with love from a long lost bag...

Back in July I carried out my first covert mission as with love from the artist - leaving handbags around the Ymuno Festival in Wales. This exciting first 'drop' consisted of six vintage bags.
I was so excited about having actually started the project, and surprised at how much fun I had sneaking items into places where people would notice them, but wouldn't notice me leaving them there. I had so much fun infact, that I was only mildly disappointed when I didn't get any replies from the Ymuno bags....

...until now that is...

...anybody remember this?

...the lovely navy blue bag I left on a shop door handle? Well last week I finally received news from the bag and it's new owner, and my goodness was it worth the wait...Here are the six (yes, SIX) wonderful photos of the blue bag with it's new fairy owner, in a beautiful setting, and clearly having the time of its leathery life...

...the emailer informed me that the bag is now filled with fairy stationary...

More Vintage Fair Responses!!!

This week I received two more replies from finders of the items I left at the Utility Vintage Fair in Chester...

Jenny Bostock found the navy blue 1970s handbag - here's the photo she sent me. By the looks of it she's still at the vintage fair here with her freshly discovered new accessory - I must say they look very happy together :-)

Second I received this photo of the canary yellow top from Katy Longman. Funnily enough I'd had a dream about this particular top the night before I opened Katy's email - lo and behold there was this lovely photo of it nestling amongst lots of vintage goodies!

So a huge Thankyou to Jenny and Katie for their replies...they were such a nice surprise as I didn't expect anyone else to get in touch this long after the event. This means overall I've received news from 3 of the 7 items - what a result.

Stay tuned for the next installment...

withlovefromtheartist@gmail.com

x

Just lovely...

What an excellent week it's been for responses!
These are the fantastic photos I received from Ruthy - the specially targeted finder of the
Green Dress.


I believe the window in the top image might be the one which looks out on the tree where I left the dress. The bottom picture is of Ruthy and the dress in the unmistakeable setting of Liverpool Cathedral, underneath a piece of work by her beloved Tracey Emin.

Just. Lovely.

Two for the Price of One...

After the Vintage Market a couple of Saturdays ago, I was thrilled to receive a response from Kylie Thompson, who found the jumper I left hanging on a bannister. She sent me this photo of it in its new life...

...along with a photo of a pair of shoes she bought the same day for £12... Kylie told me in her email that the jumper was the only thing she found that day to match her new shoes - you might call that clothing fate :-)...

At the heart of this project is the concept of swapping an object for an image, so in this instance I got a great deal - one object for 2 images.

Just Another Vintage Market...

Last Saturday I went back to my roots somewhat, and left some little surprises on and around the vintage stalls at Cruise nightclub in Chester...

This was an interesting context to try out, because the objects didn't take people by surprise - in fact they weren't out of place at all. Only on close inspection of the label would their covert mission be discovered.

(It was a wee bit dark for my standard digital camera to cope with, so apologies for some slightly shady images...)

I left this lovely little bag (navy blue leather, metal snap fastener, 1970s), in a spot-lit corner...

...next, this canary yellow polyester top with a lovely square neckline and big blue buttons. I slipped this onto Paper Doll's Vintage stall... (hope that's okay Paper Doll Vintage)...

...this brown and yellow beauty sneaked onto a stall upstairs...
(not strictly speaking vintage, but a very pretty retro print)

... a very cute rust coloured 80s jumper, with pretty little button on the collar.

I left this hanging from the bannister at the top of the stairs, half an hour later the jumper had gone but the hanger was still there. Who are you, finder of the cute rust jumper? Do send me a photo of it please...

... a vintage wool tank top with brick pattern all over it, hooked onto the end of a rack downstairs near the bar...

... this really is a stunner - 1970s tapestry bag in beige and brown with a metal fastener. I left this upstairs in plain sight amongst some flyers...

...last but not least, this showstopping playsuit in mint green and gold, hung on the back of a door in the downstairs toilets.

Did the vintage lovers of Chester discover all my surprises? Will any of them get in touch?

I'll have to wait and see.

withlovefromtheartist@gmail.com

x

One Green Dress...

At 7am this morning I took one green dress into Chester and left it in a tree at the end of a residential street, somewhere near Habitat. In a slight diversion from the general concept, whereby I have no idea who will discover the items I distribute, this dress was for somebody in particular to find...

I have a lovely friend who lives in a house next to the tree, in fact she can see it from her bedroom window. I happened to know that she loved this particular dress when it was on my stall, and had mentioned to her that I might surprise her one day by leaving it in the tree outside her house.

Having planted this idea in my friend's head, I liked to imagine that each morning as she opened her blinds she would glance at the tree, to see if the dress was there, or if as per usual, it was empty.

Today, after many empty tree mornings, there was the green dress.

I liken this process to that of me, checking my withlovefromtheartist email account time after time to find it empty, until the mini-miraculous occurrs and I log in to find a reply waiting for me. The non-replies make the replies more momentous...likewise, hopefully, a bit of suspense made the dress all the more delicious for my friend.

Fingers crossed for a Green Dress reply!

withlovefromtheartist@gmail.

x

FOUND!!!

The brogues I left in Manchester were found by the lovely Ingrid Rosson - here's the photo she emailed me. This is the first response I've had and I was over the moon to receive it... :-)

Dancing Shoes in Manchester...

Yesterday (Thurs 8th July) I left 4 pairs of vintage shoes around Chorlton in Manchester...

. ..first off this pair of leather heels, hooked into the fenching around a tree outside Johnson's dry cleaners on Wilbraham Road...

... next this lovely little pair of ladies brogues, left tucked behind the toilet in Battery Park juice bar on Wilbraham Road...

...these multicoloured beauties -1980s stilettos , left under a table outside Battery Park...

...Finally these metallic, taupe and white heels, left hooked onto railings on Manchester Road, on the bridge near Wild at Heart cafe...

Phase One: Ymuno Festival

Last weekend I left six bags for strangers to find at the Ymuno Festival in Wales.

I played it a little bit safe by choosing this first location... assuming that festival goers are music loving arty types and therefore more likely to respond...

Here are the gifts I gave...

...A blue leather handbag with long thin strap, last seen late Friday night, amongst a pile of bean bags and rugs in the big Teepee...

...a brown leather box bag with chain handle, last seen late on Friday night on the handle of a spade. By morning it was nowhere to be seen...

...a white 1980s leather handbag with long strap, last seen blowing about with the bunting
on fencing outside the girl's toilets...

...a pretty little beaded bag with chain handle. I left this (semi-camouflaged) on the floor of the TeePee on sunny Saturday afternoon. One of my spies witnessed it being found by a little girl, and later being carried into the camping area by a young couple...

...a navy blue handbag with metal fastening and long strap, last seen on the door handle of this shop advertising quirky wedding-wear...

...a big canvas clutch bag with detachable strap, last seen sitting on a wall by the barn, early evening on Saturday. I walked past again ten minutes later and the bag had already vanished...

...finally, this black patent handbag with metal detail on the front, last seen late late late on Saturday night, resting against a pillar in the teepee...

...So now I wait to hear from those that found. Allowing for the shaking off of festival hangovers and back-to-work syndrome, I'm still hopeful for at least one response. Do me proud Ymuno!




withlovefromtheartist@gmail.com

x