We Brits have always been avid collectors of royal memorabilia. But when it comes to monetizing it in the future, it pays to be careful about what you go for.
At the moment there are some really attractive bits and pieces you could pick up on the High Street. Marks and Spencer has a matching royal coronation cushion with embroidered crowns on it for £22.50, John Lewis has a lovely coronation teddy bear for £15 and Fortnum & Mason has a beautiful Darjeeling coronation tea caddy for £19.95.
They all look great and are nice to have around the house, but they’re mass-produced, so they’re unlikely to increase in value much, if at all.
So, if you’re an avid coronation collector, but you want to buy items that you can later sell for more, what should you aim for?
Jon White, of the Britannia Coin Company, says: ‘Some of the most sought-after memorabilia produced for Queen Elizabeth’s coronation in 1953 was ceramics designed by British artist Eric Ravilious for Wedgwood. Ravilious’ brightly colored coronation mugs are selling for over £600 these days, so I expect designs from renowned artists to increase in value.’
If you’re a fan of attractive china, then you can head over to emmabridgewater.co.uk and pick up a crown-decorated half-pint jug for £23, which is marked ‘collectors’ exclusive’. Collectibles expert Tracy Martin has said that Emma Bridgewater products can increase in value because of their distinctive designs.
if you are an avid coronation collector, but you want to buy items that you can later sell for more, what should you aim for?
You can also consider a limited edition print to commemorate the occasion. For example, visit Highgrove’s own shop, highgrovegardens.com, and for £3,500 you can buy a limited edition (100 copies) framed Balmoral lithograph of an original watercolor of the soon-to-be-invested king. Any item that is guaranteed to be “limited edition” has a much higher chance of increasing its value.
If you want something more unusual, the Windermere Fine Art Gallery in the Lake District has a limited edition portrait of Charles as Elvis! It costs £250 unframed or £450 with frame.
Dawn Titherington, owner of the gallery, says: ‘Royal themed art is always popular. For example, the piece The Queen of Hearts featuring the Queen created by Los Angeles street artist Mr Brainwash for her Platinum Jubilee in 2022 has since doubled in value.”
Another limited edition product that is slightly cheaper is the Highgrove Coronation Bear, again from Highgrove itself. Only 500 were made at £170 each. The bear is handmade by Merrythought, the last remaining British teddy bear manufacturer.
Pawnbroker Dan Hatfield recommends the Royal Scot crystal coronation paperweight for £39.50, pointing out that as we go paperless, manufacturers are producing fewer paperweights. “In years to come they could be worth hundreds of pounds,” he told ITV.
For a virtually guaranteed profit, auctioneer and specialist in royal memorabilia, James Grinter, suggests focusing on pieces that have been touched, owned, worn, or even signed by royalty.
I don’t have a seat at Westminster Abbey on May 6 (a shocking omission, I know), but if King Charles follows in his mother’s footsteps, I might be able to buy someone else’s invitation – or even the chair they’re sitting on at during the ceremony – as a souvenir.
It’s worth keeping an eye out on eBay for post-coronation souvenirs that you could keep and resell later for a profit, such as a signed program or ticket. Or something signed by the king on the day.
Adds James Grinter: ‘We sold a framed, signed photograph of the late Queen as she left Buckingham Palace to go to her coronation for £2,500. She had given the photo to one of her associates, and its value came from the fact that it was signed just before the coronation.”
Finally, if you want something really affordable to invest in, go out on the day of the coronation and buy the Daily Mail and all the other major newspapers. Within a week you can sell them for much more on eBay. After the Queen’s death, newspapers reporting her death were sold online for up to £200.
Cook your way to a free place to stay
Making yourself useful: the idea is that you create a profile on the site, specify the skills you would be willing to offer…
It is getting more and more expensive to rent somewhere to live – or just to stay for a short time.
But a new site called Kind Room (kindroom.com) offers an alternative way to pay for a room: with your skills.
The idea is that you create a profile on the site, specify the skills you would like to offer (cooking, cleaning, fixing things, gardening, secretarial jobs etc.) and then you are matched with people in the area you want to stay in who need your skills.
This way you get (almost) free living space and the homeowner gets someone who can do the household or garden in exchange for a room.
If you have a Nectar card and you shop at Sainsbury’s, you can get extra discounts – up to 30 per cent – on a range of products from cereals to laundry detergent, just by using your Nectar app or card at the checkout.
If you shop online, your discounts will apply automatically if your Nectar and Sainsbury’s accounts are linked.
Home to major kitchen brands, Mahahome.com is offering an exclusive 25 percent off all Pyrex products on its website when you use code JASMINE25 at checkout. The code expires on May 6.
I have a patio with potted plants but I’d like to have a bit of garden to grow fruit and vegetables so I’m really interested in a new site called AllotMe.co.uk which brings people like me together with neighbors who have an unused garden or even an allotment garden that they want to rent out to aspiring gardeners. It’s free to use, so worth a try.
Tricks to save on your rising water bills
Water bills went up this month and the average total rose from £417 to £448 this year, according to Water UK.
But you can reduce these costs by using a few clever hacks. Start with a freebie – I always like that! Many water companies offer a free water saving kit to all their customers who request it. Check your water supplier’s website to see if they offer one of these.
Clean up: Reduce the water bill by showering
If you live alone or if there are more bedrooms than people in your home, it may be worth getting a water meter. For large, growing families who enjoy bathing, it might be better not to!
The Water Consumer Council (ccw.org.uk/save-money-and-water/water-meter-calculator) has a water meter calculator you can use to work out if it’s worth signing up.
Showering instead of bathing will reduce the amount of water you use, and the shorter the showers, the cheaper it will be.
I have a friend who plugs in the bath when she showers and then uses the water to flush the toilet or water the garden.
Other things you can do around the house include fixing leaky faucets, making sure you always have a full load when you use your washing machine, and only using the dishwasher when it’s fully loaded.
My favorite trick is to only fill the kettle with enough water for the mugs of tea you are brewing.
If you’re struggling to pay your water bill, talk to your water company, as they have all kinds of ways to help, from letting you pay in installments to setting a limit on the amount you’ll be charged.
If you have a low household income (£21,000 or less), you may be able to take advantage of a social rate that can be up to 90 percent less than the company’s standard rate.