Wednesday 26 March 2014

Pink Popcorn Baby Blanket - Finished!














Well, here it is.

The Pink Popcorn Baby Blanket.

Finished at last and off tomorrow to a new home to keep sweet little Orla Esme warm and snuggly.

Vital Statistics:-

Measures approx 36" by 36"
Took approx 60 hours to make.
Approx 8 x 50g balls Sirdar Calico white, 1 of yellow, 2 of pale rose pink, and a little of another three shades of pink.
49 Popcorn Granny Squares
Rows of 7 by 7
Joined by a braided method.
Edged with a 3 row wavy edge.

I am so sad to see it go in a way, it's become a part of my life these last few weeks!










Saturday 22 March 2014

Pincushions Galore!






Just a very quick post, before I go to make dinner, to share with you the sweet little lavender scented patchwork pincushions I've just made from vintage French and English fabrics.

From my stash I found some lovely vintage French blue Toile de Jouy which I combined with vintage ticking and linen, and some English vintage pink and pale turquoise toile fabric.....the fabrics are so pretty.

Filled with soft filling and a little lavender, they just need the open bit stitched together which I shall do tomorrow in natural light.

They will then be listed in my Etsy Shop.

The little hessian pincushions below were put into my Etsy Shop today.

They are made with vintage white linen and backed with blue and cream striped ticking, and the frayed  hessian patches are stamped with sewing-themed words, and stitched to the linen with red stitches.

They too have a little lavender inside to give a gentle lavender scent when in use.



Enjoy the rest of the weekend!





Thursday 20 March 2014

Small stitches










Yesterday was mostly a sewing day for me, finishing off cushion fronts ready for making into cushion covers to put into my Etsy shop. These I made a while ago from some pretty 1930's repro fabrics and white cotton, and have been waiting to have simple hearts embroidered in the white patches.

I have also finished constructing the little bunch of fabric flowers cushion front entirely by hand using some beautiful vintage white linen, so this will be a cushion for our home. I often make things completely by hand, it makes me feel in touch with the history of sewing, with women in the past who had no choice but to construct everything by hand, when all seams would have been hand sewn with tiny neat stitches before the advent of the sewing machine.

When I was in my 20's I made several pretty cotton nightdresses, full length ones with lace trimmed bodices and narrow straps, completely by hand. It didn't take as long as you might think, and there is something very peaceful, simple and so very satisfying to the soul (to mine anyway) to see a garment take shape in your hands, held together by your own small stitches. My stitches aren't as tiny and neat as those that would have been sewn in the past, but they are small stitches that do the job. 

Those nightdresses are as good as the day they were made, after many years of washing and wearing.









I did a lot of sewing in of ends for the back of the crochet blanket yesterday too, which is now nearing the point where I can crochet the edge and it will be finished.

Also on the yarny front, I was a very lucky giveaway winner of some hand dyed yarn! 

The gorgeous multi-coloured yarn you have seen photos of in this post was hand coloured by the very talented Bev at Dinkyflowerpots 

Do go and visit her blog as she is currently experimenting with dying and colouring yarn, and as well as using acrylic paints (yes, that is how she did this!) she is also experimenting with natural plant dyes.

This gorgeous yarn came wrapped and tied with yarn she had dyed with turmeric.



 It is the most lovely rich golden yellow colour. I'm pretty sure she won't stop there, so keep an eye on what else Bev does!

I can't wait to try it out, but first I must finish "the blanket" and also make up the cushions, and then I'm free to make something with the multi-coloured yarn.

But what?  What shall I make? Any ideas?
There is a generous 100g there I think although it looks and feels more. I kind of have a hankering for a simple, one large granny square cushion front, as it would show off the different colours.

Or a small basket. They are always useful for carrying around bits and bobs for sewing projects. Yes, similar to this one that I made a few years ago from string. That might look good, maybe with a contrast colour top, and it would show off the yarn.

Hmm, what do you think?



But I would love to hear your ideas!




Many thanks for all your comments in my last few posts, and welcome to my new followers!

The sun is out today, the pink camellia has lots of open flowers on it now and looks lovely, so a long walk through the orchards and fields first with the dog ( a good 3 mile round trip), then a spell working in the greenhouse and garden, and in between that and the chores, I will sew in a few more ends on "the blanket".

Hope you have a great day wherever you are.

Monday 17 March 2014

A Flowery Post





I know I said I wouldn't bore you with any more photos of the pink popcorn baby blanket until it was finished, but hey, here they are!

I had to just share where I'm at with you, as little Orla Esme, my friend's new granddaughter, was born yesterday and so I have crocheted almost non-stop all day today, to move it forward rapidly. Only one row left to join, then all the pesky little ends to sew in, and a pretty border to add to edge it.

I ran out of white yarn last week, and to be honest I didn't exactly rush out to buy any as I was kind of OD'd on the whole blanket and needed a break from it.

Hence all the little hand-sewn vintage pincushions that appeared like a rash all over my blog and FB pages, and then spread into my Etsy shop

And hence some washing of vintage linens and lace in readiness for more vintage pretties.





In between furious bouts of flat braid crochet joining today, I did potter around the garden for a breather, and to rest my cramped and weary fingers, and snapped a few shots of some colour in the garden that you haven't yet seen ( I think)





a free pot of daffs from the garden centre as I spent over a certain amount.......including some lupins. I lost my lovely lupins last year, and so sowed some replacement ones last spring from seed, most successfully.....planted them in a nursery bed ready for planting in their final resting place this spring...and guess what? No sign of them. So I had to buy some. Pain.


yesterday I planted up a couple of wall baskets for the boring fence panels at the side of the house so that I my eyes can focus on something a bit prettier than the panels from the side windows in the sitting room and kitchen.





gorgeous carnation - i love the pale pink and a dark red/pink together, and the scent is wonderful



lobelia still flowering from last summer....it flowered all winter long...........and yes I know I should have taken down the baskets by now


Hope you enjoyed a gloriously sunny weekend, and thank you all for your lovely comments on my last post - and Julie, I am so glad (and relieved!) that you enjoyed your pizzas!