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A couple of weekends ago, we ventured out for our usual Saturday activites (tea and brownies, vintage shopping, the park), and got chatting to the girl in Dead Man’s Glory, who told us that a brand new homeware shop was opening across the road later that day. I almost chewed her arm off for more information when she dropped in the words, ‘vintage’, ‘handmade’ and ‘wide price range’, and we ended up hanging around until the ribbon was cut, and the shop was declared open.

Flo & Stan is owned by a lovely couple, Lorna and Del, who named the shop after her Grandparents, and is the home to so many amazing vintage and handmade goodies, it’s almost criminally good. Cushions and throws jostle for space with cups, vintage teapots and watering cans, and there are stacks of things that you don’t even realise you need in your home until you see them. The artwork dotted around on the walls is all done by Lorna herself, and is really impressive – it has to be said, I’m a sucker for a deer. It was pretty great being there on opening day, and to add to the experience, I was their first card payment customer! (I didn’t take as many pictures as I would have liked – the last thing I wanted was to get in the way of the professional photographers who were covering the opening for the local newspapers – but while on Google Reader today, a new post popped up from Ms. M of Me Old China, who has also been to Flo & Stan recently. You can read her post and see her much better pictures here.) I managed to limit myself to an owl mug for my Mum’s mothers day present, and a colouring book for the Boy – it’s the most imaginative colouring book I’ve ever seen; you have to draw in the faces, hands and feet yourself!

We went for a drive after finishing off in town, and the Boy took advantage of the time out to get some shut eye, and I took some more pictures. Because, quite frankly, I don’t think there’s such a thing as too many photographs – I seem to see through eyes that have transformed into camera lenses; everywhere I look I just see photo opportunities!