Baobab Antiquity Trading – Hilton's best kept secret!
The ethos at Baobab Antiquity Trading can best be defined by the British craftsman and designer William Morris - "Have nothing in your house that you do not know to be useful, or believe to be beautiful".
Baobab's trademark style is faded grandeur and the beauty of imperfection and each item is sourced with love and passion. The shop, which recently celebrated its 1st birthday, is located at The Quarry Centre in the village of Hilton, KwaZulu-Natal and is owned by sisters Michelle Haldane and Brigette Johnson. Brigette is an artist and exhibition designer at a local museum, and is responsible for the running of the shop. Michelle is responsible for the sourcing of the stock, and lives in England with her husband Bryan who has been in the antique restoration trade for over 15 years. They bring together their creative talents and love for antiques and all things vintage.
This will be their first time exhibiting at the Sunday Tribune Garden & Leisure Show. Michelle and Brigette were born in bread in Pietermaritzburg, and the garden show is somewhere they were taken to, and enjoyed year after year, as children. Exhibiting at the show seemed only natural, and something they really wanted to be a part of. Baobab has gone from strength to strength at The Hilton Quarry, and they wanted to use the Sunday Tribune Garden & Leisure Show to start spreading their wings, and getting themselves known to the wider KwaZulu-Natal audience.
Although Baobab stocks a variety of furniture, they mainly focus on furniture from France and Belgium. Some examples of the typical pieces they sell are; French armoires, parquetry dining tables with matching chairs, grand French sideboards/servers (perfect for the South African farm house!), beautiful vitrines (display cabinets), commodes of all shapes and sizes, beds and bedside tables, bookcases and trunks - painted and unpainted. They also stock vintage watering cans, chandeliers and wholesome décor items and gifts.
The Baobab team is on the constant look out for pieces that need a little TLC, and love nothing more than giving something forgotten and un-loved a new lease on life. They scour markets, auctions, fairs and charity shops throughout the UK, France & Belgium on a weekly basis to ensure that their shop is always full of new and exciting treasures. New stock arrives via ship every 1 to 2 months and they have already developed a solid base of repeat customers who pop in regularly to see what new and exciting treasures have been introduced to the shop.
Do yourself a favour and visit Baobab Antiquity Trading at the Sunday Tribune Garden & Leisure Show (alongside Hall 2, in the garage space 8) to see some of their finds. Some favourites (that they admittedly have found hard to part with), some rare and remarkable, some recycled, some rescued and some restored. You are guaranteed to leave with something ..... even if it's just a smile on your face. Life is certainly beautiful at Baobab Antiquity Trading!