Hearts Content found Robert Burt sporting this fetching pair of Incredible Hulk gloves at St Gemmas Retro Fair.  He’d snapped them up at the fair for the princely sum of One Pound and was very happy to model his new purchase in the Hearts Content Portrait Booth. As well as looking extremely stylish they make impressive roaring sounds.

Robert told us that he’d bought them for his grandson, but we’re not sure we believe him.
Hearts Content

Story Donated By Selina Nightingale
I started collected these upset dolls years ago, my first one was the beheaded doll sat centre front. I pulled his head off and glued it to my neck for a Halloween costume, which upset many people. It amazes me that these dolls are produced, someone was paid to design these and make them! They have also helped control my broodiness for many years. However the last one I bought is happy, so what does that say about my maternal clock, tic toc, tic toc…

Selina Nightingale

Story donated by Paul @ St Gemmas Retro Fair

Hearts Content spied Paul strolling round St Gemmas Retro Fair with this gorgeous girl tucked under his arm. He didn’t need much persuading to let us take her picture in the Portrait Booth and she turned out be a very photogenic dolly indeed. Which is just as well because she was starting a new life as a film-prop. Paul told us he bought her for a music video and because,

“She had one sad eye and she stood out in the crowd. And thats all.”

Hearts Content think’s she looks very festive in a lonely dolly kind of way so, for today, we’re calling her Dolly Christmas.
Hearts Content

Story Donated By Kirsty
Photo donated by Fazen on Flickr

I rescued two gorgeous, bright blue sheets from an Age Concern shop in Mablethorpe. Originally I’d bought them to go to a fancy dress party but they also came in handy for loads of other things. My sheets have been reincarnated as a throw for the sofa, a tablecloth and, most important of all, as the major foundation in the construction of my nephews’ play den.
Kirsty

Story Donated By Sophie Gleisner

I bought Peggy The Panda from a fairtrade charity shop in town.

I called her Peggy because the lady in the shop was called Peggy.
Sophie Gleisner

Story Donated By Al Dix

I have been playing backgammon for 30 years and in that time reckon I’ve won as much as I’ve lost (more or less). Backgammon is special in that you can be very skillful but you still have to rely upon an element of luck. I’ve had great times playing against some of my very best friends, and sometimes I’ve had the luck as well. The quality of the backgammon board is important to real enthusiasts, and the example here is one of the best. It was bought for me by one of my daughters and her mum about 15 years ago from a charity shop somewhere near Bradford - possibly Bingley or Keighley and it’s one of my favourite possessions. I’ve now taught my grandson to play, and look forward to playing him for money when he starts earning a decent living. Trouble is, he seems to keep winning…..
Al Dix

Story Donated By Amy Seaward

I have recently started the wooden toys collection above, and it is still quite small, but perfectly formed.The Russian dolls at the back, came from Prague and were incredibly cheap, the smallest one has inexplicably disappeared, but will hopefully return home one day.

The sailors came from Ashton-Under-Lyne flea market and were about 50p, I think their facial expressions are great, they don’t look very happy.

Unlike Mr and Mrs Tall, the two red toys who came from Leeds Thursday Market from the Faggy Lady Stall (so nicknamed by me and my friend, Sarah as they smoke all over everything) for 50p, I think. Mr Tall’s head keep falling off and I am forever sticking it back on with superglue.
Amy Seaward

Story Donated By Sarah Howells

When I was a child my Mum was a teacher at a primary school in Seacroft, Leeds and, without consulting any of us, gave all our books to the school library to give it a boost - I never got over the loss of Gobbolino the Witches Cat, The Little Red Fox, Clever Polly and the Stupid Wolf, all Laura Ingalls Wilder, Harry the Dirty Dog, The Land of Green Ginger yada yada yada - even joining the Puffin Club didn’t ease my pain. So from my late teens to date I set about buying them all back, from charity shops. Gobbolino, the Little Red Fox, Clever Polly and the Stupid Wolf, Laura Ingalls et al and Harry are back in my life, along with a few more including 13 Dr Dolittle books (no I didn’t know that either). Once I even had them all in alphabetical order by author, but then the shelves fell down.
Sarah Howells.