Light Spring clean....

I decided to re-arrange yesterday... Clearing the clutter that had been amassing for months and reverting back to the simple, white, glass and wire look that I always seem to be drawn to.

Using large, hand blown glass jars to store linen hearts, tin moulds and pottery eggs... These were used to encourage hens to lay...apparently popping one under a nesting hen made them think it was a good idea to produce the real thing.

A French monogrammed napkin inside another glass jar and fancy handled, Georgian custard cups.

The shelf with the wire collection again.....The blue and white has now gone.

Lynn's (Sea Angels) beautiful bag is hanging on its special crown hook and a delightful package of Victorian steel buttons sits in the treasure bowl on the tatty white table.

All is calm once more....
Julie x

Time lapse....

The Bastle when we bought it three years ago...... a pretty cottage with blocked doorway and window above. The pointing was a mix of old and new cement.... The boulder stone walls so well "buttered" with hard mortar that it was impossible to see each stone clearly.
A 1960's porch and a rampant ivy burying itself into the building.

Winter came...

A new access drive and parking space were dug out by hand.... Yes, us...
Lifting the turf and spreading a lorry load of whinstone from the local quarry was a great workout for the tummy muscles.

Permission from the planners allowed us to re-instate the upstairs window but not the door... And the porch was removed. Scaffolding was erected to address the leaning chimney and dodgy gable around the garret window.

Existing sash windows were renovated and one for the new opening made to the same specification.
I painted all the windows in Farrow and Ball Light Gray exterior eggshell when they were in pieces.... sashes, frames, bead etc, then reassembled.
They are all now working beautifully, with draught brushes to keep the wind out... No rattling here!

Fast forward to 2012 and after full re-pointing of the whole building with lime mortar, a new oak front door made by us ( we are pretty practical...).....and new simple shutters made by Mr CS and painted by moi... The Bastle is becoming more impressive with its huge boulder walls and strangely.... looks bigger than before.

Next time.... What has been going on behind that door?

Julie x

Exclusive......

I know......I promised you a Bastle update, but yesterday the postman brought me a little something that I just have to show you.

Beautifully wrapped in spotty tissue paper and ribbon, the card....Sea Angels by Lynn Barron....can only mean one thing.
An exclusive, one-off from the very talented Lynn who has other gorgeous items for sale on her Etsy shop. www.sea-angels.blogspot.com

I will let the reveal show you my gorgeous purchase.....beautifully made from French linen...lined in ticking......hand printed.... "Milliner and Dressmaker Miss E Perkins" .....with a zipped, pocketful of ditzy flowers inside.

So, I am all set for Spring with a very special new bag.....

Thank you Lynn.....I love it! xxx

My Lady....

For years I have wanted a large, naive style, oil painting of a lady....and a few weeks ago at a Fair I found one.
Rather battered.... without a frame and a couple of repaired tears in the canvas.

An early 19th century painting I would imagine from her costume and hairstyle.... Her simple dress and jewellery adding to her naive charm.

She is now firmly ensconced in the blocked up doorway on the old original plaster wall of the Bastle, keeping an eye on the workers.
Our 19th century project manager overseeing the current installation of the underfloor heating....

The builders think I am mad.
Julie x

More on Bastle progress next time x

Dainty....

Loving this embroidered linen bag in the shape of a house.....where the lady in blue is up to her elbows in suds outside and the lady in yellow is scurrying through the door with a basket of laundry.
Huge red roof tiles and a part open, shuttered window complete "The Laundry" picture.
The reverse has a simple, vertical opening edged in blue.

"Let your dainty undies stay
Safe in here till washing day"

Those were the days when ladies took care of their underwear until washday...no doubt hand washed on a Monday.
Unlike today, when the M and S are dropped in the laundry basket, then straight into the front loader any day of the week.

It will be coming to the Antique and Vintage Fair on Good Friday at Willowburn Leisure Centre, Alnwick, Northumberland along with this 1940's embroidered couple.....what a dandy with his lace edged, big cuffed and collared suit!

Looks like it's going be a busy weekend for me, with another Fair too on Bank Holiday Monday at Gateshead Stadium, plus more building work at the Bastle in between.
No rest for the wicked as they say....

Bye for now and hope you all have a lovely Easter.
Julie x

My excuse....

The reason for my lack of regular blogging these days is because something has been taking up most of my time.

Three years ago, as lovers of old buildings, we took possession of a tired stone "cottage" in an idyllic village in Northumberland.

Seeing beyond the colourful interior....

Which was hiding a much older building......we set to work.

Uncovering and discovering....and with the help of a local property historian, we came to the conclusion (as we thought)  that this was an old Bastle house built in the late 16th century, when Queen Elizabeth I was on the throne, Shakespeare was penning his sonnets, Sir Walter Raleigh was off adventuring and in Northumberland...... "Reiving".... was rife.

In order to protect the village inhabitants, defensive Bastle houses were built, often in clusters for combined security and also as beacon style warnings of an impending attack.

A Bastle house therefore, is a fortified farmhouse..... unique to Northumberland and the Border regions, built to protect the occupants and their animals from the fighting and thieving of rival families.
More can be found HERE.

The "cottage"also came with an overgrown woodland garden

And hidden under rampant ivy...a tumbledown shed.

Full to the brim with years of rubbish.

So... undaunted....( some said we were completely bonkers to undertake such a project ).... we are slowly bringing the ugly duckling back to life and fit for 21st century living whilst still retaining its historical importance.

A lot of work has already been done and over the next few months I will bring you up to date with our renovations.

Till next time...

Julie x

Rusty, rustic and a little secret...

I think the theme for this Sunday's Fair at Gateshead International Stadium is to be rusty and rustic....with a lot of red.

A rustic French linen nightshirt with initials AG....

And a platter full of rusty old keys.

Coming along to keep an eye on proceedings will be this well loved, straw filled, linen covered French dog. All the way from Bordeaux to Northumberland courtesy of a regular dealer at the Hexham Fair on Tuesday.

 Boot button eyes....

 And the remnants of a spotty coat....or are they old kiss marks from his loving owner years ago?

The sun is shining today and the birds are singing.....so for the first time in ages I am going to drag furniture outside and paint in the fresh air.

Thank goodness the snow and ice have gone ( fingers crossed ) and the snowdrops and other bulbs are pushing their way through.

Spring must be on its way.

As for the little secret.....I will let you know next time.

Old keys may well be needed to open it.....

Julie x