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St. Patrick drove the snakes out of Ireland and if you drive to Limerick racecourse today and tomorrow you can hunt for all sorts of treasures on this long weekend of national celebration.  There will be dear little shamrocks and plenty of other expensive baubles too. With its ample parking and ease of access Limerick Racecourse has proved itself to be an ideal venue for this extensive quarterly National Antiques, Art and Vintage.  With its antique shops, art galleries and vintage dealers this one will welcome a selection of new dealers along with members of the Irish Antique Dealers Association and regulars like Eily Henry with vintage fashion, Weldons with collectible silver and jewellery and Treasures with Irish art. Newcomers like Rory O’Hanlon will offer a selection of metal objects in brass and bronze along with watches and Gloria Neumann offers antique furniture, porcelain and glass. The Purple Onion Gallery will bring dramatic work by acclaimed American photographer Camille Seaman who lived near Kilkee, Co. Clare for a few years. The national antique fair is a fully indoor event where you can expect the unexpected and even get a new collecting habit underway.  Anyone for some colourful Murano or militaria?

All roads lead to Limerick this weekend for the National Antique Fair at Limerick Racecourse. Opening times are from 11 am to 6 pm on November 18 and 19. There will be more than 80 dealers in attendance showing everything from Irish art and antique furniture to vintage fashion, jewellery, accessories and a wide range of collectibles. Robin O’Donnell will display the late 18th century Irish chair pictured above.

In terms of antiques, vintage and collectible items Limerick has it all this weekend.  Whether you choose to walk, drive, canter or gallop to Limerick Racecourse it is the place to be for an enormous indoor gathering of the Irish antique trade.Despite the size of the facility organiser Robin O’Donnell has been forced to limit dealer attendance as he is inundated with requests from people wanting to be part of it.The racecourse has proven to be an ideal venue for Ireland’s biggest antiques, art and vintage fair, extremely popular with both dealers and the public.  This is the fourth two day event to be held here by Hibernian Antique Fairs. This time around around 80 dealers will be in attendance.There will be some new faces present at a fair offering a vast range spanning everything from art and antique furniture to jewellery, sculpture, silver, vintage fashion and accessories, glass, porcelain, vintage toys, coins, banknotes, militaria and all sorts of other collectibles.Fairs are the go to place when shopping for antiques.  It is very difficult to maintain an antique shop and the cost of overheads has led to closures.  Retail is struggling in our era.Robin O’Donnell has been running these events since 1988.  The first one was at the former Jurys Hotel on the Ennis Road.  Later it moved to the former Limerick Inn also on the Ennis Road then to the South Court Hotel. There is room for expansion at Limerick Racecourse where upper floors could be made available.  This is likely to be  something that someone younger will have to take on.  New blood is needed to sell old stuff. Robin O’Donnell reckons the time is right for a new generation to bring it to the next level.Treasures Irish Art of Athlone will be among a number of dealers showing art and sculpture, there are various antique furniture specialists and no shortage of jewellery, silver, old Irish glass, porcelain and collectibles as well as Rolex watches, vintage fashion, hats and accessories.  It is a fair with something for everyone with a tremendous range of items across varying price brackets available all weekend.  Opening times are from 11 am to 6 pm today and tomorrow.

The going looks good at Limerick Racecourse this weekend. Hibernian Antique Fairs hit Limerick Racecourse have once again hit the home turf. The racecourse has proven an ideal venue for dealers from all over the country and the public alike. This January event is the biggest yet. A particularly large display of jewellery from vintage to high end with traders from Ireland and Northern Ireland, including a number of members of the Irish Antique Dealers Association, is on display. Prices at Wendy’s Way of Life, a new dealer whose wares have proved very popular, range from €50-€400. Or how about passenger chairs from the RMS Celtic with ran aground off Roches Point in 1928.  Dealer Norman Allison will offer a pair of original condition chairs with no repairs or faults on cast iron bases bolted to the floor. Among a number of new dealers Jim Halpin of the Listowel Military and Historical Museum will be showing and selling for the first time.  This is a fair to savour at leisure, full of quirky, rare and unusual items of interest to all sorts of collectors. There will be antique furniture, Irish art, glass, silver, jewellery, vintage fashion, coins, banknotes, militaria and a large selection of collectibles to be seen and enjoyed.

You can find all kinds of everything at the National Antique and Vintage Fair at Limerick Racecourse this weekend. Like this vintage hat which Elly Henry, who specialises in antique and vintage clothing, accessories and jewellery, will bring to the fair. There will be antique furniture, jewellery, art, vintage collectibles, coins, bank notes, even a wooden toboggan. Limerick Racecourse has proven to be a great venue for this event, which promises to be a major crowd puller.