If people knew what amazing finds can be done at auctions, I am sure many more of us would be attending them. I know that it can seem a bit intimidating – you might not know exactly what you are looking at, or looking for. Not to mention the upbeat bidding part! How are you supposed to keep up, and what if you accidentally buy a super expensive piece of furniture, when all you wanted to do was move some hair away from your face!? Well fear not, let’s go through the different steps and see if we can make some sense of it all:
Viewing the Items
I love this part of the auction, as you get to spend time at the auction house browsing through tons of beautiful pieces and imagining what they would look like in your house! The auction houses that I have been to usually have viewings two days ahead of the auction and also a couple of hours on the morning on the day of the auction. Use the viewing time wisely and inspect the pieces that you are interested in, so that you are aware of any faults before the bidding starts.
Who wouldn’t want to take this little sweetie home? At Ashbeys Gallery, Cape Town
To give you an example: I once saw a pair of amazing Chanel earrings in an online auction catalogue for a really low price, so I did a lot of online research the night before to understand the difference between real and fake Chanel, even though I planned to ask for advise at the auction house the next day.
However, when I arrived at the auction and asked the Porter for her advise – the Porter is the person helping you view the items so you that don’t drop the delicate ones on the floor or make dents into pretty vases – it turned out that she had no idea whether they were real or fake; neither did anyone else who worked there! In didn’t end up buying the earrings, as it seemed to be a deal too good to be true, and that turned out to be the right decision in the end, as they were indeed mere replicas. So do make sure that you do your research before heading to the auction – and don’t count on being able to rely on anyone else’s advice!
A treasure trove of costume jewellery at P.F. Windibank Auction
Also, keep an eye on the lot numbers so that you know when your piece is coming up, as there will be hundreds of lots up for sale on the day. Bring a notebook and write down the lot numbers that you are interested in, together with any faults that you may have found on them. You can even bring a camera to take some photos for your own reference (I always ask first whether it is alright for me to take photos though), that way you will ready for the bidding when it starts and hopefully you will get to buy the pieces that you like!
Golden Art Nouveau necklace with pearls
Bidding
Always decide in advance how much you are prepared to bid for a piece and stick to that limit, because during the exciting bidding process it can be very tempting to go higher, especially if you are a competitive person!
There are different ways to bid and the most common one is still in person. You need to register your name, contact details and often also a credit card when you arrive at the auction house, and you will then be given a paddle number. You enter the bidding by raising a hand or your paddle when you see the lot that you would like to buy, and the auctioneer will make a note of your number.
Antique poster of the English countryside and two hounds
Alternatively you can bid over the phone, if you don’t have time to attend in person. You will be speaking to one of the staff members on the phone and they will relay your bids to the auctioneer during the bidding process.
These days you can of course also bid over the internet in real time during the auction. The items are displayed on a screen with a photo and the level of the bidding next to it, and you can just use click your bids – super simple! You do however miss out on the atmosphere in the auction room when bidding over the internet, so make sure you attend at least one auction before you start internet bidding, to get the ‘real’ experience.
If you want to do a commission bid you simply inform the auctioneer of the lot you want to bid on, and leave your highest price with them. They will then use this information to bid against the others.
Browsing an auction catalogue at Winidbanks
Clever words to keep in mind:
The estimate is the price at which the auction house thinks that the item might be sold. I did however learn the hard way that this is really only an estimate, when a beautiful cameo brooch went for at least three times the estimate – and I didn’t even get the chance to place my bid as internet and commission bids went flew past me like racing cars! Utterly disappointing, but a good experience.
You use the paddle to bid for things, so waving it around to get rid of mosquitoes is not recommended – or you might find yourself having to find a suitable place in your house for that expensive Oak Arch Topped Swing Toilet Mirror on turned supports with splayed feet. No, that is not entirely true, as the auctioneers are very good at assessing who is actually placing a real bid in the room.
The reserve price is the lowest price at which the lot will be sold, so if you want the item you must bid above it, or it will remain unsold.
Unreserved means that there is no reserve price and the item will sell at whatever price is offered.
Ashbeys Gallery, Cape Town, South Africa
Decades of Elegance 