,000 at Sotheby’s Treasures sale on July 6
The Hammersley Salt is a part of the stunning collection situated at The Worshipful Company of Haberdashers. The piece dates from 1595, and the only word that can be used to sum up its presence is magnificent.
Standing at 20 centimetres high and weighing in at 32 Troy ounces the drum shaped body is detailed with a frieze of classical figures, with engraving detailing the gift from Sir Hugh Hammersley Kt and Alderman of London 1636 it is raised upon a domed and circular spread foot with an additional selection of figures upon the frieze with an ogee border, having a detachable saltwell to the upper section and marked with an ovolo and guilloche border.
It is hard to think that this piece was used for serving salt to the great and the good at the time of Elizabeth I, and what is mesmerising about The Hammersley Salt is that one can see the visible corrosion from the salt being in contact with the silver over the 500 years since it was first used.
The company formed in 1448, and has curated one of the most formidable collections of fine silver in the country, which one of our silver specialist’s Jenny Knott and myself have had the absolute privilege of working with this year. During the webinar, we will be honoured to be joined by Dr David Bartle, archivist of The Haberdashers Company, to discuss the piece, its origins and how it came to be in the possession of The Company.
We look forward to you joining us for a unique event, truly worth its salt.
