Autumnal Brocante

I'm supposedly in the thick of NaNoWriMo (27,000 words at last count) and factoring in a sick Sapphire (three days off school) and my own four day migraine (still lingering), but hopefully you'll understand why my inclination to blog has been fainter than a Kardashian talent.



But autumn has arrived in Geneva and a brocante or two has been visited. Bring out the photos!

Firstly, a pencil sketch with '1881' written just above the signature. Yes, after I proudly popped it into an IKEA frame, Love Chunks pointed out that the stall owner could have just written the date in there, hoping a sucker like me would be eager to part with a huge ten francs. Fair point.



Another stall holder thanked her lucky stars when she had five copies of this old watercolour of Geneva and five of us duly purchased one each for two francs a pop. Clearly drawn in the days before the Jet D'Eau emerged from a busted pipe in the lake during 1886 or the UN was ever heard of. So, mass produced tat, but I like it anyway.



Found these French spice drawers and instantly fell in love with them. Not so LC or Sapphire, who both said 'Erk' when I stuck them in our admittedly-not-very-sympathetic Billy bookcase:



But YOU can see why I liked it, can't you? Glass drawers made in handy scoop shapes?



Ahem, moving right along. We have darling Milly, reluctantly being forced to sit in the corner and pose in front of my twelve franc bargain - an old wooden snow sled!



Perfect for storing Love Chunks' muddy shoe collection:



Peter Rabbit has always been one of my  picture books and Sapphire has a tiny figurine depicting Peter snuggled up in bed after his adventures. A Wedgewood plate for five francs - yes, thanks.



And a cheap poster of the classic WW2 shot of St Pauls' cathedral surviving the devastation of the blitz? In an IKEA frame that I realised was so unbelievably cheap because it didn't have any clear plastic cover or glass in it?



Second hand book sales are another addiction of mine. English versions preferred of course and when there's a twice-yearly clearance to help raise funds for more books AND a bunch of old Pommy ladies are selling cups of tea and fresh sandwiches filled with cheddar cheese and Branston pickle, I'll be there with bells on. And found, on the 'Antiquarian' table, this little beauty from 1909:



It was interesting to note on the spine that he was called Hans Anderson. No 'Christian' inserted in, unlike Danny Kaye's movie of 1952. "I'm Hans Christian Anderson, I've many a tale to tell..."

Even more interesting was that the book was a prize awarded in 1909 by the Vicar EA Johnson to the student John Jenner for 'General Proficience, Good Conduct, Punctuality and Regularity.' Poor mite; dumb as dodo dung but turned up anyway. Probably liked his prunes, too.....



Modern books aplenty of course. There's few things nicer than knowing you have a delicious pile of reading awaiting you.



.....with one additional selection that even Milly doubted I'd get through.



Yep. War and Peace. Brand new; never been attempted. Handed in for re-sale instead. Will it end up the same way again...?



Time will tell. Until then, there's always time to step away from the desk and wander outside for some autumnal squirrel spotting.