Budding Novelists, English Victorian Bamboo & Ardingly Antiques Fair
Good Morning
from
Arundel Eccentrics
It was creative writing workshop last night.
Sadly we are coming to the end of the course.
I'm sure I won't be the only person to miss it.
Like many clubs
we've all built up a great rapport and encourage
each other to go a bit further with writing.
Our mentor worked for many years on
The Sunday Times
Not only is he very knowledgable ,
he's patient with it.
He needs to be to keep us all in check. Ha ha
We've been holding the meetings
in the house of a mutual friend
while the friend has been world hopping.
And yes, the friend was aware of it...LOL
That would have been funny,
climbing in the windows to hold
clandestine writing club meetings.
Even more amusing on exit, after a glass of wine in the break.
Now the friend has returned,
we are convening in
The Victoria Institute
in Tarrant Street.
The Institute was given to the people of Arundel by
the then Duke of Norfolk in the 19th century.
Its a beautiful building,
just in need of some tlc at the moment.
Beautiful sunny day here in Arundel.
That's good news as my chum
Allie is coming round to help me finish all
the furniture I've been working on for Ardingly Antiques Fair.
Its next Tuesday and Wednesday, by the way.
You will find us at
Shopping arcade number 68.
Do stop by and say hello if you are there.
 |
| lovely stand//I wonder whose this is ? LOL |
English 19th century bamboo
Today we'll be finishing work on
English Victorian Bamboo.
Here are a couple of our
English Victorian Bamboo Tables
in
Homes and Gardens Magazine.
So...how did they come to be in such a prestigious interiors magazine?
When this is how we found them.............
 |
| sorry state of affairs hey? |
Now.....you may think, its just a tatty
old table lying there in grannies shed
or down at the car boot sale.
You may think its from China, and it's repro.
Or maybe, that its old, but also from the orient.
Its a fascinating story and that table has
been around a lot longer than you have.
Well....unless you happen to be about 150 years old, that is.
The furniture was made circa 1860,
many of the factories were in London and Birmingham.
There were around 250 factories producing the pieces.
There are a few sites on line you can check it all out.
Gary Sharpe now lives in
Edmonton Canada,
though, for 20 years,
used to be an antique dealer in the UK.
His site is full of interesting, interiors information,
and his knowledge on
English Victorian Bamboo
is extensive.
Worth checking out...ha ha, and no, he's not paying me
 |
| Victorian Bamboo Table...with lions and leopards this featured in Homes and Gardens magazine in September |
 |
| Victorian Bamboo table....with chickens decoupage Have a look on this link. there is a massive list of all the factories. |
 |
| Victorian Bamboo Table with Strawberries...English of course ha ha |
We track down these sad and battered tables and bring them home.
They would probably have rattan on the table surface, or lacquer, or sometimes leather..
We clean them up, restore and sturdy them..........
 |
| Victorian Bamboo Table with Gilt and botanicals decoupage |
and then we paint and decorate them....
if they are in good shape we like to keep them original as well
 |
| Victorian Bamboo table with original lacquer |
 |
| Victorian Bamboo table with shell decoupage |
The we send them on their way....for another 100 years or more.........
some go via some extremely posh shops in London and New York.
watch out for this one in
June's edition of Homes and Gardens magazine
 |
| Victorian Bamboo table with Fish decoupage |
many go abroad to start new lives,
appearing in some upmarket stores throughout the US
 |
| Victorian Bamboo tables, chests and cabinets |
 |
| Victorian Bamboo Table with chinoiserie ...we had my clever, artist, Aunty paint this, and it sits very well with original painted pieces. |
 |
| Victorian Bamboo Table with hunting scene. She painted this for us as also |
 |
| Victorian Bamboo table....with butterflies decoupage |
 |
| Victorian Bamboo table with leather |
We were lucky to find a bedroom set of almost perfect bamboo.
 |
| We just decorated the top ...the rest we left original |
 |
| Victorian bamboo bookcase with fish decoupage. |
This is quite unusual...we don't often find such large bookcases.
 |
| English Victorian Bamboo Bookcase |
So, I had better get myself down to the studio
and resuscitate some more of those sad tables.
 |
| Victorian Bamboo Cabinet |
 |
| Dragonflies on a Victorian Bamboo table |
All our latest bamboo will be featured soon on our website
We are only open by appointment at the moment,
and 10-4pm on Saturdays
but do let us know if you would like to go on
and 10-4pm on Saturdays
but do let us know if you would like to go on
our mailing list for events and open evenings/days.
If you are trade customers contact us and we can
arrange a viewing at a time convenient for you.
If you are trade customers contact us and we can
arrange a viewing at a time convenient for you.
Have a great day.
