Sepia Saturday 130 - Leamington Spa

The only thing I could find in my collection of goodies which vaguely fitted in with the prompts for this week's Sepia Saturday was a vintage postcard of rabbits playing badmington, which I have already blogged back in 2010, so instead I am going off theme this week. I have chosen somewhere that I think I have driven past rather than through, so my only real experience of the place in through my vintage postcards. The town is Leamington Spa in Warwickshire. Looking at the postcards this morning has added Leamington to my ever increasing list of places to visit. It's definitely possible as a day trip from where we live, just need to find some time.

 Royal Pump Rooms, Lower Parade, Leamington Spa, c.1952

Pump Room and Parade from above Victoria Bridge, Leamington Spa, c.1948

Jephson Gardens, Leamington Spa, c.1908

Jephson Temple, Leamington Spa, c.1915

More vintage postcards of Warwickshire can be found on my web site

    

Theme Thursday - beds

It's been a while since I participated in Theme Thursday as recently I've been working away a lot, but I'm back in for this week's theme of beds. However my take on the theme is perhaps a bit different than expected. Rather than a bed to sleep in I have opted instead for a flower bed, and what better place for a flower bed than Regent's Park in London. This is a Raphael Tuck vintage postcard dating back to1908.

Flower beds, Regents Park, London, c.1908

As usual 100's more vintage postcards on my web site

    

Sunday Stamps 76 - Hong Kong, Dragon Boats

Looks like the sun has finally decided to come out today, so I really should go and do something outside. Just time however to share a post for this week's Sunday Stamps. Fortunately, with the theme being anything you wish again this week, I didn't need to rack my brain too much. The stamps below are a commemorative set from Hong King, c.1986, and feature a Dragon Boat festival. On taking this cover out of its sleeve to scan it in, I discovered 2 more Hong Kong commemorative covers tucked in behind this one. If a suitable theme comes up over the next few weeks/months then I'll try and share the other 2 as well.

Commemorative cover - Dragon Boat Festival, Hong Kong, c.1986

Commemorative cover - Dragon Boat Festival, Hong Kong, c.1986

    

Postcard Friendship Friday 121 - red, white and blue

Just about time during the half-time interval of the latest Euro 2012 football match to submit a post for this week's Postcard Friendship Friday. Taking the red, white and blue theme, I have dug out this heraldic, vintage postcard of Hastings, Sussex, which contains a red, white and blue coat of arms. I particularly like all the people promenading in their Sunday best, and also the bandstand. We visited Hastings last year but I don't remember the bandstand being there still - maybe I'm wrong though - I hope so.

Vintage postcard of Hastings, Sussex, c.1905

More vintage postcards of Sussex can be found on my web site

    

Sepia Saturday 131 - all the fun of the fair

I know I have shared one of these vintage postcards before when I wrote a posting about the 1908 Franco-British Exhibition last year some time, but please excuse me for a degree of repetition as they seem to fit this week's Sepia Saturday theme quite well. They are both vintage postcards of a ride called Flip-Flap which boatsed 150 foot arms topped with carriages, each holding 40 or so people, providing them with spectacular views as far out as Windsor and Crystal Palace.

1908 Franco-British Exhibition, Flip-Flap

1908 Franco-British Exhibition, Flip-Flap

As usual 100's more vintage postcards on my web site

    

Sunday Stamps 75 - food and drink

Wow, this was a tricky theme. I was sure that I had plenty of stamps featuring food and drink to meet this week's Sunday Stamps theme, but it turns out I didn't so I have had to stretch the theme a little. The 2 stamps below show rice being harvested and a rice field being ploughed, so it is food but not yet in its meal-ready form.

Ploughing a rice field, 1 cent stamp, British Guiana

Rice harvesting, 3d stamp, Sierra Leone

    

Sunday Stamps 74 - Halley's Comet

For this week's Sunday Stamps theme of astronomy I have dug out this First Day Cover from 1986, commemorating Halley's Comet.

Halley's Comet is one of the few comets that can be seen without a telescope and is visible every 76 years. It was the astronomer Edmond Halley who first predicted the comet's return and it is named after him.

To celebrate the return of the comet in 1986, the Royal Mail issued four commemorative stamps ...

17p -  Dr Edmond Halley as a Comet

22p -  Giotto Spacecraft approaching Comet

31p -  Twice in a Lifetime

34p -  Comet orbiting Sun and Planets

First Day Cover of Halley's Comer, c.1986

    

Sepia Saturday 129 - Tea

For this week's Sepia Saturday I have picked out the theme of tea from the original shared image. Whilst I don't have any images of people pouring tea, or sitting and drinking tea, I do have a few 'tea-related' ones. Three are vintage postcards, although the first of these doubles-up as an advertisement, and one is a straight vintage advertisement. I do quite a bit of travelling with my job, and despite having been lucky enough to visit several countries and continents, there's nothing better than sitting at home with a nice cup of tea ... apart from possibly a cream tea, with scones, strawberry jam and cream.

Vintage postcard for Horniman's Tea, Manchester

Vintage advertisement for Blue Ribbon tea

Vintage postcard of Bolney Tudor Tea House, Sussex

Vintage postcard of the Trossachs Tearoom, Scotland

As usual 100's of vintage postcards on my web site

    

Postcard Friendship Friday 128 - trees

Again it seems to have been a few weeks since I participated in Postcard Friendship Friday. To make amends I am going to share a few vintage postcards, all in the same set, that I picked up a few weeks ago. Following on from the thoughts of entering June, these vintage postcards show trees in their late spring/early summer glory. They are all published by Ruskin, who is a publisher I have not come across before. They are all postally unused so I'm not sure of the age of the cards but would guess 1960's.

Beech tree

Hornbeam

Horse Chestnut

Oak tree

Scots Pine

Sweet Chestnut

Yew tree

More vintage postcards can be found on my web site