Showing posts with label tailor's dummy. Show all posts
Showing posts with label tailor's dummy. Show all posts

Friday, 8 November 2013

A Scandinavian Sojourn

For a variety of favourable logistical reasons, we found ourselves on a flight to Gothenburg the other week, heading for a week of treasure-hunting.

The best time for hunting of course is summer, with the long days and plenty of barn sales (or 'loppis', as the Swedes refer to them) open for business.

From our base near Stenungsund, on the beautiful Bohuslän coast of Sweden, and despite it being the wrong end of summer (i.e. autumn!), we managed to plot a packed agenda of treasure-hunting. We revisited some of our favourite haunts, and found some fantastic new ones.

A rather picturesque lunch stop

The beautiful Bohuslän countryside

An industrial storeroom in Munkedal



The treasure that got away - not one for us!


A Swedish still-life study

Roaming the countryside definitely provided good hunting ground for treasure, but inspiration in the form of colours, design and graphics, also came in from a bit of sightseeing - both in Gothenburg and indeed the local supermarket...

Haga district, Gothenburg


He's SUCH a delightful object! (and sadly NOT for sale)


A bit of 'shabby chic', Gothenburg-style

'Fika' (coffee break) joint in Haga district, Gothenburg




Beautiful architecture in Gothenburg

Celebrating Scandi-cake style


One of many hundreds of 'pick 'n mix' offerings at the local supermarket

Those Swedes love their sweets

Vintage-style graphics

Some beautiful graphics on crispbread packaging

Within the space of five days, we accumulated chandeliers, desks, industrial side tables, rustic dining chairs, filing cabinets, vintage globes, dress mannequins, wooden children's toys, industrial anglepoise desklamps and a variety of vintage hooks and hat-racks.

Frenzied packing and organizing ensued - some of the items are already at LASSCO Ropewalk for sale (a vintage Scandinavian globe, a retro Danish chair), others are being prepared for sale at our Cornish workshop, and some of the larger items will be making their appearance on the shop floor next year.

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Globes, globes, globes (and a rather beautiful tambour-front cabinet)


At our logistics, um, depot/HQ

A giant abacus

A child's rocking horse


Wednesday, 9 March 2011

Are you being served?

In times gone by, every town would have its own gentlemen's and ladies' outfitters. The well-stocked department store of the late 19th/early 20th centuries would be decked out in an array of cabinets, drawers, specialist fixtures and bespoke fittings, to display their goods for sale to the hoards of punters.


In the same way that old factory furniture has been adopted for the domestic home, vintage shop fittings make très chic interior furnishings. Despite the sad demise of the 'Are You Being Served?' approach to retail, many of the original fittings from these shops have survived, surely a testament to the high quality of their production and use of high quality materials such as mahogany and oak.

First up is this lovely, original tailor's dummy from the 1930s. It's in excellent condition, and full adjustable, so it could also be quite useful in a proper, dressmaking sense (although why cover it up?).



Next up, a totally practical full-length mirror with a dose of style mixed with a dash of class. This Modernist-styled mirror from the 1940s is double-sided with a tubular steel frame.



And what would one carry ones purchases home in? Putting the subject matter to one side (yikes - poor Mr Squirrel!) we just had to get this vintage paper bag framed up, for the classic lettering and design.


Happy Shopping!