I`m sorry to say that due to my father being terminally ill & living in Australia while i am in the UK , i have not been feeling creative the past few weeks . I am prepared to fly out at any moment and possibly staying there for as long as 3 months .
So i cannot say when i will be posting on my blog in the near future .
Thanks to all my followers , those who commented in the past etc etc , bye for now . Carolyn x
Wednesday
Friday
Vintage Elephant Cushion
I made this cushion from a children`s vintage sewing book of the 1970`s
i purchased in a secondhand book store.Approx 12 " and 9" wide
using some vintage sheet material i had
The face / trunk / ears / tusks / eyes are felt
Along with the two small feet
He`s stuffed & sewn together , i will just have to wash him as is ,
as it`s not a removeable cover .
I hope you like it :)
I`d like to wish you all
A Happy Easter holidays
I`m Still here :)
Indeed i am ...
The time has flown by so quickly and my poor neglected blog has suffered in the process , not to mention my creative time . I have no real explanation as to why , i suppose no real excuse`s for you out there .... Just life got in the way , somethings changed , but not my urge to get back creating once more :) Not that it left me , it was still inside .. waiting to resurface .
So i am back and in the final process of completing my new creative space , moving into a smaller room here at home - which has been newly decorated , weeding unwanted items out , ready for me to begin once more - and it feels good . I hope to post something again very soon .
The time has flown by so quickly and my poor neglected blog has suffered in the process , not to mention my creative time . I have no real explanation as to why , i suppose no real excuse`s for you out there .... Just life got in the way , somethings changed , but not my urge to get back creating once more :) Not that it left me , it was still inside .. waiting to resurface .
So i am back and in the final process of completing my new creative space , moving into a smaller room here at home - which has been newly decorated , weeding unwanted items out , ready for me to begin once more - and it feels good . I hope to post something again very soon .
Father In Law
Passed away on 7/7/11 ..... around 7pm .
Above is a heart i made for one of my sister in law . .
From the hankies he used .. stuffed and filled with lavender
with a small pocket on the back incase she needed to put a
message in it for him ..
I`ve been putting off this post .. or even deciding whether to
hit publish at all .. But i think it`s for the best keeping some
of my followers up to speed .. so now ... for those who aren`t on
Facebook will know the sad news ...
And for those who wish to continue reading .. you can ..
I am being very honest and say it is my own
opinion only and experience .. so i do not wish to offend anyone ..
Death is something which we cannot avoid .. Whether it is sudden
Death is something which we cannot avoid .. Whether it is sudden
or expected .. you are still shocked and saddened that it has
happened to a loved one . Even talking about it in this day and age ...
We can see it as something which we will deal with later ..
It`s one of those taboo subjects that people often get edgy about ,
and think .....i have plenty of time .. we never know how long we
have .. but to do some preparation for it .. does help your family
or those that are dealing with it for you .
As a family .. we are thankful that our father had prepared somethings
like life insurance to help pay for the astronomical funeral costs ..
When i say astronomical .. i am not kidding !! I was completely shocked and
to say the least fuming , at the charges we were given .. It seems that when you die ..
those left are charged such high prices at a very emotional time and
are not thinking properly themselves and do not question charges or shop around .
That said .. of course you do want to give lost ones the best or what they requested..
But it could cause more worry for those who do not have the money and they
may end up in debt with it . So .. that lesson gone through .. is to try and sort
something out for myself .. and maybe you too ..
Death is something i am afraid of ... i will openly admit it ..
I don`t like heights .. and a few other things ... But this ...
i can`t get my head around it ..
It`s probably at least 10 years .. since i have had to go to a
funeral .. so you do not think about .. you`re too busy trying to live
your life .. you see things in the media .. word of mouth etc .. and you will
just stop maybe for a moment and think maybe why .. how sad it is ..
express your sympathy and then carry on " as normal " ...
But i think because i am getting older myself .. when a death happens ,
and this seems to have affected me more than any other ..
It`s actually stopped me in my tracks and made me really think ...
My father in law died when we should have been away on holiday .
He was taken into a hospice for the final 5 days of his life ..
He was only given a bed there .. because a few days beforehand he was
very fidgety and couldn`t settle , not eating and very confused and we
could not cope between us to care for him ... Seeing him go in .. was heartbreaking
as he wanted to go home .. but it was the best place and care for him ..
Then being told that his confusion .. was the onset of the dying process ..
when i didn`t know there was one ... was the news we did not want hear ..
We were all at his bedside . most of the time .. still chatting with him
as normal and just waiting .. that`s all we could do .
I was with him when he died .. I had my head on a pillow noddding off in a chair
close by as i had done a night shift with him and had no sleep for 36 hours .
I was woken up , amidst the cries for help .. i saw him take his last breath
.... something that i will never forget .. and he was " gone " ...
Later .. with all of us around him ..... we had a drink
and toasted his life ...
I was honoured to know my father in law .. ...
To help take care of him during his last few weeks ,
never hearing once of him complaining or questioning why he had cancer
and i can still hear a thankyou Carolyn in my head i got on the
day before he went into the hospice .
He was a proud , old fashioned gentleman , who doted on
all his family ...
That`s what i want to remember ...
Tuesday
A couple of weekends ago .. i travelled to
London to finally meet a blogger and facebook
friend Tracey
Aside from going shopping ;o) We went to a park
which was in the middle of the area she lived in
called The Rookery , quite an unexpexted piece of gardens
in a built up area of a big city .
Just a few pictures are below ;o)
Tracey taking a photo of me while i was taking
a photo of her !!
Both of us ;o)
less than an hour , on my way back
it was a beautiful day , 19.000 miles up in the air .
To see a sight like this from my window seat , was
something i will never forget .. breathtaking
and magical !
It was a lovely trip away for a few days
and i hope to visit Tracey again in the near future ,
and it was lovely to finally meet you in the flesh !! ;o)
Thursday
Here are a few select photo`s from our
couple of days away , which seem so long ago now !
View out to sea from the Northumberland coast
We visited a couple of places , this is Cragside .
The first house to have hydro electricity installed
and built in 1863 .
View of the house taken from the iron bridge
my arty shot of the bridge ;o)
Just one of the many rooms ..
and the other part of the same room with a magnificent marble fireplace
and the other part of the same room with a magnificent marble fireplace
and a places to sit inside .. one of the most beautiful things
i have ever seen !
Next day was Parceval Hall gardens .. the house was out of bounds
to the public .. but the gardens were so well maintained and beautiful ..
And with a view like this from the house .. who wouldn`t
want to live there !! ??
just one of the many plants in the gorgeous garden ..
And it seems everywhere we go .. we see a robin !!
just one of the many plants in the gorgeous garden ..
And it seems everywhere we go .. we see a robin !!
And this is the leather sofa i fell in love with
at our hotel ;o)
Thanks for popping by .. to see my more random postings
on here lately ;o)
I am currently looking after my FIL more so now ..
He was sent home from the hospital earlier this week ..
His cancer has spread dramatically and well .. to tell
the truth , it`s basically to die at home .. that`s his wish .
We`re not sure how long he`s got .. so i know you`ll understand
my absence fron here ...
Hi everyone ;o)
Where has my followers link buttons gone on my side bar !! ??
Does anyone know how to get it back ! ??
Anyway .. i will try and sort it out later ...
For those who are not on Facebook following me ..
The past few weeks have been worrrying , tiresome - to say the least ..
due to my FIL being rushed into hospital with internal bleeding .
3 weeks on .. he is better and getting ready to come home ..
He is such a fighter and proud man , and having seen him at his
worst with oxygen and tubes everywhere .. i have to admire him more
So i am sad to say .. i have not had any creative time to speak of ..
We went away for a couple of days recently , once we knew
that dad was in the clear and i have photos but not downloaded
them yet .. So i hope to share some with you soon ;o)
Thanks for dropping by .. and i hope to get back to
normal as soon as !! ;o)
Tuesday
I hope everyone had a good easter break !
And my international friends got to watch the Royal Wedding ...
I finally feel like getting back to "normal " after 2 long weekends
of visiting friends , having great weather and 3 BBQ`s ;o)
This is a vintage tablecloth i found .. It had worn holes
in parts , otherwise i would have kept it whole ..
So i`ve been coming up with things to reuse it in ..
I cut out 2 circle pieces and made a quick
pomander filled with lavender ....
Saturday
What do you do when you have a nice summer
blouse that does not fit you anymore ! ??
Why you .. repurpose it of course !!
I hadn`t worn this as it was tight on my arms
so i thought of a way to reuse it ..
And came up with this lined cushion cover !!
I cut the main body as it had ruching stitching
and the buttons on the front act as the closure
at the front - so not messing about with a zip !!
So easy to do !! ;o) Just cut to size of the cushion pad you
have then sew all 4 sides up ...
Mine fits an Ikea " Irma " pad which is 14 " square ...
I also lined it with white cotton material from a
pillow case i didn`t use ;o)
I then made a fabric flower from circles . some
folded into quarters and sewed it on , then added
a couple of hand felted leaves...
Back view .. with some ruched detail already on the blouse
Inside view where i lined it .. it needed
a lining as the blouse material was thin ..
So ...now i`m offering this to purchase ;o)
OOAK neutral dotty flower lined cushion cover
14 " square and will fit an "irma " Ikea
cushion pad - an excuse to go visit the place maybe ! ? lol
All cotton apart from linen in the flower i made and i would
handwash it warm .
Price includes shipping £ 8.00
Hope everyone has a great weekend !!
Thursday
Flowers ...
With the weather being so nice .. I have been
outside in our gardens trying to put more
colour into them and along with a general
tidy up too ..
New front planter that i stained and created
and a couple of the neighbours came for a " nosey "
and said the loved it ! ;o)
small coated metal container .. made for under a fiver
now how much would a garden center charge for it !! ??
So with flowers still on my mind..
I finished this altered postcard ..
Gesso paint then stamped while still wet ..
various papers , butterfly stamp and watercolours.
Monday
Spring Bunting Swap pieces.
I am taking part in a spring bunting swap that Amy
is hosting and i decided to take part in it .
It`s something i have never tried myself so it
was alittle challenge for myself to come up
with something ! I decided on fabric bunting , as we
could do any art media to create them ...
We send 5 pieces in , then Amy mixes them
and you get a complete bunting of other participants work .
sent back to you ..
I created 3 of these , varying the flower colour / button
and ribbon
Then 2 of the same of a pink version
Sunday
EDIT .. THIS HAS SOLD !! THANKYOU !!
Vintage Hankie Journal
Size 5.5 x 4.5 "
Made using half a vintage hankie sewn on thick
watercolour paper , vintage seam binding tie with
a bead / cord page marker
Back view of journal ...
Handsewn pages using 140gsm extra wet strength
watercolour paper . 14 pages : 28 sides not inclu cover .
Ideal for personal journalling or however you wish to use it !!
Listed below to purchase ....
Price includes postage £7.75 - approx $12
Thanks for looking and i hope everyone`s
weekend is going great !!
Wednesday
Vintage Retro Holdall ..
size 8 x 5.5 "
Made from a thick wool cloth , the pic shows it more
blue when it`s a more teal colour !! Nevermind huh ?
Then i cut out a circle from the wool cloth and sewed a flower piece
from an old vintage tablecloth that was too worn in places
to reuse myself .. sort of like reverse applique ;o)
And added 2 of my own felted leaves hand stitched ..
And lined with a cotton stripe material ..
Hopefully i will have more time tomorrow
to list this for purchase along with a few other items !
Thanks for popping by ;o)
Friday
" Pilgrim`s Nest "
Wear then store your art ...
A new idea i had to store part of a piece of
artwork , which i don`t think i`ve seen before ..
I could be wrong ;o)
For the " house " part .. I used a cardboard inner
left over from parcel tape !! I couldn`t throw it as it was
a thick piece of card and i thought it would
come in handy .. one day ..
I lined the inner with vintage wallpaper then cut a circle
of card for the back and stuck vintage ledger paper on .
The size is 3 " diameter and 2" deep .
Glued thick paper on the outside and painted the rim of
the short parcel tape tube a white .
I hand crocheted a nest in chunky wool, then made a wire one to fit inside
with 3 vintage beads as eggs .Then sewed a brooch pin on on the back ,
so it can be worn then housed when it`s not being worn ;o)
Nest brooch size is 1.75 " diameter
I put some seam binding on the top , to hang it ,
but it didn`t sit right on a wall ..
So i came up with it`s own stand !!
A small jewellery box bottom lid , then sewed 2 small twigs
so the decorated roll tape wouldn`t roll off !
Pretty good idea , if i say so myself !! ;o)
Stand size is 3 x 2.5 "
Inside close up ..
Vintage text , bleached twig piece , faux moss , vintage flowers
Many thanks for the well wishes for my FIL
at the moment things are going good ;o)
And any interest in the above piece to purchase it ,
please get in touch , but i will try soon to list it ..
I`m just short of time right now
Thanks for popping by ;o)
Tuesday
" 3 Poppies "
canvas size 5 x 10 "
I`ve had this done for a few weeks
but with our FIL having health problems
and another stroke a few days ago , time is
spent more on him , as he now refuses to go
into hospital now ! So it is a very trying time
for us all ..
Anyway , i thought i`d better show my face ,
so to speak on here ;o)
The textured background is DIY filler ! ;o)
Much cheaper than textured paste and easy to use too
painted with acrylics , 3 dried poppies that i grew in my
garden last year , a small bark piece from a day out
that i aquired ;o) which is stuck with the filler onto the canvas.
Inside the bark piece is florists foam to place the dried poppies in
but covered with dried white moss type stuff ;o) Not sure what it`s called !!
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