Frogs

Whenever my Nan's birthday would come around, there were two things to make sure of. The first was that her gift either had to be something froggy or something delicious a diabetic could eat, and the second was to trail through the shops to find/make from scratch a birthday card with the word "Nan" somewhere on it. Still makes me smile. I'm not so much of a real-life froggy person myself, and the only kind of frogs I really like are treefrogs, but I do like frog designs.

These pieces have been chosen either for the cute froggy designs or for the interesting way in which they have used them. Again, as with the Retro Games post, I found very few froggy gifts. A gap in the folksy market there, possibly :)

 ~♥~ FROGS ~♥~

           

  

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Victoriana

The Victorian era is one of my favourite periods in history, being a fascinating mix of cultural repression, refinement, and subtle decadence. I can trace my love for it right back to my childhood, when I went on the school trip to St Fagans. St Fagans is a history-come-to-life sort of place, and is a fantastic place to go for the day. It was one of those school trips where you dress up. I wore a white pinny and a ruffled hat. We spent a whole day in costume, having Victorian lessons, playing Victorian games, having a very serious picture taken, etc. (I seemed to confuse being serious with being an aggressive owl). Wonderful stuff. I heartily recommend going, whatever your interest in history.

These pieces have been chosen in part for their authenticity, and in part for their innovation. You might have noticed that the theme is not "Victorian" but "Victoriana", which I think leaves a certain amount of leeway in terms of design and function. Victorian-inspired, then, instead of Victorian replicas. Victorian Victorian Victorian. Ooh, that word looks odd now.

 ~♥~ VICTORIANA ~♥~ 

         

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