My partner Sam and I visited this remote farmhouse in 2015 after it had been on my 'to do' list for a couple of years.  A long walk from the car i hoped it would be worth it, and it turned out to be better than I imagined for one reason. The pram! Yes, I do have a strange fascination for vintage prams. Why? I have no idea! Maybe it's the mysterious world of the child's first home. It's first bed. Who knows. Maybe it is just the aesthetics? Anyway. I like them and find them utterly fascinating!

 

So, inside the house, downstairs was a mixture of decaying rooms, damp, crumbling walls and thr remnants of homely times scattered around at will. A tiny kitchen painted illuminous dark green with the former owner's jackets still hung up on rusting hooks. Mr Davies certainly had a collection of jackets. each one rigid with age. The Aga, majestic if a little tatty was in the adjoining room which appeared to be a dining room. obviously there wasn't enough room for the Aga to fit in the tiny kitchen.

 

The lounge still had scattered paperwork in. Receipts and bills from when Mr Davies worked the land. Empty whiskey and licqour bottles littered the floor. Either someone in the house liked a drink or squatters may have used it as shelter and temporary accommodation. 

 

Upstairs I wasn't expecting much. Sam went up first to have a look around, or more to check the floors for me after my recent accident. When I eventually made it up the aged staircase I asked her if there was anything in the rooms worth looking at. 'No' came her reply but just out of interest I looked anyway. There it was in the back bedroom, the pram! Gloriously positioned by the window with toys accompanying it on the window sill. A vintage toy bus in bright blue and it got better. A 1950's TV on the floor adding to the sheer retro feeling to this room. Sam admitted to me she hadn't even looked in that room, good job I did!

 

After spending some time with the pram, marvelling at its brilliant craftsmanship and pure vintage feel I began photographing it. Do I move it from the window? Photographing things in front of a window always throws up problems. Expose for the window or expose for the object? Luckily Nikon made a camera in the D800 which just about covers both with a bit of spot metering done prior to the shot. Its massive exposure range allowing for a decent shot of the pram with the vintage window behind without the pram turning into a blackened silhouette or the window resembling a blinding ball of light. 

 

The TV unfortunately didn't work but it sure looked good with minimal dials and a comforting big on/off switch!

 

Whilst inside the house, a family entered the house. I was in the green kitchen at the time so froze when I heard voices. They seemed friendly and obviously had no clue we were inside the house. As they entered the kitchen, with myself stood like a statue i'm not sure who was more startled, them or me! They were local, on a day trip and fancied seeing the house as they had walked past it before. No harm done. We chatted for a while and then they left, a little bemused why some person would find it photogenic enough to want to take photographs of it! Well, they didn't know what was upstairs!

 

Mr. Davies probably was married, presuming the handbag in the front room belonged to his wife. Other than that there wasn't much of a feminine touch to the house. Maybe Mr. Davies outlived her?

 

A house which delivered some true delights. How it is surviving the winters where it is considering half the back of the house has crumbled to the ground heaven knows. But I'm thankful I got there when I did. I took away fond memories of this house and what she had in store.