New Display at Things British, Carnaby Street London

New Display at Things British, Carnaby Street London

I went to London yesterday to change my display at Things British and I am so happy with the result! I decided to go with the Jules Verne/ Travel theme of my Around the World in 80 Stamps Collection and used three vintage suitcases as a raised platform. I think it looks a lot more appealing than having the bags on the plain shelf. I wish I had thought of this idea before! 

A Quick snapshot

I was in London last night and decided to have a quick look through the window of Things British while I was near Carnaby Street. The shop was closed, but one of my handbags was on display in the window. It is funny when I think about my first school trip to London when I was 15 and how I thought London was old fashioned ( didn't like Madame Tussaud's ) and ruled by weird habits and customs ( having crisp sandwiches for lunch??). I remember walking on Carnaby street and it still was stuck in a time warp with funky shops and hidden basements stuffed with crazy shoes and vintage clothes. I remember buying bright blue glitter lipstick from on of the shops there.  Never would I have thought I 'd come back, I'd end up living in England and most of all, having my own creations for sale on that same street! Strange, isn't it?

Just for me

Thrift shopping is not always about finding a great unique piece. Sometimes the piece finds you. My all time favourite second hand shop is in Belgium, and every time I go back home - even if it is just for a weekend - I have to stop by and have a peek. The shop has gone through a makeover in the last few months : funky wall paper, crazy chandeliers ( not for sale, unfortunately!) and their latest addition...a grandma's wardrobe full of vintage coats, hats and handbags! I was still opening the entrance door as I saw this beautiful straw-weave handbag peeking out underneath a pile of vintage leather and vinyl purses at the bottom of this treasure wardrobe. In two steps I was there and picked it up, clutching it tightly before anyone else could get their eyes or hands on it ( yes, my sweet mum-and-thrift-shop-ally included... sorry mum!). I didn't even look at the beautiful sixties coats and cloche hats, all i wanted was this bag. Funny enough, I was told by Yuku, the lovely lady that works there, that this bag had been sitting there for weeks and she had been thinking about me (she knows I'm handbag crazy) and knew I would have bought it if I had the chance to be there...and there I was. I paid and left, packed it in my suitcase and now she's here with me in excellent condition and ready to enjoy her second life in England as my new favourite bag!

A note: both mirrors and the closet in the picture are from the same shop!

Crazy Retro Shopping Day

At last Saturday 8th March arrived. I had been waiting weeks for my Crazy Retro Shopping Day. Every year my favourite thriftstore and many others in the country organize a Retro Market and it is becoming a really big thing, last edition was great but this year me and my mum went crazy. I told her to be up and ready by 8.30 so we would be in time for the opening at 10. I thought we could take our time looking at everything and commenting of fun pieces. But forget that, when we arrived at 10.10 the shop was already full and everyone was just grabbing whatever they could find! Being the thriftstore addict that i am, i already went on exploration Thursday to check if they had displayed any retro items...and came home with 5 beautiful bags! I picked up another 5 bags from my favourite thriftstore that Saturday. And after visiting 4 Retro Markets in and around Antwerp that day it added up to a total of ...15 I don't want to sounds like some crazy bag lady, but these bags are hard to find lately. Everyone is into vintage and i see more fashion people visiting these shops whereas before it was junk collector addicts like myself.

Things didn't end here. In Antwerp i found a beautiful yellow sixties coat that i just couldn't resist. I love the buttons, i love the A-line, the yellow is still fresh and popping and what really made me buy it was the tag inside. This coat came from a well-known couture shop in Antwerp, the kind of shops my mum's godmother - a true sixties style icon for my mum and her sisters - would buy her outfits from. It just makes me dream and wonder about the owner of this coat...was she beautiful? Stylish? Did she have a bee hive hairdo and matching yellow shoes? Was she 16 or married? Ahh somethime i think i should open a musuem for all my vintage finds, i could go on forever!

I love kitchen ware!

Noooo i haven't lost my mind, i'm not going crazy over spoons and forks but my latest addiction is the hunt for perfect mold...in the kitchen wares section of my favourite thriftstore! I'm not too fond of the traditional resin molds that are for sale on e-bay or other shops that specialize in resin supplies, they seem too generic or just plain boring most of the time. The kitchen ware section of my thrift store is another story because here i find my treasures : egg holders for the fridge, old fashioned ice cube trays, other trays for i-don't-know-what-goes-where for the kitchen, the shapes and possiblities are endless. More than once i've been greeted with a frown when i walk to the till with an arm full of used ice cube trays, happy about my new thrift store treasures. Seriously, i must be the only person buying these things because some of the trays ( the ones i really don't like) have been sitting there for months. My latest mold is the best i found sofar: an ice cube tray for diamond shaped, faceted ice cubes. I think it is just perfect for making ring charms and i've been trying out some new designs:

Matryoshka in Space

Floating Flowers:

Frozen Diamond:

Mirror Mirror on the Wall - Valentine's Edition

I finally found a use for the brass wire hearts that i bought on my last trip to Syria! I love how an idea can just pop up while cleaning up the crafting boxes and stumbling upon my forgotten treasures. I found these hearts in a little shop right outside the Souk of Aleppo. It wasn't even a craft or supply shop, they were selling bolts and hammers and then i saw these beauties in a box in the corner. I think the shop owner didn't even know why he had them there...they looked like they had been in that corner for the past 100 years. A good reason for me to buy most of his brass shapes inventory! Right in time for Valentine's :)