The October Edit
Cornwall & The Leach Pottery, new interiors books & fresh vintage stock
Welcome to Love Vintage Etc. for all things vintage, design, art & interiors.
Happy Autumn, we’re almost halfway through the season and I’m thinking about crisp country walks, cosy blankets and cups of hot coffee with a good book. I enjoyed lots of country walks on holiday in Cornwall this month and I’ve written about some of my favourite new discoveries, including the Leach Pottery. There’s also a look inside new interiors books and some fresh vintage finds. Thank you for checking in, I hope you enjoy this week’s edition.
Cornwall
A couple of weeks ago I visited Mousehole, a pretty seaside village and fishing port. Close to Penzance on the shore of Mount’s Bay, the village has a wealth of Cornish charm, a thriving artistic community and it regularly attracts film crews to its historic harbour (scenes from Poldark were filmed here). We enjoyed a slow stroll through Mousehole’s narrow streets, past white-washed cottages, to the picturesque harbour and stopped at The Old Coastguard inn for lunch with a glorious view of the sea. The inn also has rooms and is well placed to visit the Minack Theatre and Newlyn and St. Ives for numerous art galleries including the Barbara Hepworth Museum, Newlyn Art Gallery and the Tate gallery, at St Ives.
The Leach Pottery
I’ve been to Cornwall many times but had never visited The Leach Pottery at St. Ives. A huge fan of Leach, I loved seeing the site of the original studio, workshop, kiln room and exhibition space. For those who aren’t familiar with Bernard Leach (1887-1979), he was a British studio potter and art teacher, and widely recognised as the “Father of British studio pottery.” He studied at the Slade School of Fine Art in London and spent time in Japan, where he worked alongside local potters.
Leach established the St. Ives pottery in 1920, and resumed his love of Japanese methods by building a traditional Japanese climbing kiln, the first one to be constructed in the West. His interests combined, Japanese, Korean and traditional British pottery methods such as slipware and glaze ware and he promoted simple and utilitarian forms and shapes.
The museum shop is housed in the old pottery cottage and stocks local Cornish and British studio pottery as well as iconic Leach Standard Ware, still made in the studio next door, and which of course, I couldn’t resist.
The Leach Pottery, Higher Stennack, St Ives, Cornwall, TR26 2HE.
Penzance
We stayed near Penzance at The Old Post Office in Newmill, a wonderfully cosy, self-contained former library, set in open countryside with its own sauna in the garden. The Old Post Office is run by lovely hosts, Tamara and Andrew and is conveniently located for the three-mile drive into Penzance, for a great selection of food, pubs and independent shops. We ate dinner at 45 Queen Street and on the second evening drove to Zennor, to the Tinners Arms for Cornish fish and chips in a traditional inn, not much changed in 700 years, since it was built in 1271.
Penzance has plenty of vintage and antiques shops and I met some lovely shopkeepers including the Hub Works (for reconditioned Ercol furniture) and Handworked, a beautifully curated shop on Chapel Street, selling fabrics, homewares and all things handcrafted.
On the Saturday morning we drove to Land’s End. I hadn’t been since I was 14 and had forgotten just how beautiful and rugged the Cornish coastline is. You really do get the feeling, stood on the cliff tops, that you’re at the very end of the land.
New Books
I went to the London book launch last week for Elle Hervin’s new book The Home Bird. Elle, having work as journalist, says that her route into interiors was an “accidental journey” via social media content creation. And if you follow Elle’s super successful Instagram account, Elle The Home Bird, you’ll have seen images and authentic decorating tips filmed in her beautiful home in the north of England. The strapline across the front of book, Creating Joyful Interiors Where Old Meets New, lives up to its name and Elle has created an inspiring book with images of her own home and as well as other joyful homes. There are sections on The Power of Nostalgia, Colour, Rooms to Inspire and How to Make Ordinary Spaces Extraordinary. You can follow Elle’s Substack account here, and purchase her book here.
The fabulously titled Faded Glamour in the City, by Pearl Lowe, looks at the captivating world of urban interiors with vintage charm. Pearl’s book takes us on a visual journey of beautiful homes from London, Paris and beyond with stunning photographs by Kate Martin. Featuring real homes including city hideaways, an apartment in New York, a narrowboat on Regent’s canal and a perfumer’s eclectic town house, Pearl’s love of vintage is evident throughout in her informed descriptions and eye for detail. The book also features Pearl’s own London home and the inspiration behind its newly decorated interior. Faded Glamour in the City is out now and available here.
Theatre Picasso
This week I visited the Tate gallery’s new exhibition Theatre Picasso. Curated by filmmaker Wu Tsang and author Enrique Fuenteblanca the exhibition tells the story of Picasso the performer and marks the centenary of The Three Dancers, one of Picasso’s most famous paintings. The gallery space has been designed to emulate a stage with jazz music and moving image as well paintings by Picasso to illustrate his life long interest in dance and performance. The exhibition runs until 12 April, 2026, Tate Modern, Bankside. London.
Vintage Stock
Fresh vintage stock includes this small oil painting of a Parisian street. The oil on board painting beautifully captures the architecture and mood of Paris. It measures 24cm x 16cm, and is available online now.
Also… Jug, Lemons & Sardines. A fabulous oil on wood interior-scene painting, featuring a vibrant interior scene with warm reds, orange and emerald green, and a plate of sardines with lemons and jug. Cornish school with mid-century appeal, it measures 61cm x 40cm.
Also… Anemones, oil on wooden board, framed in an antique burnished gold wooden frame, measures 49.5cm x 42cm. The perfect floral painting for any room.
Thank you so much for reading, your support means a great deal. If you have enjoyed this post please leave a like on the little ♡ symbol or post a comment as it helps to spread the word. See you again soon, love, Michelle x
You can also read about my visit to Cornwall, last year…
October Newsletter
Hello and welcome to the October newsletter. I’m typing this at my kitchen table with sun streaming through the window so it seems appropriate to recommend a good day out in the autumn sunshine.