The Angelus

I recently found this dish at Goodwood antiques fair but it is not going on my website as I like it too much and I also have a print by the same artist though it has lost all its colour over the years.

The original paintings are 'The Angelus' and 'Shepherdess with her Flock' by Jean-Francois Millet (1814 - 1875).

I first became aware of Millet's work when I had a winnowing basket for sale and didn't know what it was until I found this painting by the artist.

In this painting a man and a woman are reciting the Angelus, a prayer which commemorates the annunciation made to Mary by the angel Gabriel. They have stopped digging potatoes and all the tools used for this task – the potato fork, the basket, the sacks and the wheelbarrow – are strewn around them. In 1865, Millet said: "The idea for The Angelus came to me because I remembered that my grandmother, hearing the church bell ringing while we were working in the fields, always made us stop work to say the Angelus prayer for the poor departed".

Both Salvador Dali and Vincent Van Gogh have painted their own interpretations of this painting.

Kitchen Gadgets

I have two new additions to my kitchen. Both are decorative and pleasing to look at, both can perform the same task but they couldn't be more different. I LOVE my new red Magimix food processor and this huge French whisk bought at Goodwood antiques fair. The whisk measures 49 inches in length so it must have been used in a large bakery, I would imagine. This will be listed on my website.

September

I can hardly believe I didn't write any posts during August; where did that month go? Here we are in September already and on our way to Autumn.

I finished the Lloyd Loom chair by recovering the cushion with a Kate Forman fabric which was perfect. I also bought a Victorian crib recently which looks lovely in the same bedroom.

I made this corsage yesterday. I had seen the instructions on someone's blog ages ago but can't remember whose it was so apologies for not being able to name them and credit them with the idea.

Last month we had a week's holiday in Brittany. Unfortunately we picked our holiday to coincide with France's so a lot of places were closed and I wasn't able to buy as much for the website as I had hoped.

This is Rennes. I love the way the second house looks as though it has slipped down!

And this is Dinan (on a very cold and wet day)

where I stumbled across this pretty little shop selling vintage fabrics, buttons and all kinds of vintage haberdashery. I had a long chat with the owner (who, of course, spoke perfect English). You can view the lady's website here http://www.fleurdelinetboutondor.com/.

I will leave you with Neil Diamond singing 'September Morn', one of my favourite songs.