A peaceful few days in France

Last week we were lucky enough to be able to have a few days away at our favourite place. One morning we took a leisurely stroll along the beach, it was deserted as you can see......

Apart from signs that somebody had been having some fun in the sand the previous day

........ this brought back happy memories of hours spent on this beach when the boys were young.

All the houses are closed up for the winter months. This particular house has always been my favourite. It has a wonderful view of the sea and the garden is never very tidy, but in the summer the family usually eat their meals outside.

We drove back through the country lanes, watched by spotty cows in the orchards.

I saw this bench and had to take a photo, I love the way the flowers have grown through the slats of wood.

Another day was (predictably) spent searching for French treasures at one of the biggest Vide Greniers I have ever been to. The stalls stretched as far as the eye could see!

Look closely at what this man has in his arms. It is a beautiful tame fox! He walked around with it on a lead, chatting and showing his "pet" off to anyone who wanted to see it.

Once I was back at the cottage, I couldn't resist a little "photo opportunity" with my finds. I often find that when I am buying stock a theme or colour scheme somehow forms itself.... this time green & red dominated.
Even the way we then set the table for lunch reflected the colour scheme! The green vintage china is from the 1950's/60's and is called Beryl ware. This was the china I grew up with in my parents home, and now my brother has chosen it for his holiday cottage. The white china bowls with vegetable design are French. I bought them for him as a house-warming gift when he bought the cottage.
Next I had a little photo-shoot in the bedroom, the Boudoir doll looks quite at home doesn't she?

..and the lovely old toy horse had a good view of the garden until we brought him home.

This corner of the sitting room looked cosy with knitted "finds", including some balls of wool which I will give to my knitting lady. She is busy at the moment making Vintage style berets for the Winter season.

While we were in the cottage, we discovered these plump house martins nesting in the shed.

and lastly.. the great thing about holiday cottages! Always a very eclectic book collection to delve into. This time I dipped into the Sex Pistols Biography for a bit of a change!

Happy Birthday to me!

A sunny day on September 11th in the mid 60's, does anyone remember that strange tradition of having the jelly & ice cream as a first course at Birthday parties?

Here I am with my little brother, Alison, Gilly S, Gilly T, Linda, Shirley, Lisa and the mystery girl in the foreground with the scary fringe. I have wracked my brain to remember who she is, so if you are that person do get in touch! It is not like me to forget names or faces, but she has me foxed!

There is a clue as to my Birthday pressie that year.. a gorgeous blue easel can be seen in the background, possibly by Triang?

le Shed Textile.....

The challenge was made by Linda of Lindiblog (http://lindaclift.blogspot.com/2009/08/come-on-girls-i-want-pictures-of-your.html ) to "show us your sheds"... or work spaces of a gardenesque nature.....

Well here is mine in all its shabby glory, complete with "misty" view into the interior thanks to a neighbours bonfire this afternoon!
As you can see I have been busy sorting, ironing & pricing the latest finds....

How am I going to part with this Hydrangea head fabric?

This is one of many (Mr W would say "too many") Lloyd Loom chairs where I can sit & sew... weather permitting.

NB :The cushion is not for sale, it was a purchase from the recent Honiton Textile fair. A girls has got to have a treat sometimes, I thought the fabric looked a bit "Silver Studio" what do you think?

Baxters of Oxord Street

I am on the look out for that Time Machine again! Just look at this amazing shop, I would just love to visit.......

Some months ago I bought a huge lot of old sewing items from an auction. Gradually I have been sifting through and sorting all the items.. some to keep and enjoy, and of course some to be sold as I really do not have the space to keep it all (and it might cause a Divorce if I did!)
These images are from a selection of catalogues from a shop in London called Baxters, which was based at number 51 Oxford Street. The invoice inside one of the leaflets is dated 23rd November 1951.
The dress fabrics are listed, and include such temptations as "Printed Organdie......Slipper Satin.... Printed Egyptian cotton.. Glitter Georgette......Metal Brocades (Made in France) and of course Felt in 52 Glorious colours"
There are patterns for toys... slippers.. handbags.. Bonnets & Berets.

It has been such fun to sift through all these treasures. I have now decided which to keep and the rest will be going with me to Rag Fair in the village of Chagford (near Exeter) on October 3rd. A possible date for the diary if you enjoy sewing, making things & crafts?

Favourite China & friends coming for supper

It is always a pleasure to see friends, and this evening we are hosting a "pot-luck" style supper. All I have to do is set the table.......

well not quite, but this is the fun part where I can rummage into the sideboard and get out my favourite Alfred meakin Cactus Dinner service and Lord Nelson Rio 1950's side dishes..... along with my vintage glasses & favourite spotty jug.....
Oh yes, and the 1930's salad servers that I have had forever..... may have come from a jumble sale in the 1970s? Linen checked napkins, much nicer than paper I think.

Table cloth of course by Cath Kidston & spotty cutlery from Tesco! Just need the guests & the food......

A quintessential English afternoon

Today was the annual Church Fete. The elements were braved to set up the stands....

The Bric-a-Brac stall, always a favourite. (I came home with the red checked table cloth and the Shorter pottery fish shaped dish).

The rain soon subsided and the customers arrived, there were cream teas on offer and some very popular beer from an Organic brewery called the Avon Brewing Company (their slogan? Proper Beer for Proper People!)

It went down a treat.......

Then there were the ever-popular cake & produce stalls....

A pot of the legendary runner bean chutney & some freshly picked Gooseberries were purchased.
The bottle stall was groaning with a varied selection of prizes. From Daddies sauce to Single malt!
and of course, no village fete could be without a plant stall.....

A pleasant afternoon was had by all despite the English weather. I was in charge of the Nearly New stall ( but forgot to take a photo of it) we had been donated some good quality items & there was nearly a fight over a very pretty yellow floral Vintage dress! Another interesting item was a pair of "Hob nail" leather walking boots. A customer was intrigued by the newspaper stuffed inside them which was dated 1936. A great little slice of English Country History.

All Things French.............

"All things French" - a quote taken from Blackadder the Third first shown in 1987. It seems a suitable title to go with this post as we have just returned from a flying visit to France.....

As usual we have returned home with an interesting and eclectic mix of goodies for the home and garden.....
Does anyone know what these wooden toothed items are for?

(we couldn't resist them!)

Love the colour of this 50's kitchen clock...

These are sample pieces from the late 50's or early 50's, great graphics & in lots of colourways. Nice heavy cotton suitable for jolly cushions for the garden?

White roses of a red background, along with a kitsch kitchen curtain with more groovy graphics.

A more sombre selection of sample pieces.. displayed on one of several ladders which we bought.

Huge vibrant floral curtains (in two colourways)... could be used for deckchairs...

and an eclectic selection of decorative metal ware, photo frames, a dolls cupboard, a wonderful picnic basket, wire wine carrier & a French perfume bottle all displayed on rosy fabric!

Not shown (still on the washing line) are large pieces of Navy and black mattress ticking and a selection of heavy cotton unused sheets which can be used for many projects including table covers.. cushions.. window seats...bags etc.

I also bought a selection of 1930's, 40's and 50's clothing, all of which will be coming with me to the next few fairs.

Ardingly is the first date, it takes place on July 21st and 22nd, see the DMG website for full details. There are 2 dates for Honiton in August, the first is the Rag sale in the Mackarness Hall on the 1st of August, followed by the Textiles & Decorative fair in the same place on the 11th of August.

Slight conflict of interest this week.....

Us women are generally pretty good at juggling our lives, but this week was a tricky one for the washerwoman.... On Monday I purchased over 120 vintage items of clothing, mainly dating from the 1940's and 1950's. Things that had been stored away for years and in need of dunking in soapy water & a blast of fresh air. Most of this week has been spent trying to prepare these great garments for the Bristol Archive Fair on Wednesday & the wonderful Vintage Fair in Bath on June 14th.

There is always a great sense of the past when you handle such items, and the wonderful old labels conjure up images of a very different way of life. For example Frothy nylon petticoats to be worn under a full skirt by "Harlie"..... a CC41 demure day dress from the 2nd World War...... a 50's "Harella" coat made from Moygashel..... a flamboyant "Hillora" floral creation, a cotton polka dot frock by "Rodney" or a "Trimwear" dressing gown with a CC41 label tucked inside..... the list is endless!

Here is the reason for conflict. I recently started a part time job as a nurse working in a great little rural practice with some very friendly people. There have not been quite enough hours in the day, or days in the week to achieve everything..... but luckily the weekend is almost upon us so the washerwoman can keep on washing... and ironing...and sewing on the odd stray button!

Enjoy the weekend everyboday!

Wonderful Wychwood!

Anyone who follows my blog (with the volume on) will know that I am pretty passionate about music, so it might come as no surprise that I was very keen to visit the wonderful festival that is held every year just outside Cheltenham....The sun shone, the atmosphere was brilliant... these guys (above) are the Shtetl Superstars, they play witty funky Jewish ska! (oh and they have a female vocal lead called Barbara..)

..... the above shows the original "Grumpy old man" aka Attila the Stockbroker in full rant.. very clever observations & witty poems. Loved him!

This is the Wonderful Justin Adams & Juldeh Camara.. a brilliant combination of driving blues guitar and African lyrics.. and an instrument that looked a bit like a cricket bat with one string. Bought the album, its fab!

But had to wait until after dark to enjoy the best, Johnny and the boys, the Dohl Foundation. We saw them play a few weeks ago and knew we had to see them again.
and they certainly didn't disappoint. They were wonderful from the first drum beat to the final number, and had everybody jumping and doing that Bhangra thing which involves a lot of energetic arm waving (have just tried to google it to get the correct name..) and failed!

It was a wonderful day and has certainly wet my appetite for the WOMAD festival which is next month.