Erstwilder and a Little Magpie Magic

It's kind of funny that I decided to write this post right when there have been a few blogs recently raving about Erstwilder jewellery. Specifically in their cases about the new picnic collection, which if I'm honest I haven't even looked at yet!

I first can across this fab Australian brand last year when I bought a brooch of theirs from our little gen of  a vintage shop in town.

 Later in the year I spotted their Hedgehog brooch in Greenwich, and nearly died at the price the chi-chi boutique it was in was charging for it.
So  I went online and ordered it and a very cute elephant brooch via an outlet store on Ebay. Both brooches and postage from Oz were still cheaper than the cost of the one brooch in London!

Towards the end of last year I spotted this brooch online

I'm not going to lie, I wanted it badly!

Cue much searching to try and track it down. I'm guessing it must have been from an older range because I could only find one via an Australian seller on Ebay. Again it worked out cheaper to buy two brooches which qualified me for free postage so I also chose this

 I have always had a soft spot for Cardinals ever since I first saw one of these amazing colourful birds in the wild in America.

The downside of the purchase was this time round I got caught with a hefty customs bill (insert much bad language here on my part) which made these two brooches a costly indulgence!

Around the time I was tracking down the pirate ship brooch I did find a website for a U.K stockist
Carnation Collectables 
I did end up ordering a couple of things there too, at a much later date than the above ones I will hasten to add, contrary to brooch buying appearances I am not made of money.

Whereas the Aussie ones took weeks to arrive plus the customs delay. The lovely lady at Carnation Collectables had my brooches to me in 2 days, and how is this for a mad coincidence?
When she emailed to say they were on their way she mentioned that not only did she only live 4 miles down the road from me, she was also the stockist for the vintage shop in town!
If I ever wanted another brooch from the website to just drop her an email and she would pop it into the shop so I could collect it and not pay postage. What a star.

So what did I buy off her?

Giggles the gorilla

and a rather gorgeous bluebird.

I know these brooches won't be for everybody. They are quite big, quirky and colourful, but frankly that is pretty much what I look for in a brooch. I wear one every day to work and I know I shall enjoy wearing these.

Whilst we are on the subject of brooches by sheer amazing good fortune I managed to find the one that I have had on my wishlist and then on my 'ones that got away list' for well over a year now.
I had been cursing myself for not buying it when I first saw it because it went out of stock very, very quickly and never came back in stock even though I kept checking regularly.
Anyway all this time later, there I was browsing the Museum Selection website for a couple of birthday presents and could not quite believe my eyes that they had my dream brooch listed as 'in stock' I ordered that baby as fast as my fingers could type in my card details! (I did buy the birthday presents too, it's not all just about me.)

Behold......

 An Art Deco Magpie was there ever a more perfect combination?

I would say my brooch collection is now complete but that would be a Big. Fat. Lie.

But I think I will lay off the brooch purchases for a wee while, and just sit here admiring and stroking this one whilst holding it very tight.

My Precious.