Long overdue boot fair finds

The weekend before last saw the first outdoor boot fair in our area, and it was BIG! Of course, boot fairs are not antique fairs or flea markets, so 99.5% of the stuff you see are baby clothes, adult clothes, toys, and tons of modern stuff people are just trying to get rid of. Vintage treasures are always few and far between, so I was really happy to see that some of the house clearance dealers I had befriended last year, were at the boot fair. At least with them you have the chance of finding some nice old vintage stuff.

I did come back with rather an eclectic mix of goodies, but I was quite pleased with the result of the three hours wombling about. Some things were dirt cheap, like the long pearl necklaces for 20p each, and some things were expensive, but totally irresistible, and as it was the first one of the season, I was in the mood, lol. So, where do I start? Oh well, lets start with B for bling, as it is the first pic in the folder -



My bargain pearls, excellent quality, hand knotted and very long -


and some small bags of lovely shiny pink oval beads and diamante -


The diamante seems to be very good quality, it sparkles beautifully -


I bought a big bag of buckles and buttons, which yielded these buckles from the 30s to the 70s -


glass, horn and bone buttons -


and a large amount of fabulous mother-of-pearl buttons, including some really huge ones -


Then I found a big pile of what looked like cloths and doilies all scrunched up, lying on a blanket on the ground. I rummaged through and pulled out a big handful of bits and pieces -


Amongst all the crochet and whitework doilies was this large lace collar -


and some lovely lace -


I also found some fabulous paper treasures. A bunch of mostly French postcards -


and a set of the most beautiful postcards I have ever come across, they really spoke to me, so I paid much more for them than I had ever paid for postcards. Sigh. But just look -


Aren't they just gorgeous?

At another stall I found this tiny little book -

So adorable. It is about the same size as the three French ones I have.

A Brewery manual from 1957 makes quite interesting reading and the pages are great for collage backgrounds, especially these blue ones, they are such a lovely colour -


I was thrilled to bits to see that the gentleman, whom I had bought some Victorian greeting cards from last year, was also at the boot fair. He seems to have a never ending supply of those cards and always has beautiful Victorian scrap books and scraps on his stall as well. I ended up buying two lots of cards and a small bag of the most delightful Victorian scraps, tiny flowers -



Yet another fairly regular stallholder, who mostly sells books (expensive out of my price range books), had a few bits of ephemera and magazines on his stall, and I ended up buying of pile of very vintage art magazines and a folder with some beautiful old engravings -



Lots of odd bits and pieces, like this bottle of ink,


and this little box, which I wanted just because I liked the design on the top, but which contained a whole lot of nibs!


I love the country scenes on these old Grindley pieces -


A hanging tealight holder for the garden in France -


A couple of silver bits -


and this rather odd spoon/scoop thing. The stall holder had no idea what it was for, neither have I, so any ideas you have, please let me know, it would be very much appreciated -


And then there are the bits which are perhaps not quite like my usual buys, lol, but so fantastic for mixed media collages, which I so want to try my hand at -

WW2 dog tags -

clock parts -

and a bag full of tiny tiny little clock parts, millions of them, lol -

Phew, I am exhausted now, lol, but I did warn you in my last post that this one would be a very picture heavy one. If you have made it all the way through, thank you so much, you really are a dedicated follower!

Toodlepip, xxx

SECOND Post today, Every Inchie Challenge Catch up

I suppose being a bit poorly with a stinking cold is kind of an excuse, right? I didn't do any kind of crafting last week, my muse had packed her bags and gone into hiding, trying to avoid the sneezes and splutterings and coughs. Now that she is back again, I am trying to catch up with everything ( I know, AGAIN, sigh ), and you get two inchies for the price of one, hurrah!

Firstly, last week's inchie challenge - FRIENDS - again, three different backgrounds, pick the one you like best -


I went back to romantic images and glitter and sparklies for that one, it does please this romantic girl's heart. But for the next one, I used a different, more contemporary style. The theme for this week's challenge is JOY, and unfortunately, the tune of the song " Joy to the world " is now permanently stuck in my head. Darn.



Thats it for the second post today. I am going to have a cup of tea and a nibble of something or other, and then start the daunting task of doing a boot fair post. Last week's boot fair. Haven't even photographed the stuff from this weekend. Sigh. The post could be a little picture heavy, lol, as it was the first outdoor boot fair this year, and I may have spent more than I had intended to...............

Toodlepip xxx

Tag Tuesday - Happy Easter! Phew, just made it in time

The next challenge is of course due today, but it is not up yet, so, woohoo, I just made it in time for last week's HAPPY EASTER challenge. I was poorly last week with a rotten cold, and my muse took one look at my bright red, snotty nose and promptly went on holiday, sigh. Seems she has decided to come back though for a quick visit, lol, so here is my Easter tag -




I hope you all had a wonderful Easter weekend, full of family fun ( and Easter choccies, lol ).

This is a supershort post, gotta play catchup and make two inchies. You also expect a couple of rather long posts about some pretty boot fair finds.........