Lifting The Veil
In Conversation With Antiques Dealer, Lizzie Gordon, founder of The Oscar Collective.
This week I am delighted to chat with antiques dealer, Lizzie Gordon, founder of The Oscar Collective. For anyone in the throws of deciding whether to start out on their own in business, or desperate to mix a passion for antiques and interiors, with a new independent career, Lizzie is an inspiring example of dreaming big and taking a leap of faith away from the corporate world.
I think I love Lizzie’s story, as so much of the way she started out reflects my own journey. I wish at that stage I had known more business owners that I could look to as role models, as I merrily entered the world of antiques, with no direct experience. So if you are that stage then I hope this new series I will be running - Lifting The Veil, will excite you about some of the people doing it for themselves. Lizzie’s story is a great one - so if you would like a peak into her world, then I hope you will enjoy our conversation.
How did you make the transition from fashion pr to antiques dealer? I’m a creative person; and I loved working in fashion PR as a career; they were some of my most fun years. When we moved from London to the countryside, I was no longer in a tiny rental but actually owned my own home; which was essentially a blank canvas and we had no furniture!! So I did find myself wandering around antique shops and antique markets and got a real buzz from finding something that grabbed my attention from under a pile. Tetbury, the most gorgeous town very near me, has a high street packed full of wonderful antique shops selling such beautiful original pieces, I was hooked! We visited France every year where my parents lived and I’d buy an extra suitcase to bring home brocante finds, feeling very pleased with myself. I think having an eye for fashion, texture and colour are very closely linked to having an eye for interiors, antiques, upholstery, fabrics.
What gave you the impetus to follow your dream? I think it was the fact that friends liked what I was doing in my home, and liking the antiques I was buying, bringing back from France or finding in auction houses. I’m also very lucky to live in an area just brimming with brilliantly creative women, many running businesses and we are all really supportive of each other. I also wanted to educate myself, reading books and interior magazines, visiting auction houses and antique shops to see what was selling and what seemed to be popular. My husband was very supportive and agreed I should go for it as I could fit it in around school runs and matches.
What inspired you about antiques? I’m obsessed with history, probably verging on geek-status! The thought that a rustic chair was hand made by a local craftsman for his stone cottage or a dining table was being used by a Georgian family and survived countless wars, just too wonderful. Often very decorative, they are so beautifully made with not a glue gun or staple insight.
How did you learn to buy at auction? Trial and error for sure. Most towns will have an auction house. I actually first tried online. The Saleroom I found excellent. You can collate a list of items you are looking for and they email you when they are coming up for sale. However, Auction houses have a buzz about them, - always a very exciting morning spent!
Top pointers for the uninitiated for buying at auction? So definitely do due diligence. Make a list of what you are looking for, search online for auctions that are selling what you want and not a million miles away. Courier costs are expensive. Ask questions, NEVER assume anything! Auction houses will always forward extra photos and extra information, but you do have to ask! I thought I’d bought something lovely from the Hollywood Regency period, but in fact was a modern replica. Rookie error I never made again. Also make sure you understand the fees involved. The hammer price will then have fees and VAT added. Have a budget in mind and try to stick to it.
What's catching your eye in the world of antiques at the moment? I love Delft tiles, they are utterly charming, individually hand painted, and just so beautiful. You pay a premium for late 18th, early 19th century tiles. There are lots of replicas so you have to be careful. 19th century Spanish pottery is very special too. I also can’t walk past anything made from faux bamboo!
Best bit about being a dealer? It’s a great job, searching for antiques. Exciting as you never know what you might find. There’s a lovely community too, we all have specialist interests so there’s room for everyone in the market. I’ve always looked up to Jorge at Brownrigg in Tetbury and Lesley at Panache Decorative Antiques based at Lorfords; they have impeccable tastes.
Specialist focus/ pieces that always appeal? I do love Chinoiserie; it became very popular in the 18th and 19th century in England when every Country House worth its metal would have a Chinoiserie bedroom. I love how decorative they are, often lacquered in vibrant colours. I started originally selling Mid Century Modern but now I’m more interested in 19th Century European and British decorative pieces. My tastes have changed however a beautiful Mid Century lamp will always catch my eye.
Do you find it hard to part with pieces you find? So hard! I do feel I really have let the most beautiful pieces slip through my fingers! But when you start out, you cant keep many pieces as you need the funds to buy again! There is a gorgeous green, lacquered, slim legged Chinoiserie table I still think about now.
Describe your home? I’m very lucky to live in a very pretty Georgian house in a lovely village in Gloucestershire. I mix styles and periods, with antiques now outweighing newer pieces. I believe your home should be welcoming and lived in, full of memories, comfy seating, art and almost definitely a dog! Houses that look so precious that you have to take your shoes off really annoy me. I do love colour and pattern play, however I think since we have lived here, I have reined myself in a bit! I do tend to find a piece that I then work from for the rest of the room; probably more often than not, a painting.
How do you mix old and new at home? I make a conscious effort to buy vintage or antique now for most decorative and practical pieces in the house; it’s just a no brainier to me to buy sustainably now, re-use and re-upholster, don’t throw away when it can have another life. I do feel that old and new can live symbiotically together with ease, even if you don’t live in a period property. Antiques add such depth and character.
What’s your favourite guilty pleasure at home? I love pottery! I honestly don’t think I have one matching plate or bowl. I do find myself buying them at every opportunity as I love a table with mixed pieces. And candles! I have candles lit all the time, I love the smells and the diffused light they give off. And in the summer, I fill the house with home grown cut flowers of every colour and place them everywhere!!
Wall art - what makes you tick? I love art so much! It really inspires and excites me. I’m not a fan of the trend for designers to buy a wall full of art for a client; every piece we have at home comes from somewhere special, a place we have visited, or an artist I have discovered via a gallery or social media. Instagram is a great place to look for new artists. We have a wide variety of art including antique oils from France & Italy, photography by Claudia Legge and Christopher Bucklow; and ceramic art by Swedish multi medium artist, Sara Bergman. Probably some of my absolute favourites are portrait pieces by Poppy Ellis, which I feel lucky to have a few and beautiful monochrome works by Sonia Martin. I found her at the RA Summer Exhibition. I also have a penchant for striking female portraits, old or new….I’m always on the look out and know instantly when I find one! I’m lucky to have some by Julie Verhoeven and Unskilled Worker.
How do you display your treasures? I do love a mantle for displaying my favourite pieces. Currently on display in the sitting room is a fabulous vase by Spanish potter, The Exvotos, a pair of Mid Century Murano glass apples, an 18th Century Delft candle lantern and a 19th C German Westerwald Jug vase! All in blues and greens. I re arrange this often depending on a new antique find or change in colour combinations. I also have purpose built shelves in the kitchen for my Astier de Villatte collection which I have collected for 10 years and absolutely adore.
Antique piece you would love to find? Mesmerised by the Coco de Mer nuts from the Seychelles that were foraged in the 19th C and carved into the most beautiful decorative pieces. They can’t leave the Island anymore correctly, so you can only buy the antiques. They are rare and understandably expensive. I also loved antique Dutch interior and exterior paintings, it’s one of my most favoured aesthetics.
Go to destinations for interior inspiration? Amsterdam for the architecture and interiors ; utterly magical. I was lucky enough to see the spell binding Vermeer at the Rijks Museum last year. Marrakech: the souks and markets are extraordinary, vintage pottery, rugs and tiles. The colours are so inspiring. Florence for frescoes! I adore a painted wall; so atmospheric. There are wonderful brocantes/markets in France and Italy, but I do feel the prices are getting very high, especially in Paris. If you find one off the beaten track, run fast to it!!
What interior books are you currently reading?
Palm Beach Living by Jennifer Ash Rudick
British Designers at Home by Jenny Rose Innes
How They Decorated by P Gaye Tapp
How and where can people buy from you? I’m online at www.theoscarcollective.co.uk, via Instagram @theoscarcollective and have a small showroom at Lorfords Antiques in Tetbury.
Huge thanks to Lizzie for sharing her a peak into her beautiful world.
Wishing you all a great week ahead. Ali x x
As a bonus for paid subscribers I will be doing an extra post on Wednesday with my little black book of favourite antique dealers; and special antique finds on my radar this month. Subscribe as a paid subscriber before Wednesday to receive access.