Les Gamelles

Good afternoon

 Today I want to show you my small collection of French enamelware lunch boxes called gamelles.

 From what I have learned they were used in the 30's and 40's in France by miners and school children.

They are a type of enamelware called graniteware or splatter ware 

Notice how pristine the inside of the lid is.  I find that this is the case regardless of the condition of the exterior.

This one is blue and white on the outside and green and yellow on the inside

I think that this may be my favorite

The tin insert is to hold bread or crackers white the box itself held soup or stews.

They were submerged in hot water in the morning so that the soup would kept warm

I love the hues of blue and green 

I also admire the texture.  I hope you can see it a bit on the following two pictures

                                  My girls are dying to take them to school one day.  We'll see :)

I hope you all have a great evening.

Michele

Ps be sure to enter the great giveaway offered by Belle Blanc this month 

B E L L E B L A N C - G I V E A W A Y

Recent Flea Market Finds

Good Morning,  There is a new antiques fair here in Northern California called Le Petit Marche.  It is in Marin just over the Golden Gate Bridge.  It is a few months old, pretty small, and very charming.  There is a crepe vendor and some lovely French music playing while you shop.  I found these wonderful french bread baskets there.  The colors remind me of the south of France.  

I love this large vase because of the black spots peeking out from under the white ceramic

I posted last week about the wonderful container sale at Atelier de Campagne.  This apple is cast iron.  You cannot believe how heavy it is.  We drove to the sale in my friend's car.  And she joked that she would have to fill the tank multiple times to get us back to the hotel, 40 miles, based on the weight of this apple alone.  They had a huge bucket of this fruit.  I have never seen these before. (The gamelle, or enamelware lunch box will be the subject of my next post).

These is another relatively new flea/antiques market in the Bay Area.  It is at Candlestick Park in San Francisco.  I spotted this pitcher there.  It has holes in the bottom.  So I insert a glass and then fill with water and flowers.  I love the shade of aqua and of course, the rust.

If any of you have been to my Etsy site you have seen these crowns.  I don't know what to call them other than beautiful and unique.  I listed the larger of the two.  I noted that you could use them for candles, small plants or even jewelry.  The patina on them is stunning.

Speaking of patina....isn't this urn lovely?

The gilded nesting tables beneath are antiques fair finds as well

And this is also on my site.  This wire cake holder was something that I saw, walked away from, went back, walked away from again.  I kept going back because I could not stop thinking about it.  I love the way it looks in my kitchen, (before and after photos coming.....still in the deep before).

Happy Sunday!

Michele

PS Thank you to Dore of Burlap Luxe

 for including me on her beautiful blogroll.  She always inspires me.  

Atelier De Campagne

This past Saturday I had the privilege of attending the container sale at Atelier de Campagne.  We arrived about a half hour before it opened.  As we waited in line we were served hot coffee and handed red stickers to place on the times we intended to purchase.  At 9am they let us in and I was surrounded by some of the most beautiful antique home and garden pieces from France and Belgium I have ever seen.  

The owners of Atelier de Campagne, Johan and Trinidad and Martin, find treasures that are breathtaking.  

And they are three of the nicest men you will meet

Look at the fish on the water treatment sign :) 

Wonderful enamelware collection

this room is just gorgeous

I love these dolly tubs and the baskets

All I could think was that I never wanted to leave 

There were many bottle driers and metal crowns

This is the top of a mirror which I adore.  The shade of blue grey is perfect in my opinion.

I am thrilled to have been there and will certainly not miss it in the future 

To see more of Johan, Trinidad, and Martins'  treasures please visit their site at http://atelierdecampagne.webs.com/

Happy Wednesday!

Michele

Labor Day Makeover

Yesterday was our local flea market/antiques fair.  It is, by far, my favorite day of the month.  I am sure to arrive at 6am because I don't like to fight the throngs of people who are entering as I leave at 9 sharp! I had walked the entire grounds, 2.5 hours, when I saw, in the last row, a pair of Louis XV repro cane back chairs.  They did not look the way I like them to, cosmetically, but underneath I knew they were a treasure.

I love the floral carvings

The only sentiment I can come up with for the picture below is YIKES!  No offense to my grandmothers.

So I started out.  And I want to be very clear about something.  I am an amateur, just learning.  But here is what it looks like today

I used a combination of light sanding and dirt glazing to create an old weathered look.  Even though it is a very old chair, after a few coats of paint, it can look rather new

I like the way the glaze gets into the grooves to give it the look of being dirty

I am interested to see how the fabric will wear.  I wonder if it will stretch with time.  I hope not, but we'll see.

The fabric is handloomed hemp linen.  I love love love the texture and feel of it.  

This chair is by no means perfect.  But that, in my opinion, is what gives it depth, and beauty. 

And this is a picture of it with my lovely Darcy chair from Rachel Ashwell.

Have a wonderful holiday today

Michele

German Beer Garden Set

I am a confirmed, die hard, Francophile.  The being said, I fell in love with this set which comes from Germany.  It was used in a beer garden in Munich. It consists of this table and four mismatched chairs.  I originally, in true form, purchased it with the intent of selling it on my etsy site.  

But, of course, I could not part with it.  And it has since become part of my small but cozy living/dining area.

The set consists of the table and four white chairs.  The blue ones are part of a different, French, set which I actually did manage to sell on etsy.  

This built in is my favorite part of my 100+ year old San Francisco apartment.  

  

The tablecloth also comes from Germany.  It is a handloomed linen sheet.  The texture is wonderful and beautiful.

I love the look of the white roses in the enamelware pitcher. 

Have a great weekend

Michele

a touch of rouge

 I attended the antiques fair this weekend with my sister and sister-in-law.  We had a great time!  And each of us came home with some treasures.  I noticed that I had found items with a theme of red.  Although my current decorating theme is very pale and calm, the studio I inhabited in San Francisco before my children were born was decidedly red hued.  A few of my faves.....

I made this oversized grain sack market tote by hand.  

And this grain sack which I purchased at the stunning 

Full Bloom Cottage 

in Orange CA

was used not only to create this pillow

But also to recover this chair cushion

I especially like it with the raw edged linen pillow on it

And the red in this photo is of the initials of the grain house which shipped their product in this particular sack

There is a red theme found in two of my bistro chairs

I have tried to find this company online in order to learn a bit about them but have been unsuccessful.  If anyone knows of them, I'd love to hear from you

I like how none of them match but am especially partial to the one on the left because of the red poking out from underneath the coat of white paint.

I chose this one because it is unique in my opinion

And lastly, the texture and softness of this grain sack lured me to it

so much so that I did not want to make it into smaller pillows.  So to keep it intact I chose to make a 51 inch long body pillow out of it.  

have a great day!

Michele