Off to Chipping...

Just a quick post to show you some of the items that I shall be taking along to the Vintage & Handmade Fair at Chipping Sodbury tomorrow (Happy Birthday Daddy!)...

I have been saving the summery deckchair, that some of you may remember I made-over last September, especially for the fair. I thought it would make a good centrepiece on my stall and be great for displaying dolls and cushions. I've booked a single pitch instead of a double one this time, so want to create a neat and cohesive display of my wares...Well, that's the plan!...

New handmade rag dolls include Pagan in her mohair jacket and French fabrics.

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Maisie in a Fair Isle cardigan and C19th Vichy check dress...

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And Harriet in a striking turquoise cardigan and luscious floral layers.

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I've made some more fluffy powder-puffs with vintage trims.

And one of my flapper style hat stands will be coming along too. I recently bought the old doll's face and have combined it with a vintage candlestick and antique trims...

Doesn't she look cheeky?!

There will also be plenty of handmade handbags (including this cotton ticking variation on my usual design below), cushions, brooch pillows and lavender sachets, to name but a few. (And yes, I did manage to finish 25 chandelier charms!)

Hope you can make it along to the 4th V&H fair, as it promises to be a great event once again, with lots of fine craftswomen and vintage dealers to tempt you with their treasures. Thanks to Jayne and Michele for all their hard work in its organisation.

Sunshine please!

Right, off to the shop now - Have a great BH weekend, whatever your plans,

Niki x

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Sidetracked

Why am I sitting here typing another blog post, I ask myself?...I have so many other things that I should be doing...but once again I can be found procrastinating...
I have pushed the vacuum cleaner around, I really have...I promise...
The duster has also had a quick flick about the place...

Daughter's bedroom has been given a spring clean as gorgeous first-born will be coming home for a few days tomorrow...we haven't seen her since Christmas, so it is long overdue...

She's coming home in order to attend a friend's wedding. Gulp, school friends of hers are starting to walk down the aisle and I'm not sure I'm ready to think about things like that yet...

I'll be officially middle-aged in a very short while and I'm not ready to give in to that just yet either!

So once again I can be found faffing about the place, looking at treasures that I have accumulated over the years and fiddling and tweaking instead of getting down to the stuff with real substance...

How/why does that happen?!

Give me a nudge, will you?

I have rag dolls to finish sewing for Saturday's Fair...

And I've just received a delivery of chandelier drops that I was going to make into pretty key charms again, also ideally for Saturday(!)...but maybe that will be pushing things just a little...

And don't mention the millinery flowers and antique lace fragments that I had so many plans for...

Ouch!...OK, nudge received, thank you!

I'm off to be productive now...
But I may just have to stop on my way and rearrange the shelves just a little more ;-))

"Happy Faffing!" (Oooo, I do love that word!)

Niki x

Huge Sigh of Relief...

Way back in January I reported on my blog how the painter I hired had braved the freezing conditions to give the first coat of eggshell and masonry paint to my shop's frontage. The severe weather wasn't ideal for allowing paint to dry properly, so the second coat was scheduled for a warmer day in the future...
Well, I waited...
And waited...
I received a bill to pay...But I told them that wasn't going to happen until the job was finished...
I waited...
I emailed...
I phoned...
I had promises made to me...
I waited...
You get the idea! Then finally the date was set for the works to be completed. That day was today. Hooray!
Now after all of that stress and aggravation I would admit to being reluctant to recommend this company for their customer service...But I cannot fault the work of the painter who came today and finished off the whole job in the sunshine.

I heard several people asking him what the colours where as they liked them so much - just goes to show what a bit of sunshine does, as I had a mixed response in January!
Also today I had some good news from my landlord; clearing up an incident that occurred recently which had caused me a bit of anguish...So all I can say is thank goodness I can concentrate on other things now that loose ends have been tied!
Hope you've had a good day too,
Niki x

Drip, Drip, Drop Little April Showers...

Update: I've just realised that this is my 500th blog post(!), so just wanted to use it as an opportunity to thank everyone who stops by, be it regularly, or once in a while...You make it all worthwhile. I am so grateful for all the friends that I have made and the knowledge I have gained from the ideas and experiences that we all share on the www.
Once again, I'm sorry that I find less time for Blogging these days...the starting up of my new business from scratch, all on my lonesome, does mean time to think of my next post, or to comment and visit others, regrettably has to be way down on my to-do list...
Thanks for your kind understanding...These are for you!
Niki x

I returned from a short buying trip around lunch time today, by which time the rain that was forecast had begun to fall. Dare I say it, but it was quite welcome after such a long dry spell. The garden seemed to relish it and was soon looking very perky. As soon as the rain cleared up, I went out to snap a few shots of the lush new growth that seems to be springing up everywhere just now...

Call me sentimental if you like, but this week has been the first week that I have been out into our back garden since loosing our hens. They were all such characters and I had got used to gardening around them. They would always follow me when I was in the garden and would be there in any hole that I dug in the hope of me uncovering a worm or delicious grub! Freshly planted seedlings and plants regularly got dug up by them too, so it was always a bit of a battle.

Gardening this year should be a lot easier without their unhelpful input! - But I do miss them.

One feathered friend that is still with us is this collared dove who nests under our raised decking every year. She's quite used to sharing the place with us and isn't too frightened by our presence.

I've planted four new foxglove plants this week, of lavender, apricot, cream and pink. Can't wait to see them in flower later next month.

The grass has had its first trim of the year...and looks like it will soon need another one very soon.

And there's plenty of spring colour in the borders to make a heart sing.

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If you love gardening, you'll know what great therapy it can be. I'm looking forward to spending many more hours in mine when I have the chance this year.
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Now, back to that buying trip that I mentioned...

Once again antique fabrics found their way into my shopping bag and include these wonderful floral ones fresh from France.

And did you spot the necklace? You may have seen it being modeled by Flossie on Lizzie's blog here. I would imagine it dates from the 1930's or 40's and has been hand made from sea shells which have been painted to resemble anemones. I just LOVE it!

Funnily enough, a few weeks ago I bought myself this booklet, which included some instructions to make sea shell flowers. I did wonder at the time if anyone actually ever attempted to make them...and now I know that they did!

(There are lots of other types of flowers to make too from other materials, including leather, wool, fabric and even glass.)

I also bought these lovely old millinery flowers today, as I want to have a go at recycling them along with some other vintagey bits and bobs to make some interesting little brooches. I wanted a little project to sit and sew by hand in the evenings, and this should be perfect.

Other finds from my morning's foray include a c1930's monkey pyjama case...

Pretty china...

Glass plaques, Deco vase and some beautifully polished shells.

Hope you've had a lovely weekend,

Niki x