Debbie Walsh, from Corbridge in Northumberland, runs Rocking Horse Elite, while Janet Beveridge, from Whitley Bay in Tyne and Wear, trades as Rocking Horse Stables.

Debbie told icNewcastle:

"It's great to be able to appreciate the craftsmanship and to see a horse through the eye of the carver. You can always tell if someone who has carved it really loves horses and knows horses."

Janet became interested in rocking horses when she saw one in a local shop. She became a collector - but didn't sell one for eight years.

She said:

"In the 1920s and 1930s, people didn't have much money, so a family rocking horse would be gloss painted for the next child. I carefully take off the layers of gloss right down to the original paintwork and copy them right down to the shape of the saddle and saddlecloth."

Both firms' restored horses will set you back almost as much as the real thing.