All Change at the Fleetville Vintage Emporium

We decided to have a big change around in our Unit in Ballitos. We sold a couple of bigger bits so brought another Gplan corner unit in (told you i loved them!) with a matching glazed bookcase. Another gplan bookcase has been brought in as well. This one a lift off front so is perfect for keeping things away from prying hands.

The starburst mirror in the above picture sold as soon as i'd hung it!

 

We've got lots of coffee tables in stock at the moment. We also have some large art prints. Although one seems to have found its way onto my wall at home...

In the main emporium a few of our items have found their way onto display in the front room of the shop. This portmeirion coffee set and this chair

 

Upcoming Fairs June

We've got 2 fairs planned for June. Firstly we'll be at Wanstead Vintage and Brocante fair  on the 7th June.  Its the 4th Birthday.  so it should be a good one.
Then the weekend after we'll be at the Hackney Flea Market.

So come on down and see us!

Etsy Store

We've been a bit quite recently but our Etsy store has reopened! Here you'll be able to find a selection of our clothing. So if you've seen something on our stall at a vintage fair and regret not buying it now's your chance!

 

And we're offering all our blog readers 10% off with the discount code BLOG10

Gin Lane Vintage

We'll be adding more stock in the next week including lots more summer dresses, shirts and tops and some amazing skirts.

 

Around my home : Llolyd Loom

Ive never really been a fan of Lloyd loom furniture. A bit too shabby chic for me. However when my mum told me she was saving me a 1950's Lloyd loom chair i was interested! We used it in my daughters bedroom to sit on to feed her before bed.

With the addition of a Gin cushion it is so comfy to sit on.

 The chair isnt made from wicker or cane but paper.  Invented in 1917 by American Marshall B. Lloyd. paper is wrapped round a steel wire providing a tough material that as it is smooth will not snag clothing as some wicker furniture can.
 In 1922 British Company Lloyd Loom got the license to manufacture in England. The beauty of these pieces is that they can be painted any colour to fit in with your home. We picked grey for ours. When buying Lloyd loom chairs turn the chair upside down to check for a makers mark. Although some are made of card so over the years may have come off. Below is the makers mark on my chair. This one is a plastic plaque.

Around my home: Childs room

 When decorating my daughters room i know i didn't want it to be a generic pink fest of a girls room, full of sparkles and princesses. Nothing wrong with that, just not my taste. We decided to go for lots of bright pictures of animals. It started with these two. We found them at a car boot, and they"re actually place-mats. I just gaffer taped some string to the back and hooked them to the wall!

 Next came these two, Bought from the amazing Pineapple retro in the new forest, well worth a visit if you're in the area. They're actually 1970's unused greeting cards by illustrator Gwyneth Mamlok. These are the first two we've framed but  ive got some more as well.....

Then along came these guys! These are my daughters absolute favorites!

I bought three Jan Pieńkowski wall murals from a local charity shop. Jan Pieńkowski is a Polish-born  author and illustrator of children's books , most famous for the Meg and Mog books he created with Helen Nicoll. I remember reading these books when i was a child.
Below are the other two murals we have, weather and homes.

  Carrying on with the Jan Pieńkowsk theme i have a 'cuckootape' this is a measuring tape for sewing but i'm thinking of turning it into a height chart.

North London Vintage Market 3rd 4th May

Busy weekend at the north london Vintage market this last weekend. I didnt take many pictures as i was suffering from man-flu. But if you go on the NLVM Facebook they took loads so you can see the amazing stock the traders brought.

 

Above is the one picture of my stall i managed to take all weekend!

 

 

This 50's skirt and dress found new homes

 

We also sold rather a lot of clip on earrings.

as i'd worked so hard a treat myself to this 1950's paisley print dress from a fellow trader. Next fair is on the 7th and 8th June.

Trader Diaries: Cambridge with Judys affordable vintage fair

This saturday found us in Cambridge to trade with Judy's affordable vintage fair. As we wanted to be on the road by 7am. We loaded up the car the night before. Note the pram. Elsie came too!

We got to the venue parked on the double yellows outside and then had to carry this lot up the stairs to the hall upstairs. Needless to say by the end of it i'd got a very non glamorous sweat on!

 

Jim went off to park the car leaving me to change this lot above into this below

 

 Just in time to grab a coffee before the doors opened at 10.30 Unfortunately Cambridge didn't seem to be a good fit for us so i don't think we'll be back. But we did have a nice day catching up with Michelle from Hidden in the rafters and having a good old gossip.

Buying Vintage clothing: sizing, know your numbers.

Ive been selling vintage clothing for a number of years now and a common misconception is sizing on items. People put back amazing items that would probably fit them all because of a number! Vintage sizes differ so much from modern sizes i find it easier to ignore the label all together. One girl refused to try on a tiny 50's dress with an original label that said it was a 16 as she said she was a 8 and it would be too big for her. Sad thing is it would have most probably fit her perfect!
 One of the most useful things you can know when vintage shopping is your measurements. Bust, waist and hips. Sellers at vintage fairs normally know their stock inside out and will be able to tell you roughly what size an item is or will measure it for you and help you determine whether it will fit.

Because i'm lazy i normally carry a tape measure with me when vintage shopping and before i even try anything on i measure the bust and waist and judge whether it would fit me. Only then i take it to the changing room. Sometimes if the measurements are correct i buy it without trying on. This 1950's dress i bought whilst i was trading at the classic car boot fair. There wasn't time/facilities to try on so i whipped out the trusty tape measure, handed over the money and it was mine. Mind you i am a sucker for a novelty print!

Around my home: Hornsea studiocraft vase

My mum used to sell mid century stuff, I used to love going home as everytime i said i liked something she said have it! I didnt abuse this but i had to have this Hornsea vase. It has a small clip at the base which makes it less valuable. I don't really care as i just put the chipped bit next to the wall!

Its a rare 1960's  "studiocraft" waisted vase. Designed by John Clappison. I love the pattern. Looks a bit (lot) like orla kiely doesnt it?!

Here it is pictured next to a  Hornsea "multicoloured slip-ware" small vase that i haven't decided whether im keeping or not.

Spotlight on: portmeirion pottery

Todays Spotlight on is about Portmeirion 60's coffee sets. I have a few in stock at the moment. Not as popular as they once were, but still some of my favorite pieces from this period due to their distinctive look.  Portmeirion was founded in 1960 by the  pottery designer Susan Williams-Ellis and her husband Euan Cooper-Willis.

 

The above set is the 'Totem" pattern, the blue color is quite rare. Amber and olive green are most common with white been rarest of all. What i love most about the blue set is how striking it is.This was a landmark design was made by making abstract shapes in the moulds giving a raised relief pattern

The above two sets are the Cypher design (named because the design resembles hieroglyphics). Notice the change in handle shape. This shape is called the 'serif'  it was introduced in 1963. Again this pattern is textured.  When buying the serif shape always have a look at the lid as they are easy damaged and often been repaired. Most popular of the serif shape was the magic city pattern. In fact it was probably the most popular pattern of its time.Magic city differs from the above patterns as it was a transfer print.