Dead Men's Spex has another lovely day with Vintage Lover Fair

Hi there,
Well, Little Vintage Lover Fair did it again and booked another lovely warm day for their annual event at Heydon in deepest Norfolk.  It was very busy as usual and we had a good day, we met several of our regular customers and it was nice to catch up with the other stall holders. We also introduced some new people to Dead Men's Spex.

Little Vintage Lover Fair 2017

Dead Man Junior and I left Dead Man in charge of the stall so we could take a few photos.

Summer flowers

We will be out about next at the North Norfolk Railway 1940s event at Holt on Saturday 16th and Sunday 17th September. 

TTFN Mrs Deadman

The first part of the stream-lining of the search menu on the website is done (took a little longer than expected with customers at the showroom today) 
I am in the process of writing frame histories for each time period so please look out for these and let me know if you like them - the first is here 

Adieu
Deadman

Dead Men's Spex out and about at MK Handmade and Vintage Extravaganza

Hi there
Our weekend at Milton Keynes Handmade and Vintage Weekend Extravaganza went off well and we had a good time. We met some new customers and saw some of our regulars. We managed to spread the word about Dead Men's Spex and got lots of compliments about our name and a few shudders, as always.

Dead Man decided to have a little competition between me and him. He put photos up of us on instagram, mine went up on Saturday and his on Sunday and weirdly we both had 53 likes. However, he also put them up on Facebook and he had loads more views than me : 1295 to 707. It's OK, I know who is the most photogenic out of the two of us!

Me titivating the stock. I do like a good polish at the start of the day!

When we came back from the show we took the opportunity to restock the website and show room.  Dead Man's put some new gent's frames on the website.

Dead man, jovial as ever - even on a Sunday morning.

Well TTFN Mrs Dead Man

Happy New Year from Dead Men's Spex

Hi there

We hope you had a good break, thank you to everyone who supported us in 2016, we had a good year. In December, Dead Man Junior and I visited the Warner Brother Studios Harry Potter Tour. It was fantastic! We loved Dumbeldore's office and decided that it would be the perfect hideout for Dead Man ! He and the great man seem to have the same taste in large magnifying glasses.

Vintage magnifying glasses in Dumbeldore's office

There was also a bit of magic occurring; at the end of the tour is a room full of wand boxes one for each person who was involved with the films; it is extensive, there are hundreds of people! I took a photo of a random section..(honest!) and when I got it home Deadman noticed the appropriate names- Derek Deadman and Peter Mann (Dead Man's dad, Deadman Sleeping is Peter Manion)!

Appropriately named wand boxes.

We are looking forward to 2017 and will be doing some shows. Our first one of the year is on Saturday 4th and Sunday 5th March and is quite a large event. It is the MK Handmade and Vintage Weekend Extravaganza at Milton Keynes. This will be our third time at this show as we went last year. It is a lovely show with a mix of crafts and vintage, it  has some very interesting stalls , including ours of course..! We will be at other events throughout the year and will let you know as we book them. In the meantime you are always welcome to make an appointment to come to our showroom in our garden to choose vintage spectacles.

We wish you all a good new year,
TTFN Mrs Deadman

Fun at Sussex Barn

Hi there
Well it was just me out and about with Dead Men's Spex stall on Sunday 4th December. Dead man junior needed a lie-in; 7am on a Sunday seemed very cruel so he and Deadman stayed at home and did homework -so they tell me! I went to Sussex Barn near Burnham Market, Norfolk  with Little Vintage Lover Fair and had a good day. Sussex Barn is mainly used for weddings but it is a fantastic building and is a good place for a vintage fair.

Dead Men's Spex at Sussex Barn

We have been there before with Little Vintage Lover Fair, but not for a couple of years and it was good to return.  I was in the conservatory area with two other stall holders and the tea rooms, it was very civilized and sunlit. I always enjoy chatting to people and selling our lovely eyewear. Thank you if you came to see me.

Some of our stock

TTFN Mrs Deadman

Dead Men's Spex at Sussex Barns with Little Vintage Lover Fair

Hi there,

Uh,oh it is nearly December already, wow! How did that happen? All is well at Deadmen's Towers and we are starting to think about Christmas. This Sunday, December 4 we are going to be selling our vinatage glasses at Little Vintage Lover Fair's Vintage Christmas event at Sussex Barn, Burnham Market in North Norfolk. It runs from 10:00am to 4:00pm.

It is beautiful place set in stunning scenery and I enjoy going there. As usual Deadman has been polishing his stock and sharpening his wit ready for the Christmas Fair. We have some lovely frames, how about a new pair for Christmas?! We hope to see you there.

TTFN

Mrs Deadman

September's a busy month for Dead Men's Spex

Hi there,
Deadman Junior is now at High School; after some trepidation, he had a good first day, let's hope this continues for many a year.. That leaves his aged parents plenty of time to prepare vintage spex. We are taking our Dead Men's Spex stall for an airing at  Milton Keynes this weekend; Saturday 10th and Sunday 11th September.

Vintage and Handmade Fair at Milton Keynes in March 2016

We are going to the Milton Keynes Handmade and Vintage Fair, we went in March and had a great time so we are repeating the performance. Deadman's in his workshop preparing a great selection of vintage frames and I am making lists.. For those of you who know Milton Keynes we are in Middleton Hall, right in front of John Lewis and near lots of coffee shops (uh oh!) The hours are 9 am -6 pm on Saturday and 10.30 am - 5 pm on Sunday.

Dead Men's Spex at Milton Keynes 

We are planning to arrive in our newly acquired transit van called Tom, (red like a tomato) I'll feel like a proper stall holder!

The weekend after that ; September 17th and 18th we'll be at Holt with the Poppy Line on the North Norfolk Railway. That's always a fun event and it has increased in size and popularity since we first started selling our glasses there in 2008. For us, it also has the added bonus of being really close to Dead Men's towers.

Hope to see you when we are out and about!
TTFN
Mrs Dead Man

Hot sunshine at Heydon!

Hi there,
Well Sunday's Little Vintage Lover Fair certainly did not disappoint; the weather was glorious, and plenty of people came to the fair.

stall holders outside

The village hall was very warm, the stall holders outside were definitely in the cooler positions! We had a good day and saw some familiar faces and met a few new ones too.   

cottage gateway   

Heydon green

Dead Man Junior went off to Heydon green a few times and took some good photos. He favoured the sepia look which works well don't you think? On his travels he discovered that Husk  bakery was open so he had a lovely pizza from them and and even saved his parents a piece each. Once we had packed up the stall, we took the opportunity to have a couple of jars from the Earle Arms on the green with a few of the other stall holders. It was a beautiful evening; the end of another lovely day in Heydon.

Heydon church

Thank you to everyone who came to our Dead Men's Spex stall, we hope you had a good day.

TTFN the Deadman clan

Dead Men's Spex at Heydon with Little Vintage Lover Fair

Hi there
Our open weekend went well, we'd like to thank everyone who came to see us and our refurbished shoffice. They brought glorious weather on the Sunday. Squash was definitely the order of the day. There was even cake left over, much to our neighbours' delight!

Heydon church and well

On Sunday August 7th Dead Men's Spex will be off to pretty Heydon in Norfolk for another great Vintage Lover Fair. I hope we will get the beautiful sunshine which we have come to associate with this event. Fingers crossed! Well, whatever the weather, we will bring our usual good cheer and great vintage eyewear. Hope to see you there!

The Deadman clan

Come to Dead Men's Spex Open Weekend July 16th and 17th 2016

Hi there
Well this week we have been mainly preparing for our open weekend. Dead Man has refitted the shoffice with a glasses display area made from reclaimed apple crates.

The new display area

He's also bought a selection of vintage optical equipment. It's rather elegant, beautifully made and very heavy! Most of it is from an optician's in Walsall in the West Midlands
(his old stomping ground).

I've displayed our frames on the racks so they can be easily seen. We've decided on cake; lemon drizzle and rhubarb crumble, same as last year. We are also having tiffin as made by our friend. All we our hoping for now is nice weather.

1940s frames on an antique  slip lamp table 

NHS frames  

We are at Dead Men's Towers in our home in rural Norfolk and are open from 12 noon to 5pm Saturday 16th and Sunday 17th July. We hope you can make it to see us and our frames in their lovely new surroundings and look forward to seeing you. 

Mrs Deadman 

Dead Men's Spex Open Weekend July 16th and 17th 2016

Hi There
Well, you wouldn't believe it but it is nearly Mid Summer and our thoughts are turning to having nice times outside in the garden. So, following last year's successful open weekend we've decided to do it again.

Last year's selection of homemade cakes- rhubarb crumble, lemon drizzle
and flap jack.

We'll be opening our shoffice in our garden in rural Norfolk on Saturday 16th and Sunday 17th July from 12 noon to 5 pm both days. We'll have our usual great selection of vintage glasses on display. Along with the obligatory chat we'll also be serving homemade cakes and tea and coffee. If you're lucky you might even get to share some of Deadman's new tipple; calendula tea. I haven't decided which cakes to make yet; I'm open to suggestions...

Important decisions at last year's open day ....

If you fancy an afternoon out, why don't you come and join in the fun? If you live further afield you could even combine it with a weekend at the seaside, we're only half an hour from the coast! We'd love to see you. 

Well I'd better go 

TTFN 

Mrs Deadman

Little Vintage Lover Fair a great success!

Hi there

We had a great day on Sunday at Manington Hall in Norfolk, just up the road from  Dead Men's towers, with Little Vintage Lover Fair. The weather was spectacular to match the scenery; Zoe has the knack of picking beautiful days. We had a lovely day and met some new people amid the familiar faces. 

Dead Man in his new shirt with Dead Man Junior

We had initially planned to have an indoor pitch but when we arrived it was such a lovely morning that we opted to put our Dead Men's Spex stall outside on the lawn, it was definitely the right decision.

Mannington Hall from the bridge over the moat 

I had a wander round with my camera and was quite impressed with the results; the subject matter definitely helps..!

Mannington Hall and moat

A side view of the moat 

This was the first time Little Vintage Lover Fair had been to Mannington Hall and I hope we can go back again.


Hope to see you soon, TTFN Mrs DeadMan
Mannington Hall and Gardens

Dead Men's Spex at Mannington Hall with Little Vintage Lover Fair

Hi there

We will be out and about again, this time in Norfolk. On Sunday 8th May we are going with Little Vintage Lover Fair to the beautiful Mannington Hall near Aylsham. This is the first time that Little Vintage Lover Fair has been there and it is on V.E day so 1940's dress is encouraged. Mannington Hall is a medieval moated country house owned by Lord and Lady Walpole. We went there a few years ago with a multi period fair and it is a lovely place.

Mannington Hall

The gardens are open to the public in the spring and summer and Little Vintage Lover Fair is part of one of their open days. Dead Men's Spex will be undercover, next to the tea rooms - The Greedy Goose, uh oh I can feel the temptation already. If you are looking for a nice day out why not come along on May 8th? Mannington Hall is well worth a visit and  you'll have the chance to find some vintage goodies. We'll be pleased to see you and will be selling our usual varied selection of genuine vintage spectacles. Deadman likes to have people to chat to, he can get a bit bored of me...

Mrs Deadman

Dead Men's Spex have a good day at Peachy Keen Vintage Fair

Hi there

We had a good day in Ipswich at Peachy Keen Vintage Fair, it was in the Manor Ballroom which we managed to find without getting lost; always a bonus. We sold quite a few pairs of our vintage specs and met some new customers and stall holders and caught up with some old friends. It always nice to go to shows and meet people. We will be out and about again later this year; watch this space for further details.

Peachy Keen Vintage Fair April 2016 - taken from their Facebook page 

Hope to see you soon

Mrs Deadman 

Dead Men's Spex at Peachy Keen Ipswich

Hi there
I hope you all had a good Easter.The Easter bunny brought lots of choccie to Dead Men's towers. Dead Men's Spex are off to Ipswich soon to a Peachy Keen Vintage Fair on Sunday 17th April from 11am to 4pm.

Our stall last year at Peachy Keen

We are looking forward to returning and have some great glasses to sell. This year it's at The Manor Ballroom, 4 St Margaret's Green Ipswich IP4 2BP which is a new venue. We've had some great new frames in recently which we will bring along to add to our usual varied selection.

Fabulous new styles

And some more...

Hope to see you soon

Mrs Deadman

Handmade and Vintage Extravaganza "The show with Specs Appeal"

Hi there
Well our weekend in Milton Keynes at the Handmade and Vintage Extravaganza was a big success! The organisers Jacqui and Andy made us very welcome; we were mentioned in their advertising for Milton Keynes shopping centre. The local newspaper- The Citizen - called it "The show with specs appeal." We enjoyed ourselves and sold a respectable amount of specs. If you'd like to see some more photos of the event including the advert, have a look at Jacqui Lewis's Facebook page.

Dead Man in position

Middleton Hall is a lovely venue; very spacious and airy and close to a wide range of coffee outlets! We met a whole lot of new people; customers and other stall holders, and there was the usual gamut of varied expressions from amused through to revolted after people read our sign! We were also delighted that quite a few of our regulars came to see us. Thanks to everyone who came to see and buy and special thanks to Jackie (yes another one!) who put us onto the fair.We also discovered The Pudding Parlour - who make the most delicious chocolate brownies ever! We are going back in November for another great event.

See you soon
Mrs Deadman

Dead Men's Spex ventures west to M.K. - Milton Keynes!

Hi there


Well it's mid February and we will soon be making our first public appearance of the year in two weeks' time on Saturday 5th and Sunday 6th March 2016 at the MK Handmade and Vintage Weekend Extravaganza. We booked a stall in December and are looking forward to it. The whole event looks very busy and has a wide variety of stalls.

Stalls from above

Lots  of interesting items... Photos from the MK Handmade and Vintage website

We will be taking our usual range of great vintage frames and some of Dead Man's crafts such as his spexlaces ; necklaces made from original vintage frames, and some lovely old testing lenses which clean up beautifully and are great for crafts.

Spexlaces- spectacle necklaces- unglazed but can be glazed for a lady of a certain age...

We have a new display case; well it is actually lovingly reconditioned - this is Dead Man we are talking about! This case  holds a good selection of frames. Dead Man has commissioned his friend Steve Appleton a local artist to decorate it for him.

The image for inside the lid designed by Steve Appleton

We will also be giving out copies of Vintage Explorer Magazine, look out for our advert in there.

We hope to see you there; it will be Mothers' Day on the Sunday March 6th and a great place to take your mum. Mine will be having a great time - playing with Dead Man Junior all weekend! (Thanks Mum!)


Mrs Deadman

New Displays at Dead Men's Spex

Hi there

Here at Dead Men's Spex we have been making a few purchases, which is always fun; who doesn't like a bit of retail therapy? Dead Man bought two new display cabinets for our Shoffice -they fit in perfectly and now house a selection of Deadman's personal optical collection. These include pinz nez, real tortoiseshell frames and some beautiful dainty Chinese style cases. The move around means that we now have another drawer full of prepared frames ready to sell.

Some of Deadman's collection

We've booked another show for the spring; Peachy Keen Vintage Fair  in Ipswich, we attended one of their events last year and are returning. We are relieved to discover that they are at a new (and hopefully warmer) venue-last year was in a rather chilly old church!! This event is on Sunday 17th April 2016 from 11am to 4pm at The Manor Ballroom, 4 St Margaret's Green Ipswich IP4 2BP.

Hope to see you soon, Mrs Deadman

January 2016- Happy New Year from Dead Men's Spex

Hi there

Happy New Year! I hope 2015 was good for you. Dead man and I were looking back and the highlight of the year for Dead Men's Spex was definitely the "shoffice"- (a combination of a shop, shed and office!) which we had built in our back garden in the Spring. It is full of vintage spectacles and other optical curiosities. We held a successful open day in July and since then we have had a steady stream of customers. We've recently bought a vintage optician's sight test light box to add to our collection on display in the shoffice.

American 1940's optician's sight test box 

Looking forward into 2016 we have some dates for your diaries;

Definite bookings

Saturday 5th and Sunday 6th March 2016 MK Handmade and Vintage Weekend Extravaganza

To be arranged 

Dead Men's Spex open day. Likely to be May 2016

North Norfolk Railway September 2016

Look forward to seeing you in 2016 either,online, in our shoffice or at a show.

Mrs Deadman

Festive times with Dead Men's Spex

Hi there

We had a good time at Holt Hall and were in a great position; close to the very grand fireplace complete with real fire, lovely!

A real fire..

We were also close to the huge and very imposing Christmas tree and the tea rooms- they did a delicious line in mince pies and great sponge cakes too.

..and a huge Christmas tree

It was nice to meet some new faces and see some familiar ones. Deadman junior did a great Christmas card in the crafts area and enjoyed chatting to the other stall holders. He's following in his Dad's footsteps.. perhaps his next step will be reconditioning frames?!

The Eastern Daily Press photographer was on duty and on Thursday I opened the paper to see some familiar faces smiling sweetly at me.

EDP photos taken from Little Vintage Lover Fair's website 

This is our last show before Christmas and it was nice to get into the festive spirit. We've booked to go to Milton Keynes to the MK Handmade and Vintage Weekend Extravaganza  in March 2016. It is a very large event in a huge indoor area called Middleton Hall in front of John Lewis. We are excited about this as it's our first time at this show. I will be looking forward to returning to my old stomping ground, I watched many a classic 80's film at The Point cinema just across the way!!

I hope that you are enjoying the festive season.

Mrs Deadman