Vaucluse Dreamer

I can’t help it – I love any opportunity to fuddle around an Antiques & Brocante market in France and over the August Bank Holiday weekend the Antiques Art and You Festival  – http://foire-isle-sur-sorgue.fr/en/home/  

….takes place in pretty L’Isle Sur La Sorgue and it’s now becoming rather a fixture in our Summer calendar.

Yesterday morning saw us hop on our bikes – with Miss Daisy’s basket fitted, of course and cycle the 40km (into a rather stiff headwind), along the Veloroute Du Calavon to the town, easily riding directly into the centre & avoiding the chaos of trying to park a car anywhere near the centre!

The main road through the town is closed to traffic and packed instead, with gazebos filled with stalls that spill their wares into the street.

There are not just Antiques, but stalls selling upcycled pieces and more modern works of art, from sculptures to paintings and metalwork to Shrek! 

There’s certainly something to interest just about anybody who visits the festival and it was clear that even by the time we arrived (at 1130) that the vendors had already been busy with lots of pieces already marked as ‘Vendu’

That said we had a lovely couple of hours ambling around, chatting to stall-holders about various pieces they had for sale – including a rather beautiful model cannon (in working condition) – ideal apparently for starting a Regatta (not much call for that at home on Dartmoor) and at the very reasonable price of €1000. Despite the fact that Andy & Tom would have loved it – I put my foot down and we wandered on!

There’s so much to tempt you & I adore the jewel-bright colours of the vintage soda syphons – especially when they are packed onto the table like these …..

Or the collection of old coffee grinders …….

Or simply the piles of eclectic junk & signs – just begging to have a new life ……

I was rather taken in by the old tandem, but the idea of riding it is a bit scary as it must weigh a ton, but it would look fantastic on a wall…..

Then there were the boxes of old metal letters……

The vintage printing-blocks……

And stacks of old linen……

I managed to grab another couple of handfuls of dusty vintage chandelier  pieces – done for my jewellery @ some for a friend who wants to use them for bird-scaring in her allotment (such a great & glittery up-cycling idea)

And some beautiful old silver hors-d’oeuvres servers to turn into jewellery too – I’ll be busy in the workshop when I get back! 

Needless to say we were rather restricted with what we could buy as it’s not easy to carry a cast iron table on a bike – as even Miss Daisy has her limits! 

That said we’re back in Au Chineur having breakfast this morning (this time with the car) – in the hope that the 2 iron table bases we saw yesterday are still on the stall – as there’s a little home waiting for them on our terrace once Andy has performed his magic on them and made new tops!

Fingers crossed the’re still there!

……… But whatever – it gives us another chance for a fuddle – and I’m always happy for that!