I have a confession to make I am a collector . My collections are many and varied but each gives me joy on a daily basis. The collections vary depending on my interests at the time , in my early married days at the setting up house stage I amassed a collection of blue and white china and early Australian pottery. At the same time we started buying antique and collectable furniture. The chaise lounge that Raffy and I are sitting on has been in our house for over 40 years, it probably should be recovered but I am rather fond of its slightly worn look (we have that in common).
The brass and iron bedstead in our bedroom is one I have owned for what seems forever. I bought it from two ladies that ran a small secondhand shop from their front room in a house a few doors up from my family home. At the time it was blue and chrome and very shabby. My mother helped me bring it home on the condition that it came via the back lane so the neighbours wouldn’t see us.
After having the chrome reverse plated and finding a few replacement pieces it was painted black , which it stayed for many years , only becoming white about five years ago when I redecorated the bedroom. No comfortable modern bedroom suite could ever have so many tales to tell.
Of course my collections are by no means only house related. After my sons left home I found myself with a spare room , very handy to turn into my version of a walk in robe. My out of season coats and jackets live on a rolling rack here, mainly because I ran out of space in my built in wardrobe.
My ever growing hat collection finds a home here , stored in hat boxes and in the chest of drawers, along with my gloves and sunglasses.
I have collected bangles for as long as I can remember , some are bakelite, some resin , a few ceramic and many simply plastic. They come from a variety of sources some from my travels , some bought retail but many from charity shops.
I was given this beautiful antique porcelain doll many years ago , it had belonged to the wife of my mothers employer. I hope one day to hand her on to my grandchildren . The much loved teddy in his blue vest has been a part of my life since my second birthday.
A peek at some of my hat boxes , I am always on the look out for interesting ones.
The Pears Soap prints on the wall are another love of mine.
My love of collecting extends to my garden with my various plant collection- from old roses to oriental poppies .
For today’s collectors tour I was wearing a white pussy bow shirt from Maison Scotch , my Moyuru skirt, a furry shrug and velvet and feather hat bought in Portugal .
Joining Patti for Visible Monday, Jess for Turning Heads Tuesday and Nancy for Fancy Friday Link Up.
This is precisely why I love blogs so much more than Instagram. While I absolutely adore your outfit shots, posts like these give me a true insight into the kind of person you are, a collector, just like me!Your house is so stylish. How wonderful for your old boss to pass on that beautiful porcelain doll and your childhood bear is just so sweet, almost identical to ones I inherited from my Mum.Your dressing room makes me weak at the knees, those bangles! I love the old Pears advertising, too. I collected it as a teenager. I'd love to see more of your garden. Your little dog is gorgeous, too.Your outfit is sublime, it's got a bit of an Edwardian vibe with that pussy bow blouse and the cut of the skirt. xxx
So true Vix , Instagram is only about the pretty pictures not about the person behind the images. Pity you are so far away we could compare collections.Turning my sons old room into a collectors dressing room has turned out to be a good idea. Thank you so much for your comments, always so appreciated. xx
That skirt – I just adore it and your hats and hat boxes – sigh. What a lovely home you have. I got rid of many hats when I down-sized but the numbers are creeping up! You look great.
Thanks so much as you know this skirt has certainly earned its keep and I love wearing it. I know one day I may have to down size but until then I will keep collecting and enjoying wearing my collections.
That's an impressive collection of bangles! and I think I recognized a few I've seen you wear on the blog, too. Which is great. My inner minimalist (the hypocrite) shudders at the whole idea of collections but reluctantly justifies them as long as everything is wearable…
Thank you Tiina , I do wear pretty much all of my collections, some more than others. I have imagined you as a minimalist Tiina, so no surprise there.
I think I would be oh ing and ah ing constantly at your place! Wonderfull!
Thank you so much Nancy, I do enjoy my different collections.
What a wonderful walk through of your collections! I love to see those bangles looking like something in a boutique window. Thank you for sharing and for showing that what some may view as an excess can be displayed as the most lovely of collections.Anna x
Thank you so much Anna , glad you enjoyed a walk through my collections. I could never be a minimalist (although I do see the appeal) as I really do enjoy my things and the memories attached.
We have that in common! I enjoyed your stories and seeing some of the collections, especially the bed story was fun! I remember many of these beautiful bracelets on you! You sure have a good use of your accessories. Your outfit is so beautiful and unique, just as you are! Lots of love!
Thank you Natalia, I had a feeling you would be a fellow collector. Glad you recognised many of my bangles , oh yes I do enjoy wearing my collections.Best wishes, Jill.