Flea Market Shopping in Brussels

Morelles Market at La Place du Feu de Balle is open everyday 5am-2pm and well worth a visit.
It’s a good old fashioned flea market selling bits and bobs from house clearances.
It takes a keen rummager to find the treasure so allow yourself a good few hours to browse.
As for prices, I love a good haggle – I managed to haggle down to around half of the original price, only paying what I felt it was worth.  
There’s everything from furniture, ceramics, jewellery, paper ephemera and of course textiles.
Two stalls had boxes of chandelier crystals.
 
 
Morelles Market at La Place du Feu de Balle is open everyday 5am-2pm and well worth a visit.
It’s a good old fashioned flea market selling bits and bobs from house clearances.
It takes a keen rummager to find the treasure so allow yourself a good few hours to browse.
As for prices, I love a good haggle – I managed to haggle down to around half of the original price, only paying what I felt it was worth.  
There’s everything from furniture, ceramics, jewellery, paper ephemera and of course textiles.
Two stalls had boxes of chandelier crystals.
 
 
A receipt for macaroons dated 1938
   
 
These goodies came home with me.
 
This book is full of vintage wooden matchbox covers.
  
The tiny piece of film – the kiss.
 
I ran out of small bank notes early on and had to buy a coffee at Pin Pon (fabulous bar decor!) to break into another large bank note – note to self: take plenty of change and small notes next time. 
I arrived at 8.30am and by 11am some of the stall holders were offering ‘anything for a Euro’.
It’s a brilliant place with plenty of cafes dotted all around the square. Good food at good prices so you can rest your feet if it all gets too much.  
It’s a traditional Belgian Flea Market with an absolutely, fabulous atmosphere. 
I’ll be returning on my next visit to Brussels with a much larger suitcase. 

A receipt for macaroons dated 1938

   
 
These goodies came home with me.
 
This book is full of vintage wooden matchbox covers.
  
The tiny piece of film – the kiss.
 
I ran out of small bank notes early on and had to buy a coffee at Pin Pon (fabulous bar decor!) to break into another large bank note – note to self: take plenty of change and small notes next time. 
I arrived at 8.30am and by 11am some of the stall holders were offering ‘anything for a Euro’.
It’s a brilliant place with plenty of cafes dotted all around the square. Good food at good prices so you can rest your feet if it all gets too much.  
It’s a traditional Belgian Flea Market with an absolutely, fabulous atmosphere. 
I’ll be returning on my next visit to Brussels with a much larger suitcase. 

An afternoon of Making Dresses

Oh my, what happened to the weather last week? – it’s went and turned cool again!
When it’s like this, my first thought is to retreat inside, pop on the kettle and get creative.
So that’s exactly what I did – out came my big suitcase full of felt making kit and I started to think about what to make.
My local branch of  the  International Feltmakers Association  are having an exhibition in Olney towards the end of the year on the theme is Lace and I’ve been pondering on what to make.
Slowly an idea has been formulating.
Whilst I was rummaging in the suitcase and getting ready to felt, these goodies popped though my letterbox from a friend who had just been visiting the wonderful Lace in Fashion exhibition at the Museum of Fashion in Bath. What a fabulous read! I’ve already booked a day in the diary to visit.
I thought …. Dresses, Lace…. and then thought again …. Dresses, Lace and came up with an idea.
So for the afternoon’s makes I started creating a selection of nuno felted dresses from merino wool roving, lace and crochet doilies.
A bit sloshing about with soapy water later and I’d completed three little cream dresses.
And my little red dress.