everyday things..

I hope you are all enjoying a lovely bank holiday weekend. It's been a gorgeous day here today, I've been at work but looking forward to Sunday off. What have you been up to? 

I've had a few stressful days recently, so it's nice to find simple pleasures in everyday things...
Here are a few photos from my recent days, picking daisies and forget-me-nots from the garden, presents from my mum's trip to Spain; Spanish Vogue, dark chocolate and sweet tortas. An old floral painting I found whilst tidying up, that's now pinned up on my bedroom mirror. Hanging out, drinking coffee at my boyfriends shop '2 North Parade Produce Store'
Pretty violas from my window sill, if you keep cutting the flowers, the more they keep flowering. I'm looking forward to planting some herbs soon, dill, chives, mint and thyme are my favourites. 



 

winter blooms

I've been sifting through magazine cuttings, sketchbooks, fabrics and accessories for my winter inspiration. These are my chosen pieces which are now pinned up in my sewing room. I've always loved patterns on inky dark backgrounds like an old oil painting with careful brushwork. It's really helpful to have this inspiration board to glance at while I'm coming up with new designs.  I'm currently working on a new collection of vintage lace pins, clutch and envelope purses which will be on sale for Christmas.

saturday stuff

How's your weekend going? I've been at home working on some new pieces for a brand new gallery opening up in the grounds of Blenheim Palace in Woodstock. The Oxfordshire Crafts Gallery, as it will be called, will sell work from local artists and they have asked me for a collection of my handmade accessories. How lovely!

So I've got until the end of the month to get sewing, as the gallery opens on the 9th February.

 

Enjoy the rest of your weekend.

 

business cards

Well here they are, my new business cards. As you can see I couldn't decide on just one image, so I went for a selection, to show a few examples of my work. I'm really pleased with how they turned out. They have a lovely vintage feel to them. What do you think?

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.

prettiest shades

I love mixing vintage lace with soft gentle colours especially pinks, like the dusky pink satin I've used on the clutch purse above. Vintage underwear is a great source of inspiration for colour and design. I look through all my scrap books of things I like before I start any new work. It really helps to look back through these torn out pages and bits of fabrics to come up with new ideas and designs.

I'd love to know where you get your inspiration from....

hidden treasures

Keep your treasures hidden safely away in a handmade little purse.

 

The postcard is 'The feather' by Alphonse Mucha, my favourite Art Nouveau artist. His use of soft faded colours and portrayal of women with their sweeping dresses are beautiful.

A few years ago I visited Prague and went to the Mucha Museum to see some of his lithographs and decorative panels. 

It was a great trip, Prague is an amazing city.

delicate & faded

All things delicate and faded........

... pages from my sketch book, looking at seed heads for inspiration

... on my dressing table I have a vintage teacup with a string of pearls and a diamante bracelet. Old jewellery has a softness that I love.



I made this bag using vintage lace, pearls and seed beads.

I have a fondness for these beautiful muted tones. I've used some really special pieces of Victorian handmade lace on this bag, which works well with the background satin fabric.

vintage pinks

There is an old fashioned glamour to pinks. I especially like those soft dusky pinks, parlour rose to orchard pink that conjure up an image of a bygone era. These pink Hydrangeas have an ink stained feel to them as their colour starts to fade.

I made this clutch purse using pink silk, vintage lace, buttons and pearls. I love the scalloped edge of the lace. I added a little lace handle so you can hang it on your wrist as your waiting for your cocktail....

It's photographed on a beautiful old letter.

a little bit of sketch book work...

Old tins are great way to store my sewing bits and pieces.

pink, pink, pink!