Top Tips

There are huge numbers of old photographs offered for sale on ebay. Some are obviously to be avoided – in particular those offering "thousands of old images on CD." You should also be cautious when buying old prints if you intend doing anything with them other than perhaps displaying them in your home or in some kind of album. Quite often the copyright of these photos rests with one of the large photographic libraries such as, Getty Images or Mirrorpix. If, for whatever reason, you wanted to use them in a book, magazine or some other published form, without seeking the copyright holder's permission, then they would be likely to seek recompense. Sometimes a photo wjil have a copyright stamp on the rear of the photogrph and although this company may have ceased to trade they could have been bought by a company that is operating today.

While I was in America I was asked all sorts of interesting questions about collecting, buying and also quite a few were about how to look after antiques. In my Care & Repair of Antiques & Collectables there are all sorts of tips about such things. One lady asked me how to remove a glass stopper from a decanter; it's one of the most frequent problems for collectors if the number of times I've been asked about it is anything to go by.

Glass stoppers in decanters and claret jugs often get stuck because they are put back in the neck when the neck is still wet with alcohol. The first rule is never attempt to tap the stopper or the neck as you risk breaking one or the other. Instead pour a little olive oil around the area where the stopper enters the neck. Leave the vassal to stand for a couple of hours while the oil will gradually seep between stopper and neck, making it easy to remove the stopper. Don't forget to wash off all traces of the olive oil.

pictured is an 18th Century French magnum decanter

Many of us had a Teddy bear when we were younger, but very few of us had a Steiff bear. The Teddy bear is a little over one hundred years old and the craze was al started by American President Theodore 'Teddy' Roosevelt back in 1902 as a result of his refusal to shoot a bear when he was out hunting. A newspaper cartoon of the event gave Morris Michtom the idea of producing 'Teddy Bear' toys for kids and the whole craze took off from there. Steiff, a German manufacturer, took up the idea and it is their bears that have become the most collectable and the most faked. A genuine Steiff bear has the following characteristics.

• A small button in one of other of the bear's ears

• Sometimes the button is missing but a hole will remain.

• Their bears have long curved limbs with felt pads and out-turned paws and ankles

• They have a seam from ear to ear across the top of the head

• A pronounced hump in their back

Most fakes don't smell old and this is a key test of originality along with the fact that modern materials feel very different. Look out for a lack of wear from years of being cuddled by their young owners.

There are two types of pottery - earthenware and stoneware; and two types of porcelain - hard paste and soft paste.

Earthenware, such as terracotta is fired at a relatively low temperature and will only hold water if it is glazed. The type of clay that's used will determine whether it is a red-brown, white, buff or grey.

Stoneware, is fired at a higher temperature and does not need a glaze to make it watertight. It's strong, hardwearing and can be polished to a silky smooth surface. The fired body can be dark greyish, red, white or sand coloured.

Hard Paste porcelain can become translucent during its second gaze firing. As the body and glaze fuse it is difficult to see that the glaze was originally separate. The body tends to feel cold to the touch and when it chips it leaves a break similar to chipped flint or glass.

Soft Paste Porcelain vitrifies on its first firing and the second glaze firing is done at lower temperatures. It's slightly warm to the touch and is prone to crazing and discolouration in early examples.
 

When you are looking at cut glass always do the ‘thumb test’ as a check for its quality. First close your eyes, then run your thumb over the surface to feel how deep and complex the cut surface is. Check on how many types of cuts and engraving have been used. Handling the glass in this way will also help you to spot any chips, especially on coloured glass where they are often harder to detect. Remember that red glass is usually more expensive as it cost more to make because of the addition of gold.