Union Flag chairs.....

I wasn't sure when I bought these modern chairs from a fellow dealer  whether they would fit in with my old stuff.
The black "laquer" finish  ( mmm, I think black gloss paint )  looked a bit tacky.... but I liked the fabric.....and they were very reasonable....
Anyway, they have gone in the Conservatory end of the kitchen, replacing an old Ikea chair and now it all looks a whole lot smarter.
They are actually, surprisingly comfortable with their big overstuffed seats and padded arm rests.....even the shiny paint is growing on me.....

Have a good weekend,
Julie x

simple white china.....

I do like white china....in fact it appears to be spreading rapidly around the kitchen at the moment.....

The modern Harrods jug is home to some vintage Harrods cutlery.....

 Quality A1 silver plate, yet I have never used it.......why?

Victorian china buckets.........

Dairy jugs alongside a massive white plate........

Old and new...........the shapes speak for themselves without any adornment.


You know..... the thought of an all white house is extremely tempting......white walls, paintwork, furniture.....so calm and tranquil.

foster house

foster house

Beautiful...... yet knowing me, I would get bored and would want to start adding some colour........

Red perhaps?

I do like red in a room......

Have a restful week,

Julie x

God bless the Queen.....

Some patriotic purchases........ Royal Standard vertical banner, a sash made from 2m vintage ribbon for the Queen's Coronation in 1953 ( removed swiftly from Helen's gorgeous shop.....sorry Helen! )

Two lovely pin brooches  of the late Queen Mother and her husband George VI for their Coronation in 1937 with red, white and blue ribbon.....and a simple, gilt and enamel crown brooch.

A fabulous Union Flag button on its original Made in England card.......

And these handmade Dorset buttons with little brass safety pins on the reverse.......

RE..tail therapy.....

RE is a wonderful shop tucked away down a side alley behind Bishop's Garage, Corbridge, Northumberland.
Packed full of the quirky, decorative and useful things that a girl really has to have.....

Every time I go in, there is something new.....a garden department with old tools and Harris tweed jackets hanging on hooks, a huge, glazed cabinet full of  pressed glass cake stands, a kitchen department with tables groaning with new and vintage kitchenalia, cushions, haberdashery....spooky, strange things......the list is endless!

 A few weeks ago I had a girls day out to Corbridge with the gorgeous Helen from Busy Bee Studio 
 to visit RE....

Naturally, we made the most of our day......coffee and scones...shopping...more shopping...tea and cake...
do you get the picture?

Having consumed our required calorie intake in a nice little coffee shop in the market place, we made our way to RE......

 Naturally we found some "must have" items.....and I had to have this Swedish style crown hook......

For my  American sock stretcher with painted top and ankle detail......

 Which now hangs above the bath in our bathroom......

RE is well worth a visit if you are in the area and I guarantee you won't come out empty handed.....

Jenny and Simon the owners are incredibly creative..... constantly on the look out for new ideas...  RE-vamping, RE-cycling and...... REally, REally nice people too.....

Julie x

Washing, ironing and making....

Yesterday saw me washing some pretty tea table cloths.....all hand embroidered with an assortment of stitches and designs......

I really like these tea table cloths...so pretty and fresh.....yet quite under valued.

Like a lot of vintage things, all the work and attention to detail is really not reflected in the price.
I charge between £8 to £14 for a cloth depending on the condition, size and subject.......I would imagine the linen cloth and embroidery threads would cost more than that if someone decided to make one...... not to mention the hours of sewing.

In between my all time favourite pastime of ironing ( really? ) ....I made a couple of cushions from the French toile fabric I bought from Nicky at Angels Attic

I backed the cushions with an envelope finish of old French sheet and popped a feather pad inside,
then with a few smaller pieces I framed them in off white painted frames.......

Can I thank you all so much for your lovely comments on my previous posts......and....

Have a good weekend!

Julie x

Blue Monday.....

  Blue things on my blue bench ....

The last few days have seen me busy making cushions and fabric pictures from floppy Hungarian grain sacks and blue toile.....

 Collecting blue and white china to mix in with the cushions and pictures for my next Fair......

I love this little early 19th century dish......

It has been riveted on the reverse......a common re-cycling method  usually undertaken by travellling gypsies. Valued china was often repaired this way and today people collect riveted china just for the clever fixings....visible on the reverse but difficult to see on the front.

  Finally, continuing my blue theme..... this is my lovely, vintage French cot .....I bought it from a French lady at Swinderby Antique Fair, Lincolnshire last year and is very much here to stay!
It has the original blue/grey paint with wrought iron heart shape sides, and either side can fold  in to create a daybed / sofa.....

The striped "mattress" is a Ralph Lauren blue ticking duvet cover from TK Maxx with an old feather duvet inside....works a treat....and the cushions I made from Cabbages and Roses linen fabric......

Have a good week.....

Julie x

New sign....

I found this stencilled, driftwood sign in the gift shop at one of my favourite coffee stops the other day.
Lanercost Tearoom and Farm Shop, near Brampton, Carlisle ....I  thought it would be appropriate for my stand at the Antique Fairs.

While I was there I also bought this metal heart ....

Lanercost  have the most gorgeous holiday cottages spacious, comfortable and ideal for those walking the Roman Wall or holidaying in the area......
The Tearoom does lovely home cooked food in what was once an old barn.....well worth a detour from the main road, with a farm shop, gift shop and art gallery too.

 Now, back to the sign.....all I need to do now is select some scraps of fabric and tie it in front of the SHED to make... Cloth Shed.....

No one will understand of course except me.....

Julie x

Lilian Rowles.....

Many of you vintage loving ladies will  recognise these 1930's baby prints......

Lilian Rowles ( nee Lilian May Bevis Hall ) was my Grandfather's cousin........

She was a prolific commercial artist during her lifetime and married Stanley Rowles who was responsible for designing many shipping and railway posters in the 1930's. They had a daughter Daphne who also became a well known artist in her own right.....the early Sindy doll annuals were her work, as well as other illustrations for books by Michael Bond.

Lilian used her children as models for her work..... Peter her son, being used in this series for The Lady's companion in 1930.

The front cover of this Good Night Story book was a self portrait of her and her children, Daphne and Peter.......

As a child I loved this book and the illustrations inside......

 I still love looking through it, even though it is falling apart.....You know...... I always wanted to be the little girl in the book who had a puppy delivered in a basket.....how cool was that!


Oh......and how could I forget.....the baby in the original picture?

That is my Mum!

Lilian used her as a model for these well known prints, giving my Grandmother the original watercolour as a thank you present.
However, because Lilian gave my Mum blue eyes (she has brown) my Grandmother didn't like it and got rid of it.......aaaagh....no!!

Never mind, Dorothy Hall  (the baby)  is still very much here.......
Love you Mum xx

Julie x