A sense of place ...

Of all the reasons one can fall in love with France, and Paris for that matter - wine, cheese, countryside, and so on - one in particular for me is the emphatic sense of place.   Remarkably in this age of architectural homogeneity, once you arrive in France you know exactly where you are.

Street Cafe, Regatta Hotel

Here in Brisbane in October, with all the jacaranda trees in bloom, once again you have that strong sense of place.  It's hard to find a street or vista that does not have the purple blossoms in a scattered view!

Walter Taylor Bridge, Indooroopilly

Purple lace on the white lace of hundred year old buildings; purple riverside vistas.

Street Cafe, Regatta Hotel

Or even brightening our suburban views, it truly is every where to be seen.

I must admit it was many years before I appreciated how gorgeous the city looked in full bloom.  I first became aware of the purple flowers in October as meaning I should be in a library studying because end of year exams were less than a month away~! And it took many years for the association with exam nerves to go away!

But go away it does, and now I just enjoy the month long display of purple and the wonderful spring weather.

Hope your week has started well!

Jennifer x

In Store Now ...

In Store Now ....

I have two great vintage Stockman mannequins from Paris in brilliant condition.  They are numbered and one is stamped (model number 50019). 

They are on a wooden stand, with the underlying form made from papier mâché and hand-covered in cotton.

Legendary French company Siegel and Stockman began making dressmaking or tailor's forms in 1867 and they are still used today in haute couture houses and in shop windows the world over.

Via SiegelStockman

It's an interesting thought, this long history of French fashion and dressmaking.  When you grab your size in the store or select it online - have you ever wondered where this standard clothes sizing comes from?

It was in 1877 that Fredric Stockman began to think it should be possible to standardize the shapes of the human body.

At a time when only the rich had tailors and dressmakers, and all clothing was made for the individual wearer, he began creating a standard sizing system for clothes (size 8, 10, 12, ...) with tailor's dummies.  This standardization of dummies sizing helped to pave the way towards 'ready to wear' clothes and modern clothing sizes today!

I still just love the look of the linen and matt black wood stand.

Hope your week is starting out well!
Jennifer.
x

It really is oh so civilised...

I have had a busy week with children on school holidays, a shop to keep stocked, and life as usual.

Everyone is back at school this morning.  So to have some semblence of civility and a quieter pace, on my desk I have a lovely coffee from a favourite local barista and I am opening my build-up of email to have a browse and an update on what is going on in my favourite corners of the blogging world!

A few quick pics from Sharon Santoni, at My French Country Home, have reminded me what I love about France and french brocante hunting.

You may be in an industrial lane, or at the back of a barnyard, or in the centre of a field at a fair.  Miles from civilisation... or so you think.  Yet come an agreed lunchtime, the brocante dealers spread a cloth over a 19th century table, pull up some industrial vintage chairs, et voilà a civilised three-course meal commences!

My French Country Home

This is France after all, and everything stops for lunch!  There is no 'grabbing a packaged sandwich' and heading back to work fast.

My French Country Home

This is a leisurely and relaxing break, shared with friends to recuperate and energise for the rest of the day's work.

My French Country Home

And being civilised does not mean having to splurge.  Somewhere nearby you will be able to find for yourself a charming local restaurant, with a standard prix fixe [fixed price] three-course menu to enjoy!

roboppy

And even if you do find yourself a little time poor (ie: you don't have the usual two and a half hours for lunch), there will always be something stunningly delicious to pick up at the local boulangerie.

I hope you are having a somewhat civilised start to your week!

Jennifer.
x

More French Vintage Fabrics In Store

The lovely weather has returned to Brisbane - though I still don't seem to be without a sweater or jacket... the in-between seasons seem crazy don't they!  Sunshiny weather, but still a little cold.  Great biking weather, and with the boys on school holidays we're doing lots of cooking and eating and spending loads of time out of doors.

I haven't had much of a chance to update the shop whilst hanging out with my little men these two weeks.  So come Monday, and they are back at school, I will be busy moving stock and creating a new display and will post pics for you then!

In the meantime, I have some lovely french vintage grain sacks in store.  These are the blue striped ones - some with stamping on them and some without.  Ideal for cushions, but long enough for a blind for a narrow window also!  

I also have a few other large lengths vintage linens which you can easily tell have never been used.  These are linens that came from a closing down sale of a store in France, that had been sitting in storage for years untouched.

all pics from French Vintage Home

And lots of interesting vintage french glass bottles, all shapes and sizes.

Again, haven't had a chance to photograph and have grabbed these from the internet. More updates as I get a chance.  Hope your week is going well!

Jennifer.
x