I’m an antiques expert- there’s an item you MUST buy as it will always go up in value
PAUL Martin is best known for being on the BBC show Flog It! as an antiques expert.
The TV star has been dishing out antiques advice to the masses for decades, and he's detailed exactly what first timers should look out for.
Paul, 63, spoke toand shared his top tips.
He told the publication that furniture is always a good investment: "Definitely buy a piece of furniture because it's at an all-time low.
"Farmhouse tables, kitchen cupboards - anything that you can make use of in the kitchen.
"A family can use can cabinets, you know, don't can buy new cabinets at some designer shop!"
The antiques dealer continued: "Go and buy an old glazed Georgian cabinet for the wall with a bit of character, a slight walk in it or something.
"Something that's got traces of old paint on it - it looks beautiful, make use of something like that."
He added: "And if it's cheap enough, you can always get a friend who's handy with a few woodworking tools to slightly convert it and modify it, extend it, make it smaller or make it narrower so it fits your space."
Paul emphasised that Georgian furniture is always a safe bet, and will retain its value.
He said: "My best advice to anybody nowadays if they want to invest in an antique is to go and buy a Georgian chest of drawers for maybe £300, because it's handmade, it's Cuban mahogany, it's beautifully designed, it's got great proportions, and it's going to last a lifetime.
"Your lifetime and then your kids will inherit it and then your grandchildren will inherit it and they can say, 'This was granddad's.'"
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He joked that you wouldn't get the same long-lasting quality from other high street retailers nowadays, and it'd be cheaper.
Paul explained: "
"They don't cost much, £300, much cheaper than going to Peter Jones or John Lewis.
"And it'll go up and up in value, it'll look as good today as it was when it was made 300 years ago.
"And it's a bargain. It's an absolute bargain because it's going to last another 200 years and go up in value."
