day trip

A recent trip to London involved plenty of sparkly trims, vintage lace, silk ribbons, braids, velvet and raffia. I bought my stash from Liberty, VV Rouleaux and The Cloth House, should keep me going for while.

 

summer sunshine

I was up early this morning with the sun streaming in through the curtains, so I thought I would make a cup of tea and finish off these lavender bags, before heading off to our local farmers market. We came home with pretty looking berries, yellow Patty pan courgettes and delicious cinnamon Danish buns ( which did not make it home)



Another early start tomorrow, as we are off to Newbury Flea Market first thing to snap up all those bargains... I haven't been bric a brac shopping for a while, so I'm really excited as this one is always full of great stuff. I'll let you know what I find.

busy, busy

Hello again! Sorry I was so busy last week, I didn't have any time for my blog. It's nice to have January over with though, not one of my favourite months.

 

The whole house smells of lavender, I have little stacks of lavender bags tied up with ribbon, piled up in my work room.

I've been making them for various places and have some for sale in my shop too. Take a look here.

 

The smell really does make you feel very relaxed, I slept so well last night.

 

Sweet dreams...zzzzzzz

Happy Easter

Here's a sneak peek at something I've been working on for my open studio exhibition. A drawstring bag made with vintage floral fabric and a handmade linen pocket. I'm making a range to sell at my show.

I'm looking forward to the next few days of the Easter holiday, on Monday we're off to the Malvern flea market and on Tuesday a trip to Petersham Nurseries in Richmond and a birthday lunch for my boyfriend at Skye Gyngells famous cafe.

I was so pleased to be featured as 'Friday photographer' on my friends lovely blog today.

Natasha aka Candy Pop has a beautifully inspiring blog of which I am an avid reader and she was the person that got me into blogging! take a look ....

sketchbook

Thinking about what to make next.....looking at all my favourite things; handmade lace, vintage buttons, faded tea stained colours, bronze and cream, pleats and folds.

lobster & swan matchbox challenge

When I heard about Jeska's February 'matchbox a day challenge' I couldn't resist joining in. Jeska of the blog 'lobster and swan' is creating a beautifully decorated matchbox a day for the month of February, there is a loose theme for each day, today being 'the pretty one'

Jeska's husband is running the London marathon and to help him raise money for his charity, Jeska will be selling her finished little boxes in her etsy shop.

We are all invited to take part in the challenge.... they are so much fun to make, even slightly addictive. Above is my matchbox for today, which I have decorated and filled with a selection of vintage flower and butterfly stamps . If you need more inspiration, below are some of Jeska's lovely matchboxes or check out the flickr group to see what other people have made....

ribbons & trims

I've always wanted to visit VV Rouleaux and last time I was in London I did!

It's a shop full of the most beautiful ribbons, trims, tassels, laces and braids as well as beaded flowers and butterflies. Whenever I buy ribbon I struggle to find the right colour, but here you are surrounded by the most amazing hues.

'Rouleaux' is the French for the inner roll of a ribbon and 'V V' stands for very very good. 

Well, here are the ones I chose ...The cream one is meant to be used to trim furniture, but I think it would look lovely stitched onto a purse or corsage.

lavender

Well I'm feeling pretty relaxed at the moment because I've been surrounded by the potent smell of lavender. I'm making lavender bags using some of the vintage lace and broderie anglaise I have, finished off with ribbons and vintage buttons. I will be selling them at a local Christmas fair, along with my other handmade bags and purses.

Have a lovely weekend.