BIRTHDAY GIRLS

2 birthday's this week....so I've been busy with cards & sewing projects.

Today is my lovely mother-in-law, Anne's....Birthday Wishes With Love have been sent in the post to arrive in Ireland this morning from me & C. She's an amazing lady, I hope she has a great day & treats herself to something nice with the money!

It was also Grainne's (C's god-daughter) birthday this week & another package was sent across the water to Ireland, this time with a very girly handbag & key fob as I know she's a a fan of all things pink & pretty!

& last but not least Bosco got a pressie too....& yes I know he's neither girl nor is it his birthday but he's forever sleeping on the windowsills & so I thought he could do with a bit more comfort :) He's now the proud owner of a cat-nap-quilt....perfect for snoozing in the sunshine! Think I'll put a couple of these in my shop over the next few weeks for other spoilt cats around the world!

Have a lovely weekend one & all. We have friends coming to stay & we're planning on much eating, drinking & merriment! x

COPPER CHICK & COOKING

our 1st copper hen

can't catch me hare from hil's degree show

coat hanger postcards

mr & mrs copper chicks (our wedding pressie)

....I'm back to complete the post as promised! These pieces are all handmade by our very talented & gorgeous friend Hilary Bell. She works mainly in copper & is very much influenced by nature & the things that surround us day to day. We met in Manchester, pretty much on the 1st day of arriving to start our university adventures & I'll always remember my Mum saying "she looks like a girl you'll make friends with"....and so we did :)

She now lives & work in Edinburgh & we don't get to see her nearly enough. We're lucky to have some of her work in our home though so she's always around in the form of her/our copper chicks which always make me smile. She makes the most wonderful cards too....I'm already looking forward to this year's Christmas one!!

Another person who inspires me is the amazing food writer Tessa Kiros. I have treated myself to 2 of her books over the past year & whenever I pick one up to cook from or just to read I am blown away by the complete & utter gorgeousness of what's inside. Oh, the covers are just fantastical too....they're what attracted me in the 1st place....so I would say do judge a book by it's cover in this case. I found a great interview with her at Who Wants Seconds? too. I would recommend her books to anyone who loves cooking/colour/design/photography....anyone else out there a fan?

Here's a couple of pics to get you in her groove! (I see now that they're all on a cakey theme....must be my sweet tooth! Lots of fab savoury recipes too) x

TUESDAY INSPIRATION

Today I'd like to share the work with you of Miriam Zadik Gold....I've fallen in love with her mosaic work, especially this bunting which is so wonderful....they're my kind of colours!! Her website is worth a visit, especially to see her other mosaic creations (including crockery brooches - so sweet!) along with her papercuts & sculptural work.

The bunting is just about to go into a show at the Canary Wharf Gallery in London & has featured in the UK magazine Grand Designs. I find the pattern & textures so inspiring....I'm hoping to go & see the pieces "in the flesh" as I'm sure they're even more beautiful in reality :)

CARS & KEY FOBS

It's rained here all day today....so I stayed indoors & did some making. I put these piles of fabrics together for future quilt projects....I've got so much fabric that I've collected over the years plus a load of vintage lace & ribbons so some good materials to work with which is where it all starts inspiration-wise for me.

I thought I'd try out a couple of little projects to stock in my etsy shop. The key fob is padded, filled with dried lavender from my garden & has a nice vintage button & Swarovski crystals. I love these browns & turquoises together....

back & front

My other creation is this lavender scented charm....I imagine it hanging in my car (good for radiating some calm in traffic jams!) By the way that's not my car in the photo!! But my dream car....I see these Figaros all over the place these days as they're on my radar....I'm not really a car-mad person but these are so so sweet, v 50s, v retro (Wayne Hemingway drives one) made in Japan & totally impractical but maybe one day I'll trade up from my old £400 metro??! This particular one was parked outside Ark, one of my favourite shops in Cambridge.

So all in all I'm pretty pleased with what I got up to today....now I just need to get these up on etsy & make a link on my blog. That'll have to wait until tomorrow though....Friday evening & I'm off to spend time with C & B. Have a lovely weekend everyone! x

AUTUMN DUSTERS

a satisfying line of dusters out to dry in the autumn sunshine

it also reminds me that I want to recommend the film
little miss sunshine
I don't think I've laughed out loud so much in a cinema before....go see it everyone!!

FINITO!

It's been a while my friends....in fact a whole week since I sat down to write & it's not that I've been lazy....just busy & spending time with my Mum who came to stay. It's good too because I can update on the WIP & happily report that the bed runner has been finished....yay!!

The very fact that Mum was here to stay played a big part in getting the runner done....I've had some help from the quilt-expert herself & we've learned a few lessons together along the way with techniques etc. I'm so pleased with how it's turned out & it's currently looking all lovely on the spare bed upstairs.

I have a few things to start researching....I'm looking into ways of printing my illustrations/sketches on to fabric with my home inkjet printer (has anyone tried these?) & also need to get hunting down vintage sheets for backing quilts which for me generally starts on eBay (must. not. get. sidetracked though!).

Anyway, it now feels that Nest is nearly born. We've been talking business & are going to give it a go together so wish us luck. So many ideas swirling around our brains now....I'll be back with an update soon :)

HAPPY BIRTHDAY GRANDMA

Today is my Grandma C's birthday....she's my maternal grandmother & I'm sure she won't mind me saying that she's 77 today....here's a few things that I think of when I think of her, Mary....

happy holidays spent in england
(see above....that's me downing the pop!)
cosy stripey flanelette bedding
her gold swallow earrings
fidgi perfume
her love of clothes....& of bargains!
good baking....especially her famous crumbles
walks amongst the fallen leaves
very neat handwriting
milky coffee
musicals....especially calamity jane
ballroom dancing
her amazing talent for knitting
headscarves
oil of ulay (& of olay....but most of all ulay!)
autumnal colours
her love of her family