jean gibsons home at linen lace and patchwork

my home and garden

unlike so many web-sites these days, we at Linen Lace and Patchwork , being old-fashioned retailers, pride ourselves on our personal and helpful service to our customers. Because many of you are worried about card fraud we are finding more and more people preferring to phone through their enquiries or orders. This method of contact gives a more friendly feel, and many of you have asked, during the course of telephone conversation, what my home is like. So I thought I'd put up a page so those inclined may have a look around both the 400ft showroom, my home and garden.

I also thought in this time of financial prudence I'd like to pass on some of my tips on how to achieve a luxurious look without spending much at all. These are tricks I've learnt over the years, long before it was fashionable, from when I first started out in retail - window dressing - over thirty-five years ago. When we first bought our house, every penny went on the mortgage and school fees etc with nothing left over for furnishings so those skills came in very useful. Fortunately those days are long over but I still don't believe in spending a lot of money to achieve an effect and I like to pass this ethos on to my customers.

And as for re-cycling, was brought up on it. My childhood memories of my father re-winding string onto a ball of perfectly symmetry or religiously saving brown paper, methodically smoothing it out and meticulously folding it, stay with me still. Or helping him make logs out of newspaper for the fire, or cutting it up into neat little stacks ready to be strung together with the said string for use in the lavatory. Yes, it does all sound a bit Monty Python but was a great way to learn never to waste anything.

Jean Gibson 01268 793336 or 07767 403276

back to home page

	*new!!* blog jean gibson - the patchwork queen the life and adventures of a slightly eccentric Essex retailer called Jean Gibson
	Our showroom at bottom of garden nestling under massive 300 year old Oak trees. This was originally a '50's holiday chalet we bought years ago. My then partner John had the idea to convert it two years ago to make a superb showroom for our lovely stock. Mick and John practically re-built it, keeping only the original Canadian Cedar cladding. put in a high beamed ceiling giving a light and Eastern American feel to it.
	Mick hard at work drinking a beer - no that's a joke Mick if you're reading this!! He actually performed miracles working on the showroom, taking on a project everyone else had trashed. For that alone I'll be eternally grateful. While all this was going on I also had massive subsidence work being carried out on the house. No kitchen, no furniture (all in storage for three month duration) no floor, no water, no privacy, yadder yadder. Then just when I'd finally got straight, which took about six months, I had to pull out of the shop where I had been trading for fourteen years so had to start all over again.......And of course none of this would have been possible without John.....he gave me the strength to keep going along with some very good Bordeaux. So a big thank you John.
	We installed a wood floor and I gave it five coats of varnish. doing one every morning before going to the shop. We took some of our old shop fit with us for sentimental reasons, including wooden units from a very old retail chain called Pollards. The owner, Lionel Pollard a really lovely man, gave them to us and said he hoped they would bring us luck.They certainly did that. The interior of our showroom. I painted the antique wardrobe and the old wooden Pollards retail units to match the beamed ceiling.
	French antique bed and a dresser unit which I also painted, which we had used for our till and wrapping in the Leigh on Sea shop. Draped across bottom of bed and also hanging in foreground, a white cotton crochet lace bedspread £145. On the bed Henley patchwork bedspread double £125. Sacha white crochet lace pillowcases £12 each.
	At base of bed antique towel rail with patchwork quilt folded over. Resting above it euro pillow and patchwork pillow sham.
	In the house, a French victorian day bed which my daughter Celia suggested we should get reupholstered in cow hide. We bought these from Argentina and have to say think it's worked well, though the upholster's of Prickett of Leigh, said it was 'challenging' to do. But I wanted something different and love the look. The Persian rugs and various other oriental items were bought in Sharjah souk during our time living in the Emirates in the '80's. The remainder of my furnishings were bought from flea markets, boot sales and junk shops years ago when you could pick up all kinds of wonderful things for next to nothing. My Victorian swivel office chair found on a site while Bill was project manager on the then new Post Office at Bank, also reupholstered in cow hide.
	Beautiful flowers in foreground from John. Fun idea to brighten up a washing machine that couldn't be hidden. Having priced up integrated appliances, felt as the machine was only a few years old would wait until it broke down before buying an integrated one. So raked out the sticky based plastic and made some circles designs. It's not finished but you get the drift. Followed through painting circles as a border
	And followed through on the worktops. Which are old work tops painted with water-based quick drying acrylic eggshell paint. Surprisingly resistant to scratches and easy to wash.	coming soon: our very own handmade and individually painted Gibson Beehive composters, our own take on traditionally crafted garden composters that are both attractive to look at in the garden and ecologically sound. Don't throw away food scraps, lawn mowings or fallen leaves. .Make your own compost, it's simple and very satisfying. turn your garden and kitchen waste into valuable nutrients for your soil, your garden will thank you. Watch this space!!!
	Seatpads on the kitchen chairs are Dotty in Blue. Floral bedspread on chair used as throw, while I decide what to reupholster the chair in. Cushions Monsoon. Teal 'Oriental Circles' curtains just in view on right,
	The kitchen: which I wanted to be different to any other.Having trawled dozens of kitchen showrooms, couldn't make up my mind nor could I afford real wood, which was what I'd originally wanted. So mixed up old junk shop finds and new units and painted them all to tie in together. A temporary fix but love it. The huge ceramic treble sink sits on a wooden slatted stand. The Art Deco glazed wall cabinet, which is filled with Deco china, I've had for years and painted to match. The worktops are old shop fit and again painted to tie in with the overall theme. Window treatment, Malabar fabric 'Candy Stick'.
	Chandeliers again both French, we had these in our old showrooms and were too good to leave. My beloved wood burner, bought from a boot sale, which I've had for 20 years. It makes the approach of winter a thrill which never dies, as I get my new delivery of logs for the season and light the fire watching the daylight fade. A lovely pair of spelter horseman figures either side of the hearth which I bought for £2. Those were the days.
	Gorgeous turquoise Dogs of Fo figures on sideboard were a much coveted present from Bill, who used them as a bribe to get me to pursue a job interview for Abu Dhabi television as a newsreader. Which I subsequently got. Amazing times. The huge soapstone Buddha which arrived back in the UK smashed to smithereens thanks to British Airways. And which I lovingly restored. Persianl rugs on wooden floors Sharjah souk. Cobwebs courtesy special effects.
	Lloyd Loom chair found in skip, much to the horror of my then young children, on school run. Alexander Palace bird cage made by Gibson family. Curtains blue white check 'Bahir' by Ashley Wilde.
	Dining room papered in Sanderson'William Morris 'Suva'. Dining table original glass and chrome early '70's. Chairs care of church through Barbara, a friend of the family. Piece in bay found in ex's garage last year when doing up his house. Various china pieces on glass shelves, Royal Doulton, Worcester, Derby, Meissen etc found in my earlier days touring round antique fairs and boot sales.
	My bedroom which although small wanted to create a cosy yet luxurious and dare I say decadent look. Employing the same principle I screwed cup hooks into the ceiling and slotted a brass pole through and attached a silk and velvet throw to it with ring clips. This was to hang above the bed. I attached a second throw on the same pole and took it across the ceiling using the same method with the pole and ring clips. Either side I fixed two further brass poles and hung velvet curtains to complete the four-poster effect.
	A closeup of the fixing, I used a beaded runner to create a luxurious pelmet and hung heavy gold tassels so that it's right 'over the top'.
	White painted floorboads, easy and very cheap to do. Use a long handled roller and several coats of ordinary white vinyl emulsion, don't waste your money on expensive floor paints. Very hard-wearing. And easy to mop over. Did this long before it was considered chic, great as a means of reflecting light, making spaces appear bigger, and because I was hard up the time. At the windows Rosamantica printed and lined voile curtains, also available unlined. Also used as a net panel Rosamund net panel which is a copy of an antique French lace panel.
	Canopy effect in both bedrooms is extremely easy to replicate. This one uses two Flemish Tapestries but you could also use quilts or throws. Make sure they are the same width as your bed. In this case the bed is a double so the throw is 54" wide. All you need is two holes drilled for cup hooks and a pole. Use gold leaf ring clips and fix the throw to it even spacing it out evenly along the width. Repeat the process at the other end of the throw determing first how far you want the canopy effect to go out to. Heavy red curtain tiebacks complete the look.
	Bathroom shown only to demonstrate that although the design is horrendously out of date, by being a little inventive I find that after thirty years I still like it. It will have to be ripped out soon enough but as the first room I see in the morning, it still cheers me. Again, lots of items in here that I literally found, ie were free. such as the rattan chair and lloyd loom laundry basket. The voile pleated blinds I made. I didn't want to hide the lovely view from the window. A whole box of Spode china was dumped in a box by the roadside. Beautiful tureens, plates and gravy boats now displayed on the shelves. The sea-side theme border is American and I still love. Even though borders were naff even then. I don't follow fashion at all. Preferring to be different.
	Victorian bath filled with tree ferns and plants was originally used by us thirty years ago, in the house, long before considered chic. Though cracked enamel meant it was eventually relegated to garden which I actually prefer. Gorgeous Georgian urns were first treat to myself after ten years of retailing, therapy that was worth every penny and repaid itself many times over. Flanked by Miscanthus grasses and ; The fish pond which is an ongoing saga and now something of a joke in our family. My son Toby lovingly tends to it and never gives up. And neither do I.......or the neighbours cats!!!
Originally railway workers cottages, the house was in an appalling state when we moved in. These days people would live in a caravan on site but back then we had no choice but to live in it while we set about ripping it apart. I brought up two very young children in it. There was no heating, hot water, cupboards, kitchen so no cooking facilities. I had no automatic washing machine and to bath the children would push an old single tub washing machine into the bathroom on extension leads. Fill it with cold water and use the machines heater to heat the water then pump it into the bath. Then we would take it in turns to have a bath int the same water, no one stayed in it long as the tiny bathroom was freezing. Health and Safety would have a fit these days for doing something so dangerous. Particularly as the house wasn't earthed and the wiring was around sixty years old.	Front of house, masses of colourful blooms to enjoy. Tumbling out of barrels and any other containers I could usefully employ.
	Staircase runner by Malabar now discontinued. Snow covered remembrance corner with plaque thoughtfully donated by my friend Mark commemorating Dad, Mum and my brother John.
	Just had to run out in my dressing gown and take photos of the startling and incredible scene found on waking. I don't like the cold but this wonderful snowscape I couldn't resist, even more so when the sun came out. The light was dazzling. And makes for a perfect runup to Christmas.
	My Christmas tree with the perfect snowy background.
	And interesting to see two extremes of the same landscape, well it appeals to me anyway.
	Left: My beautiful daughter Celia - film star!! Right; My handsome boys: Toby snr, Tobias jnr and William