Spring open house this weekend

I'm busy preparing for the first open house of the year. Its been 3 months since my last sale here so plenty of time to sew new designs and collect some lovely vintage finds
On this occasion I've several pieces of furniture as well as the usual smaller items, hope they'll find new homes.

This set of shelves is beautifully painted and is the perfect size to easily display some treasures.

 Particularly like the yellow theme that developed as I arranged my wares

Its a beautiful sunny day here today..no complaints but makes photographing the sitting room more tricky..I've a lovely old French table for sale next to a standard lamp with white linen shade.

A very pretty enamel coffee pot with tulips. Its a good time of year to decorate with flowers;

hyacinths in pots and as cut flowers

I picked up a pretty little French mirror, these are perfect for propping on shelves or in a small corner

This small cupboard is so pretty..would be a perfect bathroom cupboard or placed on a table as here.
Another larger mirror seen behind is also for sale

Some lovely French toiles made into cushions
Do come if you can between 10-9pm on Friday and 10-4pm on Saturday
On Saturday evening I'll be packing the car for Manchester the following day where I'll be standing at the textile society fair in Fallowfield.(more details on the left)

Cushions or should that be pillows

Last week lampshades, this week it's time to sew some cushions or should I be calling them pillows.  I know the Americans have always referred to those squashy things on the sofa as pillows but it was always cushions in the UK but recently I have noticed that more and more of my customers describe them as pillows. Certainly the word cushion can often be challenging to northern vowel sounds like mine and perhaps pillow sounds softer and more appropriate but then what do we call those things our heads rest on whilst in bed
Anyway to the point.... I bought some pieces of quilted toile in December and was looking forward to seeing them made up

There was one piece large enough for the front of a cushions and the other pieces have been combined with white linen

The second piece was part of a bed hanging I think and I've kept the scalloped edge to overlap the white linen although the cushion opens at the back as usual. It's a story I've come across before, Le Digit Coupe or the cut finger and shows a little boy having his injured finger bound up by an old lady
A cat features at his feet

And for dog lovers the third smaller cushion is La Bonne Nouvelle, although no text on this piece. "The good news" is being read whilst a pekenese sits at his feet

I picked up some nice pieces of French ticking; simple blue stripe with enough for a large pair of cushions. This size is almost the same as a pillow and looks good on beds.

Also a beige linen ticking, much rarer and if bigger very nice for lampshades. I've teamed the ticking with a cream vintage linen and finished the group with a large shade in this cream linen. Looks lovely lit as the cream fabric gives a warm glow

Finally a group of simple mangle cloth cushions. These linen pieces with striped edges were used to protect fragile pieces of fabric whilst being mangled and are very useful for making shades and cushions. Finished this group with a small shade with striped band

Am now working on new greetings cards as stock had become very low by the end of last year
My next open house will be at the beginning of March, slightly earlier than usual but do hope you can make it; get in touch if you need directions....be lovely to see everyone after the winter break

How to display these fabulous pieces?

Several weeks ago I bought these two fabulous pieces of children's clothing; French in origin but as as to age I can only guess at sometime in the 19th century.

The workmanship is amazing particularly in the blouse/shirt. The back and front are pintucked and lined with a striped serge, the sleeves gathered and set in and a sweet stand up collar

The little waistcoat looks as though it was intended to be worn with the shirt and both appear to be the right size for a one year old.
My three year old grandson surprised me by being keen to try them on but they are far too small and truth be known far too itchy for any modern child. The rather rough wool based fabrics would have been uncomfortable next to the skin and very difficult to wash..did the toddlers of the past not vomit and spill in the same way as those in my experience do

So as they will not be used as originally intended I decided to frame them and display on a wall.
Last week I thought I had found the perfect frames, although not big enough for both the larger could contain the shirt and the smaller the waistcoat; then both would be hung side by side to show their connection.

So far so good, so far as the framer's shop! It has always been a mystery to me why some retailers would rather say no than yes but on Saturday morning we had the misfortune to meet two in the space of an hour. First the woman who took delight in telling us they didn't have what we wanted and how would she know what was in their other branch, "she wasn't there was she?"
And then the framer himself who said no he couldn't use my frames and even if I bought new from him it would be too expensive to be worthwhile...nice that he knew how to not spend my money for me!

So we're back to our usual DIY solutions but if anyone knows of a more accommodating framer perhaps you could let me know
Hopefully I'll be able to post pics of the framed items sometime in the not too distant future
You can see the clothing if you come along to my open house this Friday or Saturday and offer advice!

Spring Open House this weekend

I always enjoy getting the house ready for one of my open house sales but this time its involved rather more furniture shifting than usual. I've a few pieces of furniture to sell so making room for them has been a priority.

The large space we cleared in the sitting room to accommodate an extra sofa whilst the log burner was fitted has been usefully filled by a bed!
This sweet brass and iron bed has been stored for use by our grandchildren only to find that a blow up bed is a much more practical and indeed very popular alternative. Hopefully someone else will enjoy dressing it with a quilt and a pile of cushions; the art nouveau motif is particularly nice.

This weekend however it will be great to show off the quilts and the abundance of red and blue cushions I have at present

This oak dresser has really neat proportions so useful storage where space is tight. It has polished up nicely but could of course be given a painted finish

I placed this sweet hat and gloves as if their owner had just returned from her errands; think I had Mrs Dalloway in mind!

The paint finish on this bench is original and a lovely shade of green and cream. Great for halls and conservatories these benches can also be left outside although maybe not over a winter as long and chilly as this one is proving to be.

They are lovely left bare but I find ours tends to fill up with cushions or more often abandoned coats..please note discarded shoes husband dear!

I have a tiny cupboard for sale, very beautifully painted inside and out with a waxed finish; it sits nicely on a table and hides a stack of CDs for instance

I like this interesting box although the camera hasn't captured the lovely dark blue grey paint colour. It was used to carry round radio equipment in WW11 and I love the stencilled instruction to "handle like eggs" obviously more precious than china in the war

Finally a close up of the mantelpiece with a French road sign and a rather lovely portrait
Do hope I'll see some of you on Friday or Saturday; if you need directions just email or ring as its always lovely to welcome customers both old and new

More Christmas sales

The Selvedge fair was fabulous...PHEW, what a relief!  The customers surged forth from a long queue outside at 10 to a roomful of frantic last minute shoppers at 4; lots of lovely interested people who were there to buy. It was probably just as well that I had so little time to look as there was serious and expensive temptation in the room (and corridors outside).

We were indeed packed in and I found, having built my stall around a new shelf I had bought earlier in the week, that it was impossible to engage with customers from behind the stall.

This was a good thing as it forced me to sell more actively than I usually like to and is a lesson for the future.

The most exciting sale of the day was to Priscilla Carluccio who bought one of the monogrammed cushions having complimented me on the precision of my workmanship. I'm afraid to say I didn't recognise her although had inwardly admired her simple Guernsey style sweater, ethnic fabric coat and short stylish hair but as we discussed retail and design she mentioned her shop (sadly now closed) Few and Far. It was then that I realised I was in the presence of design royalty and was able to tell her how much I had enjoyed visiting her shop/gallery which was always an inspiration.

Of course in London its possible to see anyone including a lovely customer I had last seen at a very wet summer fair in Norfolk and who I did recognise. There was such talent in the room from those who source fabulous fabrics..thebluelinencupboard, Beyond France, Polly Lyster's Dyeworks and indeed vintage linen doyenne Jane Saatchi to incredibly talented makers. I was sorry not to have had chance to photograph more but lovely Ellie Evans had a stall full of gorgeous, embroidered pieces and to her right a girl called  "Holy Smoke" who made all manner of pieces from grey linen.

My lovely, and long suffering, neighbour was Jessie Chorley who became a friend for the day. I had heard about her work and shop on Colombia Road but never seen her work....ethereal hangings, pictures and journals using embroidered text and found items. Completely unique and inspiring, suffice to say she was surrounded by admiring shopppers all day.

So back home to restock for this week's fairs in Woburn and in Harrogate.Really looking forward to seeing old friends both amongst the stallholders and customers and to relaxing with my daughter who lives in Leeds
The monogrammed cushions sold very well in London and I've made up the final two. On a linen ground I've surrounded these with a lovely creased linen and a toning floral print.

The Selvedge fair focussed mainly on my handmade designs but I have bought lovely vintage pieces for these fairs..as ever finding room for them all on the stall will be the challenge.

I will have chance to show them all the following week at my open house; do leave a comment if you would like an invite or indeed any more info about the fairs or stock in this post

open house this weekend

I've spent the afternoon reorganising the ground floor of my home to accommodate my open house sale this Friday and Saturday. I love playing shop and working out how best to display my designs and vintage finds.

It's lovely to display cushions on sofas and chairs rather than piled on stalls but equally it's fun to place bags on mantelpieces or lampshades lined up on a bench.

When I first started my business in October 2003 I relied almost entirely on these open house sales. My long suffering friends became customers and brought along friends, colleagues and relatives and so it grew.
Now I stand at several events most months as well as seeking out new trade customers but I still love these more relaxed sales. Walking downstairs to sell certainly certainly beats the 5.30 am starts I've been experiencing recently.

I love seeing people I haven't seen for several months and catching up with news, especially after the summer holidays; we'll have a coffee or glass of wine before they browse whats on offer. I enjoy introducing customers to one another and they often recognise people from a previous sale.

A new one for this sale is a competition; the first person to identify how this wooden board was used originally will win a hellish designs voucher. If you want to join in just email me your idea.

I add to my database of email contacts at each fair I attend but if you'd like an invitationto the sale just email me.

Alternatively I will be setting the alarm ready to drive to Manchester on Sunday for the textile fair..details on the left.