i'll be back...

i miss my little 'showing off', and have decided to reintroduce it ... as soon as i come back from london...look out for a new weekly posting :-)

that's all for now folks...

i have decided to stop this blog...at least for a while, i have enjoyed parading my things across your screens but i feel it is becoming less interesting as time goes on... i leave you with the mangle that has been in my back yard since time immemorial ( i should have swept before taking the photo...just another example of my standards slipping, unfortunately) and my favourite espresso cups from majorca (part of a set of 6) ... thanks for watching x

No. 72

a rather splendid box of lace bobbins, which are not especially special individually but, as a whole, with the cigar box, rather delightful...

No. 71

mary, mary...

No. 70

an arrangement of collected importance on a kitchen cupboard; includes a rock stars phone number, postcards from Bronwen Deane (love 'em), photos from a day out in sunderland (!), etc...

No. 69

an asparagus jar... to put asparagus in.

No. 68

a handmade, crude cupboard... well i should say, 'crudely handmade' as it doesn't tell disgusting jokes.
bought at auction for a mammoth £40, but it was full of watch parts so selling some means i have made my money back a few times over... and got some gorgeous watch hands and a tiny ancient cuckoo from a clock; most likely a cuckoo clock.

No. 67

my sweet collection of ameretti tins...mmm...delicious.

No.66

a beaded receptacle for...crucifixes. have seen a few of these victorian things, they seem to be for hanging on the wall but i have no idea what they are supposed to be for, suggestions welcome!

No. 65

draped jewels....

No. 64

lace and tape...i have left the camera flash as it looks like a glowing diamond...o i shouldn't have told you, you would have believed it was a glowing diamond.

No. 63

bits of fluffery and finery...

No. 62

a plastic basket...
from the frankfurt flohmarkt last year... used for taking my lunch on days out.

No. 61

a christmas present if i remember rightly, from my mother, or maybe it was an anytime present, in other words just a present, although one should never say 'just' a present so disregard that word. it's actually worth money, especially as his cane is intact...his legs are a little short though (for my liking).

No. 60

the charity shop staple...the souvenir boxed glass set, but a lovely example...spanish if you hadn't guessed, passed on by my lovely sister Alison.

No. 59

'joan of arc' plaster head; some say it's scary, some say serene, i say chipped...from gay paris...

No. 58

some tinyish cups and saucers, i think i have 5 or 6 altogether (don't know where at the moment) but these were the nicest colours...

No. 57

clogs...a pair ...2" long...someone's souvenir from bruges and then... my souvenir from the antique shop, ... battered, bruised and quaint...

No. 56

one of my chandaliers...have had this since about...well years...but still stocked in ikea, has been sprayed and adorned over the years...christmas baubles abound.

No. 55

not an old thing but delightful all the same...in my defense it has a 'vintage' look although it was in fact 'found' in a shop...croft interiors, stokesley.

No. 54

i don't know what these are called... it's a brass pole fixed horizontally... upon which you can drape muslin seductively over your bedhead or in this case (my case) a branch of silver wired jingly bells from joanna...

No. 53

underneath the 'stuff' , a 'part' hat stand, wig stand or...knob on a stick...

No. 52

a totally hand embroidered all over, vintage bag bought for £15 in a little vintage shop in a vintage shop street in Glasgow, a strange/interesting/unusual opening mechanism...

No. 51

a tiny keyhole surround 2" high...naturally verdigris...sent to me by Séan who... 'found a pock marked, filigree key surround, tumbled out of an old cottage, lost in the rubble strewn around the skip', and who attached it perfectly to a sweet note...(below)



thank you...

No. 50

my 50th post...shall i make the hundredth? i am not sure...
this one should be something special i feel for my little anniversary...mmm, lets go with a shelf.

No. 49

a pile of pink, ecru & taupe quilts...most aquired cheaply due to fraying edges, huge holes and threadbare fabric...o to be rich what sumptuousity i should have...

No. 48

a terrible photograph i know...but practically impossible to get right (for me anyway) and yes, i should have removed the bowl of lemons...and the chair...and the whole kitchen. despite this i had to showcase it...i love it! a mirrored glass sign saying 'canteen' would you believe... probably from an old canteen.

No. 47

an old ledger i use to write my lists in...

No. 46

old tickets...i might use these in some way for the labels on my new collection (yet to be made of course)...the colours are lovely.

No. 45

my crackly 70's radio, it sounds terrible...

No. 44

the letter 'k'...
with a chunk out of it.

No. 43

a pile of books...regularly plundered for pages...don't worry i saved them from mass destruction...
p.s. if i spent as much time as was actually required on photoshop i would be here all day :-)

No. 42

a delicious door plate/ key surround...attached feebly to a random old cupboard... the crystal knob is not bad either.

No. 41

on a theme...a miniature electric sewing machine ...fabulous, bought in scotland for a fair price (read as...bargain) . it produces chain stitch on the under side so a multitude of possibilities...

No. 40

an old sewing machine...a gift...it sews beautifully but i cannot figure out the bobbin...yet

No.39

a roof slate...wall mounted...in a set of 3...

No. 38

tin trunk...every home should have one...

look at the colour inside ...mmm
been to Rangoon too :-)

No. 37

a stopclock that stands very nicely next to the press on my kitchen windowsill... many of my students will recognise it... used extensively to time drawings in class.

No. 36

a press of some kind, not sure what it was originally for...beefburgers? i use it for pages... small ones... carboot 50p

No. 35

an antique shell, from an antique shop, beautifully mellow... is a shell not an antique by its very nature anyway?

No.34

a huge (3ft) kneeling statue of Joseph... sadly decapitated but if he wasn't i wouldn't have been given him would i? (from the holy father).

No.33

servants bell, though no one comes when i ring it...ditto comment made on doorknob (number 30)

No.32

an arrangement on a shelf... chandelier wall lights - gift from stephanie (thanks!).
tip of the day; you don't have to mount wall lights on the wall, just rest them somewhere!

No. 31

my bedroom door knob; not as neatly painted round as i would wish...but hey, you can't have everything!

No. 30

a victorian (probably) pincushion...a present from my sister, housed in a perfectly sized box from TK Maxx...serendipity...

No.29

a very tiny bird (cake) decoration; worn and cast aside...until i found it of course...

No. 28

my most recent purchase...an irresistable bunch of 50's pegs (ebay)... twas fate that found them as i cannot imagine typing 'pegs' into the search box! handmade, smooth in the hand; some pitted, mottled and rusted with age...delicious; beautifully bound with bands of metal and all individual with certain character, as a group - divine...