Three Things; Bindi Pot, Paper Cutter and Milk Crate Light Fitting

Today we have some Shore Cottage finds for you.

This bindi box was brought back by Sue from her textile tour to Rajasthan, she bought it in a market in Jaipur. She thought it was particularly interesting in how it fitted together and the locking mechanism. The bird unscrews to release the petals and when screwed down keeps the petals tight closed.

This vintage paper cutter is one of Kris’s treasured possessions, Sue and Laura saw it in a charity shop still in its original box. It has an unusual working mechanism, see Kris’ blog for more.

Here at Shore Cottage we love unusual light fittings but being a cottage we have low ceilings and modestly sized rooms unsuitable for big dangly affairs. Laura fell in love with Squirrel Cage bulbs and textile cord from Historic Lighting and set about finding something suitable to dangle them from. She had in her mind something impressive but without too much dangle (so Kris wouldn’t bang his head). It also needed to sit nicely in the room so proportion was important in whatever object we found. After searching round GB Antiques Centre in Lancaster for a full day, rejecting everything from balance scales to boot lasts as potential fittings Laura eventually spotted a galvanised milk crate. It ticked all the boxes and more. The fitting was completed with some rusty chain from the garden and galvanised fixings from a DIY store. Installed with a dimmer switch the result is a striking conversation piece.