Civilized & Treasured> Antique Dealers prepare for annual Junior League event

Scott Hamilton and Paul Noddin, owners of Paul S. Noddin Antiques, Brewer, used to travel all over New England displaying and selling their antiques at shows throughout the region. These days they do only one show a year, and they just have to cross the Penboscot River.

Hamilton and Noddin found that their most successful show was the one closest to home — the yearly show put on as a fund-raiser by the Junior League of Bangor. The two are so enthusiastic about the show and its sponsoring organization that they allowed their antiques to be used in JLB publicity photos.

They will be one of 45 dealers displaying their wares this weekend at the league’s 47th annual antique show, dubbed The Collector’s World, at the Bangor Civic Center. A service organization founded in the 1920s, JLB has used recent proceeds from the show to fund the Pediatric Pals program at Eastern Maine Medical Center, Project Immunization and the Bangor Center for Communication and Learning.

Michael and Jackie Robinson’s Bangor home is full of antiques, many of which will be for sale at the show. Owners of Miller-Robinson Antiques and former owners of the Bayberry Shop in Searsport, the couple specializes in American furniture, copper items like kettles, and weather vanes and nauticals. The JLB show is one of six they will do this year.

“It is very important for us to do shows now that we no longer have a shop of our own,” said Jackie Robinson. “The Junior League is very good to dealers. The food at their cafe is always wonderful. It’s a very civilized event.”

One of the pieces of furniture the Robinsons hope to sell this weekend is a Queen Anne Centennial drop-leaf, mahogany table manufactured around 1870. Displayed on the table will be a complete six-place setting of blue and white Yuan English China, including odd pieces, covered serving dishes and a toast rack.

“When I had my shop, I could have sold that toast rack a hundred times over,” said Jackie Robinson. “It’s very unusual that it survived. Most of them eventually got broken because they were used daily.”

The Robinsons moved to Maine from Massachusetts three years ago when Michael Robinson’s company downsized. Now employed by the Eastern Maine Development Corp., he said, “We never seriously collected before moving here, but we always lived with antiques.”

To be classified antique, an item must be at least 100 years old, according to Cher Work, chairwoman of this year’s show. Until a few years ago, things that were less than 100 years old were called collectibles. However, that has changed dramatically.

“Antiques and collectibles are kind of like fine wine,” Work said. “The more they age, the more valuable they become. Today, toys like Star Wars figures and Beanie Babies are considered to be collectibles.”

John Field of Brewer and Duke Nolte of Hampden met at an auction about six years ago and teamed up to create Riverport Antiques. Field refinishes and repairs the antiques and collectibles that Nolte hunts down. The JLB show is one of three the retirees do each year.

The two acquire some of their inventory through individual contacts, others by going to auctions and still others through work with lawyers and bank trust departments closing out estates. One of the pieces they will show this weekend is a 30-year-old Stickley dining room set made of black cherry. It even includes the manufacturer’s brochure.

All three dealers stressed that the beginning collector need not invest thousands of dollars to get started. However, they did offer advice for novices who are thinking about making the leap from looker to buyer.

“Always buy from a reputable dealer who will tell you the God’s honest truth, that you know you can trust,” said Field. “We do well locally because if someone’s not happy, they know we’ll make it good.”

“Buy what you like and what you can live with,” said Jackie Robinson. “And I think people should do their research, so they can tell if something is authentic or not. The library is a great place to start.”

However, her husband advised people “to never, ever give anything away. When you clean out the attic and have a yard sale, you are selling the next generation of antiques.”

“And if your old, great-aunt wants to give you one of her old pie plates or some other thing, take it,” said Jackie Robinson, who hopes that in a few years she and Michael will travel throughout New England doing 40 to 50 shows a year, the way many dealers do.

Hamilton and Noddin, however, have no intention of hitting the antiques circuit again. They are content “to work with the league,” said Hamilton. “They are a refreshingly unselfish group of women who through their volunteer efforts do much to enhance the lives of all in the community.

“Their show has always been our best show of the year, even when we were doing a show a week. By staying close to home, we also can offer our friends and neighbors a bargain because we don’t have to add transportation costs to our prices, as we had to do when we went to southern Maine or out of state.”

Antique lovers will have the opportunity to preview this year’s show as well as make an “early bird” purchase Friday night from 7 to 9 p.m., according to Corinne Van Peursem, who is organizing the Patrons Night event.

“This is the kickoff for our fund-raiser and is a collaboration of efforts on the part of the league and area businesses,” she said. “We will have an international wine tasting and appetizers, chamber music by Brian Nadeau, and an exhibit from the Penobscot Maritime Museum and a silent auction.”

Items in the auction will include an original painting by Craig Johnson; a hickory-shaft putter with leather handle, circa 1920; an autographed photo of Larry Bird and Magic Johnson taken at Bird’s last game at Boston Garden; and antique jewelry and other items, she said.

The show will be held from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday. Tickets are $3.50 in advance and $4 at the door. Tickets for Patrons Night are $20 and must be reserved before 4 p.m. today by calling Van Peursem, 947-6795.