Playing catch up....

I have been so busy with all manner of things that my usual preparations for Christmas have been put on the back burner.  As a person who puts decorations up on the last Sunday in November, I have finally completed the task this afternoon.  We have a lot of sorting out to do in the New Year.  We have a lot of excess things with Mr T returning from living and working in the Highlands.

View from the cottage window Kyle of Sutherland

 

I love decorating our home for Christmas. The tree has had to reside in the kitchen just for this year as there is just nowhere to put it in our back sitting room.  We have a wood burning stove in the front room so it is impossible to put a tree in there. 

 

 pixies, reindeer and robins

 

I am so lucky to have such creative friends who are kind enough to give me gorgeous gifts which now live in our kitchen normally, but adorn the tree at Christmastime.





cheeky robin with rusty dingly dangly legs

 

grey dove with hand decorated metal heart

 

ruby red dotty 'love' star all by Gill Ellis Wilds

 

 

fairisle woolly Santa

 

Needle felted redheaded Angel

 

needle felted Santa Claus all by Gill Pinkney Felt



 

 I do love a bauble!

 

simple berry twig on the railway sleeper mantelpiece

 

Mr T and I are looking forward to our first Christmas as grandparents, little Thomas is nearly eight months old.  Time passes so quickly, I had a little weep to myself this afternoon when I was sorting the boxes to go back up into the loft.  I found all of Emily's Christmas cards to, and from us.  Some she had made herself at nursery and school.  The one that tipped me over the edge was the one that said "mummy I love you too much"!  Happy memories, don't know why it upset me. 

 

If you look very closely in the last picture behind the lantern, a tiny wax corsage is peeping out.  It is my mother's wedding day flowers - edelweiss I believe.  Whilst clearing my mother's house I came across it.

 

Before I go, I wish all of my lovely blogging friends a very Happy Christmastime.  Thank you to each and every one of you who make my day by leaving a comment.  I enjoy reading your blogs so much too.  Until next time......  Jayne x

 

 

Christmas is coming......

Autumn brings such gorgeous days to go walking on the beach, we are so lucky to live five minutes away from the stunning Tynemouth long sands.

St. George's Church steeple in the distance

 

Things have been really busy in the Hewison household the last few weeks so I must apologise once again for neglecting my blog.  Preparations are in full swing for the Kirkley Hall Christmas Fair next Saturday and Sunday.  Gill P and I will be sharing a stand so it is always lovely to have company.  We have both been busy developing new work, some things work out and some things don't.  The kilt pins I have been making seem to be very popular so I have bought some lovely old swan bill pins to make teeny tiny ones..

 

Betty modelling her French vintage dyed nightgown and duck egg kilt pin

 

 

My little collection of vintage labels have been utilised to create another couple of pins...  I know I have more but having searched the house from top to bottom they are still missing.  I am sure when I least expect it they will turn up!

 

vintage labels and buttons

 

the finished article...

 

I was very lucky last Sunday at the flea market, a lovely elderly gent was selling some beautiful linen and crochet doileys.  I couldn't make my mind up which to buy as they were all gorgeous so he let me have all 37 for a really good price, well, it would have been rude not to buy them!

 

 

 

The red and green dye pots have been in full swing dyeing manila tags.  A mini production line has been assembled on our kitchen table...

 

rich ruby red

 

Crowns, Snowflakes and Merry Christmas

 

So, all in all, I am quite organised (oh no now I have said it, I am sure something will go drastically wrong!) so it just leaves me to sort out what I am going to take, how I am going to display my work and lots of packaging (hopefully I will need it!!!).  Until next time..... Jayne.  I would love to hear what you have all been up to in my absence.







The light at the end of the tunnel

I must apologise for my absence.  The last few months have been extremely hectic in this household. Lots of new and exciting things, and some not so.  I can see the light at the end of the tunnel thank goodness, so I am back and must say I have missed all my blogging friends. 

One of the things that has kept me occupied is the opening of my Etsy shop, the Inspiration Packs sold so well my days were spent dyeing, washing and sorting fragments of lace, fabric, trims etc.

The new Vintage Eclectic packs have proved popular too.

vintage bits and bobs

 

I have been sourcing lace and fabrics at my favourite flea market.  This weekend I met a lovely lady who was selling some of her grandmother's linens.  I bought some gorgeous pieces that she had made.

 

 lovely daisies

beautiful hand worked doilies

 

I have spent some lovely making days with my friends Gill P and Gill W, on Monday we had a day at my house, lots of tea drinking, home made turkey broth accompanied by a pain blanc from Castle Bakery and for pudding apple, blueberry and plum crumble and cream. ( well girls' need sustenance whilst creating).

 

 

 

 

 

Gill P was making her garden flower brooches, Gill W was sorting her boxes of beads, papers and general card making supplies.  Lots of tea was involved, oh and some Cadbury Giant Buttons!!!

A surprise visit from Emily and baby Thomas (my li'l tuppence) just rounded the day off nicely.









 I have been trying to develop some new work and this is what I made on Monday

 duck egg blue kilt pin embellished with tiny trinkets

 details

 tiny star and leaf with a lovely old linen button

 

 

ruby red embellished with a selection of vintage decorative buttons

 

I find myself looking for old and interesting books to buy (not sure why) and I did pick up a couple on Sunday at the flea market...

 



The Children's Pilgrim's Progress

Philips' Handy Volume Atlas of the World

 

Gill P and I are having a stall at Kirkley Hall Christmas Fair so as it is in November, we better get cracking.  I have been trying to keep up with facebook, Etsy, pinterest and blogging but there are only so many hours in a day.  If I haven't commented lately, please forgive me.  Until next time.... Jayne x

 



 

 



 

 



Hello and how are you all?

The summer has flown and the nights are drawing in, the temperature has changed and autumn is upon us.  I have had a very busy summer spending a lot of time with my daughter Emily and grandson Thomas.  We have had some lovely walks along our stunning coastline, enjoying the sunshine and stopping for tea and cake at some lovely cafes in our area.  I hadn't realised how long it was since I had written a blog post.

 I am so thrilled at the response I have had to my Etsy shop and selling my Inspiration Packs on facebook, it has kept me very busy over the last few weeks.  I have had to replenish my crochet trims and laces, and so took myself off to Tynemouth flea market.  Jean (the lace lady) has a stall every few months and had telephoned me to say she would be there on Saturday.   I just couldn't resist this lovely battered and tattered duck egg blue tiny case, ideal to display and photograph my work on.

A friend of mind Anne has a lovely Vintage stall selling all manner of interesting things from trims, laces, fabrics, jewellery, handbags etc. and she always has something a little out of the ordinary and yesterday was no exception!  I just had to have these gorgeous fragments of oriental embroidery.  The colours and hand sewing attracted me to them, I have no idea what I will do with them, if anything, but I do think they are beautiful.

Gold thread embroidery

 

I am wondering why it is only part finished, but it has been well worn.  A mystery that may never be solved.  I will try and find out more information when I speak to Anne again. 

 

Jean always has some incredible pieces of lace, some out of my price range but gorgeous to see nevertheless.  My first purchase.......

 

 cotton fabric and lace layers

 

 

the bottom section of a dress over a hundred years old

 

strips of cotton embroidered net

 

 a selection of tiny crochet motifs and doillies

 

 

hand made needle lace

 incredible workmanship

 

 

a bag of assorted crochet and cotton trims

 

mother of pearl buttons

 

lovely old tape measures, still in feet and inches just like me!

 

 

Time to pop a few fragments of my lovely new trims and lace into the dye pot. Thank you to all of my blogging and facebook friends who leave me lovely comments, and to new followers of my blog, I really do appreciate each and every one of you. Jayne 

 

p.s. baby Thomas melts my heart - such a smile.....

Sunny Days, Making Days...

Last week at the local flea market I came across a few lovely bits of vintage crochet and linens.  A lady was selling lovely little bundles tied up with string.  When I got home I untied them and found a few treasures....

 

hand embroidery

 

 

fragments of crochet trim

 

 

part finished embroidery

 

 

transfer printed linen and exquisite embroidery

 

 

There were several lovely pieces of old linen part embroidered and this led me to ponder on what I could make with them.  I love hand embroidery and always embellish my work myself.  However there was something about these linens that inspired me.  I decided to try and use them to make some new work.

 

A making day was arranged with Gill P for Friday.  We sat in the sun in Gill's lovely back yard amongst pots of geraniums, hanging baskets, lanterns and fairy lights, happily sewing in the sunshine.  A lovely lunch of home made quiche and salad followed by a chunk of chocolate cake. Gill was making a purple frayed fairy.  I decided to cut into my lovely linens and started to layer them on top of each other with hand dyed vintage linen in shades of ochre in between. 



 

cutting and layering - a work in progress

 

 

linen and mother of pearl buttons using matching threads

 

 

layered corsage with hand embroidery and buttons - the finished article!

 

 

I am hoping to make a few more of these vintage style brooches - not a piece of lace in sight.  I will leave you with an image of a cuff I am working on in shades of ochre, again a work in progress...

 

 

 

 

Until next time........ hope the sun is shining where you are. Jayne x