Shorts story

I've had a day off today and have been extremely thankful for it. I'm tired, a bit run down, and slightly jaded. Tomorrow morning's lie-in will be a real treat.

Ooh, how's that for a moany opening statement? You can tell I need an early night.

This is the jacket I bought for 2 Euros at a flea market in Amsterdam.

Sorry to disappoint you, but I didn't buy the Breaks The Wind coat;

I just couldn't resist taking a photo of the label.

It's not exactly chill-proof, but I do like my smart little 1980s checked jacket, and at £1.45, it was a bargain. 

It's a funny thing, but while I wouldn't wear shorts or a mini dress with bare legs, I am quite happy to do so with opaque tights. What a difference that layer of lycra makes.

Google 1970s hot pants and you find some fantastic images.  

Such groovy girls!

I bought this 1970s knitted tank top on my day out with Vix and Tania, intending it as a Christmas gift for a friend.

Oops... 

His and hers Harold Ingram tops, 1972.
(source)

1970-80s blouse - gift from Tania 

1970s Harold Ingram tank top, shorts and ankle boots - charity shopped

1950-60s tapestry bag - gift from Emma

I haven't got the energy to chat, so I'll just leave you to ogle Sally Carr's fabulous legs in her hot pants in 1971.    

                

                                                                                                                                                  

If you're old enough to remember it, do sing along!

xxxx

The Bouquet of Girls Stories

September; that Back to School feeling.

The kids have returned with next-to-no fuss, and I got myself off to Chesterfield flea market for the first time in months.

The market never changes, there is always plenty of tat, chat, and something that makes me exclaim look at that!

The fruit and veg are plentiful and cheap too. We had cauliflower cheese for tea.

Here's Sue, surreptitiously squeezing the peaches (six for a quid).

I love the illustration on this 1970s sewing patterns, and these labels take me straight back to my teenage years. I shopped in Chelsea Girl, but Van Allen was a bit more grown-up and expensive, I think. (Both the 1970s maxi skirts with these labels were sadly too tiny for me.)

I'm regretting the fact I didn't buy the Orpheus sheet music to put in a frame; I was in a production of it at school (as a nymph and a goddess in the chorus. Typecast, obviously.)

Nostalgia overload - we had this album when I was a kid. I still love to belt out The Carnival Is Over, much to my kids' bemusement.  

These made me think of Em. Paul had no trousers but was still marked up at the oddly precise price of £23 (they spelled Sindy's name wrong, I was itching to correct it.)

The French Madonna and child are rather lovely, but that doll with the blue eye shadow looks as hard as nails. 

No wonder that kid looks glum; he has ended up discarded in a box of tat under a market stall. 

More fabulous vintage illustrations and some French maps. 

 My purchases:

1960s curtains, £3 (but will I ever have time to sew again?)

1960-70s OBD* thermometer plaque, £1

1950s brocade evening dress, £8 (I'm gutted it's too big for me, I'm scared to try and alter it, so I think I will have to sell it) 

1970s elephant pomander, 50p, to add to my collection

(*Obligatory Blogger Deer. But you already knew that.)

 1970s Tricosa wool/lurex maxi skirt - antiques and collectables centre

1960s St Michael top, 1960s copper brooch, jacket, shoes, hat and bangles - charity shopped

1950s carpet bag - flea market

It was starting to rain. Autumn is definitely in the air, hats and wool are back on the clothing agenda.

Linking (fashionably late) to Judith's Hat Attack.

See you all soon!

xxx

                                 

Knock Knock, Who's There?

Hmm, who could I have been meeting today in Chesterfield for a browse around the weekly flea market?

Vix and Tania, of course!

There we are, posing in the Ladies after a boozy lunch in Wetherspoons while a very kind woman took photos of us. She didn't seem to think there was anything odd about that at all, and neither did we.

It was a grey start to the day; earlier in the morning, the poor market traders had set up their stalls in high winds and snow.

But friends bring their own sunshine, don't they?

Vix and Tan perused the boxes on Joseph's stall, while Joanne tried on (and bought) a Gudrun Sjoden wool waistcoat. 

Is anyone bothered about the future of Top Gear or One Direction? 

No, thought not...

There is always an eclectic mix of merchandise to be found on the market.

Ballot boxes and brooches...

kitchenalia...

1950s hand-painted eggs...

annuals from the Fifties to the Eighties...

vintage games and toys...

and the biggest packet of fags in the world.

We weren't the only Seventies-clad chicks at the market today...

but I think Tania and Vix might have been the only women trying on 1970s matching maxi skirts in the loo.

Gorgeous!

And what do you know, six hours flew by in a blur of chat, browsing, laughs and gossip, and then they were gone.

But see what I mean about good friends bringing the sun?

And lovely presents from Vix too; 1970s fabric, pattern and pendant. Thanks, love!

Not much beats a day with good pals, does it? 

Tomorrow, the family and I are heading to Manchester for a long weekend, so I'll catch up with you all on our return. 

Have fun out there!

xxxx

The wonderful world of Chesterfield flea market

It's been some time since I visited Chesterfield flea market. A combination of bad weather and other commitments has meant that Joanne and I have spent our Thursdays elsewhere lately, so it was good to be back yesterday.

Don't worry, I did wear a coat, but I wanted to show off this new-to-me 1970s frock from my charity shop. I found it as I rummaged among the summer stock in the attic, looking for some colour and print to brighten up the dress rail, which was looking hopelessly tired, dull and drab.

I know this dress is sleeveless, but that doesn't make it an exclusively summer piece, does it? I brought all manner of pretty dresses down to put out in the shop, to the consternation of the other volunteers; but that's summer stock!  

 

Well, the proof of the strategy is in the sales; I put a sleeveless dress with a great digital print and a brightly coloured little jacket on a mannequin in the window, and a lady bought the entire outfit about 10 minutes later. So there! 

 

I can't tell you how much I love doing the window display, and how much I preen with self-satisfaction when a customer says it looks good.

1970s St Michael faux fur jacket, 1970s Christian Marcus dress, brooch, bangles and tights - charity shopped

Boots - retail

1970s necklace - vintage market

Now what was I saying? I've distracted myself. 

 

 

Oh yes - Chesterfield. 

Joseph greeted us like long-lost friends; I bought a 1950s Alfred Meakin Montmartre jug from his stall. We don't do Mothers Day in this house, but I don't need an excuse to buy myself something pretty for a quid.

I wonder what she gets for Mothers Day?

 

Booze, bunnies and buckets.

Only the strongest and best cocoa for Her Most Gracious Majesty.

No wonder Action Man looks grumpy - he's lost his pants.

Your own Personal Jesus.

 

 

Wonderful vintage packaging.

.

The juxtaposition of lard and champagne made me laugh.

Objects of the day, both from the early years of the Twentieth century;

a Cabinetta oak and canvas fold-up officer's campaign bed, possibly dating from the First World War or earlier (they were used in the Boer War too);

 

and a rather grotesque fur evening bag made out of ermine, I think. All its little teeth are intact, and if you lift up its head, you can see its paws. I'm used to seeing fox stoles, but I've never seen a bag with an animal's head on it before. 

 

I don't know what the poor thing's got to smile about... Possibly the fact that the seller informed me it was a bat.

 

 

Apart from my Meakin jug,  I pushed the boat out and spent a whole tenner on Jo and Amanda's stall. They were having one of their 3-items-for-a-fiver sales, so here are my six pieces;

an Edina Ronay Victoriana-style jacket (doesn't suit me at all, so it's destined for Ebay)

a very weighty beaded Twenties-style dress

a Monsoon silk and net skirt

 John Smedley cotton knit hoodie (for Claudia)

a blue/black wiggle dress by Taylor (not a brand I know)

and a 1970s Indian block-printed wraparound maxi skirt. 

£1.70 each - not bad.

And that's why I love a visit to Chesterfield market!

I'm out for dinner with my old friends Sally and Claire tonight, so I'd better go and put my face on; have a great weekend, everyone!

xxxx