That's all folks !

Has it really only been a year since I opened my dream of a shop ? 








Its been a roller coaster of thrills, fun, huge learning curve and hard, hard work.

 I've met some wonderful people, made some friends I am sure I will keep for life.

I've laughed, cried, screamed and raged.

I've learnt there's nowt as strange as folk.

I've realised just how much work and effort it takes to set up and run your own shop.

I've discovered there really are not enough hours in the day.

I have nothing but the utmost respect for all those independent businesses out there who have battled on through the years to continue their dream.

I've learnt that actually you can't have it all.

I've realised I love my family more than anything else and that they really must come first.

So its goodbye shop,

hello 9 - 5, holidays, family, less stress, tidy home, smiley mummy,

time for friends, lazy Sundays, housework and dreaming.......

Thank you to everybody who took the time to support and encourage me,

who visited my shop to chat and browse, to mooch and buy, who purchased from afar on facebook and twitter , who came back time after time to buy and build up friendship.

Mostly thank you to my wonderful husband who never once said "no you can't" who has always stood by me, supported me, worked for me, built, nailed, fixed, painted, carried and more.

For always allowing me to have my dreams.  I love you for all that you do and all that you are.




The MAD blog Awards 2014







I have to say I was more than a little stunned to be told on Twitter that my blog had made it to the final of the Mad Blog awards.  I  checked the site twice to make sure it was my name on the list and I wasn't just willing it to be there !

This wonderful accolade comes at the end of a whirlwind year that saw me opening (and closing) my own shop.  I also moved my blog across to wordpress to try and combine it with an online shop but this proved more difficult to manage than I anticipated, so moved back to the much more easier to use blogger.  All of these factors (I thought) would have really impacted on my readership, but obviously I underestimated the loyalty of the wonderful people who follow my  escapades and blog.

THANK YOU

I am busy this week closing up the shop.  A sad/happy  experience, sad because it has been a long term dream of mine to own my own shop but the reality is much harder when you have young children, travel, stock etc etc.  But on the happy side I get back the precious quality time with my young twins, No 1 son and long suffering hubby. We will have time for all the fun stuff we used to do and I get to blog more again ! 


 

 I have made it to the finals but am up against some pretty amazing Homes and Interiors bloggers, So if you would just take a minute to follow the link Vote for the white approach  
scroll down to best homes and Interiors and enter the white approach.  I would love you to the moon and back.

THANK YOU AGAIN LOVELY PEEPS

Also Many thanks to :

The very huggable Sally Whittle for putting on what I am sure will be another fantastic event.
&
The very stylish Brabantia who are the sponsors for our category.


Brabantia

Finally lots of luck to the other finalists in my group :

Love Chic Living
Oh so Amelia
Side Street Style
Tigerlilly Quinn

The early bird and all that

Follow my blog with Bloglovin Getting back into the swing of the early starts for the bootsale after a long break can take some willpower.  I paid for my late arrival last week by having to park some distance from the market.  No such worries this morning.  I was up and out of bed at 5.30 without the aid of an alarm clock, my only worry was that it would still be raining, it wasn't , yipee!

I had no trouble parking this morning but also found, maybe I was a tiny bit early as there was barely a car or van on the site.



I took the opportunity to grab a coffee and a loo break so I wouldn't have any distractions once the gates opened proper to the sellers.  I always find this stage of the morning unsettling, it always appears like lots of people are delving into boots and backs of vans and making off with all manner of treasure.  Once I make my first purchase I am fine and feel like I am off and running.  The first purchase this morning was :



This fabulous  old plaster framed picture.  Obviously it was only the frame I was interested in and even in its battered state I think its wonderful !  Not even going to repair it, I know there are buyers in my shop who will also appreciate its shabby beauty and if nobody buys it, it will come home with me.


Always love a pretty stool, this will look perfect painted and also be a really useful addition to the home.




Pair of modern but pretty jugs



oh ! oh! oh!  If you can't have mason jars then these are the next best thing !  Snapped up these four La Parfait Preserve jars out from under the nose of a woman who was consulting a friend on the phone.  If you snooze, you loose ladies.



New wicker bicycle basket.


Pretty yellow enamel jug with pewter lid



Time for Tee !  Must be German looking at the spelling.  Love this.




I always try to find local pottery.  Love this pretty jar made by a local potter in Devon.



Two old slate boards, complete with little wooden shelf for the chalk.

Yep, definitely getting back into the bootsale swing of things.

Linking up with the lovely Liz at Magpie Monday

Wallpaper time

The walls of most of the rooms in our home are painted white, giving a feeling of bright, light and space.  Occasionally though I come across wallpaper I just have to find a place for.  This happened several years ago when I found rolls of Laura Ashley Summer Palace in a sale bin.  My hubby wasn't sure about the bright vibrant pink birds, but I loved it and just knew it would work with all the white.  We used it in the hallway and painted the stairs pink to match, never failing to get comments from visitors..



Its been up for about 5 yrs now and is looking a little tired so I thought I'd look for something equally stunning to replace it.   Because this is a feature wall as you walk into the house and only needs a few rolls of paper, I can afford to spend a little extra on something really special which will transform the space but not blow the budget.  This is always a good idea if you want to introduce some pattern or colour into a room without spending a fortune.




I love this Mrs Peel  by Fired Earth 




Or how about a game of Mini Moderns Backgammon in Mustard from John Lewis




Love this Mini moderns "Do you live in a town? " 



Subtle but beautiful Sanderson Squirrel and a dove





This is my favourite at the moment  Marimekko Ystavat Wallpaper in grey

I'll let you know what we decide on.

Bootsale Season is back !

In the days before the shop and the storms, I was known to drag myself out of bed at 5.30am every Sunday come hell or high water and whatever the season.  This past winter I have to admit to rolling over and flinging the alarm clock across the room or if I was feeling a little uncertain, dragging myself out of bed and peeking through the curtains before hurrying back to my warm cosy nest.

Not this morning though.

The forecast was for bright sunnyness and even my normally stalwart hubby wasn't going to deter me when he declared from the depths of the duvet that he wasn't coming.  I positively sprung out of bed (well, not really, but you get the picture) and set off to the Exeter cattle market with that lovely feeling of adventure and what will I find today ness !

I wasn't actually prepared for the the sight that met me as I rounded the corner of the road on Marsh barton.  Queues of cars in every direction !  I think almost the whole of Devon had turned out.  Unable to park in my usual early bird car park I had to settle for a bit of a hike to get to the bootsale.

Not impressed !

Although there were more sellers than the park could accommodate it wasn't the greatest day in terms of treasure found, or maybe I was particularly selective as I am closing the shop and don't really want too much stock at the moment.

Here is a selection from my little haul.



Pretty pink ceramic heart bowl and butter dish 



Pale buttermilk metal planter/basket




 Basket !  ah !  How I love wicker baskets !





Wooden utensil trug



Vintage painted mirror, will clean this up and give it a little shabby treatment and it will be good to go.



A couple of pretty wooden heart trugs and a huge haul of painted wooden hearts

Likig up with the lovely Liz at #MagpieModay


One man's trash




 


I found this monster of a table at the bootsale.  It was dark, stained and very, very heavy solid wood.  The top was beyond redemption but I could immediately see the potential with all the detail to the underside and legs.

When I looked at the piece I imagined a wonderful ocean swept piece of furniture sitting perfectly in a beachside retreat.



After a LOT of sanding, several coats of white paint, a top coat of beautiful clouded sky from the Origins range by Dulux, some gently rubbing down and waxing I am really, really pleased with the result and if it doesn’t sell.  I’m keeping it !