Monday 11 August 2014

Just Who Were You Mr Jones ...


Hello there ....
A nice sunny day here ... bit breezy .. 
what with Bertha having a bit of a chase around ..
 but nice enough. 
Hope you have had a good day ... I find Mondays can sometimes be a little hard work ..



Today was a sorting stock kinda day .... 
a bundle of vintage clothes needed some TLC .. a little mending and washing.
Just look how pretty these vintage pinnies/aprons look on the maiden ... 
such pretty fabrics.
its so hard to part with them  ...



A couple of nice 50's style dresses ... in excellent condition ...



.... and
 .. how pretty is this little top from Hungary.

I'm sure someone will snap these up ... 
I would if I didn't have such a .. umm ... 'rounded' and 
.. umm 
 'mature'.. figure .. !



This is a really fab dress ... 
I haven't got a very good pic of it ...
 but 'in real life' its lovely ....
 an amazingly full skirt .. and the pretty bows... 
and everyday wearable .

I will take them out tomorrow and see if I can find them a home.


On Sunday ... 
in all the rain ...
 at 5 o' clock in the morning ...
 Hubby P went out to find new stock ... 
crazy man thought I ... 
but I made him a flask of coffee to drink ... 
whilst he sat in the middle of a field ... 
in the pouring rain..!

Give him his due ... he returned with treasures ....

Which included a large collection of boxes and tins etc ... 
the contents of someones sewing room ...
its always a bit sad to sort through ...

In the bottom of a box of bits and bobs .. 
alongside the pinking shears and bias binding I found these...



My first thought was ... 'what nice keys'...
  and then ...
 'why would 'she' keep a bunch of keys in her sewing box ?'

It is a lovely .. tactile kinda bunch ...
you know ... 
a kinda nice chunky feel ...
 an 'old' .. used .. lifelong feel to them.

Looking closer I could see the name Jones stamped in the metal tags ... 
I had no idea what they were for .. but I guessed they would be something to do with a mans workplace.

Hubby P had an idea that they were Pit Tally's .. or Checks .. 

When a miner was given his lamp to go down the mine he handed in a 'check or tally' ... with his name on ... so there would be a record of who was down the mine ... when he came up to the surface it would be handed back to him.



The Tally's have various numbers and letters stamped on them too ... these  probably indicate the mine he worked at etc ...
 Hubby P is trying to find out more about Mr Jones.

I find it very moving that .. most probably .. 
Mrs Jones has kept this little bundle of keys ... 
was it treasured a link to her lost Husband ...
 a man who spent such a lot of his life in the dark ... underground ... to provide for his family. 
An everyday item that summed up his life ... ?

We can only guess ... if only they could talk...

Anyway enough of me ... 
I would love to hear your thoughts on our finds ... 
anyone know anything about these Pit Tally's ... 
we may have it all wrong..!

Bye for now xx

15 comments:

  1. The brown one looks a lot like my english grandfathers dogtag from WW1, but l havn' t seen it for years, just thought of it when l saw it. Lovely dresses, love the style, very pretty, and like you say, everyday wearable. Blessings, Pam x

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  2. Oh what treasures....oh to be skinny and able to wear those dresses. Xxx

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  3. If only treasures could talk. The dresses look lovely and should be very saleable with all the interest in vintage wearable clothes at the moment after Dawn O'Porter's TV series.

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  4. I know those Hungarian tops were really fashionable in England in the 1930s. I don't know whether they were really Hungarian, I think a lot of young women would make and embroider their own. A nice thing to do - it's such a pretty style.

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  5. What a lovely post, I love the clothes horse and the keys.......well everything. Thank you x

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  6. Lovely to see your treasures, its so nice that they will be loved again by new owners.
    Thank you for sharing.
    Glad to see your posts,I have missed you.
    Love from Pam in TX.xxx

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  7. Although they could be mine tallies I think that given your area they are probably quarry tallies. But I just zoomed in on them and can just make our RWF and a number - Royal Welsh Fussiliers and an Army Number? If you are near enough to Llangefni pop into the Archives Department and ask them to check them out for you. Say hello to my old colleagues whilst you are there although they have probably all retired, like me, by now.

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  8. I don't think they're pit checks - they wouldn't have the collier's name, just a number and maybe the pit name. I think the earlier comments are worth researching - dog tags?

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  9. Definitely dog tags. A quick google immediately pulled up that they were in pairs, two different colours and shapes. C.E.was the bearers religion .... fascinating...

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  10. Interesting post. Love to see those dresses. I rarely wear a dress, but I could be tempted with either of those.
    I have asked my husband to make me a clothe horse similar to yours but with three sides instead of two. They are very expensive in the shops
    Gill

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  11. Lovely finds, the dresses are very pretty
    Twiggy xx

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  12. You never know what you will find at the boot sales or auctions. I always loved buying a box of stuff and the thrill of finding the treasures in it. Yours truly- Elaine in Luray VA USA

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  13. What beautiful dresses, Victoria, and I love the clothes maiden too! I always find old bunches of keys interesting and wonder of the tales they could tell if only they could talk ... I have a bunch and the tag has 'Lido Paris' on it ... bet that saw some interesting thinbgs through the keyhole!

    love Claire xx

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  14. I love the dresses and the pinnies, right up my street, shame I am not in Anglesey! So pleased you are back, sorry for your loss!

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  15. Have checked back... did mr P find out any more about the dog tags?

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