10 January 2008

Time Waits For No Man ... or Woman ...


... and we're almost 11 days into January already ... and I seem to have achieved nowhere near as much as I'd intended in this last week and a bit.


The next 3-day Shepton Mallet antiques fair is from 18-20 January (so no birthday party for Mum on the 20th I'm afraid!) and what with one thing and another, I have only 4 free days during which to sort and pack stock. And I have no idea what to take this time. I have one rather lovely Victorian hexagonal patchwork quilt which I need to iron before it goes on display and that is the only exciting item I can think of. I'm obviously not in the right frame of mind yet, because the shed is full to brimming and there MUST be plenty there that I can take, and the sitting room floor is once again lost to piles of stock which P and I brought out from the storage unit the other day. We have finally got rid of the large unit and crammed everything into one less than half the size. So what a lot of money we've wasted this year in storage costs. Ridiculous. I just MUST NOT buy anything until everything else is sold. Can you see a flaw in that thought process? I most certainly can!


I still have a couple of mannequins for sale, and of course miles of lace trim, mountains of buttons, yards of fabric and enough eiderdowns and quilts to create a full life-size Princess and the Pea story. But ... is any of this what the visitors to Shepton want in January? Who can say? A new year might well mean a totally new breed of customer wanting totally different goods from the customers who came in 2007. I wonder if they might like blanket coats. I've made a few in the last week or so - perhaps I could take them. I still have the amazing wedding dress I mentioned in a post some weeks ago, but it's so voluminous that it will fill half my pitch - and half the car space too. Not a viable item I don't think.


This time I have booked a double pitch and Liz (who is at Dairy House with me) is taking half. We've booked it for the whole year. Liz sells furniture among other things, so as we're planning on combining the two pitches things could look quite different this time. We could also get quite confused because the other Liz (you'll remember her - she gets around the blogs quite well) has booked to do Shepton and her pitch is exactly opposite me. I wonder how many times the wrong one will answer if I call out their name! I'm looking forward to this fair as it will, as a consequence, have quite a different feel.


Thank you all for your wonderful and encouraging comments about the Dairy House Antiques venture. I think I've replied to most of you, but if I've missed you, or you can't be contacted (I know a couple of you can't), then please accept my thanks. Rest assured I read all your comments and please keep them coming! I've added the photos to the DHA website now, and a list of towns and villages within a 50-mile radius for those of you planning a trip to the Wiltshire/Dorset area! I shall be adding more photos and information as time goes on with, hopefully, the opportunity to buy from the website too. I didn't go there today as we've just spent a couple of days up in Northamptonshire at a sad family occasion. However, to balance things out we shall be attending a family wedding in a couple of weeks' time and yesterday heard of a couple of summertime babies in the offing.


To round off this post I'll change to a farming theme ... you might like to know that Han and Rob are now the proud owners of 2 Gloucester Old Spot piglets named Pip and Squeak! They were a Christmas present from Rob's parents - and very much a surprise! Here's a photo although it's not very clear.
I must also tell you that I now have a jamjar of hay ... yes, hay ... on my desk. My farmer uncle gave me a bag of it on Tuesday. I have mentioned the farm before, and you may recall that I spent many childhood holidays there helping with haymaking, milking etc. Well, whenever some really good, sweet-smelling hay is made my uncle thinks of me, bless him! He presented me with a good-sized bag of it - which my cousin is selling for rabbits in her farm shop. He knew what my reaction would be - I couldn't get the bag open quick enough to put my nose in and take a deep breath. It's a better fix than chocolate, so that's saying something! About 10 years ago in my typesetting days, when I sat all day every day at my desk I had a similar jar of a handful of equally good hay. I used to sit down, switch on the computer, unscrew the jar, have a good sniff of the hay, put the lid back on and get on with my work. Many of you will by now have switched off your machines or clicked away from Vintage to Victorian vowing never to return to read of the exploits of this mad woman, but those of you who have smelled the freshest, sweetest newmown hay will hopefully stay with me every step of the way. You will understand ... and will appreciate the fact that this is September hay. Remember that good sunny spell we had in September after all that foul weather during normal haymaking season? Well, September turned up trumps and produced the sweetest hay ever! Do you think I should make some hay sleep pillows? Perhaps not pillows - hanging sachets might be preferable!! Hmmm ... food for thought there. Perhaps hay could be the new lavender?

12 comments:

Anonymous said...

You sound very busy! It's good if you can take time out to smell the hay. I love that smell too...it reminds me of haymaking when I was a child. We spent hours playing among the bales, building dens. The pigs are cute too.
Margaret and Noreen at THY

Niki Fretwell said...

Hi Sue,
Looking forward to Shepton....it sounds like it will be lots of fun for you this year, with Liz opposite! I shall of course visit you both!

Love those baby pigs - what an amazing Christmas gift!

The sweet smelling hay bags sound like a fun idea!! Made with vintage fabrics of course!
Niki x

Clare and Mike said...

Hi Sue

I can totally relate to the hay-smelling thing! When I was young, we lived opposite a farm and I spent most of childhood in the hay barn! It is a certain smell which evokes memories of carefree childhood days. Until the 'naughty boy from down the lane' set alight to the barn - now that's a story!!

This was a wonderful post!

C xx

bigbikerbob said...

I wonder whats in this Jar ? Mmm smells o aaaaaaaah tissshooo damn hayfever.No seriously Sue thanks for the info.

Tracy x said...

you are soooo busy!
it makes my life seem slow paced :)
i love hearing about all your goodies but it makes me stamp my feet in frustration that i am not near enough to purchase anything - mannequins xxxx
i am totally with you on the hay sniffing - oh and old books.
we are not mad - are we.......
tracy x

A Saucerful Of Secrets said...

Hi there, I've enjoyed your post, I can understand your jar with hay compulsion, smells can take us to far and distant places, mad? mad is good. Keep sniffing and good luck with Shepton and your new venture. Best Wishes from Annie x

Jillian's Bella Rosa Antiques said...

Oh I just found your blog after clicking around and over....I'd like to add you to my favs...I'm such an antiquer and your blog looks so interesting!

~ Jillian

Alchamillamolly said...

Hi posted a comment and then put my ebay password in for some strange reason and lost the comment. So here I am again! Love the jar of hay - you arent mad - when my Mam gave me my 'best' doll out of the loft I sniffed her and she smelled just as I remember her, I think its was new rubber doll smell! Thank you for your comment I have done something drastic this am emailed them with an ultimatum! Anyway enough of that horrible subject - hope your fair goes well, I am sure you will get it right on the day. I am thinking of taking a cabinet in a place called Elsecarr in South Yorkshire when I get unpacked (XMas 2010??) and selling some of my collected bits. Right must get back to work - sneaking on in the lunch hour to cheer myself up

Lucy Bloom said...

Hi Sue, your living room floor sounds like my dining room floor, except I don't have a valid reason for it, just piles of my own junk! Those pigs are adorable. Good luck with the Fair this weekend, wish I was going.
Lucy x

Sandra Evertson said...

Great blog!
Two Cuteies!
Sandra Evertson

Pigtown*Design said...

LOVE the little old spots! They're darling and their names are perfect!

Hope that Shepton went well...

Did you see my post on time & tide? It was for a project at the V&A...

bigbikerbob said...

Hi Sue, My wife said its a pity the pig photo wasn't too clear as she loves pigs.
By the way its about time you did part two of (Sept last)"rockin'blogin" isn't it?,I love my music and always have some playing while on the computer.