1. Get out your pinking shears and line your pantry shelves with pretty oilcloth offcuts.
2. Thread a crystal onto a piece of ribbon and hang it in your window to send Winter sun rainbows dancing around your kitchen.
3. Write your favorite recipes onto the back of a collection of vintage postcards (they are perfectly divided for ingredients and method). Punch a hole in the corner of each postcard and thread them together with velvet ribbon, and there you have it, a pretty little fan of vintage recipes.
4. Buy yourself a bunch of frilly, floppy tulips.
5. Strip off your bed, open the windows, and dust your mattress with sweet smelling talcum powder. Shut the door and leave for a couple of hours to absorb dampness and freshen your room, then go in, brush down the mattress and re-make your bed with layers and layers of cosy quilts and extra pillows.
6. Spend twenty minutes wandering around the house chucking all those bits of this and that you have been pretending not to see into a binbag.
7. Wrap candles in brown paper, bound with string and store in the bottom of your fridge so they burn for longer in central heating stifled rooms.
8. Put all the kids jim jams on the radiator for the afternoon so they are snuggly warm when they climb into them after their bath.
9. Empty a kitchen drawer and fill it with your collection of flavoured teabags, boxes lying face up so you can see exactly what you’ve got without having to faff…
10. Stitch the ends of a vintage teatowel together and thread onto ribbon. Tie between the knobs of one of your kitchen drawers, et voila, a rolling towel you won’t lose while you are baking…
Create your own Brocante Life Book, plan Christmas, set up routines and rituals or live life the BrocanteHome way with my guided workbooks and planners.
Wake up. Take twenty three minutes off the time stated on the alarm clock and configure correct time in head. Smile. Close eyes again and fall immediately into dream about stuffing potato jackets with fake potato. Wake up all over again in…
So yesterday was the first day of my very own Commit to Your Own Life Program. And I took it in to my head that the very first action I needed to take was the purchase of a new bag, because that…
Look I know I go on about not being precious. I know I tell you that life is too short to save your best vintage china for Christmas Day, and that life would be full of teeny tiny joys if we would…
Halfway through July already! Before we know it it will be Autumn and I will have you demented digging out your Christmas Planners and hassling you to get organized with the Christmas Countdown before the madness of the festive season descends. But…
Hell’s bells, Rachel Ashwell must rue the day she coined the term "Shabby Chic" and the world and its maiden aunt started commandeering it left, right and centre in order to flog all manner of dubious items. Take the bin above, currently…
Who needs MySpace when you can go and hang around The Pantry at BakeSpace… MySpace for cookers and cakers… Other Things To Do At BrocanteHome Browse the Bookstore Discover a curated list of books to enhance and support life the BrocanteHome way…
10 Comments
You always come up with such inspiring ideas Alison. I'm going to try the talc on the bed one at the weekend. Ages and ages ago you wrote about brocanting your fridge and I loved some of the ideas. I thought it was saved somewhere on your site and I really wanted to re-read it again for some inspiration but can't now find it. Am I not looking properly or is it no longer available?
You always come up with such inspiring ideas Alison. I'm going to try the talc on the bed one at the weekend. Ages and ages ago you wrote about brocanting your fridge and I loved some of the ideas. I thought it was saved somewhere on your site and I really wanted to re-read it again for some inspiration but can't now find it. Am I not looking properly or is it no longer available?
Once again wonderful ideas Alison! Will start with bying bunches of tulips. That's an easy one for me living and working in Amsterdam and passing the flower market on my way home.
Once again wonderful ideas Alison! Will start with bying bunches of tulips. That's an easy one for me living and working in Amsterdam and passing the flower market on my way home.
{"id":null,"mode":"form","open_style":"in_place","currency_code":"USD","currency_symbol":"$","currency_type":"decimal","blank_flag_url":"https:\/\/brocantehome.net\/wp-content\/plugins\/tip-jar-wp\/\/assets\/images\/flags\/blank.gif","flag_sprite_url":"https:\/\/brocantehome.net\/wp-content\/plugins\/tip-jar-wp\/\/assets\/images\/flags\/flags.png","default_amount":300,"top_media_type":"featured_image","featured_image_url":"http:\/\/brocantehome.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/tipjar-2.png","featured_embed":"","header_media":null,"file_download_attachment_data":null,"recurring_options_enabled":true,"recurring_options":{"never":{"selected":true,"after_output":"One time only"},"weekly":{"selected":false,"after_output":"Every week"},"monthly":{"selected":false,"after_output":"Every month"},"yearly":{"selected":false,"after_output":"Every year"}},"strings":{"current_user_email":"","current_user_name":"","link_text":"Leave a tip","complete_payment_button_error_text":"Check info and try again","payment_verb":"Pay","payment_request_label":"BrocanteHome","form_has_an_error":"Please check and fix the errors above","general_server_error":"Something isn't working right at the moment. Please try again.","form_title":"BrocanteHome","form_subtitle":"Help Me to Keep BrocanteHome Online","currency_search_text":"Country or Currency here","other_payment_option":"Other payment option","manage_payments_button_text":"Manage your payments","thank_you_message":"Thank you so much: helping me keep Brocantehome online really means the world to me.","payment_confirmation_title":"BrocanteHome","receipt_title":"Your Receipt","print_receipt":"Print Receipt","email_receipt":"Email Receipt","email_receipt_sending":"Sending receipt...","email_receipt_success":"Email receipt successfully sent","email_receipt_failed":"Email receipt failed to send. Please try again.","receipt_payee":"Paid to","receipt_statement_descriptor":"This will show up on your statement as","receipt_date":"Date","receipt_transaction_id":"Transaction ID","receipt_transaction_amount":"Amount","refund_payer":"Refund from","login":"Log in to manage your payments","manage_payments":"Manage Payments","transactions_title":"Your Transactions","transaction_title":"Transaction Receipt","transaction_period":"Plan Period","arrangements_title":"Your Plans","arrangement_title":"Manage Plan","arrangement_details":"Plan Details","arrangement_id_title":"Plan ID","arrangement_payment_method_title":"Payment Method","arrangement_amount_title":"Plan Amount","arrangement_renewal_title":"Next renewal date","arrangement_action_cancel":"Cancel Plan","arrangement_action_cant_cancel":"Cancelling is currently not available.","arrangement_action_cancel_double":"Are you sure you'd like to cancel?","arrangement_cancelling":"Cancelling Plan...","arrangement_cancelled":"Plan Cancelled","arrangement_failed_to_cancel":"Failed to cancel plan","back_to_plans":"\u2190 Back to Plans","update_payment_method_verb":"Update","sca_auth_description":"Your have a pending renewal payment which requires authorization.","sca_auth_verb":"Authorize renewal payment","sca_authing_verb":"Authorizing payment","sca_authed_verb":"Payment successfully authorized!","sca_auth_failed":"Unable to authorize! Please try again.","login_button_text":"Log in","login_form_has_an_error":"Please check and fix the errors above","uppercase_search":"Search","lowercase_search":"search","uppercase_page":"Page","lowercase_page":"page","uppercase_items":"Items","lowercase_items":"items","uppercase_per":"Per","lowercase_per":"per","uppercase_of":"Of","lowercase_of":"of","back":"Back to plans","zip_code_placeholder":"Zip\/Postal Code","download_file_button_text":"Download File","input_field_instructions":{"tip_amount":{"placeholder_text":"How much would you like to tip?","initial":{"instruction_type":"normal","instruction_message":"How much would you like to tip? Choose any currency."},"empty":{"instruction_type":"error","instruction_message":"How much would you like to tip? Choose any currency."},"invalid_curency":{"instruction_type":"error","instruction_message":"Please choose a valid currency."}},"recurring":{"placeholder_text":"Recurring","initial":{"instruction_type":"normal","instruction_message":"How often would you like to give this?"},"success":{"instruction_type":"success","instruction_message":"How often would you like to give this?"},"empty":{"instruction_type":"error","instruction_message":"How often would you like to give this?"}},"name":{"placeholder_text":"Name on Credit Card","initial":{"instruction_type":"normal","instruction_message":"Enter the name on your card."},"success":{"instruction_type":"success","instruction_message":"Enter the name on your card."},"empty":{"instruction_type":"error","instruction_message":"Please enter the name on your card."}},"privacy_policy":{"terms_title":"Terms and conditions","terms_body":null,"terms_show_text":"View Terms","terms_hide_text":"Hide Terms","initial":{"instruction_type":"normal","instruction_message":"I agree to the terms."},"unchecked":{"instruction_type":"error","instruction_message":"Please agree to the terms."},"checked":{"instruction_type":"success","instruction_message":"I agree to the terms."}},"email":{"placeholder_text":"Your email address","initial":{"instruction_type":"normal","instruction_message":"Enter your email address"},"success":{"instruction_type":"success","instruction_message":"Enter your email address"},"blank":{"instruction_type":"error","instruction_message":"Enter your email address"},"not_an_email_address":{"instruction_type":"error","instruction_message":"Make sure you have entered a valid email address"}},"note_with_tip":{"placeholder_text":"Your note here...","initial":{"instruction_type":"normal","instruction_message":"Attach a note to your tip (optional)"},"empty":{"instruction_type":"normal","instruction_message":"Attach a note to your tip (optional)"},"not_empty_initial":{"instruction_type":"normal","instruction_message":"Attach a note to your tip (optional)"},"saving":{"instruction_type":"normal","instruction_message":"Saving note..."},"success":{"instruction_type":"success","instruction_message":"Note successfully saved!"},"error":{"instruction_type":"error","instruction_message":"Unable to save note note at this time. Please try again."}},"email_for_login_code":{"placeholder_text":"Your email address","initial":{"instruction_type":"normal","instruction_message":"Enter your email to log in."},"success":{"instruction_type":"success","instruction_message":"Enter your email to log in."},"blank":{"instruction_type":"error","instruction_message":"Enter your email to log in."},"empty":{"instruction_type":"error","instruction_message":"Enter your email to log in."}},"login_code":{"initial":{"instruction_type":"normal","instruction_message":"Check your email and enter the login code."},"success":{"instruction_type":"success","instruction_message":"Check your email and enter the login code."},"blank":{"instruction_type":"error","instruction_message":"Check your email and enter the login code."},"empty":{"instruction_type":"error","instruction_message":"Check your email and enter the login code."}},"stripe_all_in_one":{"initial":{"instruction_type":"normal","instruction_message":"Enter your credit card details here."},"empty":{"instruction_type":"error","instruction_message":"Enter your credit card details here."},"success":{"instruction_type":"normal","instruction_message":"Enter your credit card details here."},"invalid_number":{"instruction_type":"error","instruction_message":"The card number is not a valid credit card number."},"invalid_expiry_month":{"instruction_type":"error","instruction_message":"The card's expiration month is invalid."},"invalid_expiry_year":{"instruction_type":"error","instruction_message":"The card's expiration year is invalid."},"invalid_cvc":{"instruction_type":"error","instruction_message":"The card's security code is invalid."},"incorrect_number":{"instruction_type":"error","instruction_message":"The card number is incorrect."},"incomplete_number":{"instruction_type":"error","instruction_message":"The card number is incomplete."},"incomplete_cvc":{"instruction_type":"error","instruction_message":"The card's security code is incomplete."},"incomplete_expiry":{"instruction_type":"error","instruction_message":"The card's expiration date is incomplete."},"incomplete_zip":{"instruction_type":"error","instruction_message":"The card's zip code is incomplete."},"expired_card":{"instruction_type":"error","instruction_message":"The card has expired."},"incorrect_cvc":{"instruction_type":"error","instruction_message":"The card's security code is incorrect."},"incorrect_zip":{"instruction_type":"error","instruction_message":"The card's zip code failed validation."},"invalid_expiry_year_past":{"instruction_type":"error","instruction_message":"The card's expiration year is in the past"},"card_declined":{"instruction_type":"error","instruction_message":"The card was declined."},"missing":{"instruction_type":"error","instruction_message":"There is no card on a customer that is being charged."},"processing_error":{"instruction_type":"error","instruction_message":"An error occurred while processing the card."},"invalid_request_error":{"instruction_type":"error","instruction_message":"Unable to process this payment, please try again or use alternative method."},"invalid_sofort_country":{"instruction_type":"error","instruction_message":"The billing country is not accepted by SOFORT. Please try another country."}}}},"fetched_oembed_html":false}
You always come up with such inspiring ideas Alison. I'm going to try the talc on the bed one at the weekend.
Ages and ages ago you wrote about brocanting your fridge and I loved some of the ideas. I thought it was saved somewhere on your site and I really wanted to re-read it again for some inspiration but can't now find it. Am I not looking properly or is it no longer available?
You always come up with such inspiring ideas Alison. I'm going to try the talc on the bed one at the weekend.
Ages and ages ago you wrote about brocanting your fridge and I loved some of the ideas. I thought it was saved somewhere on your site and I really wanted to re-read it again for some inspiration but can't now find it. Am I not looking properly or is it no longer available?
I love the puttery treats!
I love the puttery treats!
Once again wonderful ideas
Alison! Will start with
bying bunches of tulips.
That's an easy one for me living and working in Amsterdam and passing
the flower market on
my way home.
Once again wonderful ideas
Alison! Will start with
bying bunches of tulips.
That's an easy one for me living and working in Amsterdam and passing
the flower market on
my way home.
What a great idea about the rolling towel! I'm off to find something puttery and wonderful today~
What a great idea about the rolling towel! I'm off to find something puttery and wonderful today~
That has made me want to rush of and all of those things! What a great feel-good post!
That has made me want to rush of and all of those things! What a great feel-good post!