Va Va Vintage

So last weekend I spotted the perfect pair of black riding boots. You might be thinking its summer what do you want riding boots for?  Well, I think that you’ve got to be ready to make that ideal purchase at any time.  Winter items in Summer and vice versa.

Anyway, so I saw these boots but they were on someone else. I ran after this girl and asked her where they were from. My least favourite response followed – they were from a charity shop. That means that I could never get the same pair of boots cos they’re vintage.  Argh!

I haven’t been on a vintage hunt for a while so it’s about time I got back into it.  I do love vintage shopping.  You can find some absolute gems plus you are safe in the knowledge that not too many people (if any) will have the same item. 

Now that I’ve been bitten by the vintage bug again, my search online for vintage goodies brought me to Delightful Muddle.  The vintage boutique originally began life in the 40′s but it took the owners great grand-daughter Catherine Beck and business partner Becca Gray to bring it back to life.

Currently on the site at the moment is this embroidered top , plenty of summer dresses and also some vintage homewares.  I found these vintage fabric cushion covers along with some tea-cup candles, all without leaving my front room!

Get clicking onto the site and Catherine has informed me that if you order anything online from today to the 10th May you will receive 30% off your order.  May is the first anniversary of the new business and Catherine and Becca want to share the celebration with this great discount offer.

Just go online and enter delightfulbirthday as the promotional code.  Now as you know I need no excuse to shop so I’m off to see what vintage finds I can lay my hands on.

Kitchen Cool….

So it seems that I might be turning into a domestic goddess.  Over the weekend while the other half was sorting out the garden, I was cooking up a storm.  I continuously made biscuits for about 3 hours.  It was like a drug – once I started I couldn’t stop.

Now that I’m finally enjoying spending time in the kitchen, I’ve started looking for some crockery to display my wares.  First up is this delicate handmade cake stand by Polly George.

Not only does Polly create simple, classic bone china crockery with butterflies, but you can also have birds, roses or the quirky Mr & Mrs Jones range.

To make my biscuits a little more interesting, I have found these biscuit cutters from Re-found Objects.  In the shape of the UK, it gives me the chance to be a little patriotic with my baking.

Refound has an extensive range of vintage and new items for the home.  The website is full of unusual finds, such as these American milk glass cake stands or vintage glass jelly moulds.

What more encouragement do you need to show off your kitchen creations?

Desperately Seeking…

Now I’m not a tea drinker, but I might  just have to try to start drinking the stuff after I found these.

These cute little items are part of a range by the designer Tina Tsang.  They are from the ‘blaue blume’ range which you can view and buy from Lifestyle Bazaar.   One Earl Grey and some lemon drizzle cake please!

My Easter Treat (& its not chocolate)

I was surprisingly pleased with my spending levels over Easter weekend.  I didn’t go mad and buy loads of tat that I usually do.  I actually had a game plan.  On Sunday me and the boy went to Spitalfields’ market.  Not to the American Apparel sale…no no no, but to Mimi Berry to get a new purse.  I haven’t been to Mimi for a while, but I will always remember my excitement when I came across her shop / studio on Cheshire Street, London a few years ago.  As you know, I love finding shops which don’t have much presence in the high street and that offer something a little different.  At the time, I felt very privileged to discover Mimi and I did spread the word to a few friends.   I recently checked out her site to see what new styles of bags and purses that she had created for the new season and I wasn’t disappointed.  I instantly fell in love with the Fonzy purse with its foil printed anchor.

However, once I entered the shop, I spied the gorgeous yellow leather Classic Hilda purse and I was not leaving without it!  I couldn’t wait to use it.  I was like a child with a new toy.

If you are looking for a  little something then I suggest you check out Mimi Berry.  The fabrics, quality and design are worth every penny and really good value for money.  Its my birthday in May so I think I will start dropping some hints about the bag below…….

Spring Clean

So as another weekend draws to a close, I have spent most of mine covered in white paint again.  No I’m not making some strange fashion statement, I’m getting the flat ready to put on the market. You know how estate agents always recommend creating a blank canvas for buyers…well we are literally covering the flat in white paint.

Anyway, all this DIY got me thinking.  Spring is the time to get your house in order.  From clearing out the wardrobe to changing the colour scheme in the living room.  Well I’m pleased to say that I have done the first one. I have cleared out some clothes (even some with tags on….I KNOW) only to start replacing them with new ones.
I guess you could say that I’m also doing the second one too. By changing the walls to white I’m hopefully showing off the best features of the flat. 

Doing all of this home improvement stuff makes me want to buy lots of lovely new accessories for when we move.  Three great sites for home inspiration are Cox and Cox, Pedlars and Baileys Home and Garden. 

They all have some great vintage products and Cox and Cox have a beautiful wedding section too.  Cabbages and Roses is another site for home which has a great choice of cushions, linens and fabrics as well as clothing.  All the homewares and fabrics are printed and made in England and it’s always good to know that you are supporting UK businesses.

After spending some more time looking for reasons to crack open that credit card, I also found Colloco, Diana Forrester, Sage, Bouf, Box Brownie Trading and Boudie and Fou.

There are plenty of websites out there devoted to providing us with original and stylish homewares.  I for one don’t need any other encouragement to bring out my flexible friend and buy some little goodies which I won’t find in my nearest Habitat!

Let’s Go Bespoke

As I have a bit of a shoe fetish (the nice kind of fetish) I really wanted some lovely shoes for my wedding.  At the time I started looking all  the specific wedding shoes that I found were not quite right…a bit too much white shiny satin which looked a bit cheap – if you know what I mean.  So then I starting looking for just a really cool pair of designer shoes.  So I looked at Gina, Manolo, Christian Louboutin but I still couldn’t find the right pair.  I felt like Goldilocks.

Finally on one of those wedding forums (I’m not really a wedding forum type person, but that’s another story) I came across Emmy Wedding Shoes.  I thought I had died and gone to heaven.  The range of shoes was so beautiful and the endless options of fabrics and trims was amazing. 

I loved my Emmy shoes.  On my wedding day they made me feel so special.  Dare I say it, I loved them more than I loved my wedding dress!

So I thought that  bespoke shoes were only ‘allowed’ to be created for weddings, but I am pleased to say that I recently came across UpperStreet.com.  Sisters Julia and Katy decided to create a place where all us shoe obsessed women can create our very own unique, designer shoes.  Hallelujah.  This company is truly what BlackGoldDust is about.  Giving consumers a choice and not having to follow the herd and get everything from the high street.

A standard shoe from UpperStreet is around £180.00 which is still the same price as some high street shops, but you get a pair of shoes which hopefully no one else will have.  Oh and if it couldn’t get any better, they also do gift cards. What more encouragement do you need to go shopping for the perfect shoe?

Bag Envy…to go with yesterdays boot envy

So, if I win the lottery this weekend and get those lovely boots from Steve Madden, I would also like this lovely bag from Mimi Berry to go with them…..

Might buy a ticket and a scratchcard to increase my chances…..

Boot Envy

Just a quick one today.  Walked past a Steve Madden and spotted these little beauties…..

So so you might think, but then I saw the fantastic zip on the back.  Now if I wasn’t on lockdown, they would be mine in an instant!

Mmmm mmmm mmm

Shiny shiny.

So I popped into Liberty on Great Marlborough Street, London, last night and obviously that was the first mistake.  Especially  when I was in the sort of mood where only shopping is the only thing that will make me feel better.

The ground floor where the accessories and jewellery live, is where I like to wonder.  So I pottered around leisurely and touched lots of lovely items that I can’t afford, but some of my favourites were housed behind the see through glass case.  As we know, this means that the items behind the glass case are very very expensive.

One of my favourites were some items byIosseliani who I think manage to create beautiful items which are a perfect match of vintage and contemporary.  

Also, I came across some items by Paul Morelli .  AMAZING.  The meditation bells are on my birthday wish list already. 

I did end up buying something well within my budget (hurrah).  It’s this lovely gold-plated bangle  from the Liberty range.  Apologies for the blurry picture – I blame my camera. It absolutely love it.  They also had a necklace too, but I am always a sucker for a new bracelet…plus it was the cheaper of the two!  Thanks to my friend for modelling the bracelet, but you can’t have it.

And finally, one of my favourites Dana Levy has got some very pretty gemstone bracelets in for Spring.  I already have a black semi precious one with a bee charm, but now Dana has extended her range to include stars, feathers and horseshoes.  In a rage of colours, I would like to have a few so I can mix and match.

I really wish the sparkly things didn’t always catch my eye.  Plus, it doesn’t matter what size you are, you can always find some jewellery to fit.

The pitter patter of tiny feet

Quite a few of my friends are pregnant at the moment and I don’t mind telling you how excited I am for them.  As I’ve got older (the less said about that the better) babies have become more of a feature of my life.  Gone are the days when you would spend all day Sunday having a boozy lunch at the pub.  Now when we agree to meet up, we need to find somewhere that is child friendly and has outdoor space for toddlers to run around.

So I’ve done a bit of research on what types of presents I can buy and I came across this site which has some lovely maternity wear, plus loads of cute gifts for the baby.  Babes with Babies also provides a gift wrapping service.  Should you wish, your order will arrive gift wrapped in a cream box with black ribbon – very classy. 

Izzy & Floyd offer personalised baby bundles.  After you’ve looked through their extensive range of products from brand such as Organics for Kids, Noonoo and Celtic Herbal Skincare, you can then buy a personalised bundle bag to put everything in.  The bags can have baby’s name, date of birth and a brief message.  So very cute for the new arrival.

If you fancy treating the little ones to a bit of luxury at an early age, then Stellina Baby is the one for you.  Their collection of 100% Super Soft Cashmere is made using the finest, most precious Italian yarns.   Stellina Baby also offer a range which is 100% cashmere on the outside but 100% cotton on the inside which is perfect for babies who suffer from sensitive skin.

Something to suit everyone’s taste and budget me-thinks.  Bring on the baby boom…