Friday 10 November 2017

Treasure hunting at the castle

Back in April, we visited a castle where a small antiques fair was being held, which I blogged about here.

Much to our delight, we found out that there would be another one in November, the date of which was promptly pencilled into our diary.

Last Saturday was the day, so we set our trusty SatNav, Marie-Jeanne, for the 30 odd minute drive to Castle de Renesse in the village of Oostmalle.



I wore a chocolate brown polyester polka dotted dress, with long sleeves and a self fabric tie belt. Oh, and a contrasting white notched collar, to which I pinned the first of my brooches: a small blue plastic flower.

Further accessories were some amber coloured beads and a swirly amber plastic ring.

For contrast, I chose a powder blue cardigan and added a plastic brooch with a coordinating duo of brown and cream flowers.




First outing this season for this belted brown Tweed jacket from Think Twice.

Another layer means yet another brooch opportunity so I chose to add more blue with this darling little squirrel brooch. Tying it all together, I wore a silky brown and blue printed scarf.

The pleat at the back, revealing a row of three buttons, is my favourite feature of this jacket.



I decided to try out the little brown leather handbag I'd found at the charity shop event. It turned out to be just roomy enough for my weekend essentials: my purse, phone, a packet of tissues, lipstick and a small tape measure.



We'd packed a picnic, fully expecting to be eating our sandwiches while sat in our car, as rain was forecasted for the early afternoon.



After parking our car - noting that it was much busier than usual - we made our way to the moated castle, which was looking particularly picturesque drenched in Autumnal sunshine, with its mirror image reflected in the water.



At the castle's entrance this fabulous car, probably belonging to one of the stall holders, was parked.



Make no mistake: this isn't your run of the mill flea market, but a proper antiques fair selling all manner of brocante, with a lot of the the wares on offer a cut above the rest, which is reflected in the often exorbitant prices.


Nevertheless, there are still a handful of stalls selling the most wonderful stuff at prices within our budget.



And look whose stall we ran into!  Yes, it's the Brooch Lady, whom we hadn't seen since last May.
When she was absent at last month's flea market in Antwerp, we were starting to get a bit worried. She is, after all, well into her eighties ...


But there she was, with her folders of brooches, from which I selected four beauties to join my collection: a domed brown enameled brooch decorated with flowers, an oval brooch with a pearly border surrounding the painted portrait of a lady, a pink plastic Art Deco style brooch with carved flowers at its heart, and a souvenir brooch from Waterloo.




Two more brooches were bought from another stall: a sweet little cat brooch and a posy of mother of pearl flowers.

From the same stall, Jos bought this highly decorative share of Minerva, the famous Belgian manufacturer of luxury automobiles, which they produced from 1902 until 1938.


Minerva started out manufacturing standard bicycles in 1897, expanding into "motocyclettes", a kind of motorized bicycles which were a forerunner of motorcycles, in 1900, before adding cars to their production in 1902.

Minerva vehicles acquired a reputation for quality and reliability and, by 1914, enjoyed the patronage of the Kings of Belgium, Norway and Sweden.


A search on the Internet yielded a couple of international advertisements for Minerva cars dating from the late 1920s and early 1930s.

After World War II the company produced a version of the Land Rover 80" under licence for the Belgian army until 1954. After the deal with Land Rover fell through, there were plans to re-enter the car market but these did not get beyond the prototype stage.

Sadly, the company, who had their headquarters and factory in Antwerp, became defunct in 1956.



After this little diversion, it's back to the castle!

Upstairs was another one of our favourite stalls, selling vintage textiles, haberdashery, hats and miscellaneous curiosities (top right).

I couldn't resist this delightful little felt and faux fur hat. The retaining elastic needs replacing (it snapped at the merest touch), but otherwise it's in perfect condition.



By the time we finished browsing, and left the castle, the sun had disappeared and a dense blanket of grey, rain-filled clouds, had replaced the clear blue sky of earlier that morning.

As it was still dry, we decided to risk it, so we picked up our picnic basket from the car and made our way to a picnic table with a view of the castle across the lake.



As far as I know, this is the only picnic table in the castle grounds but still we always manage to have the place to ourselves.

This could very well have been our last outdoor picnic of the year!

We'd only just arrived back at our car and were about to drive off when the first drops of rain started to fall.

On Sunday, we had a real flea market to go to, for which I hope you'll join me again in my next post!

30 comments:

  1. What a splendid setting for an antiques fair and how lovely to see the brooch lady. I bet she's thrilled when she sees you, you must be her best customer!
    The fair we traded at last weekend had some incredible stuff at incredible prices - some pieces weren't even labelled and you know what they say, if you need to ask the price then you probably couldn't afford it!
    You both look fab, I love your tiny bag and the squirrel. I'd never heard of Minerva so thanks for the education! xxx

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    1. I do hate it when pieces are not labelled. It's such a deterrent, as you know that most probably the price will be ridiculous. Then, if you do, and you start shaking your head and walking away, they tell you, but it's old! xxx

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  2. Oh you did very well with your 6 brooches! Have you got room for them? Maybe the brooch lady's way of keeping them in folders could be the way forward! I'm so glad she was there.

    Your outfit is lovely and the scarf does indeed tie it all together. I'm trying to follow you and wear more brooches; I've added one to every coat and jacket I possess...

    The antiques sale looks like such fun and what a lovely location - a castle!

    Hope you have a lovely weekend.
    xxx

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    1. Now that I've got the drawer system, I've got some space to spare, but I wonder for how long. The Brooch Lady's folder system is ok as long as you only keep them as a collection, but far too fiddly if you want to wear them too! xxx

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  3. How lovely to share your last picnic of the season! It looks fun.
    The antiques fair looked to be full of interesting things. You found some great brooches.
    Your tweed jacket is fab and the little blue squirrel brooch is perfect with it.
    Have a lovely weekend. xxx

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    1. Thank you Sally! That squirrel brooch is actually one of my "modern" ones. I found a great shop in Antwerp that sells these quirky brooches! xxx

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  4. What a picturesque venue for your antiques fair, that chateau is stunning. You look very co-ordinated in your lovely brown and blue ensemble and the handbag is super. How elegant is the little felt hat and what luck to bump into the brooch lady. xx

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    1. Thank you Fiona! We kind of expected her to be there, and apparently she was expecting us as well. Once I've replaced the elastic, I will assembe an outfit to go with the little hat ... xxx

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  5. Looking at the Brooch Lady's binnder, I'm giving serious consideration to a similar set-up for some of my collection.
    Your squirrel brooch is adorable, and I do love that new hat you found.

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    1. Thank you Goody! The Brooch Lady's binder system is great when you're only collecting, but far too fiddly if you wear them too. It always takes her ages to get one out! xxx

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  6. I'm in love with your outfit! I'd happily steal it all for myself : )

    I'm starting to think I need to begin using my brooches more often. I really like the little groupings you create with yours. It makes each of your outfits unique unto you.

    That jacket is fabulous and fits you perfectly.

    The location looks like it was taken out of a fairy tale. What a place for a picnic! The whole visit looks like it came out of Victoria Magazine. A long since dead publication that I used to love.

    The hat looks like it is in pristine condition. The elastic is an easy fix.

    Every time I read your posts I want to come for a visit. It looks so picturesque.

    Suzanne

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    1. Thank you Suzanne. I googled Victoria Magazine. Surely that is too much praise! I'm still having to replace the elastic of the hat as, typically, I did not have any black elastic in my stash. Once I have it, it will indeed be an easy fix. Even for me ;-) xxx

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  7. totally love the polka dotted, white collared dress with the tweed jacket!! a cool & chic ensemble in my books!
    perfect for the picturesque castle with the antique market - oh what would i give to go there!!! we will go to a big indoor flea at sunday - but its held in a modern sports hall and i fear its loaded with cheap 90s tad and only very few real antics/vintages........
    fine picnic place!!
    huge hug! xxxxx

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    1. Thank you Beate! They're doing tours of that castle once a month, we are thinking of joining one so that we can see the whole of the inside of the castle! xxx

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  8. Ann thanks for this beautiful pictures. I love your tweed jacket and this cute squirrel, sooo amazing! Your posts are very exciting for me... so beautiful vintage pieces. Enjoy your weekend, huge hug Tina

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    1. Thank you so much Tina! I'm glad you love my posts, like I do yours! xxx

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  9. I'm glad Mrs Brooch was back! It's lovely that she is a specialist. As always, your outfits make my heart sing with the attention to detail!!x

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    1. Thank you Kezzie, I'm glad I've made your heart sing! xxx

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  10. What a stunning setting, the castle really is beautiful. It's always a treat to attend an event somewhere historic. Glad the brooch lady turned up!! X

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    1. It was a relief to see the Brooch Lady, but I don't think she will be trading at our regular flea market in the future. She promised to call us when she is trading somewhere, though. xxx

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  11. What a lovely day you had and hoorah to being able to purchase from your favourite brooch lady! I do love the jacket you wore, what a gorgeous colour and fabric. Just perfect for this time of year. xx

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    1. Thank you Cate! That jacket is one of my favourite finds, ever. xxx

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  12. I'm happy to see the Brooch Lady too! And what a beautiful visit to the castle again! Belgium is a wonderful country, so much gorgeous architecture. I must visit some day!

    Love your polka dots, and this tweed jacket is awesome! You know, Ann, I was thinking to start a brooch collection for quite a while, but only after connecting with you, my collection started to form actually... Now I am rocking brooches like nobody's business! :) I have a mix of vintage and modern pieces that I love. I tend to favor large pieces, as I am not petite myself. But I always admire your miniature beauties and am astonished with the wide variety you are able to find!

    Lots of love!

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    1. Thank you Natalia. Belgium indeed has some gorgeous architecture, but then again, I am of course only showing the nice bits. It's no use showing the ugly bits. But with Justin's Belgian connections, you must visit some day. If you ever do, we'll gladly be your guides! xxx

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  13. That looks like a lovely day, and it must've been a huge relief to see the brooch lady again.

    A brown dress didn't strike me as particularly Ann, but as soon as you put on the cardigan and accessories the whole outfit was unmistakeably you. You use colour brilliantly.

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    1. Thank you Mim! I do have quite a bit of brown in my wardrobe, actually. But I can understand that this particular dress doesn't strike you as particularly me ... If I see myself wearing it on its own, I'm thinking meh ... xxx

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  14. Another wonderful outing - your life looks like so much fun! And I love your choices of vintage jewelry. Thanks for linking up, xo

    -Patti
    http://notdeadyetstyle.com

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    1. Thank you Patti. I am, of course, only showing you the fun bits! xxx

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  15. really lovely outfit and a fab color combo, I love particularly those blue accents and the different prints and textures, polka dots, tweed, printed scarf!, every piece is lovely!. I always enjoy watching your brooches, and I'm in love with your cute bag, isn't it a beauty!?.
    Taking notes on carrying a measure tape in my bag too, that's really useful!
    Fabulous landscapes, very interesting fair (even if it was that 'brocante' kind of expensive fair) and so lovely that you met 'the brooches lady' once more!
    besos

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  16. Thank you once again Monica for your lovely comment. I must say I was quite pleased with how that outfit turned out. I hardly ever plan in advance, it just grows organically, so to speak ... xxx

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