Abacus
Antique Dealers: Storing And Caring For Antiques
How
you store and care for your antiques will of course
depend largely on the type or types of antiques that
you collect. There are a huge variety of antiques
ranging from jewellery to pottery and anything in-between,
some collectors specialise in one or two types while
others will deal in several different types and of
course if they are to remain in tip-top condition
and increase in value then they must be stored and
cared for properly.
Antiques
can either be something that is stored away under
glass and just considered to be nothing more than
a thing of beauty and something which is just gazed
upon in admiration and of course admired by others.
Some antiques are used in the home to decorate it
and to be used, family heirlooms for example that
have been passed on down the family and used in the
home but are nevertheless still classed as antique.
An
antique is classed as antique if it dates back for
at least 10 decades and there are many reasons that
can affect the price of an antique when and if it
comes to selling it. Factors that are taken into consideration
include how rare the object is, the collection value
of the object and of course the condition of the item,
this is why it is essential that you know how to store
and care for antiques particularly if you wish to
put them up for auction.
The
internet holds a huge amount of resources when it
comes to taking care of antiques, it can provide you
with the information you need to take care of your
antiques yourself along with providing you with listing
of specialists in antiques cleaning and restoration.
Depending on the type of antique you have will depend
greatly on whether you are able to care of it yourself
or if you should take the advice of a specialist and
turn the care of the item over into their hands.
Rugs,
wall hangings and carpets have to be given some considerable
consideration, even more so if the items are very
delicate such as Persian or Oriental rugs. If you
are going to be storing rugs, carpets or wall hangings
rather than have them on show then great care will
need to be taken to ensure that they cannot be infiltrated
by insects such as the house dust mite or moths. Where
possible you should cover them all over with acid
free or cotton paper before storing in a clean and
dry environment. When it comes to cleaning then take
them to a specialist rug ad carpet cleaner.
Glass,
breakable or very delicate antiques such as ornaments
or plates of course need to be handled with kid gloves
if they are not to be damaged and reduce the value.
Items such as this shouldn’t be tackled by the
beginner to antiques and are best put into the hands
of someone who specialises in that particular antique.
When storing very delicate items or displaying them
it goes without saying that they should be behind
glass and well away from prying fingers.
