A change is as good as a rest!

I thought that this week would give me chance to catch my breath and unwind but it doesn't seem to be working out like that! Still it has been lovely spending some time with my daughter (when she hasn't been writing essays!). Yesterday we ventured into our town centre and discovered this new shop. With a name like this I thought it had to be worth a look!



The windows were intriguing : wire mannequins draped with scarves,



an astronaut helmet TV - (all the rage after the moon landings years ago!)and lots of 60s pieces of furniture,



an old typewriter and lots of albums,



a sixties mirror and more.



I had to smile when I saw the price tag on the mirror - £75! I picked up one of these at the car boot a couple of weeks ago for £1 and it's now hanging on my wall! (below)



But I digress. Tucked in several of the vignettes were shoes. Old shoes, new shoes and upside down shoes? I'd love a pair of these for sitting in a ladylike style with my legs crossed just so that anyone looking could admire my soles!



We went in and I was intrigued at the collection of items for sale. I really like the eclectic mixture of items and felt the whole place had really made an effort to be different. I'm so tired of city centres all having the same shops on them that it really made a pleasant change to see the shoes being sold amongst vintage pieces of furniture, old musical instruments and album covers - there were some great chests of drawers for less than the price that people might spend at IKEA but they were real conversation pieces. I'm afraid I didn't buy anything. I've got rather too used to car boot prices for my bits of vintage and I was probably 30 years too old to be wearing any of the shoes, but I know I'll be drawn back!



Later, thoughts turned to the Vintage and Homemade fair in Northampton on 7th November where I shall be standing. I was really pleased when Annie (Vintage at the Corner House) set this up as it's much closer to me than the fair at Chipping Sodbury which I'd also love to go to. There seems to be lots of vintage activity in the South West but little up here in the East Midlands... For more details check out Annie's blog - see side bar. Hope some of you will be able to make it!



I'm a Kaffe Fassett and Liberty fabric lover as you can see from my stash pictures. I've been assembling some of the things I'll take to the fair ready for pricing and packing.



Lots of my covered coat hangers, vintage tins,



pincushions,



I know repetitive pictures but please indulge me - I've made a lot of these over the years and I always cover the hooks and despite still using some I made in 1982 the binding hasn't unravelled! My gorgeous girl even asked for a lesson on making them last night and was really pleased with herself when she completed her first Cath Kidston fabric hanger!



More assembling of lovely china duos and trios, cake stands, buttons, hankies, butter and cheese dishes, preserve pots and some lovely kitsch 50s pinnies.



You may remember that I bought this eiderdown cover at Swinderby in the summer. This was one of my more expensive purchases but I love the fabric and need to make it go a long way!



I decided to cover some buttons in this fabric and add them to one of my thrifted cashmere cardigans. I refuse to pay full price but I do have a weakness for cashmere. Several of the buttons had got lost so the cardigan was languishing in the back of the wardrobe. It now has a complete set of thrifted eiderdown buttons and I'm quite pleased with the way it's turned out. The pinks match better than it appears in the photo!




Hope that you're having a good week and for those who have half term next week - it's not long now! I'm loving this "time off" thing!
Love Wend

Magic, cutlery and china!

The picture below is for all those who are mourning the loss of summer. Today I spotted this lovely lupin catching the autumn rays oblivious to the fact it's way beyond its season! Nevertheless it was lovely to see one of the lovely blue spires on 18th October!(don't look too closely at the leaves which are less than perfect and a bit mildewy!).



What a relief - I and the gorgeous girl have finally made it to half term. She started 6th form this term and we have both had an extremely busy few weeks. I'm having this week off with her for some time to catch up with ourselves and for me to try and sort out some goodies for the Homemade and Vintage fair in Northampton on 7th November. We'll be baking and visiting plus having one of our days out somewhere we haven't been before.



I wasn't expecting a good car boot today as I thought it might be too chilly for the stall holders but I went for a wander anyway and wasn't disappointed! My favourite find of the day was this Black Magic box which must be 40 years old - I've never seen one like this. I asked the price and was told it was £2 for the contents. I hadn't picked it up and was surprised to find it full of cutlery (and nice quality cutlery too!) Reader, I bought it. When I got home I found there was a lovely pair of sugar tongs too!



I loved this Arthur Woods tankard/mug with its delightful floral pattern. It must be 1940s or 50s, I guess and has just the right amount of crazing - I like a little crazing but not so much that the item looks discoloured. This was only 50p!



The lady in yellow attracted me and so she had to come home too along with the matching cotton bobbin!



This lovely plate and little jug were also snapped up and stuck in the top is one of a bag full off hankies I bought. I'm a bit wary of buying these unless can see them properly before I buy but I took a chance. There were about 40 so for £2 I'm hoping there will be at least a few that are worth keeping! They are currently bathing in a bowl of very hot Biotex! I'll inspect them more closely when they are clean and dry!



I love it when you go out expecting it to be a fruitless trip only to find all sorts of things you hadn't expected!



The Tunnicliffe's "Portraits of British Birds" Brooke Bond Tea cards book was complete - not sure what I'm going to do with it yet but the cards are delightful.



I actually picked up two boxes of "shake words" both containing little wooden blocks with letters printed on them. Such a shame these simple little games aren't attractive to children these days. I still enjoy playing them!



Last but not least a batch of Ladybird books (from the 70s I think). I shall enjoy taking some time to sit and browse through these with a coffee this week. Can anyone remember which lovely blogger has a link to a Ladybird site which tells you how old your books are?

Oh I've noticed I'm very close to 50 followers! I must start thinking about a giveaway...

Hope you all have a good week.

Love Wend