SUSSEX FINDS

I'm just back from lovely Sussex in England where the availability of vintage finds is always second to none. The charity shops (we started calling them 'chazzers' on this trip) are stuffed with reasonably priced gems and there are many, many shops in every town. Not everything I buy is vintage but almost all of it comes in shades of blue. It's an addiction.

I was in England on a research trip for novel #4 (which I posted about at my writing blog here) but I was also on a mission to explore as many chazzers as possible in the small time I had. My husband is endlessly patient with this activity and my 7 yo daughter is fast becoming a chazzer enthusiast. (Chazzerist?) Anyway, let it suffice to say that I hoovered up as much blue and turquoise items as I could manage to pack in our carry-on only bags. And I left so much behind - things that were impossible to carry such as these fab chairs in the Debra shop in Crawley:

If you are a fan of mid-century modern, get yourself to that shop. Sideboards for £40.Tables for £20. Unbelievable value. They had v little bric-a-brac there but I found this Balinese frame for £1. The books - a Collins Adam Bede and a Penguin Tortilla Flat were also bought on this trip.

Willow plate - £3, St Catherine's Hospice shop
Aztec blue plate - £2.39, Sainsbury's
Spanish plate/trivet - £1.25, British Heart Foundation shop

Blue jug - £1, St C's Hospice
Floral jug - £3.50, Cancer Research UK

Clear & gold paperweight - £5, Oxfam

Teeny millefiori paperweight - £3

Sass and Belle jewelry tree - £3.50, Cancer Research

Turquoise ball vase - £3, Oxfam

Is it really YSL? Who cares at £6.99?

2016 & still buying

I try hard not to buy stuff, I really do, but it's difficult when the local charity shops are so good/ affordable and stocked with stuff I like. I walked away from two blue glass vases today. But then I came home and was reading Period Ideas and thought, Argh, why did I leave them there?! So, I hopped into the car and in jig time had them bought and home. Blue. Glass. €10 for the pair. No brainer.

We've put an extra room (sunroom/dining room) on our house so have been busily re-jigging how rooms are used. Much as I love the oasis of my bedroom as a writing room, I wanted it back as a bedroom alone. We've gained a study because of the sunroom but, with both of us working from home mostly, and me needing quiet to write, I now need to have two desks. One in the study for when Mr is away and one in the sitting room for the rest of the time.

So I went to Lynn Antiques in Athlone hoping to find a nice bureau but got this oak desk instead for €150. Great price, great desk. I love the lions! You put your hand in the lower one's mouth to pull open the drawer.

And finally not vintage but whimsical, a €5 brontosaurus planter from Tiger: