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Hello-My name is Julie and I live in the Midlands in the UK.
I began to collect when I was a teenager and realised I could buy an antique as cheaply as a modern equivalent. On a visit to a town in the Cotswolds I saw a selection of sewing tools in the window of an antiques shop and met the owner. She fired my enthusiasm by inviting me to see her collection and I was hooked. My pocket money was sufficient, if saved up, to buy a workbox and a few fittings a month with a long term loan from family for bigger items! Old sewing tools, indeed any item of Victoriana, were not seen as antiques by many dealers and so pieces were still available for a pound or two.
I became a teacher and for those years collecting was a hobby but it took every second of my free time. Eventually I decided to try my hand at dealing but at first only sold items that were surplus to my collection. Eventually I found that I enjoyed dealing so much that I felt it worth the risk to try to turn my hobby into a business.
In the years since then I have stood at antiques fairs, had stands and cabinets in antiques centres and sold from a mail order list but I now concentrate on dealing through Ebay. I love looking for antiques and would happily try to find that missing item for your collection.
Good hunting everyone!
NB. I am in the process of launching a Ruby Lane shop called Curio Cabinet Antiques-it should be up and running by the beginning of February.
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