22 August 2020

OLD STUFF

I know that some of you like to see what little gems of battered and rusty old stuff I have acquired, so here is a selection of recent purchases.  Sadly brocantes as such are not happening in our area at the moment - but house sales - called vide maison - are. 
 
 
This old stoneware pot came from a vide maison the other week.  I'm not sure what it is except that it's like a very oversized mug.  I'm sure I'll think of something to put in it.

 
We bought this cast iron "crown" at the brocante at La Celle-Guenand two years ago.  I had no idea what I would do with it but couldn't resist and it finally made an appearance this year as a table ornament to enhance a citronella candle.  Why didn't I think of that before?

 
This lovely old oak step ladder was also acquired on the day of the recent vide maison.  As a fairly recent purchase I have yet to decide it's ultimate purpose.

 
Another vide maison pair.  They are measuring vessels with a slot to hang on the wall and a hose for releasing a measured item of some kind of liquid.  Other than that I don't know what they are for but I'm sure someone out there will be able to enlighten me!

 
I found this lovely candelabra at the brocante at Buxeuil last year (or maybe the year before).  It makes a pretty addition to our outside dining when the days are shorter and we find ourselves outdoors, listening to the deer, the owls and the crickets.

 
I don't know what this is but I have two of them - a fruit bowl perhaps.  The other one is a slightly different design and I use it as a water bath for the birds by placing a dish of fresh water in it and balancing it on an old tree stump.  I usually put a large citronella candle in this one.

 
This little brass pot came from a brocante shop.  They are open even though the brocantes are not.


 
This lovely old recipe book from the 1950's perhaps, had several additional items tucked inside.

 
I love this oil painting and its battered old frame.  Well worth the five euros at a vide maison last year.
(Apologies if some of these items have appeared in the blog before!)

20 comments:

  1. Great selection! Even makes me want to go to a brocante, and that's saying something!!

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  2. I love old recipe collections like this one!
    I hope you make some of them; it is like resurrecting the spirit of the original cook.

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  3. "Another vide maison pair. They are measuring vessels with a slot to hang on the wall and a hose for releasing a measured item of some kind of liquid."
    These are douche/enema containers.... it used to be standard practice to give your children regular enemas and yourladyself a douche and enema... and it wasn't just a French practice....I think it was worldwide, certainly these are illustrated in the Sears catalogues that the Americans ordered their goods from in the '20s.
    Slightly different in the UK, a modified hot water bottle was used.... a douche bag, which is where the insult "you douche bag" comes from.
    And the practice continues.... in certain "health spas" and regimes, enemas of all sorts are used.... green tea is very popular as is rose water.
    These old wall hanging, metal ones are in demand, and used as planters with weeping/trailing flowers.
    It is wonderful what you can find at a brocante......

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    1. Tim, thanks for the enlightenment! That would account for the shape of the glass contraption on the end of the rubber hose!
      I think I'll go with the trailing plant option!

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    2. Yours was complete?!
      Wow, that's very, very rare.....

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    3. It might be very rare but I think I'll don my marigolds before I remove the hose!

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    4. What are marigolds in this instance?

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    5. Ken, marigold is a brand of protective rubber gloves for housework etc!

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  4. Envious of your purchases and your buying opportunities. Second hand items are hard to come by in Italy, we went to an antiques market once but it was very expensive and too up market for us. Makes me wonder what happens to all the lovely junk that could be filling my house.

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    1. Jenny, that is a puzzle. Here in France there aren't the charity shops that there are on every high street in the UK. People hang on to their old junk and sell it at the village brocantes or vide greniers (similar to flea markets or car boot sales in the UK). I think this is because so many people have the space in outbuildings to store it for months on end or even years, bringing it out each year for the brocante!
      As well as that there are the house sales, brocante shops and proper antique shops, so old stuff is available at all price levels. So, as you say, what do the Italians do with their household junk?!

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    2. How about Dépôt-Vente shops? Consignment shops in U.S. terms, at least in North Carolina.

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    4. My link didn't work. I found 39 dépôt-vente shops in the Indre-et-Loire department on pagesjaunes.fr.

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    5. Ken, I have been to some of the Emmaus dépôt-ventes, the quality of the stuff varies enormously but there are real bargains to be had, especially in furniture. We got a beautiful rug for just a few euros the other year.

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    6. Dépôt-ventes are not just charity shops. In fact, Emmaüs is not a consignment shop. They don't give you any money for what you donate.

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    7. This sounds like something I should definitely look into!

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    8. At a consignment shop you negotiate with the owner to decide what price you want for an item you take in, and then the seller takes a commission on the sale price. At a brocante, the brocanteur just buys items you want to sell and then re-sells them for whatever price. A charity like Emmaüs takes donations and then sells the items donated. The donator gets nothing but good feelings in exchange.

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    9. Ken , thanks for explaining, now I understand.

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  5. I ‘love’ the floral still life. Was it signed at all? Even if it was done by just an amateur painter it's nice’ to know who. And yes, the scruffy frame gives it an old look

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    1. It is signed and in fact a few days ago I spotted another, very similar and much larger painting in another shop. The style and frame were so similar as to probably be by the same artist I thought. It was displayed too high up to read the signature and I decided not to ask the price because I didn't want a second one. The name is M. Reignoux I think.

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