Kameel Stoepstorie: My Antique Fairy

This post was written by Lieschen Fincham. 

Lieschen is a young and independent woman who loves adventure and art but see herself as stubborn.  

She grew up in Bloemfontein which is the Legislative capital of  South Africa and situated in the Free State. 

Matriculated at Eunice High 

Currently studies at Un iversity of the Free State B.Com (Acc) 

When you grow up in a modern world, the sentiment of antiques sometimes boggles the mind. 

Why would anyone want to keep a broken chair or their great grandmother’s bathing suit? My aunt, the antique lady, made me see the beauty in all of it like she was some kind of fairy. 

To her every piece was unique and had its own story. No longer was the broken chair, just a chair and no longer was the bathing suit just that. It became fairy tales of ancestors I wished I had met, in whom I found some resemblance and some longing too. It became stories of road trips and laughter that you don’t see anymore, in this fast-paced life we live in.

The antiques came alive. They each danced to their own beat and told their own story. No wonder my antique fairy didn’t just place the pieces in some box that took up storage space in an old abandoned room. She took her time to carefully display each piece, like one would a photograph of a happy memory. Just like the photograph, each piece represents a unique person, even if long forgotten by many, the fairy places them where their magic won’t fade and disappear.

If the antiques get a little worn down and tired, she transforms them. Almost like Cinderella was transformed, only this fairy permanently transforms them. She gives them a new purpose and makes them feel brand new, like they have another chance at creating new stories. De Oude Huize is full of both new and old antiques that are eager to tell you their story.

Its easy to write about a place and what it offers, but its quite often forgotten that sometimes it’s the people that make the place so great. The people too often hidden behind the scenes making it great, are the true heart of a place.

I guess in some way my antique fairy could be seen as an antique herself, she’s not old, but she is rare and beautifully crafted. She tells a beautiful story and has a heart of gold to match. De Oude Huize is lucky to have her as its antique fairy, but so am I, to have her as my aunt.

Lots of love to 
De Oude Huize.

Lieschen