WOYWW 121 & Vintage Sewing Box

Woo hoo! I've just heard that I've won a pack of goodies in Jenny's 4th Blogaversary Blog Candy draw. Thanks Jenny and I am so thrilled I'm a winner!
WOYWW 121
 This is a lovely mess, it is my mess, I made it and I love it!

It's a right mish mash of crafting and vintage sewing items, collected on my desk today in preparation for a workshop next Saturday at Vicky Stampers. It's going to be a great time as Neet is our tutor for the day and woo hoo! Doone(Donna) is coming over to join us and also my friend Pat, yeah! 

We are going to decorate and fill the House Box which you can see part prepped on the right. The box to the left contains items to go in it and I KNOW they won't all fit but a gal needs choices. I was lucky today to find the orange card of beautiful mixed vintage pearl buttons in an antique shop at Lady Hayes Craft Centre in Frodsham. Perfick!

 Now see next pic below! I've packed up the collection of bits and bobs for the workshop and it's not toooooo bad there, you've got to agree. Plenty of strawberries exposed so there, go on, just take back what you thought at first!!! Got to make a bit of space for Donna and I to mess up again!

These signs of insanity arise every Wednesday when at the word from Julia of Stamping Ground crafters around the globe show what's up and what isn't on our desks. Take a peek HERE for more, and more, and more! Plus Julia's witty words and great crafting too.
Can you spot freaky dolly with her arm on her nose?... still awaiting her fate!

 

 As I looked through my cupboards for items to include in my House Box I remembered this lovely vintage velvet lined sewing case from around 100 years ago. I wonder who used it and what they made? 

There is a little love token embroidered on punched card and attached to a little length of silk... In Love Remember me. 

Tucked in the lid at the back there is a letter advising the owner of the case on how to obtain work in the sewing pattern trade in New York, so I wonder, has the case crossed the Atlantic and returned or did it never leave England with this hopeful or hopeless seamstress? 

 

Here's the letter (in high definition) and if you'd like to print it as background card you are welcome!

 Here are closer views of two halves to make it easier if you'd like to read it....

If you ever do a vintage sewing theme you are welcome to print my collages of  these old cards and packets.

I wonder which ones will end up encapsulated in my House Box?

Hope to pop in on more of you this week and thanks to everyone who visited me last week.

Our Day Out at Croxteth Hall

We had a great day earlier in the week when some of my special crafty friends came to visit....

Here I am with Neet and Lorraine in my "Making Room".

After lunch Lorraine (who surprised Neet when she sneaked in) had to leave us, but Neet and I went to nearby Croxteth Hall with our fellas and had a lovely afternoon.

We toured the hall where all the rooms have scenes set exactly as they would have been about 100 years ago. Wouldn't you love a maid to run around for you? Ooh, and warm the towels and clean the bath too...

Her she is helping Her Ladyship prepare and dress in her robes for a Coronation.

Her ladyship relaxing in her study before dinner.

Neet in one of the elegant corridors

Here are the Below Stairs Rules... strict times for sure!

The top of the beautiful main staircase.

There is a wonderful walled garden which has a very rare feature. The high walls have inner fire chambers which can be stoked to heat up the walls, thus protecting the espalier fruits from the frosts.

We were rather naughty as we sneaked into the back of the flower beds to snap this pic below!

This arched tree in the walled garden used to be the entrance to a greenhouse containing grapevines. I could easily have sidled through it but Neet would certainly bump her head!

There are lots more different pics of the place here on Neets Blog if you'd like to see them. If you ever visit Liverpool area and would like to visit the hall the link is at the beginning of my post and the entrance fee is really reasonable. There is also a home farm there, a lovely children's playground and a courtyard cafe in the old stables. Through the year there is a programme of big events held there including Sunday craft fairs in the run up to Christmas. 

We always have fun together and this below is a pic from our last day out!!!

I know... "Grow up" you might say but we're not afraid of a bit of fun and we hope you too can have a laugh, even if it is at our expense!!

I already know where we'll go next time.... but Neet doesn't!! Heh, heh!

WOYWW 120 & Home is Where the Heart is.

Wonderful news this week that Wipso's DD, has safely delivered her twins (Lexi and Sam) and Tuire's DD has named her beautiful new baby girl Olivia Alexis Isabella. (Beautiful though I did like her temporary name of Walnut! Congratulations to them all and do pop over to their blogs to share their joy.

We are here again creating a mass exposé of our crafting desks as we all belong to Julia's gang and she makes, persuades,inveigles, nay! invites us to show and tell every Wednesday. It is just for fun and there's lots more snooping to be had over at her place the Stamping Ground. Do drop in and prepare to be amazed.

I've been busy sewing this week and plan soon to make shopping bags using this fantastic fabric, with iconic faces, as outer pockets, which I think will look really effective. I bought it in Germany and forgot all about it until I found it today... I'm losing a lot of things of late... my mind included methinks. Lots of glue sticks there on my table, all because I misplaced my stock. I searched my workroom so decided I'd have to buy more so I searched the shops but could only find the big sticks of glue at B&Q who charged £6 for 6 sticks. £1 per stick....No way! Even with my Wednesday Senior Citizens discount that's not my kind of price but I eventually found them at Wickes at about a third of that. Today I opened the drawer where I store my spare rolls of double sided tape and found a big box full of the dratted things... the box I thought I'd lost!

Here's a close up of the freaky little dolly that so many of you were concerned about and she is still lazing around, amidst the strawberries, completely oblivious of her future fate. 

All say "Hi!" ... she's waving! 

I haven't started her transformation and may now wait until Doone is here again, which is getting closer and closer... .

Below are the cushion panels that I've made for DD, one of the United Kingdom (sorry no N. Ireland yet!)

The red heart, of course, sentimentally signifies our family home. The panels are velvet with white felt appliquéd and I just traced off the maps from an old large Road Atlas.

This next one has the heart in the location of her own family home in Germany.

I came across this picture in my files but don't know where or when I put it there but I do think that the words are so emotive, especially for crafters, so I wanted to share them. The file is titled the Holstee Manifesto. Don't know who took this photo or where it was taken but I love it.

 

Still Seeing Stars & Magritte

I've just found this post as a draft and I had never posted it ... so here you are... why waste anything!!! I also wouldn't want anyone to miss the chance of seeing such a major exhibition as Magritte if there is a chance of getting to Liverpool.

I hope I'm not into overkill with these star cards but I couldn't post these until I had given them to the birthday girls, my friends Enid who was 70 recently and Gill (who wasn't!) I just love making these star cards.

For an excellent video tutorial go over to Valerie's blog bellamios

These were made using scrapbook papers.

If you can get to Liverpool, before October 16th, be sure not to miss the Magritte Exhibition at the Liverpool TATE

All over the city centre pavements there are adverts painted so maybe no visitor will miss the chance to see it. 

For full info go to TATE site

I have not yet been to the exhibition so I cannot guarantee which of his paintings will be displayed but I'm hoping some of these well known ones will be there.

 

 

In the Garden & the Leaving of Liverpool

I made this yesterday and posted it off today to my daughter. She wanted a sign to hang on her front door as she spends so much time in the garden with the little one who loves to be out there on her "wing" (swing!)  or in her sandpit. It is a bargain welcome sign which I stripped and painted with acrylics. The letters and pennants are painted chipboard then I added clear crackle glaze overall.

Queen Mary 2

 Last night we went to the Pierhead to watch the biggest of the Cunard Fleet, the Queen Mary 2, as she departed in a blaze of glory. The occasion was extra special because it launched our city's River Festival.

There was a fantastic light show projected on the Cunard Building, which stands next to the famous Liver Building on the river front. The Liver Birds perch there looking out to sea, on the top, above the clock.

The wonderful, changing, images depicted memories of vintage Cunard voyages.

Here the images are draughtsmen's drawings of the liners.

 A spectacular firework finale just prior to The Queen Mary 2 leaving Liverpool helped send her on her voyage...

 The decks were lined with cheering, waving, passengers! What a sight for them and for the thousands of sightseers below on the quayside as they departed, with the loudest, deepest, burst of the ship's hooters.

Passengers are always amazed at the warm welcome the public gives to cruise liners in the port and Liverpool is campaigning for a bigger, superior, terminal to enable many more international liners to come to the city.

I wished we were on board, cruising off to tropical climes, instead of heading home through the crowds on a chill evening, but I think it will take a lottery win to fund a trip on this lady of the seas!

WOYWW 119 & More Tin Jewels

 Another week amazingly has zapped into nothing (but everything) and here I am showing my desk, as part of the biggest "own up" in the World, courtesy of our instigator Julia who invites us each week to spy on her desk and own up to what is going on in our creative work place. You can join in this mayhem, madness, craziness if you pop over to Stamping Ground to see over 100 more.

That sad daffy doll is still relaxing on my strawberries waiting to be altered with a loose limb on top of her. Little does she know that the rest may be cut off before she is painted, sewn, embossed etc.,...please don't warn her, will you?

 I still haven't tidied away some of the stash I brought home last week and yet I have added to it. Those gorgeous retractable jungle print pencils were only around £1 for the lot in Wilkinsons and the adhesive paper lace is from Clas Ohlson... a shop well worth visiting. It is a Scandinavian hardware and household shop.... fairly new to us in Liverpool... and it also stocks a range of art materials. Not too much but it seems to increase and change each time I visit. On the back middle edge of my black messy mat you may spy some hooks. they also are from Clas Ohlson and are so handy. They are little spring clip hooks with a loop, intended as a device for hanging kitchen cloths but methinks they could be used far more artistically. I'm thinking and cogitating.

This pendant below is the result of my recent experiments making jewellery from recycled tin plate and this so far is my favourite item. 

My previous post shows how to treat the tin and as I've progressed I've modified my method. 

This piece was easily cut (with scissors), filed smooth, beaten, sanded, alcohol inked then glazed to seal with Glossy Accents. There is a little dot of gold leaf front bottom. I trapped a bead in the neck, one of the beautiful glass beads Donna gave me.

Here are my earlier experiments with, first, my charm from Roni's swap on the left and the larger pendant I made whilst Donna was visiting, on the right.

some handbag bling.... 

and more....

The following two pendants don't show up in the photo very well and look much better IRL.