Lady in Waiting.......

I have been neglectful of my blog over the last few weeks.  My excuse is helping my daughter Emily to prepare for the birth of her baby boy.  He is now overdue so we are all on tenterhooks awaiting his arrival. 

Funny how sorting and organising is contagious, I have been delving into cupboards, drawers, stacking boxes - making a complete mess into the bargain.  I have unearthed some real treasures in the process which I am delighted about.

I found all my College work, spent a little time with a cuppa perusing the pages of my sketchbooks - anyone who knows me, knows I do love a sketchbook, oooh and a mood board, and a concept board which is why I have a lot of them  It was so nice to revisit the process in which I created the work I made at Cleveland College.  Very happy days, it has made me think about starting a new book, it always creates inspiration as a starting point for new work.  It is increasingly hard when you are out of your creative environment to keep the momentum going!

I digress, (well it is called the ramblings of.....) I also found some newer pieces I created which I had not managed to photograph as the light has been so poor of late.  A sunny day spurred me on to take images on my favourite prop the lovely old book.  Here are a few of the pieces, definitely still in my grey phase....

 teeny tiny felt, lace & crochet corsages

 

 

 Slate grey corsage

 

 

 muted tones embellished with vintage tiny button

 

 

 my favourite linen button centre

 

 

 shades of grey, accents of duck-egg blue, crochet, lace, tatting embellished with crochet pansy

 

 

natural merino wool hand-made felt with tiny mother of pearl button centres

 

I am working on some necklaces using vintage crochet and lace, dip dyed and embellished with trims, lace and of course mother of pearl buttons....

 

Until next time....... Jayne x

Christmas is going..........

A lovely Christmas day was had in the Hewison household. All the preparations, choosing, making & wrapping gifts, came together to create a day filled with happy memories.  All too soon it was time for
the tree and decorations to come down, and the cards to be recycled.  The festivities are over for another year and were enjoyed by one and all.

There is something so special about a handmade gift and I was lucky enough to receive some lovely treasures from friends.  Gill P made me a felt needle case, embroidered with a lovely sentiment......

a perfect holder for my selection of needles

A lovely set of metal lantern fairy lights were given the Gill W treatment, she hand painted each and everyone black to match my decor.  They will be adorning my wooden twigs in the hall soon.

teeny metalwork baubles

An unexpected gift arrived beautifully wrapped in baroque tissue adorned with satin ribbons, roses and feathers.  It was from the owner of the shop I supply in Harrogate, in appreciation of my work, such a lovely gesture.  I opened the beautiful parcel and inside was this stunning Sophie Digard crochet scarf in shades of grey, duck egg, cream, pink and peach.  It is made from merino wool and is so soft and comfortable to wear.

tiny little crochet cartwheels

I am happy to report that the wrist cuffs I made for the Gill P and Gill W were received with delight so I can now show you images as they are now with their owners.

Gill P's request was for pinks and purples

Gill W's request was for coral, terracotta and sludge greens

I hope you all had a wonderful festive period and wish you all a very happy, healthy and prosperous new year.  Until next time......... Jayne x



Exhausted but happy.... Living North

What is it about attending a fair that is so exhausting? Is it getting up early, staying chatty and cheerful all day, long periods without a cup of tea - or perhaps the anticipation of the whole event.  Whatever it is, after four long days we are all looking forward to a day of doing very little.

Setting up went really well although it did take all day, a tweak here, a tweak there, moving and swopping of props to achieve the look we were happy with. Three of us sharing a table required a considerable amount of planning.  Having a stand in the corner of a room we were able to utilise every single inch - and that we did.  We used shelving, suitcases, vintage cake stands, driftwood, contorted willow branches and even a what not to display our wares.  Betty and Violet put in an appearance although Betty had to don a vintage garment to preserve her modesty as she was sporting only a necklace!

Violet was adorned with Gill's lovely nuno felted shawls and scarves.

Gill Pinkney's colourful quirky felt accessories

 

 

Gill Wilds driftwood fish and bird hangings

 

 

my vintage inspired cuffs and corsages nestling in a tiny tattered suitcase with dried hydrangea heads to compliment the colour palette

 

Four busy days followed, lots of people shopping for Christmas gifts for friends and family.  We all were supported by visits from friends and family making it an enjoyable experience all round.  The hard work preparing, setting up and taking down was all worth it.  Lots of cake, mince pies (warmed on the radiator behind us!) tea and sweeties helped us get through the event.

 

The Letters have been read......... coming soon   Jayne x 

 

 

 

 

 

 



Celebrations of a Wedding and Birthday kind!!!

My posts have been a bit few and far between lately as I have been busy working on orders and a lovely wedding commission.  Here, as promised is birthday pressies part II.....

gorgeous semi precious stone bracelet and earrings

stripey lace scarf in my favourite ashes of roses colour

my lil Emily gave me a gorgeous blue hydrangea

I really am a very lucky girl....... and so to Imogen's Wedding.  I met her at Harrogate Home & Gift such a lovely girl, so bubbly and chatty.  She commissioned me to make a bridal cuff and hair corsage for her September wedding.  She chose several elements from my cream neckpiece which was on display at the show. 

I started by sorting lace and silks and then making some merino wool felt.....

embedded with lace

the bridal cuff

hair corsage taking shape

silk rose and mother of pearl button

to finish the pieces, fabric manipulation, seed beads and french knots and here we have them the bridal accessories.....

hair corsage

wrist cuff

My friend Gill W. is a star photographer so she took a couple of images out in the garden in my vintage suitcase....



A trip to the post office this afternoon and Imogen's commission is winging its way to her as we speak, it has been a pleasure to make something that is part of such a special day, a real privilege, I do hope she loves them.........    jayne x







Harrogate Home & Gift - the nerves kick in!

Home & Gift....
What a busy busy week, been down to college, stayed overnight at my friend Therese's house and went to Woolfest in Cockermouth on a coach trip organised by The Knit Studio in Newcastle.

The Home & Gift show is in three weeks time (how did that happen?) so the people who have been selected had to attend College to mock up the stand and organise paperwork etc.  My friend Cheryll and I have known for quite a while we had been chosen but did not know any of the details until Thursday.   We were each allocated two metres by one metre of wall space.   My tutor suggested I take all of my textile pieces so a selection could be chosen.  It proved difficult to display my accessories to reflect who you are and what your work is about.  It somehow seems real now and the nerves have started to kick in!  Will anyone like my work, never mind want to order any!  What if no-one orders anything!  My mind has gone into overdrive.  I have decided to treat it as an adventure and I am sure I will learn a lot, meet lovely people and enjoy the whole experience with friends, keep you posted .......

Woolfest...
I am sure there will be many bloggy people writing about Woolfest, as it only happens once a year I get very excited (I know, very sad!) about the prospect.  This year I went with my creative friends, Gill W, Anne and a last minute entrant Therese.  None of the girls had been before so I was hoping they would like it.  I needn't have worried, they loved it all.  I love the mixture of animals, fibres, designer makers, workshops, demonstrations, the whole experience is a real treat.  I tried to take some photos of the alpacas (just had a very severe hair cut - a No2 on the clippers I'm sure!) but they wouldn't stay still.  They have such huge doe eyes, a swan like neck and a mop of hair, here is the only half decent photograph ...

Normally I like to have a quick look around and then double back to make my purchases.  We all just meandered and took in  the atmosphere.  A variety of spinners, weavers, felt-makers, knitters, basket weavers all working away on their stands.   It is always very busy and this year there was an added marquee to peruse.  There really was some beautiful and original work for sale.  Jenny Pepper felt maker had the most gorgeous stand, think it was my favourite, driftwood, pebbles, wooden crates, cake stands all used to display her exquisite work.  It is interesting to look at how people display their work and what they use as props!  Talking of which....... a lot of purchases were made in the prop department.

 an old wooden shuttle and a vintage folding coat hanger

I had a thought that a few of my corsages would sit nicely in it.  It really is a gorgeous piece of aged wood with some interesting detail....

I usually buy lots of fibres, yarns and fabrics but this year I blew my budget on one stand!  They had so many lovely pieces to choose from I could have spent an absolute fortune!  I had to bypass an old tatty ladder, I could have got it onto the coach but would have had a struggle on the metro train home Pity!!  I did buy a box and three other pieces which I intend to use for display purposes. 

lovely weathered wood and metal

A mystery object of the mill kind!

 metal ends like tiny keyholes

I have no idea what the piece with the holes in could be (answers on a postcard please) but I did think it had good potential for display, a lovely weathered box never comes in wrong either.  A deal was struck and I was a happy girl.  To finish the day off we had a lovely vegan lunch of carrot, herb and pine nut pasty with home made salads, it was absolutely delicious and very filling.  The coach journey home passed quickly as we all looked at what everyone had bought and oooohed and ahhhd.

A quick drink together rounded off the evening, a good time was had by all! 

Did you have an interesting weekend?  Back soon with more purchases of a linen and lace kind!

Jayne x