Crafting Small

It started when I was sorting out my jewellery drawer and found lots of empty jewellery gift boxes. I was going to throw them out but then had second thoughts, the same day I came across these tiny glass jars. All set for some small scale crafting.

The first set I made using vintage wallpaper, from some small pieces I had I used two co-ordinating designs plus tiny flowers and tiny braid trim.

I used a scrap of vintage french fabric for this ring box and bottle, embellished with tiny flowers and ribbon.

Four small pearl beads became tiny feet on the box, I think it looks like a miniature footstool.

The bottles are about 5cm tall, this picture shows the scale.

These two boxes are a bit bigger (6 x 8cm)

The blue box again uses vintage wallpaper plus I made a ribbon ruffle and flower trim in one corner.

I covered the other box with a ticking style cotton, stuck a cigarette card on the top and trimmed with lace and mini ric-rac braid. A small red button finishing touch.

I had this tiny photo frame which had lost its embellishment, I covered it with tiny flowers, stamens and jewels. You wouldn't think it was the same frame.

Another ring box is covered with vintage wallpaper and lace with flowers, stamens and rhinestones in a cake-like concoction on the top.

There are advantages to small-scale crafting:

You can finish an item relatively quickly,
You don't need a lot of space to work in,
You don't need a lot of materials, you can use small amounts and scraps,
You don't need a lot of space to display them.

Now I just need to get a small-scale shelf to put them on!

Hope you were all able to benefit from the fine weather this weekend in the UK. I spent the whole of Saturday gardening (and am still walking straight today!) plus went to 3 car boot sales this morning. I bought a few bits, I'll show them next time.

Have a good week,
Lucy x

Heart Pockets and a Dish

I mentioned that I got a bit of crafting done last week, I've been making these hanging heart pockets. The fronts are fabric, each one has a lace pocket at the bottom where you can put cards or flowers or notes, anything you like really, or leave them just as they are, functional or purely decorative.

I have six of these available in different designs, in my shop now. I am trying to get more items made for the shop, really I am, but you know how it is.

When I posted about my thrifty and booty finds last time I forgot to put in one more thing. In fact, I'd forgotten I'd bought it and only came across it at the weekend still wrapped.
It's this flowery sauce dish with it's own china ladle.

The ladles are often the first things to become broken so I was pleased to find this set complete.

It is to be used but for the moment it's on display on my kitchen cabinet (necessitating a re-arrange of course!)

Finally an update on the kitchen tiles, I went for plain cream in the end as I didn't want to be tied to a colour scheme. I wish I'd decided that in the first place, it would have saved rather a long time trawling around the tile and DIY shops, not my favourite activity. They are still a WIP but I'll show you when they're finished.

TTFN - Lucy x

The Thrill of the Boot

Last Sunday morning a change of routine meant I could go to the Car Boot Sale - my first this year - oh happy day! Actually it wasn't that good, but just the thrill of going was enough, though I did manage to find a few bits and bobs, would you like to see?

Some vintage buttons - these are always a welcome find. Two Avon perfume bottles with their original boxes one is lilac and the other rose. They are pretty enough in their own right but I might have a go at embellishing them a bit.

A pink necklace and some enamel rose earrings, plus a hand-embroidered traycloth in lovely springy colours. The cushions I was really pleased with, they have a lovely old shabby look and feel and go perfectly with the colour-scheme in my front room. I haven't really shown pictures of my front room, that's because it's still in its 'before' state. I'll show the 'before' once there is an 'after', that could be little while yet, things don't happen very quickly around here.

Also in the main pic you'll see a couple of old books and notebooks - very handy! So that was it, not much to sing and dance about, but better than nothing.

On Thursday I helped my dad on an errand which took us past Pewsey, so we stopped for some refreshment at this quayside hostelry. It's right next to the canal and a mooring spot, there were barges as far as the eye could see, but they weren't very nice looking so I didn't bother photograhing them.

As we supped our ale in the sunshine I couldn't decide whether I would rather be messing about on the water, as this family were (3 generations plus dog on holiday).

Or exploring inside this lovely old house across the road - actually I think it's a school now, but I'd still love to take a look around.

I took the opportunity to pop into the thrift shop and came out with a few more things I don't need but decided I must have.

The fabric in the background is a soft chiffony type material, I have in mind a curtain for the front of a cupboard, it will drape really nicely and not be bulky. Ric-rac braid is always useful, I didn't care much for the green and brown one, but it was in one bag with the lilac one. I had a similar 'Bambi' bookend (this one is grown-up Bambi) a few years ago and sold it then wished I hadn't.

I thought the lilac jug could be added to my little green shelf, but there's no room, I'll have to have a re-arrange first. The soap dish is a lovely pale aqua blue colour and came in 3 parts (soap not included), of course it's the wrong colour for my bathroom, but I'm sure I'll find a place for it somewhere. The pink lady has already found a home on this shelf.

A couple of weeks ago I received this postcard from Mary Kate at La Vie Est Belle. Mary Kate lives in Malaysia and visits some wonderful places which you can see on her blog.

Mary Kate had been to Kuala Lumpar and was kind enough to send a postcard to everyone who left a comment on that post - how sweet and kind that was. Thank you Mary Kate, it brightened my day.

I have a message for Patti - thank you for your lovely comment on my last post, I can't link to your blog (do you have one) or an email. Do let me know. My email link is at the top of this page.

I have finally managed to get down to some crafting this week, not finished yet but here's a little peek, hope to have them finished for my next post.

Not long till the weekend - Yipee - till next time...

Lucy x

The Mannequin's Tale

When one has done no crafting, no thrifting and not been out all week the mannequin is a reliable standby. She doesn't have a name, I find it difficult to name something that doesn't have a head, so is simply referred to as The Mannequin (if I were pressed to name her, I think Delphine would be rather nice though).

The mannequin was a present from Mr. Bloom a couple of years ago. I think he bought it for some peace and quiet, since I never failed to point out to him whenever I saw one in a shop or magazine that I really, really wanted one. It wasn't my intention that Mr. Bloom should buy me one, I was just preparing him for the day when I lost my senses and spent a way too much money on a genuine vintage one.

We spotted this one and a wire one in a shop one day, of course I pointed them out saying how much I would like a mannequin. Mr. Bloom said he preferred this one to the wire one and I politely agreed, though I really preferred the wire one, little realizing the consequence of my casual reply.

In the weeks running up to Christmas there were secret phone calls and shopping trips which I wasn't allowed on. I knew it was to do with my present, but didn't have an inkling what it could be, despite trying my hardest to work it out, so on Christmas day it was a delightful surprise (it was collected at the last possible moment and hidden at my mum's house so I couldn't possibly find it).

Now she stands in the bedroom window, dressed up of course and I think she looks rather fine now.

As she already has a patterned body, this large piece of fringed lace was perfect just draped over her shoulders and tied around the waist. A pearl collar, some pink glass beads and a floral corsage as finishing touches.

Her 'hat' is actually an antique french lampshade cover. I have a pair of these, they didn't fit any of my lampshades, I'm not even sure what sort of lampshade they were intended for. They are so beautiful I couldn't not have them, I'm still trying to figure out a way of displaying the other one.

The mannequin has quite grown in my affections now, but there is a twist. After I had opened my present, Mr. Bloom told me that he'd had no end of trouble getting her. They weren't any in the shop when he went back so he'd had to order one. When she arrived he went to collect her to find they'd ordered the wire one but as he didn't think I'd like it as much he got them to send her back and get this one (aaargh!!!) There's a moral somewhere in this tale, but I've said too much already. If you should every bump into Mr. Bloom, please don't tell.

The mannequin shares the sunny window spot with dolly and bunny (now they could have names, but they don't) .

You've seen bunny before, but I didn't tell you she was 5p at a Car Boot Sale, can you believe that! Dolly was acquired a few years ago because of her sweet face and that mass of curly red hair. She did have fairy wings but they were really nasty bright pink net and wire, she looks much better without.

On the other side of the room, a tiny baby doll has found a home amongst my pink glass collection.

Mr. Bloom and I are popping out now to look for some tiles for our kitchen window-sill. I really don't want to go, but if I don't I might end up not getting the ones I really prefer (hee-hee!)

Have a lovely weekend,

Lucy x

Shopping in a Small Berkshire Town

Last weekend had been forecast to be bad weather and I had planned some crafting, but I woke on Saturday morning to a blue sky and sunshine so decided to make the most of it with a morning out in Hungerford. It's about a 20 minute drive, but by the time I got there the sun had disappeared and it had started to drizzle and my photos reflect that, still I thought you might like to see anyway. It's quite busy with traffic on a Saturday.

Hungerford is a small market town on the western edge of Berkshire which dates back to at least the 12th century. It's a pretty place to visit on a sunny day as it has a river and canal where you can take a trip on a barge or just walk along the canal path.

If you go off the main street into the back lanes there are some very pretty houses and cottages.

My favourite is this house on the main street which has an iron footbridge from the road to the front door. I'd love to live in a house like this.

Hungerford has a quaint tradition called Tutti-Day (2nd Tuesday after Easter) where the town crier summons to commoners to court to elect new administrative officers, while two Tutti-men visit each house that has common rights to collect a penny. You can read more about it here.

I had an ulterior motive in going, an Antiques Market in the Town Hall and to visit the Hungerford Antiques Arcade.

The antiques fair is held once a month and is quite small, about 20 stalls - I don't go very often as it has proper antiques prices and I rarely find anything there. This time though, I found something I'd been after for ages - a vintage fan. It's quite battered, but I don't mind that and it works. Just need a heatwave now so I can use it.

There were a couple of jewellery stalls with some gorgeous trinkets, I bought this sparkly pendant too, which my lampshade kindly agreed to model for me.

There was a notice in the town hall about a jumble sale taking place later on in the morning, so I trotted off there in the hope of finding lots of bargains. Once again, not being first in the queue I think the bargains were snapped up before me, but I found this pretty storage tin for 30p.

I'd been eyeing up a similar one in the antiques centre in Marlborough for a few months, that one was more battered and £6 which is why I never bought it, this was a much better buy I think! I also bought a box of vintage lotto counters for 50p.

Back on the high street I checked out all the charity shops and then went to the Antiques Arcade. I like this arcade as it's quite large and has variety of different stalls and prices. Not guaranteed to always find something there, but I love browsing there. I did happen to find a few more bits and bobs though.

Two big bags of lace and doylies and another bag of sparkly bits. Woodland Snap cards and Lucie Atwell's Book of Little Verses. Two copies of 'Home Notes by Isobel' from 1900 - I'll show more on those another time, a couple of tablecloths and a pretty violets plate.

There were quite a few lace doylies in the bag of lace that I bought, these are still very easy to find but there's only so much room in a house for doylies. I've been trying to think of ways to use them in crafting where they don't obviously look like doylies - I decided to cut one up (and actually, it wasn't very difficult to do that) and use it on this cushion I made in the week.

I hope your weekend has been good, mine has been rather painful as with the snow forecast I decided to mow the grass on Friday and went about it rather too enthusiastically with the result that I have aches and pains all over. There have been a lot of ooching and ow-ing noises eminating from me this weekend and I have taken on an alarming resemblance to Quadimodo.

You may have noticed the rooster picture at the top of my sidebar, this is my contribution to the Rooster Parade for which BJ is collecting pictures. Entries must be in by Tuesday 7th April, so if you have a rooster (of any shape or form) why not join in.

Dear, sweet Louise at Home is Where the Heart Is gave me the 'You Make My Day' award last week, which is also in my Sidebar - thank you so much Louise, I'd like to award it straight back to you!

Here's my obligatory picture of the snow in my garden this morning, it was a lovely sight - by lunchtime it had all but gone!

Hope you all have a lovely week, and for those in the UK that your toes don't get too cold.

Lucy x

Little Green Shelf

A change of colour scheme for this post, I thought I'd show you my little green shelf which hangs in my workroom just inside the door. This holds the rest of my collection of lilac coloured items some of which I posted about before.

The shelf was pine, I painted it a soft minty green colour which I mixed myself. I have lined the back with some vintage Laura Ashley wallpaper (blue-tacked in place as usual in case I fancy a change!) and arranged lots of my lilac and violet themed trinkets, plus some which aren't but fit rather well.

Perfume and poodles on the bottom shelf:

Yes, that is a plastic glittery Christmas tree and a bauble on the middle shelf, they look so good there I decided they could stay all year round. The tree had lost it's star so I popped a flower brooch on top instead. The hat pins were bought from Niki's gorgeous webshop.

On the top shelf I have china and flowers, plus the pretty pendant that I won in a giveaway from Laura and Lilly Cottage.

More china on the very top plus a reel of lilac crochet cotton which fits nicely into the cup.

I love these two chalkware poodles, I have dressed them up a bit, one with pearls and the other with a ruffle around his neck. I seem to remember from when I was a child that these chalkware animals sometimes had diamonte eyes. I have added some to the ruffle poodle but I think he looks a bit spooky and alien now - you can't really see it in the photo.

A few postcards and lace shelf liners complete the vignettes.

Every time I glance at this shelf I get a lovely warm nostalgic feeling, I think the lilac colour does that more than any other. It makes me think of grandmothers wearing flowery dresses and pearls sipping tea from china cups on a Sunday afternoon. I quite often re-arrange things around the house, but so far I have not been tempted to do so with this shelf, I still love everything just how it is.

I have received two awards which I should have posted about before, but somehow they fell out of my radar for a short time.

Thank you Victoria at Vintage Tea for the 'One in a Million Friend' award, and to Jennie at Falling Down the Rabbit Hole for the 'You Make My Day' Award. They are very much appreciated and I have put them in my sidebar.

I know I also had a tag but I have to admit that I have lost track of it now, I'll post it as soon as I've found it again!

Hope you're all having a good week.

Lucy x