Fleamarket finale

Oh, what a thrill today has been! Two local fleamarkets in one trip and here is what I found...

I'll zoom in on some of it for you:

Gustavsberg melamine cups and Emsa melamine plates in mint condition.

Teak salt and pepper shakers shaped as vikings. Another bargain that I initally thought I'd put on Etsy but changed my mind as soon as I unpacked them at home. Sorry guys!

Small vase from Strehla Keramik, Germany.

Big, heavy candleholder for hanging on the wall. Possibly the work of Konrad Galaaen.

Isn't she sweet? I think it was her glasses that did it for me. I might not have brought her home if it wasn't for those specs :-) It's a litho titled 'Selvportret' (Self portrait) and signed K. Axels. Danish, I presume. The jam jar is from Arabia, Finland, and the vase is from Germany.

I found a whole lot of plates, cups, serving platters and sugerbowls in this pattern (Safran)... I just couldn't get it all (sigh) and was going to settle for one item. I contemplated a lidded sugerbowl. Then there was this (above) - a huge serving bowl in exactly the same design as the sugarbowl, only forty times bigger. (OK - slight exaggeration, but it is BIG.) I thought I'd be as bold as the dish and went for it. The price? NOK 75. That's a bargain in my book.

Finally, some 50's halos for Christmas tree lights. Perfect for a kitschy winter holiday. Not an obvious choice when it's summer at it's best with hot, sunny weather like today.

I was thrilled putting all these items in the car and drive home through the beautiful countryside, sun roof open and some favorite tunes on the stereo. The last fleamarket of the season was a great finale.

Little dog "Lost"

Every now and then when I'm thrift shopping for ceramics, porcelain and glass etc. I stumble across a picture that I just can't resist. This was one of those. Call it kitschy, I don't care. The expression on this little puppy triggered my rescue gene.

The picture looks like an etching, it's got an English title, "Lost", but I can't make out the signature (click on image for larger version). My guess is that it's from the first half of the 1900's, but I'm no art expert. If you are, or if you're able to interpret the signature, please leave a comment. If you're not an art expert you're welcome to leave a comment anyway :-)

I also found a painting on the same shopping trip. Stay tuned.

Yesterday’s catch, part III

The curves and light in this green Hadeland pitcher photographed so well it became a whole little series on its own :-)

When I grew up we had a bigger version of this pitcher in a smoked/grey colour. I've always liked its shape and the way it holds ice cubes. I think this was a popular design from Hadeland back in its days (probably the 1960s).

Yesterday’s catch, part I

We had quite a successful day thrift-shopping yesterday, my good friend Maggie and I. Pictured above is my main lot. All the items with yellow are from Figgjo. My guess is that they date back to the late 50's. The lovely little cookie tray in front is called 'Smørbukk' and is by Inger Waage for Stavangerflint. It was also produced in yellow, of which I have a dinner plate from before:

Inspiration in London SE21

Last Sunday noon I headed south-east from central London

to the English countryside.

Well, to Dulwich College, at least. What for, you ask?

For this: Midcentury Modern. Furniture and collectables for the home from 50 top dealers and designers. I read about this last year and I've been wanting to go and see it for myself. I was thrilled to be able to go and enjoy all this mid-century goodness.

At the entrance point there was live music (a lady on ukulele) to welcome us visitors.

The show was quite full-on from the word go.

I just loved the juxtaposition of this shelf of mid-century fabric and the classical portrait painting.


Tulip table with Eames chairs in a rather unusual colour - bright yellow with dark green seat cushions. The Krenit bowl on the table was incredibly expensive, I remember.

Now for my favorite discovery at the show: fellow Norwegienne Maria Hatling. (Amongst all the vintage stuff at the show, there were some exciting young designers selling their products too.) I was drawn to this shelf full of beautiful printed cushions and framed prints. Maria has studied fashion design in Wales and I was delighted to find out she had worked as a creative for Orla Kiely for six years. I have even blogged about Maria's work earlier, without knowing it was she who was behind the designs. I am sure we will see a lot of Maria's work in the future.

An overview of Christon Hall.

I wouldn't mind this little chair. It was way out of my budget, though.

I wouldn't mind this Morris Minor either. 7200 pounds was the asking price.

This illustrated coffee table caught my eye. I really like the line drawing with the colour blocks behind it. (Petrol blue and mustard yellow being my favourite combo at the moment.)


I came to the show with hardly any cash in my wallet. It didn't occur to me that the sellers might not take plastic. In hindsight, this might be just as well, as I could easily have invested in something too big and heavy to carry on the plane home. The one souvernir I did purchase was this:

a London moneybox. To help me save up for the next trip, perhaps...

This cushion above is one of the things I had to pass on. It was by Lucy Bates Vintage Fabric. There was a lot of vintage fabric at the show, but I think Lucy had some of the best.

With a head full of mid-century impressions, I left Dulwich and walked in the lovely spring weather (cherry blossoms and all) across to West Norwood for Sunday dinner.

I hope to be back for this show again. And next time I will remember to bring cash.

Blog break over

After a two month absence my old blogging nerve has started to twitch again. It's great to be back. Here is some of what I've been up to while not blogging:

...drinking lots of coffee from my favorite vintage mug of the moment - a Figgjoflint design,

bought this lovely tea towel at Etsy,

thrifted another huge Bitossi lamp at Fretex (the Salvation Army shop) last week, and today found a shade for it,

been thinking I need to get some Biri natural wallpaper on a wall in the dining area,

purchased three Marcel Breuer 'Cesca' chairs with WHITE wooden frames (no armrests) for the mere sum of $40. Now I just need a place to put them,

made a costume for my son's kindergarten carnival party. Theme: Fairytale forest. The end result includes Ikea hacking, velcro and bandages.

I purchased an enormous (soup?) cup online. Later on I also found a lid in the same design and hoped that it would fit. It didn't.

And today, my latest thrift gem: a large tea cup from Arabia of Finland.
I've wasted hours online trying to find out what it's called, but I think I need YOUR help, my dear clued up readers. All similar items on ebay are listed as 'Valencia', but I don't think that's the correct name. (As far as the colour go and to some extend also the pattern, I think it is close but no cigar.) Can anyone help clear up this conundrum for me?

So there you have it. I hope to be back with some more (shorter) posts soon.

Tuesday thrifting again

I went thrift shopping for fabrics today but came home with everything but.

Brown plasic and red hearts. So 1970’s
The mixing bowls are from Rosti, Denmark, the brown plastic canister is by Anm. Design, the mug with hearts is by Table Tops, Cartwrights, Staffordshire, England and the cup and saucer is of unknown make.

More mid-20th century European pottery for the collection
West German vases, white Höganäs Keramik (Sweden) tulip candleholder and a beautiful dish by Norwegian artist Finn Hald. Unfortunately the dish has a small chip damage, but I think it looks great regardless. Also, it was a bargain. I paid about $16.
For the lot.