Compilation 40 Flog It!

Today, I'm at Llanerchaeron,

a traditional rural estate,

situated in a wooded valley in West Wales.

The villa that you can see behind me

was built in 1795

by the renowned Regency architect John Nash.

Inside the house, it boasts many of Nash's original design features.

However, the family who lived here for 300 years

also added to Llanerchaeron

in their own way.

And it's their stories and their contributions which

are as much of a draw to the visitors

as the superb Nash architecture.

Welcome to "Flog it!"

We've got a special show for you today as we're

travelling across Britain to revisit some of the fabulous

valuation days we've enjoyed from this series,

where our experts examined your antiques,

and then we took them off to the salerooms far and wide.

At 150 on the telephone.

We took a day trip to the seaside to our valuation day

in Weston-super-Mare in Somerset, where hundreds

of you queued on the boardwalk of the Grand Pier for a valuation.

We also visited the glorious Norwich Cathedral in Norfolk,

where you showed our experts your antiques,

and one item baffled Kate Bateman.

You've brought in a mystery item today.

This is really going to test my skills as a valuer.

We also travelled north to the 19th-century Bowes Museum in

County Durham, a striking building modelled on a French chateau.

And finally, our experts valued your treasures at the stately

13th-century Muncaster Castle in Cumbria, and we took them

off to auction in nearby Carlisle, where there was a very

-pleasant surprise for one owner.

-I can't, I just can't believe it.

-Yeah, it's good.

-Yes, it's a good price.

-I never expected that.

-That's yours.

But before all that, I'm heading back to West Wales.

Llanerchaeron was in the same Welsh family for ten generations

until it was passed to the National Trust in 1989.

The longest-running resident was Mary Ashby Lewes, who moved here

when she got married.

When her husband died,

she found herself running the estate single-handed for over 60 years.

Mary went on to live to the ripe old age of 104.

Her longevity was so great that she outlived many of her heirs.

Unfortunately, some of them took out loans against the estate

assuming they were going to inherit it.

When she passed away in 1917,

the estate was passed on to Captain TP Lewes,

who inherited Llanerchaeron with a lot of debt.

Captain Lewes was determined Llanerchaeron would survive.

Although he modernised the house by adding electricity

and updating the plumbing, he always kept one eye on the purse strings.

And later in the show, I'll be returning here to find out

how Captain TP Lewes left his mark on the house.

But first, we start our tour of the country by crossing the border to

England, to our valuation day at the magnificent Bowes Museum in

County Durham, where Paul Laidlaw

came across an incredible collection.

-Hello, Joy.

-Hello, Paul. You all right?

-I'm all right.

This looks to be a significant collection of tea

-and cigarette cards.

-Yeah.

-I don't think it's yours.

-No, it was my dad's.

-Right.

-He collected them for a lot of years.

Oh, from a boy, his dad would probably get them

out of packets of Wills cigarettes and giving them to the wee laddie.

-Isn't that nice?

-Yeah.

And I can remember going to different places

and looking at different cigarette cards and that with him.

-So you would go to fairs and so on looking for them?

-Yes.

-How interesting! So that's a boy-to-man collecting passion.

-Yeah.

And I've got to respect that. That's fantastic.

Well, look, I can tell you, your dad put together a good collection.

It appears that we've got complete sets.

And that's a no-brainer, that's important.

-I think, more importantly, those sets are in good condition.

-Yeah.

Because if you're swapping these round the playground

and shoving them in your shorts pocket when you go off to kick

a football for half an hour, they end up dog-eared, to say the least.

But these are pin sharp,

and of course in the albums, mounted, preserved.

He used to spend hours with them. You know? Sorting through them all.

-Would he, yes?

-You know, researching things.

He's, I've got to say, a man after my own heart.

Oh, no, I respect that. You really do have a broad spectrum.

Now, what I live in fear of are stars of the radio,

-butterflies and wild flowers.

-Oh, yeah, well.

As dull as dishwater,

but you've got some, or your dad has some, cracking subjects in here.

Who doesn't want to know more about lighthouses?

-That, I mean, that's fantastic.

-I like that one.

And I don't mind telling you, as a wee laddie,

-I collected the Brooke Bond ones.

-I remember the Brooke Bond, yeah.

-And it was probably about five pence to send off for the album.

-Yeah.

And the cards would come. And here,

I remember this Great Inventors series, back in the early '70s.

-Man, so they transport both of us.

-Yeah.

-Wonderful collection.

So we've got the origins, interwar years,

these will be 1920s,

and we know that it was a way to encourage smoking, in all honesty.

It was another motivation, because what's going to keep you

more loyal than little Tom and Jill or whatever saying,

"But we've not got all the wild flowers yet.

"Don't change brand, Dad!"

So there you have it, it's a marketing tool,

addictive, we've got to say,

as though the smoking wasn't bad enough.

You've got the collecting added to that. It is a good collection.

I think I've got to be cautious here. I've got all this enthusiasm.

It's a funny market.

I don't know that these will stand the test of time as collectors'

items, because you and I get it.

We can remember it from our youth.

But next generation, they're just slithers of card.

My children are not interested.

Means nothing. And that has a bearing on values.

And values certainly have slipped.

-I think £100 to £200 would be enough of an estimate.

-Yeah.

I would suggest a reserve.

So if we say £100 reserve,

-but the auctioneer can use maybe 10% discretion.

-Yeah.

It's been great talking to you about them, it has to be said.

I've enjoyed it.

A bit of nostalgia as well,

-you and I reminiscing about the Brooke Bond cards.

-Yeah.

-Wonderful, Joy. Well, look, I wish you well.

-Thank you.

-Thank you for bringing them in.

-Thank you very much.

Next, we stayed in the North of England but travelled west to

Muncaster Castle in Cumbria, where Caroline Hawley found an item

that came from the locality and belonged to Jack.

So what have you brought to show me today?

It's a Cumberland FA Cup medal that was won by my grandfather

-100 years ago.

-So, 19...

-14.

-..1914/15.

So he was a good footballer, your grandfather?

Yes, from what I've been told. I never met him.

-He died before I was born.

-And how are you at football? Have you...?

-I played. I played in that competition in all.

-Did you?

-Yeah, yeah.

-And have you got a winner's medal?

-No, no.

-I never got that far.

-Well, let's have a look.

It's a lovely quality item. It looks like gold to me, and enamel.

Let's turn it over and have a look.

So the winners, as you say, 1914/15, R Murray, so he's your grandfather,

and it's nine carat gold and it really is rather lovely, isn't it?

It is, yeah. It's a beautiful medal.

It's very unusual that the Cup was still taking place

during the war, wasn't it?

-But I suppose football doesn't stop for anything, does it?

-No.

And you've decided now's the time to dust it off

and bring it down to "Flog It!".

-Well, it's my golden wedding in August.

-Is it? Congratulations.

-That's 50 years, is it?

-Yeah, 50 years.

So we are having a little bit of a bash.

So I thought, well, I'll include it in the party

and pay for the buffet or whatever,

and all the family can enjoy the money out of the medal.

What a lovely idea. It's difficult to put

a price on something like this. It is solid gold.

But it's worth more than its weight in gold, I would say,

-because it's of great sentimental value, isn't it?

-It is.

I would have to put a value for auction of

something like £80 to £120.

Now, what do you feel about that?

Well, I just thought it was a bit low,

but if that's what you say, I'll take your advice, Caroline.

-Well, I think we would need to protect it with a reserve.

-Yeah.

-And are you happy with an £80 reserve?

-That's OK.

But it's not to stop two people who really want it.

And this association is still going, isn't it, now?

Yes, yes, still going strong.

So it would be nice if somebody could buy it.

-If they weren't good enough to win it...

-Yes.

..they can buy it and pretend they had. Thank you very much, Jack.

And best of luck with your golden wedding celebrations.

Thank you very much.

Over in Wales, I'm stepping back in time to look at artefacts

that today aren't to everybody's taste

but that reflect a way of life from over 100 years ago.

Now, the entrance hall here at Llanerchaeron

is dominated by a vast display of taxidermy.

As you can see, I'm surrounded by it.

It reflects the passions of Captain TP Lewes

and his son for the hunt.

Now, although they enjoyed the hunt,

it was originally started here for one good reason -

to protect the local food sources supplying the estate,

in particular, fresh fish from the River Aeron,

because they were under attack from predators

like these guys here - otters.

Now, these were done by a local firm, Hutchings of Aberystwyth.

They got the job by default because they were local,

relatively unknown in Victorian England.

But as time has proven over the years, their work still

looks as good today as it was when it was first produced.

And now, Hutchings are highly sought-after examples

by the collectors of taxidermy.

I have come across one anomaly, though,

and it's here with this cobra.

Other examples of this deadly snake I've seen have been portrayed

with their necks and their heads flattened like that,

as is the usual, ready to strike.

But here, as you can see, it's different.

I can only assume a taxidermist in rural West Wales hasn't

come across something as exotic before.

He's very good at his badgers and his foxes,

but snakes, I think we'll pass on.

If you're interested in collecting taxidermy,

it's always best to purchase from a reputable source,

and also be aware that you'll need a licence to own certain species.

Leaving Wales and crossing the border into England,

we travelled eastwards to our valuation day

at Norwich Cathedral in Norfolk,

where Kate Bateman came across an item which had her stumped.

Well, Sandra, you've brought in a mystery item today.

This is really going to test my skills as a valuer.

-What do you know about it?

-Virtually nothing.

It comes from my husband's side of the family

and it's been around, just in the loft, for 40, 50 years.

-So, no policemen in the family?

-No policemen in the family.

-Not at all.

-No justices of the peace,

-something like that, legal?

-No, nothing at all.

Because that's what I think this is.

I think it's a tipstaff or tipstaiff, said both ways.

And it's kind of like a policeman's truncheon.

So you see the much bigger versions of them with exactly this.

Now, if you look at it, you've got what

I would expect on a truncheon or a night stick, or something,

which is the GR, which is George IV, GR IV,

that's his royal cipher.

Which means it's in some official Crown capacity,

like the police force or somebody like that.

But what's intriguing, and I've never seen before, is this.

You've got a price.

Two shillings and sixpence, and the inscription on this which says,

"This is for the use of Mr Jonathan,"

I presume, "Marlands workmen."

So what on earth does that mean?

-No idea.

-It's a fabulous thing.

I mean, it's made of hardwood, it is hand-painted over the top,

-just as all the truncheons are.

-Yeah.

Now, there's a possibility that somebody who was delivering

this was actually delivering messages.

So in their official capacity, they would hold this, and when

they knocked on the door and said, "I am the bearer of official

-news..."

-Yes.

-"So you're about to be hanged for treason or something."

-So it's like a door knocker?

-Well, yes, like in the same way you get

the ceremony of the Opening of Parliament

and you knock on the door. And it shows that's your official

capacity and the way you have badges on policemen and things.

It might be a precursor to that.

Why on earth you would have two and sixpence on, I've no idea.

So it's a mystery. But it's fun, and I think it will sell.

Have you thought about any prices?

£100 to £150, something like that?

Whoa.

Well, a similar-aged truncheon would be making that,

and I don't see why a similar-aged tipstaff wouldn't make that.

-And it's quirky, I mean, it's not as common as the truncheons...

-No.

..which is good fun.

Shall we try it with £100 to £150 estimate and maybe an £80 reserve?

Will your husband be happy if you sell it?

Yes, so long as he gets a beer out of it, he'll be fine.

He's an easy person to please, then. Excellent.

So you get the beer, and if you get

-100 you get about 80 for shoes, which is great.

-Oh, yeah.

Well, it's time to find out if Kate's valuation was on the money,

as we head to auction houses across the country

to see how our items fared.

Jack brought this nine carat gold Cumberland FA football medal

along to our valuation day at Muncaster Castle,

as he hoped to raise funds for his golden wedding party.

At our valuation day at the Bowes Museum, Paul Laidlaw

reminisced with Joy over her impressive albums of

cigarette collectors' cards.

And finally, Sandra's tipstaff, which was shrouded in mystery,

left Kate Bateman scratching her head

at our valuation day at Norwich Cathedral.

First under the hammer was Jack's football medal which, we took

to Thomson Roddick and Medcalf saleroom in Carlisle, in Cumbria.

Auctioneer John Thomson was on the rostrum.

Remember, at every auction, there is always commission

and VAT to pay, whether you're buying or selling.

Thank you, sir.

-Congratulations. 50 years of marriage. The golden one.

-Gosh.

-That's a big one, isn't it?

-It is.

-Not many people last that long.

-What's your secret?

-And he's still smiling.

-Oh, I've no secrets.

Your grandfather won this medal and you're selling it

to obviously pay for the party celebrations.

Just so that everybody gets something out of it.

Aw, that's a nice way of splitting it up.

The whole family will be there so...

I know you've got your grandson here today, and he's a big Man City fan.

They're a great team. Football memorabilia is big business,

-and I think this is quite rare. There's not many about.

-Yeah.

-No.

-Should get snapped up.

-Good local interest as well.

-Yeah.

Now then, 586, a nine carat gold

enamelled football medal,

Cumberland Football Association.

What may I say for it? Start at 40.

£40, I am bid. 45 on the net.

50, 50. 55.

60. Five.

70. 75.

80. 85.

90. £90.

£90 for a nice little medal.

At 90, at 90, at 90.

It's gone. Well done. Good valuation.

Jack, that's going to help. Every penny will help, won't it?

-Yeah, thank you very much.

-That's all right.

Have a good time, won't you?

-And many more happy years to come as well.

-I hope so.

Next, we stayed in Cumbria to sell Joy's cigarette collectors' cards,

but we relocated to 1818 Auctioneers in South Lakeland,

where auctioneer David Brookes was wielding the gavel.

Going under the hammer right now, we have six cigarette albums.

These are fantastic and they belong to Joy.

-Can we bring you more joy, today?

-I hope so.

Well, I think we can because the great thing about these early ones

is they've not been stuck down, have they?

No, no, none of them are stuck down.

That's where the value lies in a lot of these.

You get a lot o' lot for your money, as Cilla Black would say.

A lot, a lot o'lot.

Anyway, we're going to put this valuation to the test.

-They're going under the hammer. Good luck, Joy.

-Thank you very much.

Good luck, Paul. Here we go.

Lot 120, which is a selection of traditional cigarette cards.

A couple of hundred, may we ask?

Start me at 100, then, please. £100?

At £80? £80, surely, for all the cigarette cards.

At £80, any further interest?

Even ANY interest at £80? No?

Asking £80, no?

-I was wrong. We didn't bring you any more joy.

-No.

Personally, I'd have split them up.

I would have split them up.

-But hey, look, that's not my decision.

-Oh, it doesn't matter, no.

-We've had a lovely day, anyway.

-That's good.

-Yes, so thank you.

-Sorry.

-That's all right. It's OK, thank you very much.

It is disappointing when an item doesn't sell, but Joy should

try her luck at a different auction house on another day.

Next, we headed south to Norfolk, to TW Gaze in Diss

to sell Sandra's mystery tipstaff. On the stand was Ed Smith.

Well, our next item just about to go under the hammer has been in the

loft for 40 plus years. Yes, that's right, 40 plus years, Sandra.

That's a long time to hide something away like that.

-A little piece of history, this.

-It's fun. It's a great thing. Yeah.

I think it's fun, yeah. This is very collectable, this,

a lot of people that want truncheons and tipstaffs.

Yeah, lots of sort of police memorabilia, railway,

-somebody will like it.

-Somebody will, and

I bet they're here right now.

-Let's find out, shall we, Sandra?

-Yeah, that's fine.

-It's going under the hammer.

-Right.

Right, 221 now. And on this one I'm starting in here at the 55.

-55, I have.

-Yes, that's straight in at 55!

It's a tipstaff there at 55.

60. Five. 70. Five.

75, I have. Is there 80?

80, you've bid. Five.

-Is there 90?

-Wow!

Is there 90? 90 on the telephone. 90, I have. Five.

Where's 100? It's 95, I have.

100 is now bid on the telephone.

100, I have. Is there a ten?

We will be selling away for £100. Are we all done?

-110's online now. New bidder.

-It's online. Wait for online.

120. Is there 30?

-130, back in.

-Yes, please!

Who's 40?

140. Is there 50?

It's 140 on the telephone.

Where's the 50?

It's 140 on the telephone. Is there 50?

150. 160.

160, the nod again.

Where's 70?

We will be selling away for £160.

Are we all done?

-Yes, sold, £160. That's a good result, isn't it?

-Really good.

Very good result.

And thank goodness you hung onto it and kept it up there, safe.

Yes, well, it wasn't that safe.

Go into your attic, find out what else you've got. Bring it along.

There's not an awful lot else up there, no.

Sandra was delighted with that result,

and that's what it's all about.

We'll be returning to valuation days

and salerooms across the country later on in the show.

But first, I'm heading back to Wales.

Now, back here at Llanerchaeron

during the 19th century, the staff kept themselves warm during

the cold, bitter winter months, by working hard during the day.

But what about at night-time?

Well, they relied on a good old Welsh quilt to keep the cold away.

And a quilt is made by sandwiching layers of fabric together -

two layers of fabric with a padding in the middle,

and it's held together with a series of decorative stitching.

But it's those separate layers that keep you warm.

There's always been a strong tradition of Welsh quilt making.

And its heyday was from the 1880s right up to the 1930s.

Having a quilt on your bed was originally

the preserve of the rich in Britain.

But towards the end of the 18th century,

quilt owning began to move down the social scale.

In many families, the women would

make their own quilts,

and the tradition would be passed

down through the female line.

In Wales by the mid-19th century,

quilting had become a cottage industry,

with quilts being made by village seamstresses or by

itinerant female workers who travelled from farm to farm

with their quilting frame, where they worked for board and pay.

But unfortunately, war-time rationing and a shortage

of materials saw quilting nearly die out in Wales in the 1930s.

However, just over 30 miles away from Llanerchaeron,

there's a small market town called Llanidloes.

Now, there, back in the 1990s, a group of like-minded people

got together with the aim of keeping Welsh quilting well and truly alive.

They formed the Quilt Association and they put on exhibitions.

And from there, they formed the Welsh Heritage Quilters.

Now, part of their activities is to meet up once a week to share

tips and quilt together.

And today, they've invited me along to have a go.

-Hello, ladies. ALL:

-Hello.

Well, this looks fabulous. It really does.

Do you lean a lot from each other?

-Yes.

-Oh, yes.

-Yeah?

-Yeah.

-OK. So who's the best?

LAUGHTER

Gosh. What are you working on there?

-I'm working on traditional applique.

-Yeah.

It's taken from Elizabethan woolwork patterns.

-Very nice. Look at that!

-It's gorgeous, isn't it?

So why do you think it's important

to keep the tradition of Welsh quilting alive?

For me, from a teacher's point of view, it's not taught in schools.

-Yeah.

-And it's missing a generation.

When I'm teaching, often a child will say, "But Granny does it."

-Not mum.

-Granny.

-Yeah.

-So, you know, we've got to really keep it going.

So who's the youngest?

-That's me.

-What's your name?

Lisa. This is one of my recent makes.

-You've just made that?

-Yes.

Can I have a look at that?

-Sure.

-Show him the yellow.

It's a Victorian sewing box.

I love that.

-How long did that take you to make?

-About four days.

-But I enjoy doing it so it makes it all worthwhile.

-You're very clever.

What are the advantages of getting together on a weekly basis?

-Fun.

-LAUGHTER

It's friendship. You learn techniques.

I mean, Polly's just taught me something today.

-And we swap ideas.

-Yeah.

That's the good thing, isn't it?

It's all about passing on these skills to each other.

Alongside the weekly meetings, the Quilt Association also owns

the Minerva Arts Centre, where it holds quilting exhibitions.

The group cares for their collection of over 140 antique quilts.

Many of which are from the local area.

Doreen Gough, trustee of the Quilt Association,

is involved in caring for these precious quilts.

Some of these early ones are real documents of Welsh social history.

Absolutely.

People give them to us because they've come down in their family.

People find them in all sorts of places.

In the barn, over a tractor, over a cow sometimes even.

Pushed behind the hot water cylinder.

And people are interested in preserving them.

This is hexagons.

We know it's old because hexagons are made by folding fabric

over pieces of paper.

And some of the pieces of paper are still in place on this quilt.

-Oh.

-So you can look carefully and...

-See some dates.

..see some dates.

Quite often you will find a postmark.

Here somewhere, whether we can find it now,

is a square which is dated 1827.

That's nice, isn't it? That's good provenance.

-It is indeed.

-Yes, yeah.

But there is no guarantee that that's when the quilt was made.

-Because people hoarded all sorts of things.

-Sure.

-They hoarded fabric.

-Yes.

-They hoarded the paper as well.

Yeah, and they could have used the paper at a later date.

That's right.

OK, fold that one up because that's quite valuable and rare.

Can you show me a good example of what a Welsh quilt is like?

And how do you know it's a Welsh quilt?

This is a Welsh quilt. We think it's about 1850.

And quite typically Welsh.

There are particular stitches

and designs that are used in Welsh quilting.

If you find a quilt with a spiral in like this,

then it's 99.9% sure that it's Welsh.

-Brilliant.

-That's really typical.

Let's have a good look. Let's hold this up, shall we?

That's traditionally Welsh, with the central medallion

and the borders coming round.

Yeah. I can imagine that on the bed. That would look really good.

Well, let's put this over there for now.

That's quite heavy.

What's used in the padding in the centre of the quilt?

Sheep's wool is most often found.

Especially in this area of mid Wales where wool was the thing.

But then, depending on the poverty or affluence of the household,

you'll find all sorts of other things inside of quilts.

And we've got a little quilt over here which has got

an even older quilt inside for the stuffing.

-It's a child's quilt that's been reused.

-Look at that.

And re-covered.

And an even older quilt inside there.

-Yeah.

-Which is all crumbling away.

And we do sometimes...

We have found them with long johns,

Grandpa's long johns or old socks stitched inside.

Basically anything you could get your hands on.

Don't throw it away, keep warm with it.

I'll put this one here out of the way.

I just like the designs and I like the traditions.

-I also like the stories that come with the quilts.

-Yes.

This is a military quilt made after the Boer War from tunics.

In the days before khaki army uniforms, when the regiments had...

-Soldiers were very bright, weren't they?

-..different colours.

And quite often made as a therapy for people who had been

injured or suffering from mental stress.

-Mm-hmm.

-Mostly stitched by men.

That's beautiful. That's absolutely beautiful.

'As well as sharing techniques and tips at their weekly meeting,

'the quilters are able to lend a helping hand to a fellow quilter

'when a task requires more than one person.'

-Hi, everyone. ALL:

-Hello, Paul.

This looks exciting. What's going on here?

We are actually stretching my quilt top.

We are putting together the quilt top

and the three layers that go together.

Yes, you've got to keep it taut,

otherwise it goes saggy in the middle.

So we put it on the stretching frame

and then all my friends come around and help me baste it together,

-which is the preliminary to actually doing the quilting.

-Right.

-OK, so you need a little hand...

-A lot of hands. Many hands.

-There is a needle here, Paul.

-There is a big needle.

-Here we are.

You're just going up there, at an angle.

So this is just pinning it in place and all this will be removed...

-When the quilting is done.

-When the quilting is done.

-Make sure he does it right.

-LAUGHTER

OK, I'll let you carry on.

I think that's rather exciting.

-When we get to a point that we can't go any further...

-Yeah.

-What do you do in the middle then?

-We roll it.

-We roll it across.

-Right.

-So we can then do this bit.

I'm pleased you said that cos I thought for a minute...

I thought you were going to say, "When you get to a point where

"you can't stretch, I've got to get underneath and put the needle up.

"And it's all poking down on me." LAUGHTER

Thank you so much, ladies. It's been absolutely brilliant.

Good luck with that. It's looking fabulous already.

-Make sure you hang onto it.

-I will do.

Now we continue our tour of the country,

as we return to our valuation day at Norwich Cathedral in Norfolk.

Where Thomas Plant admired a book brought in by Brian.

Are you a tailor?

-No.

-No? Why have you got

The Science Of Pattern Construction For Garment Makers?

We acquired it from my wife's grandmother's house when she died.

-Right.

-A relation of my wife's parents was a tailor in London.

-You may realise that I actually quite like clothes.

-Oh, right.

Yeah, and I think my wife goes nuts when I come back from my tailor.

"Yeah, yeah. How much have you spent this time?"

"It doesn't matter, darling. They last forever."

Here we've got

The Science Of Pattern Construction For Garment Makers.

It's the standard textbook, this is the A-Z of all tailoring.

"For merchant tailors, clothing manufacturers,

"pattern cutters, designers, bespoke cutters,

"tailors, ladies' tailors and costumers."

And this book will help you make everything from your jackets,

shirts and trousers, even to your knickers.

-Here they are, look.

-Yes.

-Yeah.

-Breeches, knickers, leggings and gaiters.

-Woman's coat construction.

-Right, yeah.

-I think it's... Look at her there.

-Yeah.

And here, the contents.

You've got everything from measures, measurements, forms of growth,

averages, you know, for boys, for girls.

Women's riding breeches. There is everything here.

How old is this? It's 1927, isn't it?

1927, yes.

What we forget is that everything had to be made by hand.

It's not like today when you zip down to the high street and it's

been made by a machine, or somebody somewhere else in a distant land.

-I think it's a really very interesting book.

-Right.

And I think for a budding tailor, a homemaker, it would be a must.

An essential.

-It's almost like the Mrs Beeton of household management.

-Right.

-But this is for tailoring.

-Yeah.

What we are seeing now with our business, as auctioneers,

is that the ability to make things at home is becoming

-so much more fashionable.

-Yes.

-Therefore...

-antique books or vintage books surrounding that are popular.

-Yep.

-It's not going to be worth a huge amount.

-No.

-I have to say.

-No.

-At least, it's going to be worth £50-£80.

Right, yes.

-I personally think at that level, we don't put a reserve on it.

-No.

-We let it find its own...

-Value.

-..mark.

-Right.

Thank you for bringing it along.

I'm going to see how you make some knickers and breeches

and underpants etc.

Next we headed west to the seaside, to our valuation day

on the Grand Pier at Weston-super-Mare, in Somerset,

where Catherine Southon was

rather taken with a delightful little dog.

-So, Penny, who is this then?

-He's just my little friend.

-Just your little dog.

-Yes.

-Aw.

He is actually a cold-painted bronze.

And he's a very nice, little,

realistically-modelled figure of a dachshund.

Now, as I turn him over, I hope

and I pray that I will find the name of the symbol for Bergman.

But unfortunately, there is no name or symbol at all to tell us that.

So he's not by Bergman.

And unfortunately, we don't know exactly who he is by.

But what we do know for sure is that he's Austrian.

He's early 20th century.

So he probably dates from about 1900 to 1910.

And he's cold-painted bronze.

Where did it come from?

When my mother died, we cleared the house and I found him in a drawer.

-Do you remember him as a child?

-No.

He wasn't one of the sentimental items that I kept from the home.

Right, OK.

Well, here's a nice little dachshund and he is quite nicely modelled.

-Yes.

-These are called cold-painted bronze

because they are painted before they are fired.

-Right.

-So, in essence, they are painted cold.

I just think that the body and the movement of the dog

has been captured, it really is quite good.

-The way you can see the actual figure here.

-Yeah.

I'm sure a dachshund owner would love it.

-I think so. Time for it to go to a new owner.

-I think so.

-It would have been nice to see a name underneath it.

-Yeah.

Because that would really push the price up, of course.

Now, this little figure, nicely modelled,

I'd probably put about £60-£80 on him.

-That would be brilliant, yes.

-Would you be happy to sell him at that?

-I certainly would.

-I look forward to seeing you at the auction.

-Yeah.

-And I hope he does very well indeed.

-Thank you. I shall be there.

Here at Llanerchaeron, pieces like this mahogany washstand were

crafted with care and precision.

At our valuation day at Muncaster Castle, Adam Partridge came

across an item that was also crafted with the highest possible skill.

Yvonne, it's a beautiful, picture-perfect landscape behind us.

-It really is, yeah.

-It really is.

This is clearly a piece of Cornish studio pottery.

-Bernard Leach, I think.

-That's right.

Tell me how you came to own it.

Well, I've always loved pottery. Any sort of pottery.

-But especially studio pottery.

-Yeah.

I'd done pottery at school and a bit at college.

Then when I spotted this on my honeymoon I thought,

"Although I've got no money, I've got to buy one."

And I think it was a week's wages at the time. Between eight and £10.

-Something like that.

-Wow. Gosh.

May I ask, if it's not too cheeky, how long ago was your honeymoon?

-57 years ago.

-Right.

-Yes.

-Wow, that's a long time.

-March 1958 I bought this.

Of course, it's by Bernard Leach,

-who was already famous by then, wasn't he?

-Yes.

He was influenced by the Japanese techniques,

-having been born in Japan.

-Yes.

And he set up his potteries in St Ives with Japanese kilns.

Do you still pot?

No, I don't now, unfortunately.

I did until a few years ago, but, no, I'm past it now.

Let me ask you first, why have you decided to sell this?

Because my sons keep constantly telling me I've got to start

-getting rid of things otherwise they'll go in the skip.

-Oh.

When I showed them this and said, "I think that's worth a bob or two,"

they said they wouldn't give it house room.

-Yeah, well...

-So I thought, "Right."

Sadly, that's an all-too-familiar story, that, really.

I do love it, but I think it's time to go if... Yeah.

Have you ever used it?

No, it's always been on display.

Little sauce pot there.

It's in beautiful condition, isn't it?

We'll just have a look at those marks there.

There's all the marks that you want to see on there.

-The BL initials. And the pottery mark as well.

-Yes.

So it's exactly as you'd wish to find.

And I find there is a growing interest in studio ceramics

and 20th-century design.

Cos they go in and out, pots, don't they?

Yeah, they do. What do you think it might be worth?

Two or three years ago, I rang in to a radio programme

and they said, without seeing it,

they thought it ought to be worth £150-£200, but I don't know.

Yeah, I think they weren't far off.

What I might suggest is just slightly lower.

I might put 100 to 150 and then hope it will make a bit more.

-Yeah.

-But I don't want a disappointed Yvonne on my hands.

Is there a price at which you would rather have it back?

No. I think with them saying 150,

I thought probably minimum 150.

But if you think I wouldn't sell it...

I think it will make that,

but I think the estimate to put on it would be 100 to 150.

That's going to get people coming to bid on it and all excited,

and off we go.

You get competitive bidding and it might make two-something.

-OK, I'll go whatever.

-If that's all right? £100 reserve?

-Yeah.

-Thanks very much for bringing it in.

We'll take it off to the auction now.

-Thank you for spotting it and valuing it.

-It's a pleasure.

Paul's a good Cornish lad, isn't he?

When I tell him later I had a bit of a Bernard Leach

pot on the programme, he might be slightly jealous.

SHE LAUGHS

Yes, Adam, that's right.

And we'll be finding out how Yvonne's Bernard Leach pot

fared at auction shortly,

when our last lot of items go under the hammer.

But before that, I'm heading back to West Wales.

Like the entrance hall, the dining room here at Llanerchaeron

also reflects Captain Lewis' passion for hunting.

There are further cased examples of taxidermy everywhere.

On the walls, prints and pictures of animals.

There is even a photograph from 1885 of the Masters of Hounds.

That's the sea of faces over there.

But something caught my eye as I walked through the door.

And it's just down there.

This architectural detail here -

known as the dado rail, sometimes called the chair rail -

was originally put on in houses

to protect expensive hand-painted wallpaper up here.

So the chairs wouldn't knock against it.

That's what that's for.

Now, underneath that, you see this wonderful, attractive,

delicate, carved, wooden panelling.

But it's not wooden panelling. That's Lincrusta.

And it was probably put on by Captain Lewis

in the 1920s as a cheaper alternative.

It appealed to him because he was a man acting on a tight budget.

Lincrusta was first introduced in 1877.

And the house is in good company

because this has been used to adorn the walls of royalty,

it's been used in railway carriages,

six luxury cabins on the Titanic, and even in the White House.

It was the first washable, durable, long-lasting wall covering.

And it comes in one long section.

Isn't that lovely?

And it's as good today as it was when it was first put on.

We are leaving West Wales behind us now as we travel to auction rooms

across the country to see how our last lot of owners' items fared.

At our valuation day at Norwich Cathedral in Norfolk,

Brian brought along his tailor's pattern book from 1927.

And we had our fingers crossed that it would measure up at the auction.

Yvonne bought her Japanese-inspired Bernard Leach pot

on her honeymoon in Cornwall.

And it made Adam Partridge's day

when they came across it at Muncaster Castle.

And finally, Penny brought her cold-painted bronze dachshund

along to our valuation day at the Grand Pier, Weston-super-Mare.

But were we able to find her doggy a new home?

It's time to find out, as we took the dog to Clevedon Salerooms

in Somerset, which is just along the coast from Weston-super-Mare.

Auctioneer Marc Burridge was wielding the gavel.

Are you all done? Selling at £60 then.

So, can we find this doggie a new home?

You know what I'm talking about. It's that lovely little bronze,

it's the dachshund in the manner of Bergman.

-There's no sentimental attachment, is there?

-No.

-But you are a dog lover?

-I love dogs.

-Do you have any?

-No.

-We are going to find a new home for this dog, OK?

-Yeah.

Let's do it. This is it.

Lot 270.

-Look at that. Nice.

-Sweet!

65. 70. Five.

-80.

-Five. 85. Oh, good.

90?

With me then at £85.

And selling on £85 then.

-That's good. There is big smiles.

-Yeah.

-That's pretty good.

-Yeah.

-I'm pleased.

Wagging tails.

Next we travelled eastwards when we returned to TW Gaze in Diss,

Norfolk, to sell Brian's tailor's pattern book.

Auctioneer Ed Smith was on the rostrum.

100.

If you want to look dapper, you've got to own this book.

But you've got to bid on it right here, right now. I love this.

I'm sure there are some tailors around here who would love to

own something like this.

-I think, yeah. Absolutely. Because it's...

-You look tight in the tummy.

So do you. We can self-congratulate each other.

But you can make everything from lovely hunting jackets...

-to your underwear, to shirts, to breeches, it's brilliant.

-Yeah.

-Look, good luck with this.

-Thank you very much.

The tailor's pattern book is going under the hammer.

Let's get that top end. Here we go.

The Science Of Pattern Construction For Garment Makers there.

What do you say to this single volume? £50 for it? 50.

-That's actually nothing for a book like that.

-That's nothing, yeah.

£30. Who'll start me? A good book there for £30.

£30?

-'Garment making here for £30.'

-Oh, come on.

'At £30.'

20 to start then. Lowest I'll bid.

-Oh.

-'It is here to go.'

Yep, 20 I have.

20 we have. Is there two?

£20 start. Is there two?

We will be selling for £20. It is going to go.

-No reserve.

-20 quid.

-That's right. That's no problem.

-There is commission to pay on that.

-That's no problem.

-He's quite relaxed.

-Yes, I am.

Look, it's gone to a new home.

-That's right.

-Hopefully, someone will appreciate it.

-It's better than being in a loft.

-That's what we thought.

-Better than the bin.

-That's right.

-Better than the bin.

-Yeah.

And finally, for our last stop of the day,

we headed north, back to Thomson, Roddick and Medcalfe Saleroom

in Carlisle, in Cumbria,

where auctioneer Steven Parkinson was on the rostrum.

180. That's yours.

Yvonne, my favourite lot of the whole sale today.

Oh, I love Bernard Leach. And so do you, don't you?

I chose it for you, Paul.

It's that taste of the Orient. It's the brushwork, isn't it?

It's the way the pot was thrown and the kiln with the wood burning.

-Everything about it is so nice. It's so thoughtful.

-It is, yes.

But also, it's the sort of thing that could still be missed

-and not recognised.

-Yes.

Because studio pots come through and a lot of people, collectors

-and auctioneers, don't realise what they've got with those.

-No.

-This is quite special.

-Really important to check out those marks.

-And to keep an eye out for things like this.

-Yeah.

My sons have told me I've got to start getting rid of pots.

Everyone will want this. Ready?

LAUGHTER

Here we go. This is it.

Lot 760 is this nice Bernard Leach studio pottery covered preserve pot.

It is a nice one, isn't it?

Signed underneath as well.

I can start the bidding here with me.

Straight in at 140. 150.

160. 170.

'180 bid straight away. 200 on the internet.'

220. 240.

260. 280.

-At 280, they're loving this.

-280!

-'At 280...'

-Oh, no.

-Yes!

-'320.'

At 320.

At 340.

At £340.

At 340. Is that it?

At 340.

Yes! Yes! Bernard Leach does it for Cornwall.

It's all in that Oriental brushwork.

340.

-I just can't believe it.

-Yeah, it's good.

-It's a good price.

-It is.

-Yeah.

-I never expected that.

-He's so sought-after.

-So sought-after.

-Oh!

I can't wait to tell my sons, you see,

-because they thought it wasn't worth anything.

-Yeah.

£340 for a little pot. It's made my day. It's made yours.

-But, Yvonne, it's made yours, hasn't it, darling?

-Oh, yes.

380.

What a fantastic result and a beautiful piece of pottery.

If you've got anything like that at home, we'd love to see it.

So bring it along to a "Flog It!" valuation day.

Well, that's it for today's show.

And I thoroughly enjoyed being here at Llanerchaeron.

We've seen some wonderful treasures from around the country.

Your treasures. And we've had some great results in the auction room.

That really is it. So, until the next time, it's goodbye.