A large Brocante had opened on the N12, a ruler straight road south of Verneuil that thundered with lorries. This place lookedpromising. We walked into what had been a spartan and high ceilinged industrial unit, which was now was adorned with stuffed pheasants perched on antlers, painted panels from fairground carousels and a pyramid shaped tabernacle. […]
Brocanteur: The photograph was hanging in Jean-Paul’s shop. “The look on his face,” he said, “of profound despair….. It was after the war in Paris, hard times, and, vous voyez, he was even heeling shoes using a block of stone to work on.” Brocanteuse: I have been writing The Diary of a Brocanteuse for a […]
Rustic four door buffet on a replacement plinth from a convent in the Ardeche region of France. SOLD
Robust pair of French concrete garden planters. NOW SOLD.
Spanish chest of drawers with one key to work each lockable drawer. SOLD
I wanted to visit a dealer in a nearby village full of fountains and winding streets. The shop was yet to open as we squeezed into a narrow parking space opposite. A small vide grenier was quietly setting up on the main tree lined promenade, although nothing clamoured to be bought. So we sat on […]
Glazed pine tabernacle with raised upstand. One pane of original glass remaining. 74 cm high x 43 cm wide x 43 cm deep. Price: £190.
Robust cast iron end finials from the stables of a French house. Original powder blue paint. SOLD
Elegantly shaped small French table, later painted. The foot of one leg has some wear. SOLD
Just a taster of two large portraits in simple black wooden frames of a couple with gentle faces. More to follow.
Beautiful Uzes was not far up the road from Castillon. I remembered it fondly from a visit when I was twenty. En route we stopped at a Brocante. A taciturn man with a head of dark unruly hair nodded as we walked into the courtyard. Every kind of metal work was here. Moustache hinges, door […]
French metal garden table on an attractive base, with original green paint. The top is in excellent condition, unpainted. SOLD
A giant French urn made of light metal. SOLD
Hefty French table originally a chopping block with a massive drawer on metal runners. It is now well married with another pine top. SOLD
Basket of apples rendered in vibrant colours. Signed Carlos, 1909 – 1988. This canvas came from a sale of his atelier. SOLD
Simple elm and oak farmhouse table with tipped legs. No drawers. One leg has developed a slight “kink” around a knot but is fine. SOLD
Pair of fauteuils in excellent condition. Lovely deep colour to the wood. Recovered more recently in a green velours. SOLD
Quietly shutting the door of the gite behind me I came through olive trees into the resiny, still night. The vestiges of a full moon hung high over the Pont du Gard. The sky lightened as I drove to the Déballage at Beziers and the sides of the autoroute were beautiful with magenta blossoms and […]
An elm and oak table, 2 metres 25 cm long with a drawer at either end. Has been restored. SOLD.
Metal Provencal metal base, married with a marble top to make a console table. SOLD.
18th century fauteuil with earlier small repair at the junction of one arm. The tapestry is more recent but in pretty duck egg and pastel colours. SOLD
18th century French side table with raised “Cabaret” edge. One drawer. Lovely colour. SOLD
French hand made 19th century wine glasses. A good selection is usually in stock. Prices £10 – 25 each.
The three large dealer Déballages held in Provence a handful of times a year sometimes fall on consecutive days, and are within two or three hours of each other. It makes a worthwhile trip. Graham and I stayed near Avignon in Castillon du Gard. A jug of lilac from the garden welcomed us to our gite. […]
