Thurston Nichols began in the antiques business at a much earlier age than most. By the age of seven, Thurston was accompanying his father to country auctions on Saturday mornings around the Pennsylvania countryside where he was raised. Family background in the antiques business goes back three generations. Both his father and grandfather were dealers and collectors, possessing a passion for antiques, and buying and selling provided a way to further their passion. Throughout Thurston's childhood, his father instilled in him a love and appreciation for the decorative arts of the Pennsylvania Germans that settled in their region. Thurston's father, Lee Nichols had a passion for paint-decorated furniture, a niche of the antiques business that was relatively unknown. Country sales, occurring almost every weekend, uncovered paint-decorated furniture, fraktur and folk art that had been intact for generations in the same house or farm. Auctions such as these are rare today, and great objects are seldom discovered at their original location. Thurston was fortunate enough to witness many of these sales and was raised on a steady diet of paint-decorated pieces, folk art and fraktur (a Pennsylvania-German tradition of creating certificates and manuscripts with highly decorative watercolor painting and calligraphy), purchased and sold by his father.

If the maxim holds true that the best education comes from experience, Thurston's education in the antique business has been rich. Working side by side, his father was able to train Thurston to recognize original paint surfaces and to instruct him daily on how to distinguish between the genuine and the contrived. He stressed to Thurston the importance of proportion and design and how regional characteristics are reflected in each. This intense education and practical experience has provided Thurston with a strong foundation and enabled him to develop the business to new levels in the spirit of his family's tradition.

Thurston has handled many objects that are now part of well-known, private collections and in museums around the country, including American furniture, fraktur, and folk art. Because of such valuable education and experience, Thurston possesses a breadth of knowledge beyond his age and a passion that has been nurtured for three generations.

Anyone considering making a folk art purchase or building a collection would benefit from Thurston's guidance. Thurston attributes his success to his business philosophy, which is to create lasting relationships by understanding his clients' interests and passions, and by providing valuable guidance regarding antiques purchases. In addition, he assists clients with a full range of services, including conservation, restoration, interior placement and decorating, appraisals, enhancement of collections and the sale or consigment of items.

During an era in which many people are concerned about their long-term investments, the purchase of quality antiques from a reputable dealer still provides buyers with an asset that gives a lifetime of enjoyment as well as security.