Featured Sterling Silver Birmingham Card Case. 1885.

It's the British term in the trade for what is often called objets de vertue, for example. Small items as opposed to larger ones.

 

American dealers use it too, generally of bits and pieces smaller than furniture items.

 

American Pickers of TV fame, use it all the time !

 

I'm familiar with American Pickers (I used to watch it a bit). This is the first time I've ever heard of this term in relation to antiques. Interesting.

 

"Smalls" is a common term here. You see it all the time in ads for estates sales, antiques, jewelry, smalls... Smaller collectibles, figurines, etc. Indicates the item could be something you (for example) might display in a 3-4 inch display shelf. Includes lower end things, all the way up to quite expensive. I'm not sure "smalls" is a household word, but you hear it all the time used by people who deal in antiques. Especially people who have been in the business for a while. It might be slightly losing favor, I don't tend to hear it much from younger dealers. That's here in the western U.S. at least.

 

The term for those used to be smallclothes; I'm not sure if it was one word or two. In the US, scanties, undies, underwear, drawers etc are in more common use for unmentionables. Smalls is generally known as the last name of a rapper gunned down in Vegas.

 

I have always used the word "smalls" for this type of thing.
And, although I do know who Biggie Smalls was, I have never confused the two.