WHEELWRIGHTS

now
open
for

STYLISH & PRACTICAL

CONTEMPORARY GIFTS !


We've branched out in a new direction, but we're keeping to the standards we've set in the tearoom since 1996. We have tried to track down a range of gifts that are ~ stylish ~ contemporary ~ and above all practical. Not the usual type of souvenir, but things that you can take home, at affordable prices, and use in your home.

The range is constantly growing, and we'll keep our website up to date with news of additions, but what we offer now, in the summer of 2008, is ~ ~ ~ ~

TABLEWARE

Three very different styles. From the Danish Greengate range we stock china jugs and bowls with a floral motif and sets of floral storage canisters. Green Glass of Cornwall make tumblers, goblets and tealights from 100% recycled wine or beer bottles, all packed in cartons made from recycled cardboard. From Martin Gulliver Designs we have teapots, jugs, cups and saucers, kitchenware and oven-to-table ware in bright spots, stripes and check ~ anything not in stock we can supply within a few days, or post on to you (every item comes in protective packaging). Our choice also includes the Martin Gulliver "Funky Farm" eggcup sets and their new sets of cutlery for toddlers ~ the Pink Fairy set, the Toy Soldier set, and the Funky Farm animals set. We have chosen Lisa Stickley bone china mugs for their simple lines and quirky messages written inside the mugs.


GREETINGS CARDS

A choice of three very different styles. Caroline Gardner ~ from a very wide range, we have chosen a good selection of birthday cards for children ~ especially for younger boys and girls. Gaudium ~ we discovered this lovely range by accident when the owner of the firm called in ~ we were captivated by the gentle images and their quiet humour. All of them are blank inside for your own message. Spring Chicken ~ cards, slant pads and fridge magnets for those of a certain age. You're bound to know somebody for whom a Spring Chicken or Prime card has been individually designed !


JAZZ in PARIS


A remarkable series of CDs originally recorded in Paris between the 1930s and the 1970s (including the war years when jazz literally went underground. We stock as many of the series as are still available, and are now importing them direct from France. All the usual French artists are there ~ Django Reinhardt,Stephane Grappelli, Elek Bacsik and Pierre Michelot ~ but so are all the Americans who flourished in Paris after the war ~ Oscar Peterson, Chet Baker, Kenny Clarke, Blossom Dearie, Dizzy Gillespie, Stan Getz, Lionel Hampton, Louis Armstrong and many many more.


GLASS and JEWELLERY

Two very different ranges ~ as well as their china tableware, Martin Gulliver Designs produce tumblers, jugs and bowls, while the Cornish Green Glass collection includes tumblers, bracelets and necklaces, all from recycled glass.


MONEYPOTS !

An ancient tradition brought up to date ~ Terramundi make money pots in Italy to a 200-year-old Etruscan design, then hand-paint them in England with some very up-to-date colours and patterns. What makes them unique is that you can't open them until they're full ... and they will hold up to £200 in mixed coins. When you need the money, break the top with a claw hammer, and you're left with a candle-holder ~ and a lot of money.

STATIONERY and SKETCHBOOKS


Paperblanks notebooks are unashamed luxury ~ these are really high quality notebooks, sketch books and address books bound inside dramatic covers, with textured and detailed imaging taken from French silk, Thai gems, Irish illuminated manuscripts or oriental jewellery. Sizes vary from "mini" for the pocket up to A4-size. The Pink Pig range offers sketch books in a different style ~ high quality cartridge paper ring-bound in stout card wrapped in handmade paper with a wide choice of colours. We stock two different sizes, both square and both small enough to fit in a pocket.

CYANOTYPES by RICHARD CROSSMAN


A Victorian chemical process that dates back before the origins of photography, brought right up to date with digital techniques.

CRAFTS and TEXTILES


Here there's a real mixture ~ Catherine Tough makes chickens and ducks, knitted with 100% lambswool in a colourful mix of patterns, and filled with lavender and buckwheat. Put one on your pillow for a sound night's sleep ! For sleepovers, Greengate of Copenhagen make pink or green floral drawstring bags. Lisa Stickley is a London designer who produces quirky tea towels, lunch bags, laundry sacks and pyjama cases in 100% pure linen.

But we haven't completely abandoned our interest in crafts ! Applicraft ~ we stock the whole range of their "Inspiration Kits" for picture-making, "Billets Doux" for making greeting cards, and "Jolies Choses" for decorating clothes. Ideal for starting off young artists when inspiration is flagging ! Japan Crafts ~ origami and beadwork in kit form ~ make your own beaded ball ornaments, handbag mirrors or origami bookmarks fashioned as Japanese dolls, all packed in stylish boxes with simple instructions.


SHIRE PRESS BOOKS


We keep a good cross-section of the different types of Shire Press books ~ albums on the wildlife of our area, books on old buildings, introductions to topics in local history, and reference books on collectables. Every book in the Shire Press list is just about the best value for money in its field, and the amount of information laid out is as broad as it is readable.


OUR LATEST ADDITIONS !


We came across Devon Naturals earlier this year ~ soaps and bath melts hand-made in Ottery St Mary, just across the Devon border ~ and stock a wide selection of the range, as individual tablets, or as packs of guest soaps. Richard Wilson is a highly-regarded potter in Abbotsbury, and while he is rebuilding his Chapel Yard Pottery and Gallery in the village, we're happily stocking a selection of his smaller pieces that fit our "stylish and practical contemporary gifts" ideal.

We're constantly looking out for new ranges, as well as adding to the collections that are most popular ~ and we're open to suggestions from any of our friends and customers.

Keep an eye on our site for the latest additions !



Back to our home page

Check out our tearooms

Read all about the millennium banners ...

.... the Millennium Kneelers

the Strangways Hall quilt project ...

and now the grand piano cover for the church

Read about Abbotsbury's colourful past ~ and how to get in to crafts


For more information, e-mail us ! Click on the wheel.
More information on Abbotsbury and what happens here