ding-dong.

I was dead pleased recently to open up this very dry looking manual and find inside . . . A whole glut of glorious coat hook porn.  I do like a handsome coat hook, anyone else?

Happy Dad Day.

Lots of love today for anyone who is a Dad, has a Dad, or once had a Dad. 

But most of all lots of love to my Dad.

Poste restante

I am contributing this large table cloth that I made to the Poste Restante project at Nomadic Village 2013. The brief was to make a piece based around nomads and the nomadic lifestyle.

standing on the sofa

The print is of a pair of cotton trousers, that I got at a car boot (naturally). They reminded me of clothes I bought when I travelled to live in Africa: they are cotton (cool for hot countries) but look awful on me. Before I went I bought clothes like that because I felt I wouldn't care what I looked like when I got there. I was ready to go to this hot place where everything was different. And when I got there a lot of things were quite the same . . . including me feeling like a proper nob in all my big cotton clothes. So I guess I chose the trousers because I'm not a nomad: I'm a rubbish traveller, I easily feel out of my depth and constantly misjudge things - especially when I travel alone.

Doing something that isn't just holding it up.

So I chose to make a table cloth because I imagined the routine of dining as a bit of a balm to my fears of travelling. I imagined spreading the table cloth as a routine you could take from place to place, for making things familiar and easy. You could spread it on the ground, on a bench or a tree stump and host people for food.

The trousers with the splendid gusset.

I'm pleased with the print because it is liney and wonky and blotchy but the overall pattern is bold.

A portrait of Jack taken through the cloth.

And now I will send it off in the post and it will never come back. Sigh. If you fancy going to Nomadic Village maybe you could spill some wine on it from me. 

Blimey!

Would you look at that! Bettina has used my fishes in one of her photo shoots. Pretty damn snazzy - go have a look at the rest on her blog, if you want.

Much toot much.

Here are a few finds for you then: you lucky sausages. I have missed a lot of Spitalfields this month, which is sad but I'm back next week with a lot of new stock.

The most handsome paste brush

and a little useful friend

A teapot with a little nubbin of a nose.

A cardi with crazy neon shoulders - unfortunately it is for a child, which seems a waste.

workwear for dolls. I like the way it is sewn all jaunty onto old envelopes.

An opening times sign to sell in the shop.

A pair of bakelite boobs.

A nice sack: retrieved from the bottom of a box and all squashed nice and flat. Made me thought of the bog people.

I also bought this rubber inflatable innard. I think I bought it because of the colours and the shape . . . but also because I am a nob. 

A nice litte handmade wall light.

And a tiny hangable shelf that will go in the shop to display danglers.

Talking of danglers: here is the largest dangler I ever found (I am struggling to hold it up high for the photo). What a beauty eh? It's going in the shop soon - it's going to take a bit of tactical hanging.

Victorian plant pots come to Stoke Newington.

Hello all,
The shop is coming along wonderfully - the latest news is that we're kickin' out with a little outdoor space. The emphasis is on 'little' at the moment: it's essentially the space of two porta-loos but the little concrete garden is nice! There's room for some of my favourite Victorian plant pots, a couple of chairs and some tubs of nice things. It makes me happy to nurture a little living plant and having outdoor space has meant there's a whole new variety of shrubs to buy from car boot sales. Huzzah.

Ta-da!

What's the name of these plants again? I've forgotten.

Euphorbia, my favourite.

And there's even some greenery happening inside the shop - some succulents for a start but the range is growing each week! Aargh! It's a little bit dead exciting - I've found some splendid people in London to buy from as well as heading to my usual countryside dealers. My new friend to buy from is so clued up and kind: he knows all the Latin names for the plants (and uses them all casual-like) but also doesn't mind when I ask questions like: 'where do you keep your danglers?' (They're called trailing plants apparently, so you know).

Plimsolls and succulents.

I know you're probably wondering which of those plants is my favourite . . .

Well - it's this one

If you'd like to visit the shop it's number 3A Evering Road in Stoke Newington (N16 7QA)
 - and if you come on a Saturday there's a nice farmers market just opposite.

That's all.

x