Monthly Wish List - February

February has certainly gone in a flash! It's always a bit of an awkward month, with us all feeling impatient for lighter evenings and less knitted layers! But many hardy flowers are now springing up and providing some colour, which is a sign we're heading in the right direction!

The first item on the wish list this month certainly injects some springtime into this grey week! Now I'm beginning to learn how to paint on glass, I can appreciate any detail on stained glass, it's a tricky business! This Victorian panel may not be a masterpiece, but I really like the artists style, it's warm and quite nostalgic, and lets face it, I love anything with a bird on it! I'm really enjoying my stained glass class, it's teaching me lots of patience and attention to detail - thank goodness for that!

Speaking of springtime, this lovely painting caught my eye instantly. It was painted in the early 1900's, described as an 'Impressionist School Effort', so sadly, no name to research. These two girls walking in the woodland just remind me of Mary from The Secret Garden, or maybe even Alice in Wonderland with the blonde hair and blue dress! The detail of the woodland flowers is superb, and the breakthrough sunshine on the forest floor is gorgeous, you can almost feel the beams on your face, with leaves crunching underfoot. If only it had been in my price range, it sold on Ebay for £723, but i just think it's a scene that seems familiar to many peoples childhood memories...

The following items come from mine&mums recent trip to our local (and favourite) Bourne Mill Antiques Centre, where we spent a good few hours this half term, and didn't leave disappointed  (Although I have yet to photograph our purchases - next time!)

These door knockers were very painful to leave behind. The door knocker we had when I was young was a Fox, so I've always admired novelty shaped examples, but this chubby bumble bee was delightful and as soon as I have the funds I'll be racing back, praying it's waiting for me! The owl is equally gorgeous, but I will soon be "The Weird Owl Lady of Aldershot" if my collection isn't limited to only the necessary...well, i'll give it a try!

In the main taxidermy dealers room, I found this beautiful Victorian dome full of jewel coloured birds...although I will admit, so many little bodies in one piece does unnerve me slightly, just like when I went to The Booth Museum. But none the less, this dome was beautiful and very reasonably priced, Ebay has gotten far too expensive now taxidermy is acceptable again!

Finally, an item I knew Bruce would appreciate, featuring a fox of course! This was perched in a room otherwise filled with furniture, so stood out a mile! I practically knocked other browsers out of the way to get a closer look, I can't help it, I'm a lady on a mission! We all know the debates surrounding foxes in the UK at the moment (best not go into it!) but I'm sure that hasn't hindered their popularity in collectables and design, disappointingly! ;) That purple, cold winter sky is painted perfectly, and the fact you can see foxy's breath as he surveys his kingdom is brilliant, I wonder if it'll hang around for long...

I think that's enough 'wants' for this month! As always, thanks for stopping by, I won't leave it so long until my next post, I've been writing this next book review for ages, I just need to press PUBLISH!

OH! And you may have noticed the blog has had a re-vamp over the last week, what do you think?

Hope you're having a good week!

Katie

Monthly Wish List - July

The Wish List is slightly late this month, as I've been on holiday at the Jurassic Coast, my favourite seaside stomping ground! This has perhaps influenced my choices this month, although we had drastically improved weather than that in the first item, a stunning 70s oil seascape. The texture is perfection, and the sky is simply mesmerising, perfectly depicts an angry and powerful sea. I wish I could have afforded this one, went for over £50 sadly, it deserves it, but I am being thrifty at the moment.

1970s Seascape, Oil on Canvas

Keeping with the coastal theme, a beautiful Etsy find, an unusual lithograph dated 1899. Along with a very thoughtful photograph of the item (fresh flowers for your shop items? now that's attention to detail!) the young woman (who appears to be a nurse?) gazing out to sea, I would assume, after the ship in the distance whisking her love away...maybe? What ever the story, it's really charming, and fantastically detailed.

1899 lithograph by Ullman Mfg. Co., New York - From The13thClock HERE

The final item on the seaside theme is this very unusual French Art Deco brooch, with a silhouette including a sailboat, light house, a man smoking a cigar and women lounging in a beach chair - perfect holiday scene! I've never seen one this detailed, have to keep a closer eye out!

Vintage French Celluloid Seaside Brooch from SeasideStudio HERE

RIGHT! Enough with the coastal delights. I found this watercolour portrait which I think is very Bloomsbury in style and tone, and an unusually striking study of a younger person. I wouldn't usually be drawn to childhood portraits, but I hope you'll agree this is special too!

1930's Watercolour portrait  

After visiting the Booth Museum in Brighton (see earlier post) I got back into searching out taxidermy, particularly British birds. I would usually only buy antique examples, but this item at TopHat Taxidermy comes with a certificate to guarantee this specimen was not illegally taken from the wild. Blackbirds give me great joy, hearing their songs both in the morning and during the night is always uplifting, and I think they deserve more celebration. This lovely example by TopHat Taxidermy is very Victorian in style, I am a fan of the painted mural, but the detail of the nest is what drew me to this item. For me, very reminiscent of plates in antique children's books.

 Blackbirds by Tony Armistead, sold by Top Hat Taxidermy HERE

And finally, we couldn't leave July without mentioning London 2012, I actually just returned from the Men's road race today, so am feeling pretty enthusiastic! Here is an issue of a Picture Post from the 1948 London Games, featuring Opening Ceremony, pictures of women competing in many sports, and much more. I am always a fan of the photography in this magazine, the photo of the two boys is particularly good!

 

Original Picture Post from the 1948 London Olympic Games

And that's it for July, it certainly went quick! Thanks for reading! 

Katie

The Booth Museum Of Natural History

During my recent trip to Brighton, I visited The Booth Museum for the very first time! Founded by naturalist Edward Thomas Booth in 1874, it remains true to its nickname "home of the dioramas", as Booth was the first man to depict taxidermy animals in scenes resembling their natural habitats, down to the type of foliage and rocks included. His detailed sketches and notes show how determined he was to keep his work true to life, and as well as his taxidermy and famed bird collection, he also studied fossils, skeletons and insects. The skeleton room is vast, holding elephant skulls, and narwhales amongst other amazing examples, even a human skeleton features!

Booth was born in 1840, to a well-to-do family. His early years were spent in education in Brighton and then on to Trinity College Cambridge where he studied only briefly, before be asked to leave having spent more time on the fens shooting and observing birds than studying! The museum guide told us he was quite the playboy character, with too much time on his hands as a young man, it was the best career choice he could have hoped for! He was considered a real character, and even had his own carriage at Brighton Station to hook up to the next outward bound train whenever a new or rare bird was spotted! 

The view inside the museum, as it was around 1911.

Sorry I didn't take a photograph of the entrance now to compare, the light in the museum is so dim (to preserve the taxidermy) that my Iphone was quite useless, and the next photos aren't exactly brilliant, but hopefully they'll give you an idea of the sheer amount of work in this building! It doesn't look like a large space from the outside, but they sure have made the most of the space! Floor to ceiling cases, some absolutely huge, the top ones housing eagles and vultures which are eating lambs and rabbits...nice! Apart from a new desk and study area, the exhibits look exactly the same as the above picture. Here are a few pictures i managed to take, apologies for the quality!

My favourite bird of the moment! See all the leaves and foliage included? 

Family of Partridges

1. Claire and the giant fish!  2. Fantastic Flamingo!

Painted dioramas in the fossil room

Booth should never be regarded as a commercial taxidermist, as his collection until his death was a private resource. The building itself was built specifically around the collection, some cases even featuring in the walls themselves. Considering I co-own several taxidermy pieces with Bruce, I did find the museum quite overwhelming, all those little bodies peering out into the dim lit room...I don't know why I felt like that, I'm pretty tough! I guess the thought that Booth shot all those birds and animals himself is another factor, he certainly was busy! But it's a true gem in the naturalist movements crown, you won't be stuck in queues to look in the cabinets like at the Natural History Museum, it's much more curious at Booth!  It's a truly unique place to visit and I thoroughly recommend you pop by when you're next in Brighton, especially if its raining cats and dogs like on our trip!

 Myself by the Narwhal/Killer Whale/Dolphin and Indian Elephant specimens. 

Stained glass windows in entrance hall.

Thanks for reading!

Katie