You might have gotten the gist by now – I love old curio things. Someone asked me today why I like antiques and vintage things so much – what’s the point in surrounding myself with possessions of people who are long home, things which belong to the past. That’s an easy one to answer really – I’m fascinated by the past, the history which seems so far away but in fact it’s only been some 50 years or so. I like looking at old chairs and imagining who sat on them. I enjoy finding the most stunning silver ring amongst random cutlery which may have been the bond of a beautiful love from a century ago. Why, how could you not be fascinated by that?!
Today’s haul is obviously not your standard beauty/fashion haul. It’s the aftermath of me popping into my local Curio Shop (the best thing that’s ever happened to Walsall, just saying) and also of some rather long hours spent on E-bay. As you do.
First of all, I got these two pretty brass pin dishes. They look even better in real life than they do in the picture! Here’s a tip for you – if you ever buy anything brassy, the easiest (and cheapest) way to clean it is to mix a little bit of salt and some white wine vinegar. The tarnish will disappear within seconds. The silver marcasite ring and St Christopher pendant are both off E-bay – they’re both made of real silver and are pretty damn beautiful (if I say so) and cost something silly like £2 each. The brass pot is a travel treat I picked up from a charity shop in Oxford – it was a little pricey (about £6) but then you know that it’s one of a kind! The white jug and four silver forks are from the Curio Shop too, they were so inexpensive (50p a pop for the cutlery) that I will definitely go back for some more. One of the forks is more than 130 years old, how crazy is that! I doubt that the cutlery from IKEA would last thing long even if you took the best care of it. Can we also stop and admire the white jug? It looks like something you’d get off Anthropologie for £50, right?!
Do you ever buy things from charity shops and curio shops?
