Gundelfinger Cash in the Attic

Welcome to Cash In The Attic. Most homes across the country

have got some Royal Doulton, porcelain or glass in them -

big pieces and small pieces.

But does size really make a difference to price?

The lady we're meeting today has a fair collection of those items herself.

So what are they worth? Time to find out.

Coming up on Cash In The Attic, a cute collection catches my eye.

I'm going to tidy these up for the auction, OK?

It's like that, it is it?

Come on, Jennie. Let's see what else we can find.

Our expert John faces some hard bargaining.

-I'd like 100.

-I'm sure you would! I'd like you to get 100. If you do, I'll be absolutely delighted.

'And at the auction, could a touch of tactical selling help us reach our target?'

You're pleased about that? You've got your eyes on that silver one, haven't you?

I can see a little bit of a deal being done behind the scenes here.

Find out what happens when the final hammer falls.

Well, today I'm in Surrey to meet a lady

who's called in the Cash In The Attic team

to help her raise the funds she needs for a nostalgic trip abroad.

'Jennie Gundelfinger was born and raised in Johannesburg, South Africa.

'Like many young women, she enjoyed adventurous travel

'and a career before settling down to raise her three children,

'Nicholas, Grant and Kim.

'Problems with the family business, coupled with the threat of military service for her son,

'drove Jennie to move the family 6,000 miles to England.

'She now considers Surrey to be her home,

'but she's hoping to raise money to pay for a nostalgic holiday.

'Joining us in our hunt is our antiques and collectibles expert

'John Cameron, who - with many years of experience - shouldn't have any trouble

'identifying the best items to take to auction.

'While he gets to work, I check in with Jennie and her good friend, Ena,

'who will be helping us today.'

-Good morning, ladies.

-Hello!

What are you looking at there?

Just memories.

Ena's daughter,

she and I started making these hand-painted tablecloths. Just fun.

I did import some from South Africa, more professionally done.

So have you called in Cash In The Attic to help run this import/export business?

My mum died a year ago in South Africa,

and I brought all her stuff back here.

It's all been packed away in boxes. I just decided my children wouldn't want it one day.

I haven't got room for it. So I'll turn it into cash, hopefully.

What do you want to spend that money on?

Going to Italy.

I've been wanting to do that for a long, long time.

Since I was...17, I haven't been back.

-What do you think of this idea, Ena?

-I think it's great. Really good idea.

-I might be taking Ena with me, because my husband doesn't want to go.

-That's why it's a good idea!

I follow you now, Ena! I'm with you!

So what sort of money are we talking about, then?

Between £500 and £600.

We need to raise £500 so that you, and hopefully Ena, can go to Italy?

John Cameron's already here, so I'm hoping he's found something inside the house,

unless he's got lost in these wonderful grounds out here.

-Shall we go and see if we can find him, Ena? You lead the way.

-Great.

Jennie's lived in this impressive and beautiful home for 16 years.

Everywhere you look, you see evidence of classic English collectibles.

Judging by Jennie's upbringing,

I think we're bound to find items from the far reaches of the globe.

John, I wondered whether we'd find you.

This house is huge and the grounds! Have you seen them?

-I was in danger of getting lost, yes.

-Wonderful, isn't it?

-You've found something?

-A rather impressive ink stand.

I'm wondering if you can tell us about it, Jennie?

Well, nothing much. My father-in-law had it on his desk for ever.

My father-in-law was born in South Africa, but German parents.

I assume he got it from his parents.

Then they retired to Switzerland, and we got the desk with the inkwell.

And what do you think of it? Is it to your taste?

-Yeah, I do like it.

-It's a very impressive ink stand.

It's made of onyx and bronze.

We've got the onyx base here, which is very simple in design.

Those geometric shapes suggest the Art Deco period.

1920s, 1925, that sort of period.

What I find interesting about it is the bronze figure in the centre.

Look at him, there. He's a simple blacksmith, sat atop his anvil

with a very heavy hammer in his hand, deep in thought about something.

Look at him. He has real socialist overtones, don't you think?

Kind of reminds me of some of the work that people like Alexander Rodchenko

were doing for Lenin's socialist posters.

So it's a real puzzler for me. Certainly continental.

Doesn't say English to me at all. A very interesting piece.

So what sort of value would you put on this?

It's easier to value when it's a classic Art Deco flowing lady, isn't it?

The conservative in me - and bearing in mind these tough economic times -

would think of something of 100-200.

But I wouldn't be in the least bit surprised if it sailed past that,

-because it's rather impressive and unusual.

-It's different.

Well, a £100-200 valuation

definitely set us off on the right foot.

As we split up the rummage duties, Jennie wastes no time in locating

a rather intriguing collection.

This mixed lot of silver and gold tie pins belonged to her father,

who was an avid golfer. John hopes they'll make £60-80 at auction.

But when they go under the hammer,

will the bidders agree?

Two bids on this. Starting at the top of the estimate, £80.

I'll take 5 in the room?

-Straight in at £80!

-Very nice.

90 in the doorway. And 5. 100.

Let's hope they bring in the result Jennie and Ena will be proud of.

There's still lots of work to do if we want

to raise the money for those plane tickets to Italy.

In the conservatory, Jennie finds a collection of jugs that used to belong to her mum.

Direct imports from Africa, these 20th-century designs are made from Zambian copper,

which is the major industry for the country.

John estimates this set of six will go for £30-50.

John, what do you think of these two?

They look interesting.

I'll take this one. Sit yourself down, let's have a look at them.

They're interesting. Do you know what they are or who they're by?

Doulton. Royal Doulton, I think.

-I don't know a great deal more.

-They're quite heavy.

-Yes, they are.

That's because they're not porcelain, they're pottery.

And they're made of stoneware, which is a very high-fired,

hard and heavy type of pottery.

So these would have been hand potted on a wheel, thrown, on a potter's wheel.

Worked from a simple lump of clay, up into

this beautiful, inverted baluster shape, which is a really nice shape.

It is. It feels tactile, doesn't it?

It's very tactile. A lovely slender waist to it.

So they were potted by hand.

Then they would have been applied with these lovely sprigs, these flowers here.

Those would have been pressed into a mould and gently removed

and applied to the surface with slip - liquid clay -

to help them adhere.

The whole pieces are then fired at a very high temperature,

before they then come out and they're decorated.

So we then had the colours, the painting and the glaze added,

before they're fired again at lower temperatures.

-I reckon they're about 100 years old now. They are nice pair, aren't they?

-They're lovely.

-Do you think Jennie would be happy to sell them?

-I think so.

She's not too keen on the colour.

-It doesn't go with her colour scheme.

-You think she might be up for selling them? That's good news.

If I were putting them into auction,

I'd have no hesitation of putting

an estimate of about £80-120 on them, but I won't be surprised

if they end up making about 150, something like that.

-Not bad.

-Excellent. Well, good find,

-but we've still got some way to go, so let's carry on rummaging.

-OK.

This silver vase also belonged to Jennie's mum.

And, after close inspection, we've determined it's solid silver.

That means John can stamp it with a hefty price tag of £120-160.

Now, this I find absolutely fascinating,

because we've got really British items in the house -

the Royal Doulton porcelain, all of this kind of stuff.

And then we've got literally a taste of Africa.

Some of the paintings are African. This is stunning. Where is this?

It's about 300 miles going east from Johannesburg towards Natal Coast,

a mountain range called the Drakensberg.

So what was it like as a child growing up in Africa?

Idyllic. It really was.

The weather is unbelievable.

The life was free.

It wasn't as dangerous as it is today.

It's still a beautiful country but not to live in.

-So what made you move?

-A lot of it was political.

My husband had a lot of trouble at his factory, people going on strike.

Sadly, we were getting threatening phone calls.

But still we weren't convinced that we were moving

until a little brown envelope dropped through the letter box,

calling up Nicholas to the army.

He was then 16, and it was...

national conscription. He had to go.

So that was it for me,

and, erm, we made motions after that.

-And do you still go back there?

-Yes, every year.

Twice a year, maybe, in the last 21 years.

Tell me about this. What game is this?

It's called Mancala. It apparently originated in Egypt.

And it's come all the way down Africa.

Each country, the rules have changed slightly.

Maybe we can show John how to play this later on. In the meantime,

shall we see whether he's found anything we can sell?

Come on, then.

Both John and Ena have been hard at work.

And Ena's has found two good-quality portraits in ornate frames.

John estimates these Victorian ladies could sell for £20-30.

Now, they say the most important part

of any girl's outfit is her shoes and handbag.

Judging by our next find, it looks like Jennie

has taken the handbag part very seriously.

A lady after my own heart.

We've got some interesting ones - some meshwork, leather.

Some fantastic ones.

This one here, another one with nice glass beads. So interesting.

My mum made that one, and that one's from Italy.

-It must have taken hours!

-Absolutely.

But you've got some interesting examples here.

But condition is everything, because people are buying them

to actually use them - they're functional objects.

A lot of vintage emporiums now, they're falling over themselves

to get good-quality vintage handbags and other accessories.

How should we sell these, do you think?

Divide them up or just sell them as one big lot?

That would be down to the auctioneer, Lorne.

They'd either separate one or two, or they might sell them as one lot.

I would have thought if we'd said £80-120 for them...

-OK.

-..I think that's a conservative estimate to get some interest.

-Yes.

OK, that's not bad, is it?

That's another good contribution to our fund, isn't it?

-Do you want to go and find something else?

-What are you going to do?

I'll tidy these up ready for the auction, OK?

Oh, it's like that, is it?

Come on, Jennie. Let's see what else we can find.

Ena's been busy and has spotted a beautiful and very delicate set

of doll's house furniture,

made by the well-known French pottery Limoges.

John thinks this contemporary set might go for £10-20.

Well, we can always count on John to find us something special,

and he finds this group of Lladro figurines,

which once belonged to Jennie's mother-in-law.

Highly collectible, this porcelain originates from Spain

and although relatively modern, John thinks he can entice the bidders

with a price of £80-120.

John, I've found that.

That's rather interesting, Jennie. Where did this come from?

Out of my mum's cabinet again.

Probably from my grandmother, because I remember it being there for ever.

-Do you like it?

-Not particularly. I don't like the strong colours.

Well, it's made of enamel, but it's called Cloisonne.

Any idea where you think it came from?

It looks a bit Chinese to me.

Well, you're not far, it's actually Japan.

I'll tell you why. If you have a look at the decoration,

they're quite simple - a little bird here, nice use of flowers

and this lovely blossom tree.

Quite asymmetrically placed on the piece.

That's typical of the Japanese.

If it was Chinese, the decoration would tend to be more like all over

and very well balanced.

But the actual technique, the Cloisonne technique,

actually originated in Europe. Probably Byzantine.

The word "Cloisonne" is in fact French. Now, the technique of Cloisonne, the enamelling,

goes back hundreds and hundreds of years.

In fact, it first spread to the Far East, to China.

It involves the building up of a picture,

using little wires on a base metal, often copper.

These are affixed to the surface, creating cells.

Within each of those cells, they paint ground glass, which is enamel,

usually a potash or a lead ash glass.

Coloured glass, put in there, built up,

and then the whole thing is fired at about 800 degrees, which makes it like glass again.

And then the whole piece has to be polished back.

We polish it all the way back,

just to reveal those little Cloisonnes.

Can you feel them on the surface? Rub your hands on there.

-Oh, yes.

-You can just feel that.

It's very, very subtle.

What do you think it'll fetch at auction, John?

I think a little vase like this on its own,

should be something like £50-100 at auction today.

Right. I'd like 100.

I'm sure you would! I'd like you to get 100.

If you do, I'll be absolutely delighted.

I'd give it house room, and that's a good rule of thumb.

I've got high hopes for it. Come on, let's see what else we can find.

I'm glad to see Jennie is aiming high for the auction outcome.

Meanwhile, in the living room, I spy a promising porcelain figure.

This dancing lady hails from Austria.

She and her demure friend were created by the pottery Wiener Kunstkeramik.

John thinks someone might want to take this pair of lovely ladies home for £20-40.

-Hi, Jennie.

-Look what I found!

Oh, we must show John that.

-John, look.

-What have we got?

-Have a look.

-Let's have a look.

-So where did this come from?

When my mum-in-law died, as she was living in Switzerland,

Roy's sisters and I divided up her ornaments between us.

You certainly have an eye for quality, Jennie.

I think your mother-in-law did too.

You certainly picked a very nice piece.

It's a little glass bonbon dish by Lalique.

We can see it's got the mark on the bottom -

Lalique, France, which is the factory of Rene Lalique,

started by him at the turn of the last century.

A designer of unique and very bespoke jewellery in the Art Nouveau style.

But also, maker of very fine glass.

Now, the thing I love about Lalique is, although he employed techniques

of mass production, like press and machine press-moulded glass,

mould-blown and press-moulded glass,

they're often finished to a very, very high standard.

And they had lots of imitators, but it's often the subtlety of their finish,

the fine quality of their finish, and the beauty of their design

which separates them from many of their imitators.

Of course, they still sell these items in very good stores today.

And they're still very expensive.

So what sort of estimate would you put on that, John?

I would have thought it ought to make somewhere between

£100 and £150, something like that.

Well, obviously you wanted to raise £500 for this trip to Italy.

And the value of all the items that are going to auction comes to...

£750!

-Really?

-Yes. Yes.

-Wonderful.

-So you may be going after all, and if you do better than that,

we might be coming too!

It's great that Jennie's Italian holiday looks as if it could be within reach.

Now it's all in the bidders' hands.

We've got some fabulous items heading to auction.

The Art Deco onyx and bronze ink stand.

At £100-200, this 1920s piece would look great on a chunky desk.

My favourite items, the vintage handbags. At £80-120, there are

bound to be followers of fashion in the room who'll snap them up.

Finally, the Japanese Cloisonne vase.

It's a beautiful piece that I think is sure to impress at auction.

Find out how much these and Jennie's other items will raise

on auction day.

Still to come on Cash In The Attic,

a dainty piece that gets a big result.

That's more than double what we were hoping for,

so I'm pleased about that. Are you?

Excellent.

'And some female figures take me back to my youth.'

Our next lot is a group of two nuns,

another of two children and a third of a girl on a telephone.

She must be a teenager, then!

But they all use mobiles now, don't they?

'Be there when the hammer falls.'

Now, it's been a few weeks since we met Jennie and Ena

and had a good look around Jennie's home.

She had some lovely items, including that fantastic Lalique bowl.

Now, remember, she's looking to raise £500 for a trip to Italy.

So let's just hope that when the items go under the hammer today,

there's plenty of people ready to splash the cash.

There should be no shortage of buyers today, as this room is always

full of antique dealers looking for a great sale.

John Cameron can't be with us today,

but I'm confident his estimates will stand us in good stead.

Of course, the ladies have some real gems going under the hammer.

-Good morning, ladies!

-Hello!

Are you having second thoughts about letting those bags go?

This is quite sentimental to me, because I remember my mum making it.

It took her a long time.

You'll have to put it down, because we're going to be selling it, I'm afraid.

And that lovely ink well that's very reminiscent of sort of Russian

-architecture. Is that here?

-Yes, that's here.

You didn't have to carry it, did you?

-No, my husband did.

-Did he?

They're always useful for something.

If you'd like to have a go at raising money by selling at auction,

be aware that sale rooms charge commission fees.

Prices vary from one sale room to another,

so it's best to check in advance.

Jennie's decided to keep hold of those two Victorian portraits.

Not to worry, because as the auction gets under way, first up

is the Limoges pottery doll's house furniture which Ena found.

25 there. 30, 35. 40's my last, and 5 if you like.

Your bid at £45. Take 50 now.

At £45 in the room. It's a good bid, I think, at £45.

I'm going to sell it. Last chance...

-185, £45.

-£45!

That is a good result, isn't it?

That's more than double what we were hoping for,

-so I'm pleased about that, are you?

-Yes.

-Excellent.

It's a fantastic start for Jennie and Ena.

And if we keep on doubling our top estimates, I think they can look

at flying to Italy first class.

Our next lot is a Chinese Cloisonne vase

with blue ground, decorated with plumes and birds.

At £30, start me, bid me at £30.

-£30.

-Oh, no!

-I'll take 5 now.

35, 40.

Still cheap at £35, take 40 now. £40, if you like, at £40.

40 there, 45. At £40, I'm bid then, take 5 now.

At £40 only. Is that it? At £40, I'm going to sell it.

£40, that's a bit of a disappointment, isn't it?

Yes, it is.

Looks like I spoke too soon, but I think for £40,

this vase's new owner got it for a steal.

But things take a turn for the worse, as the pair of Doulton vases

fail to attract any interest at all!

No bidding at £65, then... Not sold.

At least Jennie can take these beautiful vases back home,

although that's not the way it's supposed to work out at auction.

Will the collection of African copper jugs have better luck?

We're looking for £30-50.

£20, start me for the copper. Surely at £20, bid me...

No bids of £20. Trying for £20, I'm bid 25 there.

30. 35. At £30, I'm bid, at the back of the room, your bid at £30.

35 next to you, 40. It's a lot for the money, 5.

And 50. And 5.

And 60. At £55, then, the gentleman at the back, at £55. Take 60 now.

At £55, all done. I'm going to sell it at 55, last chance...

It just goes to show how hard it is to predict how something will fare at auction.

Next up, those tie pins that belonged to Jennie's dad.

£60-80 on those, so it would be nice if we can make that money for them, wouldn't it?

I presume you're not a golfer and you wouldn't wear a tie even if you were?

No. No, no, no!

I've got two bids on this, I'm starting right

at the top of the estimate, £80. I'll take 5 in the room...

-Ah, straight in at £80!

-Very nice.

90 in the doorway, and 5. 100. 110. 120.

-Oh, my goodness!

-Ah!

-130. 140. 150.

-Wow!

160. 170.

£160 in the doorway. 170, if you like.

170, I'm bid. 180 now. £170 then, right in front of me, at 170.

I'll take 180 now, at 170 all done and selling. 170...

£170!

-That is absolutely superb, isn't it?

-Yes.

That WAS a surprise. I knew golf was popular, but once again,

we've had over double our top estimate

on this set of themed accessories.

At the halfway stage, we've banked £310 towards our £500 target, so we're well on our way to Italy.

The Austrian figures are next under the hammer.

At £20, are we all sure?

Selling bang on John's lower estimate, another £20 in the pot.

Next up is a collection close to my heart - those heavenly handbags.

Now, the estimate on this, John put 80-120, but I believe there's a reserve?

Yes, I put in a £100 reserve.

£100, that seems a lot of handbags for your money, I must say.

What shall we say on this one? I'm already bid a low bid here at £55 - it's not enough.

I'm bid at £85, I'll take 90 in the room. At £85...

Right, so, we've got a bid of £85, which isn't quite enough, obviously.

At £85, all done, last chance...

-Not sold.

-Right, they're not sold.

-That's good.

-Are you pleased, Ena?

-Yes.

-You've got your eyes on that silver one, haven't you?

-Yes, I have!

I can see a deal being done behind the scenes here.

Well, us girls do like to hold on to our handbags.

I'm not surprised at Ena's reaction and I think Jennie is secretly

quite pleased too, given that some of these were hand-made by her mum.

Our next lot is a Lladro group of two nuns,

another of two children and a third of a girl on a telephone.

She must be a teenager, then!

-Although they all use mobiles now, don't they?

-Of course. Yes.

Now, for that lot, John's put £80-120,

which of course is a lot less than you'd pay for a piece of Lladro in a shop.

But have you put a reserve on these?

-No, I haven't.

-So you're happy for them to sell for that?

-Yes.

This time, they were MY collection!

At £65, I'm bid, 70 there. 75, 80.

-85...

-Right, we're at £80.

£90, commissions, take 95 take 100 now. At £95, take 100.

At £95, all done, last chance. Selling at 95.

-100 just in time. 110.

-Ooh, yes, come on.

£100, he's come and got it. At £100, all done, last chance. 100...

John said 80-120, we've gone bang in the middle at 100.

-Are you happy with that?

-Yes.

That's more like it! Another £100 towards Jennie's Italian trip.

Unfortunately, the Lalique vase doesn't reach its £100 reserve.

I will call the bid at £95. All done, last chance.

But luckily the silver vase sells bang on estimate.

£120. All done, I'm going to sell. 120.

Our final total now rests on the final item of the day,

that beautiful inkwell that belonged to Jennie's father-in-law.

£100. I'm bid in the doorway.

-I'll take 110 now. At £100, take 110. At £100.

-Come on.

I thought it would make a lot more than this. £100. No further bidding?

I'm going to sell it. 110, 120, 130.

-£120. Got another 20 quid out of it. £120.

-Come on.

All done, I'm going to sell it at 120. Last chance.

-120.

-£120. That's a little less than I hoped for.

I hoped it would be one of those things that really took off.

But, hey, 120 is more than our lowest estimate.

-It is a bit damaged, so...

-Are you happy with that?

At least we're not taking that weight home.

That's a very valid point, Ena.

Well, it's been quite a ride for Jennie and her friend, Ena.

They've stayed smiling,

even though three of Jennie's pieces remain unsold.

What we really want to know is, how much HAS she made?

-So have you any idea how much we may have made?

-No, not at all.

Well, despite our no sales, you've banked £670.

-Really?

-Yes. £670.

-Gosh, that's good.

-That's really good, isn't it?

-Very good.

It's a few weeks after the auction, and Jennie and Ena

are now settled back at home.

Although they managed to make an impressive amount with a wide

variety of antiques and collectibles,

rumour has it there's been a slight change of plan.

My plans to go to Italy have faltered a bit.

I've got too many family commitments now.

I don't think I'll be able to go this year.

But definitely next year. So, that money has definitely been put aside.

Well, family comes first, and I'm sure it won't be long before Jennie

is enjoying that wonderful Italian trip down memory lane.