Eileen Battersby rummages through a treasure trove of furniture, furnishings and eye-catching trinkets
It is the lantern, of beaten metal, bronze, silvered and ancient - shaped like a giant's gourd - that initially demands attention. A filigree edge borders the top like a tiny, crenulated variation of a castle rampant. The rounded body is decorated with punched stars encased by pentagons, relieved by dark blue and ruby glass, and it tapers to a bulb-like point. An intriguing menace is conveyed by its exotic strangeness. It evokes dark alleys and sudden flight. Surely it once hung in a Bedouin's tent? Originally from the Lebanon, the crafted lantern has also been in Morocco and Paris, and probably other places as well. It obviously has a tale to tell. Now it glowers in a merchant's delightfully chaotic treasure trove.
Embroidered cloths, table runners, opulent throws and cushions soften the setting. A few ornamental silver bags, decorated with delicately coloured glass flowers made for bridesmaids in Dubai, are also here. Venetian glass beads, Japanese pearls, marcasite jewellery, earrings and bracelets, French butterfly brooches and hair clips, various jewels, vintage pieces and ornaments are casually scattered. These are offerings intended for visitors who know how to browse, identify something special and take their leave bearing their prize which may be a surprise gift, or a furnishing for their home.
The lantern swings high from the ceiling, and it draws the eye. But then so, too, does the large cast-iron candlestick-like chandelier garlanded with pink flowers. A pile of richly coloured pashminas, shawls and wraps appears in danger of toppling, spilling its wonders across the floor, which is cluttered with scented candles and organic soaps, home-made jams and traditional boiled sweets in jars. Fancy lamps with painted shades form discreet arrangements. Some are lit and the collective glow illuminates the room. Quilts and fine bedding, including fancy pillow cases, spill out of drawers. Oriental-style timber screens have pensive Chinese birds painted on them.
In a corner, suspended from a graceful, creamy chain is another lantern, in cream and glass, but far more European in tone. This one, made in The Netherlands, would be ideal in a dressing room, as would the delicate, glass-drop chandeliers from Girona in Spain.
The merchant's intention becomes clear: East meets West. The goods on offer are eclectic - Asia, Africa and Europe are represented and sophisticated luxury furnishings meet traditional country style. This merchant is having fun. "I enjoy surprising people. I suppose I like gathering something for everyone," she says. Her souk is not a tent. It is not even in a Mediterranean bazaar. It is in the village of Slane, in Co Meath.
Nor is Alison Connolly a Bedouin. She is from Drogheda, in Co Louth, one of family who love the business of selling - anything and everything, to anyone. "When we were young, we used to sit around the super table, playing games of trading."
Her shop, Connolly & Moore, which spans two rooms, has been open for six years, and the more she talks, the easier it becomes to understand how she can source the unusual and the exotic. She is a good talker, has a zany laugh and is quick witted and friendly. She loves finding beautiful things, looking at them, enjoying them, and then selling them on.
On her travels, Connolly meets people and before she knows it, she is on her way to sourcing further interesting objects. It's not completely random. For all her ease, she is deceptively well organised. Should you want tall period garden urns or stone-like sculpted horse heads from Spain, she has them. "I'm interested in sourcing fine writing paper, so I'm going to Florence. There are such beautiful things in Italy. I'll find my paper there, and bring home architectural prints as well."
She has been dealing in French chateau- and country-style furniture for several years and often includes it in her interior design commissions. Tables, writing desks and chairs are displayed here and there throughout the shop, acting as display cabinets for smaller pieces such as an array of pretty jugs and pitchers. A small cream-coloured dresser top, with fine tapered iron cup hooks and a plate ridge is almost hidden, but proves a good buy for keen-eyed shopper who is aware that in shops such as this, the fun lies in the hunt. Apparently forgotten under a cupboard sits a small clay pot, a wonderful shape, waiting for a discerning buyer. That buyer arrives. She bends down, claims the pot and looks triumphant.
Connolly & Moore also has a range of distinctive Staffordshire ware. Large blue-and-white foot baths are being bought as quickly as Connolly can bring them in. They are versatile pieces, likely to end up with plants in them, or bath salts and towels, as well as the feet for which they were made.
A tall, elegant coat rack stands sentry halfway down the shop. It is dark red and French, and also for sale. At present, however, it is displaying, like a flock of coloured birds, an assortment of decorated bags. The two women looking at them, want to buy bags, but can't decide which. They may have to buy two or three - each. Elsewhere is a metal fire screen in a rich, enamelled red, and very sturdy. It is also French. Five customers want it; the outcome could prove interesting.
A cast-iron sofa or day bed, with red and white ticking-upholstered cushions, lies against the wall. It acts as a display unit, housing cushions and china eggs; fancy, sequined Cinderella slippers in various colours and children's traditional French sun hats in pink and cream straw.
Local craft is also represented. Old-style farmhouse chairs made from reclaimed timber are supplied by a craftsman in Ardee, Co Louth, who has also restored period washstands for Connolly. She has commissioned wooden milking stools and wishing-well buckets, framed in iron. Practical cast-iron door mats and boot scrapes, as well as an assortment of painted coat hooks - one of Connolly's many personal obsessions - are displayed near her desk.
Modern and period paintings and framed photographs are everywhere; the shop offers a framing service. French clocks and antique bronze horses shimmer in glass cases. "I have stuff from all over the world, and Ireland as well. People come in here and say they never know what they are going to find. That's exactly what I want to hear, and I'll continue my raids on Montmartre and other markets and auctions. The fun for me is the finding of the objects, the actual sourcing - and then watching my customers find them in my shop."
Connolly & Moore is at Newgrange Mall, Slane, Co Meath, 041-9824722. Tuesday-Saturday, 10.30am-6pm; Sunday 2-6pm