Lovely Linens

This is a lovely old lingerie case which I have turned in to a pretty cushion edged in some old pink satin ribbon. It's so satisfying giving something a new lease of life.

Yesterday I tried a different car boot sale and found it a little disappointing although I found more vintage linens for pennies. There were two embroidered table cloths, a linen willow pattern cloth, and a pretty embroidered pillowcase. The sweet pillowcase with 'Hers' embroidered on it was a present Deb brought me back from the States.

This lovely embroidered picture was one of two I found at Saturday's Bicycle Basket Bazaar.

I also found a pair of lovely soft candy stripe pillowcases on Linda and Jake's stall. I had been looking out for some of these so was really pleased.

This is the second beautifully embroidered picture now joining all the others on my hall wall.

Deb and I both had a bike at the Bike Bazaar to sell some of our vintage things. I ended up coming home with two of Debbie's pictures. They go really well together and fit in nicely with my other pictures.

I was pleased to find this collection of old Tala kitchen utensils at the boot sale just as I was about to call it a day and go home with very little.

Today was an open day at the antiques centre just down the road from my house. Carol who was one of the sellers at our Vintage and Homemade Fair has a booth there and was selling some very tempting things. I treated myself to this pretty glass vase and the lovely red tin to add to my ever growing collection.

The glass sugar pourer was another find from Carol and the tea cups were more boot sale finds.

I also found some of these old classroom posters, I have wanted the ducks one for ages.

I have spent the rest of the day cleaning and re-arranging my kitchen. I cleared out the bottom shelf in my cupboard to make space for my utility wear. I have tried to clear away some of my clutter and sort out things that I can list in my shop. I have the rest of the week off work so fingers crossed the weather will brighten up . It's revision week really but hopefully we can allow ourselves one day out as a treat, I guess it will be a trip to London as it seems to be my lovely girl's favourite place at the moment.

Hope you have had a lovely bank holiday weekend.

Walk In The Park

Bright and early Saturday morning we took Josh on a lovely long walk to our local park. It is really beautiful early in the morning when it is still quiet and the grass is dewy.

There were baby geese and ducklings on the lake and the peace was shattered by the noise of angry geese protecting their babies . There were hot air balloons drifting in the cloudless blue sky. We often see these locally, Northampton hosts a large balloon festival in the summer.

Once home Mr C took the scissors to poor Josh who was struggling in the heat with his long hair. He is now all soft and fluffy and looks like a puppy.

Today was another early start as we were heading to the boot sale. It was hot at 7.30 in the morning and the sale was the biggest I have ever seen it. I found this coronation souvenir tray. I love the 1950s pictures of London.

I couldn't resist some more annuals at 50p each.

I was so pleased to find some more utility wear to add to my collection. There is some Blue Dawn, Peach Petal and a large Rosa platter not seen in the photo.

This was my favourite find, a pale green glass bowl decorated with painted pink roses.

This needs a good clean but is a pretty Deco glass vase with painted flowers.

I also found two more scrap books, this one has a lovely cover.

Mr C found the two tinted photos of sweet children.

Finally after weeks of waiting these lovely canisters arrived from the States,

along with this box of beautiful hand painted mirrored place cards.

Have a lovely week, lets hope the sunshine lasts a bit longer.

Faded Floral Fabrics , Furry Friend and Fresh Flowers

Yesterday, Mr C and I had a little trip over to the beautiful Stamford to check out the 'Discover Vintage' Fair. I was not disappointed and by far the star of the show was HestaNesta's stall. Jo was lovely and was selling beautiful eiderdowns , hand made vintage fabric cushions and lots of other wonderfully tempting goodies. Her stall looked amazing and I made a bee line for it. I didn't come away empty handed of course, the lavender filled eiderdown fabric bag being one of my purchases. I also found the jug on the left on another stall , it goes really well with my Coronet Ware jug.

The fair was held in the glamorous ball room at the Arts Centre.

Outside the weather was sunny and warm and the church next door was preparing for a wedding.

I love this 1930s chalk ware anemone wall vase, it went straight on the wall as soon as I got home.

Mr C bought a number of prints from Jo. They were all supplements in the 1934 'Amateur Gardening' magazine . The first two he framed in some pretty vintage frames and hung on the stairs . The others are awaiting the right sized frames.

I bought some remnants of pretty vintage fabrics to put away for a future project, maybe some more lavender bags when I harvest the lavender from the garden in the summer.

Here is my new furry friend, a vintage mohair nightdress case. Josh wasn't too impressed when I took him out of the bag and I think would have chewed him up if I hadn't put him safely out of doggy reach. The fabric covered box was another purchase from Jo,

as was the lovely 1930s fabric bag.

These vintage hat boxes really were my bargain of the day. I spotted them being used for display in the Oxfam shop in Stamford. First of all I thought they must be modern reproductions until I looked at them closely and realised they were lovely old boxes covered with faded roses. I have put them to good use as storage already and have stacked them on top of my old suitcases. The butterfly fabric covered knitting needle case was also from Jo and is probably the only one of my purchases which may find it's way in to my shop.

On the way home we stopped off at a lovely tea room at the side of the road. It was an old village shop with a thatched roof and a pretty tea garden so we were able to sit outside.The blossom petals were like confetti on the ground and the air was heavy with the scent of stocks.

At home the garden is coming to life at last. Our yellow peony 'Molly The Witch' is in flower and all the different coloured lilacs are out. I love this time of year in the garden , there are some lovely scents in the air and lots of lovely pastel colours.

The weather is looking good for the week ahead so make the most of the sunshine, we can't be sure how long it might last. Whatever you are doing , have a lovely week.

This Week's Bargain Finds

Yesterday was the monthly antiques market on our historic market square. I treated myself to the little Sylvac dog, I have wanted one of these for ages.

I also popped in to Homesense following a tip off from Zoe at Penny-Blossoms about the Cath Kidston bed linen. I have always liked the 'pastel flowers' design so was really excited to get my hands on a lovely duvet cover. I like to mix and match bed linen with vintage pieces. I bought the pretty hand embroidered pillowcases for a couple of pounds from a lovely lady at the Bay Tree Cottage open day last Saturday . The blue striped pillowcases are also vintage as is the eiderdown.

I found this unusual shelf with the little drawers at the antiques market yesterday. It is hand painted with pretty roses and can be hung on the wall. This will find it's way in to our shop or come along to our next fair.

This morning I was up bright and early and had a quick look round the local hospital car boot. The weather wasn't too inviting and there weren't many booters but I found some cups and saucers in the Indian Tree pattern and a pretty 1930s milk jug and a pile of 1930s plates. My free Cath Kidston shopping bag from this week's Easy Living magazine came in handy.

I spotted this lovely cardigan on Sue's blog Vintage From The Village. It was £11 from Primark and I plan to replace the buttons with vintage glass or mother of pearl ones. It is very cosy and has a soft velvety feel.

Finally Mr C has just got round to framing my 1930s terrier pictures and hanging them for me.

Enjoy the rest of Sunday and have a great week.

Sunshine And Showers

This weekend has been such a mixture of bright sunshine and wind and rain. Fortunately yesterday was sunny and Deb and I had a stall at Bay Tree Cottage open day over in Farthingstone. We had a lovely day and enjoyed chatting to people and indulging in delicious home made cake.

we tried to group our things in little colour themed arrangements.

The hall was lovely and bright and airy, and beautifully decorated with bunting.

Deb brought along her lovely old wooden tea trolley she found at the local tip. She gave it a lick of paint and it is great for display.

The cakes were truly scrumptious, between us we sampled lavender cake, chocolate cake, lemon drizzle and black currant, orange and poppy seed, tropical banana and Brooklyn Blackout Cake. Not just between the two of us you understand ! Mr C and Debbie's husband were also on hand to taste test.

Outside were old drawers and chairs used as planting containers for herbs and vegetables.

I took a walk around the village and enjoyed the sunshine.

The chimneys on the pub....

The lovely landscape and so peaceful not a sound except the birds singing. I guess for lots of you that is the norm but living in a town you appreciate the silence when you get out in to the countryside.

On Saturday morning the postman had brought me this lovely cup and saucer to add to my collection of utility wear. This one is American so had traveled a long way. I love the pink cup and yellow saucer,they are by Lu-Ray Pastels USA.

I found the sample cards of buttons and buckles at a flea market this morning. These will find their way in to my Etsy shop.

Yesterday I didn't come away empty handed either, the 1950s aprons and cottage tin are also destined for my Etsy shop.

Hope you enjoy the rest of the bank holiday weekend , hopefully the sun will make an appearance again tomorrow.