Easter Inspiration

The Easter weekend is upon us - nice and early this year - and we are sure that lots of you are looking forward to your long weekend in, and away from, London.

Although the weather may be a little gloomier than we have all hoped for, we are still feeling in the Spring mood here at Alfies. To inspire your Easter shopping - we are still open this Saturday, 26 March - and your Easter dressing, we have put together a selection of our favourite Easter and Spring inspired pieces in store.

Easter Bank Holiday Opening Hours

Friday, 25 March: CLOSED

Saturday, 26 March: OPEN AS NORMAL, 10AM-6PM

Sunday, 27 March: CLOSED AS NORMAL

Monday, 28 March: CLOSED AS NORMAL

1950s Floral dress, available from Carole Collier.

1950s Spring floral bonnet. Available from Carole Collier.

Chinese silk dress with winter lining. 1920s-30s. Available from Carole Collier.

1950s Cloisonné egg, available from Good Time Antiques.

Vintage bunny charm, available from Good Time Antiques.

French 1970s chick centrepiece for eggs, signed. Available from Gloria Sinclair.

Vintage Revival!

We would like to invite you to Alfies sister market Grays, where we are organising our first Vintage Fashion Exhibition showcasing rare pieces from both Alfies and Grays dealers. The staff at Alfies and Grays are passionate about everything Vintage and we got inspired to show other Vintage lovers what our fabulous dealers have to offer.

Clothes, jewellery and accessories on show range from 1920s to 1980s, and there will be a pretty piece, or several, to capture your eye. All this, in conjunction with a brief history of topics such as vintage jewellery, hairstyling, burlesque and tattoos, accompanied by striking photographs, offers a personalised view on Vintage fashion in the 20th century.

Come and learn about the history of Vintage and how it came to have an impact on today's fashion.




The exhibition takes place 21 - 25 September at the newly opened VAAD Art Gallery on the lower ground floor at Grays, 1-7 Davies Mews, London W1K 5AB.

Open from 10am-6pm, and only 3 minutes walk from Bond Street station.

There is no entrance fee.

Halloween at Alfies Antique Market

Halloween has filled the shops with giant pumpkins, crazy costumes, chocolate eye-balls and flashing devil forks. While here at Alfies we've fallen in love with some things that you might fancy for Halloween, but that you will definitely want to use for more than just the one day of ghouls and ghosties...

Art Deco Evening Bag (with antelope and black silk, a solid silver and onyx clasp), £250
Sheila Cameron

Contemporary Black Diamond Skeleton Ring
Pari's Jewellery

1950s Black Sequin Backless Showgown (with long train)
The Girl Can't Help It

1930s Decorative Table Lamp ( incorporating a black cat sitting on a book), £60
Renato

'Coro' Gilded Metal and Marcasite Spider Brooch
Tony Durante

Happy Halloween from everyone at Alfies Antique Market (cue evil laughter...)

Alfies Great Treasure Hunt - 5th September

Join Alfies Antique Market on Saturday 5^th September and take up the challenge to navigate its labyrinth of dealers and be part of Alfies’ Great Treasure Hunt to raise money for St John’s Hospice.

We will ask you to make a voluntary donation of £1 to enter the hunt, while Alfies dealers will also make donations. All proceeds raised will go to St John’s Hospice, which provides invaluable support and care to anyone in Central and North West London suffering from a terminal illness.

Taking part in the treasure hunt will give you the chance to win a myriad of prizes from Alfies. There will be something for everyone who enters as a thank you for their donation, as well as the opportunity to win a mystery gift.

Alfies Great Treasure Hunt is a wonderful chance to explore Alfies from head to toe, you may chance upon such wonderful items as:

a 1930s hand-painted Burleigh pottery egg-cruet set

£65 by Beverley

a stunning 1930/40s ring with aquamarine and diamonds

£1000 by Connie Speight

or an egg shaped French Limoges box with a photo frame hidden inside

price on enquiry by Hayman & Hayman

So join Alfies and its dealers on the 5^th of September to unearth some treasures and help raise funds for a great cause.

Alfies Great Treasure Hunt: Saturday 5^th September, 10am-6pm.

Nearest tube: Marylebone or Edgware Road.

Admission free with a voluntary donation of £1.

For more information please call 020 7723 6066 or visit

www.alfiesantiques.com

For more information on St. John's Hospice visit

www.stjohnshospice.org.uk

Fathers' Day Gift Ideas

It's Fathers' Day on the 21st of June. Eek! It's hard enough trying to find a good birthday and Christmas present for my Dad...let alone something for this extra date. I've done the predictable CD/DVD/book/golf-ball options pretty much every year. My Dad always acts like he's suprised...hmmm really?!

So let's do something different for our Dad's this Fathers' Day, let's be a bit original - let's get something for them that shows how much we do appreciate the old boys. I've been scouring Alfies and come up with some ideas to help you (and me!)

An original 1920s nickel and silver Omega pocket watch called Turler
Mo Heidarieh

A 1930s Mappin & Web ice bucket.
W & L Antiques

An excellent quality 1950s Danish leather swivel chair
Stephen Lazarus

Miniature Gin Bar with glasses and decanter
Ian Broughton

A very desirable pair of Edwardian gentleman's antique cufflinks in 9ct gold
Peter & Naneen Brooks

A selection of gifts available from
Robinson Antiques

Some food for thought. But if you are still in really big trouble trying to pick something out for your Dad, you can never go wrong with the Alfies Gift Certificates (available in £10, £20 & £50 denominations)...Now there's an idea!

Emerald - The Birthstone for May

Lucky readers, who celebrate their birthday this month, can make legitimate requests to loved ones for a beautiful emerald gift from Alfies - emerald is the birthstone for May.

The word emerald is derived from the Greek smaragdos via Old French esmeralde. Its meaning is simply green gemstone. It is such a unique jewel that a special cut was developed just for it: the emerald cut. So if jewellery is a present for you, here are some great emerald ideas:

A 1940's emerald & diamond ring

Pars Jewellery

A mid 19th Century 15ct gold filigree brooch set with citrine and emerald. Circa 1860.
Marie Antiques

A pair of stunning 1940's rose diamond, emerald and ruby chandelier earrings
Pari's Jewellery

There are some world famous emeralds out there - The New York Museum of Natural History displays a cup made of pure emerald, while the emerald crystal named Patricia is one of the largest (it weighs a hefty 632 carats!) But they may be a little over budget, so as an alternative you could always suggest that an emerald coloured present from Alfies would suffice (and they're not just presents for ladies!):

1920's/30's continental wrought iron magazine holder
Bent Ply

Green glass round Art Deco mirror
Louise Verber Antiques

A 1930's green pressed glass fruit bowl with 3 Art Deco ladies holding up the bowl
Ian Broughton

An industrial light with green shade
Stephen Lazarus

In ancient Rome green represented Venus, the Goddess of Love. We're sure that these emerald gift ideas from Alfies will keep that symbology going a little longer - what is not to love?!

Kate Moss and Jamie Hince

Photos taken from the Bauer Griffin blog, you can see the rest of their photos here.

Yet again Kate Moss was hustled by photographers as she stepped out of Alfies with boyfriend Jaime Hince in December. Luckily Alfies is such a great hideaway from the press she could enjoy a relaxed day of shopping. Looks like she stocked up on a few gifts from our dealers before heading off in her silver Bentley. That rather fetching golden palm lamp is from Lousie Verber on the first floor of Alfies. Louise has a fabulous collection of mirrored glass furniture, mirrors, lamps and Val St. Lambert lamp bases among other glamorous items. No wonder Kate and Jamie couldn't resist!