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Step back in time with Lisa Freedman as she puts on her thinking cap and ponders the history and timeless allure of vintage hats Vintage clothes dealer Pat Oldman has been collecting hats for 30 years ...

A statement in vivacious colour, tropical foliage and fluttering insects, Josef Frank’s Hawai print is an expression of the exotic – but the true origins of the design are somewhat murky. We unpack ...

There is nothing like it. The proportions, the styling, how it makes you feel…’ says James Thorpe of Wimbledon Furniture, explaining the unique appeal of an antique Howard & Sons armchair. Although it ...

The story of British porcelain starts over 3,000 years ago in China. By around AD100 the Chinese were making hard, high-fired pottery containing kaolin clay and petuntse rock, a material we now call ...

We all know that horrible sinking feeling when your favourite bowl or mug hits the floor. The crack of ceramic on tile is one we all dread. But what if there were a way of repairing broken ceramic and ...

Think of a classic dolls’ house and you’ll probably picture a perfectly symmetrical building with soft red-brick walls, tall sash windows, detailing around the front door and a hipped roof with ...

Legend has it that tea was discovered by accident when in BC2737 the Chinese emperor Shen Nung saw leaves drop into the water that his servant was boiling for him to drink. At first pans were used to ...

When Ruth Cornett’s phone rings, she’s never sure exactly what to expect. As senior director of the Heritage & Taxation Advisory Service at Christie’s, no two days are the same and sometimes ...

Ancient Greek city states are thought to have had distinctly different approaches when it came to visitors announcing their arrival. While Spartans would advertise their presence at the door with a ...

'I feel a deep connection with this landscape,’ explains garden designer and antiques dealer Gianmatteo Malchiodi, gesturing to the golden corn fields, punctuated by poplar trees, that surround his ...

A skilfully painted nesting bird in jewel colours perches daintily on a tree, surrounded by dark purple bell-shaped flowers that glitter with inlaid mother-of-pearl shards. This beautiful design ...