Latest buys

 Recently I was at the Paddington Antique Centre and stumbled across this set of old hand beaters.  They were so irresistable to me that I paid way too much money for them.  The memories it stirs in my mind and my heart was well worth it though I reckon. 

I used to cook with my Nan a lot when I was little (well she cooked, and I licked the beaters) and it was special times for us both.  If it wasn't lamingtons, it was jelly cakes or lemon slice or trifle.

This kitchen where I cooked was inside this home, the home where my Dad grew up and I spent lots of time being looked after by my grandparents before I started school.

I love this house, this is a recent photo, taken in June this year.  My Dad had passed away and I had rushed home when I knew he had only a few days left on this earth, said my final goodbyes and bid farewell to an amazing father, I was so blessed to have him in my life. 

So this house is very special to me.

(4 Andrew Street, Kerang, Victoria)

Something else I bought recently is this little blue colander, especially sourced to store the eggs laid by my girls, Poh, Louie and Sofia.  There is nothing nicer than a bowl of fresh free range hens eggs on display on your kitchen bench in a cute old colander.  I bought a silver one also to keep my pegs in at the clothesline.  It's a perfect storage solution, if you leave them out in the rain then the water simply drains through the holes and your pegs don't rust.  Also the container won't perish like those silly plastic peg buckets which only last a year or two in the weather.  I highly recommend one of these as your next peg bucket.  They look great too ! 

A trip down memory lane

I love old things. I love buying old things. My husband always says when I return from an op shop spree " We don't need any more stuff " . When I buy something from an op shop or market or antique store, part of the fun is wondering where it came from and who did it belong to. But what is even better than someone elses old stuff is your own old stuff. When something that was originally your mothers, mothers, mothers that has been handed down the line to you, now that is special. This jug below is from our old family farm, it comes from my Dads side of the family, about three generations ago. It's an old shaving jug and I just love it.

This memory board was put together by my Mum and it's full of so much family history. Dad built the timber and glass box frame for Mum, just one of the gazillion things she nagged him to make for her over the years. Sadly we lost Dad to a brain tumour about five weeks ago, so this is just so special to me now. It is full of old jewellery that came from my great Aunty Chaz, lace gloves that were once hers and some beautiful old wedding photos and postcards from many years ago. It has lots of other little bits and pieces in it, and you can see my Mums marquesite watch that my Dad bought her when she was in her early 20's. I love this watch, and what a great way to be able to look at it everyday rather than having it stored away out of sight in a jewellery box.

This is a painting of my mum's family home that she grew up in, in Horsham Victoria. A few years ago she gave a photograph to a friend who is an artist, and she commissioned her to paint a picture of her family home. It was a great idea. Dad made the frame for this too, so it is such a special piece with great sentimental value.

The car in the garage is my Pops old car. Sadly the house has been demolished to make way for a duplex, so it's great to be able to look at this painting now and take that trip - you guessed it - DOWN MEMORY LANE.

Beautiful Bendigo

WELCOME TO BENDIGO I lived here for a couple of years, back in 1976 - 1978 when I was just 8 years old. Bendigo is a beautiful small city, full of lovely old homes, antiques, lovely gardens and good shopping. This is a picture taken by me recently, looking down View Street, Bendigo Victoria. View Street has quite a few Antique Shops and several Vintage Clothing stores. I was lucky enough to spend some time here earlier this month shopping. I managed to buy a vintage suitcase and a 70's paisley jacket for myself and for my friend who lives across the road I bought an antique vegetable dish. I will post pics of these soon. This Antique shop kept me entertained for probably an hour or so.

Here is the Trades Hall

building which is Heritage listed. It is one of only 3 remaining Trade Halls in Victoria. It was built in several stages, with work commencing in 1896. Next to it is the Penfolds Fine Art Gallery, I did a Google search on this building but could not find any history on it. The next two pics are of the Fire Station, again in View Street. It is a lovely old building of the typical Victorian red brick, built in 1898. It is now used to hold concerts and is part of the Performing Arts Centre

Unfortunately, when I was in Bendigo I did not know about theBendigo Woollen Mills. It is apparently the largest wool outlet in Australia and they also do online ordering for those of us who do not live nearby. Next time I go to Bendigo this will be on my "to do" list.<

I did, however, know about Langley Hall, though I had no idea where it was. Several months ago I was checking out real estate in Bendigo, dreaming of living in one of the many beautiful old homes down there, when I stumbled across this most beautiful place. It was for sale for a cool 2 million, but I knew I had no chance of convincing my husband that we had to buy it and live a beautiful life there. So driving through Bendigo recently on my way to a friends place, there it was, right in front of me. A quick photo stop was in order, so I got myself a few pics of the grand old lady. She is simply stunning.

This picture is courtesy of the internet, I will post more of mine in a later post.

If you get the time, head to Bendigo, and I recommend you go in autumn or winter to enjoy it at it's best. If you get a lovely cold day with a blue sky you will be in heaven.