We had a walk round Brantome yesterday before the season really starts and you can't move for Grockles.
One of the smaller supermarkets closed its doors recently and I was interested to see what, if anything, had taken its place. Prime site so surely someone would have the sense to open up a sensible shop, rather than a tourist one. Don't be silly Clare! Brantome is a tourist town and don't the retailers know it. Overpriced tat!
Anyway, the shop has been taken over by an importer of woven cashmire and Middle Eastern bits and pieces.
The scarves are beautiful and not
that expensive, but look what I found at the back of the shop.
This is part of a folded wall hanging. No batting, but silks machined together and then backed and bound. No quilting. But oh my goodness look at the price! AARRGGHHHHHH!
The next picture is a section of one that was
hanging up. The workmanship is appalling. Split seams all over the place so how they have the nerve to ask that amount of money I do not know.
Towards the front of the shop was some more "patchwork" similar to
Tonya's Crusty, but about 3 times the size. Fantastic colours and beautiful workmanship this time, but still horrendously expensive. No photo - sorry. Owner was looking at me oddly by this time so I didn't push my luck, especially as DH tried to distract him by asking the price of a carpet (8,000 Euro).
I wonder how much the people who make this stuff get paid? Not a lot.
Ok, next bit. In the Place du Marché is a fossil shop selling, apart from fossils, jewellery and the normal tourist stuff,
fabric, yes
fabric. Not just any old fabric, but hand woven and hand dyed batiks imported from Senegal in purples, blues, greens, reds, blacks and yellows. The price? Wait for it, 7.50 a metre. Yeesssssssss! Tonya - you have just got to see these colours and patterns.
Sorry no photo. Don't you just hate it when you are being "watched".
To round off this post. I have been meaning to take a photo of this for years. Propped up outside the Au Fil de L'eau restaurant on the Quai Bertin.
Lovely setting, lovely restaurant and gorgeous food if you are into duck cooked in a variety of ways and rounded off with a rich Perigord sauce.
The scarves are beautiful and not that expensive, but look what I found at the back of the shop.
This is part of a folded wall hanging. No batting, but silks machined together and then backed and bound. No quilting. But oh my goodness look at the price! AARRGGHHHHHH!
The next picture is a section of one that was
hanging up. The workmanship is appalling. Split seams all over the place so how they have the nerve to ask that amount of money I do not know.
Towards the front of the shop was some more "patchwork" similar to Tonya's Crusty, but about 3 times the size. Fantastic colours and beautiful workmanship this time, but still horrendously expensive. No photo - sorry. Owner was looking at me oddly by this time so I didn't push my luck, especially as DH tried to distract him by asking the price of a carpet (8,000 Euro).
I wonder how much the people who make this stuff get paid? Not a lot.
Ok, next bit. In the Place du Marché is a fossil shop selling, apart from fossils, jewellery and the normal tourist stuff, fabric, yes fabric. Not just any old fabric, but hand woven and hand dyed batiks imported from Senegal in purples, blues, greens, reds, blacks and yellows. The price? Wait for it, 7.50 a metre. Yeesssssssss! Tonya - you have just got to see these colours and patterns.
Sorry no photo. Don't you just hate it when you are being "watched".
To round off this post. I have been meaning to take a photo of this for years. Propped up outside the Au Fil de L'eau restaurant on the Quai Bertin.
Lovely setting, lovely restaurant and gorgeous food if you are into duck cooked in a variety of ways and rounded off with a rich Perigord sauce.
8 comments:
I love the quilts - Completely charmed with the bicycle. You've got me thinking.. I need to start shopping the garage sales.I want one for my garden. I could put flowers in the summer, pumpkins in the fall, and some kind of cute "gone for the winter" sign in snow season....Great post. Thanks for sharing.
The fabrics look fantastic but the poor workmanship would put me off too. The duck with Perigord sauce sounds fantastic. When will I ever get back to France????
yikes, horrendous price on that first one, but boy oh boy the handwovens and batiks from Senegal sound very intriguing. Next time convince your husband to clutch his chest and fall over as a distraction whilst you take the pics.
Methinks this is a development opportunity for someone - you could run a few of those up in your spare time! Maybe you should talk to Tanya in Japan to send you some kimono fabrics!
I've seen similar quilts at a rather 'New Age' shop I frequent in Wales and agree that the workmanship is not always what's desired - they look good from the back of a galloping horse though! And as for the bicycle - you could use that picture as a birthday card it's so pretty.
How very French to have a bicycle in one's garden!
lovely blog~ I do enjoy the tour of other countries from my own house! thank you for sharing~
The fabrics look so beautiful, too bad they are so poorly made. And the bicycle photo is amazing! Really something. I love it.
Cheri
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