Tuesday, 29 January 2013

The machine's steaming!

 The sewing machine has been going full pelt this weekend. Remember the zoo fabric cushions I showed you last week? They sold straight away and the lovely girls at Custard Hall told me people were coming in wishing they'd bought one and wondered if I could make some more... did I need an excuse?
So a new pair were duly made and delivered to Custard Hall on Monday morning. The girls put them straight on an armchair in the window with some of my other cushions. I couldn't believe it when they rang an hour later to say both had sold!!
I have a tiny bit of the fabric left and am wondering how best to use it now...
Also whizzed up in the last week or so are some cushions from vintage car fabric. 
Customers always remark on how pretty my stock is and those with boys are always asking for less girly stuff. So I've made a conscious effort this month to cater for all. You won't find any pink in this post.
This old Paddington fabric is lovely, soft and worn. More cushions... backed in yellow wool.
I've just had an order for a Paddington blanket for a...... boy! I must be doing something right.
Sorry I don't know how that snuck in. It's definitely girly isn't it? Not pink though. Lovely blossomy barkcloth. I'm going to make some more of these bags for spring.
Next post is a pretty one, I can see it already...
x

Monday, 28 January 2013

The Dorset 'Shirefolk'

Back before Christmas I bought some lovely old nursery curtains at the flea market. They were quite expensive so I tried some desperate haggling as it was a print I'd had before but in a colourway I'd not seen before. You know what it's like when you know you can't go home without something or you'll think about it forever after, don't you? Please tell me it's not just me!
Christmas took over and then a couple of weeks ago I got chopping.
The fabric is 'Shire Folk' by Burgess Ledward and has lovely pictures of little critters going about their daily business. 
Well you can see.
 
  I'll let them do the talking. Hedgie and Moley that is.
I made a quilt teamed with grey polka dots and backed in a pink vintage wool blanket. The squares are all finished with individual buttons at the corners.
A pair of cushions backed in green wool this time. Trimmed with polka dot ribbons in pink or grey and wooden buttons.
Now adorning a sleigh bed in my antique centre unit!
I'll leave you with a similar cot bed sized version I made and sold several years ago in a different colourway.
 

Tuesday, 22 January 2013

The Cath Kidston one

Last week I teased you with a preview of my old Cath Kidston print - Blue Rosie, I think. 
You all wanted to know what I was going to do with it so...
...I shall keep you waiting til the end of this post!
I was trying to remember when I bought the wallpaper and fabric, and couldn't. I know I used some of it in a house we sold 8 years ago, so way back. Anyway, anyway, (as Harry and Paul would say) it got me thinking about Cath and how long she's been furnishing our homes for now. I read the other day it was the company's 20th anniversary year. So to celebrate I dug out the oldest catalogue I could find - 2002, one of the first thick ones I think and thought I'd share some pics with you.
 Now whenever I post a photo of food it's usually on my kitchen table with this green paisley oilcloth backdrop. I know I will often get more comments about the tablecloth than the food, which says a lot for my cooking!
I think it must have been one of my first CK purchases, back pre-children and has done me proud. It's been through the washing machine many times and being so busy those awful yellow curry stains just don't stand out!
 I happily dream of bathing somewhere like this. Imagine having a bathroom that big? 
Perhaps you do.
  I like this shot a lot - the simplicity reminds me of an old kitchen I had.
 Cosy living rooms I'd like to snuggle up in on a day like today.
 This must have been when it was all taking off. The previous catalogues were little more than pamphlets and the 'find a store' page made me laugh - only 2 of them back then.

Here's a few of my favourite past purchases. I must say, although I'm a bit sick of the sight of the handbags, Ms Kidston's success has certainly brought me more customers who are interested in vintage style and handmade items and for that I applaud her!
 Well, are you ready...? What did I do with Blue Rosie?
Made a Cath Kidston dressing table of course. Destined for a shop near (?) you soon.
(Sorry about all the clutter in the mirror, this is my junk/work/everything room)
 Now I fancy doing a little poll - Be a good sport, play along and leave me a comment to tell me which is your all time most favourite and best Cath Kidston print? Or maybe you don't like them at all...
For me the oldies are the best. You've probably already guessed, Rose Paisley in the bold not bleached colourways.
Here's a few reminders... 



Sunday, 20 January 2013

A +1 Weekend

Finally after all that sleeping with their fingers crossed my jammers got the snow they'd longed for!
 On Friday we woke to whiteness and quietness and a bonus day off school. After checking on the feathered and furry friends and digging out the sledge they wanted to go and play.
 Emily Button and Vanilla got their first ride in a sledge. A rather grand contraption, I thought they looked quite royal with their toy car seat placed on the sledge!
Last time we had proper snow was when we lived here
and all the locals made a fantastic giant sized snowman and caterpillar I blogged about here.
Now we are lucky that at the top of our 'new' road is a roman amphitheatre - perfect for sledging.
 And finally the obligatory snowman. 
 I've made use of the indoor time to make some more cushions.
Vintage zoo print fabric, very old I think. I backed them in some vintage mustard velvet and trimmed with grey polka dots. One for Custard Hall and one for De Danann tomorrow.
Meanwhile the jammers were brilliant at entertaining themselves. when all is quiet I let them get on with it and don't interfere. When I did eventually venture upstairs they had made a hotel under a bed and the toys were all checked in at the desk and snuggled down for the night. 
 I know I keep saying it but I just love this kind of play!
Yesterday we took a trip to Sherborne for a spot of hospital visiting.
 These icicles caught my eye.
 I did manage a quick scoot round the shops and picked up this half price toadstool arrangement. I knew it would be perfect for the hedgie house!
I shall leave you with my latest addition to my unit at the De Danann Centre...
The Cath Kidston make to follow in a day or two.
Keep warm.
x

Sunday, 13 January 2013

Introducing Vanilla

Have you heard? There's a new girl in town.
  She arrived beautifully packaged and hand delivered.
Unwrapped in a frenzy of excitement (both me and little jammer - um who's it for?)
Let me introduce you to Vanilla
 who is causing quite a stir in the Jelly Jam household.
She is the beautiful creation of the lovely Vanilla Squirrel and I ordered her in my favourite fabric.
Fabric I've had for ages, an old pinny in fact. It's been used for all sorts of purpose, cat bed only one of them, whilst I decided what to do with it.
 Anyway, I parceled it up and sent it to the Squirrel who transformed it into this gorgeous creature with super little details I love. All my favourite colours of course. I'm an incredibly fussy customer and after I'd requested hair colour and sent my own fabric I should imagine the Squirrel was thinking "Cripes what have I agreed to"!
Thank you Squirrel! Now Emily Button has a new best friend - just as I'd hoped. 
Don't you love a happy ending?
 We've had a fair amount of our own stitching going on this weekend. No ta dah photos just yet
 but I did break into this lovely early Cath Kidston fabric and wallpaper I've been saving literally for years
Pop back in a day or two and I'll show you what I did with it!
Have a lovely (white?) week!
x

Thursday, 3 January 2013

New Year finishing off!

Reading every one elses blogs it looks like you all had a great new year celebrations. I saw in the new year catching up on those unfinished projects of 2012. I didn't want to carry anything forward into 2013!
What with opening my unit at Custard Hall virtually unplanned at the beginning of December my making was all focused on restocking there. I had some ideas for things for the jammers but clean ran out of time before the big day. Little Jammer was more than happy with her hedgie home and I've been topping up the leaves this week. In the garage I had a printers tray I wanted to give her with a particular purpose in mind. Despite Eldest Jammer and I wallpapering the back on Christmas Eve it just didn't get done.
So New Years Day brought an extra homemade present under the tree for each of my girls along with apologies from a well meaning but disorganised mum.
You may not have realised from the photo above but Little Jammer's printer's tray is actually a stylish storage solution for her growing Moshi Monster collection. For those of you without children of this age, Moshi Monsters are small hideous bright plastic tat figures your parents waste spend their money on as rewards for spelling tests, new reading level, and the like.
Today we put it up in her bedroom and it was quickly filled with Moshis. A Moshling Zoo apparently.
You can never have enough Moshlings!
 I showed you this sneaky peak of some patchwork a few days ago.
Finally I added some light padding and backed it in a spectacular purple sheet from the charity shop and by midnight I'd finished sewing the buttons on to turn it into a quilt for Eldest Jammer.
 She's very much a fan of bold and bright prints so I knew she would love it. Trying to get a suitable ta-dah photo proved tricky due to the appalling state of her bedroom. I don't know where she gets it from, ahem! So this will do for now until we've had a serious bedroom tidy.
And for anyone else feeling left out and wanting their bit of vintage wallpaper loveliness I finished off this bookcase.
Backed in a collage of vintage wallpapers sourced from Jane and Ada Bea,
it found it's way to my shop today!
 Happy New Year to each and every reader. I've loved reading your comments over the year, please keep them coming. 
And to those who signed up today, thanks for joining the ride into 2013. Let's hope it's a pretty and colourful one!
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