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Monday 6 June 2011

York Dolls House and Miniatures Fair

It seems as if every show I go to I claim it is the biggest and the best; and so it is again...


I went to the York Show in Sunday (5th June) and it was huge.  There were over 160 stands and most of them were pretty large.  It was held at the race course which was nice and easy to find and parking was just about OK.  There were 3 halls over two floors of a very large building being utilised by the stalls and a third floor being used for drop-in workshops.  Food at these things has been rubbish so far but this had a decentish cafe for lunch/tea etc if you reeled in your foodie ambitions before looking.  It was roomy enough to get round comfortably even when you arrive with the door opening crush at 10am which is what I did.  Our plan was to arrive when it opened and I would spend a couple of hours there and we would go on to Beningbrough (NT property) for lunch and a pootle round in the sunshine.  I did at least four hours at the show and we took a short break mid-way through for lunch.


I can't praise the organisers enough.  I can't think of a thing they could have done any better.


All that said - and I am sure I am speaking only for me - I actually found it too much.  Even after going round and round for four hours I didn't feel I'd seen everything and eventually I  left reluctantly because I was shattered and broke!  This seems like a bit of a daft moan but I am sure some of you understand what I mean - some things can just be too overwhelming.  It might have been better as a two-day even rather than just the one and some buyers could go twice!


I bought quite a bit of stuff.  I would advise anyone who can get to a show to do so as you can (obviously) save an arm and a leg on postage on items.  Generally the actual price of the items remains the same, but there is the occasional bargain such as someone who was selling curtain pleaters for £1.45!!!   Grrrr just a couple of days before I'd snapped up one up off EBay at the bargain price of five pounds something plus post and packing and was feeling very smug about it.  I've always found quite a lot of the prices on doll's house miniatures wildly variable between retailers.  You can quite literally see the same piece of furniture priced around three pounds with one seller and up to two or three times that with someone else.  I've no idea why this is but this is a hobby where it does pay to shop around.  Thank heaven's for Google.


Ken and I try to pick fairs at places we want to go to for another reason so that we don't feel the petrol costs and meals out make it an expensive way to buy things.  Also, of course, Ken doesn't have the slightest interest in the teeny collecting mania and spends his time sitting in the sun (successful every time so far) reading and listening to music.  He is bordering on being a Saint to do this for our hours without complaint.  This time he had the benefit of my I-pad2 and a movie to watch.  As  I said we planned to build in Beningbrough but managed to get there too late for lunch and too stuffed to enjoy cakes and tea.  It was even more irritating to discover as we drove up to the house that we remembered being there a couple of years ago and not finding it all that interesting.  Well laid plans and all that.  He gave the new car a good run and we enjoyed the scenic route home.  All in all Sunday was a day well spent.

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