I’ve created an Aladdin’s Cave at my East Boldon antiques shop and I love it

Laurie Scully, from Boldon, has fostered a welcome community space at her shop, Laurie’s, on Tile Shed Lane, just next to Greenfingers Nurseries.

The long-time antiques dealer, who has regularly appeared on ITV’s Dickinson’s Real Deal, opened the shop in the Spring of 2024 after deciding that travelling to numerous markets across the country wasn’t for her anymore.

Now a year on from opening, Laurie has made improvements to the shop and has managed to create a loyal customer base, who now visit her multiple times a week.

She said: “I’m loving it, it is everything and more that I wanted - it is good space to display all the vintage and antique stuff.

“But I also love the social aspect of people coming in for a cup of tea and the art classes, which are growing all of the time.

“The amount of people I overhear calling it an ‘Aladdin’s Cave’ is the best feedback I could ask for, as well as having a lot of regular customers coming in multiple times a week.

“I’ve just improved the outdoor areas so now people can sit outside - last week, I had the same people come three days in a row for a cuppa while they were on a dog walk.

“It has all been really positive so far with lots of repeat custom.”

As well as antiques, Laurie has a wide offering of tea, coffee and a selection of more than 40 biscuits - which can be enjoyed by customers who visit her shop.

Alongside all of this, she is also hosting arts and crafts sessions a few times a month and is venturing into hosting live music nights for the local community.

She added: “The art side of things comes from my degree in fine art and people asking me to teach them.

“I did have some hesitation at first so I would only do one or two classes to now we are having at least three a month here.

“As well as this, we are launching some live music nights to create a space where people can come along to sing and have a chat.

“People who didn’t know each other now meet here and there is a real community feel to the whole place.

“The table in the kitchen area sits four people but there are times where there is something like eight people sat around it because everyone wants to join in and socialise with each other.

“I just can’t thank the community enough for all of their support.”

Laurie’s is open from 10am until 5pm Wednesday to Saturday - with the occasional late night opening hours.

To keep up to date with everything happening at Laurie’s, you can visit: https://www.facebook.com/LauriesBoldon or https://www.lauriesartandantiques.com/.

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