Old Treasures

When you’re young you have different values so you don’t always notice the treasures that surround you. Twenty years later you might see things in a different light and the items that were taken for granted at the time start to become of great value for no particular reason other than the fact that you’re older (and hopefully wiser as well *wink*).

Sentiment might be the reason, perhaps you’d like to bring back the past, memories, a link to your childhood or the stories that are attached to a certain item or object. Me, I like really old things: old lettering, books, labels and package design. Objects that were once loved and used by their previous owners, objects that tell their own enchanting history.

Like the beautiful fifties tea set that I got from M. and W. or the tea cups and hundred-year-old books that I found at Greenwich Market. This time I found my treasures close by and I only needed to mention the fact that I absolutely adored the dark blue one and the brown one magically appeared… Hidden for years in the back of a cupboard.

To my surprise I was told that I could have them. Out came a few others but not as nice as these two which I chose. I just love the drawing on the blue one, it reminds me of fairy tales, cozy fireplaces and cold winter nights. The design of the brown one is just gorgeous simplicity, there’s (export) text on the sides in e.g. Chinese, Indonesian and Dutch.

Time is a strange concept that seems to add value to otherwise ordinary things…

Aren’t they cool?

I love the design! Chinese text on one side…

The Blue Envelope

To my surprise I received the infamous and dreaded blue envelope from the Netherlands this morning. I looked down from the top of the stairs and couldn’t believe my eyes when I saw what was lying there on the doormat: a blue envelope?

Funnily surprising how instantly recognisable it is because it’s so typical Dutch… It’s been three years since I sent off the last one to Heerlen… I still don’t believe what happened, because they informed me about a three zero amount that I’ve just received from them over 2006.

They already have been extremely generous when I sent off that last letter and now two years later, on top of that, I receive another third of what I got previously. I never had a bad relationship with them -unlike some Dutch- but this is the best blue envelope I’ve ever received!

It pays for a long-standing trip in the near future…

© Zesty Gal, Bless me for keeping good records *hehe*