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 Issue 4, March 2006Welcome to the March issue, in a month which, at Period Features, will forever be remembered as The Month When Lucie Ate The Soap... It came about at the Wire Conference, which long-standing readers may remember I was speaking at. In the morning, I had a cup of tea, reached into my goody bag and fished out a rather appealingly-wrapped piece of fudge. Having a sweet tooth, I opened it and popped the whole thing in my mouth. Well, it quickly became apparent that I had made a terrible mistake. Foaming slightly at the mouth, and with a rising sense of panic, I fumbled for the wrapper only to have my worst fears confirmed: I was eating the soap sample instead of the identically wrapped fudge sample!Anyway, it wasn't a pleasant experience but it did give me a great way to start my speech, which was entitled The Seven Deadly Sins Of Running A Small Business And How To Avoid Them: "Ladies and gentlemen, this talk is all about learning from mistakes - specifically, MY mistakes, and I hope that none of you made the terrible mistake I made this morning, when..." If you already have or are interested in running a small business and think my speech may be useful, then please do get in touch (our email address is at the bottom of the page) and I'll email you a copy. Once again, if you can't see this ezine properly laid out in glorious Technicolor, you can view the current and previous issues on our website: Read more » Lucie Fabulous Styling Tips For Your Period Home!This month, our article is from Bricks and Brass, a unique website which provides comprehensive information for people who are looking for an older house, own one, or who (like me) just love them. It focuses on homes from the Georgian, Victorian and Edwardian periods in the UK. The website also features a handy House Dating Tool (see the Top Tips column to the right of this newsletter).There are lots of articles on the site, but I've picked Styling For Your Period Home. It features a guide to paint and wallpaper, fabrics and furniture, lighting, clocks and other decorative objects. One thing I like about it is that it is quite realistic - helping you to recreate a period look to your house that is sympathetic to your chosen period and to the 21st century owner's desire for central heating and space for a TV. After all, not many people these days can realistically live in a museum. Read more » Testimonial"I just wanted to send a quick message to say thank you so much for such a very quick and efficient service! I only placed my order the day before yesterday and it arrived today, beautifully packaged. It was a real treat to smell that carbolic soap! I was instantly transported back in time to my grandmother’s house, it was wonderful... I would also like to say how beautiful your online shop is - it’s a real pleasure to use. Thank you again for your very personal service - I can’t wait to order again and I will definitely be recommending you to friends and family. "H. R. from Ilford, Essex Wonderful WebsitesCarl Burge, the owner of a company called Remember When, got in touch with me earlier this month. They specialise in popular items of nostalgia, such as early British collectables & memorabilia, ranging from enamel signs to original red letterboxes and phone boxes! Click here to visit their website at Remember When UK.The Listed Property Owner's Club is a handy resource for those of you lucky enough to own a listed building. It is Britain's only advice service dedicated to keeping listed building owners informed of their obligations, rights, privileges and responsibilities. It also provides practical information on property maintenance, guidance on grants, loans, VAT, insurance &c. Click here to visit them at www.LPOC.co.uk. There are few things in life I like better than sitting down with a nice cup of Earl Grey tea and a magazine, and Period Ideas is one of my favourites. In fact, from their next issue (May), the magazine will be 180 pages long, making it the biggest period homes title on the market. You can find it at newsagents, or call the subscriptions hotline on 01778 392 034 to have it delivered each month. Look them up at www.periodideas.com. A reader emailed me to say that I might like Brocante Home, which is apparently the home of the UK's vintage housekeeper. I still haven't quite worked out what that actually means, but it's a quirky site and well worth a look! www.brocantehome.com. Win Very Special British Bed & Breakfast Books!The lovely people at Alastair Sawday, who publish the excellent Special Places To Stay series, have very kindly given us four copies of their latest British Bed & Breakfast book (worth £14.99 each) as competition prizes. You will discover 700 remarkable places to stay, from castles, cottages and lighthouses to manors and mills, many of them at prices which won't break the bank. Just answer one simple question to enter. After the closing date of 30 April 2006, we will pick four winners at random from all the correct entries received. Click here to enter: Read more »Enquire WithinThis month I thought we could discuss Salvage Yards. I don't know how many of you share my fascination for rummaging through piles of unidentified rusty objects, and feelings of triumph upon finding just the right solution to a problem that's been bugging me for a while (like finding the perfect salvaged iron fencing for my garden), but judging by the popularity of the recent BBC series The Reclaimers, I'm pretty sure that a lot of you might feel the same...How do I find a good salvage yard? The most logical place to look first would be your local Yellow Pages, under Architectural Antiques or Salvage & Reclamation. Bear in mind that some yards deal almost exclusively with the "hard" stuff like reclaimed bricks, stone and timber, so it's a good idea to ring first if you're looking for something specific. The next place I would turn to, particularly if I wanted something highly specialised, would be the Internet. One excellent resource is Salvo, which brings together many different dealers from all over the country, selling items such as doors, fireplaces, furniture, gardens, glass, ironwork, kitchens, lighting, radiators, stone, windows, woodwork... You can also post For Sale or Wanted ads on the site. With Salvo, you have the security of knowing that all the companies listed subscribe to the Salvo Code, which gives buyers confidence that items they buy have not been stolen or removed from listed or protected buildings without permission. Moving on to virtual salvage yards (Salvo lists real places you can visit), you could try Architrader.com, a user-friendly online marketplace where you can buy and sell architectural salvage and surplus building materials. Buying is free of charge; sellers pay a modest listing fee, and the site has a categorized, fully searchable database. You can source period architectural features such as doors, flooring, radiators, fireplaces, stonework, lighting, and gardenware, or track down unused surplus building materials either nationwide or within a certain distance of your postcode. Finally, don't forget there's always the Architectural Antiques section of Ebay (5261 items at the last count), but beware of addiction and obsessive behaviour such as staying up until 2 am surfing for things you really don't need and have no idea what you will use for - not that I have ever done anything like that, honest! Please do keep sending us your questions - we really love being helpful here at Period Features! The most relevant and/or interesting will be published in future editions of the newsletter. Email your queries to us at Enquire Within One Last ThingThere's a fabulous three-page article about Period Features in April's issue of Period Living magazine. You can find it on pages 74 -76. However, as the newsletter is a bit late this month (too much to do!) you'll have to be quick as the May issue will already have hit the shelves by Friday 31 March...Last month's Top Tip about making new (unlacquered) brass look older by using a blowtorch drew quite a big response. One of our customers said that her father always told her to age brass by burying it in a dung heap (but that she hadn't tried it either!). Other readers suggested ammonia and the Antiquing Fluid produced by Liberon; we don't sell it but I found it here on the Internet if anyone is interested, from a company called Rydenor Woodfinishes. Please don't forget that if you have any suggestions or comments, feel free to drop us a line. We love hearing from you! Email us at One Last Thing Kind regards, Lucie Storrs, Proprietor |  A perennial favourite, this unusually solid cast iron and pine Clothes Airer will provide stout service for many future generations. The airer costs £55 and comes complete with two cast iron ends, pulleys, rope, cleat hook and slats. Read more »  This gorgeous Leather Apron is hand-made in the UK and has a green canvas backing. With three pockets on the front, it measures 90 cm long x 60 cm wide. Click here to view all our garden products: Read more »
 These highly authentic Octagonal Lantern Cloches are a classic (and highly functional) feature of the traditional English garden. They also protect young and delicate plants from wind and frosts and extend the growing season. Painted and finished to simulate an antique appearance, this style costs £160. Click on the link to see our whole range: Read more »  Big blocks of Carbolic Soap for washing clothes, using with a stiff brush to scrub your front step, or other purposes. The highly distinctive smell should bring back memories! Either use as a big block, or cut down into easy to use chunks. Please note this soap is only intended for laundry or household purposes; priced at £2.50 per 450 gram bar. Read more »
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