We’re not great fans of getting up early, but if you want to find good shop stock you just have to make the effort sometimes. In the depths of winter it’s just tooooo painful!! But something felt like it was the right time to hit the markets & car-boots again this weekend – like hedgehogs emerging after hibernation from their pile of leaves! We dusted off the alarm clock and got going at 5am on Saturday morning. Here are some Forthcoming Attractions from the week’s search for vintage collectables.

The early bird might indeed catch the worm, but we caught some birds of our own. This gorgeous 1960s egg cosy set comprises two teak egg cups and linen cosies with wonderful chicken decoration – what a cheery way to start the day. We also picked up a lovely Lord Nelson Pottery rolling pin from the classic ‘Gaytime’ range with its psychedelic flower and bird design.

More fauna with this cute little Chad Valley savings tin featuring the nursery rhyme ‘Hickory Dickory Dock’. The lid has a clock face with movable hands. Kids can learn a nursery rhyme, how to tell the time – and the value of saving the pennies!

We were actually talking about this range of enamelware the day before we went to Saturday’s market – ironically saying that we didn’t come across it as often as we used to! Lo & behold, we find a coffee pot and a kettle. They date from the 1960s/70s and were produced in the former Yugoslavia. We love the simple daisy pattern.

And how about this gorgeous repeating apple design? This vintage basket has its fabulous original cotton liner and waterproof/stain-proof cover. A real favourite find this one!

Summer must be just around the corner if we’re picking up garden accessories. These vintage replacement deckchair covers might be just the thing if your outdoor seating needs sprucing up.

Last but not least, is the striking Blackpool Illuminations brochure featured in the main photo. Amazingly, it’s from 1930, so not far off being a hundred years old! It’s part of a wonderful collection of ephemera we bought last week. It all dates from the 1920s to the 1950s. We’ve just started sorting through it, but there are all kinds of fabulous brochures, magazines and advertisements from this early to mid twentieth century period. The photo above is just a small sample, so we think we’ll have to return to it in more detail in a future post.