Chinoiserie and Clever Aunty, New Collections, Brighton Childhood and Ardingly Antiques Fair.

April 08, 2014

Chinoiserie and Clever Aunty, New Collections, Brighton Childhood and Ardingly Antiques Fair.

Good Morning

from

Arundel Eccentrics.

Hows life with you?

Granddaughter

The gorgeous Everly is thriving and growing.

We can't wait until we get to California to see her.

Lets hope we manage that before she is 18.

Thanks goodness for FB, Email and Skype hey?

Chinoiserie

We are getting some beautiful pieces in the shop.

Copper and wood 19th century box.

painted wood children's chairs

This chair is so comfortable I've been known to snooze on a quiet Sunday afternoon in the shop.

My clever aunt restores chinoiserie and has worked on

the 19th century trays and large circular snap top table below.

The flower table is all original.

Gorgeous isn't it?

Aunty B
is not just my aunt,

she is my oldest friend.

Well, I've known her since birth.

My Mum,

waited 17 years for a sister.

Nan kept producing sons,

albeit lovely sons,
whom Mum still adored,

but she was desperate

for a little sister.

By the time the sister
came along,

Mum was engaged
and leaving home.

So, my aunt and I were
nearer in age and when I
was in my teens,
we became the best of friends.

Oh to be 17 again!

Prior to that,
I have snatched recollections
of her feeding me "rainbow drops"

(remember those?)

and teaching us kids to make toffee apples

in our kitchen in Woodingdean,
on the outskirts of Brighton.

Once I was grown up,

and I use the term loosely,(ha ha)

we were great buddies.
We saw each other
through some catastrophic,

but equally,
euphoric times too.

This is some of the work
my exceedingly

clever aunty does.

In the 1960's she trained at

Brighton Art College

and later worked
for my grandad,
her father,

who was a well known
furniture restorer in Brighton.

Grandad was pleased when
I came into the business.
Said I'd sneaked in
through the back door.

As with many things in life
it wasn't planned.
Just seemed to evolve.

Barbara does the most beautiful

hand painted work.

Chinoiserie is one
her of specialities,

which I wouldn't even attempt.

chinoiserie on a 19th century bamboo table painted by Aunty B

Noah's Ark on a 19th century chest

We try to meet up on
special family anniversaries.

We visit the cemetery in
Woodingdean and go for a long
walk to chat and remember all those
dear to us that are no longer around.

No really,
it's never maudlin.
We laugh hysterically at
some of the old family tales.

Shed a small tear occasionally.

Hug each other and
vow to meet more often.

Biddy and Flossy our walking companions.

looking down over Brighton

My visits to Brighton
always make me feel nostalgic ...
childhood memories come flooding back.

When I was 13,
I was in love
with a 17 year old mod
from up the road.

I used to stand
on the toilet seat and gaze misty eyed
out the of the bathroom window.
I'd watch him drive up
and down the
road on his silver lambretta.

Oh! the ecstasy as I jumped off the school bus
one bitter winters afternoon.

I was in my Convent Girl
school uniform.

The gorgeous Pete
drove up on his lambretta,
wearing his parka.

"Can I borrow your scarf, its freezing on here?"

Oh joy...I could barely contain myself.

Remember being 13?

Just as the scarf was in place,
wound neatly around his neck.

My mother's dulcet tones came from across the street.

"Get that scarf off yer greasy neck Smithy"

Oh the mortification of it !

I blushed, he blushed.
He quickly rode off on his scooter.
I stood in the middle of the road
gazing misty eyed after him.

Unrequited teenage lurve.

ha ha.

I wonder what became of him?