The Little Vintage Carousel by the Sea: A gorgeously uplifting festive romance!. Jaimie Admans

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СКАЧАТЬ I collected the fence keys from the chip shop, the girl serving said it was found in an abandoned house or something. I’m hoping that stripping it down will give me more clues about its origin.’

      ‘What do you think?’ I ask because I get the impression he wants to say more.

      His face lights up again. ‘It’s definitely not been outside because it doesn’t have the wear, so an abandoned house would make sense. Must’ve been a massive house though – can you imagine getting something this big into one of our crappy one-bedroom flats?’

      I shake my head, looking up at the spire on top. It really is humungous.

      ‘There’s a dent in the top and damage to the rounding boards, and the top bars are bent, so that suggests something fell on it. From the scratches and debris, I’d guess a roof or ceiling came down on it, but at the same time, I’d guess that whatever it was also gave it some kind of protection. This is in incredible condition for the age of it, it must’ve been well cared for back in the day, and although it’s obviously been let go since then, it doesn’t have anywhere near the damage you’d expect.’

      The tent smells of aged wood and the grease that Nathan’s hands are covered in, and I wander around the circular area, stepping over the metal posts that he’s carefully laid out. I run my fingers down one of the support poles suspended from the bars above, carved into a twist and covered in tarnished gold paint, which comes off in flakes when I touch it. ‘Did you say that this was all carved by one person?’

      ‘I reckon so, yeah. I think this was a personal project, something never intended for public use. It doesn’t have the glitz of a fairground ride, but it has a personal touch in every bit of carving. There are the same quirks in every part. I can’t see how it could’ve been the work of a workshop where you’ve got different carvers working on each bit. It doesn’t feel like that.’

      ‘It must’ve taken forever.’ I look around in awe as I crouch down and run my fingers over what I assume is one of the rounding boards he mentioned, a lavishly carved but battered frame surrounding cracked mirror glass, one of many stacked against each other on the floor. They look like they belong on a castle wall with an evil queen peering in and asking who’s the fairest of them all. The intricacy of one simple panel is incredible, and it’s unimaginable that one person could’ve done all of this by hand, but Nathan really seems to know what he’s talking about.

      ‘This is such a massive find. Original steam-powered gallopers from that era are so rare. There are only about seventy in the world and this isn’t one that’s registered. It’s also the most complete one I’ve ever come across and in as near to original condition as possible. It’s incredible. Look at this.’ His long legs step over a tangle of metal poles as he walks towards one of the wooden horses lined up at the edge of the tent. ‘These have only ever been painted once. That’s unheard of for something of this age. Usually when I go to restore carousel animals, the biggest job is stripping back layers and layers of paint where someone’s thought they were preserving it by slapping on another coat every few years. This is the original lead-based enamel that’s been out of existence for decades now … Why are you smiling?’

      I blush and try to rearrange my face because I hadn’t realised I was. It doesn’t work. I can’t stop myself smiling at his enthusiasm. ‘Because you know so much.’

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