February 2025
February is generally a quiet month but a few rugs have winged their way out to happy customers. The accounts I should say are not looking great for this year and so I will have to postpone the thoughts of appearing on the businessman of the year review and dragon’s den unless that is they have a comedy edition.
I have of course bought some more rugs, more than I sold which seems to be the equation to date. The stock grows and the space diminishes and I guess the law of the garage/attic/shed applies, that is the space allowed will always reach capacity to the point of it no longer working as a manageable space.
The good news however is that the stock is improving all the time and I have acquired some really lovely additions which fill my heart with joy. It is to be honest very hard work to make a business like this work and I am imrpressed by those that do but regardless of all of this at the end of each evening I spend five minutes in the rug room looking at my treasures and drinking in their beauty, that is what makes it all worthwhile for me.
January 2025
This is traditionally my busiest month of the year with the LARTA rug fair in Battersea at the end of the month.
The most interesting sale was an african textile to a film studio where it will make a guest appearance in a major feature film. I am not used to conversing with people whose address is Beverley Hills and I must admit it has gone to my head. The company did ask me to sign a contract despite having sold it to them already, they quoted that because ‘you made it’ I needed to authorise use. Perhaps they know something of my previous incarnation as a woman in 1940s Zaire but I politely declined to sign as I had no idea what the contract meant.
I did wonder if I could ask for a credit, ideally an appearance in the film where I hold a card with “Philip Bell Antique Rugs'“ written in bold letters while smiling and pointing at the textile. Alas I won’t even get a mention and so the Hollywood dream is shelved for another year.
Larta was thoroughly enjoyable, more of a social event for likeminded rug enthusiasts pretending to do business. We buy off of each other and occasionally a member of the public enters the arena of rug sales and we all begin to circle like friendly and slightly desperate sharks.
I have nothing but admiration for those dealers who make a living doing this, it is without doubt a complex and volatile business.
The challenge this year as ever is to improve my stock, I will be selling off many of the pieces that have been lingering in the rug room and looking to reinvest in new stock. Feel free to contact me and ask for prices on any of my rugs.
December 2024
As expected December was a quiet month and I took time to reflect on my stock. While the moth sleep I hoover and check eah rug in preparation for the spring. I am also preparing for the big fair of the year. LARTA at the Battersea decorative arts fair is a busy event with lots of dealers and collectors coming to look at the new acquisitions and talk rugs. It is also an opportunity to see other dealers stock and discuss our best pieces. Despite the hard work and long days it is one of my favourite weeks of the year. The fair starts on 21st January up until the Sunday and the rug folk can be found on the mezzanine which is wonderfully close to the cafe. I can see my stand while I order a coffee, usually just as I am ordering a crowd collect at my stand, only to disperse the moment I break away and lose my place in the queue.
As ever I will say goodbye to some of my rugs during the week, I also have a tendency to come home with a few. Hopefully not more than I bring down. I vowed to control this after last year having left the fair at 8pm on a Sunday with the car crammed to the roof and made my way across central London fighting for control of the gear stick with a Heriz carpet. At least I have an automatic this year.
November 2024
Things are getting busier with more rugs going out than coming in and I have almost managed to get all of the rugs on my website. My latest antqiue fair was disappointing but I have learned a lesson about understanding the demographic of a fair and will be more choosy in future. I feel like the quality of the stock is improving with some very attractive pieces being added to the collection. I acquired a very good Tekke Torba which I will be taking to LARTA at the Battersea decorative arts fair 21st - 26th January. This fair is a great opportunity for me to meet with other dealers and collectors and show off the new acquisitions. I have a few complimentary tickets available if anyone wishes to attend.
October 2024
Rug Cushions
A busy month catching up on cataloguing which included photographing all of my cushions and adding them to the website for the first time. Normally I sell them long before I get a chance to catalogue them but this year I have not attended many antique fairs and the cushion collection has been slowly growing. That is about to change as I am booked in to do the Classic antique fair at the NEC on 29th Nov - Dec 1st and I am also confirmed to stand at Larta in January.
I have some really good cushions at the moment, perhaps the best crop to date with some great colours. I also have some more Kuba cloth cushions in production as they seem to be popular.
I also have a few less expensive rugs which I am slowly adding to the website, it is possible to buy an antique rug for less than an Ikea one if you are prepared to compromise on condition.
September 2024
The rug hoovering routine starts afresh, it is important that I keep on top of this and I consider it to be the most effective process to keep the dreaded moth at bay. When you have a lot of rugs rolled up and stacked on shelves the sight of a single moth entering the house can cause alarm and it is at times like this that I am glad I don’t have a flamethrower handy as I am pretty sure I would use it.
I bought a couple of very nice Kurdish rugs this month on a trip to London, these are my favourite rugs and I am considering building a collection of Kurdish pieces. The Jim Burns book of Kurdish rugs is my favourite reference book and one I would definitely recommend. Autumn is here and surely people will look to furnish their houses with beautiful items, as they say, it’s the hope that kills you.
August 2024
So quiet! August is always the month that causes me to stare at my stock and wonder if I will ever sell another rug. It is at times like these that some resolve is required. For some reason I spent the first two days of my holiday looking at other dealers stock and in a moment of madness decided to buy a batch of cheaper pieces. I arrived home with some trepidation to inspect the box of treasures, you never quite know what you get when you buy by photograph which is why I always offer a full refund for items sold on a few photos. There were some nice pieces in the collection as well as some very affordable rugs that still had charm. Now I just need to catalogue them all and focus on marketing my rugs for the fall, that is Autumn and not a sudden decline in business although it just might be both.
July 2024
And so the holiday season begins and the business enters the quiet zone for a couple of months. I monitor the auctions but with less interest than when I am selling. It is difficult to buy when the sales drop off but it’s also important to keep a good level of stock.
I seem to have a backlog of repair work suddenly, lots of new rugs that need a selvedge repairing or the ends stopping. This tends to happen when I have a more difficult repair such as a large hole that eats up all of my spare time. I spend a great deal of my time advising people on repairs and occasionally teaching the basics to a new collector who is buying cheaper items that need attention. It is heartening to know that there are new collectors joining the fold and I think it our job to nurture their interest and help them buy good pieces even if that comes at a cost to myself. Time is after all the most precious commodity and soon I will spend it reading rather than pushing the rug business so that I can come back refreshed and ready to work again.
June 2024
Website updates
This month has been a busy one with a number of rugs heading out and some great new pieces coming in, my favourite being a lovely Talish rug with an unusual crab border design filling the main field. I haven’t managed to stand at any antique fairs due to other work commitments and so to compensate I have spent my evenings attending to my website in the vain hope I can push my listing up the ranking, ah the mysteries of search engine optimisation! I often get SEO professionals telling me my website is not up to scratch which does smart somewhat and is not a good way to a man’s wallet. I will continue to do my best to enhance the website especially as we enter the quiet holiday period, I have added some FAQs that provide my views on all of the things to consider when buying a rug, this covers all of the things to be watchful for. My conclusion is probably biased but I think the job of the dealer is to remove that jeopardy for the customer.
May 2024
New stock arrives
After a busy couple of months I find myself with a backlog of new rugs to post on the website. It is important to me to keep the website as up to date as possible, the priority being to ensure that everything shown is still available. The addition of new items can take a little longer as I have to measure, photograph and carry out a full technical assessment of each piece including condition and repairs. Once complete I still need to write a good description that gives my view of each rug’s qualities. One technique I use to appraise a rug is to leave it out for a few days and allow myself to see it from different angles and in different lights. I often get an immediate sense of a rug as I enter a room or catch a glimpse of it as I ascend the stairs. This approach allows me to fully appreciate each piece rather than rolling it up and storing away.
Once the cataloguing is complete I will begin the important hoovering phase, the painting of the forth bridge one might say, I hoover every rug back and front to minimise any chances of beetle or moth. So far this has been very successful albeit incredibly hard work. The flipside is I get to reacquaint myself with every rug in my collection.
April 2024
Manchester Antique & Vintage Textile Fair 28th April 2024
I am pleased to announce that I will have a stand at the annual Manchester antique textile fair this coming Sunday 28th April. This busy event is one of the highlights of my year and a chance to meet like minded people with a passion for textiles. I am always amazed at the variety and beauty of the items on offer and it is a privilege to join the other stallholders in what will be my third year. Please drop by my stand where I will be showing a selection of my antique rugs and textiles. I also have a good selection of cushions made from the rugs that couldn’t be saved.
I am happy to look at photos of your rugs and advise on cleaning and general care plus hopefully give you some views on provenance so please come along.
https://www.textilesociety.org.uk/event/manchester-antique-vintage-textile-fair
Moseley Road, Fallowfield, Manchester
April 28 @ 8:00 am - 4:00 pm
£5 – £20
March 2024
Antique Rug Cushions
At long last my cushion production line is running again and suddenly I have a good number of cushions made from Antique rugs. It is never nice to cut up an old rug and there are instances where one should definitely not do this, but when the rug is decorative rather than collectable and has issues that would require costly repairs it is a good way to recycle what might otherwise be thrown away.
The cushions have a natural linen backing and are robust items. The sizes can often be non standard due to the need to balance the design of the rug within a frame. I tend not to post these on my website as they generally sell before I find the time to do this. I think they are a great way to bring some antique rug beauty into your home at an affordable price.