LJW Decorative & Antiques

LJW Decorative & Antiques Vintage & antique; bold graphics, vibrant colours, beautiful wear, perfect fading, wonderfully tatty

Here we have a really well preserved example of one of these slate-backed, reverse painted + gilded glass pub signs. Thi...
17/06/2026

Here we have a really well preserved example of one of these slate-backed, reverse painted + gilded glass pub signs. This one is for Worthington’s - the second oldest continuously-brewed British beer brand, after Whitbread...

This form of early 20th century signage is perhaps the epitome of ‘they don’t make them like they used to’; the weight, quality and effectiveness of these are just fantastic.

Available through the website now and it’ll be on display in the shop this weekend if I can find a secure way of hanging it without a permanent fixing into the walls…

We’ll take a little break from dog related things after this I promise…Here we have a very good example of a Greensmith’...
16/06/2026

We’ll take a little break from dog related things after this I promise…

Here we have a very good example of a Greensmith’s Derby Dog Biscuits advertising showcard. These showcards aren’t the rarest of things; it’s my understanding that a quantity of undistributed examples were found some years back - the initial haul ended up amongst collectors etc but examples return to the market from time to time. What it lacks in rarity it makes up for in the sheer brilliance of the design; the illustration for this showcard is equal parts bizarre and incredible with fantastic levels of detail.

It’s a firm personal favourite and even as I’m typing this out I’m considering where at home it would fit. For now it’s available through the website and is hanging in the shop, though that might change if I find a space for it!

Sticking with the dog theme, but in a very different format - here we have an excellent example of Melox’s enamel advert...
14/06/2026

Sticking with the dog theme, but in a very different format - here we have an excellent example of Melox’s enamel advertising. The bold strapline; ‘The Food of the Dogs’, presumably a lovely play on H. G. Wells’ 1904 book ‘The Food of the Gods and How It Came to Earth’.

I love the soft cast shadow and shading on the Melox lettering… Excepting for a few losses to the enamel, the sign has survived the decades in remarkably good order with really vibrant colours and a gorgeous surface gloss.

In the shop, on the website and Hoarde Vintage | Antiques now.

From a nicely sun-faded tin sign to these two fantastically painted dog portraits, I always try to keep a diverse stock ...
13/06/2026

From a nicely sun-faded tin sign to these two fantastically painted dog portraits, I always try to keep a diverse stock with each piece having its own merits.

Here we have a Jack Russell and a Fox Terrier, strikingly depicted in oil on prepared artist’s board, unsigned but attributed to Edward Aistrop (British, active 1880-1920).

They’re hanging in the shop and there are full details on the website, they’re listed separately but with a healthy discount if kept together…

A whole load of new listings have (finally) made their way to the website. A personal favourite is this embossed tin sig...
11/06/2026

A whole load of new listings have (finally) made their way to the website. A personal favourite is this embossed tin sign for the French brewery Delaporte, who were based in Amiens. It’s not particularly rare or valuable but it’s a great looking thing. Years of exposure to the sun have aged it perfectly and it’ll fit in well with a great range of interiors… You can see it and the other newly listed pieces on the website which is linked on my profile.

The latest addition to the website is a good example of one of these double-sided AA (Automobile Association) directiona...
09/06/2026

The latest addition to the website is a good example of one of these double-sided AA (Automobile Association) directional arrow enamel signs. These signs were enamelled with the AA’s iconic yellow background and just the company’s logo and a pointing arrow. The details of an event, diversion etc could then be stencilled on, cleaned off and the sign re-used indefinitely. The lettering would have been applied with a thick, bitumen-y paint - an example of which is still on one side of this sign as it points towards the ‘Members Car Park’.

The sign dates to the 1930s/‘40s and is in very good order, especially considering that it would have been moved from location to location.

A very reluctant listing but I am trying to remind myself that I’m a dealer and not a collector … This is a real beauty ...
02/06/2026

A very reluctant listing but I am trying to remind myself that I’m a dealer and not a collector … This is a real beauty of a sign with vibrant green on white enamel layers that have retained a great gloss.

Elswick Cycles & Manufacturing Co Ltd were initially founded in Newcastle in 1880. By 1910 F. Hopper and Co (another cycles manufacturer) took over the assets of Elswick Cycle Co and in 1913 Elswick-Hopper Cycle and Motor Co Ltd formed. I believe this sign pre-dates the 1913 formation of Elswick-Hopper as it’s just ‘Elswick’ so it’s from the early-1900s and about as early as enamel signage gets.

It has a fantastic subject matter with an intricate design, a mix of type faces and a banderole bearing the company’s latin motto thrown into the mix - just about everything you could hope for from an early piece of enamel advertising. Better still, you get it twice as the sign’s double sided and both faces are in great order.

I could go on (actually I have on the website and I’ll pop a link to the specific item page in my stories) but I’ll let the photos do the rest of the talking on here.

Lots of fresh stock added to the shop ready for the weekend including a huge collection of these ‘very-of-a-period’ “com...
30/05/2026

Lots of fresh stock added to the shop ready for the weekend including a huge collection of these ‘very-of-a-period’ “comedy” illustrated postcards. Taken from various albums over the years and collated during last week’s ephemera sort out.
Funny? Offensive? Nostalgic? Perhaps a bit of all of these things … Only £1 each and free to look through.

With a million and one things that needed to be done yesterday, I made the obvious decision to spend the afternoon sorti...
27/05/2026

With a million and one things that needed to be done yesterday, I made the obvious decision to spend the afternoon sorting through my extensive collection of Margate related postcards and other ephemera. There is a grander plan with it, but that’s for another day.
This particular photograph was too good not to share immediately; the sign-writing is just fab but the giant fish bolted to the roof!!? Amazing. Black and white proof that nothing we do now is anything like as nice as it used to be; not even delivering dead fish.

It’s feeling like time to dust my bicycle off (literally) and go for an evening ride along the coastal path … It’s proba...
25/05/2026

It’s feeling like time to dust my bicycle off (literally) and go for an evening ride along the coastal path … It’s probably with this in mind that I’ve been finding myself particularly drawn to this Raleigh bicycle parts poster today.
It’s a rare survivor; an offset lithograph print by J. Howitt & Sons Ltd of Nottingham that’s likely to date to the 1940s/‘50s. The level of detail is fantastic, the composition quirky and the colours remain vibrant.
It’s on the website and hanging in the shop.

Address

48-50 Northdown Road
Margate
CT92RW

Opening Hours

Friday 10am - 5pm
Saturday 10am - 5pm
Sunday 10am - 4pm

Telephone

+447703104788

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