Antique's Emporium

As I sit here writing this post I am sipping the most glorious glass of Sauvignon Blanc and eking out every last memory of the most perfect day.

It is very rare that both Craig and I have a Saturday completely free with each other. Craig plays for a cricket team and most summer Saturday's are spent hanging around with friends waiting for his return ... and hoping he has won! But this summer has been different. The rain has cause water logged pitches, slippy grass and miserable weekends which has all contributed to the cancellation of many of Craig's games.

At times this is annoying because I have already made plans but today I had no plans and we woke up with that precious and luxurious feeling of ... "what do you fancy doing today?".

Usually we are commited to decorating, but next weekend we have planned to gloss the bedroom, so today seemed like the perfect day to do a little bit of what we fancy. We decided to do the chores early (shop, clean and hair cut) and then head of for a day in Leek in the Staffordshire Moorlands.

Leek is the most wonderful day due to it being a market and antique town. Every where you go is antique shops full of stunning furniture and beautiful old trinkets. You could spend thousands and thousands and still want more. But today I invented the most fabulous game .... look at everything, but spend only £5.


That's right, I only took £5 spending money. And it was so fun.


So, it was onto the first antique shop of the day. The outside of the little stall displayed an array of vintage sides. A little weakness of my husbands. Even he would admit it. Our kitchen is full of signs and post cards that he has collected ... I will show you sometime!

The Lime Cordial one happened to catch his eye. Even the screws holding it to the wall didn't deter him from asking the shop keeper if he could buy it. The answer was no though. Not For Sale :(

We then got in the car and went onto to destination two. On the way Craig pulled over the car so I could take a photograph of this roof and the sky. I love the symmetry of the chimneys .... I love it more that there is four chimneys on one side, and three on the other .... a misbehaving kind of symmetry!

At the traffic lights was a sign for the place we were heading.

The Antiques Centre.

A huge disused textiles factory which has been converted into an emporium selling everything old.

It is literally room upon room, corridor upon corridor and stair case upon stair case of different showrooms.

I took hundreds of photos of objects that caught my eye but I have narrowed it down to my favourites.

A huge (and I emphasise huge) chandelier.

A lovely collectors item .... the Snap Dragon Fairy (mum .... this made me think of you!)

Another couple of ornate and simply gorgeous plates that caught my eye ..... the duck egg blue and gold one was priced at £30 so wayyyy out of my £5 price range!

I just loved the way all the light shades were displayed. Swaying in the cool breeze created by the open window. Twinkling in the intermittent sun rays.

 
Hello Fur Coat .... where have you been all of my life .............

 And a few more items which caught my eye.

 

So there was the trip to the Antiques Centre, and I bet you are all wondering what I purchased with my fiver.

This beautiful little rose candle holder. Look how sweet it looks on my dressing table among my perfume bottles. I am in simple love with it.

The we visited the market. They have kept all the jubilee bunting up for the Olympics and it looks so wonderful.

Craig (who was kindly doing tea tonight) collected some fresh fruit and veg.

I then found a soap stall and revelled in smelling each and every soap. Craig then let me choose one so he could save it for my birthday. I went for the blue one. It smelt like the most beautiful sun tan lotion ..... not my usual choice but I think it reflects my longing for a seaside holiday!

Seems like we could all do with a little bit of the soap right now, huh?

On our way home we stopped off at an open garden. Or should I say my dream garden!

They even had chickens!!!!! Look how cute these little chicks are. Look at first one. It has an Afro!

And these are my favourite hens. I am hoping to hatch some during spring next year. All I have to do is smile sweetly at Craig and fingers crossed he will let me!

I don't know what it is about them. I think I just love their plump bodies and plumes of feathers. Possibly I love the lack of visable chicken leg?? Hmmm!


Now for an evening of cheese, crackers, wine, knitting and crocheting.

Relaxed. Warm. Loved. And. Content.

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