My partner and I use antiques and vintage pieces every day at home and beyond: from wine glasses to vintage pens, cutlery, crockery and bags. And we love them, as do our family and friends. Not only do our antique alternatives fulfil the same purpose as their modern equivalents, they are often of greater quality and appeal, enriching our eyes, minds and souls, as well as our home. It's been said that more stuff has been made in the past 200 years than in the entire 200,000-year history of mankind. Certainly more than enough for us all already; a truly enormous variety of wonderful things to choose from at all price levels – as we all know, antiques really needn't be expensive. Not only that, but you can buy, safe in the knowledge that the carbon footprint of each piece faded long ago. And should you need further persuading, over the following pages, Charlotte Packer and Emma Longstaff have asked 14 antiques experts and enthusiasts about a favourite antique that adds a little bit of magic to everyday tasks…
Mark Hill
BBC Antiques Roadshow expert
‘In 2019, irked by the amount of single-use plastic cups I used when out and about and travelling every week, month, or even year, I searched for a solution. Wandering around an antiques shop, and thinking ‘outside the box’, I chanced upon the ideal piece – an Edwardian silver-plated collapsible cup, which even came in its own rather smart, small leather-covered card case. A quality
