A primer on how to get started collecting antiques

THE antiques business has been going through a bit of a rough patch, what with the continuing vogue in mid-century modern and Ikea-addicted millennials' dislike for brown furniture.

But the passionate collectors of American, British and other objects that are at least 100 years old (the strict definition of an antique) continue to comb shops, auctions and antique shows for treasures.

The winter months are when many high-end antique shows are held across the country, including the Washington DC Winter Show (Jan 12-14), New York's Winter Antiques Show (Jan 19-28), Nashville's Antiques and Garden Show (Feb 2-4) and the Charleston Antiques Show (March 16-18).

We spoke to Washingtonian Michael Harreld, former president of PNC Bank of Greater Washington and an antiques collector for more than 40 years, about why people collect ant…