Sunday 18 February 2018

The icing on the cake

It's hard to believe that we are already more than half way through February. Time really does fly! Signs of Spring, however small, can already be spied, and the days are slowly but surely getting longer. In fact, last Monday morning was the first time in months I left the house in daylight, and for a week or two now darkness hasn't yet descended while I'm making my way home.

Even so, I have to set the Time Machine back a couple of weeks, to February's first weekend, as I hadn't finished telling you about it.

We hadn't been to any flea markets for a month and we were starting to get seriously itchy, so, that particular Sunday, we bit the bullet and went to the much scorned indoor flea market in Antwerp. You know, the one we vowed never to go near again. Which shows just how desperate we were ...


Before we left, we briefly stepped outside for outfit photos. It was chilly, even though I was wearing a - gasp! - jumper! It's a cardigan actually, but I'm always wearing it as a jumper. It isn't vintage either, nor is it new-to-me. It's King Louie and picked up from an outlet shop while on holiday in Belgium's west country back in 2013. I love its deep ochre yellow and, of course, the blue rosebuds and diamond pattern at the yoke!



I came across this skirt in one of the charity shops we'd visited the day before. The fabric's a sturdy cotton, in very dark blue, almost black really, with a lighter blue plaid pattern, and tiny speckles in off-white and burgundy.

I never thought I'd see the day I'd be wearing a pencil skirt again, but the two rows of kick pleats left and right, gathered by buttoned tabs, make it quite comfortable to wear.

My opaques were the same colour as the cardigan, and I chose a pair of blue booties.



The skirt which came with this Tweed jacket hasn't been worn for a long time. Although I like how the suit looks when worn together, the Tweed fabric, even though it is lined, is rather scratchy, even when I'm wearing a thick pair of tights.

The jacket often sees the light of day, though. Here I added my warm woolly burgundy hat, one of my new scarves bought the day before and my gold leather gloves, which have already seen a lot of wear since I bought them in the January sales.



At first sight, the flea market didn't seem to be very promising with many gaps between stalls, but we soon came across a stall selling new leather boots for € 10 a pair. They even came in different calf widths, so when I tried on this gorgeous tan pair, I was glad to find I could zip them all the way up.



This blue woven handbag with two rows of plastic rings was hiding at the bottom of a box. It was mine for € 5.




I couldn't resist this pretty little tin. Aren't those colours gorgeous? The bottom half is a solid green and marked "Victoria", a Belgian chocolate brand which stopped trading in the 1970s.


We stopped to talk to a lovely lady in her eighties, who's been buying and selling collectibles since she was a young girl.

Her stall has all manner of lovely things, but my eyes immediately zoomed in to the red bear brooch, recognizing it as being from the same range as my beloved 1950s Bambi brooch.



I also bought two pairs of vintage shoes from the same stall. The pair on the right bears the name of a long gone Antwerp shop.



There were still quite a few aisles to trawl after lunch, but nothing really appealed to us, until we stumbled upon this boxed vintage Tala icing set.

We have collected a bit of kitchenalia over the years - most of which we actually use - and even though there one or two Tala items among them, this is the first time we happen upon vintage Tala in Belgium.



Tala is one of Britain's oldest baking and kitchenware brands. They were founded in 1899 in Stourbridge, which is in England's Black Country and not in Birmingham, as rightly pointed out by Vix, who's a Black Country girl herself!

This set, which used to belong the seller's Mum, dates from around 1950.



Not only does it contain a syringe and all of the twelve different icing tubes, there is a turntable as well, which admittedly is a bit wobbly.



But there's more! The set also contains a booklet, called "How to Decorate a Cake", for which Tala collaborated with baking and icing expert, Anne Anson.

The booklet is a feast for the eyes, full of brightly coloured, mouth-watering illustrations of spectacularly decorated cakes and biscuits, with detailed instructions on things like flower making and designing icing patterns.


But the box had yet another surprise in store!  Look at this wonderful Tala catalogue listing all the available items in their bright and colourful range of kitchenware at that time. Most of which I wouldn't mind having in Dove Cottage's kitchen, I must add.






In spite of never having iced a cake, this isn't even our first icing set.

Slightly younger than our recent find, but still dating from the 1950, is this set, containing just the syringe and six icing tubes. At least that's what it said on the box. But look, we've got an extra three!

We found it while on holiday in Wales, in an Aladdin's cave of an antique shop in Newcastle Emlyn.




This cute little tin contains our oldest set, bought from a delightful shop selling kitchenalia in Rye, when we were holidaying in the area in 2005.

This is Tala's "King Set" No. 1871 and apparently it was listed in their 1937 catalogue!

I'll need to show you some more of our kitchenalia treasures one day ...

As for the flea market, will we be going again? Never say never, I'd say!

Linking to Patti's Visible Monday at Not Dead Yet Style!


38 comments:

  1. The little roses on that cardi are just adorable! How pretty.

    I love Tala baking items, the brand has had a resurgence in popularity and you see lots of modern sets for sale in chain shops like Wilkinsons. I have my Dad's Tala set most probably from the '60s, it still works perfectly!
    Yes to seeing the rest of your kitchenware collection!! x

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    1. I've seen the modern Tala sets in the shops when we were in the UK, although I do prefer the vintage stuff. I'll be doing a kitchenalia post once I get around to take some photographs! xxx

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  2. Your combinations of colors are masterful. Love this skirt. Oh, and I swoon over antique objects when shopping in thrift-stores. I like how they bring us back to the past. Even the illustrations on packages are so reminiscent of earlier times (like my childhood when I admired drawings on my mother's pantyhose packages).

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    1. Thank you Ally! I love old packaging too. I might even have some vintage pantyhose somewhere, still in their package. Will see if I can find them ... xxx

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  3. Hah! Aren't you glad you went back to that flea market? That Tala catalogue is very intriguing! I can imaging tucking into a delicious cake while flipping through the catalogue on a leisurely Sunday. Love that blue skirt!! How on earth did you find boots to match!! The 10 pound leather boots are a great find! I bet you were very happy when you zipped them up.

    You look lovely as usual, thanks for sharing pictures of your pretty clothes.

    Happy thrifting ;)

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    1. Thank you! I had the blue boots first, so technically speaking, I found a skirt to match ;-) xxx

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  4. I'm intrigued with the old decorating set. I was a cake decorator earlier in my life and using one of those large syringes wouldn't be terribly easy. The tips all remain the same but I'm glad they went to hand held bags where you have better control over the pressure.

    You do manage to find the nicest boots. I also have the large calf problem and find it difficult to find boots that fit.

    Suzanne

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    1. Wow, you were cake decorator! I can imagine you'd have better control with bags. I haven't tried my hand at icing, but I think the syringes might be a little unwieldy. xxx

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  5. Aren't you even tempted to make a batch of icing just to try it out on kitchen paper? Wonder how it works for piping heavy cream?

    The bear brooch is so sweet, as is the new handbag-that will surely get plenty of use in the summertime. Love your pencil skirt too-clever feature permitting you to walk comfortably.

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    1. If only I had the time ... for the time being, I'm limiting myself to just looking. As for the skirt, it didn't feel like I was wearing a pencil skirt at all! xxx

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  6. I adore your cardigan/jumper with the blue skirt - what a fabulous look! I enjoyed the glimpse of the Tala icing sets - my mom still has/uses her icing tips from the 50s!

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    1. Thank you Sheila! I think it's lovely that your Mum still has her 50s set. So many people are tempted to buy new gadgets all the time. xxx

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  7. Wow these Booties for 10 €?!! Great. And so cute the brooches and this vintage icing set :)
    You look gorgeous in this skirt Ann. Love the whole look :)
    Huge hug and greetings from Thailand, Tina

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  8. I love your outfit, Ann! The colour combo is fabulous! I love the blue woven bag and the red bear brooch, too. The kitchenalia items are so cool! I've never seen anything like that icing set before! I'm definitely interested in seeing more kitchenalia! ;) XXX

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    1. Thank you Sasha! I'll be doing a kitchenalia post once I've found the time to take photographs. xxx

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  9. Great outfit, Ann! I made a similar skirt when I was probably 15 to 17, only it was light plaid fabric. It was popular in the 1980s. I am glad you decided to visit that flea market - such fantastic boots, cute bear pin and other treasures! I totally understand that you needed a fix. I sometimes have the very same feeling, only I don't know what "fix" is mine. :)))

    Lots of love!

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    1. I'm thinking my skirt might be from the 1980s too. I vaguely remember this style of skirt from back then. xxx

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  10. King Louie stuff is great. I'm a little too large for their clothes, but if I manage to lose weight I'll buy some. Your cardigan is a smasher.

    And that Tala icing set is ace. It's fascinating to see the booklet. It's so colourful for that time.

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    1. The booklet was a nice bonus! I love things like that. It's a shame King Louie doesn't do larger sizes. And they're not always consistent: I have stuff from them ranging from S to L ... xxx

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  11. Such a lovely outfit, I like particularly your cardi-jumper and how it matches your tights!, and that blue plaid skirt looks so fab (pleats and buttons!!). Gorgeous!
    Those tan boots look awesome (and comfy!!) and I'm in love with all those beatiful illustrations, so colorful and cute!! Thanks for sharing these details!
    besos

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    1. Thank you Monica! I was lucky enough to have a pair of tights in the same colour! xxx

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  12. We are twins today in our plaid skirts, and I adore you blue booties! As well as that darling icing kit - I think grandma had a similar in the 1950's when I was born : >

    -Patti
    http://notdeadyetstyle.com

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    1. We were! I confess that the booties were originally a slightly darker blue, but I used lighter blue shoe polish on them. By mistake, admittedly, but I love the result! xxx

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  13. I'm loving the outfit this week, navy and orange are rapidly becoming a favourite combination for me. The style of the skirt is gorgeous, it almost looks like a 1930s one. And talking of 1930s, those brown lace up shoes look very much like an original 1930s pair. I have a very similar pair but they'r plain leather with wavy top-stitching details. Go on, depress me with how much you paid for them. Mine were £70!

    All that Tala stuff! Oh my gosh, I love baking and making cakes, so these would be a dream for me. xx

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    1. I was actually thinking of you when I laid eyes on that skirt. I think it's 1980s does 1930s. As for the shoes, I've no idea if they are 1930s, but they are indeed the right style. I hate to depress you, but I paid € 15 for them. Sorry! xxx

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  14. fabulous outfit - the warm yellow is a fantastic hue and the pencil skirt suits you very well!
    if it goes further this way you can open up your own boots stall ;-D chic!
    the tin is very pretty and the icing set interesting - esp. the booklet - imagine spending hours for icing a cake which get eaten by a bunch of hungry guests in 5 minutes....
    hugest hugs!! xxxxx

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    1. Thank you, my dear! And second post in a row where I'm not wearing polyester ;-) I guess you're right about the boots stall ... As for the cake decorating and hungry guests: it doesn't bear thinking about! xxx

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  15. Now I've got to correct you there, my dear Ann. Stourbridge is part of the Black Country and not Birmingham - we get very insulted when we're mistaken for Brummies!!! Haha!! Funny how Tala is so sought after, it was part of our lives as children.
    Love the King Louis cardi, it looks fab with the kick pleated skirt and the wonderful jacket.
    Those boots were incredible value!
    LOve the green Bambi brooch! xxxx

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    1. Oops! That'll teach me to trust Google! Thanks for pointing it out, I've immediately corrected the mistake ;-)

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  16. I love your ochre and blue combination, and the kick skirted pencil skirt looks great on you.
    You managed a good haul, the boots were such a bargain!
    I always find kitchenalia interesting, the Tala set was quite a find with the booklet and catalogue. xxx

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    1. Thank you Sally! I'm a big fan of kitchenalia myself. It's always lovely to find boxed items with booklets! xxx

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  17. What great value those boots were....surely the bargain of the year, I always have trouble getting the zip done up too. Your opaque tights couldn't be a more perfect match for the lovely new cardi. xx

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    1. Lots of boots, especially vintagen ones, seem to have been made for girls with stick legs! xxx

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  18. You did pretty well at your 'not so good' flea market, I must say! I love your boots; what a brilliant price. The brooch is so cute and the shoes are lovely. I've never seen a bag like that with rings on it - is it from the 1960s do you think? Loved the tin; I'm very partial to tins and store my baking stuff mostly in tins and my seasonings and spices.

    I'm sorry to say I have never heard of Tala and had no idea it was a British company. I'll keep my eyes open from now on for it.

    I loved your retail cardigan. I find it hard to believe it's not vintage. Loved the whole outfit especially the tights with the blue boots.

    Hope your week is going well
    xxx

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    1. Thank you Veronica! I'm partial to tins too, but try to limit myself, as I'm - surprise! - running out of space. Vintage Tala seems to be quite collectible. xxx

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  19. I like the little flowers on the cardie. It does look vintage even if it is not! You did very well on the Tala front!

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