#Cambridge Market: The Essential Stall Sign

Hurrah!  My sign has arrived!  I now have a stylish stall with a professional banner at the back.   ‘Sophie’s Cakes’ and ‘Cambridge Paella Company’ along the same row both have banners.  It wasn’t just a little extra, I deemed it a necessity to turn the stall into an outdoor shop.

The day was gloriously sunny and when I hung it up the light glowed and danced upon it.  Sort of.  I proudly showed it off to the neighbouring traders to garner opinion.

Approval from ‘Alterations’

I spied  John from ‘Alterations’ chatting with Sarah ‘Churros’, clearly with a moment to spare.  I asked John what he thought.  He stood back blinking, the sunlight in his eyes, and stared up at my sign.  “It’s alright isn’t it,” he stated.

Ooh, approval.  I needed more.

I asked ‘Pre-1945 Military stall’s’ opinion.  He sauntered over, standing framed against the dark green WWI and II helmets behind.  “Looks more professional doesn’t it?” he said.

A touch of Military

What did ‘Churros and Paella think?   “Yeah, like it, just the right size” said Sarah, as she handed a hot churros over to a lady in a pink spotted shirt.

Churros and paella in front of sign

And just to get a few more compliments about my splendid sign I was about to ask ‘Pet Products’.  But then a customer approached, slowed down at ‘Tea and Vintage’ then…walked on.  Oh.

Hey that was okay though because in the distance I could hear her saying, in a fantastic Far Eastern accent, “tea and vintage, tea and vintage” and the tinkly sound of laughter.

Tourists like it too

Pleased with myself I took out a china cup and saucer and made Sarah and I a cup of tea to celebrate.

#Cambridge Market; Trader’s Choice 1

 

China and churros

Every week I ask a market trader to pick out their favourite item from ‘Tea and Vintage’.

Sarah eyed my stall, perhaps not quite as greedily as I was eyeing the churros on her Spanish themed stall, but she is as keen a customer for my attractive pieces of china as I am for her gorgeous hot and crispy churros, dipped in hot chocolate and oozing…oh no, there I go again.

 

Making Paella

It was also a particularly special day as paella had been introduced for the first time on Sarah and Jamie’s stall alongside the churros so I was sorted for breakfast and lunch and looking forward perhaps to keeping the theme going with a tipple of sangria to finish off the day.

“Hmm…maybe…” her hand fell towards a Paragon tea plate.  “Then again…” her hand kept moving, going towards an unattributed pretty floral bowl and plate.  “This is the one!”

Choosing china

A fairly modern piece but I love the design too.  Tempting to give the plate a finishing touch with a scrummy piece of cheesecake from Sophie’s cakes on the stall next door.

£5 for the bowl and plate.

 

 

Why Cambridge Market is Close to Heaven

 

I heaved the bedstead out of the car.  I was in the middle of Cambridge market about to set up my first ever stall.  The other stall holders looked on, a little bemused, wondering what I was selling…er…bedframes…really?  I pulled out a few more things.  A junior bed, a Victoriana fire screen, a rush footstool, framed pictures of Cambridge, a few oil paintings.

“What’s she selling?”

“Do you think there’s a call for beds?”

“Can we have a nap d’you think?”

“Could do with a kip.”

By this time, and may I say that it wasn’t even 7.00am yet,  I was ready for a kip too and began to wish I’d brought a mattress along with the bed frame.  I heaved a few more boxes out of the car.

 

Stallholders shuffled or bounded over.

“Hi”.

“Welcome.”

“Is this your first time?”

“Do you do any other days?”

“Only Tuesdays,” I replied.  “This is my first.”

Blimey.  I was overwhelmed by the friendliness.

I unwrapped my china from the boxes, my Wedgewood, Royal Doulton, the hand thrown pots and pretty jugs made in English potteries.  I couldn’t hear it but I’m sure a sigh of relief went round…I wasn’t just selling beds after all.  Maybe there was chance I would last more than a week.   It had seemed like a good idea the night before to throw in a pine bedframe or too….but…how wrong that idea seemed now.  Hmmm.

It was a dazzling hot day throwing a gorgeous white light on to my vintage china and glassware.  I looked around.  The stall to my left was ‘Sophie’s Cakes’; a beautiful home-made patisserie stall and on my left was…oh my goodness…a fresh churros and hot chocolate stall.  Maybe this wasn’t real life after all.  Maybe I had died and here I was in heaven, bizarrely manning a market stall in the middle of Cambridge.

I ate my way through the rest of the day almost without leaving my seat.  Oh and I even sold some vintage china.

For more information on Tea and Vintage head over to our site at http://www.teaandvintage.com.

 

 

 

The Launch at Lode!

Heather where are you!!  There was a white lump of canvas wriggling around on the floor.  Some grunts.  A shriek.  Aah, there she is, wrestling with the gazebo.  We pulled and pushed at the legs.  I could feel teeny tiny spots of rain.  Oh no.  …