Sue's purchases and travels

I spent the first half of today with a friend of Peter's Cousin Charlie.  Her name is Marghareta and she and I had never met before but Charlie did a good job filling us in about each other.  She was kind enough to pick me up at my hotel and then we headed to town.  I took her to one of my favorite streets for Antique shops and then she took me to lunch at the Ostermalm Saluhall.  This is a fabulous old market (not unlike Lancaster County's Central Market) which has now also become THE place to dine.  What can be fresher or better than seafood eaten in a seafood market?  We both had baked salmon in the most fabulous vegetable sauce.  Wonderful!  We then walked around the Ostermalm area.  We stopped into the Laura Ashley store where many items (especially clothing) were reduced 70%.  I bought a sweater and then we each bought a pink and white woolen scarf.  We needed it as we walked the town which felt especially cold today.  Marghareta introduced me to a wonderful shop called Garbo.  It was a little bit like garden center meets antique shop.  The shop was lined with pot after pot of bulbs planted in moss and also large glass jars with branches being forced into bloom.  There was also the most gorgeous arrangement of salmon pink Ranunculus and cherry blossom.  Simply stunning and then....amidst some wonderful antiques (even on sale too pricey to buy for the shop) we spotted this dear little boy with a St. Bernard Puppy.  He was carrying him all around the shop and the dog, like most babies, loved it!  We both took turns posing with this bundle of furry love!  When we tore ourselves away from the puppy Marghareta took me to a fabric shop that sells material that is triple the normal width.  Imagine (all you sewers out there) how easy it would be to make curtains, or a table cloth, or a bedspread when no matching or piecing is needed.  We finished our day at one of my usual second hand shops.  Phew...a lot of Stockholm in 4 quick hours.  Not one to call it a day before the shops close...I then headed out solo to the shopping area near my hotel and found some great finds at 3 different second hand shops.  The tough part is figuring out what to carry home with me.  Too many things for my suitcase!  Tonorrow morning is the flea market at Hortorget.. let's hope more vendors brave the cold tomorrow than they did last week.

Labels: Garbo Ostermalm, klaradal swedish antiques, Old Touch, Ostermalms Saluhall, Stockholm., swedish gifts