You can never have too many boxes, especially pretty vintage French ones like these!

These beautiful vintage & antique French fabric-covered boxes make eye-catching storage solutions if you are like me and have far too much clutter! They are yet another way to bring flowers and prettiness into the home. Some of these will be for sale in my website later today, and hopefully more to come as I go buying again now the Spring is almost upon us.

19th century Elegance, new treasures listed on my new website today

These beautiful textiles speak for themselves, wonderful pieces from the 19th century, from France & England, please visit my website for more details, thank you!

Archetypal '30s Glamour!

This French Art Deco embroidered cushion cover just oozes '30s glamour! It is an unused panel embroidered on pre-stenciled hemp, it would have been made into an oval silk or velvet backed cushion typical of the period; more details on my website.

2 different versions of the same toile, Les Savoyardes, toile de Bordeaux c1790

Some interesting finds

I had a lovely day visiting my daughter at her university town today, and we couldn't resist visiting some of the antique and vintage shops and found some real bargains, and I bought her a beautiful vintage diamanté necklace. I found some really lovely things for the website and my cabinet in Lewes including a tiny bone doll's fan, a miniature Singer sewing machine, a stunning '20s rag doll, a pretty Victorian silk greeting card, and best of all, the most diaphamous and delicate early 18th century black paisley silk gauze shawl. I think I need to visit her more often!

Interesting, damaged 18th & 19th century fabrics

When I am on the hunt for textiles I don't necessarily pass something over just because it is very worn and damaged; even when riddled with holes, covered in marks or literally falling apart, textiles have a story to tell. Often even early pieces dating to the 18th and 19th centuries like these can be bought for next to nothing, and a lot can be learned from them, their history, method of construction/manufacture, use etc, without being too 'precious' about them as one could be about a piece in excellent condition.

I have a lot of regular customers around the world who collect such pieces for study, interior design, textile design or perhaps to dress a period doll or use as inspiration when decorating a film or stage set . Of course, I am thrilled every time I discover a textile in wonderful condition, but to be honest, I prefer the ratty, tatty pieces like these that I can handle without fear of damaging them. I shall be listing these on ebay this evening.