Yes ok, its bit crazy, but sometimes I buy things like pretty trays, just for the joy of it.

I have quite a few, and each has its own story. Some are old, others are older. Some are new and likely made in their thousands, e.g. the Bright Birdy Tray which is from Ikea. It doesn’t matter to me because fun prints make me happy and with enough shelves, trays can be propped up or even hung up, like art.

Yesterday, walking by the window of the British Heart Foundation charity shop, I was stopped in my tracks and compelled to buy a new tray for my collection. I deliberated over it, not because it was expensive (it was in the sale at £1.99 – BARGAIN!), but because I really don’t need another tray.

But it spoke to me with its Bauhaus-esque repeating hearts, its simplicity, and the fact that it was all for charity. I knew, just KNEW, that if I didn’t buy it right then and there, I would go home and think about it and want it and wish I’d bought it and have to write it on my list of things to do to go back and get it.

1 Comment | In: Happy Things | tags: bauhaus, birds, British heart foundation, collections, floral, ikea, pretty, tray, trays, vintage. | #

So, after beating Nano and writing a huge chunk of my first novel (using none of the ideas I had previously been working on…), it’s time to switch my attention to the business of selling. As well as my Dainty Dora shop on Folksy, I have a whole weekend of selling lined up. Yes – me in person, selling. It’s been a while.

First up, Make Do & Mend at Platform, Easterhouse on Saturday 3rd December from 11am – 3pm. A super fantastic venue, a vintage vibe, a production of ‘A Victorian Christmas’, a vibrant cafe and a multitude of stalls selling wonderful wares – a top day out for sure.

Find me with my oh-so-popular handmade button brooches, vintage domino brooches, corsages, fabric necklaces, maybe a fascinator or two…AND a selection of beautiful hand knitted baby blankets, cardigans and booties by my very own Mum:) She is always in demand for her knitting!

Oh yeah. See you there for some crafty chit-chat and a chance to bag some unique, handmade gifts for that Christmas stocking.

All the deets are here. Ooh, nice stand, who made all those amazing items? I wonder….

 

*** AND IF THAT WASN’T ENOUGH ***

 

The following day – Sunday 4th December – will find me setting up stall for the very first time at the brilliant Little Birds Market at Sloans off Buchanan Street/Argyle Street. That’s INSIDE out of the rain and the wind, in the stunning ballroom upstairs. It’s a regular indoor market and I’m very excited about my debut, just in time for Christmas. There will be some amazing goodies, surprise gifts and treats on the day. Fabulous. 12noon – 5pm.

Hope to see you at one of these events next weekend, which both have totally FREE ENTRY!

Rebecca x

No Comments | In: Lifestyle, Shopping, Trends | tags: christmas market, easterhouse, gifts, glasgow, little birds, little birds market, make do and mend, platform, Shopping, sloans, treats, vintage. | #

On a recent visit to my Dad’s in the wilds of the Cairngorm National Park, I couldn’t help but laugh out loud when re-discovering a certain piece of household equipment which is almost deserving of a place in a museum. Or at least the Christmas table.

Perhaps it could feature in a display on ‘The Way It Used To Be’ or a humorous retrospective of ‘The Domesticity Of Yesteryear’?* Either way, I don’t think they make them like this anymore.

The item in question is a Hoover hoover (or Vacuum Cleaner to be properly PC), all wired-on blue bag shaft, scuffed ceramic face and original red Hoover logo. It is a classic; a true vintage relic!

As Dad relays the story again of how ancient this (working) Hoover really is, I marvel at the manufacturing mavens who produced such a quality piece of equipment. I mean OK, he doesn’t vacuum everyday, or live in a palatial mansion with endless corridors of oosie carpet…but it’s still impressive.

Purchased for £14, it was already second-hand; a reconditioned model my parents bought when they were first married and setting up home together. As in before I was born. I am thirty.

Every year Dad takes it to a special Hoover Man for a service and had the foresight to stock-pile the relevant dust bags some years ago when extinction of said bags was a threat on the Hoover Horizon. His faith in the Hoover’s longevity is comforting and nice; a metaphor for a generation of trust in quality workmanship. 

This unassuming, slightly battered appliance is ripe for retirement in my opinion, but maybe it will have to carry on for another few years? Here’s to the next thirty!

So when I told Dad about the Make Do & Mend vintage market that I am attending on 21st May at Platform in Glasgow, we both came to the conclusion that ‘making do and mending’ is obviously in my blood. How marvellous.

*If any museums are interested in the purchase of this fabulous example of Hoover history, feel free to make us an offer!

No Comments | In: Lifestyle, Shopping, Wannabe Journalist | tags: glasgow, hoover, make do and mend, platform, relic, second hand, vacuum cleaner, vintage. | #

When the email announcing the second Make Do & Mend event popped into my inbox, it brightened my whole day. I think I literally squealed with delight!

With a vague Valentine’s theme this time around, it is a fantastic opportunity to buy second hand, vintage and have a go at knitting or sewing on vintage sewing machines – wow.

The ‘Clack & Yak-ers’ masterclass sounds like a real winner!

There is a lovely sleek cafe area, mountains of inspiring items from crockery, candles, jewellery, bags, clothes, and random findings galore that you just couldn’t get anywhere else.

I know where I will be this Saturday 5th February. My stall will feature handmade fabric necklaces – lace, tulle, satin – and an array of corsage brooches, some with ceramic heart centres. Expect some pristine, second hand Vogue magazines, vintage books, bag-making equipment and of course, the infamous vintage domino brooches.

Come along from 11am – 3pm, Platform, The Bridge, 1000 Westerhouse Road, Glasgow G34 9JW

No Comments | In: Shopping, Wannabe Journalist | tags: accessories, clothing, knitting, make do and mend, platform, second hand, selling, sewing, valentines, vintage. | #

Can it really be true that the end of the tie is nigh? After reading a recent trend report (albeit in the Daily Mirror…), it seems that by 2041 the only place men will be wearing ties will be “in history books about the 20th century”!

Since the 17th century ties have been worn as a symbol of status, formality, membership, uniformity and fashion. To think that within fifty years the tie will be extinct throughout the world, is quite astonishing. I think we should consider ‘World Tie Day’ before it’s too late, or perhaps a ‘Save the Tie’ campaign? Certainly a charity for minority tie-wearers as shops stop selling them, and frantic eBayers spend their live-savings on racks of M&S silk designs, Burton polyesters and Homer Simpson joke versions.

Perhaps anyone who dares to wear them after a certain ‘cut-off’ date, will be chased down the street, ridiculed, shot? Where will it end? All I know is I love ties, men’s and women’s, and will need to stock up on supplies to ensure my vintage tie brooches don’t become endangered too…

Anyone interested in saving the tie, post here!

No Comments | In: Trends | tags: ebay, extinct, fashion, tie, ties, Trends, vintage. | #