Pretty Scruffy.. a fab reason to visit Chichester!

Last week I had a lovely few days away and by chance discovered this wonderful shop in Chichester.
 Pretty Scruffy is tucked away in a side street, and it's gorgeous green exterior conceals an interior packed with beautiful things.

Textile animals tucked into every corner......

.............and looking out of windows....

But my favourite were these beautiful babies. Exquisite miniature animals on wheels!

I have asked the Birthday fairy to bring me one of these in September....in the meantime I was treated to a gorgeous little brooch.

With a little help from our friends..............

 Last weekend was a special one, as we held our very first Rag and Remnant Rummage in the small village of Trull, just outside Taunton. The idea grew from a lot of nagging from Mr W about the amount of textiles, buttons and trimmings which seem to overflow from every cupboard and box in the house and shed....
Finding the stall holders was the easy part as I know a lot of like-minded ladies. The challenge was to spread the word so that we had enough customers to make the day a success. I was totally amazed by the kindness and enthusiasm local businesses offered to spread the word and put up posters in their shops. This shop has a blog, so do pop by to see them.....

 Their shelves are groaning with a delicious selection of textiles, threads and most of all ideas!

 The same can be said for the Stitch Academy in Taunton who have been amazing in networking and helping to make our little event a success! (Sorry no interior photos at the moment.. will add some soon!) You can click on the link to the website.

 The next business to give a helping hand was Daisy Cottage Tearooms in Bishops Lydeard. A new business run by some lovely friends who have been in catering for many years. These photos do not really do justice to the beautiful interior, but I am sure you get the general idea. The tearooms are not far from the West Somerset Railway, so do visit both if you are in the area for a really "Vintage" treat.

 Lastly, I want to say a big thanks to all my friends and local stitching groups who helped to spread the word and tell all their friends about the fair. Woo at Dairy House Antiques certainly made sure that any customer who was interested in textiles didn't leave without knowing the words "Rag and Rummage" !!

Do keep checking the Vintage Bazaar blog  as we will announce the date for the next Rag and Rummage - another date not to be missed on your vintage calendar!

Textiles and Treasures!

The best finds are when you come across a"job lot".. for example an old wooden French trunk over-flowing with buttons, buckles, fabric, trimmings.... which is just what Mr W found for me last week at the fair in Newark!

It has taken me many hours to sort through it all and decide what will be going where? A lot will be coming to The Vintage and Handmade Textile Fair on Saturday the 25th of February.

 As will this gorgeous Spring ensemble. A matching 1950's dress and jacket - approx size 12. A perfect for attending a vintage style wedding!

 Next stop after the Vintage and Handmade will be The Vintage Bazaar's Rag and Remnant Rummage which takes place on Saturday 3rd March at The Trull Village Memorial Hall, Church Road, Trull, Taunton, Somerset. TA3 7JZ . Doors open at 9.30 and the fair will close at 14.00. Admission 50p.

 There will be over 20 stands piled high with a selection of goodies for every pocket. Textiles, trimmings, buttons & bits from the workrooms of West Country makers, collectors and dealers. It will be a fun day, so hope to see you there.

It would appear that I am not the only one who is busy preparing. Check here for another sneak preview!

The Vintage Bazaar comes to Hampshire!

 Clare and I are pleased to announce The Vintage Bazaar at Hartley Wintney! This beautiful building is a lovely combination of the old and the new coming together to provide an ideal situation for our fair.

 The Victoria Hall was designed in the late 1890's by TE Collcutt at the height of his career. The building ran over budget, but the day was saved by the generosity of Mr Kenwood, Sir Henry Mildmay and Lord Calthorpe. The building was completed and opened by Lady Calthorpe on October 20th 1898 to much acclaim.

The exterior is a pleasing example of The Arts and Crafts style. Inside the structure has a spacious and modern feel which is a result of restoration in the late 1990's.

 Below, you can see the doors which lead into The Victoria Hall, the leaded windows would originally have been on the outside. The space is divided into different areas, which is an obvious change from our fair at the Cheese and Grain in Frome. More to be announced on the Vintage Bazaar blog very soon.

The Vintage Bazaar

At the Victoria Hall

West Green Road

Hartley Wintney

Hampshire RG27 8RE

Saturday 22^nd September 2012

10 am to 3 pm

Admission £1

Three in a row!

 Busy times! Back to Back Fairs.....

 ...and a lot more in store....

..

I will be bringing an eclectic mix of Vintage costume, accessories, Textiles and other (vaguely) related bits and bobs to the Fairs in Frome, Cheltenham and Ardingly.

The "girls" are modelling a few of the gorgeous hats I have recently acquired. These I will be bringing to The Vintage Bazaar at The Cheese and Grain in Frome on Saturday October 29th.

Then next to in Cheltenham on Sunday the 30th of October ( Blind Lemon Vintage fair). Always a superb event with lots of delicious Vintage goodies to choose from.

Lastly,  Mildred is sporting a funky vintage hat. Probably dating from the 1960's. The label reads "Panda", made in England by Fenwick of Bond Street.

Followers of this blog will have noted that this posting has been changed. Sadly the event in Hungerford this coming Saturday has been cancelled.

Introducing Esme......and coming to Frome Vintage Bazaar this Saturday..

On a recent trip to France I found another wonderful 1940's mannequin. Anyone who knows me or reads my blog regularly will realise that I have a bit of a "thing" for these vintage treasures..

Esme is modelling a 40's tweed jacket and a selection of 40's felt hats that will be coming with me to The Vintage Bazaar next Saturday, the 30th of April.

These lovely pale blue handmade 40's PJ's are another recent find. Esme has borrowed Flossie's spotty scarf for the photo shoot.

A stunning pair of blue shoes come in their original box, with a French description written in pencil on the lid....

This suit is a de-mob suit from the 40's, and is in amazing unworn condition with its original label.

 Pair of cute vintage leather children's shoes, dating from the 1950's.

Funky 60's Sylko set of storage drawers....

 A fabby vintage beach bag with shells design...

Plenty of vintage pinnies....

Georgie gets to model this pretty 20's cloche hat which has since sold since I first published this post. Other items will include a new selection of 40's dress fabric, trimmings, gorgeous vintage children's clothes from the 1940's and 50's, a pair of CC41 satin cami-knickers, French workwear dresses and shirts and much more. See you in Frome on Saturday!

The Vintage Bazaar in Frome

Saturday saw us sitting in the van outside the Cheese and Grain in Frome with a flask of coffee at 6.30 am, these guys were sound asleep in their tour bus next to us. I would have loved to have seen them play the evening before, but I think a late night bopping away to a reggae band might not have helped us cope with the organisation of the long awaited 
Vintage Bazaar......

Once we had got into the building and allocated the stalls, we opened the doors to the enthusiastic stall holders. I played a few lively White Mink tracks to get the atmosphere going.. we had a few problems with the music, but a combination of my son's old stereo and Mike's clever arrangement with his iplayer and an amp we were in business!

Soon everyone was in place and the doors opened on the dot of 9 to allow the first wave of customers into the building. These are a small sample of the stalls on offer.

What I don't have are the images of the rails of fabulous clothing from the 1900's up until the 1960's. It wasn't a date lined event, but we wanted the clothing to be Antique and Vintage, and boy did the stall holders provide an amazing selection.... there were silk dressing gowns, 30's lame jackets, soft velvet 40's evening cloaks, faux fur 40's jackets (my mum snaffled that one!) and much, much more.

It seems that delicate china pretties are easier to photograph! Please visit the following blogs for more images of the day. Sal's Snippets, Tracy at the Vintage Bothy, The Vintage Magpie, Nostalgia at the Stonehouse, Suzy, Gaby and Maud and Elaine aka Ted and Bunny!

Of course Clare and I need to say a lot of Thank You's for the combined efforts and energies that made for a buzzing and spectacular day.

The team at the Cheese and Grain provide an excellent service, and were happy to accommodate every request. Nothing was any trouble.

Of course we couldn't have done it without Mr W and Mr Darling, and Clare's mum........ and all the friends who have supported us and assisted with spreading the word about the Bazaar. Edwin stepped in to assist on the desk in the morning, a much needed pair of hands to meet and greet the throngs as they came through the door... thank you to all 1145 of you and hope to see you next time on Saturday the 30th of April 2011.

This was one of the star stands of the day, Debbie's amazing Gardenalia stall. This was Debbie's first ever fair and she certainly put on a spectacular show, next stop The Country Living Fair eh?