All Strung Up

 

 

 

Having recently acquired/borrowed from Mum, a copy of ‘Granny Chic’, and noticing a rather blank patch of wall in my room, I decided to create a ‘quirky & jolly string’. I have decided on a slightly more modern update than the one featured in the book. I’ve composed mine from a mixture of book pages, wrapping paper, mirrored beads, feathers, beads and fabric flowers.

 

It was slightly more complicated than I originally thought it would be… Knotting tiny bits of thread is just a little fiddly and becomes tangles far too easily! But with two nails hammered into my walls, my ‘quirky & jolly string’ looks quite pleasant and fills a gap quite adequately!

 

 

 

...Miss Jones...

Free As A Bird

I made a bird! And it actually worked!!

 

When I first set out to make it, I wasn’t really expecting it to work out very well…

 

 

 

I stole the idea from Cath Kidston’s Make book, and despite not following the instructions (!) I’m actually rather proud of it! I chose two bits of lovely floral fabric and a wonderful piece of velvet ribbon to give it a fabulous vintage feel. Although it’s not very Christmassy I can see it fitting perfectly onto my Christmas tree.

 

 

 

 

 

...Miss Jones...

Having My Cake And Making It Too

 

 

 

So after a ridiculous amount of time spent procrastinating, I have finally finished something! I honestly can’t believe it’s taken me so long – but you know what it’s like; you start something, abandon it, start something else, abandon that, go back to the first thing, get bored and do other ‘important’ things instead!

This was inspired by (well, I’m sure you can tell) cake! Because who doesn’t love a huge slice of cake, a dainty cupcake or a delicious biscuit? The cupcake was definitely missing that elusive ‘something’ that brings everything together, so I decided to experiment with some beads. And I now love the finished project; just a sprinkling of beads has livened up the whole thing!

 

The frame definitely had to be painted in one of my favourite colours – Cranberry from Laura Ashley – I just love how bold it is! A carefully chosen piece of faded sheet music to cover the ugly board behind completed my project.

 

...Miss Jones...

Alice's Temporary Wonderland

Being a slightly mad bunch of friends, we decided that an Alice in Wonderland themed birthday party for our friend Alice was a definite must. It was also decided that this was to be a surprise, but that didn’t work out quite so well…

Planning this fabulous event was definitely a lot of fun. I had given myself permission to drift off into the land of make believe and dream of whimsical, and often impossible, ideas! I set aside a notebook and began planning menus, decorations, outfits – everything that goes hand in hand with a party. I soon had a rough idea of how the day was to commence, and just a week before I set about creating the decorations.

First there were paper chains. Hand cut from the pages of an old Alice in Wonderland book they were glued together and stored carefully away. Then there were placemats. Full pages from the same Alice in Wonderland book featuring lovely colour illustrations (these also later hung from the backs of chairs). Then there was card bunting. A length of string, a pack of cards, scissors and a hole punch was all that was needed to create this. Then I set about to make some tiny ‘eat me’ cards designed to be stuck into the delightful delicacies.  And then it was the long process of cutting out hearts, diamonds, spades and clubs – all also to be stuck into cakes.

And then the day of the party arrived, and it was into the kitchen for me. Slaving away, with a little bit of help, I created mini quiche, sandwiches, cupcakes, mini cupcakes, jam tarts, a birthday tart and scones – all before 5 o clock! Luckily the guests were late so there was ample time to get changed into a fabulous dress, heels and hat, and carefully transfer everything outside! No accidents occurred and the table looked wonderful! Cocktails were served to everyone upon arrival. Poured from teapots into quaint, mismatched teacups and garnished with a slice of lemon and umbrella, they were picture perfect!

 

...Miss Jones...

A Little Slice of London

I apologise for the shockingly long break from blogging; I have started and abandoned many sewing projects before finally settling down to finish this one!

Instead of the delightfully rustic embroidery fabric I usually use, I decided to choose a slightly more stark white, so that the black thread stands out more against the distressed turquoise frame. I was slightly worried that the scale of London Bridge and The London Eye would not be right - which it probably isn't - but I love it anyway! Definately not perfect by any means but delightfully handmade and quintessentially British!

Perhaps I will next undertake a New York or Paris skyline - wish me luck!

...Miss Jones...

'Odds and Ends'

Searching around for something to create I finally remembered something I'd seen at an Antiques Fair - a lovely little label; reading 'Odds and Ends'.

I decided to embroider the words as I have yet to get bored/annoyed with this particular method of creating! I found a nicely contrasting fabric and set about sewing it all together! Not too many mishaps occurred along the way, but I do quite like the result!

My chosen 'odds and ends' are treasures that have been found in the garden; a glass bottle top, ink bottles, pennies, keys, and lots more tiny treasures!

...Miss Jones...

Angel Masquerading as a Russian Doll

With the offcut from my 'Silence' sign I decided to do something creative and (not entirely) useful. So, this is what I came up with! Inspired by the russian doll I found the other day I created my own design.

Not sure I quite like the gold hair - makes her look like something of an angel! But, unfortunately, no black paint could be found anywhere! Still, not bad for an offcut!!

...Miss Jones...