I hope I’m not boring anyone here, but a couple of the stalls at the Selvedge Spring Fair really floated my boat.

That’s definitely not to say that the rest of the fair didn’t appeal – if you saw yesterday’s post you’ll know of my enthusiasm for the makers there in general and my huge admiration for their wares.

No, what I mean is that these particular stalls were just right up my particular street.

They made my heart skip a beat. They made me come over all “ooh! ooh!”, if you know what I mean.

The first of my boat-floaters was the lovely Hen’s Teeth.

I love vintage tins.

I have lots myself. But, as I have previously stated, mine are just hidden away in a box at the moment.

So, obviously, the first thing I fell in love with on the Hen’s Teeth stall was the beautiful little tins with their miniature things inside…

And then, I noticed the brooches.

And bought one! Very reasonable it was, too.

Check out the Hen’s Teeth facebook page here. Lovely stuff.

My next palpitation-inducing moment came when I wandered into a little room off the side of the main hall and encountered Stitch & Make Studio.

The lovely bag pictured at the top of the page caught my eye first, but the rest of the stall soon drew me in and had me cooing over bags of 1970s soft toy eyes, vintage buttons sewn onto bits of old postcards, patchwork scrap bags, fabric brooches and necklaces.The thing I loved most about Abi’s display was it’s sheer variety. My first glimpse at the fair of vintage fabrics from my particular eras of interest, alongside haberdashery, jewellery and clothing. And it all worked beautifully together.

Abi Jackson runs Stitch & Make Studio in Northampton. I loved chatting with her. I loved her outfit. I loved her colourful vision of what clothing should be – individual and expressive.

And I adore the skirt I bought.

It’s like someone looked into my head and put everything I want to achieve in the clothes I plan to make myself into that skirt.

I know Abi won’t mind me taking inspiration from her work. After all, she teaches people to make their own clothes at classes and Stitch and Bitch nights at her studios in Northampton.

I’d love to visit…

So now I have two new heroines, Viv and Abi.

Anyone who can inspire and delight in equal measure is a heroine in my eyes.

They can float my boat any time. ♥