Hazy Sunshine on Vintage Shelves...

For weeks now I've been taking photos of the shelves below our front windows - usually in the hazy sunshine of the late afternoon. The shelves themselves aren't vintage, it's the contents that qualify!

Two beautiful books...

... a hand-made wooden horse...
and a (fledgling) collection of vintage Lourdes souvenirs. I'm collecting the pictures of the church, not of Our Lady, as I'm not Catholic myself and I find the scenes more to my taste. Lourdes is not far from us - and I love those sheep!

Of course, it's rare to find our shelves without a few little additions of the adolescent boy variety...And over on the left, in fact all around the not-vintage speaker, is the pride of my current collection!

A 1920s tin with Basque dancers on it - aren't they great? They have some Breton cousins... (Elizabethd can correct me if I'm wrong)...

and some Normand ones too, if I'm right.Finally, here are some stylish dancers from a region of France I don't recognise. Are they Provençal, perhaps? I bet some clever reader can enlighten me.

I bought these tins over the winter at the all-year Flea Market. The seller wasn't a dealer - I'd never have afforded them if she'd charged their market value. But I did pay her a good price for them.

The hazy sunshine on my shelves seems to be telling me I was right to splash out for once!

The Flea Markets of France - a little book review

Ben gave me this great little book for Christmas - it was on my Amazon wishlist! If you ever come to France I really suggest you put it on yours too...

I took it off the shelf yesterday when an American blogger sent me a lovely email about her forthcoming visit to France - it really answered all her questions, and now I've got it out I'm going to read more of it.

The information about Flea Markets in different areas of France is useful (it even mentions our all-year local one which I think of as a Vide Grenier...)But for me the introduction is the best part:

When to go * How to get there * What to bring * How to communicate * How to bargain * Checking market schedules * Special Sales * Transporting your purchases

If that section is useful to someone who's been here for six and a half years, it's likely to be helpful to anyone who uses it, visitor or resident. I loved the vocabulary and bargaining advice - I've been doing a lot by facial expressions and gestures up until now!

j

We have an interesting week coming up. Son 1 is currently travelling to Spain for a four-night visit with school, which is just marvellous - what an opportunity! They will be staying in Santender and visiting a lot of museums and galleries. Son 2 and I are going to enjoy some time together after school, walking the dog in our rather variable weather. Our holidays don't start until Easter Saturday, so I will be posting for Thrifty Week and Holy Week whilst working. Things might get a bit scatty... I am doing very little commenting on your blogs at the moment, although I often do have time to read them. I just seem to have energy to read what my friends are doing, without having quite the mental oomph to respond! I'm sure you know the feeling...

j

PS Blogger went nuts and posted this as I typed the second word of the title, so it's been on my blog for the last half hour simply as: 'The Flea!'

Going to the Vide Greniers

Come with me to the Vide Greniers at Bonrepos...They've blocked off the road through the village, so we have to park down the country roads and walk there...Past two memorials to the Maquis resistance fighters and civilians who died in the battle there...Here we are at the road block - the Vide Greniers runs right through the village - we'll see stalls all round the Mairie, the church, the village hall and even a pigeon tower! The Salle Polyvalent - the village hall, surrounded by stalls.First find - two cute little candlesticks, which need cleaning up but will really cheer things up this winter!

This stand looks interesting - it's run by two little old ladies. Look at the irises on this tiny piece of china! There are raised details - the texture is lovely.
The irises are around Mount Fuji - is this really Japanese, I wonder?

It's only a toothpick holder, but I think it's great! A quick look around - this is the view the old ladies are getting...But there's more on their stall! Two bundles of cards - 5 euros for the lot, which turn out to contain children in various costumes. They all seem to be collectors' cards from a local chicory coffee merchant.Loads of Catholic almanacs and memorials of First Communions from around 1907 - some very pretty pictures and sweet prayers. Look at the edging on this prayer card!And a bookmark from Lourdes, not far away. It says, 'At the Holy Cave I prayed for you'. The flower is hand painted.A few more cards which came from products - two perfumes and some bon-bons!Volcanoes seem to be a theme today - there is Mount Vesuvius, on the Pompeii perfume card, and on the back is a calendar from 1932.This fine avenue has led us to the centre of the village.The skies are still blue and it's quite warm!Here we are in the village centre.

Two little girls, for only 4 euros! 1920s, do you think?One book is almost empty, but the other has lists of meetings - the large writing is peoples' names, and the small notes above are 'Madame' or 'Mademoiselle'. There seem to be some shopping lists too.

Thinking of Mel's collection here! These china posies are tiny! Euch! A box of birds' wings! But what's underneath?Various bits and bobs of hat trimmings!Here are some terracotta birds on a modern pigeonerre - just an ornamental pigeon tower in the centre of a modern development where the stands continue! Householders have brought out tables and made their own 'garage sales' outside each house. Storm clouds gather and there is the occasional rumble of thunder, but no rain... Still dry! Here's some more brocante, in the shadow of the church.Oooh - you know I bought a cheap chandelier and am aiming to replace the plastic 'lustres' with crystal ones! One euro each...

'Clean them with dishwasher powder,' says the stall-holder. 'I put my whole chandelier in the dishwasher and it came up brilliantly!' he adds! They are pretty grubby, so I'll have to do something...

Time to head back to the car, but there's still plenty to look at on the way back.

A sort through a box of printers' plates turns up this:And I discover that I can't read backwards in French! The stallholder is a big help, and I'm able to decide on this one, for fine foods. He thinks it's rather amusing that I'm so interested in little bits of French history... but we all enjoy the chat.Back at the car, the obligatory flyers under the wipers about the next big events - I can't go to this one, but there will be others...So did you spot something you would have snapped up? Will you join me for the next Vide Greniers?