Featherstone Cash in the Attic

Welcome to the programme that helps you hunt for antiques and collectables in your home

and then sells them with you at auction.

I'm sure that all of us have got things in our homes

that we look at with fond memories

when we remember where they were bought, or who gave them to us,

or things that were left as a legacy,

but there always comes a time when you have to have a bit of a clear out.

And that's the situation facing the family that we're meeting today

who clearly hope that when they go to auction,

they'll be able to turn those things into real cash in the attic.

'Coming up on Cash In The Attic,

'why is our expert, John, encouraging the lady of the house to impersonate Big Ben?'

Ding-dong, ding-dong. Ding-dong, ding-dong.

'And her granddaughter obviously has all the makings of a great antiques expert.'

-Do you know what it is?

-A weird thing?

'Come auction day, John keeps our spirits high after the sale of a glass bird.'

-It went "cheep."

-Oh, dear!

-Sorry. I promise I won't do any more.

'Find out what happens when the hammer finally falls.

'Meet Wendy Featherstone and her lovely granddaughters, Nerise and Alex.

'Nerise is going to be lending a helping hand with today's rummage.

'Wendy lives in this three-bedroomed bungalow and runs a B&B here with the help of her daughter, Karen.

'The business keeps our host busy, as do her hobbies, making greeting cards and jewellery and knitting.

'A little extra cash is going to come in handy for Wendy's renovation plans,

'and that's why we've been called in.

'Our expert, John Cameron, is a qualified surveyor

'and a graduate in fine art valuation,

'so he's just the man to help us search for collectables to sell.'

Now, that's what I call a real hive of activity. Hello, Wendy.

And who's that down the end in that gorgeous pink T-shirt?

-I'm Alex.

-How old are you?

-I'm seven.

-And who are you?

-I'm Nerise.

-And how old are you?

-I'm nine.

So what made you call in Cash In The Attic?

Erm, I need some help with maintenance

-and, firstly, I need to have new patio doors.

-Mm.

So you think it's a good idea, Nerise, for Granny to get rid of some of these things?

There's a clock that I think we should get rid of, cos I don't really like it.

-THEY LAUGH

-So it's got to go.

-Yeah.

What sort of things are we going to see today?

Well, I've got quite a few things that have got to go, and there was a legacy left to me, as well.

-So it's a bit crowded, really.

-Nerise, of course, is going to help you

-sort out the things we're going to send to auction. She's got her eyes on the clock. That's got to go.

-Yes.

Definitely! I wonder what else we'll find.

'Wendy's target today is £500,

'so let's hope that there are plenty of interesting items here.

'Two of the three bedrooms in this bungalow are for guests

'and with the beautiful Welsh countryside on their doorstep, it's a real hot spot.

'Well, it may be pouring outside, but inside it's warm and welcoming.

'Just in need of a clear out, with John already on the case.'

-John!

-Hello!

-Hello!

-Nerise and Wendy to see you.

And, I have to warn you, Nerise has got some pretty good ideas of what's got to go.

-Right, good. I'm sticking with you, then.

-THEY LAUGH

-Is this one of the things you think should go, Nerise?

-Yeah.

-Do you know what it is?

-Not really.

-What do you think it is?

-A weird thing?

Well, it is certainly a weird machine, but John is going to tell us exactly what it is.

It's a barograph and they're used to predict weather.

It actually records fluctuations in atmospheric pressure.

How it work is, you have these little metallic bellows here

and as they contract and expand with the changes in atmospheric pressure,

they resist against this little arm here,

so that moves up and down the graph.

So those fluctuations can be changed and recorded quite accurately.

This one was made by Richard Frere, a Parisian maker, in around about 1920.

If we took it to auction, what do you think it might make?

It's a nice example, appears to be working

and should make about £100 to £150.

-Nerise, should we take John off and have a look at some other things in the house?

-Yes.

-Come on.

'With £400 still to raise, it's all systems go.

'Wendy has a pretty good idea of where to look,

'digging out this collection of Japanese Noritake porcelain.

'Noritake grew out of a Japanese trading company

'set up to export ceramics to the West.

'This set should fetch £40 to £70 in the saleroom.

-Look what I found.

-Hello. That's interesting. Where did this come from?

In the cupboard in the living room. It's a glass bird.

If we turn it upside down, we should find a name.

Look. See what it says? It says Wedgwood, England. That's who made it.

And throughout the late '60s and '70s and into the early 1980s,

they were making little ornaments like this,

so we know this has got to be made in between those two periods.

So probably some time in the '70s or early '80s this would've been made.

When you look at it, it's quite pretty. Do you like that mottled glass inside?

-It's like a turtle shell, isn't it? Do you think Nan would mind us selling this?

-Yeah.

I think it'd be a good thing to sell. What do you think it's worth?

Hm. I'm not sure, really.

You'd probably get £10 or £20 for it. Do you think that'd be good?

-Yeah.

-That's excellent. This bird has flown the nest

and I think we ought to go and just make sure with Gran that we can sell this. Come on.

'Well done, Nerise.

'We all continue the search and John's eye is distracted by an oak-panelled sideboard

'in 1930s Art Deco style. He values it at £40 to £60.'

Wendy, you've had some very interesting jobs in your life. You've moved around a bit.

My first job was in the Jaeger knitwear factory.

That was in Godalming in Surrey. Then I went to another knitwear factory

and this is how it went until I actually finished up in Chantry Court.

That's a retirement home.

I didn't realise you could have so much fun with elderly people until I went there!

It was there that you met Louie.

-Tell me about him.

-Louie was one of the first residents in with his wife

and they'd been in there about a year

and his wife tragically died.

Not long after that, he said to me, "Wendy, if I die on the street,

"you will claim my body, won't you?"

"I'll leave you enough to bury me

"and a small party in the lounge for all the residents."

I said, "I can do that, Louie, that's fine. Don't let's talk about it again."

And we didn't. But when he died, he left me his flat

-and all the contents.

-Oh, bless.

You do have a lovely relationship with your grandchildren,

but with Nerise particularly, and I know that she is busy with John

finding some other things we might take to auction,

-so shall we go and join them?

-Why not?

'Louie obviously had a soft spot for Wendy

'and it's touching that he left her so many collectables,

'so it's unfortunate that now she doesn't really have room for them any more.

'This Japanese Satsuma vase is the first of his objects destined for the saleroom. It's one of three.

'Satsuma porcelain has been traced back to the 17th century.

'John values them at £100 to £150.

'He also spots this impressive Arts and Crafts dresser.

'Wendy bought it for £715, 15 years ago. Its auction estimate today

'would be more like 200 to 300, so she's not sure yet

'if she'll part with it.'

Hello, girls.

-Hi, John.

-Ah!

-We've got lots of Christmas pressies here. What have you got?

Something that would suit a flapper girl. How do you fancy rising to the challenge?

ANGELA LAUGHS I fancy being a flapper.

-Oh, what a lovely watch!

-It's a rather nice cocktail watch.

-I'm wondering if you can shed some light on it for me.

-Yes, it's part of the inheritance from Louie.

It was his wife's and I believe he bought it very early in their marriage,

so it's got a bit of age to it, but not a lot.

They were called cocktail watches because they emerged in the 1920s,

the great age of jazz, the cocktail parties,

and women were becoming more liberated then. They were wearing less clothes

and the slender, bony frame became quite fashionable, made fashionable by people like Coco Chanel.

And so the size of these watches reflected that. They were dainty.

They reflected the slenderness of women at the time.

I've had the back off, had the movement out and I can tell you it is 18-carat white gold

and it says "weiss gold", so we know it's a German case.

The bezel is quite nice, as cocktail watches go.

It's been set with two rows of rose-cut diamonds

and sandwiched right in the middle are two little lines of square table-cut sapphires.

So, of its type, it's quite an elegant watch.

The thing we really want to know is, if we took it to auction, what's it likely to make?

Because it's a nice example of its type, good quality materials,

it should make around about £100, possibly a bit more, but I would suggest an estimate

of £80 to £120 to tempt those bidders.

That's sad when you talk about all those beautiful diamonds and the lovely stones and the white gold.

It certainly is, but as we say, value these days is linked to demand

and there's little demand for these cocktail watches. Bring back the swinging 20s and cocktail parties!

'Hear, hear, John! We miss those days of elegance.

'I wonder if your cautious estimate will be tempting enough for the bidders on auction day.'

At £65 I have. Any advance on 65? 70 is there? £70 on the phone. 75, new bidder. 80.

'Hm, this could be tense.'

'The rummage in Wendy's house continues,

'and I spot this pair of 20th century still-life oil paintings that were also once Louie's.

'Hopefully they'll catch a bidder's eye on sale day.

'And John reckons, if they do, they'll make £40 to £60.

OK, Wendy, all day you've been asking me to have a look at the longcase clock.

I'm getting the feeling you don't have an affinity with this clock and you want it out of the house.

-Tell me why.

-The grandchildren don't like it.

-Why don't they like it?

-They think there's a ghost in it.

-And who put that in their heads?

-I have no idea.

-But when it used to chime, when it was on chime, they wouldn't come near it.

-Really?

-Mm.

-So where did it come from?

-It was Louie's

and he made it from a kit

and really that's all I know about it.

The actual form of the clock, typical late-17th, early 18th century with a little dome top,

in mahogany, but it's very much 20th century.

And these were sold in kit form, and it doesn't take a huge amount of knowledge in horology

to put one of these together. And there's nice features here,

an applied silver chapter ring with the Roman numerals.

Love that moon phase. Did that used to work, too?

-Yes.

-You set it at the beginning of the month and it tells you the phases of the moon.

-Yes.

-Wonderful.

And the glass door was typically a late-19th century thing. You don't see that on longcase clocks

until the 20th century in any great quantity.

They don't make huge sums. Probably around £120 to £180.

-Would you be OK with that?

-The girls will be.

-What was the chime?

-Westminster.

-The finest.

-Yeah. It's a beautiful chime.

-How does it go?

-You really want me to do it?

-Yeah.

Ding-dong ding-dong, ding-dong ding-dong. That one.

-We'll make a Pompey supporter out of you yet.

-Oh, what?

'Poor Wendy! She's after an expert opinion and she's made to sing the anthem of Portsmouth Football Club!

'As we keep up our hunt for more treasures,

'John finds a cut-glass decanter still with some sherry in it.

'It may not be quite to John's taste, but lotted up with these six sherry glasses,

'let's hope that the bidders are keen. The collection should fetch £30 to £40.

'Wendy spots something else that belonged to Louie, this cut-glass lamp in the shape of a mushroom

'dating from the 1930s. John gives it a gleaming valuation of £30 to £50.'

Wendy! John! Got a minute?

Look at what your lovely granddaughter has found for us.

She's just got this beautiful charm bracelet.

-Where did that come from?

-It was part of Louie's legacy.

-It belonged to his wife?

-Yeah.

-Have you ever worn it?

-No.

This is the sort of thing I saw a lot of when I was growing up in the 70s, they were very fashionable,

then they completely died out, but they've been making a comeback.

Each charm tends to have some sort of particular good luck.

If it was a lock, that means that your dreams are soon to be unlocked.

A car or an aeroplane means you're going to have travel.

And so on. They're wonderful things. I really like that.

-Are you going to send that to auction, Wendy?

-Oh, don't, Angela.

I've been tearing myself apart about it.

But it's so beautiful, are there perhaps any of the charms you might like to keep?

Yes, there are a couple I'd like to keep.

Every one you take off, the value goes down.

If we took it to auction, what might it make?

As it is, I've got to guestimate that because I can't weigh it,

but there's over a couple of ounces of gold there.

So I think you should have no problem reaching about £400 to £600.

If we add that to everything else John has looked at today,

and bearing in mind that you might take a couple of charms off there

and you may not take that rather beautiful sideboard,

but if you leave everything in, Wendy,

then we should be able to make £1,190.

-Ooh, wow!

-If we... Madam's come alive at that, haven't you?

If we take out the sideboard, then you still should make £990.

Are you going to come to the auction, Nerise?

-Yeah.

-You are! Oh!

And just remember that we're buying Granny's doors for the patio,

-we're not buying clothes for Nerise.

-THEY LAUGH

-But let's get to auction and see what happens!

-Well, yes!

'What a terrific result.

'Wendy just has to decide what she really cannot bear to part with now.

'But some of the things she's definitely taking to auction are

'the early 20th century French barograph.

'John valued it at £100 to £150.

'Then there's the longcase clock that Louie made from a kit.

'We hope it'll strike a chord with the bidders

'at £120 to £180.

'And she's parting with that very attractive 1930s

'white gold cocktail watch with diamonds and sapphires

'which belonged to Louie's wife. It should dazzle in the auction room

'at £80 to £120.

'Still to come on Cash In The Attic, I'm getting concerned about the quality of John's jokes.'

For a minute, I thought there were going to be no-ie take-ies for our Noritake.

'And granddaughter Nerise is flabbergasted at the starting price of the barograph.'

-Oh, wow!

-Bang on middle, we're starting.

Hang in there, Nerise.

'Find out how high the sales go when the gavel finally falls.'

Thanks to Louie's legacy of the house and its contents,

plus some of Wendy's own items,

we've got some really interesting things to sell at auction here today

at Burns Auctioneers in Chester.

Wendy's ambition is to put some new patio doors in her house.

It's going to cost £500, so we're looking for some really serious bidding

when her items go under the hammer today.

'Located in Chester, an antiques hot spot of the north west,

'this auction regularly attracts specialist dealers from all over the world

'thanks to the online catalogue. And that means we could be in for some competitive bidding today.'

-Hi, Wendy and Nerise.

-Hello!

-Wendy, you've got some lovely things here, but we notice you didn't bring the wardrobe.

-Mm.

-Why's that?

I couldn't get it in the Micra. THEY LAUGH

But whatever's in it, where am I going to put it?

Now, when we saw you originally, £500 was for the patio doors.

-Is that still the case?

-No.

Things have changed and now I really need new flooring in the kitchen.

-We're optimistic we're going to make it.

-You've got some nice items,

so we've got a puncher's chance.

Let's go and take our places. Follow me!

'Nerise has had permission to be off school today to support her gran

'Let's see what happens with Wendy's first lot, which has just come up.

'It's the Wedgwood glass bird paperweight that Nerise found.'

£2 is the opening bid. At £2. Any advance on 2?

-Oh.

-At £2 I have. 4.

6. 8. £8 I'm bid. Any advance on 8?

Straight ahead at £8. Are we all done? Watching closely.

-You quite sure? Finished and selling at £8.

-HAMMER BANGS

-Oh, not quite our lowest estimate.

-I thought I couldn't get any lower than that.

-That went "cheep".

-Oh, dear!

-Sorry. I promise I won't do any more.

'I'll hold you to that! At least it made Wendy and Nerise laugh.

'as it was a little disappointing.

'What will the bidders make of the unusual cut-glass mushroom lamp

'up for £30 to £50?'

40. £40. The lady's bid at £40.

Any advance on £40? At £40 I have.

All done? At £40, we're quite sure? Selling at 40.

-Great!

-£40!

-Wow!

-Lovely!

-We had 30 to 50, so bang in the middle there.

-Yeah!

'Well, the bidders obviously liked it,

'and Nerise is impressed with the speed of that sale.

'There's another addition when the decanter and sherry glasses go under the hammer.

Selling at 25.

'Selling just short of John's £30 estimate.

'Up next, Wendy's collection of Noritake valued at £40 to £70.'

Bidding starts with me at £25.

£25 I have. Any advance on £25 for the Noritake?

At £25 I'm bid. 28. 30 here.

32. 35.

38. Your bid at 38. Commissions are gone at 38.

Bid is in the room at £38.

Any advance on 38? Are we all done?

-At £38. I'm selling at 38.

-HAMMER BANGS

-Oh, we're just under again!

-Just shy of it.

For a minute, I thought we were going to be no-ie take-ies for our Noritake.

Yes. You promised you wouldn't do that again. THEY LAUGH

'You tell him, Wendy! But that wasn't a bad result.

'Now it's time for the French barograph.'

-Did you look at it every day to try and work out what the weather was going to do?

-No, too complicated.

Nice condition and lots of interest. I have to start the bidding

-against commission bids at £130.

-Oh, wow!

-Right in the middle we're starting.

-Hang in there, Nerise!

-Any advance on 130?

At £130 I'm bid. £130 I have. Any advance on 130?

140. 150. No?

It's against you. It's on commission at £150. Are we all done?

At £150. I shall sell at 150.

-Well, is that a terrific result!

-Better, better.

NERISE LAUGHS

Have you ever sold anything for £150, Nerise?

Do you know what £150 looks like?

THEY LAUGH

'I'm sure she'll soon find out. A great price for the barograph

'Will the pair of 20th century oil paintings have similar luck?

'We're looking for £40 to £60.'

£20 for them?

Who'll start me at 10?

-£10 I'm bid. Thank you.

-10? Hm.

-12.

15. 15 standing. 18.

20. 22.

-Creeping up.

-Seated at 22.

28. 28 I'm bid now.

At £28. I'm selling at 28.

That's a disappointing figure considering we hoped that 40 would be our lowest bid.

Yes, but it does just go to show how much that sort of thing has gone out of fashion.

'But I don't think we should be too downbeat

'because with half our lot sold, we're halfway to our target

'with £289 in the pot.'

'If you'd like to try your hand at the auction game, do bear in mind that there are charges to be paid,

'including commission, and they vary from one saleroom to another, so always enquire in advance.

'Wendy has five lots left, nearly all with three-figure values.

'The first of these is the trio of Japanese Satsuma vases

'for £100 to £150.'

Bidding starts with me at £45.

At £45 I have.

At £45. Any advance on 45? 50.

55. 60.

65.

£65 I'm bid.

At £65 I have. Any advance on 65?

-We really want them to nudge up a bit more, don't we?

-Yes.

-70, new bidding. 75.

-Going up.

At £75 standing. At 75. Are we all done?

All done at 75?

Considering you didn't like them, I suppose £75 is a good price.

It certainly is! THEY LAUGH

'Well, that's great news and the right attitude to have.

'The longcase clock that Louie made from a kit is up next.

'Its estimate is £120 to £180.'

-You don't have this going any more, do you?

-No, Nerise doesn't like it.

Oh. You don't like the ding-dong?

-When she was a baby, she was frightened of it.

-Aww.

Bidding starts with me at £85.

-£85 already!

-Yes, good.

-Somebody likes it, Nerise.

90. £90 I'm bid at the back.

At £90. 95. 100.

110. 120.

£120 I'm bid. At £120. Any advance on 120?

At £120 I have. Are we all done?

-At £120. I'm selling at 120.

-HAMMER BANGS

-There you are! You don't have to listen to it any more!

-THEY LAUGH

'And it means that Nerise and her sister Alex

'can play in their grandma's hall without worrying about spooks.

'The Art Deco sideboard quickly follows suit.'

-I shall sell at £40.

-HAMMER BANGS

Selling bang on the lower estimate.

'Now it's the turn of the Art Deco cocktail watch which belonged to Louie's wife.

'It's valued here at £80 to £120.'

Of the period, a very nice example,

and hopefully we'll do our estimate at least.

Bidding starts with me, against commissions, at £65.

-£65 to start.

-Good start.

And he likes it, obviously.

Any advance on 65? 70 is there? £70 on the phone.

Good. Ooh, on the phone, £70.

90. 95. 100.

110. 120.

-120!

-120 on the phone.

-We're onto our top estimate.

-I like it when there's phones about.

At £120. Are we all done? At £120. Bid's on the phone at 120.

-Isn't that fantastic?

-Wonderful, isn't it?

'A terrific result.

'The final lot of the day is that other treasure which belonged to Louie's wife,

'the gold charm bracelet.

'Not all the trinkets have made it here today,

'but the price is still the same, £400 to £600.'

Bidding starts with me here at £380.

-£380 we've started at.

-Ooh!

450. 480. 500. 520.

520 here.

-At £520.

-£520.

At £520. Any advance on 520?

At £520. Are we all done?

At £520. I shall sell. 520.

HAMMER BANGS

Ooh! Wow!

I've no doubt that excellent final sale has made all the difference

'to Wendy's total. I can't wait to break the good news.'

What would you think if I told you that Granny has made more than £500,

she's made, in fact, more than double £500?

Granny has made...

£1,164!

-Oh!

-Ohh! I don't believe it!

-Oh, John, thank you!

-You're welcome.

'And Wendy has wasted no time and is already choosing her new flooring.'

I'm looking forward to having the new flooring,

cos the old one is very tatty

and if I get B&Bers coming into the kitchen, it doesn't look too good.

So this new one will look great.

'She still has over £500 in the kitty.

'So what's she going to do with the rest of the money?'

I might buy myself a telly,

I might buy a SatNav, or I might just take the kids out for the day.

'And it's all systems go on delivery day.

'And doesn't the end result look fantastic?'