We be stylin': a matched set in trendy orange at the vide grenier this past week
You could learn a lot about a person by peering into their poubelles (trash cans), their attics, their junk rooms, their garages. Which is why I have an eternal fascination with the French marché des puces (flea markets) and vide greniers ('empy attic’ sales: think garage sales, on steroids). As my friend Darlene says of the vide greniers, “It’s mostly junk, but it’s great because it’s French junk”.
The French throw NOTHING away, they practically invented recycling. So every cracked old dish, every small appliance that's broken and totally beyond repair, every sad doll missing her hair and maybe a limb or two, lands in the vide grenier. And while the French are known for having great style, as you go deeper into the countryside that style becomes quirkier–and as different from American style as can be. I find many fun things to buy, but then…there are the other things. Poking around at the markets is a real education about how the French live and the stuff they choose to live with.
So what do the vide greniers reveal about the French? I’ll let these photos speak for themselves.
Small dead animals on proud display
A little something in red, most illuminating
Romance, beauty, femininity, detail
Brass chicken feet. One can only ask—why?
Umm…you'll have to draw your own conclusions from this one
The French, toujours proud and confident
In the COMMENTS: The Almond croissants seem to be the drool-worthy winners from last week's pâtisserie post. Suzanne has found something called bagelcroissants–only in America. Christine, great trip ahead!
Our Reader's Blogs: Veronique at A French Girl in Seattle looks at French movies this week. And Don't miss her previous post on the iconic Repetto ballet slippers, featuring Carla and BB. Katie at French Cravings tells all about her cooking class with Patricia Wells in Paris, we are simply vert with envy.
19 thoughts on “A Peek Into the ‘Poubelle’”
Great post! I particularly liked the dead animals, spread out in the sun. I do not quite know what to make of the Barbie dolls though… Hmmm… Thank you for the smiles, and for mentioning my blog at the end of the post! Veronique (French Girl in Seattle)
Oh my, this made me laugh out loud several times! I don’t know what wins for “biggest oddity”…? Truly it is a tossup between the lamp (I can just here the seller saying that it had originally been ‘tres, tres chere’) and the brass chicken feet. Ok, the feet.
When I first moved to France from NYC, I thought that I would continue shopping in thrift stores and second-hand shops for a chance to get the odd treasure. Alas, non! I quickly realized that the items that had been passed on had been worn down to smithereens!
And don’t get me started on how the French don’t waste food. And I am talking about any smidgen of food…
They charge extortionate priced for their broken junk, won’t haggle and it all seems to be just a social outing. The one or two times I wanted to buy something, the stallholders were at the buvette!
I’m particularly fond of the tres chi chi woman in red and the brass chicken feet…there just MUST be someway to use them!
Loved this! Really made me laugh…especially the Chicken feet…mais pourquoi ?
Those photos are truly “day in a French life.” Three weeks and I’ll be there.
Hilarious! I laughed out loud at those photos. As Americans, I guess we’ll never understand.
I enjoy your blog. Great pictures! This post makes me think I have some French blood after all.
Well, all I can think of when I look at the chicken feet is the amazing stock you can make from the real ones. And I know the French base a lot of their cooking on a well-made stock. So, perhaps, kitchen ornaments? When I put ours in the pot out of the freezer,they poke out the top and look just like that. I could see them being some kind of ironic french kitchen humor.
The ‘small dead animals’ are probably minks (or a relative) and their fur could be used for the making of some fabulous gloves, or part of a hat, or who knows what? As you pointed out, the French (countryside people in this case?) are resourceful and don’t waste a crumb. You know Someone is going to be looking for those..
Brocantes are alway amazing…Two weeks and we will be back…Hope this year brings you to Beaune…Thanks for keeping me “in” France during the winter months…
The dead animals look a little like a fox fur that my grandmother wore as a neck warmer. They were very fashinable in the 1940’s in England
Oh,Lynn, WHAT FUN!
What a great way to start the weekend!
THANK YOU!!!
Absolutely laugh provoking today Lynn! I love the various brocantes and attic sales as well! Fabulously fun photos.
So eager to be on our way …only three weeks now.
Bon weekend.
What fun! The red lamp looks as though it might walk away at any moment.
Thanks for the mention in your post! Bon week-end.
Katie
frenchcravings.com
While touring Cognac with French friends several years ago, my “antique mad” friend Josiane insisted on going to the local marché des puces. The first item we saw was a used toilet bowl brush–so, yes. The French never throw anything away. Nevertheless I treasure the exquisite cobalt blue espresso cup and saucer with an unknown aristocrat’s coat of arms that Josiane bought for me that day.
Love the minks; they remind me of my great Aunt Valerie, pronounced in western KY – Valera, who had a mink stole just like these. She and my grandmother, in fact all 7 sisters, had French names; their maiden name was Age, and they were of French descent – Demontbruns and Bouchers.
Lynn, about those bagelcroissants – they are on the menu at the bagel place, I promise, BUT when I attempted to order one, I was told, “Oh, no – they are just ordinary croissants.” Go figure!
Just a thoght on the chicken feet maybe not so original, but I’m always on the lookout for …wait for it…place card and/or menu holders. I often use little cocktail forks or demitasse spoons (Names written on with gold pen)on top of my grandmother-in-law’s handmade linen napkins, which are sadly showing their age of 125+ years. But they are exquisite and each one is (waaaay)bigger than a dishtowel, to spread over one’s dinner gown in Vienna, where she spent most of her life…don’t you think chicken feet would look GREAT on them?
As always, a terrific post, my dear Lynne, hope you have a great ex-pat Memorial Day!
Oh, PS! My Mom had one of those dead animals in the early 50s…her pride and JOY! We stole it to play with whenever we could and used her cigarette holder and thought wer were ever so gorgeous!
I enjoy your blog, and this one was especially fun! I, too, am intrigued by the chicken feet. Could they possibly be knife rests? I know that many French use them. My youngest daughter is married to a French man, and she mentioned that his parents have knife rests that are little horses.