Fingers crossed for sunshine!

Hurray! This weekend it's the return of Bridport Vintage Market. Sharon hosts a range of stalls outside her fab shop on the St Michael's Trading Estate. Lots of other antique and vintage shops are open too, as well as a cafe, pizza jalopy and music. Well worth a visit.

http://oldalbion.blogspot.com/

This week I've been busy making some stuff to take with me. since Christmas I've been focused on our house and thought it was about time I replenished my stocks. So... some more memos from lovely old fabrics and lots of lavender pillows.

Some vintage wooden jigsaws and these cute cloth dolls.

Some rectangular cushions, more puzzles and cute springy bits will all be coming with me.


Must go, more lavender pillows to stuff!

Yum, Pussy Willow!

A little while ago I gave you a sneak peak of one of my latest makes for the smallest Jammer's bedroom.

Well here they are in full glory... her long awaited Pussy Willow curtains! I was lucky enough to find this pair in a shop in Bridport last year. At that point we didn't have a house to hang them in but I knew we'd find one with the right size windows eventually... Just had to lengthen them with a bit of spotty fabric.

Pussy Willow has to be my favourite children's fabric and I've got a waiting list of people wanting me to make things from it. I promised the smallest Jammer we'd make some things for her room first and then some things to sell. So this is what she got.

A memo board we've not got round to putting up yet!

A collection of cushions in all three colours. I bought a little bit more of the pink from Donna http://thefabricofmylife.blogspot.com at Talent for Textiles last weekend. Not made a bolster cushion before but quite pleased with how it turned out.

Some bunting of course.


And finally a little bit of colour each framed!


One happy Jammer! Now I've just got to finish the quilt I've started...


and then I promise I'll make some things to sell with the rest of it!

Web Pages referring to this page

Link to this page and get a link back!

Thank you, Dusty!!

We've lived in our new house for almost a month now and for that month we've been the proud new owners of Dusty the bantam. Every morning the Jammers let her out and check just in case she should have laid an egg. Sadly we'd not had any and began to wonder if we would. However what we didn't know was that Dusty was waiting for Pancake Day!

Lots of excitement in our house today when we found this tiny but perfect little egg!

So we could have pancakes after all. I think Dusty's would have fed a doll so we topped up the eggs with a shop one.

I was surprised at the difference in yolk colour. "My what orange yolk you have Dusty!" "All the better for making pancakes with".

From this ...

...to this...

...to this...

How do you eat yours?

I can't wait for a day off now as I've got this lot just waiting for me to get my hands on it! Roll on Thursday...

Finally we're here!

Well I thought it would never happen but ten months on and we've finally moved! Not to where we'd originally hoped, or the one after that, but to something completely different. A 1930's house that ticked all our boxes; garden for guinea pigs, more downstairs space, parking and a workshop. Sadly less character than 'Pinky' but we have anew addition...

...Dusty, who came with the house. Possibly the world's most expensive bantam! She has been a great distraction for the Jammers this week whilst we've set to work on their bedrooms.


She doesn't mind any of this kind of stuff.


Or this.

And follows us all about the garden! Welcome Dusty.

Meanwhile I had a stash of fabric with the Jammers name on it. Firstly, the eldest. She plumped for Sanderson's 1930's panda fabric. I'd collected quite a lot and although I think she'll outgrow it very quickly she loves it. 'Panderson' as it's known in our house was destined to be turned from this...

...to this.

With a quick memo board, cushion and some mini curtains thrown in.

Such an odd print with the strange looking little boy and his panda friend getting up to all kind of antics.

The rest of the bedroom kept us busy with a paint and wallpaper job. Hopefully once she's outgrown 'Panderson' we can add in something a bit more grown up without having to redecorate. Not having wallpapered more than an alcove before we were under pressure as I'd booked carpet for the following morning and we began our two walls at 6pm! Eldest Jammer was delighted with the excuse to stay up late as her useless parents slowly worked their way round the room, wishing they'd started days ago... 10.40pm and she finally got into bed as we cleared up around her. Oh well, it is half term!

Doesn't look too bad for a first attempt. One whopping bubble that shows in daylight is causing me slight concern. Not sure how I'll get the whole strip off to replace it without wrecking the rest? Might have to live with it I think.

Anyway there was loads of wallpaper paste left and I'd just read Hen's blog http://henhousehomemade.blogspot.com/2011/02/fabulous-frome.html and seen some fantastic paper mache creations from Julie Arkell. Eldest Jammer had a half term homework to create an Egyptian artefact so all inspired she typed up lots and lots of facts about pyramids and printed them out in interesting fonts. Mr Jam helped turn a packing box into a pyramid - just like that - and it was left for her to get pasting. Must admit I rather enjoyed helping. Took me back to my college days.

And here is the finished creation... still drying ready for school tomorrow.

I'll leave you with a taster of what's to come in the smallest Jammer's bedroom... Mmmm my favourite and my best!

Check back soon to see the whole room once I've finished sewing.

It's all been a busy here with packing, packing and more packing still to do. Not much time for making which is a shame as I'm dying to get started on stuff for the Jammers' new bedrooms. There's a fabric stash with their names on it!

As always January has been quiet in my shop. I've replenished the toybox...

and few beds have found new homes courtesy of my January sale so have been replaced with these pine sleigh beds. Looks like the Three Bears house!

We delved into the depths of our lock up to find a bed for a customer and uncovered these. All waiting to be restored.

What's your dream bed I wonder?

Bed Sale

Well it's hardly Dreams, Furniture Village or the like (thank goodness), but I'm having my own little sale.

In preparation for moving house (and lock up) in a week or two I've decided to have a bed sale. They seem to be breeding and I really need to make some space. So, there's 20% off all beds during January. If you want to use a card I'm afraid it'll have to be 15%.

Here are a few of the beds I've currently got on display and a few of those awaiting restoration. There are more, again restored and battered, but I haven't got pictures of them all. Send me a message if you're after something in particular.

Happy sleeping!

Christmas round up

Nearly the new year so time for a round up of Christmas I think. I know once work starts next week it'll seem like an age ago.

So, Christmas Eve... cook, cook, cooking! Filo parcels for the big day, mushroom ricey things for Boxing Day and some Rocky Road just because we had the stuff. Needless to say I went to bed feeling very smug that all was prepared in the food department.

The day itself... not too early a start in this household. The Jammers are very considerate and enjoy a lie in like their parents. Father Christmas did them proud and we're now wondering if the Ginger Beer kit he left the 10 year old will be alcoholic or not!! We'll have to be the first to sample it.

We were all pleased that my sister's plane made it through the snowy skies in time for Christmas and we spent plenty of time with her and my dad. Lots more visitors over the next few days and all of a sudden we were left by ourselves. what to do?

We're not huge telly fans but I had been waiting and waiting for Toast and fortunately it did not disappoint! Also got into Just William more for the fab vintage sets than the plot. Feeling quite inspired about moving to a 1930's house now - phew could have been an expensive mistake!

Last week a lovely customer of ours was kind enough to give us free tickets to the town museums. So today we headed down the road to The Teddy Bear Museum.

http://www.teddybearmuseum.co.uk

I just love the old Sooty machine - 20p and Sooty, Sweep and Soo will spring to life and play you a nursery rhyme. I want one at home.

Lots of nice old toys to look at

and the Jammers loved the life size family of bears

Nice to see I've gained a follower or two this week.

Wishing you all a Very Happy New Year!