2019-08-01_Homes_&_Antiques 2

I liveina coagethatdatesto 1827 and

isa typicalCotswoldsbuild,allBath

stonequarriedlocally.Thewallsare

about 2 thicksoit’sverycoolin

summerandwarminwinterandisas

dryasa bone.It’ssurroundedbyan

arboretumandsitsonthecanalin 27

acres.WelmCountryleDiarieshere.

Weh av efe a t u r ew a l l sinmostrooms.

AllthewindowsarepaintedinLile

Greene’sDarkBrunswickGreenand

there’sa hand-tumbledstoneoor

throughout.It’sverymuchcountry-

meets-contemporary.

I startedcollectingBrookeBondtea

cardswhenI wassixorseven.I was

poy aboutthem.Ataround 14 we

movedtoCornwallandI startedgeing

intoTroikapoery.I alsousedtocollect

smallsnuboxesandteacaddies.

Mymosttreasuredpossessionisa

full-sizeEdwardianskeletonofa horse,

TheTVpresenterandantiquesdealertalkstoRachel

No aboutportalsonthepast,thejoyofsculptural

antiquesandwhyweshouldallowna bureau...

c1910.Itstandsabout 7 highandis

beautifullyassembledandheldtogether

soyoucan’tseethewireandrods.It’s

ona hugeblackplinthwith

brasscarryinghandles.It’s

justsosculpturaland

dominatesanendwall

inmybarn.

Everythinginmyhome

hasharmony,presence

andbalance.I dolike

juxtaposition,saya

bitofPeterBlake

abovea country

housedresseroran

oldbureaushowing

itsworninterior.It’s

gottolookslightly

brutalthough;it can’t

bepleasing.

Theoldestpiecesinmy

homearesomelate16th-

My Style Story

PAUL MARTIN

century walnut cabinets. I’ve got an

escritoire and a Charles II collector’s

cabinet. I’ve also got quite a bit of Queen

Anne furniture that we use every day.

The newest piece is my drum kit. I’m

teaching my kids to play. Any time

you’ve had a frustrating day you can

come home and play your heart out!

Buying antiques is about giving choice

pieces light and space to enjoy them and

being able to put your wine or cup of tea

on them without feeling guilty.

One of my favourite things I ever sold

was a beautiful French table from

Normandy. It had a thick slab top and

the rust stain of a pair of scissors that

had been put down in the early 1900s.

When you know something is made by

a skilled crasperson there’s a story

behind it and a region and a use and it’s

that story that brings it alive – it’s a

document of social history.

If you live in a small country coage or

a townhouse my advice is: buy a bureau.

Leave the fall open at the front, ll it

with your knick-knacks, put your

laptop and mobile on it and a vase or

piece of sculpture and you’ve got the

most wonderful lile work unit.

As a dealer you have to part with your

best pieces. Everything I buy I love. I

don’t mind selling pieces for what I

bought them for because it’s about

geing that portal on the past. Seeing

something that’s well made and

incredibly rare – being reconnected

with traditional skills and methods

• that for me is the buzz.

See more of the antiques Paul loves at his

shop in Corsham thetablegallery.com

LEFT Dark Brunswick Green

Absolute Matt Emulsion,

£22.50 per litre, Little

Greene. BELOW This is

similar to the veterinary

study Paul has at home – full

skeleton mount of a horse,

£17,000, The Table Galler y.

154 Homes & Antiques August 2019

John Ord at Kinetic Studios