thrifting.

as i put the finishing touches to a small collection of eames screen-prints, i am also juggling the fun job of editing photos of my latest treasures. you could almost call it a part-time obsession, this treasure hunting business. it's up there with my passion for making art & baking cakes and it definitely takes me to my happy place. one of the main reasons i started writing a blog was to share my latest creations together with my thrifted treasure. sharing the second hand love is a beautiful thing and why i decided to take some time out on this productive sunday night to share my latest finds with you. found anything uber delicious this weekend that i ought to know about? have a good week!

one of the perks of living so close to germany. this beautiful and bright west german vase is now the centre of attention in our lounge room. a wooden pineapple plate that's a little slice of home, now rests by my bed side.

snagged a couple of floral tablecloths at the local market yesterday. flower power baby.

picked up this beauty from a gorgeous belgian couple at the last swanmarket. they had a caravan full of treasure and reminded me that the belgians really know their vintage.

a round floral tablecloth that will soon adorn our new tulip table. 

it was a lucky stop at a new opshop a few weekends back. i filled my bike basket with these enamel/tin beauties for a bargain price.

pattern LOVE. who knows what i'll make out of this but for now i'm happy to just adore it. 

an unmarked treasure that i just couldn't leave behind. had nothing to do with the 50c price tag. ;)

oh vintage floral. you will always have a huge piece of my heart dedicated to only you.

a retro photo album containing photos of a 1975 fleamarket. talk about perfection.

there are no words. but a #coasterperfection hashtag makes sense.

i foresee a valentine's day photoshoot. <3 nbsp="" p="">

found.

how long has it been since i shared my latest vintage finds with you? appears to be...ummm...forever ago. it's going to appear that i have a slight obsession, but let's be honest...if you've been following k&n for a while now then you'll know it's completely normal. i found some great things in paris whilst visiting my sister, went a little wallpaper crazy in gent and have since been ferreting amongst copious amounts of treasure at my local market. i live in a city that although from the outside can look at a little too new for vintage treasure, is an utter goldmine. i have to remind myself i have treasure packed away back 'home' but as i become more settled here in holland, i really can't see myself or my treasure hunting going anywhere else. prepare those peepers.

very few words needed to describe this ultimate 70's treasure (money box). 2 euros? i think so.

retro bauhaus liberty fabric found at a charity shop in england.

i can now cross this set off my wishlist. alfred meakin, you genius.

so much to love.

spitalfields finds. love a bit of welsh tapestry.

this beast now adorns our pastoe coffee table, stealing the show.

yes, yes and yes! i found myself some vintage decs and for a steal. thank you thrifting gods.

vintage stationary. hello lover.

retro recipe cards in a flower power tin? yes please.

my latest finds. my local second hand store is too good to me.

eyepopping goodness.

a round tulip tablecloth. now i need a round table.

love me a bit of upholstery fabric.

retro floral pillowcases are a given.

vintage heaven.

with a girls weekend planned in paris and a 4 day weekend in denmark and holland on the cards, i was only left with one weekend to play in london. arriving early thursday morning i soon got into the wandering mindset and set off to explore. the next few days would see me vintage clothes shopping in covent garden, wanting to spend far too many pounds in orla kiely, beginning a love affair with liberty, reuniting with my old love anthropologie, visiting vintage heaven that completely blew my mind, conversing over scones and devonshire tea, impressed by incredible looking brownie stacks at the borough markets and eating some of the freshest british strawberries, ever.

it wouldn't be fair to overload you with a million photos, because let's face it, that's what instagram is for....so i'm going to spend the rest of this post sharing my love for a little place called 'vintage heaven'. if you've got yourself a copy of 'spaces' (if you haven't, then please, your life will be richer for it) then you may just know where i'm talking about. my new favourite companion 'london style' describes VH as 'a hoarders paradise, where every possible surface is packed with vintage glass, china, cutlery, books, fabrics; you name it, if it's from the 1940's- 1960's, chances are you'll find it here'. as it's only open on weekends to coincide with the infamous columbia road flower markets, my best friend and i hit VH around 3.30pm on my first saturday in town. as soon as we turned the corner onto columbia road, a collective of secondhand homewares stacked neatly out front had my eyes popping. inside staffordshire potteries were nestled comfortably with meakin, above mounds of vintage floral fabric and decorative teapots. crockery was stacked in colours and even themes, this place soon became my most favourite place on earth. london style says 'it may be hard to take it all in, but it will be harder to leave without buying at least one thing', my thoughts exactly. i could only surrender to the beauty and let my eyes devour the delights stacked before me. it wasn't long before my name was being called to a mound of vintage linen. a large purple floral curtain grabbed my attention first up so as any vintage lover scrambling madly amongst layers of treasure would do, i bundled it under my arm at the speed of light to ensure it would be mine.

i could have easily bought everything i saw, but with a 20 kilo limit, a holiday budget and a little voice of reason, i behaved myself. half of me rejoiced in the thought that i would most probably be returning to london next year anyway. sneaky. a cake plate and vintage curtain piece later and i was sold. vintage shopping is hungry business so it was soon time for afternoon tea in a little nook ajoining the shop called 'cake hole'. vintage florals, kitchenware and crockery had overflowed into this cutie pie hole in the wall and for a few moments i was wishing it was mine. devonshire tea and scones were on the menu for us, after deliberating and drooling for several minutes over the incredible looking victoria sponge. chats over vintage china, milky tea and clotted cream ladened scones was an experience i know i'll still be talking about well into my late 80's. this little treasure with a big and beautiful vintage personality is somewhere i'll be heading back to as often as possible when my feet next land on london turf.

i was in love before i'd even entered.

scenes from inside. uh-maze-ing.

many, many stack-o-plates.

perfect combo.

the view from our afternoon tea possie.

there is nothing quite like a british scone.

hello.

the tapestry wall.

my curtain prize.

found.

twas the week before europe and all through the house, new treats were being collected and sunday was spent snuggled up in bed. hasn't got the same ring to it, but it is eerily quiet around these parts today, and with chilly temps and the odd rain shower...it makes for a perfect sunday in bed. i've had a busy week full of late nights (at work and icing cakes!) and after a gorgeous 3 year old's birthday yesterday, i was ready for a much needed nap. instead post party, i pottered about a couple of oppies, did some washing, cleaned my room, sorted more clothes for the suitcase and was up till 1am booking copenhagen & amsterdam flights. nowhere in that sentence was that much needed nap. so when i woke to rain this morning i knew an epic sleep in was the only answer. it's just after 1pm now and i'm still in bed, pajamas on, peanut butter leftovers on my face and a new episode of friends about to commence. i COULD tend to my washing attempting to dry under the house but i feel boiling the kettle again for the umpteenth time and showing you some of my opshopped finds from the week will be more beneficial, for everyone. i am officially ready for my europe adventure and will be back in the week to show you some of the pretty patterns filling my suitcase and the treats on my anthropologie/liberty/retro villa shopping list. i feel making a rough list now will save me from going a little too crazy when confronted with so much beauty. although it's quite obvious that the crazy levels are already at an all time high due to the fact that i'm flying into copenhagen for a grand total of 6 hours so that i can visit what can only be described as my mecca. somewhere, deep within my pattern adoring heart i am being called to such an amazing place. hundreds of dollars later means logic is clearly nowhere to be seen in this equation but i am finally making the trip to THE most amazing vintage wallpaper shop on earth. if you're following me on instagram/ or know me in real life, you'll have a small inkling of what i'm talking about. here's wishing you a happy week ahead. thanks for listening to my crazy ramblings, or at least...looking at my pretty pictures.

found for me by a lovely lady at work. is my obsession THAT obvious? ;)

german teacups found for a mere few dollars on my way to the party.

possibly THE most pristine piece of pyrex i have ever found. it's no turquoise beauty but this gigantic casserole dish now takes pride of place in my kitchen.

some johnson, staffordshire and parisian plates found and loved.

this beauty still astounds me. found amongst a pile of crappy china plates and priceless. i was almost scared it would evade my grasp.

still unsure about this beauty. looks good here, but on, it's really not my style. being handmade and an absolute steal, i just had to snap it up. i mean, check out the green floral!

gorgeous detail.

what IS it with me and baby knits?

treasure.

a budget was set and promptly kept to. surprised? i still am. it's time to share some of the treasures that the coast unearthed for me yesterday. one or two of them will be gifts, perhaps a couple for sale and then the rest, the johnson, are mine to love. i was reminded just how happy these pre-loved goodies make me whilst neck deep in floral fabrics and up to my eyeballs in retro crockery. thank you to the grandmas whose life long collections are now treasured by a very grateful, freckle faced, rainbow cake baking young lady (me, if you were wondering.) sharing the love over at sophie's too. get on it gorgeous people.

pretty pansies.

there was squealing involved.

high pitched screaming ensued when discovering this gorgeous johnson family.

my new florals.

more mismatched j-love.

a set of quaint english metal placemats. perfect.

just when you thought the j-love had ended....

the quirkiest johnson piece i've discovered. cheese and wine night anyone?

westminster love.

pretty turquoise pyrex, enough said.

another apron for the collection? hell yeah!

a beautiful bessemer platter.

a villeroy & boch beauty. i literally bowed to this one.

this still makes me smile. the perfect little tea and cake platter. 50c? you bet.