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Winter 2007Welcome to the revived newsletter from Period Features. Jonathan and I bought Period Features from Lucie Storrs, who set up the business, in October 2006 and are really enjoying this new venture. Prior to owning Period Features I gained a degree in sculpture and worked as a prop-maker, a buyer for a department store and an art teacher, while Jonathan previously worked in logistics. We live in an old farmhouse that we have restored in the idyllic Derbyshire village of Ilam with our two children, two dogs, three savage cats and six chickens!We've been incredibly busy in recent months in our shop in Leek in Staffordshire on the edge of the beautiful Peak District. It has been enjoyable selecting new stock for the winter period and deciding what items our customers would love to have in their homes or give or receive as Christmas gifts. Everyday the shop floor is awash in new stock deliveries. If you are near enough to visit us we hope that you will do so soon. In our upstairs showroom we offer free tea and coffee so that you can take a restorative break with us. We want you to feel that Period Features is a place that you can enjoy browsing around and finding that perfect period item for your home or garden. We're also always willing to try to offer our help and advice. So if you have a decorating problem with which you think we might be able to help please do get in touch. If you can't see this newsletter properly (this is the case if it's not coming through in glorious Technicolor, with images) you can now view it and all the past editions on our website here. A very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year from the team at Period Features! Suzy Dymock Christmas TreesWhether you have a family heirloom that you get down from the attic or choose a new tree from your local nursery every year, decorating the Christmas tree is something that signals the start of the Christmas season in many homes. This newsletter's article is from the gardening section of the BBC's website and discusses the history of the Christmas tree as well as giving advice on how to select a tree and its aftercare.The use of evergreens to decorate homes dates back to pagan times, when they were considered to be a symbol of eternal life. They were used as decoration during the winter solstice, a celebration of light and rebirth. Today, about seven million Christmas trees are grown in the UK each year. The history of the Christmas treeIt's generally believed that the first real Christian Christmas tree dates back to 8th century Germany. Boniface, an English missionary, introduced a decorated fir tree in homage to the Christ Child, as a replacement for the customary pagan sacrifices to Odin's sacred oak.Later, evergreen, decorated trees were used to symbolize the garden of Eden in medieval German plays telling the stories of Christ's life. After the suppression of these plays, trees were taken into people's homes at Christmas time. Read more » Wonderful WebsitesWe have no connection with these websites and do not benefit in any way from listing them. We include them because we hope you will find them interesting or useful too.If, having read the article above, you are thinking of having a 'real' tree this year you might be interested in these websites. For a truly guilt-free option, The Living Christmas Tree offers a hire service so that after Christmas your tree can be returned to them and they will continue to take care of it throughout the year. For environmental reasons they only deliver in the Lancashire area. www.livingchristmastree.co.uk Scottish Christmas Trees offer a recycling service for their Christmas trees. You simply keep the bag in which the tree is delivered and call the courier in January to take the tree back to them for chipping. They also sell container grown trees as well as cut trees and can deliver nationwide. www.scottishchristmastrees.co.uk Plants make wonderful, fresh Christmas gifts but don't just stick with the traditional poinsettia or hyacinth. Great plant gifts for keen cooks might include a beautiful Christmas Bay Tree with handmade decorations or a Red Hot Pepper is large metal pail - perfect for a kitchen windowsill. www.plants4presents.co.uk If you like your tea with a little philosophy - or know someone who might - this website might interest you. CEO and Tea Lady Sharyn Wortman has created hand blended herbal teas and carefully wrapped them in a little philosophy. Choose from Friendship, Love Love, Inspiration, Happiness, Expectancy (for the expectant mother!), Sleepy and even Green Green tea (a carbon neutral tea). As well as the usual instructions on how to make the perfect brew there is a little reflection on the subject matter too. www.todaywasfun.com Everyone seems to be talking about www.thenag.com but if you haven't heard about it yet it is well worth a visit. The nag replaces those nagging thoughts you have in your head all the time (or is that just me?) such as 'I should recycle more', 'I should buy fair-trade', 'I should eat better' etc. We mean well but things come up, stuff happens and we never get around to doing anything about it. Sign up to this site and each month 'the nag' will remind you of one easy thing you can do to be greener, cleaner and, as the nag puts it 'if you're not careful a tiny bit smug'! www.thenag.com Just to say...Here at Period Features we are always delighted to hear from you and it is especially nice to hear from people who love the products they have received or are delighted with our service."To Suzy, Just wanted to say a big thank you for the gorgeous things I've recently purchased from you. Not only is the quality and selection of your stock wonderful but the service received is second to none. It's a real pleasure buying from you and the little extra mile that you go for your customers is very much appreciated. Good old fashioned products with a good old fashioned service. Keep up the good work and I'll look forward to shopping from you in the not too distant future. Once again, thank you." B.C., Sheffield. Enquire WithinPerhaps you are looking for some antique Christmas decorations for your period home? They are not inexpensive but they do provide something that isn't available on the high street. Perhaps this site will make you take a look at that box of old decorations in the loft in a whole new light? Or perhaps raid granny's decorations?Try www.christmas-past-collector.com or www.christmas4ever.com For modern classics you might like to check out Tobias and the Angel. They make furniture, Christmas decorations, lampshades, placemats and cushions using vintage cloth and trimmings. These are decorations that will become the heirlooms of the future. www.tobiasandtheangel.com For something unusual with bags of traditional style without a high price tag try Not on the High Street. With fifteen Christmas wreaths and twenty-four Christmas stockings to choose from you are bound to find something you like. www.notonthehighstreet.com Win A £25 Period Features Voucher!This month we are giving away a £25 Voucher to spend on any of our lovely products, redeemable in store or online. Just answer one simple question and after the closing date of 30 November 2007, we will pick the winner at random from all the entries received.To enter please take a look at our Waxes and Polishes section in the Miscellaneous section of our on-line shop. Then just answer the following question: What fragrance is the wax polish purveyed in our violet coloured tin? Email the answer to us at competition@periodfeatures.net Good luck! Our Fabulous Free Shopping Guide!In the lead up to the annual shopping frenzy we thought you might appreciate a reminder about our free shopping guide to the 101 best quirky, independent shops in the UK. Called The Get Real Guide, it has something for everyone (from food shops and pottery to salvage yards) and will certainly help when it comes to doing the Christmas shopping! Read The Get Real Guide now: The Get Real GuideWe really hope you enjoy it; if you do, please pass it on to anyone who may be interested. Any feedback would be gratefully received too. One Last ThingFor ideas on decorating your home in true period style you might like to check out the Geffrye Museum's annual Christmas Past exhibition. The Geffrye Museum, London, shows the changing style of the English domestic interior in a series of period rooms from 1600 to the present day.The annual Christmas Past exhibition depicts 400 years of seasonal traditions in English homes. Conjure up the true spirit of Christmas Past with a visit to the Geffrye's intriguing annual exhibition. Every year, the museum's period rooms are decorated in authentic festive style, giving visitors a vivid and evocative impression of Christmas celebrations in English homes over the past four centuries. This year's accompanying programme of events will focus on 20th century festivities, highlighting the main developments and changes in the domestic celebration of Christmas. The switch from home-crafted to shop-bought decorations, the increasing popularity of Santa Claus and the growing prominence of children during the season will all be explored in talks, events and through the displays. The exhibition runs from Tuesday 27 November 2007 - Sunday 6 January 2008. If you are not able to visit the exhibition the museum has published an illustrated book telling the history of Christmas in English homes which is available in the museum's shop. www.geffrye-museum.org.uk As ever, if you have any comments on this newsletter, top tips you would like to share with us or suggestions of great websites please do contact us. Email us at One Last Thing Kind regards, Suzy Dymock, Proprietor |
 New in the books section of our website is this quirky 'Never' book. If you are looking for an unusual Christmas gift for a friend this could be just the thing. The ultimate in light-hearted advice manuals Never, Never Explain, Never Complain, Never do anything eccentric was first published in 1907. This little book of 'manners for the multitude' was never meant to be taken seriously and will make everyone laugh. Never, paperback, 64 pages, black & white illustrations, priced at just £5.25. Other books with period themes are Mangles, Mops and Feather Dusters, first published in 1893 and containing hints on spring cleaning and removing stains the old fashioned way and The Servantless Household which gives advice on surviving without servants in the modern age. Read more »  This simple and elegantly designed toasting-fork with an extra-long, well-balanced handle is perfect for crumpets, marshmallows or (of course) toast! These are hand-forged in the UK and measure around 68 cm long. This is one item that is sure to evoke memories of childhood Christmases past! Priced at just £21.00 it would make an unusual Christmas gift too. Also available from Period Features's on-line shop are Chestnut Roasters and Norfolk Fire Pipes. Read more »
 This fabulous book contains everything you need to build a toy theatre, with no cutting or glueing. Choose from Mr Jackson's Pantomime Theatre or the Elizabethan theatre. Each toy theatre kit costs £11.50. A wonderfully traditional gift that will give great pleasure to the recipient and hours of fun to children. Read more »  This wonderful reproduction butler's bell system includes a bell on an oak backplate, a bell pull and the cord and pulleys to connect it all together. It comes unlacquered and with full installation instructions and priced at £240.00. The various elements of the complete butler's bell system are also available to purchase separately: see our on-line shop for details. Read more »
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