The Flour Loft

final post...finally!

2009-01-16T10:18:00.006Z

I have been trying to find the words to write my last post here at The Flour Loft... hence the space since my last post...
It is so hard to express just how overwhelmed I am with the support and friendship that I have encountered here in this little piece of cyber space... I have met friends who brighten my day with their cheery and warm messages, I have received lots of encouragement and great advice too and have also made some very special friends.

I just want to say thank you to each of you who has visited and left a comment and also those of you who I do not know but who I hope have enjoyed reading my ramblings here.

The Flour Loft was started when Alice and I shared our Flour Loft studio and were working under the name of 'folkydokee'. With the studio vacated last Spring it now seems time to move the blog on too. Perhaps I shall be able to talk Alice into joining me with an 'alice and ginny' blog one day. In the meantime we are working hard creating the final projects and writing the text for our next craft book which is due out in October 2009. Further details of what we are up to I will try to add to our monthly catchup page (not yet updated) on our 'alice and ginny' website. Please do keep in touch either there or come visit me on my photoblog, 'sweetmyrtle', where I just enjoy posting photographs that I take and sometimes I write a few thoughts down too.

I am also delighted to say that Kitty has won my giveaway, so if you could please mail me you address I shall send you a little something x

So thanks again and although this blog has now come to it's natural close I will still be here in blogland and visiting all your lovely blogs as usual.

with warmest wishes
Ginny xxx

Christmas Swap and Giveaway

2008-12-30T16:20:00.010Z

Jo at French Knots organised a Christmas swap back in September. My swap partner was the delightful Kali form the colourful Tasmanian blog Poppy Lane.

The idea was to make a handmade gift that took a few evenings to complete that we would send to our exchange partner. Once we had been assigned a partner we then all busied ourselves making the gifts ready to post out by out mid November. Kali and my gifts arrived on the same day... how weird is that. We both decided to wait until nearer Christmas to open them and it was worth the wait as look at all the handmade goodness that I received... Thank you so much Kali!!!

Everything was beautifully wrapped in tissue paper and labelled with pretty handmade tags. Firstly I unwrapped a sweet cat softie made from the prettiest bright red floral cotton fabric and also a lavender scented house softie. I have placed both of these on the dining room mantle. They are lovely but I especially love the cat. Then I unwrapped a floral scarf a stationary wrap complete with notepad and vintage postcard. Kali also kindly sent me a tiny tape measure with a felted cover which my girls love and a perfectly stitched and very useful pin cushion. I was just bowled over by her kindness and she also sent some chocolate biscuits which the girls also have their very large eyes on. In the bottom left hand corner of the photo above you can see some festive little tree decorations too. These match perfectly with the mainly red and white theme to our Christmas tree.

A departure from my usual colourful display but what with the kittens, the colourful but fragile vintage glass baubles had to be left off this year... just in case! (I did add one though high up).
So a final huge thank you to Kali for being a very generous swap partner. x

Christmas this year has been a fun family time, pretty low key as always but with us entertaining my family on Boxing day for the first time. All went well and although we had veg left over it was perfect as a fry up the next day.

As this year draws to a close I am now reflecting on 2008. I have a book which I write all my resolutions in... It is good to look back and see the same old ones popping up time and time again... mainly... get fit! Sadly I am unfit and as the nature of my work is sitting at a computer, desk or sewing machine inside, I realise that often (apart from my mouth) I don't move much... it is hard to break out of this habit and get moving. The regular swimming fizzled out way back this year and the regular walking did not do much better.
2009 will be different. My main aim now I work at home is to spend more time growing and cultivating the garden. This is good in terms of health and thriftiness (I have been planning the veg growing these past days). I will also be slowing down, rushing less and walking more as when I do I love it.

I think thriftiness is going to be our family word for 2009 and I know that many others will be looking to this way of life too. I found a great blog yesterday about downsizing which has some great info and links about being thrifty and living simply.

I shall post one more time here at The Flour Loft and there is still time to leave a comment today with reference to your funniest Christmas present ever (last post) to be entered into my final Flour Loft Giveaway.
Here is a final picture of the stockings that the girls made for Magic and Paws from their own designs of mice and cheese. The cats are so loved x (by all of us).

G x

wishing you all a very....

2008-12-24T13:18:00.005Z

and thank you for all your support and friendship during this past year.

I have decided to close this blog on the last day of 2008. I have a couple more things to share with you so will hopefully post a few more times.

I would also like to do a final giveaway, so if you would like to be entered into the draw please leave a comment before the 30th December sharing with us the funniest Christmas present you have ever received .

I hope that you all have a wonderful and peaceful holiday with those you love.

with warmest wishes
Ginny xx

edited to say.... just closing the flour loft blog ... it seems the right time, but will be still blogging at sweetmyrtle and commenting on all your fab blogs as usual (you can't get rid of me that easily!)
...and for the future who knows?

lots of love to you all....i am now off to wrap presents and hope i get them labelled correctly as i have had a few glasses!
xxx

taking a break...

2008-12-10T11:58:00.005Z

Today I am taking a break from working and I am cleaning. I have to be in the house for a parcel to be collected so cannot work in the garden workshop as I may miss the doorbell.

Time is so precious work wise at the moment and when the girls are at school and I feel like I have to and need to work at 100% capacity, thus leaving the housework and general home duties to one side. Alas at times I look around and see the build up of clutter and dust. Today I thought, enough is enough, so as I have to be in the house, I have donned my cleaning apron and with dusters in hand and broom and hoover to the ready I am gradually working my way around the house. I know that once completed I shall have renewed energy too and a better environment in which to return to my work. Having cats and a husband with a slight allergy to them means that I need to keep on top of the cat hair situation. I am also washing their bedding today and have the nets down for a pre Christmas clean.

I have really enjoyed visiting many of your blogs this week and to share all your wonderful Christmas preparations. Mine are a little slow but I now have a list!! hurrah!
My camera battery in flat so no pictures of my cleaning fest for you but I will leave you with some links.

My friend Annie who gave me this beautiful blue tit now has a website here. The birds are amazing as are her dolls. Please go check it out.

I have really enjoyed Nicky's festive pictures today and she has a competition coming up at the end of the week which I suspect will have a fabulous prize as her work is stunning.

Karon at Dream Acres is holding a giveaway too... lots of lovely scented goodies offered to a lucky person.

All this talk of giveaways makes me want to do one too. Pop back soon and I shall try to rustle one up.....

Have a great day whether cleaning, sewing, working or relaxing.
ginny x

December 5

2008-12-05T12:34:00.012Z

I like Fridays... the end of the week and the promise of time spent with the family at the weekend, chilling out, eating pizza and watching trashy tv. My favourite Saturday programme is Merlin. VERY loosely based on Authurian legend. I always make time to sit down and watch it with the girls. They like sharing the experience with me. We have a giggle as King Uther has banned the practice of magic. One of our cats is called Magic so the girls think this is great fun and say.. 'Magic not allowed'!

This weekend is the School Christmas Fair. I like to help out but this year we are just going to enjoy attending it and support it in that way. They have gone to school in Mufti (no school uniform) today with a gift of small goodies for the fair in return for this treat. It should be fun.. wonder how i'll do on the bottle tombola this year. ... maybe a bottle of black tower ? .. my friend still hasn't drunk hers from last year! I luckily got a large bottle of good lager which was finished very quickly by my man.

Today I want to share this photo with you of my wee family who mean the world to me. I have it pinned to my pin board and a glimpse of it as i walk by always makes me feel so blessed. This was taken on Fathers day earlier this year on a lovely river walk. It was one of those days that are not planned but gently unfold and end up being perfect. One to remember when I am away from them.

Have a lovely weekend with your friends, family and loved ones... they are what life is all about.x

Shop update

2008-12-04T00:11:00.011Z

I have finally got round to updating the shop and adding the latest flower brooches that i have made...

I have also braved the cold today and finally photographed (outside as the light was good) the remaining handmade decorative dolls and have added them at a reduced price.

Isadora is a decorative fairy doll perfect for the top of the tree. (has a hanging loop at the back of her neck) We only have six left now but they are dressed in a variety of wonderful vintage prints. Each doll has been lovingly designed and handmade by either Alice or myself and we really hope they will find new homes this Christmas. (they are boxed and i could really do with the space now as my studio is very cramped... hence the reduced prices).

Matilda is probably the doll that we have enjoyed making the most. We have three different Matildas left. I think this gold one is my favourite as i just love her skirt which is made from such a beautiful sumptuous piece of fabric.

Lastly our Flora gardener dolls, most sporting Liberty print Tana lawn blouses recycled from Liberty print blouses. They all wear a quirky little flowerpot hat and have an apron to keep their garden twine and seeds safe.

All the dolls are placed on a bed of raffia in a specially made and decorated box. They do make a lovely gift. Please take a look at the website at our other designs.
thanks
ginny x

Edit to add.... Author signed copies of our book Sew Fabulous Fabric now available here with free postage to the UK.
We have had a lovely review of the book in the latest issue of Sew Hip and I discovered by chance a great review here at Whip Up... a fabulous site that if you haven't come across it before I urge you to take a look. x G

December

2008-12-02T09:57:00.012Z

I am so happy to finally greet December...

Yesterday, on the first day of this new month the sun shone brightly. It was chilly but perfect. The best kind of Winter's day. I felt really uplifted and a sense of excitement about all the festivities to come. It was a good to be alive kind of day and despite my huge workload and deadlines I felt happy, and unusually calm.

This past week has seen the kittens finally enjoy a bit of freedom as they are now allowed out to roam. So many new exciting smells for them to follow and a new world for them to discover.
They are so funny to watch, particularly the tree climbing. Everyday since being 'free' they have both got stuck up trees. The neighbouring garden has 3 very tall pine/leyandi type trees. Straight long... very tall trunks with spindly drooping feathery pine style leaves. Well these trees are a magnet to the cats. Yesterday Paws was about 30 feet up. He was up there for about half an hour. His mewing was pitiful. Magic went up to join him, I thought to help him but then realised that it was only to get closer to a bird. They finally both climbed or should I say slid down to safety. I fear that this is going to be a daily occurrence and dread the day when they have put on a lot more weight and those spindly branches break!

After school the girls and I got out the Christmas box and started thinking about making some cards and tags. I had seen Clare's bauble tutorial and fancied having a go with the girls. The girls had other idea and stated making little gift dishes and Christmas cards and pictures using old Christmas cards...

I continued with Clare's tutorial and cut out 20 circles for one bauble...

The next stage I shall make a start on tonight. While all this was going on we were listening to Christmas music.. Santa baby, little drummer boy... that kind of easy listening thing to get in to the festive spirit. Whilst cutting up the old cards I remembered a gift tag that I saw on Caireen's blog which used an old greeting (a very pretty vinatge one), so I saved all the greetings from mine. I hope to stitch them on to cards or tags later.

Do check out Caireen's blog as she is posting each day of Advent with eco friendly and creative ways of gift wrapping.

Finally we lit the Advent candle and I read the girls the first chapter of this book about a boy who buys a magic Advent calender. (more info here).

Happy Advent and Happy December.
ginny x
p.s. please excuse the poor photos in this post.... black cats are hard to snap and it's too much hasseljust now to get the good camera out.x

all the fun of the fair...

2008-11-23T10:28:00.023Z

Yesterday as many of you will know was the Vintage and Handmade Fair in Rangeworthy, South Gloustershire, organised by Michele of Cowboys and Custard and Jayne of Country Cottage Chic.

I live a fair way away so made my way down with Alice and baby Rufus on the Friday afternoon to stay with Alice's brother, who lives near Bath. It was lovely to spend time with him, his wife and the 3 children. We were thoroughly spoilt and were even made a full English breakfast prior to setting off early on Saturday morning.

After getting lost, in my usual style we arrived at the hall. It was a pretty hall and perfect for a Vintage Fair. (see Hen's blog for a pic of the outside). The tables had been set out beautifully and each stall holder had a lovely space... it was not at all cramped.

I was excited and delighted by all the beautiful things that were there... everyone so amazingly talented.
Michele, Sal , Hen and Jayne have posted great photos of everyones stalls if you fancy taking a peep just click on their links.

I only managed to get a few photos to share...
Nicky from The Vintage Magpie's bunnies look fabulous on her site and were absolutely delightful to see in real life. Her stall looked great and she is so lovely.

I was so lucky to be sitting opposite Annie from A saucerful of secrets. Her work is exquisite, her dolls, works of art. I was bowled over by her talent. These dolls must take hours to create.

She and her husband are such nice people too. Annie trained in fine art and amongst other things also makes felt pieces. I fell in love with her needle felted birds. Look at this little blue tit who, unbeknown to me, found it's way back with me... thank you so much Annie I love it and shall treasure it.

I would have loved to purchase something from everyone as it was all so tempting but sadly I have to be careful about what I spend these days... still I did manage to buy a few gifts to put away till Christmas.

fab vintage nostalgia from the lovely Michele x

some treasures from Sal, who I was so pleased to finally meet.
We also had the great pleasure of meeting her lovely husband Mr Snippets too.

I also brought a wand for myself from Hesta who creates hats and pieces from recycled fabrics. It is a beautiful green colour with feathers and a bell on... it is for my fairy godmother duties as I never got round to making one myself. I shall have to keep it away from the kittens though.

...and a few cards from Joanne. I have always loved Joanna's paintings and it was lovely to meet her and also see her in the process of creating a new picture.

I also have a little something for Rufus which was made by Carol which I cannot show yet as I think he reads the blog!

It was so good to finally put faces to blogs ...everyone was so nice, thank you for being so friendly and letting me witter on. (especially to joanna!) It was lovely also meeting blog readers, particularly two couples who had travelled a long way to get to the Fair (one from Wales) and the busy stream of friendly folk passing through the hall. There were folk there too that I wished I had been able to catch up with but sadly missed (mainly you Emma).. next time hopefully.

All in all a great day, great cakes (see Jayne's blog) and lots of inspiring people. A huge thank you to Jayne and Michele who have been living and breathing this for months. I hope you both can now relax and enjoy the festive season.

Sorry this post is link heavy but if you haven't already met these great bloggers I urge you to visit them. (links for everyone on my last post).
ginny x

a bad blogger...

2008-11-20T16:59:00.013Z

Hello! I have been a bit lapse about updating both my blogs recently. Life has been very busy here, so although i have wanted to do a post i have had to prioritise. My cupboards were pretty bare until today and my girls have been resorting to watching far too many films.
Things will only get busier for me over the next month or two so even if i don't post regularly i shall still be catching up on reading everyone else's news as this is always a treat for me and a nice way to relax.

So what has been keeping me busy? Apart from the usual running the household and general mum duties (after school clubs, helping with homework, bed time stories... etc) I have been making and processing Christmas orders, preparing for a few Christmas Craft Fairs, finishing my Christmas swap for Kali (now posted) and creating projects for a new book due out October 2009.

phew... writing it all down like that makes me feel more tired than i am ... and i am pretty tired at the moment. I am very guilty of staying up late too resulting in being slow to rise in the morning. Luckily my eldest girl is always up early to organise us all on school mornings.

Tomorrow I drive down to stay with Alice's twin brother and family in Bath. The car will be packed up with some bits and pieces to sell at the Fair.

The Fair that I am so excited to be taking part in is The Vintage and Handmade Fair organised by Michele and Jayne. They have worked so hard to put this together and I am sure it shall be a great success and great fun. I am really looking forward to meeting everyone, relaxing and chatting. The bloggers exhibiting are as follows but there will also be lots of other blog friends there to meet too.

I shall (hopefully) be bringing Alice with me too and we will bring some books to sell and also sign if anyone is interested.

So if you live nearby please do pop in and see us all this Saturday the 22nd of November 2008 at Rangeworthy Village Hall, nr. Chipping Sodbury, South Gloucestershire. 10 a.m - 4.00 p.m.

Finally...

2008-11-05T16:00:00.017Z

I am so pleased with myself as I have finally added some items for sale on our website!

I think it was the email from a lady wishing to buy online and alerting me to the fact that i had only 2 items in our shop, which prompted me to sort it out. So thank you Bevon! I hope to add further items when time allows.

For those of you who maintain a website, Etsy or similar you will appreciate that it's not often the making of items to add to a shop but the photographing of them and putting them up there which often takes much of the time. I have a few items which alice and I made a while ago but due to poor photographs have never made it to the website. I am having to put aside my desire to rephotograph them and just use some of these photos as the lack of both light and time don't permit me to take more and as this is the time of year when we generate more sales i would be foolish not to .

I am also pleased that i have gotten around to posting too despite the obvious difficulties of two cats sitting in front of the screen. When i sit at the computer it is like a magnet to them, as is the external sound box that sits on the table and gets very warm... they like to sit on it... and we have to keep checking the vents in case they overheat and we end up with two exploding cats. They are very sweet though and so affectionate to each other. They are now curled up on the computer desk just in front of me... and i can now just about see the screen.
They also like to follow the mouse arrow....

Orders are still occupying some of my work time and these are a few stockings which I have recently made.

Christmas is not far away now... i can't quite believe how quickly it has come round again. It is Firework night here in the UK now and i expect fireworks and celebrations will be being enjoyed elsewhere in the world too. What an amazing and historic day it has been.
g x

Our Halloween...

2008-11-02T22:11:00.006Z

I don't remember celebrating Halloween as a child at all. These days children in the uk seem to get very excited about Halloween (maybe it's the sweets?) and with any excuse to dress up we have gradually got into the 'spirit' of things. The girls really enjoyed making cards and decorating cakes to take round to our friends for Friday night's festivities. We usually get together with friends for food and games. Apple bobbing being the funniest thing ever. ( i don't know if i cheated but i was lucky enough to find one with a stalk this year!).

It has been very chilly here this week and we even had a light dusting of snow... in October.
Baking and soup making has been my reaction to this... and wearing lots of layers. I am now also wearing bed socks at night (for those of you who are interested in an update of my chilly feet)... my mum has knitted me a pale blue pair (very pretty) from an original 1940's pattern that was passed down from my grandma. I am sure my grandma would be pleased to know that my feet are now toasty.

I hope those of you who have been on half term have survived and had a great time. All back to normal routines for us again. I have some stock to make this week for the Vintage and Handmade Fair as time is whizzing by and it's less than 3 weeks away. I will also be adding a few more items for sale to the website which is overdue an update.
Have a Happy Week.
G x

apple pips...

2008-10-31T16:05:00.006Z

Cut an apple in half across the centre to reveal a 5 pointed star (mine looks like a flower too).

To find out which beau (or belle) loves you the most take out two pips and call each one a name of two possible loves.

Press one each side of your cheeks.

The one to stay on longest is the one who loves you the most.

Wishing you all happy festivities.
g x

Signing day

2008-10-24T22:07:00.020+01:00

Thank you to everyone who wished us luck for our book signing last weekend. Your good wishes obviously helped and we had a great day selling all but one of the books that the store had ordered in.
It was so good to display some of the projects and to chat about the book.

I am pleased to say that i made no spelling mistakes. We did sign and write messages in most of the books and as Alice considers my handwriting to be better than hers it was down to me to write most of them!

A few books were bought as presents and we were asked to write things like 'Happy Christmas Susan with Best Wishes.....' etc. The hardest books to sign were to people we knew who just said, 'write me a message'.

We had a lovely surprise visitor too. Willow from Contemplating Change (one of my all time favourite blogs) popped over with her husband. It was so lovely to meet you both Willow and i would love to meet up again soon for a cuppa and a longer chat. Thank you so much for coming. I just wish i could have spent longer with you that day.

My mum and dad came over too and my mum took lots and lots and lots of photos. No kidding. It was like having the paparazzi. She is getting more eccentric with age and i swear she'll be wearing funny woolly hats soon with pompoms on... just because she can. I rather like the fact that often the older you get the more you feel you can get away with. Seriously though both Alice's and my parents have been so fantastically supportive about all that we have done over the past 7 years and we are so grateful to them for all their encouragement. It was good to see them proud of us.

After all the excitement of last weekend i have had a quiet week with the most exciting thing being the servicing of my sewing machines by Arthur. We were so pleased to find him as he has been servicing machines for over 40 years and our machines have had their best service in a long while.

So today i put my purring machine to work and have been catching up with Christmas orders. I finished this Stocking today and it is now ready to send out.

I have a few more to complete this weekend and then i can have some time with the girls next week as it's half time.
Enjoy your weekends.
Ginny x

Book event

2008-10-17T20:13:00.010+01:00

This morning Alice came over and we have been in the garden studio getting ready for tomorrow. It's really great to be finally working in there properly, although as you can see it is already stuffed full..

We have been preparing a few samples....

Tomorrow is our book event/demo day at Waterstones, Farnham which has come around so quick - i can't believe it is finally here.

We will have on display some of the actual projects we created for Sew Fabulous Fabric and will also be there to talk about the book and to demo a few techniques and projects from it. .. and sign copies too which feels very strange. (been practicing my signature Em x hee hee... I am very worried though that someone may ask for a message and that i will make a spelling mistake as my spelling is terrible!) I am really looking forward to the day itself but am very nervous so
please wish us both luck. And if you are local , do try and pop in, it would be great to meet you.

Finally i just wanted to say thank you for the comments on my last post and just to clarify... Magic was on the way UP the banister! We are going to have some fun with these two kitties i just know it!
Happy weekends to you.
G x

oh dear!

2008-10-12T08:28:00.001+01:00

a walk into town...

2008-10-10T20:39:00.013+01:00

Yesterday i left the kitties at home (they are settling in nicely) and Alice and i took a walk into town with Rufus. It was a beautiful day that had started off on the chilly side but soon become much warmer. I never know what to wear when the seasons are changing and as someone who feels the cold had put on a thermal cami underneath a long sleeved top and a lightweight jumper and then over the top my denim jacket, a scarf and my wool peaked cap which i love. I soon became overheated. The scarf and jumper were discarded into my shopping bag first and later the jacket. I love my hat and it was doing a good job of covering up hair that needed washing.. but i realised how foolish it was to be wearing a wool hat when most other folk were still in short sleeves and sandals. My head was hot. I reluctantly took it off.

We stopped off at Waterstones to discuss arrangements for next week's book event. I am a little nervous i have to admit. The shop next door sells fabrics and although we mainly use recycled, if we are looking for something specific we sometimes use new. We found some perfect linens to use as base cloths for a new project idea. Our reason for the trip was to source these fabrics and check out the charity shops. There are a lot of charity shops in town, seven to be precise. One was closed for refurbishment and two we had checked out earlier in the week. We went into the other four. We found a wool cardigan which we are going to felt in the exact colour we were after - a real result. We also sourced some tee shirts which we hope to repurpose.

I have never bought Christmas cards in October but in Oxfam i noticed these.. 50%recycled charity cards in beautiful designs.

I bought them. It was a morning for bumping into people we knew, catching up, chatting to strangers and of Rufus being admired buy all. I think the sunshine must have helped put folk into a good mood as the atmosphere wherever we went was light and friendly. Alice managed to buy a present for one of her boys birthdays and an outfit for Rufus to wear at his christening. It's coming up soon... i wonder if a 'fairy' godmother should have a new outfit? I do need to finish making that wand.

I do love charity shops and have a skill of flicking through the rail at a great speed to see if there is anything there that interests me. This is a skill i learnt when in my early working life i had to costume 30 dance students on a budget of £100. Lots of ingenuity needed there, so i often hit the charity shops with gusto. I have always thought that the less budget you have the more creative and innovative you are forced to be. I love looking at all the bric a brac too but as our new kittens are rather lively decided that it would not be wise to buy anything breakable. I was delighted however to find this.

An original Mary Poppins souvenir song album with piano music and lyrics. It also contains beautiful drawings and features photographs from the film.
My eldest is learning the piano and as my husband plays, we had a little family sing song last night before the girls went to bed.... 'practically perfect in every way!'

Wishing you all a happy weekend.
g x

Kittens and a blog date....

2008-10-02T23:00:00.019+01:00

This week i have been frantically cleaning and tidying... i had some very important guests arriving on Wednesday. Alice joked that they would not notice what a clean house i had and that there is now no 'stuff ' under the dresser and cupboards. I don't think they have noticed but i am so pleased i took the time to de - clutter and get straight before the arrival of these two lively 5 month old boys.

The kitten we were going to have did not happen... the family wanted to keep all 3 of the litter in the end. We had been visiting for 8 weeks and i was so worried that the girls would be upset that i telephoned the cat protection lady who i met when we looked after Fizz. She had five feral kittens... still tiny and only five weeks old. They were coming on well but she advised that it may not be the best option for us as they were so nervous.

On Saturday just as i was leaving to meet Diana, the CP lady called and said that they has two 5 month old black cats who had been found in a dustbin... and were we interested in adopting two. They were so friendly when we met them that we said yes please and then collected them yesterday. I even got carried away and made them a bed ... and then thought it's a bit tiny so made them both one.

...still a bit tiny as i made it before i got the cats. They do love them though and have been snuggled up in them today. This is Paws in his or 'scratchy' Paws as we have nicknamed him as he likes to scratch the furniture. I am so chuffed they like their beds as i half suspected them to take no interest at all.

The check fabric was given to me last week by a family friend and the wadding and fleecy lamb fabric was left over from folkydokee, so they cost me next to nothing to make. We never did know what to use the lamb fabric for but bought it on a whim (Alice's whim ... a long standing joke between us) as ex mill stock. We had loads of it... now most of it has been donated to our local schools, but luckily i had a bit left over to use.

They kittens are very cute and so affectionate and the girls love them. They just want to play with them all the time and don't want to go to bed. As the boys are so close it is fun to watch them play fighting and chasing their tales... hours of fun. They are also very hungry.
This is Magic who seems to be the greediest.

As well as the excitement of new kittens, i had the excitement of finally meeting Diana from Pebbledash. I set off on Saturday for Shere with a map. Even though it is fairly close to me i have never been. I didn't actually look at the map as i prefer to work it out , thinking i have a good sense of direction but actually i now finally admit that i haven't. Yes i got lost. I was very nervous, half expecting a 6 foot builder called Ray, although i had spoken to her the previous night and she did not sound like a bloke. phew! Finally i met Diana outside the Lucky Duck tearoom. She looked lovely and all smiley and i instantly felt at ease. We sat outside as it was a beautiful day and we ordered a large pot of tea and started chatting...
It is strange knowing someone but not knowing them if you know what i mean. I love Diana's blog and photos and her gentleness and kindness... i was so wanting us to get on and we did. I really hope we can meet up again soon. She gave me 3 pieces of stamped sea glass .. one for me and the other two for the girls and some of her beautiful printed cards... thank you again Diana.... we love them.

The afternoon was great but we didn't see much of the village which has been used in many films including The Holiday because it is so picturesque, as we just sat and talked. I think Diana took some photos of the ducks whilst waiting for me but i only took a photo of the sky as we were saying goodbye. Thank you again Diana... it was so good to meet you and please lets do it again. And to everyone else a big sky kiss from me to say thank you. I am so pleased i started to blog as i am richer for all your friendships.

musing...remembering what we do achieve.

2008-09-28T11:52:00.008+01:00

I muse a lot.... i have been musing this morning....

This year we grew garlic.

We planted the bulbs in January ... they grew.. have been harvested and are being used in our cooking. I was just now cleaning out the garlic press whilst musing. The bulbs are only small, but still very tasty.

It made me feel happy knowing that we are using them and that this year we have successfully grown them.

I know that often i think only about the things in my life that i don't do and beat myself up about it. This is probably common for many of us. Maybe we all set unrealistic goals. However big or small i find that when i focus on what i do achieve rather than what i don't then i am much happier.

Yesterday I did something some may call brave and others may call crazy. I met a virtual friend. I am so glad that i had the courage to do it and thankfully it was wonderful. I shall write a little more about the day on my next post but all that i will say is that we both wished that Pipany could have been there too.
Wishing you all happy weekends .
ginny x

sorting out the old and moving forward

2008-09-24T19:10:00.015+01:00

Today started off so sunny but soon the rain came. I confess that i am not good when it's cold, grey AND raining. I need sunlight or at least a little warmth and i love clear skies.
To take my mind off the weather i have been catching up with a few friends... one who i hope to meet finally this weekend!

I have also been getting reacquainted with a few other friends. Some poor lost souls who have been in storage since our move out of the Flour Loft studio.

They are some old doll designs.... Isadora fairies,which i know we will make again as they were very successful and so lovely to make, and Flora gardener dolls which we made when Alice and i were still working as folkydokee. They are boxed and would make a great present.

We really want to clear some space now (as we have much smaller workrooms) so they are on offer at £20.00 each plus postage (which varies depending on location to be sent). I photographed some of them today and will be adding them to the new aliceandginny website soon... once i work out how to add the shop facility. We would be really happy to see them go to off to new homes to be loved rather than stay with us in a box.

Our old folkydokee website was designed by my husband and it really was lovely. We had an online shop added but as it was so difficult for me to upkeep and change and add things then we - i - decided to buy a basic Mr Site package. It uses templates... a little like a blog which i am used to although it is a little frustrating trying to change the fonts and sizes as it adds all sorts of strange html code... it is not particularly sophisticated either. Has anyone else used Mr site? I would be interested to know how you got on with it. At least i won't have to rely on asking my husband when i want to make changes now... goodness knows i keep him busy already... poor man! I am surprised he wants to come home sometimes...

The new website will be more of a space where we can add tutorials, tips and info about what we are up to. We have added a gallery of some past work too and we will add a few things to purchase from the online shop from time to time.

As well as working on the website i have actually done some sewing today....I have been working out a new prototype doll pattern - a slightly larger one with a separate head as well as limbs. I always think they look so odd till they have their faces embroidered on and they have clothes and hair added. It is nice to see them come to life. I think i am going to try to sew a little each day as i really have missed it recently.
back to my doll stuffing...
Happy evenings to you all.
g x

Sew Fabulous Fabric and draw winners

2008-09-18T18:58:00.018+01:00

Today is the 18th of September ... publication date of our first craft book Sew Fabulous Fabric.
It is a really exciting day for us!
As we are new authors and not famous there are no trumpets fanfaring and no book launch parties...aah! ... maybe one day though?!
We do, however have a book event planned next month on Saturday 18th October at our local Waterstones in Farnham. If you are nearby please do pop in and say hello.

So what shall we do to mark today? What about a virtual launch? Not sure how to do one really but my guess is a bit of bubbly and lots of cake with some good company.
Anyone care to join Alice and I?...we raise our glasses to toast the arrival of Sew Fabulous Fabric... hic!

please help yourself to a piece of virtual cake...

and some bubbly...

And now for the bit, as they say, you have all been waiting for...the winners of the draw for a free book.
Firstly we want to say a huge thank you to everyone who entered. We were overwhelmed with how many comments there were and offers to review it on your blogs and we thank you so much for all your lovely messages and good wishes. It has been great to make some new friends and to have some new blogs to read too.

Alice and I did the draw this morning, picking out 3 names as we have 3 books to givaway.
All we needed was folded up paper containing the names of each entrant... 54 in all,

a lady with a long nose (do i win Pip?), a green hat and a baby.

The names were then put into the green hat by the lady with the long nose and then the baby... the very cute Rufus picked them out, helped a little by Alice.

The first name out was Karen .... well done to you. We really hope that you will enjoy the book x

The next name drawn was Louise from this is my patch and home is where the heart is and the final name to be pulled out of the hat was miss sew and sew.

Well done to all of you and if you could please email me your postal addresses i will send the books out to you.

For anyone who is still interested in buying a book it is now 'available' and can be purchased online via Amazon and other similar sites both in the UK and USA. It is also listed on some Australian sites too. It will also be available in local book stores and if it is not in yours just ask and they should be able to order it in for you. It is also available from our publishers David and Charles.

So back to the bubbly.... cheers everyone... this has been fun! ...and fingers crossed for us for good reviews!
warmest wishes to you all.
ginny and alice xx

Sew Fabulous Fabric and a competition...

2008-09-08T12:33:00.016+01:00

In November 2006 Alice and I exhibited as 'folkydokee handmade' at Country Living Magazines Christmas Fair at the Business Design Centre in Islington, London. We spent a fair bit of money on this show to achieve a warm friendly little shop like space with a counter made by the lovely Rod (my other half), a wooden style floor, a gold painted border a with Merry Christmas stencilled greeting and a mock up mantlepiece where we hung our handmade Christmas stockings.

Country Living Christmas 2006

As many of you who do these kind of shows will know it is very hard to have space to store everything, put samples of all the product ranges on display and to also make the space welcoming and uncluttered and importantly fit us both on the stall (we come as a pair!) and allow space for folk to come in and browse.

As a small company we could only ever afford a small space but the long thin ones always worked best for us as you get a lot of wall space to hang products and still have room for browsers to come in and have a closer look. We achieved what we had hoped for and i think it was all worth the extra time and money spent as we received lots of lovely comments about our little space. I feel it also was an important element in why we were approached at that show by the lovely Ali from the publishers David and Charles. This meeting was the start of an exciting collaboration for Alice and I which has now reached completion.

Ali, who had been drawn to our stall and our recycled textile products asked us if we had ever considered writing a book. We had both toyed with this idea before having both had teaching backgrounds, but had never really pursued it.... (i secretly always thought i would write a self help book.. god knows i am an expert as i have read so many.. but that's another story). We arranged to meet to discuss the possibility of this after the Show.

The next stage was for us to submit a synopsis of the structure that a book would take and a list of projects. We had to wait a while to see if our proposal would pass various stages, costings.. etc. Finally we got the go ahead and then began... With the sad loss of Alice's baby Poppy in mid pregnancy, working towards Hampton Court Flower Show and with the Summer Holidays in between, we certainly had our work cut out...

Creating the projects for the book was such fun and the process of writing the text a real creative challenge which we both loved. Alice and I have different styles so we were constantly editing what each other had written. The book contains beautiful illustrations which accompany our step by steps drawn by Helen Philipps and for the project photography we were so lucky to work with the wonderful Simon Whitmore. These photo shoots were tiring but great fun.

The book was finished back in April and we received a copy in July.... this is me (photo taken by my 10 year old) with my copy... i could not stop jumping up and down i was so excited... i am on the phone to Alice sharing the excitement.

Here is a little sample of some of the projects included in the book, having been created from a mix of recycled fabrics, natural fabrics, remnants and scraps as is our style....

Simon Whitmore's photographs

a full contents list can be found by clicking on the book cover
in the side bar and following the search in book facility.

To celebrate the launch of Sew Fabulous Fabric I wanted to run a little competition open to all bloggers as as thank you for all your support and comments over my last (almost 100) posts.
Our publishers, David and Charles have kindly given me a few free copies of 'Sew Fabulous Fabric' so, these are up for grabs. You don't have to answer any questions to enter or live in the uk as we will post the book worldwide (please note that it is written in English), but what we would ask is that if you win you could write up a little review of the book and post it on your blog.

Our books official publish date is 18th September, although i understand that it is now in stock, so i will do the draw on the 18th September at 9am. Good luck.
ginny and alice xx

p.s. a thank you message for Diana from Pebbledash who sent me one of her wonderful handprinted cards to wish Alice and I good luck with the book launch... so lovely of you, thank you so much x

the last day of the holiday

2008-09-03T10:29:00.009+01:00

Today is the last day of the holiday as the children return to school tomorrow... hooray!

Don't get me wrong as I have really loved having them close by but i must admit that now at the end of a lazy Summer we are all looking forward to an ease back into a more daily routine. I know that i shall miss them but i know too that it will enable me to get into my new workshop and to start working on some of the new ideas that have been buzzing through my head all Summer.

Today is also the last day that my youngest is 7 and the last day before she goes to junior school. Yes, she is starting a new school on her 8th birthday, but is pretty cool about it all as she will have her elder sister there looking out for her. She will have to wear a tie, but she is confident that she can construct this without help. I still have 2 boxes of their school clothes to label, which somehow got lost as my crocheting addiction took over. I now have 18 grannie squares, 2 of which use 2 colours! ... may attempt 3 next time.

For those of you who love crocheting here is a sweet link for making some crochet trees from a lovely blog called resurrection fern... i am tempted to try but i will have to wait.

Thank you for all your comments on my last post and the suggestions of ticking off things on my list before i move onto the treats (ie, crocheting ). I have finally ticked off the buy school shoes, although my eldest is developing her own sense of style, which is great, but even finding shoes which fitted- a mammoth task in itself- then there was the not liking them to deal with. I must admit i knew what she meant... well would you want to have shoes with a toy in at age 10? how i hate those toys in the heel anyway... i am sure it interferes with the comfort and structure of the shoe.... a rant i know is shared with many other mothers in search of suitable shoes. I also expect that many school teachers find them a trial too. So we have opted for a fill in 'cheaper' pair until we can find some nice plain ones that fit.

Today i need to food shop , make a school P.E. shoebag (still on list), make school bag with eldest (new addition to the list), do some laundry (always on the list), sew on all those labels, wrap and prepare some birthday presents and organise a bithday party. Wish me luck.
How are you filling your day today?
ginny x

easily distracted

2008-08-27T11:10:00.013+01:00

I am so easily distracted these days and i have so much on my to do list, like...

*redesign our website in time for book launch, including taking and cropping new photographs

*buy eldest daughter's new school shoes and other extra bits of school stuff

*make youngest a P.E. bag for her new school

*tidy up house and prepare for a special visitor on Thursday

*make some stock for the Vintage and Handmade Fair

*not to mention the general household, wifely, motherly duties... and numerous other itty bits of paperwork etc...

So what have i been doing? ... well i have been learning to crochet... like you do when you have nothing more pressing to do!

I love learning new skills...
this weekend my sister in law retaught me a few basic stitches (forgot what she had previously shown me) and now i am making at least 2 basic grannie squares a day as i am determined to get the processes involved to sink in.
I had bought some yarn earlier in the year in the sale when i caught the knitting bug so had some to nice colours to practice with.

I am now addicted but boy do my fingers ache. i think i need to relax my hands more and slow down a bit.

I have now completed 10 squares, so nearly a cushion cover. i am hoping to try and change the colours and try some variations when i get more proficient.
I'd be interested in hearing what new skills you are hoping to learn before the year is out and of course any crocheting advice for an enthusiastic beginner.

Hope your bank holidays were good.
ginny x

Cat update and an award

2008-08-20T16:24:00.021+01:00

Thank you to everyone for your cat advice and stories as a response to my last two posts. Happily, although a little sad for us, our pretty feline visitor has now been reunited with her family.

On Saturday the cat protection lady finally arrived at 12 ish apologising that she has been held up at the cattery. Luckily for us but unluckily for her, my friend who was due to arrive any minute had been delayed too due to traffic held ups on the A3 so didn't arrive to find us now with resident house cat (she is very allergic to cats).

Whilst my friend was stuck in traffic the cat protection lady was 'scanning' the cat to check for a microchip. She didn't find one but did remember that she had heard of an all black cat who was missing. She said she would try to locate the family but in the meantime take the cat so that we could hoover etc prior to my guest arriving. We were very sad to see her go as she was such a sweet cat but asked if they could let us know what happened. We also offered to look after her ourselves should she not have a family.
About an hour later a car pulled up outside. It was the cats protection lady with a young woman and a 6 year old girl. The cat belonged to them, was called Fizz and had been missing for over a week. They had been so worried. The woman was overwhelmed with gratitude and really very emotional. The little girl was so sweet and really pleased to have her cat back. So a happy ending which was great. The family, unexpectedly popped by today with flowers for me and gifts for the girls along with a sweet card which the little girl had drawn to say thank you... i was so touched.(even the dad came too.. they were obviously so relieved).

So my sofa has an empty spot for a cat or a dog... it really feels the right time for us to have a family pet as we have lots of love to give. Maybe me turning 40 is an added reason ... and that i am having no more babies...?!

Now on to the award...

Lovely Sal at Sal's Snippets has passed on to me this blog award. Thank you so much Sal... i am so pleased you enjoy visiting here. Sal lives in a beautiful part of Devon and her blog is full of lovely images of her surroundings, her vintage thrifted treasures and her creative projects. I have just noticed that she also has an etsy shop... you might like to take a look.

Now the deal is that i now nominate 7 blogs that i love. This is so hard as i love so many and also i have done a similar award before. I have tried to pick blogs that i believe have not received this award yet and ones that i am enjoying at the moment...some old friends and some new.
So here goes.. my nominations are...

1. pipany for a sensory delight as she writes so descriptively and i often feel i am in cornwall there with her.

2. diana at pebbledash who takes stunning photographs and who has a love of the colour blue which i am increasingly drawn to. I always love to pop over and visit her.

3. louise at This is my patch whose observations on plants, and wildlife are so inspiring and always informative.

4. caireen at the patchwork dress who is 'blog resting' just now although is very busy with her work. i find her posts somehow refreshing and love her observations and photographs.

5. michele at cowboys and custard who i will finally get to meet in November. Lots of interesting vintage and reflective posts and her shadow boxes are charming.

6. florence at flossie teacakes as i adore her writing style, love her long posts and she always manages to make me laugh.

and finally

7. raina at raining sheep. I met raina through her visual ephipany blog where she posts the most exquisite images. Her beautiful photography and amazing sense of colour shines through in her blogs and i now enjoy visiting both.

On receiving this award it is customary to spread the love further if you wish by
a) posting the logo on your blog. b) Linking back to the award giver c) nominate at least 7 other blogs and add their links to your post and d) post a comment onto their blogs to let them know they have an award.

Now i am off to do just that...
ginny x

fancy that we have a cat!

2008-08-16T08:38:00.009+01:00

Yes our black feline friend came back again last night...

She turned up at the back door just before 11pm. I rang our Cats protection lady who said to keep her in and she would come this morning with a scanner?! to check and she if she is microchipped. She cannot be here until 10 though so we are having to keep her in. At the moment she is curled up asleep on the sofa, although earlier she wanted to go out. Roll on 10 oclock as i am slightly concerned as a good friend is coming down to stay with us this weekend who is allergic to cats, so i will need to hoover and air the house before she gets here.

The girls are enjoying this whole experience and it really has made us realise that we would love to give a home to our friends kittens when they are old enough to leave their mother. R really loves cats and they always purr the loudest for him. Our recent concern has been that he seems to have developed an allergy in recent years although our feline guest has not affected him as yet.

Cute as this cat is i am certain that she has a home somewhere. She is very glossy and looks well cared for. Cats are fickle and there is a lovely story of a cat who has 6 homes on one street in a row of terraces where the neighbours don't speak to each other and each family thinks that the cat is theirs. It is called 'six dinner Sid' and is written by Inga Moore and i have found a lovely review of it here. The thing is .... the cat in our house looks a bit like six dinner Sid... i wonder?!!!

g x

Summer fun

2008-08-14T06:50:00.018+01:00

Despite the weather being pretty crappy we do have some summer fun to report.
Our little camping trip went well and most importantly the tent went up on a sunny day and thankfully was packed up on a dry day too. So no tedious airing it in the back garden when we got home!

We stayed on the east coast of the Isle of Wight this year and explored from there. We didn't plan each day rigidly but rather let them unfold gently. This worked so well and kept everyone happy. The girls were a delight and we all enjoyed this holiday and easily adopted a much slower pace.

The first day was a scorching beach day, with deckchairs, picnic, warm sand, swimming and ice cream.

We also made it to the garlic farm this year and the lavender farm.

Elephant garlic flowers.

lavender farm

A fantastic time was shared with friends here at a fabulous Medieval day. There were demonstrations and activities for the whole family. We all had a go at archery, watched some Medieval dancing and talked to the costumed exhibiters about Medieval life from herbs and food to dress and latrine pits. The company who run these events have a website which has some great links on and this event is planned at the end of August too. Looks great!? I was particularly drawn to these as you would imagine...

Medieval poppet dolls made from wool and linen and stuffed with moss.

Many hours also were spent looking out to see and waiting to catch the waves as they crashed over the rocks. So exhilerating!

waiting to get wet!

and finally here is a photo of a friendly tiny rabbit who with it's friend were seen nibbling leaves just 50 yards from our tent. The girls were over the moon to see wild bunnies so close.

They are so desperate for a pet and now that i am going to be at home more we are looking...
there is a possibility of a friends kittens (they are sooo sweet!) but we think R is allergic to cats. We have arranged to borrow one when they are a bit bigger (only 4 weeks old now) to check. Although we may not need to as black cat appeared on our doorstep last week wanting to get in... it has been back a few times and when i got home at 12.30 the other evening there was a loud miowing ... we are so soft that we let her come in. She (we think it's a girl ) had a look around, brushed up against our legs in that affectionate moggy kind of way and went upstairs and curled up on the end of the girls bed and settled down. It was like she had always done that. We both think that she is here for a reason.. maybe she is a magic cat says my eldest, come to test daddy's allergy. I have always loved black cats.

We made her a bed and let her sleep downstairs. She went off a little reluctantly in the day and appeared back last night and appeared hungry. We fed her outside the back door and then another black cat appeared! almost identical. Our feeling is that some folks may be on holiday and that she is being fed but wants some petting (although she did seem hungry). She is very friendly. She has no collar but i understand that cats can be microchipped nowadays. I have a contact of a local cat protection lady and i hope to talk to her today. I would be gratefully if anyone has any advice on this and on cat allergies too. I will let you know what happens.

Nearly the weekend. Hope yours are good.

Will be back soon with book news... very exciting as it is nearly September!
ginny x

2008-07-28T18:24:00.013+01:00

How to keep the children amused...

and avoid too many mesages like this...

so i have time to play with my fabrics...

and get sorted in my new workspace... yeah!

worktop extension knocked up by R as the worktop wasn't long enough. He made the top with wood from an old futon base and the legs and frame from all our offcuts...perfect!

a bright little corner where i shall design and sew.

and a place to put our tea and cakes!

Now i am nearly set up , i will be sewing again. First project is to make myself a lightweight sun dress in time for my holiday... hope this glorious weather lasts!

g x

thank you's and moving on...

2008-07-24T10:45:00.016+01:00

The school term has now finished for the Summer and brings the mixed emotions of the excitement of lazy days and holidays but also the sadness of saying goodbye to special teachers and of the anticipation of moving on to the next stage.

My youngest will be moving on to a different school in September so it was a final goodbye to the fantastic infant school which has nurtured her for the past three years and her sister for three years before that. It was also time for me to say goodbye as a parent. We are all ready to move on but will remember this very special school with such gratitute and warmth as it truly has given both my girls the most amazing start to their school lives.

On the whole I believe that a School Education is a good thing but feel that it is so important for schools to give each individual child the freedom to experience and develop in their own special ways. I base less emphasis on the academic results but in nurturing a child's spirit and desire to embrace the world and everything around them. I do not agree with the testing as i know many teachers do not either, especially with such little ones!

I wish for my children to have a good all round experience at school, to be inspired by the wonder of nature, to learn by doing, to build their confidence and excitement about life, to follow their dreams and to be sensitive and caring to others. This school has provided the tools to inspire learning and really has complemented the philosophies that i hold and that we practice at home.....except the large amounts of homework!... i do like my girls to have lots of unstructured down time when they drift off into the most amazing imaginative play.

My youngest who loves to sew wanted to make some thank you gifts. She had a clear idea of what she wanted to do and designed some lavender cushions with each of her teachers in mind choosing the colours that she thought they would like. She stitched and stuffed them herself and i just helped when instructed.

My eldest also made a gift for her teachers (sadly no photo). It was a lovely fimo plaque with the words 'the best teachers' on it. She said that they really liked it and were going to put it up in the class. Her teachers have been fantastic too and she has grown so much this year.

All the teachers got some 'divine' chocolate too... it felt mad buying so many bars at once and if you are wondering... yes we couldn't resist getting a bar for us to enjoy too! Some special teachers received green and blacks mint or orange chocolate instead. And the caretaker even got some dark chocolate accompanied by a hand written card thanking him for , 'cleaning up my sick'! Not a nice job and definately deserved some chocolate don't you think?

So today is the first day of our holiday... the girls are playing in the garden, the collared doves are cooing, the sun is out , i am just about to hang out my washing, which is one of my favourite household jobs. What bliss.
Have an appointment to sort through fabrics later as i am finally moving into the new space... will be back later in the week with more on that.
Happy days and happy holidays to you all!
g x

Vintage and Handmade Fair

2008-07-21T18:06:00.011+01:00

Vintage & Handmade Fair to be held on Saturday the 22nd of November 2008 at Rangeworthy Village Hall, nr. Chipping Sodbury, South Gloucestershire. 10 a.m - 4.00 p.m. Free admission.

This wonderful photo was created by Michele at Cowboys and Custard to bring to our attention this fabulous event that she and Jayne from Country Cottage Chic are organising. After chatting over coffee a few weeks ago, they came up with this lovely idea of combining a Bloggers Meet Up and a Christmas Fair where a mix of vintage loveliness and handmade goods would be on sale as well a chance for fellow blog friends to meet, chat and eat cake.

At the moment the following bloggers, who will definately be there with tempting goodies are;

Jayne ~ Country Cottage Chic...
Michele~ Cowboys & Custard ...
Annie ~ A Saucerful of Secrets
Carol ~ Katherine's Dream
Sue ~ Vintage to Victorian
Liz ~ Pretty Practicals
Lucy ~ Lucy Bloom
Julia ~ Vintage Heaven
Ginny (me) ~ The Flour Loft

There are still spaces for more stall holders so if you have something vintage or handmade to sell and fancy a day out with fellow bloggers then please sign up by contacting either Jayne or Michele. Tables are just £10 each .

It would be so great to meet up with all our blog friends but don't worry as you don't need to sell anything to be involved... just come for the chat and the cake. If you are unable to come in either guise but know someone who may like to join in the fun please do spread the word... the more the merrier.
For further details please follow the links to Cowboys and Custard or Country Cottage Chic blogs.

I am so looking forward to this event and am really excited about meeting blog friends and eating lots of cake!

for Tracy

2008-07-18T21:36:00.014+01:00

Tracy at Pink Purl invited me ages ago to play a meme. It's a mix up , getting to know you snapshot.
It has similar bits in to one i have already done but here goes... this is for you Tracy x

What was i doing 10 years ago?

10 years ago i was living in North London in a tiny flat with my 6 week old baby girl, very bad mastitis and was getting no sleep. It was worth it though as that sweet baby is now a beautiful happy 10 year old.

Five things on my to do list:

1. put away clean washing (always on my to do list)
2. finish making teacher thank you gifts with my girls as schools out for Summer next week...yeah!
3. buy a new washing up bowl as the last one is now our 'sick bucket' yuk!
4. finish the final t & g in the workshop and paint it.
5. make myself a fairy godmother wand.

Five snacks i enjoy:

1. black kalamanta olives 2. chocolate chip cookies 3. milk chocolate 4. cheddar cheese 5. dried apricots.

Five places i have lived:

1.north London 2. Leeds 3. York 4. south London 5. Hampshire

Things i would do if i was a millionaire:

1. live in a sustainable environmentally sensitive home and be self sufficient. To have some land for lots of outbuildings and space for fruit and veg growing and hens and animals.
2. give to my family and friends to help give them financial security.
3. use my money to help others by giving charitable donations.
4.take lots of courses to satisfy my creative urges and to explore my interests. e.g. pottery for starters... then natural dyeing...willow weaving...wood carving...ecology... photography...garden design...etc etc...
5. Support local artists and craftspeople by commissioning their work and to put money into supporting creative and arts projects within my local community.

Not sure if i am meant to pass this on but if you fancy playing please feel free to do so.

photos from sweetmyrtle

my favourite kind of day

2008-07-14T13:00:00.013+01:00

We have had a mixed few weeks here... with both good news and bad.
Firstly the joy of a new little soul and then the sadness of learning that a friend of ours had tragically lost her 3 year battle against breast cancer.
Life's preciousness has been very much in the forefront of our minds and it has made us more determined than ever to live for the moment and to fully embrace life and to give our children happy times and good memories.

Yesterday was a well needed lovely low key day with the four of us just hanging out together, with good measures of pottering and relaxing. These kind of days with simple pleasures are my favourite and days that i feel very fortunate to be able to enjoy. These are some of the things we got up to.

My little ones planted out their seedlings... polly pansies, calendulas and pumpkins.

My eldest painted the bricked up wall of the workshop with a tiny paintbrush and a sample pot which is all we had left of the colour as the paint it seems is now discontinued. She did a great job.

I pulled some rhubarb and made us all crumble for lunch - one plain and one with our raspberries added in and served with vanilla ice cream...delicious.

The girls merrily played with pebbles in the pebbley bit of the garden and lined up their finds on a chair which we were under strict instructions not to move. They also made a den with windbreaks around the climbing frame where they made up all sorts of wonderful games, of which little snippets were a delight to hear!

We also spotted a large hoverfly on the sage bush and luckily managed to get a shot of it...

I think R was avoiding tackling the last bit of the workshop as instead he made these two covers for the salad bed out of some of our offcuts of wood.

but the biggest distraction on Saturday was seeing this arbour seat in the sale at £75 at our local garden centre... i could not believe it as they retail at over £300. I set my heart on this style of seat ages ago but had just resigned myself that i could never justify buying one. It is perfect and i bought it with my 40th birthday money which i had been saving. So last night was spent relaxing there with my beau after the girls had gone to bed.

Before i sign off, I would like to say a huge thank you to lovely Diana at Pebbledash who's kindness this week has overwhelmed me. She has been making these beautiful sketch books recently and ran a little giveaway to win one. She then decided to make one for everyone that left a comment. Three beautiful doodle books arrived with a bundle of lovely tags and some 'delightful 'chocolate. The girls and i love them and daddy was very interested in the chocolate! Diana has a lovely calming blog with gorgeous photos and lots of creativity. Do pop over and say hello.

So a good day yesterday but now i have a very poorly girl at home who woke up with a sickness bug at 3am this morning. She is asleep at the moment, hence the chance to post. Better get back to the housework now before small gets home from school... it's been nice to check in though as i have been a little absent lately.
Have a lovely week everyone!
g x

a Dorothy dress

2008-07-02T10:46:00.012+01:00

We have now completed the tongue and groove of the third wall in the studio space,(hooray!) but it still needs painting. Only one more wall to finish now. I am so itching to get in there and to get all my books, beads and fabrics in one place as most things are still in storage.

Despite the fact that the new workspace is still not complete i have managed to sew albeit on one end of my dining room table.
We do not have much space in our tiny house so unfortunately i can't leave the sewing machine set up as we use this table to eat our meals at and the kids also do their homework there.
I know many crafters manage this way. I was spoilt having the Flour Loft Studio. But soon i will have my new Garden Studio and it will be amazing.

I had another special commission to do last week. A Carnival costume to make for my eldest. Her schools theme was Hollywood, so after finding some...

blue gingham...

and some ruby slippers...

i made her a Dress and blouse and we set about transforming her into Dorothy from the Wizard of Oz... completing the look Buster went as Toto in a straw handbag as we didn't have a basket.

We ragged her hair the night before the Carnival to give it a little more body as it is usually dead straight and went to town on the make up. We had to buy some lipstick just for the occasion as i don't own any.

Here they are together with lots of make up on and my little one dressed up like her school friends as a Samba dancer.

The Carnival was great fun, the weather was sunny and the kids had a ball.
g x

Rufus

2008-06-30T15:31:00.007+01:00

Today i met a one day old baby. His name is Rufus. He was born early yesterday at home after a wonderfully natural labour. Everything went well and he and his mum are doing great. He is so perfect with skin so peachy soft. I am truly smitten. Luckily i will see him lots and i have also been asked to be his 'fairy' godmother. I had better dust off my wand!
There is something so special about a new life, i can't quite explain how i feel holding a newborn... i think for me it is the miracle of life, it represents hope, and the future. all truly amazing.

So welcome to Rufus and Congratulations to Alice and Nick. x

a special commission

2008-06-24T14:07:00.021+01:00

Yesterday when i picked up our smallest person from school she was full of beans and very excited. She couldn't wait to tell me that she and 2 of her friends had come up with an idea for a competition to run in her class.

They had created a character called Shiny the Star with their idea being to ask their friends to place Shiny in a scene, ie colour a picture of Shiny in an interesting place. The prize, they had concocted was to be a star shaped Shiny softie, which my little one had volunteered that she would organise with her mummy, as her mummy 'did sewing'.
She was eager that we must do it straight away... so we set about making Shiny come to life.

First she drew a picture of Shiny.

Then she chose the fabric.

A pattern was drawn by her, complete with scaled up face, was pinned to the fabric and 2 star shaped pieces were then cut out, by me.

She transferred the face on to the top piece of fabric ready for me to hand embroider to her specifications.

Then with right sides together Shiny was stitched up, clipped, turned through and stuffed.

My small person, who is also a budding photographer, decided she would like to take lots of photos of Shiny. Here are a few of the ones that she styled and took.

Boy racer Shiny on scooter.

Gardener Shiny.

Shiny on bike.

and finally Shiny having fun on Hoppy.

She had so much fun playing with Shiny that i think she may be sad to give him to the winner.
I expect we shall be making a Shiny mark 2 soon!

Gx

today is a bag day...

2008-06-17T20:47:00.010+01:00

hey... i got my sewing mojo back today and have made a handbag.

As most of my fabrics are packed away at the back of the new, still to be finished workspace which is full to the brim, i raided my little home stash instead. I am not sure where i got this piece of retro silk from but it has been in the cupboard for ages. I love this fabric and have often thought about making a dress from it. I have just under 4 yards of it so decided that i could make a handbag and still have plenty left to use for another project.

The shape was based on a small linen handbag that i designed in the past but i scaled the pattern up to shoulder bag size and elongated it slightly as an experiment. I was too impatient to make a prototype so just went for it. The whole bag was backed with a canvas to give it some body as the silk was very soft and floppy.
Taking inspiration from the florals in the fabric i appliqued on a flower motif and highlighted it with tiny seed beads. Once i had made it up i thought that a long strap would work well with the proportions of the main bag. For this i used a complementary furnishing fabric sample. The bag is lined with a gray satin. It has an integral pocket with a bound edge made from a piece of the main floral fabric.
As you can see from this mosaic i had been more inspired by my river walk on Sunday than i had realised! I also have been wearing washed out old jeans and a green tee shirt today. It seems different days bring different colour inspirations. I wonder what colours tomorrow will bring...

click on the image for a bit more detail
g x

Things i have been doing since my last post....

2008-06-15T08:10:00.012+01:00

wow ... it seems to be over 3 three weeks since i last posted here... so i thought i'd better get back on the horse so to speak. Hope you are all well and that you have been enjoying this welcome change in the weather.
Here are a few of the things that i have been doing since my last post...

*making chocolate cake and place settings with the girls for my dad's 70th birthday celebrations, which all went well. He looks fab for 70 and has so much more energy than me. He goes dancing about 5 times a week which keeps him fit. I think he is amazing but then i would as he is my dad.

*missing my husband when he went off to New York for work. (no purl soho visit this time but he brought me back a dress... brave man!)

*watching my eldest daughter turn 10 (growing up fast).

*tee shirt labelling.

*trip to see Nim's island (sweet film) with new 10 year old and her best friend, which produced a few tears from me.... has anyone seen it?

*took 10 year old and best friend clothes shopping (an insight into the future).

*making pizza.

*more tee shirt labelling.

*had eight 10 year old girls (all from the same class) and a 7 year old round for a party. Forgot to ask another grown up to help... i was seriously outnumbered and they really forgot that i was there. They were hugely noisy but extremely good fun. My plan was for them to play some party games, hang out and play and after eating tea make their own Sundae style dessert. It worked well and i have to say i enjoyed being an honoury 10 year old for the afternoon!

*nursing a 10 year old with a violent tummy bug... poor girl. (not party related i hasten to add)

*enjoying taking photographs of poppies and poppy seedheads.(see sweetmyrtle).

*making a carnival headdress with my 7 year old.

*planting out veg and getting the veg beds up to scratch.

*taking nightly slug hunts by torchlight with my old man (who is obsessed).

*running a quiz night at our local school with a few friends. This had been planned for earlier in the year so we had put most of the questions together. One round which worked well was a spelling test (i know i would have been rubbish)... there were a good few teachers there who we thought would appreciate being on the other side for a change! The spelling round was left till two thirds through so by then a fair bit of alcohol had been consumed. Four teams were all in the running to win so the atmosphere was great... friendly but with underlying competitiveness!

*picking the first raspberries of the year... tasty!

*even more tee shirt labelling!

*waiting for a baby to arrive.... still waiting. I will let you know as soon as we know. Thank you for your best wishes to Alice... i have passed them on to her. She is feeling great although a little more uncomfortable now that the head is down and ready to go! should be very soon now. x

*planting up pots... a new thing for me... we have seeded sunflowers so i put them in the centre of a pot and surrounded them with either salad leaves, spinach or nasturtium and with a rare bit of genius from me i surrounded some with alpine strawberries which i have running all over the garden. They are great in the garden to keep the weeds down but i do thin them out at this time each year to allow other plants to grow so it made perfect sense to put them in pots.

*ran a plant stall at the school fair yesterday...got sun burnt and yes and brought a few plants home too.. true to form in purple and pink.(scabiosa and thrift)

* and finally more bloody tee shirt labelling... hopefully this week we can complete this mammoth task as i am so desperate to get into proper designing and sewing again and i would so love this blog to get back to being about the things i make. I am sure this will happen one day soon but first we still have a studio space to finish.. which is the next job.

Gosh this is a bit of a rambling list, though i could have gone on even more... If i have managed to keep your interest to here i'll be amazed.
Have a good week.
g x

ps. while i have been typing this post the girls have been creative with fimo for their dad! ( see pic above)

Hello

2008-05-22T10:44:00.007+01:00

I just thought i would pop in and say hello as I haven't had a chance to post for a while. Things are pretty bust right now and i know my posts will be few and far between for the next few weeks or so, particularly as i like to write long posts with a few pictures which take a bit more time to do so i need a good block of time to do one.

The workshop is on halt for a few weeks also as both R and i have a lot on. I am suffocating under the clutter in the house at the moment and need to get back into housewife mode before i can't find the children!! The end of the school year is coming up fast and there are lots of events etc to go to and help with... and Alice and I have 3000 of our guardsman shirts to label and bar code for the Royal Collection shops...gulp! (a little design side line for us, but this time since we have time...haha we thought we would do the labeling...we must be mad!)

Oh and please pray that Alice's solo creative project won't be premature (yes...she is gloriously pregnant with only a few more weeks to go) or i will be doing all the labels on my own!

I also have a solo project going on, though not as exciting as Alice's.... a new blog which is very seperate from this one and which i will run on the side but still keeping the Flour Loft as my main blog. It's really more of a personal photo blog where i am exploring my love of taking photographs, so you can always catch me there in the meantime. The link is sweetmyrtle .

I will leave you with this little Robin who flew down to say hello to me yesterday when i was lucky enough to go here for a few hours to see the gardens with my lovely friend Debbie.

Wishing you all lovely weekends doing all the things that make you happy.

dreaming...

2008-05-12T21:53:00.019+01:00

I am a bit of a dreamer. I like to muse over things and always have ideas bobbing around in my head of things i am planning or the seeds of new creations. This past week i have been musing about flowers for the garden. I mainly grow herbs and veg with a bit of fruit but really fancy introducing a bit more colour and tartiness to the garden. On Friday i treated myself to a little wander around our local garden centre with only myself and my thoughts to accompany me. I wandered around for ages. It's a good time to go to see the variety of plants available and to get ideas. I wasn't intending to purchase anything but something wouldn't let me leave empty handed. After coveting a beautiful heuchera, a replacement eucalyptus (yes mine died) and a nostalgic hydrangea (fond memories of visiting my granddad's house with a lilac hydrangea to the right of his front door), i came away with two dramatic 'gallery' dahlias (art nouveau) and 3 blue trailing verbenas. I wasn't even sure were i would put them. It wasn't until i got home that i realised my chosen plants reflected the exact colours i was wearing.

Have you ever done that? Deep pink really does seem to be a favourite just now....

my gardening gloves...

... and my new tulips are a similar colour.

Later that day i sat outside with all my gardening books dreaming of flowers and sowing my new seeds. Early that evening i started digging up a bit more lawn to make a bit more planting space.

My favourite flowers are echinacea or 'cone flower'. My clever youngest daughter discovered this and brought me two types of echinacea seeds for my birthday. They were sown a few weeks ago in a heated propagator and are doing well, so fingers crossed that they will be successfully potted on.

I also have studio progress to report...

The old purple wooden door was removed and a huge hole in the end of the building appeared late on Saturday afternoon.

The idea was to reuse the window we took out last week and put it where the old door was. This is a south east facing aspect so it made perfect sense put a window here to allow more light into the room.

The windows were originally recycled from an house near my father in law's some 7 years ago. Much as i hate UPVC i would rather reuse them than for them to go into landfill. Why buy new when you can recycle? You can see from this picture all the crates of fabric and stock piled up inside. Not long now before i can start to unpack.

My good man worked late into the evening to finish off the block work. He was able to reuse some of the original blocks which we discovered were actually sandstone. Unfortunately they had been painted a shitty brown colour so we hadn't realised . I had over painted them 'fly blue' some time ago... this was his first ever bit of wall building i might add. It's taking shape now. We covered it with a tarpaulin for the night just in case of rain....

and on Sunday morning the window went in, much easier than we had anticipated. So now the new shell is complete and it's just two more interior walls to finish. We sat outside last night drinking beer and marveling at what had been achieved. I want to move in now, but it'll be a few more weeks at least... so i shall continue dreaming for the time being....

Our Bank Holiday

2008-05-07T10:55:00.020+01:00

We were so lucky this May Bank Holiday to have glorious weather here in the South of England.
My brother in law and his girlfriend came down to visit. These visits usually combine football with a wee bit too much to drink. This did happen but i also witnessed brute strength, lots of dust and some circular saw action. The two brothers took out the old window and made a opening for the new door into the soon to be 'garden studio space'. This was the result....

While they were partaking in brute force us 4 girls went off in hunt of some Maytime festivities.
We managed to find my older sisters folk group who were dancing locally along with 3 other local 'sides' in an event organised by Pilgrims Morris. She belongs to a Ladies North West Morris group. They wear clogs with bells attached and often dance holding garlands.
Some years ago i made her a little folk dancer doll in her colours. Before you ask... no my sister is not the one on the top left!!

We also found these beautiful gardens and Castle ruins. The girls got snap happy with the camera. These are their photos... My eldest got really excited when she saw the lady bird photo opportunity. (top right...click to enlarge)

I love watching them take photos. It gives me a peep into how they see the world, especially when they are given the freedom to shoot whatever they want to. The camera also has a film setting. Now that they have discovered that there is no stopping them... we have just been watching some very funny video they took around the house discussing to camera the clutter and the mess. Maybe they want to send it off to 'Clutter Nutters'?! We had better watch out.. or worse still... 'How clean is your House?'

So an enjoyable long weekend with good company, lots of sunshine and gardening and most excitingly for me the studio space a little further on as we now have a door ... Actually 2 doors... but that's the next job... to take out the old door and to put the old window in it's place.
Hope you had a good time too. How did you spend yours?

Thank you

2008-04-25T19:22:00.007+01:00

I just wanted to say thank you to everyone who has sent Alice and i good wishes since moving out of the Flour Loft studio and for this new stage of our creative collaboration. It is lovely to have your support and friendship. We are both in a transition period now until our new spaces are ready. When they are we hope to throw ourselves back into the creative process.

My week, this week has been spent helping my man on the next diy stage of creating my home workspace. First he sorted out the wiring.

Then we insulated the breeze block shell of the building and have started making an interior wall with tongue and groove wood cladding which will eventually be painted. A large amount of the stuff moved from The Flour Loft is in the space already so we are a little cramped. We are almost half way there on the refurb. We have a little matter of moving a door and creating a new window still to see to. Its been a learning curve, but each completed stage brings a great sense of achievement. I am only the builder's mate. Chief builder took a few days off work to push the project further. Still lots to do so guess what we are doing this weekend?

I have however also managed to sow some more seeds in the greenhouse and my first sowings of basil, rocket, romanesco and beans are just starting to show themselves.The weather has really started to warm up here in the South of England and it's been great to feel the sunshine again.
Thank you for all your lawn advice and stories. I am going to enjoy it's lushness a little longer but am planning a gentle first haircut sometime next week.
Wishing you all a lovely weekend.
G x

Do you think my grass needs cutting?

2008-04-22T19:59:00.011+01:00

We have had a pleasant few days here in the south of England.
At this time of year the first few good days of sunshine give rise to the sound of neighbours mowing their prized lawns. Yesterday, whilst in the garden, i heard the familiar hum of a lawn mower to my right. This evening my neighbour to the left followed suit and both gardens are now sporting freshly cut lawns.

It got me thinking.....

Should i cut mine?

I kind of like the shagpile look of it at the moment. The forget-me-nots and the dandelions seem very happy with it too.

But the garden always feels bigger when i finally cut it.

What do you think? Leave it a bit or give it a haircut?

Have you cut yours yet?

Time at home

2008-04-16T19:32:00.011+01:00

The girls and I have spent a few productive days pottering about at home and in the garden.
We cleaned the greenhouse out yesterday, finally, and have washed all the seed trays and pots. We are now ready to sow. A little later than usual for some things but as it has been so cold i think that we'll be ok. We did manage to get our garlic in just after Christmas and it is doing well and our raspberry canes are looking promising. We will be growing a selection of all sorts like last year; cucumbers, rocket, tomatoes, sweetcorn, courgettes, french beans, lettuce, carrots, coriander, chillies and basil. We will also be trying brussel sprouts and cabbage and if it's not too late time, one of my fav veggies... leek.

Today i had a lie in. Whilst the girls were playing in their room and i was drinking my morning cup of tea, still lying in bed, i switched on the lap top. and started to 'bloghop'. I came across The Homely Year's blog. I have visited before but not for a while. I must bookmark them for as well as being an enjoyable read,the site is full of great recipes. I came across a few which i jotted down. I fancied trying this lemon cake and as both my girls have sweet tooths i thought they would be keen to help.

It was fairly straightforward and we all took turns, creaming, beating , juicing lemons and grating the zest. We popped it in the oven for 50mins and this is how it came out.

We fancied icing it so sieved the icing sugar into a bowl and mixed it in with more lemon juice. As you can see my icing is always too runny. We ended up coating the whole thing.

The girls also made some shortbread in butterfly, flower, star and heart shapes. They had a friend to play this afternoon and all three girls enjoyed polishing off most of the cake and a fair amount of biscuits. There is some cake left for us grown ups to gobble up tonight. It is very very tasty! Thank you Margaret and Noreen.

studio farewell...

2008-04-14T09:34:00.026+01:00

We have packed up our little studio and have bid farewell. We have been so happy there but things move on and new pastures beckon. I took some photos on my final visit to share with you.

Everyday after parking the car i would glance up at our little window to see if Alice was in before me. If she was i knew that the kettle would be on ready for the first cup of the morning.

There are two ways to walk to the front of The Old Bakery; one through the Market square or the other, as i often preferred, to walk around the back, past the railings at the top end of the Public Gardens. Much of my youth was spent here hanging out with my friends. My grandparents lived in one of the terraced cottages behind the park, this place seems timeless to me and holds many special memories.

As i turn the corner and look across to Lenten Street this wonderful house welcomes me.

Weybourne House

This photo doesn't do it justice as twice a year it's frontage is covered with Wisteria flowers. It is heavenly. I always meant to photograph it. I will come back again when it is in flower, so i can show you. The main building is 18th century but it has a 19th century addition on the right. It was rented in 1809-11 by Henry Digweed and family and was visited by Jane Austen. Lenten Street is home to some beautiful historic houses. Rose cottage was once owned by Jane Austen's brother Frank and number 25 Lenten Street was the birthplace of the botanist William Curtis. For further information and history about Alton please follow link. For details of Jane Austen's house in Chawton (a stone's throw from where i grew up) and forthcoming events, click here.

The Old Bakery is opposite Cara's cafe/tea shop where we often bought a slice of lemon cake, and a brownie or two. We shall miss it.

The Old Bakery entrance greets you with two massive folkydokee sign which Alice's Dad organised for us. They are so big that they are kinda shouty. They always make us smile. Must remember to take them down now.

In the lobby you can see the spiral staircase.

Yes the very one which Alice and i carried various stock and furniture up and down for the many craft fairs and events we have been involved in. This is also the very staircase which witnessed the near crushing of my husband when the two of us tried to carry a large metal filing cabinet up. I spent this Saturday with said same good natured husband, moving it all out again. (but the filing cabinet stayed!.. hopefully the next occupants will be able to use it.)

I was so trashed after moving about 20 crates of fabrics and haby, various shelving and storage chests down these stairs but at least it is the last time i will do it . Gigibird asked what we were going to do with all our accumulated fabric stash. Well we have kept all of our most precious fabrics and small pieces of most of the others. We have donated many bits to all our local schools and sold off some lengths. I have saved some good pieces which i hope to ebay and the rest has gone into scrap bags also for school use.

We often bought or were given old clothing from charity shops. Many of these were still complete , like these jeans, so a good few bags were returned to the local charity shops for resale.

So what happens next? Well everything is stored at present until our home spaces are ready, so back to the kitchen tables for us, where we started.
Gosh this is a long post... if you have got to this bit well done! thank you all for your sweet comments on the last post... i will continue the Flour Loft for the moment and trace these next months here in this blog space......and then after that who knows.....not even me!
Happy Monday wherever and whatever!!!!
ginny x

1 year on!

2008-04-08T17:16:00.015+01:00

It's my blog birthday!

I tentatively started The Flour Loft blog a year ago today. I had come across the world of blogs by accident after doing a few 'goggle' searches. Different blogs kept popping up and i found myself reading more and more and became inspired by the huge amount of creativity and passion which i saw. Initially this blog started as a background to the business 'folkydokee' which Alice and i have ran for the past 6 years. It has been a place for us to show some of the things we make and to keep folk informed of upcoming fairs and new projects. It very soon also became a place where i could share other interests such as vegetable growing, activities with the children and my enjoyment of taking photographs.

I have also been working on a major project with Alice during this past year but have been unable to show much of what i have been doing, which has felt a bit strange. The process has involved many late nights, pressing deadlines, lots of cups of tea and most of all lots of fun.This project is now near completion and i can soon share more with you. This of course is our book, 'Sew Fabulous Fabric', which is published by David and Charles and is released on September 18th 2008. It feels great to finally tell you the title. The book is about using fabric, particularly as you may have guessed, using recycled fabric. In the book we offer 20 different sewing projects which we hope the reader will be inspired to create using some of their own saved and recycled fabrics.

On Friday i drove down to Devon for a last day's photo shoot and on Sunday Alice and i sent off the final text revisions. The book is nearly ready for the print stage and we will see the final colour proof in the next few weeks. It is very exciting. I am waiting for an image of the completed cover to show you and of further details should you wish to pre-order.

Sadly this week the Flour Loft Studio will close.(more news of home spaces to follow) . I am undecided as to how to continue this blog. Should I change it's name or even start a new blog as a continuation? I really hope that in whatever form it takes that i can return to posting about mine and Alice's sewing projects and explorations.

I would like to finish today by saying a huge thank you for all the encouragement and support which you wonderful bloggers have shown me over this past year. Your comments and posts really do make me smile and lift my days.
g x

One day soon...

2008-04-03T10:43:00.013+01:00

One day soon i will have a work space at home. This is very exciting. It will be in the building in the middle of the garden. It has needed a lot of work. In freak weather the space was flooded in the past so, although it is unlikely to happen again we decided to to protect it by raising the floor.

My man has once again found hidden talents and a use for all his beloved tools. I am so impressed. He is not a tidy worker, but he is a really hard worker. Over the Easter weekend he was out in the snow working on this project.

The room will be a place for me to work, a place for the girls to craft and paint and we are also hoping to fit in a tiny laundry area and space for food storage. So it really will have to work hard for us all. It is not huge but will be perfect for our needs.

I am in the process of clutter clearing both at the Flour Loft studio and at home.
The Flour Loft will close next week. Alice and i will continue to collaborate as 'Alice and Ginny'. Not a particularly inspiring name i know but ours nevertheless. We will be changing our website and Not on the High Street to reflect this.

Until the space is ready I will be sewing from my dining room table. Not such a bad place to be as the room is nice and light.

I would like to get back to posting about sewing soon. I am working on something for a special lady, who has been very patient for the wait.

Happy day. enjoy!

another tag...

2008-03-28T22:47:00.011Z

A while ago Caireen tagged me for a 4 things meme. I have only just got around to doing it.

4 movies I'd watch again:

4 places I've lived:

Leeds

London

York

Belfast

4 tv shows I watch:

Ashes to Ashes (just finished)

Flight of the Conchords (long finished, but i have the cd!)

Gavin and Stacy (just discovered)

Hotel Babylon (for trash fix!)

4 places I've been:

Barcelona, Spain

Carnac, Brittany

Lucca, Tuscany

Mount Sinai

4 people I email:

Alice

Ali (our publisher)

Caireen

Florence

4 things to eat:

black olives

Blackberry and Apple crumble

homemade leek and potato soup with crusty bread (buttered)

'Divine' Chocolate, or as my youngest calls it, ‘Delightful’ chocolate.

4 places I'd rather be :

relaxing in bed

spending time in the garden on a warm summer’s day

snuggled up on the sofa with my family watching a film

on the top of a mountain with the breeze in my hair, the warm sun on my face and not a care in the world.

4 things to look forward to:

Sept and book release date!

moving into my home studio

the warmer weather returning

spending time in the garden.

4 people to tag:

Easter weekend

2008-03-26T23:04:00.009Z

Well, the Easter Bunny did visit our house on Sunday or i should say garden. A little hunt took place at 6am i kid you not and the girls collected lots of chocolate eggs which had been put in various amusing places.

Two years ago Alice and i made some little Easter bags with appliqued bunnies on the front. My girls use theirs to gather the tasty finds.

Once collected they lined up all the eggs and shared them out evenly. They know the Easter Bunny would be fair and they are pretty loving sisters (most of the time).

We are now back at school for just under a fortnight then off for a 2 week Easter break.. a bit confusing but hopefully by the time the kids break up the weather will be better for getting out in the garden to do some serious veg planting.

Hope your weekends were good.
ginny
x

wishing you a very....

2008-03-22T21:41:00.003Z

This is what greeted me this morning when i came downstairs.
The girls had been busy creating this Easter message from the geomagnets.

Hope your Easter break is filled with happiness and chocolate.
We are hoping for a visit from the Easter Bunny!

A giveaway and a breakaway

2008-03-05T21:08:00.006Z

The giveaway first.
Drawn by my two girls at the Dinner table on Sunday. The name they both pulled out together was......

Congratulations to Emma at Sew Recycled. I will send you the little springtime bundle.

Thank you to all who left a comment guessing correctly that it was indeed a galvanised watering can, roseless but nevertheless perfect and it arrived displaying a tag with 'C1940's ' on it. Amanda said she couldn't resist it especially the 40 bit... she's just rubbing it in... she's 40 next! I was thrilled with it especially as i know she would've loved to have kept it. x Thank you also to those who left a comment for the first time, it was nice to meet you. If i haven't thanked you already, i will be off to check out your blogs soon.

Secondly the breakaway.

Well i'm not going anywhere but life has been hectic and i feel shattered. I have been going to bed early this week and i really need it. That balancing act, me 'juggling all those balls' , well i guess i have dropped some, anyway i need to be kind to myself, not take on to much and hence the blog 'break...away'. I will be back as i do enjoy the little space we all share in blogsville. Until then enjoy the newness and hope of Spring and i leave you with a little bundle brought for me by my man who has just been to New York and found Purl Soho.

p.s. Alice and I are taking part in a FREE Open Day at RHS Wisley this Saturday 8th March 10.30am till 3.30pm. It's all to do with growing your own veg. For further details click here.

g
x

A manic day, a givaway and some perfect cards

2008-02-27T21:34:00.008Z

Today has been manic.. i just haven't stopped.. even my hour off whilst the girls are at Brownies didn't happen. We were invited to join in a 'fairtrade' talk with guest speakers which was really interesting, and better still was the chance to buy some produce... so Divine chocolate and double choc chip cookies for us..mmm! so all good in the end. It is Fairtrade fortnight at the moment, for further information check out fairtrade.org.uk.

Whilst at the studio today Al and I sorted out a little bundle for the mystery photo draw. So if you would still like a chance to enter and win a few little Springtime crafty goodies...

(sneaky preview of a few of the bits)

then please leave a comment with your guess.(see last post or click on mystery photo link). I will give you a few extra days and will draw at the weekend when i am less busy.

I will leave you with a link to my friend Caireen from the patchwork dress.

I brought some of her eco card packs recently and wanted to share with you how fabulous they are. Each card and envelope is made from carefully chosen pages from beautiful magazines. She has such a flair with theming each pack (comes in a set of 4) and they were such a delight to write and perfect to send as thank you letters.

My friends all loved them.
(thanks Caireen)

Caireen has a beautiful blog and for anyone interested in a great original eco product you can buy her cards here.

Have a good Thursday!

p.s. did you know that the Fairtrade logo depicts a person waving? I didn't. Have a look.. it's such a strong recognisable image but i suspect if asked to draw it from memory most of us couldn't.

g
x

just a bit of fun...

2008-02-22T16:33:00.004Z

Thank you so much for all your kind Birthday wishes.
I have been so spoilt... and have loved very minute of my celebrations.

I know many of you were excited (and some confessed to being a little envious) about the trip to see Hairspray. Well all i can say was that it was bloody brilliant.. if you get a chance do go see it. It is so energetic, the music fabulous, the dance routines amazing... i couldn't keep still...brilliant brilliant.... we saw the matinee and to think the cast would be repeating it all again that evening. now that's what i call stamina.

I have come back down to earth now and have been sorting out the house, washing, homework etc ready for the return to school/work next week. For those on half term... hope you have had a good week.

I will leave you with a mystery object...(not too hard) taken whilst testing out the new macro lens.

It is a close up of part of something given to me for my birthday from my friend Amanda
(hi Amanda!).

Leave a comment with your guess and i will put all those with correct answers into a hat and do a draw on Wednesday next week . If your name is picked out i will send you a little something (not sure what yet)?

Enjoy your weekend.
g
x

a year older...

2008-02-15T14:07:00.016Z

It has happened... i am now in my 40's. It's quite a landmark really and has been an odd experience for someone who has always said that age doesn't matter it is how you feel. I still think this and know it is only a number but somehow, it felt like a different passage.

Firstly when written down it is quite a large number... not 50 or 60 granted but makes one feel that somehow you should at least now be a 'grown up'. (something i do not feel or think i will ever feel). I have received lots of lovely birthday cards, many with the number 40 prominent on the front. To associate it with myself at the moment, feels a little alien to say the least, though i am sure i will quickly get used to it, like one does to a new haircut.

Secondly others seem to have an expectation of 40, asking you how you feel, how are you going to celebrate entering another decade and so on... I do like to mark festivals and significant moments in our families lives and enjoy gathering friends and family together. One large party seemed too much pressure on the actual day... so i shied away from this but as a result decided that as i am 40 all year i will celebrate all year. (any excuse).

My first celebration was a family treat to see Mary Poppins in the West End. I wanted to do something that my girls would love and remember. This was the first big London show that they have seen and they loved it... we all did. Fantastic!

A 'grown up' , 'decadent' trip away to Winchester came next. A mixture of shopping, treats, fine food and luxury lodgings. Thoroughly recommended to ease one into their 40's. Then an unbirthday party tea at mums with a visit from my sister and all this happened before my actual birthday!

My birthday morning started abruptly with no 'lie in' but girls bouncing on the bed at 6.30 wanting me to open their specially wrapped and chosen presents. They were very excited and had gone to a lot of trouble making cards and presents .... a scoubi bangle from my eldest and a rainbow picture from my little one. Once they had been rushed off to school, a little later than usual, we relaxed into a very chilled out day. My man had the day off so we went out for a pub lunch and played with my new present ... a sexy macro lens for our digital SLR camera. We have both wanted this for a while and couldn't justify the cost, so my 'big' birthday was a good excuse to finally buy it. I do have to keep reminding him that it was my present though!

He knew i wanted a homemade cake so... as time was rushed the girls chose a chocolate cake for me but he felt he should still make one. He never ceases to surprise me and he secretly decided he wanted to make a lemon drizzle cake. True to form this was 'googled' and the recipe he found was this one. It was gorgeous and the best thing was that he had made it especially for me. So another birthday tea followed .... this one with candles, wishes and cake, and we finally finished the day with a quiet drink out.

So i really have been very spoilt. On Friday night i also spent a fantastic evening out with my local girlfriends.. i felt so happy and so lucky to have such great people around me to call my friends. My good friend Sarah surprised me with more cake.. a beautiful homemade fresh raspberry filled Victoria sponge which even had candles on... everyone sang 'Happy Birthday'.... i blushed... we all had a piece.. so yummy. My oldest friends who live away couldn't be with us so i am planning a Summer party in the garden. Not that i am greedy or anything.. i just love bringing everyone together.

On Saturday morning i reflected on this birthday week and i know i have had the best birthday ever. In stark contrast to my 35th when i had an intensely low period in my life, things now could not be more different. I know i have been 'milking' the whole 40 experience... well, what the hell, i am only 40 once and i really do feel that while we are all rattling through our lives we must never forget to enjoy them. So here's to enjoyment, wherever you are, whatever your age... go and celebrate your life.. unlike cats we only have one! g x

pictures are of a wire and recycled beads heart made for me by my talented sister J.

My celebrations continue next week when i am off with both of my sisters to see this.

I have been tagged....

2008-02-08T10:13:00.000Z

Willow at Contemplating Change has tagged me for this archive meme... thanks Willow..... These are the rules as follows;

Archive Meme Instructions: Go back through your archives and post the links to your five favorite blog posts that you’ve written. … but there is a catch:

Link 1 must be about family.
Link 2 must be about friends.
Link 3 must be about yourself, who you are… what you’re all about.
Link 4 must be about something you love.
Link 5 can be anything you choose.

I think this is a great way to circulate some of the great older posts everyone had written, return to a few great places in our memories and also learn a little something about ourselves and each other that we may not know. Post your five links and then tag five other people. At least TWO of the people you tag must be *newer acquaintances so that you get to know each other better….and don’t forget to read the archive posts and leave comments!

1. Rain rain... I have chosen this post as i love the everydayness of it... A half term rainy day full of glitter, glue and chatter with my wee girls. Little moments that memories are made of.

2. Mixed Feelings Although this is a bitter sweet post, i wanted to include it as it speaks of friendship and support during painful events. It represents being there for others and being grateful for others being there for us too. Friends are something to celebrate, but to never take for granted. So i thank all my friends, virtual and 3 dimensional (you know who you are) , for all your love and support and for just 'being there'.. i feel very fortunate to have you. x

3. The Flour loft and a bit about us... This was put up when i started posting on the Flour Loft blog and introduces the studio that Alice and i have shared for the past 4 years. We are now clearing the studio and are due to hand the keys back in March. This is tinged with a pang of nostalgia and sadness as this has been an incredible journey and a lot of fun. Change is inevitible and the time seems right to move on to a new stage in our lives and to explore new possibilities. It is an exciting time.

4. Harvest Reflection When i looked back over my past posts for one to include in
'something i love', i realise that i have started lots of posts with the phrase, 'i love to...'
I have picked this one as the garden, growing veg, cooking our harvest and just generally sharing the whole experience with my family captures many loves and represents my desire to simplify my life.

5. Five have fun in the meadow... I have included this post as it sums up the friendship between Al and me and our kids... we love days like these.. sharing, playing, laughing and just generally 'hanging out' all together.

So now i need to tag 5 others. If you would like to join in please do but it's entirely optional.. so no pressure.

Florence at Flossie Teacakes

Caireen at The Patchwork Dress

Jo at French Knots

alice c at The Magpie files

Michele at Cowboys and custard

Happy weekend!
Next time i write i will be 40!
ginny
x

Pancake day !

2008-02-05T19:27:00.000Z

Mix a pancake,

Stir a pancake,
Pop it in the pan.
Fry the pancake,
Toss the pancake,
Catch it if you can.

Christina Rossetti

Hope you have enjoyed all your pancakes... i had great fun with the girls and between the 3 of us we ate 12... they were very small though and even though the first few fell apart we still gobbled those up too.

My favourite filling is sugar with sliced banana and chocolate.

What's yours?

I am off for a swim tonight to work off the indulgence...
I am not sure if i should give up chocolate for lent though as i was kind of hoping for a homemade daddy and girls chocolate cake for my birthday next week. err.... will have to think about that one!?

g
x

Nature's golden yellows

2008-02-01T09:11:00.000Z

Just to show that i am not averse to yellow
i have put together a mosaic of some of the yellows in my photo collection.

Waiting for the return of sunshine days!
g
x

For Florence

2008-01-30T18:29:00.001Z

Thank you Florence for nominating me for this Blog award...

....and now you get to find out 7 weird things about me.

I feel, as i am sure most who have joined in this tag feel, that i am not at all weird .. i am just me... so with help from my beloved who says all of me is weird here are my offerings into weirdness.

1. According to my husband when i talk , the end of my nose wiggles in a ' cute bunny way' (his words!). When this is pointed out to me i feel very self conscious, so if you meet me .... please don't look at my nose!!

2. I have only ever had 2 cups of coffee in my entire life. The first one ... weak and milky, at age 16 at my school leavers do... yuk! ... and the second one when i brought an old boyfriend a small stove top two cup expresso maker.. so very strong and very yuk! I have a real aversion to coffee and can even taste it if my tea is sugared and stirred with a spoon which has just been used to make a coffee. When my mother in law used to come and visit (she is sadly no longer with us), she would always bring a cake. Her specialities were coffee and chocolate. How i prayed for it to be chocolate as i never could say i didn't like the coffee one for fear of offending her.

3. Kissing my girls on the cheek......One of my best feelings ever is giving my girls a big hug and kissing them on the cheek. It makes my heart soar... the only problem is that it has to be on the lovely baby soft fleshy part of their cheek. I hate it when their hair gets in the way or if they turn their head and you get a mouthful of ear. Is that weird? maybe?

4. Ahh ... the yellow cup. Well this one maybe is a weird one but i am sure some of you will understand. I cannot bring myself to drink out of a yellow cup. Yes this is completely irrational and i don't know where it stems from, although my grandmother had negative associations with the colour yellow to the extent of not having anything yellow in the house. As a result my poor grandad had to watch snooker on a black and white telly. I am happy to say that i am not that extreme. My issue is with the yellow cup. The fear is of something bad happening if i drink out of it. It makes me mad for i know that it is crazy for a cup to hold such power. I expect that one day i will forget and drink out of it and all will be ok but until then if you ever stop by for tea be prepared to be given the yellow cup for i am not allowed to get rid of it as my husband loves it. I shall stick to my blue cup.

5. When someone touches the back of my neck i shiver. This combined with the fact that when i was in my early teens my sister used to force cut my hair and then leave it half done because i moved slightly, means that I 'm not keen on going to the hairdressers. The last time i went was at least 7 months ago. I usually only have my hair cut twice a year. It does save a lot of money. The crazy thing is that i always feel so much better about myself when i have a good haircut. I am getting a birthday haircut in a few weeks... (hoping to cut a few years off).

6. I absoluetly can't spell.... yes i know ..... that dotted red spell check line and i are great friends. My girls are much better than me at spelling and now have realised that if they want to know how to spell something they need to ask daddy or use a dictionary as mummy is rubbish.

7. I am always cold. As a previous post admits i suffer from icy cold feet. I also more often than not, have a cold nose. My circulation is pretty bad and i really do feel the cold. I do not possess bed socks as such but invariably keep my socks on when i go to bed. Sorry Florence .. no bedsock picture i'm afraid. I also keep most of my clothes on too when i first get into bed until i get too hot and overheat as my husband is really a radiator in disguise. Improving my circulation in an ongoing challenge.

Well, that was hard to do.. so i won't nominate anyone else but please do partake if you would like to reveal your weirdness.

... and as Florence said of her weird reveal..... 'after that, i do hope that you will still want to be my friend!'

This post is also for my lovely friend Sarah who i know reads my blog. Hope this makes you smile!
x
g

Handmade Fabric Dolls

2008-01-21T00:21:00.000Z

1. Vintage Isadora 2. Esther 3. Flora

4. Vintage Charity 5. Matilda Jade, Matilda Button 6. Rose

7. Retro Isadora 8. Raspberry Isadora 9. Charity

I have been playing with photoshop and have put together a few of the dolls we have made in the past. We love making the dolls and each one takes on its own personality. Once the face has been stitched we never change it. Some look wistful, whilst others look cheeky. All the dolls pictured, except the Retro Isadora have found new homes.
Other available dolls can be found on our website.

Tomorrow I will work at the college in the morning and then whizz down to the studio at lunchtime to meet Alice. Over the next month we will be sorting through our stock and fabrics and deciding what to keep, what to sell off and what to donate to local schools. We are sad to be leaving our Flour Loft Studio, but excited at what the freedom of not running the business will bring. We will also be putting our business name 'folkydokee handmade' to rest and will in the future collaborate under our own names of Alice and Ginny. Our website will eventually change it's name and any future work either together or individually will be linked from there.

My next job is to convert my outside garden building into an arty, crafty, sewing home studio for all the family. I am thinking that if i blog about the progress of this project that it'll give us a focus and a kick up the arse and hopefully we will get it done in the Spring.
Tomorrow is Monday, hope your weekend was good, enjoy the week.
g
x

More blue...

2008-01-17T23:46:00.001Z

It does seem that i am drawn to the colour blue at the moment. I don't feel 'blue', but i do feel somewhat reflective lately. I suppose January always is a bit like this for me..... and this year things are changing. I have started my new job and after an intensive first week filled with a full on but extremely informative induction course, i can now gently ease myself in to the day to day practicalities of the job and get to know some of the new faces about on the campus.

Alice and i are still meeting up regularly at the studio and are into first layout stage of the book. We have just seen the mock up for the cover design, so all very very exciting. It really does seem real now, although i know i will still have to keep pinching myself when i see a finished copy!

Thank you for all the bed sock love.. a banal question i know but so happy i got your feedback. I do suffer from cold extremities and often try and warm my feet up on my husband' lovely toasty ones but i usually get kicked off (my feet are very icy). So socks in bed for me. The ones my grandmother used to knit were of the lacey variety with tie cords and pom poms, she probably had a matching bed jacket pattern too. So you see, if worn with a 60's style 'baby doll' nighty and matching bed jacket, i'm sure bed socks can be sexy after all.??

The above photo shows a little brooch i knitted for my sister. It is taken from a kids how to knit book (usbourne) which was a present to my youngest at Christmas. .. yes and i've knicked it! As i have said before i am the least knit one, in my family but i have recently found a renewed interest so any good knitting sites or book suggestions would be gratefully received.
Roll on the weekend.. nearly there. Enjoy.
g
x

More sky....

2008-01-12T14:35:00.001Z

..... dramatic, wispy cloud filled sky on this beautiful bright sun-shiny day.
The cloud formations are constantly changing. I have been spending this afternoon gazing upwards, snapping away and appreciating their transient beauty.
Hope you are all having a lovely weekend.
g
x

sky watching

2008-01-11T14:43:00.000Z

The weather of late has been so changeable.. one minute bright sunshine the next heavy dark downpours.

I have found myself looking at the sky.

g
x

Bed socks?

2008-01-09T21:08:00.000Z

a banal question, i know, but i was just wondering... do folk wear bed socks nowadays?
My granny used to knit us all wonderful bed socks. ..... I still suffer from cold feet.
Any bed sock stories?

Happy New Year

2007-12-31T16:54:00.001Z

As this year draws to a close and a bright new year, full of hope, possibilities and excitement approaches, many of us like to take time to reflect, take stock, review and make changes in our lives. Hopes and dreams may be voiced, resolutions made and future paths laid before us.
My year has been full to the brim but at the same time very rewarding. There has been great sadness and many tears but also so much laughter, fun, creativity and good times spent with family and friends.

The future is always uncertain, we do not know what lies ahead, we can make plans, work towards our dreams and make choices. I plan to live well, for myself and my family. I want to listen and observe the subtleties of nature, the wonder of life and feel grateful. I shall savour every moment of this precious precious life in the year ahead.

This year i have so enjoyed becoming involved in the blogging community. I am blown away by everyones creativity and passion, whether it be cooking or crafting something, gardening, sharing stories or just making us laugh. I feel enriched by reading about your lives, loves and celebrations. I have learned so much from so many warm and brilliant people. 2008 brings many personal changes, some exciting, some scary.. i am going to face these changes head on. (even the turning 40, which i plan to celebrate for the whole year).

Wishing you all a very very Happy New Year.

Thank you for all your friendship this year, enjoy your celebrations and see you in 2008.
g x

That festive feeling...

2007-12-20T12:38:00.001Z

Things have finally slowed down folkydokee wise..... the last orders have been sent and the book text finally finished. Now is the time for my own family Christmas preparations....

These beautiful glass vintage baubles were a charity shop find about 10 years ago... Each year as the Christmas box is brought down from the loft i anticipate their beauty and am never disappointed. Our other decorations are a collection built up since the girls were born. Each year they both choose a new tree ornament. Their Advent calender also over the past 6 years has included some tree decorations. The tree is now looking quite full!

I love colourful Christmas Trees and this year the girls took charge in decorating ours.
We went to a local farm to choose our tree, last Sunday. It was charming and there were a few animals to see including reindeer. We spent ages (as always), looking at each one and then returned to the one my lovely man had picked out in the first place!

When we got home we got out the lights and after securing it in the stand and pruning out a few branches the tree came inside, then to be twisted round and round by 'daddy' (about 4 times.. with him lying on the ground underneath) before us 3 girls had decided on the right angle... well he did ask us!
The coloured lights no longer all worked so we decided on the white lights.. they looked lovely all alight. My eldest and i both decided that a funny bit of tree sticking out would have to be pruned off. Well off i went for the garden secateurs... well you can guess can't you.. For a person who is so safety conscious to the extent of being annoying, i couldn't believe what i did next...... pruned off the offending sticky out branch and cut through the cable of the lights! The cable was green and i just didn't think...so very scarily easy to do. Luckily this was an indoor/outdoor set so went through a transformer so the voltage was small. If it had been a basic straight into 240 volts type string of lights then it would have been a very different story.
Consequently we couldn't decorate the tree as planned on Sunday evening.... as in my husband's words.. 'mummy's killed Christmas '.
To make matters worse in all this excitement i put my back out and have been unable to do very much these past few days, although it is improving and today i feel much better... so tidying the house can't be put off any longer!

After a new string of lights was purchased (with a silver cable) the girls decorated the tree on Tuesday evening. Here is the result...

All we need to do now is put the angel on top and then finish decorating the rest of the house.

The wreath for our front door is the next job using my twiggy circle.. made from wisteria prunings about 4 years ago.. it feels great to recycle it each year.

I like a simple natural wreath and usually use my sweet myrtle which is covered with dark glossy berries at the moment.

I dried some oranges the other evening and will perhaps include them too...

Solstice and Christmas wishes to you all. Have a wonderful holiday week with light, warmth and peace.
g
x

A woodland walk, a car boot and some more brooches

2007-11-20T21:58:00.002Z

Last weekend i joined my mum and my girls for a beautiful walk in the local woods near to her house. The weather was crisp and dry and the autumnal colours so stunning. I love walking through forests at any time of year but the deep carpet of leaves beneath out feet was just amazing.
My mother, as usual, set a nature trail for us. We were to find or see something for each letter of the alphabet. This is how we got on....

a
berries
conker
dog
e
flower ( and a great footprint)

great tit

holly

ivy

keys (sycamore)
leaves
mud (and moss)
nettles
old mans beard
puddle
q

roots (which we kept tripping over as they were hidden beneath the leaves)

sedge (and sheep)

trees ( particulary beech trees as it is a beech wood)
u
v
wagtail
x sign (x marks the spot)
yellow leaves ( yes cheating i know)
z ( ?)

I think we did ok.. it was a lovely walk and just what i needed!

We got home just before it started raining.

This Sunday i went to a local car boot and found amongst other things some sweet Beatrix Potter books (my youngest collects them).

There were along with The Tailor of Gloucester and Squirrel Nutkin, some with which i am unfamiliar;
The Tale of Mr Tod, Appley Dapply's Nursery Rhymes and The Tale of Little Pig Robinson.
I will keep them for her for Christmas.

I sometimes call my youngest 'Hunca Munca', though she isn't really very naughty.

I have also been making more flower brooches. I really love making these, especially choosing all the colour and fabric combinations. Alice is at a Charity Fundraising evening tonight and has taken some of these and other bits and bobs to sell. She has just telephoned me to say that she has won a bottle of Champagne from the raffle. Now i wish i had gone! She also says the turquoise brooch has sold. I knew it would but was half hoping it would end up on my jacket.
Still i could make some more?

The rest of the week will now be focusing on finishing the text for the book. This requires a different type of concentration than with the pattern drafting and sewing and above all requires copious cups of tea and lots of chocolate!!
Thank you for all your comments on the last post... please be assured that although busy i am at the moment keeping all my 'balls' in the air.. i am being kind to myself and taking time to chill and part of this is doing a post, as is catching up with all your blogs.
G
x

Blogging and work

2007-11-09T22:22:00.001Z

Hello there.. long time no post i know......

When i started blogging i was hoping to post every 2 or 3 days. It now seems to be once a week if i'm lucky.
I do want to say thank you so much to everyone who reads my blog ... i love getting the feedback and comments. I also want to say that once a week is probably all i can manage at the moment... maybe it will increase when i'm a little less busy and when i can share more of what i'm working on.

This week for us at the Flour Loft has been another busy one. We have just finished working a full week on the book with a few orders thrown in for good measure. I am unable to show the actual book projects but can say that we are working very hard. In addition to the 20 step by step projects we are also making many extra items to illustrate variation and to hopefully give further inspiration. We have a 2 day photo shoot next week, so the pressure really is on to finish everything. Then the final copy has to be submitted by the end of the month. Aside from the book, we are also in the busiest time of year.... the run up to Christmas. So orders are coming in for handmade stockings and personalisations. Sometimes it's hard to work out what to do first. Alice is fantastic at working steadily through but i tend to dart from one thing to another. I try and tackle the smaller orders as soon as they come in to get them out before they pile up.
Luckily most folk who place larger orders appreciate that there will be a short wait.

This week we have made many brooches and decorations, which are being ordered through not on the high street, including these pretty beaded hearts which i posted off earlier.

I also made up a heart peg bag today for possible inclusion in a February magazine. Typical that the one thing that is requested (also via not on the high street) is the one thing which is out of stock!

I have also managed to get myself a some part time work for next year at a local college. I had an interview on Monday and they offered me a job on Wednesday. I hadn't had an interview for over 10 years!

Alice and i will continue collaborating and we have some possible other projects that we are musing over. Our priority at the moment is to finish the book and complete our Christmas orders. We will then hopefully be in a position in the new year, without studio overheads (which is a large drain on a small business), to have the freedom to continue with commission pieces and to further explore our own creativity.

Three Christmas card designs are now for sale... star and snowflake .. £3 each and tree £4.50 and the last of our Advents now at £45 over at the website.. here

Please check out our other Christmas products and handmade gifts on our website . More updates soon.
Happy weekend to everyone.
g
x

The Festival of Craft and recycling

2007-10-30T19:25:00.001Z

Recycling is important to me. My family have recycled as long as i can remember. It is not a new thing. My folks, with no money and three small girls in the late 60's, early 70's .. well you just were thrifty. I think perhaps 'saving' things for possible future use in my genes, along with my tendancy towards clutter!
When i was 16 i took an evening class in indigo dying and batik, funnily enough with Alice (we have known each other a long old time!). My dad made us both a batik frame from the old wooden clothes horse that my mum had used to dry my cloth nappies on. He had kept it in the loft and then reinvented it years later. Also my mum was a primary teacher so egg boxes, cereal packets and the like were always saved in true 'Blue Peter' style.
Nowadays we are all more aware about waste and are hopefully moving towards reducing what we consume as well as continuing to recycle. I am always interested in how materials are reinvented and recycled and i would like to share with you some interesting products and people i have come across. Please click on the highlighted links to view their websites.

A friend of ours has just turned 40.... We went to his party in Dorset a while ago (our recent camping trip) but have just got the present we had ordered through. I saw these on not on the high street, by pop guru and thought they were fun....

Bowls made by recycling old LP vinyl records.

We were after a particular artist so emailed them and had to wait a bit but it was worth it. The bowl arrived and we were delighted. What's more we didn't think about the date which would be on the record and by shere fluke it is 1967 the year he was born! wow.. how about that.. very pleased.. now i hope he will like it.

A few weeks ago i went a local Festival of Crafts and came across Joanne Tinker who recycles metal bottle tops from beer bottles and creates beautiful pendants, earrings and brooches. I was excited by these and very tempted, but she was very busy and i didn't get a chance to speak to her. Her necklaces were my favourite pieces.

She also had little box frames containing tiny sweet wrapper cups, a great idea and so colourful. My sister and i used to make these when we were children so they felt particulary nostalgic.

There were a few other artists recycling.. Elizabeth Cook recycles fabrics.. mainly old woolens which she felts... not a new technique to many bloggers yet i thought her use of colours and the simplicity of her designs was good.

I was also inspired by Julie Roberts who uses textiles and handmade paper. Paper making and papier mache are techniques i loved using whilst at art college and hope to experiment with again soon. Her lampshades were like jelly fish sea anenomes. They were quite large and in real life stunningly beautiful. She is based at the Museum of English Rural Life in Reading if anyone is near and is interested in searching her out.

Another interesting exhibitor from the festival was....Elizabeth Beverley with her beautiful plant dyes wool for knitting. I would love to do some natural dying. I have my mum's old recepies from when she studied natural dying.. i even have her old dye vat in which i remember her steeping onion skins and other such raw material, when i was a child. I always loved the wooden tongs she used.. i wonder if she still has them. I would also love to knit. I come from a family of knitters.. even my dad knits. I am the one that sews rather than knits but i had the urge the other day to do some knitting when i saw my girls knitting with 'nana'. I went out and brought some yarn and am now the proud owner of a cotton dishcloth. I already have 2 bought from a friends craft stall a while back, they really are good and have a great abrasive quality. I think i will make some more.. it may help me to enjoy cleaning a little more.

Other interesting recycling sites to look up...
Anna Roebuck's Bags to riches.... Anna is an artist who recycles plastic bags in to jewellery, art and lights.
Doy bags ......colourful, fun bags and home accessories made from recycled juice packs by a women's cooperative in the Philippines and Remarkable recycled stationary goods.

Hope you find some of these links useful and if you know of any interesting other links please leave a comment.
g
x

Apples and pumpkins..

2007-10-23T15:31:00.001+01:00

We took part in an amazing event this weekend at RHS Wisley in Surrey.

The event was a Taste of Autumn, which was a celebration of Autumn and local produce. The event also included a display of competition fruit from the National Fruit show held last week in Kent. I've never seen so many different varieties of apples. Apple tasting and lots of local produce sampling was in full swing all throughout the weekend, even local WI groups were there serving homemade soup and preserves.
The weather was glorious and visitor numbers exceeded all expectations.

apples

...and more apples.

Our stall was just opposite the display garden for the Wisley trials which showed a small shed and vegetable plot, with lots of perfect picked produce. Check out these pumpkins...

The display was so charming, and it even came with a resident robin. He flew in whilst they were setting up on Wednesday and came back everyday. He had definately marked his territory. He also liked to swoop up to the other end of the marque to feast on the berries on the Woody Plants display (much to their annoyance!)

If you look carefully you can just make him out on the shed door.

It was a great family event, with pumpkin carving and Autumn craft activities. Here is a small friend with his fab 'Shrek' pumpkin!

Our stall fitted in well with all our fruit, vegetable and flower designs. We met some lovely customers and made very good sales. We only have three of our shopper bags left in stock now!
The RHS staff are fantastic and were all so helpful. After a week with a sick child, and a school craft fair on Thursday evening, i was extremely tired, but it was such a pleasure to be involved in and i really enjoyed the whole experience. The only sad thing was that we didn't get to meet alice c... we almost did.. but it wasn't to be. Maybe another time.

Here is our stall..

The t.shirts which we designed for Hampton Court with either a strawberry or apple on proved popular. We have apples left in all sizes and strawberries in the large only.

small age 3-4, medium age 5-6 and large age 7-8.

They are a transfer print from taken from our original appliques. They are £5 each .. please email if you would like to buy one. They are not on the website yet but i do hope to add them soon.

This week is half term for us... We have already had a day out with Alice and the boys ending with seeing the film Ratatouille.. great fun. We are also hoping to create some more Autumnal pics and make our Hallowean costumes this week!
I'll leave you with a picture my youngest did after collecting some leaves a few weeks ago... This is for Louise at thisismypatch.

owl, moon and tree.

Have a great week.
g
x

What have i been up to?

2007-10-16T11:08:00.000+01:00

These past few weeks the main sound in my house has been the tap tap tap of the computer keys.

We have been working hard to update our folkydokee website.

After my brief tuition in basic html and dreamweaver (very limited but still exciting) from my man, we have between us been, taking, cropping and adding product photos and now have a site (still needs some additions) ready to receive online purchasing. We have some products still to update and hopefully we are now on a roll and will achieve this in the coming weeks.

Many of the products which are ready made or as we like to say 'off the peg' have been reduced. We are now making a distinction between these and made to order items which still can be made up but at the usual price. This covers the element of design time and fabric sourcing to each orders needs.

The reason for this new move is that we are changing direction and have chosen to vacate the studio at the end of the year. In the New Year we will continue to collaborate and will be able to take on special orders based on our work to date. We will also be developing some other personal projects, continuing commission pieces and will perhaps do some workshops.
We are really excited about all the possibilities that this new freedom will allow us, both individually and together.

Please do go over and have a look our updated website and if you know anyone who would like our creations, please encourage them to have a look too.
Thanks for all your support.
Alice and Ginny
x

Studio catch up...

2007-10-04T13:16:00.000+01:00

Things have been busy at The Flour Loft this year....

For those of you who have read this blog for a while, you will know that we exhibited as 'folkydokee handmade' at the Hampton Court Flower show in July. This was a lovely show to do not least as we could have a jolly good look round at the fantastic gardens early in the day before it all got too busy. As a small company it was hard work getting the stock ready, but it was also extremely enjoyable. We feel we designed and made our best stuff yet for this show and were really pleased with how the stand came together. I think it is one we are most proud of, along with this one as a close second.......

This was our stand at Country Living's Christmas show last year. A great show to do and where we met a lovely publishing lady!
We have had to make the hard decision not to do Country Living's Christmas Fair this year. In addition to really enjoying doing this show, it is also very lucrative and for both reasons we will very much miss it. We are though, at this precise moment in full throws of writing our book with a finish deadline for the end of November!!! so obviously need to focus on this.

Having said that we are still open for business and are already taking Christmas orders for Stockings and Advents. In the next few weeks i will be posting some images of the Advents and Stockings which we have left from last year. These will be sold off at a reduced rate. We will not be making up any new Christmas stock but we will, as usual be taking orders. If you would like something made to order please don't leave it too late to contact us as we are only able to take on a limited number of orders this year.

Our next show is the RHS's A Taste of Autumn at Wisley. This is a fantastic event which runs from the 19th to the 22nd October and also hosts The National Fruit Show. Check out the link for further info. We will be exhibiting on the Saturday and Sunday only. Please come and say hello if you are there. We may also, time and book permitting, do a few small local craft fairs. I will posts details if we do.

As i write this the sun is shining and it's hard to think Christmas is not too far away. ( sorry!!) I have been using the light today to photograph some of the Christmas stock to put on the website. It has got me wondering how early do most people start to think about the festive season? Have you already started buying or making presents? My mum has declared we are having a frugal, thoughtful, non excessive low impact Christmas.. basically she doesn't really want a present and would rather money go to a charity or to people less fortunate. As we are all creative i expect homemade will be the order of the day. Last year Alice and i decided to buy 'thoughtful presents' and we bought a lot of things from Ecotopia and The Centre for Alternative Technology.

How do you feel about Christmas? What does it mean to you? Do you hate all the commercialism? It is far too early for me to be posting this?

ok.. so we have only just got used to Autumn... Only one day left to vote for your favourite season on my little poll on the side bar. Autumn is out ahead at the moment. Can it be caught or are you all just happy in the' here and now'?

My favourite is Spring.. a time of new beginnings.. hope.....

Happy Thursday!
G
x

Realisation that summer has passed...

2007-09-27T19:32:00.001+01:00

The sunflower has now faded

The long days of Summer are now gone...

But my passion flower is still going strong.

Seeds to gather

and time for me to welcome in Autumn with all her beautiful colours.

This time of year often finds me slightly melancholic ... but the beautiful colours, the conkers, the smokey evenings.. all your inspiring Autumnal posts.. have me in brighter spirits than usual and i am appreciating all that this time of year brings.

Do you have a favourite season or do you love them all?
I have added a poll (on the side bar) if you'd like to vote for your favourite.
Happy weekend

My Ice Bowl!

2007-09-25T16:42:00.000+01:00

I did it and it worked.. Sorry the photo is bad but i hope you get the idea.

I just put a small bowl into the larger bowl and filled up the bottom and sides. I probably didn't leave it long enough as it's bottom could have frozen better. Apparently you can freeze it in stages.. e.g. fill the bottom few inches of your large bowl first and freeze... then add the smaller bowl weighted down (with more water) and fill around the sides. My friend Amanda whose suggestion it was that i attempt one, made an ice bowl at Christmas and filled the sides with glitter stars and some cranberries. Hers was so thick and so frozen that it didn't melt and she remembers wiping it out and refreezing it!

My man was impressed and said it was like ' proper, posh presentation.' Very different from my usual thing. I may try it if we have friends around sometime.. i think if you put the right herbs in you could break off bit to use in drinks. Alternatively once melted, use it to water your plants!

Thank you for all your anniversary wishes, we had a lovely evening. We also had a weekend away as an old flame had a 40th Birthday doo in Dorset (near Bridport). No posh hotel i'm afraid.. my man treated me to a camping adventure, and adventure it was as the wind was so strong the tent (a small igloo one) nearly took off! One of the legs was broken so we wrapped it in gaffa tape and it did hold. Luckily it wasn't raining as every time the wind blew the whole tent blew in and knocked into us.. Romantic .. er no, but memorable nevertheless!

We did survive it and the location was beautiful , just on the cliff.
This was the view...

The sun was out when we arrived and the breeze was strong.. i just love the force of the wind .. it makes me want to stand up tall, stretch my arms in the air and breath it all in. Which i did... .. it felt so good! There's nothing quite like the forces of nature to shake off the cobwebs and make you feel alive and exhilarated.

The next day after the party was quite a different story, however!
Hope your weekend was good.
G
x

11 years!

2007-09-20T13:57:00.001+01:00

Today i am celebrating.. my 'lovely' man and i have been married for 11 years.

I am at home today and have been looking through the box of our wedding and honeymoon photos.. we look so young! ( though we wern't that young in respect of getting married.. i was 28 and he was 32) .
Even though we are the same people, we are also different. Time has changed our appearances, sometimes changed our opinions, definately played with our emotions but has i am happy to say taught us that we can grow together. I can't say it has all been easy, we have had our fair share of sadness and worries, but the cord that holds us together is still strong, even if it needs a little dusting and care at times. I truly love my man, i respect him and want to grow old with him. We have created a warm home together, now a garden, and our precious children. I feel very blessed to share my life with this special, kind man. We are also learning to let each other be selfish sometimes too. (and not get narked)! My journey in life is constantly changing and throwing new things into the 'pot', and i hope this special unity can survive the harsh realities of life. I feel optimistic that we can and i feel that love, communication and sensitivity to each others' needs hold the key.

I also found the book i put together of our Wedding cards and another book filled out with messages on the day. Some of those who shared our lovely day are no longer here, so to read their words and their sentiments is so moving.
We had a small affair, 40 people, immediate family and all our friends. My dress was a burnt orangy, red. It was made by my costume making girlfriends. The wedding car was our beautiful old Triumph Vitesse, 'Rosie', sadly in car heaven now and the invites, the cake and hall decoration were all created by friends. A real all pull together affair which for us made it all the more special. It was such a happy day. My man is fairly shy, but it was an intimate civil wedding so not too grand. We honeymooned in Tuscany near Lucca, up in the hills. Ahh ... memories.

I am planning to cook a meal tonight for my ' beau', and have taken ingredients from the garden and aim to make a meal with an Italian slant.... basil, tomatoes, courgettes, oak leaf lettuce, rocket and rhubarb (not italian i know), but in the garden and we like it. I shall be buying mozzarello ( heaven), and various other bits including some wine.
My friend Amanda, has suggested i make an 'ice bowl'? to serve the ice cream from. Not sure if this is going to work but have one in the freezer.. freezing, filled with borage flowers and mint leaves.
All a bit of fun ... will let you know how it goes.

Today has had me reflecting on my relationship...and made me value it more than ever.
Hold those you love close, listen to them and treasure them.
g
x

Proof i am still sewing.....

2007-09-13T14:37:00.001+01:00

This is to prove i am still sewing and creating .....

even though the posts of late, haven't included much reference to this.

notice all the threads and scraps? ..must get the broom out!

I have been taking lots of step by step shots of new things we have been making and have had the camera permanently in my hand.. this shot just appeared in my view finder and reminded me of a many similar blog shots I've seen. These are my 'pretty' sandals.. the only ones really as my usual footwear attire is more suited to walking and gardening.

Unfortunately i can't show you what i am doing as it's a secret...

I haven't wanted to say till now, as it is all a little unreal, but Alice and I are writing a book. Still won't believe it till it's published. Deadlines are getting close... with our first photo shoot next week! arghhh! Actually i am really looking forward to it and am loving the opportunity of creating new projects for this book with Alice. This is what we really love doing best.... the challenge of designing, the collaboration of ideas and the joy of creating. The book is already written in synopsis form and all the projects it shall include were agreed earlier in the year. Last week we submitted the first two completed projects with all the 'blurb' and step by steps. The publishers create a BLAD (book , layout and design) from this with cover shots and contents page and use this to discuss and fine tune the final layout and design of the book. It is hard work but very exciting and we feel so lucky to be given this opportunity.

Life in the studio still continues and we are also working on some commissions.

Some cushions adapted from our 'Tree of Life' Cushion,

Some specially commissioned Angel dolls as Holy Communion gifts and a made to order Advent. (yes it is coming around again..).

So life is very full , but also very creative, which is what makes me happy!

Have a great weekend.
G
x

Harvest reflection...

2007-09-09T22:43:00.001+01:00

One of my great passions is gardening. I have dabbled with growing herbs and veg for just over 10 years now. Pre children, i spent all my spare cash on plants for the garden in our rented flat. I even managed to bring some favourites with me when we finally moved out of London in the late 90's.
This year my husband has taken an interest in the garden too, which has been great as keeping on top of it with the children still young and with running a business has been pretty difficult.
As we were flooded in freak weather in 2006, we decided to raise the old veg beds and built some very tall beds from oak sleepers. My man built another raised bed for salads nearer the house. The greenhouse was tidied, staging built and we happily sowed away.

It has been a trial and error year and I would like to share with you our attempts ...

Our first harvests were from Lollo Rosso lettuce, rocket ( really easy and really tasty), spring onions, basil and spinach (good for a bit and then bolted).
We then enjoyed some fruit; raspberries, gooseberries and alpine strawberries.. only a few of each but still great.

The potatoes came next and we were lucky that as the beds were raised so high, the damp weather didn't spoil them.

This was our alien potato.

The dwarf french beans were our favourite crop of all.. so fresh and enjoyed by the whole family (good yeild over a long period for only six plants).

The carrots actually grew (a first for me!). They were of variable sizes but the earlier ones could have been sweeter. The spot we grew them in was not in direct sun so we wondered wether they needed more light? We had some this weekend and they were better.

The veg which did really well were the courgettes.. almost too many to eat and many turned into marrows whilst we were on our holiday. I did find a good recipe this book..

'Food from green places' by Rosamond Richardson for

' Courgettes Parmigiana'.

About 3lb courgettes cut diagonally and blanched for 3-4mins, drained, then arranged in layers (as in a lasagna) with fresh tomato sauce and then sliced mozzarello (each layer seasoned well) and then topped with grated parmesan and drizzled with olive oil. All baked at gas 4/ 180c for 40-45 mins. It was so easy to do and tasted really good.

We also have a large clump of rhubarb in the garden and have made fruit crumble a few times too. Crumble is my all time favourite pudding and in times of low moods (i get a few of these from time to time), my mum will always find an excuse to make me a blackberry and apple crumble (my most favourite). A small morello cherry tree gave us and the birds a few fruits too.

The crop which failed dismally for us were the tomatoes. I had sown gardener's delight and my man sowed Super Marmande beef tomatoes. Firstly we grew too many, and found it hard to care for them all, and secondly the they hated the wet and most got brown patches on their stems and got blighted so we had to dig them up. We were pleased to hear we wern't the only ones and even Monty said the tomatoes at Berryfield were a disaster.

A few salvaged tomatoes.

Our final crop to harvest is sweetcorn. We barbequed our first cobs today and they really were the best we'd ever tasted. They do say that sweetcorn is best picked and eaten straight away and it seems to be true.

We still have ridge cucmbers going strong, some blackberries (thornless ones planted by me for the girls), more courgettes, a few salads, garlic and these bannana peppers.

All in all a good year .. i think next year we should plan for leeks and parsnips .. two of my favourites and romanesco.. but one thing at a time ...
It still amazes us that all this comes from tiny planted seeds ..So i want to say thanks for the harvest from our garden this year and how enjoyable it has been to share this new adventure with my husband. Our girls have really enjoyed helping too, especially picking the goodies.
If you have any veg/harvest stories or advice to share please do leave a comment.. i'd love to hear how this year is going for you..
Have a good week.
G
x

Mixed feelings...

2007-09-03T21:59:00.000+01:00

Tomorrow is a day of mixed feelings..
Firstly the girls go back to school after a lovely long holiday. I will miss having them around although i do need to have some time to get on with some much awaited work at the studio. It is my youngest's 7th birthday too. She had an animal and wildlife fancy dress party on Sunday which was great fun.

It is also baby 'Poppy's' day. She was due to be born tomorrow. Sadly she died earlier in the year. Very hard and very sad for my best friend and her husband. I lost a baby some 10 years ago during pregnancy in similar circumstances. My baby had a rare condition ' not compatible with life' (in the professional's words) and died at 20 weeks. He is up there in the clouds with baby Poppy. It's so hard to understand why such sad things happen, Talking has helped me.. i have always wanted to talk about my baby...i don't want to lose him again. Sometimes it's like a dream.. very surreal. Whilst in the midsts of trauma and tragedy you just go with it. But it's hard too. My friend is such a beautiful special woman.. she has helped me through so many things over the past few years. It pains me to know what she and her husband are going through. They are such strong vibrant people and i love them dearly. They are coping really well. I know there are so many people out there with similar experiences and my heart goes out to you all.

Life is so precious and there is so much to be thankful for despite the hurts and pains. Experiences like these make us realise what is important to us and how fragile life can be.
I think Bella enchanted did a lovely thing when she started an award called 'Nice Matters '. This award celebrates those who inspire good feelings and inspiration, are just nice people and good blog friends. Something i feel is worth celebrating. I am heartened at how many nice people there are out there.

I was so touched recently to be nominated for this award

by French Knots and Willow at 'Contemplating Change'.

(Sorry it's taken me so long to respond.)

I would like to further pass on the good feeling to 2 bloggers in particular .....

(although all of you i exchange with i feel deserve this award as you're all 'NICE'!)

Manda at Treefall

She is an amazing woman and in every sense is an inspiration. She has her own heartaches and yet has done something very special for my beautiful friend. Thank you Manda, your gift touched her so sweetly and dearly (i was on the other end of the phone as the surprise package arrived this morning. ) Such a thoughtful and generous thing to do. x

Tracy at Cupcakes at home

She really is the sweetest person. I recently brought this lovely fawn from her for my daughters birthday (all wrapped up and ready to give her in the morning) and she also put in a sweet little note and an extra little present for the birthday girl. So very nice of you Tracy and really appreciated. I know my little one is going to love her presents. Thank you. x

Isn't she just gorgeous!

and finally i want to send special love to my lovely Alice who is also very nice!
see you in the studio.....
g
x

Five ( plus 2 adults) have fun in the meadow....

2007-08-29T08:57:00.000+01:00

Meet our very own 'Famous Five' gang.....

including 'Timmy' the dog?

Actually this is Alice's beautiful Springer Spaniel Silas.

We all love Silas xxx

Wee ... here i go....

Silas fishing for stones....

Got one!
( how proud was he!)

River boy ( on 'lookout')

Can you see me?
( Dick spying in the bushes)

Off up the ' magical tree' .. with Julian first leading the way..
George and Dick fighting for second place.. and poor Anne being left to follow.
( although Dick did try to help her up).

Time to go .... lets all follow the dog with the big stick!

We had a very agreeable time.. lots of rather splendid fun was had by all.
We returned to 'Aunt Fanny's' ( mine) for ham sandwiches and lashings of ginger beer.
Unfortunately we didn't come across a mystery this time but the
Famous Five are always on the lookout to catch those 'nasty villans'.
We did however have a wonderful walk.
Thanks for joining us.
G x

Holidays... Lazy days...

2007-08-16T22:50:00.001+01:00

Hello .. it's been 2 weeks since my last post...and this is why...
We have been relaxing and holidaying both at home and on The Isle of Wight. It has been wonderful just to switch off and be with the family. We returned to the Isle of Wight and hooked up with friends and the girls met up with their penfriends (also made last year). It was great to have no plans and just to see what each day brought. We were so lucky as the weather was glorious.. suntan lotion and sun hats all week!

Freshwater Bay

This Island has so much to offer. Last year we did the whole Jurrassic, dinosaur thing as our youngest was obsessed with dinosaurs but this year we didn't do the things we intended to,like visiting the Lavender and Garlic farms and revisiting Black Gang Chine (memories of the early 70's as a child here!)
No... we just let the days unfold and had a few beach days, a few sightseeing days and time just hanging out together and with friends.

Freshwater Bay.. ( looking the other way)
Great beach for swimming ( steep gradient and deep water)

We saw lots of yachts as it was Cowes week.

We walked around these walls at Carisbrooke Castle.

Painted these at Chessell pottery.

And enjoyed an icecream or two.

We also saw this open air performance of the Pied Piper at Mottistone Manor with our good friends. We took a picnic and the boys went off to the NT cafe and came back with tea in china cups .... .. sipping tea.. on the lawn.. in the sunshine.. what bliss!

So i am now so rested that i'm mostly horizontal. 3 more weeks left of the Summer hols then back to reality. How i wish everyday could be like Summer.

We have a few new projects on the go at the studio and at home we are harvesting courgettes.. although some of them are now marrows due to the recent rain!
Hope you are having fun wherever you are!
G
x

Summer time.....

2007-07-31T22:01:00.002+01:00

Happy Summer sunshine to you. It has been glorious here in the South of England.. I hope it has been good wherever you are. A bit of sunshine is so good for the soul. I just adore closing my eyes and feeling the sun's warmth on my face. It makes me feel so alive .. it's like the sun re energises me. As promised i will show you some of the things we have made recently. These little pretties are our Summer bags made from linen combined with recycled fabrics and buttons. We made these for Hampton Court but due to the bad weather (rain, rain and more rain) we only sold a small amount of them. Now the sun is out again they kind of make sense and we are putting them into our Summer sale as we would like them to go to new owners before the weather goes pear shaped again. No... i am actually optimistic that this warmth will be here for a while especially as we're off camping soon!

This is a pretty rose floral which had originally been a skirt and jacket set brought whilst a thrifting. We have used the same fabric for a beautiful Isadora doll which was bought as a christening gift at HC. I so love the button on this one as it picks up the pale gold in the print.

This pretty floral fabric is another Liberty tana lawn. I just adore this print. We have a flower peg bag in the same fabric which i am secretly coveting ( not told Alice yet).

Oh i do have fun.. these photos were done with the self timer (hence slight blurriness as i wasn't there to focus on..if you know what i mean).. i think my neighbours must think i'm mad.. or just plain vain photographing myself all the time, as that's what it must look like from over the fence. I am actually trying to photograph the bags .. really.. ( which 'bag' as my husband delights in saying)! This cherry bag is really sweet. The fabric is a tana lawn. I love the richness of colours in this print and i often use it for the flower brooches as it combines so well with a variety of colours and textures.

This little strawberry is fun. It's a red, and white floral sprig and has a tiny bit of black in too. The button is an unusual black vintage one. These bags are lined with calico and have pockets on each side .. one large enough for a phone and two smaller ones for essential lipstick and hankerchief. The bag dimensions are approx 34cms across and depth (excluding straps) is about 24cms. We designed them for adults and had a bit of fun with the fruity applique motifs but they seem to be appreciated by any girl from about 10 and are great for teenagers. My two both want one ... probably as mum made them, although my 9 is getting more particular and the fact that she likes them is compliment indeed. Here she is modelling an apple one.

We have had lunch out today at the park.. lots of time playing and a girls shopping trip to buy a few new summer clothes for our hols. Always feel i should make them but never quite get around to it.. most of the items we bought were in the sales so i didn't feel quite so bad. I really only try to buy what we need although sometimes it's fun to have a treat. Also today my faith in human nature was restored. My parking had run over by 20 or so minutes... As we approached the car (panting... ) the parking attendent was just issuing a ticket.. I was prepared to pay as i knew i was late ( a hold up at the checkout).. but the lovely lovely man .. took pity on me and said if he could reverse it he would. He could and he did. I was astonished and very grateful. The girls and i then had a discussion about good karma and decided that when he got home that night his wife would have made him his favourite meal and pudding!
The 'Summer' bags are on our website although not put in the sale yet.. need hubby to update for me . They will be sold at £20 if anyone is interested just drop me an email.

Well done if you made it down to this bit.. i know i always make my posts too long.. can't seem to help it... am a bit of a rambler in real life too. Anyway....
Here's to another day when we have to wear our sunhats!
G
x