Village Treasures

On Saturday morning we had some spare time [our timetable for work at Cornerstones had to be changed as we waited for the Wickes delivery] so we walked round Swanton Morley and looked at the Yard Sale. It was a village wide event, in support of the Parish Church. Sellers paid a small fee to be involved, and then their addresses were included in the leaflet which was sold to buyers for 50p. ‘Genuine’ sellers had an orange poster [last year a few people joined in who had not paid up. Shame!!] It was a great opportunity for people to have a declutter.

About three dozen homes were involved – and refreshments and excellent cakes, were on sale at the church and at one home at the opposite end of the village.

One house – which has a very large garden also had their workshop [full of old vehicles being restored] and the ‘museum’ open for people to have a nose round.

That was quite fascinating

Can you see these things in the two pictures?

• the WW2 helmet
• the flat iron
• the magic lantern
• the two swords
• the horse’s bit
• the safe
• the height gauge
• the carousel
• the sheep shears
• the railway,man’s lantern
• Thomas the Tank engine
• the leather hat

As we walked round the village, we bumped into a few old friends – and I also met the son of one of my old schoolfriends for the first time [sadly Jane and I lost touch after Uni, and she died a few years ago] I met a couple who had retired to Norfolk from Leicester in the 1980s and wanted to know what the place is like now, and another couple who had known my father very well. Lots of great conversations – but did we actually buy anything in the yard sale?

The morning’s selection [and plenty of change from my £10 note]

A Hornsea jug and sugar bowl

A basil plant

A Dereham Baptist Church bicentennial mug [I never got one at the time of the event]

Pair of Boden shorts

A silk tie

A pair of ‘Wolf’ cutters

And an Oscar![you never know when you will need one of them]

The bookmark came from my neighbour, whose little daughter suffers from Ataxia-Telangiectasia.  A-T is a progressive genetic condition which causes severe disability and shortens lives, and Justine was collecting for the charity [website here] It is fairly rare, and I promised I would blog about it to help raise awareness.

On Sunday, as we drove to church, we spotted a few people who were continuing their sale for a second day. If you wanted baby clothes/toys/old handbags/plants/books/videos and curtains, it was definitely the village to visit! Even more fun than a Boot Fair

The only downside was that whilst visiting the far-flung houses, down the back lanes, I brushed up against the long grasses on the verges. This caused some sort of allergic reaction, exacerbated by the heat. By Sunday, my legs looked like they have been smeared with raspberry jam! Fortunately it is subsiding a bit now, and the itching stopped once I took anti-histamines.