La Belle Brocante

Romances et Chansonnettes

I owe you apologies and information. 

Instead, I have Romances and Chansonnettes. 

So let's get down to business...

Our Etsy shop is closed for vacaction.

Brocante goods are being gathered at a furious clip. Wonderful, wonderful things. Some will arrive in time for our annual sale.

Our pop-up shop to coincide with the Moss Street Paint-In takes place on Saturday, July 19th in Victoria, British Columbia. This year we will be at 605 Moss Street, joined by Ruth & Nelly and Eight Inch Rule. Business starts at 10:00 am.

Additional brocante treasures will be available at a trunk show in late August once the final boxes arrive.

We hope to see you there!

 

xoxo

 

 

Louis Says {Etsy Sale}

Louis is tired of cake.

And Marie's ridiculous obsession with shoes.

Louis prefers the brocante.

 

ETSY SALE today through April 20th!

Spend $80 or more and receive 40% savings ... which translates to spending just $48 for $80 worth of delicious French documents!

Enter coupon code SpringSale before checkout.

Please, please, please enter the coupon code carefully - I cannot manually enter it for you after purchase.

 

Go shopping!

 

xoxo

 

Hummingbird Plates

A few more dainty little hummers are in the shop today.

Waiting for the first blossoms on the cherry trees.

Spring is just around the corner.

 

xoxo

 

Napoleon 3

New listings on Etsy, just for you.

An original Napoleon 3 collage ... Documents of a most delightful nature ... Contrats de Mariage ... antique velum, and other tasty morsels.

Let's go shopping!

 

xoxo

 

Hummingbird Plates

A few more antique hand-tinted hummingbird plates for sale soon ... let me know if I should reserve one for  you.

 

xoxo

 

Antique French Garland

 

My latest preoccupation has been dismantling antique newspapers and documents into their component parts - letters.

 

Letters that are teeny tiny.

Titchy, even ...

I've been attaching them to wee pennants and stringing them on linen thread ...

 

Making micro-garlands from bits and snippets of French goodness.

They are almost impossible to photograph as I don't have long & skinny photography skills.

CELEBRATE stretches 11.5" in length.

BEAUTIFUL IS 11" and CREATIVE is a puny 10".

There is extra thread on the ends for tying, and all the paper parts are between 80 and 180 years old. Everything, down to the last little letter, is original.

I've also made BON ANNIVERSAIRE (22") and HAPPY BIRTHDAY (19.5"). Far too long & skinny to photograph or scan, but similar in appearance.

This week single words are $7.50 and double words are $10.50, plus the cost of a stamp.

I would also be perfectly happy to make you a custom garland with the special words or names of your choosing. 

 

xoxo

 

Lizars Moths

Today's project is listing 1800s hand-tinted Lizars moths on Etsy. 

As with the hummingbirds, I am selling these on behalf of a local artist and collector. So lovely to have a little time with them before they flit off to new homes.

Enjoy!

 

Preparations

I am knee-deep in restocking the Etsy shelves.

New keys.

New jewelry.

And these lovely collections of antique French documents. Handwritten scraps and pages from the 1700s and 1800s. Great for collage artists or to add to your decor or to feed your own paper obsession. I find antique documents to be very slimming and a good antidote to stress, headaches, and depression.

I still have a lot of work to do but given the massive hiccup on Etsy this morning, a number of items have already made a dash for the shop floor. 

Happy shopping!

 

xoxo

 

The Naturalist's Library {Volume I}

Antique hand-coloured hummingbird engravings available on Etsy.

I am selling these plates on behalf of a local artist and collector.

They. Are. Stunning.

They are from the Naturalist's Library series, printed and painted by hand in the 1800s, and will display beautifully once framed.

The paper has aged to a soft cream but the painting remains crisp, fresh, and vibrant.

I am being very careful not to drool on them.

Enjoy!

 

xoxo

 

Found: Vellum Caretaker of Outstanding Character

The winner of yesterday's vellum document is the lovely Melody in Texas (hello Texas!).

If you are heartbroken that you aren't Melody in Texas, there are four vellum pieces on Etsy for your perusal. They date from the 1600s - 1700s and are all suitable for framing.

Wishing you a wonderful week.

 

xoxo