Dear Friends
Welcome to our November newsletter.
With the many distractions around the globe at this current time including the rather taxing UK budget, the ongoing drama of the US elections, and the very depressing wars in Europe and the Middle East, to name but a few, it can sometimes be difficult to stay focussed on your own lives, but remain focussed we must. I have to say on a personal note last month was filled with so many positives.
Just some of the proud moments of last month were granddaughter Alice, aged 7, not only winning a multi team football tournament, but also picking up the managers player of the tournament trophy, perhaps we have a future Lioness in the making. Meanwhile, her sister Ella proudly shows off her latest award clearly deciding she wants to be teacher’s pet this month.
In other news, Ryan was invited to his friend’s fishing lake for a spot of angling and so decided to take our 10-year-old granddaughter Liana with him on her first fishing trip.
Picture the scene at the lake, when Ryan and Liana pitch up with a rod, chair and box of maggots, only to be surrounded by multiple professional anglers on their individual pegs, apparently with enough camping gear and equipment for a week’s expedition to Everest base camp. Now, can you imagine the mutterings when Ryan and Liana land the only fish of the morning, this lovely little Perch, Priceless! Needless to say Liana is now “hooked” excuse the pun, and the fish was returned unharmed. I will have to tell you about Ryans first boat fishing trip some other time 😊
On a business front I don’t really know where to begin, other than to thank the dozens of you who returned amazing comments on my 2024 Exhibition Catalogue.
I am delighted it was so well received, the response in terms of feedback and ultimately sales really is inspirational and drives me on to 2025’s edition with renewed enthusiasm, not as if I needed any, I simply love my job, who wouldn’t. The sales are too numerous to mention individually, we have multiple pieces going to the USA, with collectors in India, the Middle East and the UK snapping up the remaining sold pieces, once again demonstrating the broad worldwide appeal of Japanese works of art of this quality.
Those of you that secured pieces will know who you are, I wish to once again sincerely thank each and every one of you for your incredible support and patronage in these difficult times, whilst also offering my heartfelt apologies to the multiple enquirers that missed out on certain pieces. The beauty of this level of Japanese Meiji period works of art is that they are mostly totally unique one-off items, the flip side being we can only sell them once.
I invite you to continue following us as we build towards next year’s exhibition catalogue when hopefully we can find something to appeal to those clients that missed out this year. The early signs are very promising with a few amazing finds already secured.
Meanwhile please do have a further look at this year’s catalogue as we still need to find homes for the remaining items.
The last weekend of the month was glorious weather, we spent Sunday lunching upon and winterising the boat. By contrast Monday was dull and drizzly, however a day out with the grandchildren pumpkin picking was diarized and could not be altered at any cost, what great fun we all had, in particular little Lucas on his first soiree into the pumpkin fields of our local farm, and imagine his joy finding real tractors to sit on.
I look forward to catching up in December.
Best wishes
Steve