Chippy Charity Shops

Try saying that title in a hurry. I found some exciting things in a browse round Chippy this week and thought you might like to see them.

Mostly books, as you can see (there's a surprise). The Oxfam Bookshop is particularly good and I nearly always find a treasure or two there. The very first thing I pounced on was this two volume set from Dover.

It's a reprint of a Victorian Needlework Encyclopedia, first published in 1882 and it was only £5 for both books. As you'd expect, there are sections on knitting and crochet, as well as hundreds of different types of needlework. I was pleased to see some tatting had been included ...

... and look at this - Log Cabin patchwork described simply as 'American Patchwork'.

The best part is the supplement which takes up about half of the second volume and is full of engravings of all manner of things 'made or decorated by needlework'. There are lots of work bags and boxes ...

... as well as quite a few things we don't feel the need for nowadays. Anyone fancy a watch stand?

As a keen picnicker, I was rather taken with this luncheon case, decorated with navy blue dress braid.

Lots to explore in these lovely books.

On a more up to date note, I also found another Zakka sewing book.

I believe 'zakka' means 'miscellaneous' in Japanese and the term has become used to describe small things that improve your life (I think that's right, anyway). In sewing terms, this means lots of small projects that are both pretty and useful, ideal for gifts. I love this sort of book and have already found several things I'd like to make from this one.

These little purses use a small crochet doiley for the flap. Isn't that a clever idea?

And you can never have too many shopping bags, especially if they come with a pattern for a little pouch to hold them ...

The Oxfam shop is particularly good for children's picture books and, this time, I found one I'd never seen before.

A Zeal of Zebras is an alphabet of collective nouns and has some very striking illustrations. 

A Down of Rabbits

An Exaltation of Larks

One last book and it's a new addition to my Jane Austen shelf (okay, shelves but who's counting?). 

Now I like gardening and I like Jane Austen so obviously I had to buy this one. As well as some lovely pictures of gardens she knew, it also has information about plants available in her time.

I really must go to visit her house in Chawton again; it's been years since I last went. In the kitchen garden at Chawton they use strings of seashells to keep birds off the tender plants. I do like that idea.

My other two finds in Chippy were this teapot and bowl which were in the same charity shop.

I really like the shiny glaze on the teapot. It's made by Pillivuyt in France, a company I'd not heard of before. Now I just need to knit it its own personal tea cosy as none of my others fit it; the spout is higher than normal for a start and the lid is completely flat.

The bowl is beautiful, isn't it? It's an example of Dragon Pottery from Rhyader in Wales which made china between the 1950s and 1980s.

It's the first piece of Dragon Pottery I've bought. This particular design reminds me of some of the Isle of Wight studio pottery made by Jo Lester which I do collect.

It's the combination of vivid colours, patterns and the quirkiness of the animals that appeals to me. There's also a touch of nostalgia about these for me as my Mum started this collection many years ago on a family holiday on the Isle of Wight in the early 1960s.

These little dishes moved house with us whenever we did and they always make me smile and think of Mum.