Key to success

After my recent move I have done what most people do and concentrated on some soul searching, turned my ideas to renovating my life. Most people do this new years eve so, technically speaking, I am only a month and a bit behind. So I started to think about all the things I wanted to change in my life, then I realised that I am very lucky really, many of the things I want to change are materialistic. I think this is a much easier life reinvention than if you have lots of money but the rest of your life is somewhat of a shambles, (however I could quite easily be proved wrong).

So I hear you as what do I want materialistically? Cars, houses, bigger tv? No none of the usual stuff, I just really want to be successful. I can hear people gasp, 'you don't need money to be successful,' and they are absolutely right, I like to think I am already successful at being a good mum and an ok wife, those two things needed very little monetary input. But to be a success in the antiques world, to really make a go of becoming a successful dealer, you need a good sized capital, something that enables you to buy and sell without the desperate urgency I am currently exuding. In a manner that allows me to keep my good items at a good price and wait for the right buyer, whilst turing over smaller decorative items and continuing to add to my stock using this capital. At the moment most of my capital goes back into paying bills, or paying out for advertising and other fair associated costs.

I had the answer, way back in 2010, just after I brought my first box from auction... double it. It was a simple plan and if, (I am sure many people will be), you are familiar with other blog phenomena it is the idea of taking something very small (£23.53 to be precise), and turning it into something very large, (£48189.44). Ok... so fast forward the five year to 2015 and yes this idea may have been done to death, but at the time I had no knowledge of other entrepreneurs attempts or ideas and 'double it' was my dream. I made it to stage 2 or to be precise £47.06, before life/moving house (we move a lot), and other such things got in the way. I have still kept the original piece of ratty paper I wrote it on which has all the patina of a well loved piece of ephemera and I have stuck to my fridge for months. For months I have made excuses, promised myself dates, and generally procrastinated as to why I couldn't realise my dream, why I couldn't recommence my challenge.

It is for one reason and one reason only I have not, and that is fear. Fear of failure, fear it won't succeed and it will be another Rosei plan that has joined the endless list of stilted ideas and projects for the future, (I definitely won't be idle in retirement).

Today marks a big day for 'double it,' today is a new beginning. Today is the day when I say, no more, no more delays, no more excuses, no more hiding... double it is recommenced. Because the success of 'double it' will mean I have a better than average shot at success as an antiques dealer, (and maybe even some money to do my MA in fine arts).

This is double it people... please ignore the original dates stage 3 will be March, so I should have it completed by end of December... It is a real challenge because I am posting it on the all seeing, we judge the colour socks you wear, nosey parkers paradise that is facebook. Yep the progress of this task can be judged by my friends, family, peers, and people I don't really know.

Original 'double it' document

Boxes, boxes everywhere...

After moving house in the last two weeks I have begun to romanticise our little square friends a bit, where would be without the humble box? Alas despite being an avid collector and dealer, I was unable to move my belongings using entirley period boxes, (sometimes cardboard ones are just as useful), but it got me thinking, what is our love affair with boxes?

One of the first antique pieces I let me daughter play with was a heavily carved box and she adored it, at under one it was also one of the safest objects for to begin her antiques journey on. As adults do we love them because we can always find something to put in them, whatever size or shape, making them a utilitarian part of modern living?

Or is it still the childhood joy of opening an unknown box hoping to find treasure inside...

Certainly there must have been many finds in boxes that have ended up on the antiques roadshow, one of my favourite conversations has been with a dealer who 'found' a Charles Horner brooch lurking in a box brought from an auction house.

One of my favourite eBay searches is a simple 'box' in the antiques section, here are some of my favourites from the newly listed...

Straw Work POW Napoleonic Box

A secret sliding drawer? Right up my street, shame about the missing drawer but considering its age, and the fact it is made from straw, a nice example.

Pine Medical Box

A few drawers for all your bits and bobs.

Travelling Mirror

Just what every self respecting individual needs, a travelling mirror.