Lovely Gifts

Isn't it wonderful to get unexpected gifts through the post?  It very rarely happens to me so the other day when I got a box from Australia I was intrigued.

Allison of Lark makes beautiful fabric buttons for me to sell on my website. I send her the fabric and she sends the buttons back  all made up ready to be put on cards.  She was sending me some cards as I had already received the buttons so the box was a little big for just button cards.

Inside was a lovely book called Afternoon Tea, beautifully illustrated with vintage tea sets and fabrics.

Another beautiful packet

This one held some reels of the most beautiful Japanese masking tapes. Are they too beautiful to use?

And then there was a sweet goodie bag which I recognised as the goodie bags that Allison was giving out when she opened her fab shop in Daylesford.

I felt very spoilt!  Wasn't I lucky? 

For those of you who haven't yet discovered Allison's blog and her delicious online shop Lark I suggest you hotfoot it over there!

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Sip 'n' Stitch

I no longer ripple alone!

Tonight was the first Sip 'n' Stitch knitting and crochet club.

I loved it.

Being creative in creative company.

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Weekend at Lyme

This weekend I took Mum and the children to stay with an old friend of ours from our Somerset days.  She used to live in London but last summer moved her family to Lyme Regis for a slower pace of life.  Her house is just beautiful and she is the BEST hostess.  It is a role she really enjoys and you feel very pampered when you stay with her.

Alfie was in boy heaven with her two boys being close to him in age and Lizzy enjoyed the company of Sid the cat and Lottie the labradoodle.

The weather was superb, couldn't have been better, and the children swam in the sea.  This was great for them as the waves are pretty wild on the North Devon coast. At Lyme the sea is calm and Lizzy loved wading out calling 'Look Mum I'm in the sea like a proper girl'!

 

 

We had a leisurely lunch at the Harbour Inn before my friend offered to take all the kids back home, leaving Mum and I to wander round the lovely shops.  We popped into the various charity and vintage shops before walking back to the house with our goodies.

A lovely weekend, I felt rested and chilled.

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Rippling

Remember this?  The blanket is coming along very nicely. I only get a very limited time in the evenings, once the kiddy winks are safely tucked up and I have no parcels to get ready, so the progress is very slow. I don't mind though as it is my winter project.  I love making blankets because you can sit underneath them as they grow, keeping warm whilst you crochet, very cosy!

Please don't look too close, as I am only a beginner, but I am so enjoying these ripples.

There were ripples of another kind in this household yesterday, ripples of excitement!

Now I know many of you have a copy of this wonderful book.

Flicking through it yesterday  when my copy arrived, (I was supposed to be working), I admired all the sweet projects which look like a lot of fun to make.  When I got to the end I looked at the handy addresses section and there, in print, was my name!  I couldn't believe my eyes. I am mentioned as a stockist in Cath Kidstons book.  I had no idea and I am both flattered and honoured to be there!

I also spotted some fabric they had bought from me, used as a coat for Stanley.  How exciting!

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Granny Squares

I have started crocheting again. Now the evenings are getting cooler my thoughts turn to blankets and in particular to ripple blankets.  I have wanted to make a ripple blanket for years but, having never found a pattern that I could make head or tail of, it hasn't happened.  Until Attic 24  came along. Queen of crochet, her instructions are foolproof and speak in a language I, a relative beginner at crochet, can understand. She also has beautiful clear step by step photographs.  So armed with my hook and  a basket full of Rowan cottons I got rippling. 

Despite the foolproof instructions I had to abandon my first attempt, but, as I was suffering with headaches, I thought it best to wait until I felt better.  Last night I started again and although I am at the beginning I can tell already that it is going to work this time.  I am really enjoying rippling and am looking forward to seeing it grow in a lovely blanket.  

I had a go at granny squares but I'm not sure why, I abandoned them after a while.  Maybe it was the name that put me off, I mean who wants to be making granny squares at the tender age of 40 something, hahaha, but having just seen the gorgeous Cate Blanchett in her granny square dress on the red carpet I may have to give them another go!

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More Sunny Days (more lovely finds)

I am sure that the Indian Summer we are currently experiencing has brought out some great sellers to the local boot sales.  I can go weeks without anything much to show but at the moment the things I am finding are great, the kind of thing I want to keep!  I am all too aware that the bootsale season is coming to a close and I will miss it. I like nothing better on a summer Sunday than to wander around a field, with a view of the sea, rummaging through other people's stuff they no longer want!

This week I found this wonderful wooden box.  It had old bits of ironmongery, boys stuff, and I had to persuade the man on the stall to sell it to me.  He thought I was a bit bonkers for wanting it and I had to find him another box to put his bits before I got to carry it away.

It was a good day for textiles too and I found lots of curtains, fabric and vintage clothing.

These bookends are beautiful, reminiscent of the Clarice Cliff era.

 

I love this Alfred Meakin pottery with its' kitsch cacti.  I bought lots of this but have pictured just one of each.

This beautiful hand embroidered apron came from the same stall as the bookends.  I love the florals on this.

 

I bought a whole box of  Practical Householder magazines from the 1950's and 60's.  These can be really good reference for fabrics but I just love looking through them anyway.  I love the photos, just look at the last one, the clothes and hair are fab, pure mod! 

I can see exactly when the rot set in as the magazines from the late 60's show couples putting in aluminium windows and they also show how to clad those 'horrid old fashioned bricks' in lovely stones, wood and pebble dash!

Some lovely vintage toys including some very old flash cards, an old Sindy soap (fab box) and an old doll's dress.

 

  

I also found buttons, peacock feathers, more pottery, painted glass, vintage boxes and two cute, kitsch budgies!

So, all this buying has me sorting, washing, pricing, getting ready for my Open House.

I shall be back with  preview, as requested by some of you girls who can't make it. Pin It

Sunny days

Just as I had got into Autumnal mode (knitwear, tights, boots) along came the sun!  This happens every year, September becomes a lovely, sunny,  month, just as the kids go back to school.

My eldest daughter wanted us to spend some time together, as  she was working all summer and I was busy with the little ones, so a day out to Exeter was planned. It was one of the sunniest days we have had in ages. We had lunch at Michael Caines'  restaurant sat outside overlooking the cathedral, did a spot of shopping and had our hair done a Toni and Guy's.

While we were walking around we were 'spotted' by a style hunter working for the fashion pages of the Exeter Express and Echo. We were photographed and asked about our outfits.  I am not at all surprised that my gorgeous daughter was asked but it makes me giggle to think that at 45 I can be a style influence on anyone!  I haven't seen the paper, which came out today, as we don't live in Exeter but I will have to try and get a copy sent. If the photo is any good I will share it with you!

When I am in Exeter, one of my favourite haunts is Otto Retro.  This is a lovely antique shop that sells an eclectic mix of quirky and wonderful vintage finds. Sarah, who runs the shop, really has a good eye and the prices are very reasonable.   I always come away laden with goodies.  If you are ever in Exeter I would recommend a visit.

(click photo to enlarge)

 

I am frantically getting ready for my Open House which is coming up very soon.  I have so much stock that the task is quite overwhelming at times but I am sure it will all be ready in time.

When rushing around, trying not to get stressed out, I am listening to the dulcet tones of Jonathan Jeremiah.   His voice is enough to soothe the most frazzled of souls.  Here is one of his offerings, sorry about the video, just listen to the voice, beautiful, and he is also rather easy on the eye!

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Vintage Finds

There was a flea market that I wanted to go to this weekend but having no childcare I had to stay local for my vintage foraging.  Just as well really as I found some wonderful bits.

One of my favourite finds was an old leather suitcase, complete with travel stickers, containing 2 old handmade cushions. The fabric is a wonderful 1950's design by Marion Mahler.  More surprisingly this item was found in the crusher at the recycling centre and was saved for me by a lovely friend who works there. He knows that I like old fabric and was sure this was something that would be of interest to me, he was right.  Can you imagine such treasure being crushed?!  It makes me wonder how many beautiful old textiles get shredded or crushed, in fact I can't bear to think of it! 

I bought the old embroidered cushions from a couple who were clearing out their uncle's house and on speaking further to them they invited me to go round and look at some more textiles they had.  I ended up buying several old leather suitcases, one tiny one, suitable for a teddy, a wonderful array of old union jacks and some cotton reels. 

I seem to be attracting a lot of old toys and books as well, just right for the vintage fairs that are coming up.   I adore the old building blocks.   I bought another old doll's pram, bigger than the last two, which I have hidden away in the garage, so no photo, sorry. I also found some lovely Enid Blyton books and some old Ladybird books with wonderful pictures of scottie dog loveliness!  One of the books, Bom The little toy drummer, is one I've never seen before. Does anyone know this one?

Some of the things I bought are to keep (for now at least) including the old Arthur Woods pot and the green swallows.  That's the beauty of what I do, until I  sell the items I am the guardian of them and enjoy them for as long as I want.

(click to enlarge)

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Home Improvements

My bathroom is one of my favourite rooms. I recently added a small bookshelf, (as certain members like to relax with a book whilst on the throne!), which I bought for £5 at a bootsale and painted with Cath Kidston's furniture paint in the shade 'Bunny's Ear'. I adore this shade, it's a soft bluey grey. Once I put it in the room I sat and looked at the other pine furniture in the room and thought how lovely they would look in Bunny's Ear. So yesterday I spent the day painting.

This is the result...






Fresher and more coastal I think.

A quick request, I am thinking of putting a panel of Cath Kidston's Boats wallpaper on the door of the toiletries cupboard but do not want to buy a whole roll. Has anyone got any spare that they could sell me a metre of?

Whilst we are in my bathroom let me show you my Janet Bolton picture and my two Janet Bolton-inspired pictures in situ.




.......and this lovely picture, which was actually 3 cards, made by this clever lady that I bought in Port Isaac on holiday and had framed.


Whilst all that was going on I was waiting for the arrival of my new drawers, yes more! In fact it was because of the imminent arrival of my haberdashery drawers that the painted started as I had to make room for this huge piece of furniture. This meant shifting things around and the whole house exploded into chaos!

Anyway, back to the drawers, they arrived this morning, very dusty, cobwebby and with remnants of old sellotape on the glass fronted drawers.

I was contacted by the seller of these drawers through my website asking if I would be interested in buying them. They had been in storage for many years. Well you can imagine my answer!





I set to work cleaning them up. Polishing and cleaning all 32 of the glass fronts. It has taken me the best part of today and I am only half way through.




I have lined each drawer with vintage wallpaper before filling them with fabric. A time consuming but very satisfying job!

Here they are part way through. I have put all the fabric boxes and drawers on top ready for my Open House in October.



and moved the Sylko cotton reel drawers to the top of the other bank of drawers.



I'm getting there, slowly but surely, but having just bought 4 more pots of Bunny's Ear paint I fear that it is not the end of my furniture painting! Pin It