Antiques show this weekend benefits Womanspace

Annual show set for 11 a.m. Saturday and Sunday.

By: Lea Kahn
   Antique handbags, some made as early as the mid-1800s.
   An English Hepplewhite armchair, made in the late 1700s.
   An English Art Deco two-seat leather settee, dating from the 1920s.
   Those are among the treasures that can be found at the annual Princeton/Lawrenceville Antiques Show, set for 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday at the National Guard Armory on Eggert Crossing Road.
   The 16th annual show will benefit Womanspace, a nonprofit organization that helps victims of domestic violence and sexual assault.
   The group, which was founded in 1977, provides safe, short-term housing for victims of domestic violence and sexual assault and their children. It operates a 24-hour statewide hot line and transitional housing programs. Counseling and support groups, court advocacy and a legal clinic also are provided.
   The Education and Training Program trains police, health-care professionals and members of the religious community in how to deal with domestic violence. Also, the program provides prevention education for school children and community groups.
   It can be quite costly to run these programs, and the group has used the antiques show as a major fund-raiser for the past 16 years. The group receives half of all admissions at the show. In previous years, Womanspace’s take has averaged $4,000, according to volunteer coordinator Susan Adams.
   The 40 antiques dealers at the show will offer fine American and European period and country furniture, fine art, porcelain and accessories.
   Kevin C. Clark of K.C. Clark Antiques in Salem, Mass., who specializes in English, French and American antiques of the 18th and 19th centuries, is one of the 40 dealers signed up for the show. He said he enjoys this show, because the dealers offer very good quality items.
   Mr. Clark plans to bring a mahogany William IV Pembroke table, dating from the 19th century and priced at $2,500. The Pembroke table has two leaves that can be folded down so the piece can be placed against a wall. With the leaves extended, it can be used as a breakfast table or in a dining room for additional seating.
   He also expects to show a George III mahogany linen press, priced at $7,700. The linen press was used to store linens, and it is a very useful piece today, he said. It can be used for storage in a house or apartment that lacks closet space. The upper half of the linen press has sliding linen trays. The bottom half has four drawers — two small ones and two larger ones.
   And Mr. Clark is offering for sale a leather two-seater settee or couch. The English Art Deco piece was made in the 1920s, and it is priced at $2,700. It is pristine condition, he added.
   From Cherry Hill, Sharon Schwartz, whose business is known as Of Times Gone By LLC, plans to bring along a selection of antique handbags, priced at $95 to $400. The earliest handbag dates from the mid-1800s. She also has handbags that were made in the 1960s.
   Ms. Schwartz also will have on hand a selection of dresser accessories, ranging from perfume bottles to dresser trays and jewelry boxes. The items are priced from $100 to $350. She also plans to offer small silver pillboxes and a sterling silver baby’s brush.
   She will take along for sale a selection of silk scarves, many of them made in the 1940s and 1950s in Japan. The scarves have pictures of ballet dancers and other images, and they are priced from $35 to $60.
   Jim Hobson of Hobson’s Choice in Annapolis, Md., offers a general line of antiques, including Persian rugs, American and English furniture, porcelains and oil paintings.
   Mr. Hobson said he will show a selection of Persian rugs that range in price from a couple of hundred dollars to as much as $1,000. Chinese export porcelain pieces in the Canton, Nanking and Famille Rose patterns, ranging in price from $100 to $1,400, also will be offered.
   Candlesticks made in the early 1700s will be for sale. A single candlestick is priced at about $100, but a matching pair of candlesticks cost as much as $500, Mr. Hobson said.
   Oil paintings that show scenes of landscapes or sailing ships are available at Mr. Hobson’s booth at the antiques show. They are priced at $500 to $1,000. They date from the late 1800s.
   And Audrey Kurtz of ASK & Associates of Woodcliff Lake said she will bring along an assortment of antique silver serving pieces and porcelains, including Staffordshire pieces and Bohemian glass.
   Available at Ms. Kurtz’s booth will be a 19th century sterling silver pitcher, priced at $1,200, as well as serving pieces priced at around $200. She plans to show copper pots and tea kettles, dating from the late 19th and early 20th centuries, priced at $50 to $100.
   Rare pieces of Bohemian glass, made in the former Czechoslovakia during the late 19th and early 20th centuries, will be featured by Ms. Kurtz. The ruby red pieces, mostly vases and wineglasses, feature hunting scenes etched in the glass. Depending on the piece, a vase may cost $200 or more. Wineglasses are priced in the $30 to $35 range, she said.