Forthcoming Attractions: Early April 2012

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vintage Lena & Al Eklund tin coasters and vintage jigsaw with hey diddle diddle nursery rhyme illustration

We’ve assembled some new items that we’ve picked up recently. They’re all arranged on a lovely vintage kitchenette – itself a recent auction purchase.

vintage Lena & Al Eklund tin coasters and vintage jigsaw with hey diddle diddle nursery rhyme illustration

We often put these kitchenettes in our antiques centre pitch – they’re good sellers and an added advantage is that they’re great for displaying lots of other items whilst they wait for someone to give them a good home. They require varying amounts of work when we buy them – a good wash usually – then painting, fresh lining paper etc. This one’s had its thorough wash, but apart from that, it’s good to go. We like its caramel colour and daisy patterned paper.

pair of vintage perpetual calendars

Moving onto the smaller items – two perpetual calendars to start with – one wooden, one red-orange plastic. Both probably dating from the 1970s. Perfect for the home office desk or shelf.

TG Green Domino spotted cream jug and vintage Worcester Ware coffee tin

Also sitting on the upper shelves are this pottery jug & coffee tin – slightly earlier in vintage – both 1950s/60s. The jug was produced by T G Green and is from their ‘Domino’ range – we like the colour and simple polka dot design – ideal as a milk jug or for displaying cut flowers.

vintage Worcester Ware coffee tin

The coffee tin was produced by Worcester Ware. They made some lovely metalware items around this time – storage tins, place mats, serving trays, waste paper bins and so on.

set of vintage Lena & Al Eklund tin coasters

Sticking with the metalware theme, we have this very vibrant set of coasters. These were designed by Lena & Al Eklund and produced by Laurids Lonborg of Denmark. Are they fruit trees or flowers?

vintage jigsaw with hey diddle diddle nursery rhyme illustration

Next to the coasters on the main photo is this fabulous children’s wooden jigsaw. It features the nursery rhyme, ‘Hey diddle, diddle’. It was made by Arrow Games Ltd and we guess it dates from the 1960s. We love the illustration – it is signed by the artist ‘Hutchings’ although we haven’t established a first name yet – perhaps someone out there knows?

vintage Mousie Mousie party game

This sweet little party game will be of a similar age – this one produced by Spears Games. Justin says he’s got some vague memories of playing this with his granny. Who needs an X-box when you’ve got ‘Mousie-Mousie’?

pair of vintage Thermos flasks

With summer approaching, thoughts turn to picnics, camping and trips to the beach. Colourful melamine and vintage Thermos flasks always prove popular from now until November.

pair of vintage Thermos flasks

This sweet little vase was made by Hornsea Pottery and is part of their ‘Rainbow’ range. There were lots of shapes made in this pattern – plant pots, vases, ashtrays and cruet sets.

vintage saucepan on atomic wire pan stand

To the left of the main photo is this tall pan stand – the red ‘atomic’ ball feet are a nice touch. On it sits a set of three aluminium saucepans with teak handles – they’re totally unused and have a great stylised flower design in eye-catching orange & blue.

various vintage enamel kitchenalia items

We always make sure we have a selection of vintage enamelware in stock. Its always popular as it gives a retro feel to the most modern of kitchens, without breaking the bank!

Potato masher… we think!

Potato masher banner

We often feature mid-twentieth century items in our blog posts, but we also have a real passion for old country furniture.

We picked up this wonderful piece of rustic kitchenalia – we think it’s an antique potato masher.

detail of antique cheese maker

Perhaps Irish in origin, although we’re not sure at this stage… a bit more research is required.  It’s a very unusual piece.

BLOG UPDATE: 22nd June. We now think that the object in question is actually a cheese press. The wet cheese, contained within a cloth is pressed by the wooden block, the excess liquid draining through the holes. We’re still not sure about the country of origin. British/Irish is still likely, although continental Europe is a possibility – and we were also sent pictures of a very similarly designed piece which was in a U.S. auction of farm machinery. (Thanks to Erik Schepers).

If you like cottage interiors or country furniture, these books are well worth a look:


Irish Country Furniture (Amazon UK)
Irish Country Furniture 1700-1950 book
Irish Country Furniture (Amazon US)

English Country Interiors book English Country Furniture book
English Cottage Interiors (Amazon UK)
English Country Furniture (Amazon UK)
English Cottage Interiors (Amazon US)
English Country Furniture (Amazon US)

U is for… Utensils

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group shot of vintage kitchen utensils | H is for Home

We’re taking a look at vintage utensils this week – those useful, kitchen tools from the humble wooden spoon to the wonderfully named kitchemajig.

No kitchen should be without a wooden spoon – preferably a few.

antique wooden dairy bowl and spoon | H is for Home

They come in a wide variety of sizes, have multiple uses, they don’t scratch pots & pans… and also develop a lovely character over years of use.

We keep ours in this lovely, old wooden rack…

antique wooden spoon holder | H is for Home

…another potful next to the stove…

vintage stoneware utensil jar with utensils | H is for Home

…and still more hanging from this ancient iron well hook.

group of utensils hanging from antique iron well hook | H is for Home

It’s useful having them close at hand wherever we happen to be working in the kitchen. There’s always the perfect spoon for a particular job.

This one has such a wonderful patina that it’s now been retired from general use and sits happily on a shelf enjoying its life of leisure… with a pair of child’s antique wooden clogs for company!

vintage wooden spoon with small antique clogs on mantlepiece | H is for Home

Of course kitchen tools don’t stop with the wooden spoon… there are palette knives, ladles, forks, fish slices, whisks etc.

Some utensils are multi-functional, like the aforementioned kitchemajig…

vintage kitchemajig | H is for Home

…others have very specific uses such as the tomato slicer, butter curler and pastry blender.

vintage Prestige tomato slicer | H is for Home

vintage butter curler | H is for Home

vintage pastry blender | H is for Home

Do rolling pins count as utensils?

vintage Pyrex glass rolling pin | H is for Home

We think they probably do – made from wood, pottery, marble, or in the case of this Pyrex example, glass.

The heyday for utensils – well our favourite era at least – was the 1950s & 60s. Names such as Skyline, Prestige & Tala.

Chrome & stainless steel tools mounted on lovely painted wooden handles available in a rainbow of colours.

detail of colourful vintage utensil handles | H is for Home

They’re a great way of adding a vintage touch to an otherwise contemporary kitchen. They look good in sets of the same colour…

set of orange vintage kitchen utensils | H is for Home

…or mixed & matched.

set of vintage multi-coloured kitchen utensils | H is for Home

We picked up this wonderful set recently – boxed and with its original hanging rack. One small problem though, someone was obviously in desperate need of the lipped, oval spoon… and removed it.

set of red vintage skyline utensils | H is for Home

We’re now on a quest for a 50-year-old lipped spoon, in pristine condition, in the right colours – no easy task!

We’ve got boxes full of coffee services short of one cup, storage jars waiting for matching lids and cutlery sets missing the odd knife or teaspoon. It’s all a matter of keeping your eyes open and being patient in your quest.

We’re currently relishing reading through a huge pile of 1950s/60 Ideal Home magazines, they’re full of fantastic ads for furniture, fabrics and housewares, including the odd one for kitchen utensils…

…like these for Tala and Prestige.

vintage Prestige utensils magazine advertisement | H is for Home

By coincidence, just as we were writing this post, we sold this lovely Prestige set with their classic 1950s, diamond-patterned handles.

vintage 1950s Prestige utensil set | H is for Home

If you manage to find one that you love, a kitchen utensil is of those wonderful items that can give you a little bit of pleasure every time you use it – have you got a favourite?

E is for… Enamel

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Vintage chocolate brown enamel saucepan Vintage red, daisy-patterned enamel bowl Vintage Cathrineholm sky blue enamel saucepan

Antique orange enamel candle holder Vintage cream coloured enamel colander Vintage orange enamel bread bin

Vintage cream coloured enamel bread bin set of 3 vintage chocolate brown enamel saucepans Vintage yellow enamel coffee pot

We’re big fans of vintage enamel homewares. The process involves paint actually being baked onto metal, glass or ceramics. Used in all manner of household items, it’s practical, hard wearing and incorporates some fantastic colours & patterns.

Also, a bit of wear and tear is no bad thing – a few small chips and dents create a lovely, homely, lived-in patina – not usually the case with other materials such as pottery and glass.