Fun in the sun

A dip in the sea would be just the ticket to cool off in this heat! I love this image, it is from a gorgeous 1920's vintage bucket. When I was about seven I won the Confidence Cup for swimming- the competition included blowing bubbles under water and doing a star fish- and I have a photo of me proudly clutching the cup with a rather unflattering swimming hat on, much like the one in the picture!

I love the seasons and after the last few summers of rather average weather it is a real treat to be able to enjoy such warm and sunny weather!

I got up yesterday to go to a bootsale and it was a lovely feeling wandering around hunting for treasure in a cotton dress with the early morning sun on my back. This is certainly preferable to those frezzing winter mornings when with each step I feel my foot might snap in half it is so cold!

This weather creates opportunites to do so many lovely things....Building sandcastles

Or perhaps a spot of fishing....

Both of these images are from an old childrens paint box which depicts scenes from the different seasons- each one just as charming as the next.

Another activity for the adventurous among us is surfing- this piece of vintage fabric is fab and so unusual. My next task is make it into some constance cushions using this fabric for one side and a yellow and white polka dot fabric for the other side.

Whatever you are up to in this heatwave I hope you have fun doing it!

Fun on the farm

I am lucky enough to have spent a sunny few days on an idyllic farm in the picturesque Kent countryside at the Wealden Times Midsummer Fair.

Thursday was the set up day for the Fair and sadly for my bank balance I kept getting distracted as I watched other stallholders transform two empty marquees into a shopping paradise. Next door to me was Petite Maison, and Theresa, the lovely lady who runs this business had not even finished unloading her van before I had snapped up one of her gorgeous benches! This was the first of several purchases I made but sometimes some things are too lovely to pass by!

The wonderfully chosen location, a working farm near High Halden, coupled with the sunshine created a really successful event. The atmosphere was great- there was a barn where lunches were served amid masses of cottage flowers, wigwams, a tea tent and some delightful piglets! This little one was too sweet not to snap!

Many visitors to the fair fell in love with these cute piglets, but unlike the goods on sale during the two days theses couldn't be taken home. Many of my favourite finds sold but they have gone to good homes which is very important! Much of the china in this cabinet is now no longer in my possession so I need to get collecting ready for my next fair at Barnes.

There are plans for another fair next summer and for a Christmas fair as well and so I am finding my mind is increasingly focusing on the festive season but in the meantime there is a summer to be enjoyed!

I have tried to capture the best things about summer on the new homepage for the acorn & will website. I also made sure I picked a range of accessories made from lovely summery vintage fabrics to take along last weekend and I shall be doing the same for the Barnes Fair next month!

On that note I really should get back to making some daisy rings!

All the fun of the fair

After a really great day at the Vintage and Handmade Spring Fair last weekend I am busy preparing for the next fairs I am going along to. It will certainly be hard to beat the atmosphere of this fair and the countdown is on until the next one on 14 November and I have already booked my space to be there! Sadly I forgot my camera so I have no photos of my own from the day but it is well worth checking out the website as it has details of all great people who took part in the day http://vintageandhandmade.co.uk/

My house is like an assault course as I navigate my way around all the boxes that remain packed up ready for taking to the Rare Brand Market on Monday. The pictures above show some of the vintage china I am in the process of pricing up to take along. I adore all of this 1950s china and it is a real text of self control not to put it in my own cupboards for me to keep.

As well as having separation anxiety over the china this feeling extends to the linen I am taking along as well. I keep delaying pricing it up- perhaps this is in the hope that I run out of time so I have to keep it for a while longer!

Oh well there is only so much procrastinating a girl can do, I shall continue adding to the goodies to be packed up and I shall console myself with the thought that I am sure these gems will go to good homes!

Little Girl Lost

The world of blogging is a new to me and I must confess to feeling a tad bit unsure of myself as my fingers tap away! Anyone who knows me will tell you that I am not a lover of technology far preferring good old fashioned pen and paper to a keyboard. However in the last six months I have come to grips with managing my website and so I have decided it is about time I took the plunge and started blogging...

I feel a bit like I am on first date and as with being on any date I should begin by introducing myself... my name is Daniella and as I have already alluded to I am rather an old fashioned kind of girl. This manifests itself in many ways including my love of all things vintage. This passion has inspired me to start up acorn & will. When I am working on things for acorn & will I am at my happiest ( except perhaps when I am doing admin type things)! There is nothing better than finding some treasure or a beautiful piece of vintage fabric which I can breathe new life into and my aim is to use this blog to share some of these special things with you. It will be a place for thoughts, comments and anything else I can think of.

As I type it is the first day of summer and so I thought I would give a sneak preview of some images I had taken last week for the new homepage I am planning, to mark the change in seasons...

The dress you see hanging over the suitcase is simply gorgeous- I had considered cutting it up to make some constance cushions and gracie girl zip purses but I just couldn't bring myself to do it. The ladies in the 1950's must have had tiny rib cages but I was determined to squeeze into this dress and squeeze into it I did! I can bearly breath but it is worth it!

my fab sis, Hayley, whom I am sure I will be mentioning lots more bought me this a lovely vintage picnic set. I am crossing my fingers I will be using it lots this summer! On that note I am off to enjoy the evening sun and I hope you do too!