Simply put, the great 202 shop in New Hope is a treasure hunter’s delight. Robert Lehmann’s retail shop and glass restoration studio is bursting at the seams with quality antiques, furniture, glassware, vintage jewelry, lighting, artwork and collectibles.
You’ll find beautiful bedroom sets, tables of all sizes, chairs, mirrors, dining room sets and unique accent pieces.
Robert Lehmann hand selects his inventory at estate sales and auctions throughout the tri-state area and beyond. Clients come from all over the country to visit his beautiful Bucks County shop and find unmatched quality and affordable pricing.
“Our customers love the fact that they can purchase nice pre-owed furniture at very reasonable prices,” Robert Lehmann says.“Our inventory is constantly changing weekly. Our local customers love to stop in regularly to see what’s new.”
He says sometimes customers find things that remind them of their childhood and they are very excited to discover it again. Others buy beautiful, but reasonably priced furniture for their sons or daughters headed off to college, such as a desk or bed and dresser set.
Robert Lehmann says he invites customers to leave him with a wish list, and he will do his best to scout out special requests and notify customers when he finds what they’re looking for. Young couples in their first home find this service to be quite helpful.
You’ll also find Robert Lehmann’s professional antique glass restoring services at The Great 202 Shop. With an expert hand, Robert Lehmann cleans and refurbishes chandeliers and other glasswares. He is a master in the art of cut glass repair and has perfected his talents in this field over the past 30 years.
Robert Lehmann learned the craft of antique cut glass repair work and cutting from his grandfather, Frank Daddario, who was considered to be one of the country’s foremost experts in the art. Daddario worked his way up to master cutter for the Liberty Cut Glass Company in Egg Harbor, N.J., during the early 1900s.As a master cutter, he was responsible for training others in this delicate art. At age 12,Robert Lehmann was among his students, and today he carries on the practice of this rare art.
Robert Lehmann attended school for glass engraving in Corning, N.Y., and studied extensively at Steuben Glass Works, taking courses in engraving, roughing and smoothing of glass.“I thought it was fascinating how my grandfather fixed, made and repaired things,”says Robert Lehmann, who still uses many of his grandfather’s tools and is proud to continue his grandfather’s trade.
Today, with a wealth of experience, Robert Lehmann specializes in pattern reproduction, recutting, scalloping and resurfacing. Services offered include cut glass, Tiffany, pattern glass, art glass, chandeliers, lamps, all types of glass engraving, pottery, porcelain mending, china, monogramming, stemware and glassware repair.
Robert Lehmann recalls one memorable customer, a woman whose grandmother’s chandelier had come loose and crashed down onto the dining room table, and she couldn’t find anyone to fix it.
While browsing at his shop, she was excited to discover that Robert Lehmann would be able to save her chandelier. Robert Lehmann found the exact pieces to fix it in a stock of old parts he’d purchased over the years. “I put it back together for her, brought it to her house and hung it back up,” he says. “She was very happy.”
Antique dealers and collectors also bring their repairs to Robert Lehmann. Among the most common repairs are fixing chips on stemware, vases and cut-glass bowls, which requires grinding down the glass, shaping it and re-polishing it.“You can’t even tell it was damaged,” Robert Lehmann says of the end result. “I’ve been doing this for so long it is second nature. It’s relaxing.”
Finally, The Great 202 Shop offers house and estate clean-outs as well as minor repairs and home staging so homes can be sold or readied for closing. The staff will remove the entire contents of the house and they do all the labor, hauling and lifting. They even do painting, window and door repair, wallpaper removal—whatever your needs may be.
The Great 202 Shop, 6154 Lower York Rd., New Hope is open 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., closed Mondays.
For more information, e-mail thegreat202shop@yahoo.com or bobtheglassman@aol.com or call the shop at 267-544-0214.
Karen Appold is a freelance writer in Royersford. (WriteNowServices.com).
