Tooth Fairy pillows.

I rummaged through my fabric stash last night and set about making another load of Tooth Fairy pillows to sell at the next craft fair.  I'm really pleased with them.  I have had lots of requests for these ... I think the Tooth Fairy must be really busy!

Later today I need to make the rhymes to go in the pocket and I'll be ready to go.

Wet and Windy

We've bee to the lakes to close out caravan down for the winter. We intended to stay a little longer but the weather was dreadful.  Stormy winds and lashing rain meant that outings were brief and once snuggled inside the 4 of us ... and the dog were a little closer together than was strictly comfortable. 

Today we closed the van down completely till next year and set off for a lovely walk along the old railway tack near Threlkeld.  It is a favourite spot for us at the dog can usually have a swim.  The pictures tell the whole story .. the river was too fast and full for even out hardy dog to manage a real swim and I can tell you she was very disappointed. 

River Greta in full flow.

My Son ..who is 16 on Friday! My daughter and husband.
xxx

We're looking forward to next year.

Story Cushion

This week has been a whirlwind of activity.  It began with a weekend in the Lakes with my husband which was lovely.  Then I've had 2 days of cleaning at a local holiday village, one day of visiting a relative in Manchester, Pilates, a run with the girls and my daughter and friends have made a volcano cake for a Geography project ... (so some sort of eruption occurred..)

My daughter's friend            The cake       My daughter x

It was all edible and according to the girls it was delicious.

  I tried some of the strawberry flavoured butter cream  and firmly believe that you have to 13 to love that much pink and that much sugar!  However, they loved it and their teacher was delighted with their inventive Volcano project.

 I've watched my eldest Son's GCSE drama performance  ... which was uncomfortable to watch ... and brilliant at the same time.   So in theory there has been crafting time ... but I've been lax.  Here's the reason why.

I did a little bit of sewing on Tuesday which took the form of a back ground for a story cushion based on Peter Pan.  I decided a map of Neverland would be good ... I'm going to rust the fabric later so that I get the aged map effect that I have in my mind.

 I've made a template of Peter ...

Now I need to stop avoiding turning him into a fabric character.  I'm sure he will be on his best behaviour!

Tagging the treasures.

What a fantastic day.  I've joined a fantastic group who are tagging the treasures which have been left to Lytham St Annes.  It seems that there are over 200 items of art that have been donated over the years and very little is known about them so an online catalogue is being produced by a group of volunteers... of which I am not one and so is my Dad.Have a look at the link to find out more.

http://www.friendsofthelythamstannesartcollection.org/tagging-the-treasures.html

Anyway, today is the day when i selected the picture that I am going to research.  It's by Arthur Wasse who lived between 1854 and 1930. The picture is titled 'Goodbye'.

That is all I know about the picture so far, but I will find out more very soon.
                                   

I keep wondering who she is writing to? She seems to be searching for the right words. I am also drawn to the window, at first I didn't see it as a window frame but as a cross.  I am really intrigued.

A lovely day.

Today has been really relaxing.  I've been for a run with a great group of ladies and then home for a long, hot soak in a bubble bath.  It feels sooo decadent to have a bath in an empty house in the middle of the day.



After that I had a lovely chat with a friend and her little girl (she's 14 months old and does a fantastic line in bottom shuffling..... the little one .. not my friend although who knows what might happen after a little Sauvignon Blanc! )  Anyway the baby spent her time chasing our lovely dog Susie and chatting to her.
These are simply moments to treasure.

Shortly after that I travelled to Preston to Abakhan fabric shop in the hope of buying some fabric with planes or submarines on it.  My mission was unsuccessful but like every needle worker I came home with something different.  I have some Grey fabric to make an Artisan apron for either my Mum or to put on my stall at the next craft fair.
Then I have stitched names on to 3 tooth fairy pillows and added a name to a ballet bag.  Apparently this is going to be a birthday gift for a special little girl.

In an hour or so I'm off to an open evening at the local 6th form college so that my son and his friend can have a look at what is on offer. It's the same 6th form I went to 24 years ago  (although it feels like 240.)

I'm quite excited to see how it has changed over the years.  I'm sure it will be a bit of a wander down memory lane too.

Silk paper and dyeing

I found this brilliant book in our local library.

I love the cover so much I just knew it would be filled with delightful treasure
The title is:- Silk Paper for textile artists by Sarah Lawrence..

So I have been adventurous and had a go at dying silk mawata hankies in the microwave.

I soaked the silk in warm water and ashing up liquid..

Then put them into an old ice-cream container so that the dye does not ruin any other dish.

 I had some procion dye already mixed  so I poured this over the hankies.

Then I put it into the microwave for 3 minutes.

                                      Here's the end product drying on a flat surface.

At the moment it looks like something for Halloween! but I know that i intend to layer it with some other fabrics and stitch so that it will become a fantastic background for me to stitch on.

                                                       Silk Paper making

After this I has a go at making silk paper using PVA. I expected it to be a little bit like making wet felt, but somehow it was trickier.

The next layer is added horizontally.
I think I ought to have repeated this process again .

The noil strands were then covered with a mawata hanky.

Very hot water was poured over the silk which was wrapped inside a lint free cloth. i would usually use a J cloth, but I've run out of them ... obviously I have done too much cleaning lately!

So The silk was laid out vertically

The silk was gently agitated using the back of a spoon ... remember the water is still  hot.

Then the cloth and silk are submerged in a mixture of water and PVA glue. the mixtures should be at a ration of 5 to 1.  I'd seen my friends silk paper refuse to stick together so I poured lots of the glue mixture onto my silk.
The I squeezed it and repeated the process a couple more ties for good luck.

The cloth has to be carefully peeled away and the silk left to dry.

This looks like bark to me and as it's autumn I feel sure that it will become something natural and leaf like. 

I enjoyed making the paper but feel that there is more experimentation to b done before a truly satisfactory paper is created.

Setting up the facebook business page.

I am sooooo pleased that I have finally managed to set up a facebook business page and I have had my first order already!  I'm delighted. I feel as though I ought to be writing in a rainbow of colours just to share my excitement.

I have used this picture as my  profile for now, but I really like it.

 

https://www.facebook.com/Thoughtfulthreadsbyjo

This is where you can find me if you'd like to place any orders.

Now that's enough computer work ... it's time to get back to the fun stuff and get stitching.

Well today has been one of mixed fortunes. The craft fair was really quiet, despite being given a shout out on the radio this morning.  However, every cloud has a silver lining as it gave the stall holders plenty of chance to mingle and swap some trading tips.
 I am so impressed by the lovely creations on sale. The lady from 'the little melting pot' has some delicious cupcake candles. Have a look for yourself.
                                       
                  https://www.facebook.com/pages/Little-Melting-Pot/281650775308376

               
 During the day I have seen some familiar faces, which was lovely.  Thank you for your support.

The next craft fair that I am certain I will attend is on Thursday 21st November at Lytham Assembly Rooms.  It is organised by the friends of Trinity Hospice.  I have been as a visitor many times in the past and it is always brimming and bustling with people, mulled wine and creative crafts of all varieties. It will be my first trip as a stall holder.

Craft fair nerves.

I awoke really early this morning because I needed to finish some items that I ant to take along to the craft fair today. For some reason I have been really nervous about this fair.  maybe it's because I've got some different things for sale today.

I have been sewing some flower scenes when I've had a quiet minute or a little bit of fabric left over and I decided that I could turn these into cards. This is new for me as I have never made cards until this weekend.



I have also decorated a couple of aprons for some friends, but will put them on the stall and show what 

 

I have also bought some canvas sacks which have become laundry bags.
My friend has put one in her teenage son's room and apparently it has done the trick and the laundry had made it into the bag rather that staying on the floor!  (Miraculous I hear you say!)
My Sister-in-law takes these on holiday so that the 'used' clothing has a place of its own. I thought this was a great idea.

I have added a pocket with a name on to this pink apron. It will fit a child up to 12 years of age.

This one will fit a toddler.

I thought I might add a baking image as well as the name but then decided that the apron would be more versatile without the image.

It's time I packed all my goodies up and set off for the fair.  I'll let you know how I got on.

Beautiful Ballet Bags

Beautiful Ballet Bags xxxxx
This week I have been making Ballet Bags.  
They have been made using some gorgeous Harlequin fabric so the bags are quite thick, washable and durable.  I have used a variety of ribbons to close the bags and stitches to embellish so each bag is quite individual.

After my coffee morning I have had a number of orders for these which is wonderful.  
They have been given ad birthday presents.

They are £7.50 each and can be personalised with any name you choose.
  Just send me the correct spelling of the name and I can have a ballet bag with you in a couple of days.

email me at: themoxhams@talktalk.net

Inspirations strikes in the strangest of places.

Yesterday I went in to Lytham with my sister to look for a birthday present for our mum.  We wandered around and I fell in love with some gorgeous wrapping paper, which I bought and gazed at for ages. I thought I might wrap mum's present in it ... but it's looking less and less likely!

The images is upside down, but you  can see the lovely colours and bold design.

I imagined making some cards with similar designs and I couldn't wait to get started . The first job was to dye some fabric using fabric paint.

I also used some procion dye to create this lovely green fabric too.

I was giggling to to myself when I brought the fabric in at midnight.
  I've heard of "In the night garden ... I wonder where Iggle Piggle is?

                                             

                                              That's just my silliness coming out!

Meanwhile, I drew a leaf shape on some thick card board .  I won't be doing this again in a hurry as the cutting process made my hands really ache.

I cut through several layers of organza with a soldering iron to create a leaf shaped skeleton.

Later I cut and stitched various combinations of fabrics such as calico, scrim and organza to make a variety of leaves which I later turned into cards.  

I hope to have them on Sale this weekend at the Solaris craft Fair on Sunday 13th October.

It's on between 10am and 3 pm.