Vintage In The Shires In Stratford Upon Avon

Colourful Melamine From The Stratford Vintage Fair

We found these summery cups from the 1960s on Teddy and Mavis's stall when the fair visited Stratford upon Avon for the first time on Saturday. The fair took place in the council chamber of the Town Hall and the room looked beautiful as it had been decorated for Christmas by the friendly Town Council staff.

Lovely Embroidery From Teddy & Mavis

I brought this pretty tablecloth when I visited Blighty Bazaar in Leamington Spa last month only to learn that it too came from Teddy and Mavis as they have a display there! It must have taken a long time to sew and I am happy that it has survived the years and changes in taste and fashion and that it finally found it's way to me. Hollyhocks and asters are the flowers of late summer.

The  Stratford Fair Takes Shape 

The busy traffic outside meant that the stalls were just about ready when the time came to open the doors and the proceedings were watched over by the Bard himself who nestled on a ledge in the corner.

Stratford's Most Famous Son

The stalls were piled high with some lovely things, the light pouring in through the windows made the glass and delicate china sparkle, this display is by Christine from Sunny Morning Vintage.

Sunny Morning Vintage

Suzanne from Hearts & Kisses brought along some lovely handmade Christmas gifts and for once I managed to take a photo of her lovely stall before the fair started! Suzanne regularly has a stall with us and will be at the Market Harborough Xmas Vintage Fair on Saturday. Suzanne is also an agent for the leading magazine, Homes & Antiques.

Hearts & Kisses From Suzanne

Good quality vintage textiles make wonderful additions to the 'vintage' home, eiderdowns are perfect for snuggling into on cold winter evenings and a pieces of patchwork can be incorporated into cushions, bags and dresses by clever crafters. Teddy and Mavis also brought along a wonderful tinplate railway station toy which I regret not buying as it was there when I returned to their stall.

Vintage Textiles From Teddy & Mavis

If there is enough space we like to bring a few things along to place near the entrance to welcome people as they come into the fair. 

Some Things We Brought Along

 I found the Britannia Compendium several years ago in the now gone Dodo Antiques in Olney. Since then I have noticed that reproduction sets are being sold in gift shops but it is nice to have an original made by Chad Valley in the 1930s.

An Eclectic Mix

Vintage of course does not only come in shades of pink, blue and yellow. This display of all sorts of things received lots of curious attention. The vintage head and torso is an anatomical model from the 60s to aid in the teaching of the basics of the circulatory system!

China & Handbags

Linda and Jen from Curious Cuckoo Vintage brought along some china, a rail of clothes, a pile of handbags and a very distinctive 'shocking' pink chair.

Perfect For The 60s Studio

Christmas will soon be upon us and there was a seasonal feel to the stalls with lots of vintage baubles and paper decorations on display. Original decorations from the 1950s and 1960s look lovely when used together to decorate the 'vintage' tree.

A Merry vintage Christmas

This copy of "Chatterbox"is from 1919 and original Christmas wares are always very popular, the appearance of the Bird's Custard Jugs (featured in an earlier post) on a television commercial for a prominent supermarket caused a flutter in prices although I am not over eager for Tesco to be regarded as a champion of vintage! 

A Richly Decorated Room

The fox prowling on the shelf is on display of one of the stalls rather than being part of the fixtures and fittings at the Town Hall. 

Until We Return

By the time the bunting had been taken down and the poster collected up it was time to say goodbye to Stratford. The winter skies had darkened as we headed into The Garrick Inn for a drink before the drive home to Northampton. The fair will be returning to Stratford next year, with little time to rest before then we have the forthcoming Xmas Vintage Fair in Market Harborough to prepare for and look forward to.

Saturday 7th December