Wednesday 18 September 2024

What did I buy?

 At Malvern, there's a house clearance (I presume he is anyway) type stand who has boxes and boxes of "stuff".  I've bought from him before but sometimes he is a bit too spot-on with the value of something so I decide not to buy.  This time I bought:


Several lovely Victorian moulds.  I have a little copper one the same as the horse-shoe/hoof in the middle.  There are 4 of those.  To the left is a pretty jelly mould, and to the right a lovely copper mould.  He had several of these.  I need to polish it up now. I like items of kitchenalia like these.


The chap was muttering something about American tourist piece, ashtray etc.  It is of course a little brass(?) model of an Indian teepee, open at the top, and ideal for repurposing now for joss sticks.  It's fairly rare - none on Ebay, one sold on Etsy and I'm not joining Worthpoint to find out its value on there.


Both French ceramics and from the same pottery by the look of it.  Bought on different stalls and a change from all the blue/turquoise colourway I am normally attracted to.  Our friend Adam had the jug, and of course asked after Keith . . .  It's so hard having to tell friends that he's died and when friends of course reach out to comfort you, so hard to hold it together.




Not my normal fare, and I probably won't bother again, but this is an old vintage Davenports beer crate. Sorry it's such a poor photo.


A little child's chair with a beautiful Elm seat.  Needs some tlc, but I can manage that.


A little doll made from old Welsh fabrics.  No great age to her but as a quilt-maker she appealed to me, and just the plain simplicity of her spoke.



Above is the Mouse pattern I got (much reduced, 70% off!) from Etsy when looking up my bigger mouse from the other day.  Think they are going to be fiddly, but hey, I can do fiddly on occasion.


What I didn't buy, but liked the idea of . . . could make up my own pattern as simple enough.

Yesterday was hot and sunny again and I changed another bed, washed linen and one of the granny quilts. The tops are a generous size with just a little ruffle on the drop down edges rather than a full valence skirt.  The hexagon area covers the top of a double bed, but they are of course generous singles. I did 80% of the ironing pile too.

I did a good bit more tidying up in various places about the garden, and melted!  I rewarded myself with a sit-down in the sunshine on the step outside with a cup of tea and my stitch-ripper and began unpicking the poor quilting on the bigger applique quilt.  I'm just doing the border, not the entire quilt so will have to prevent myself getting OCD about the rest!  It was very pleasant sitting there, I have to say, and grief could be held at bay for a while.  I was listening to a new book on Audible yesterday and can really recommend it.  It's called The Lost Bookshop by Evie Woods and I don't know why I chose it but am so glad that I did.  You get drawn in straight away.  I finally (sadly) finished Edward Rutherford's The Forest in the morning.

Yesterday evening I went out for another evening function (gosh, twice in a week).  It was a Rotary Club quiz night down in town, and in aid of the Builth Heritage Society, which I've finally joined (rather than going as a guest).  Our team came 5th out of 14, which wasn't too bad, but I have to say was NOT due to my contributions, which were few and far between.  It was like trying to do a Codeword when they have just changed the Compiler and you don't have a clue what his/her angle is, favourite words etc!  So many things I had never given a thought to.  Which British county has the shortest coastline?  Which of these 4 countries has the longest etc.  One on Colours was quite fun - 3 colours found in Cluedo; who first appeared in A Study in Scarlett (which I knew).  I couldn't help thinking though, as the room was absolutely packed, well, if I'm going to get Covid again, it stood a good chance of wiping us all out in there if someone had it!

Today I have an appt. at the Bank to discuss savings and whether to invest some in an ISA.  I also have to phone the Council again after another letter from them saying that the last payment didn't go through as Keith had died and the Bank refused to pay it from a deceased person's account.  Yeesh.  If they had their way, they'd have £644 out of me in a month for 3 payments!  2/3 of my pension.  I don't think so.

I shall go to Aldi whilst I'm in Brecon anyway, and kill two birds with one stone.  Fortunately I don't need anything other than cat biscuits from Morrisons there, as they are so expensive.

I am looking out at grey skies this morning an the heating is on for half an hour as it's only 16 deg C (60 deg F) in here and I am chilled. Indoor jobs later I think. 

13 comments:

  1. Meeting friends is important..it helps you see the positives, how well he is appreciated, making you feel better about yourself.
    I am glad that we had separate bank accounts...there were disadvantages, but not missing payments has been a big bonus...after making a list of everything that was going out from both accounts..and being able to decide what I wasn't going to carry on...like the TV licence

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    1. Thank you gz. you're right. Everyone misses him because he was such a character and such fun to be around. We had SUCH happy times. I was just going to phone the Council to see what they are doing with payments etc and found they shut the phone lines at 1p.m. Off the hook then!

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  2. I reckon that doll would go down very well on the American market where that sort of naive style is very popular. I think she's precious.
    BTW, if Keith had ISAs at the bank, they don't give you the money but put it in a sort of holding account. You then have to apply for the money to be paid out. Others might find this useful. I only discovered this when probate figures did not add up.

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    1. There's an idea. She wouldn't be too expensive to post Air Mail either. I have another little French wooden doll who has that same naive look.

      No, Keith didn't have any ISA's but thank you so much for the information. As for Probate, Tam's just asked if I had asked the Bank today (had my meeting) for the 7 years in back statements. I wish she'd reminded me before I went!

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  3. Loved The Lost Bookshop when I read it last year. And I like the things you found at the fair. Intriguingly small horseshoe mould.

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    1. Oh it truly is a delight. I shall be so sad when it's finished. I bought it totally on a whim and am so pleased I did.

      The wee horseshoe moulds must have been for part of a savoury starter I am guessing.

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  4. I love your finds, and the tee-pee was an interesting thing. How clever you were to think of modern day use for it! I found one like it for sale in Australia for $43. Do you know how to use google image search?

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    1. I just love looking for unusual things. Hah - I didn't have to think too hard as remains of joss sticks still inside it! Yes, I did a Google Lens search on it, and the Australian one gave me an idea on value. What would I do without Lens now?!

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  5. Two evening outings in a week, that's exactly what you need, and 5th out of 14 is pretty good going. Those little mice (I nearly typed mouses then!!) are just like the ones that Angela is making, aren't they cute.

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    1. It has helped as it's the evenings that I find most difficult, when I am most aware of being alone with my thoughts.

      The meeces are so sweet - I HAVE to make at least two for Christmas gifts for littlies.

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  6. I thought the mice looked a lot like Angela's also. They'll be lovely Christmas gifts. The moulds you got are very nice, and I like the pottery. The quiz night sounds like fun. They do those here as well. I should go to one.

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  7. It was good to get out and meet people, and do something I've not done for a long long time. I think Angela and I must have found the same pattern.

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