Founder of vintage and antiques fair 'excited' to relocate event to Maidenhead

The founder of a vintage and antiques fair says visitors will be ‘blown away’ by the exhibition when it relocates to Maidenhead next month.

After two ‘absolutely brilliant’ events at the River and Rowing Museum in Henley, The Lovely Vintage and Antiques Fair will soon take place at Lillibrooke Manor in Cox Green.

The Great Barn and Engine Room will showcase displays from vintage dealers at the ‘top of their game in finding the most charming and beautiful pre-loved items’ on October 5.

Founder Joanna Dickinson has been sourcing vintage and antiques since 2021 and sells on Etsy, having worked as a social media marketer for other vintage dealers since the pandemic.

“I’ve always loved vintage and antiques, and it was really hard to find decent dealers,” she told the Advertiser.

“But the pandemic brought everyone onto [online] platforms, so I started doing marketing, and got to know a whole community who just came out of the woodwork.

“We kept in touch after the pandemic, and we’re usually at similar sourcing places like antique fairs and flea markets, so we all know each other quite well.”

Becoming a vintage dealer was a ‘natural progression’ and Joanna said the area was ‘missing’ a fair that ‘shows off how beautiful vintage and antiques can be’.

“When you get vintage antique fairs, you associate them with either bits of junk or old stuff that old people quite like, but this is different,” she said.

“These dealers find the most amazing stuff and display it so beautifully – I thought this area could do with a curated fair.”

Items on sale from the 36 exhibitors who will travel to Maidenhead from as far as Somerset and Kent, include homeware, artwork, ceramics, kitchenware, books, apparel and jewellery.

There is a ‘real mix’ of finds’ in different styles and aesthetics, such as enamel, fibres, wood and patina,

“This is curated, the best of the best,” said Joanna, who hopes to make the fair a bi-annual fixture in Maidenhead.

“It's not expensive, it's not high-end. It’s more premium, so it's all the good stuff, but at reasonable prices.”

The event runs from 10am to 4pm, and parking and refreshments are included in the £5 online or £6.50 on-the-door tickets.  

She said it’s ‘exciting’ to move to a ‘bigger’ and ‘rustic’ setting, adding: “This is a new venue on a new day in a new area, so it's like starting again. Fingers crossed it goes well.”

Joanna said it is ‘sweet’ to find pre-loved items and being a vintage dealer means ‘you appreciate old stuff, have an eye and give [something] a new forever home’.

“For me, it's good to be part of the circular economy. There are many second-hand items available – it’s good to show them off at their best,” she said.

“Each time you see something different, and that's a fantastic thing. There's always a treasure to be found.

The sustainability aspect is important to Joanna, highlighting that ‘you don't need to buy new’.

“There's a lot of pre-loved stuff that is absolutely amazing, it's very unique, all one-of-a-kind, and the great thing about old stuff is that it's built to last.

“It’s just magical.”

Visit www.thelovelyvintagefair.com for more information.