Mail Goodies ...

Time to share what ATC cards i received

from Sherry !

Here is her black and white interpretation -

and as soon as i saw it - it

made me smile too !

And an oriental /Asian one .

Sherry has used watercolours , and i love

the green colour myself , with images attatched.

They will go in a holder i have , especially

made to for ATC cards !!

(( Thank-you ))

So Sherry - What are we swapping next !! ?? LOL !

And just a quick creation i made the other

night , while watching TV !

Button Flower - using vintage ribbon and

a large flat backed fabric button .

It`s a Bank holiday here this weekend -

and no plans as of yet , but our garden grass

needs another trim - so weather permitting we`ll

be outdoors the next few days !

I hope everyone has a good weekend !!

My Vintage linens And lace

See belows post for this !!

Another Obsession ..

Over recent weeks , i have purchased more

and more vintage linens , crocheted items ,

hankies - you name it - i`ve added to my

collection ! Do i NEED to add any more ??

I already collect buttons , and fabrics ,

but when i find any - i cannot resist buying them,

incase i cannot find any more like them.

The work that goes into creating them amazes me ,

the time and effort taken , only to be discarded

by those who do not like them , or

appreciate their worth .

I have done a slide show of my recent finds
for all you lovers of all things vintage !!

but it`s on the post above -

- as blogger wasn`t playing

and wouldn`t do it on this one !!

These two framed sewed linens , i thought , needed

to be shown on their own .

A woman in her garden , holding her hand out ,

with a little bluebird on !

Aren`t they so Cute !! ??







The flower details and dress are still vibrant as the

day it was done . Done in several stitching designs .

Even though the back is a little tatty it has not been

opened since it was put in .

And i thought of the woman who sewed this ,

the time and love it took , and for me to find it

and carry on with treasuring it .

Bluebirds on a branches and flowers .

This is not as intricate as the other one ,

and not done by the same person .

I bought it elsewhere , but another purchase i

could not say no to !

All too often , items are given away , or sold

because they have no need for them .

But i feel lucky to have come across these -

to give them a new home !!

Another ATC Card Swap ..

Sherry had received my ATC cards

yesterday , so here is what i made for her .

The " theme`s " were Oriental and

Black and white .

Oriental , because i thought it would

challenge Sherry - as i have not seen

her create anything on this . And Black and white

being a challenge for me . Black is a colour i rarely

use - but i think i did pretty well on it !

I included a butterfly - as she adores them , for the

meaning of freedom and hope .

I`m still waiting for mine from Sherry -

I can`t wait to see what she created !!

Flora And Fauna ...

I`ve been busy this weekend making

more Owls . With Willow being my prototype ,

to see how he looked , and i was happy

with the result -

These are 2 new OOAK Owls .

" FLORA " 4.5 " high

Made from a vintage pillow case material

Felt , vintage buttons , with thread

eyelashes !

With her name on a piece of

pink seam binding sewn on her back .

" FAUNA " 4.25 " high

Again from a vintage piilow case ,

felt and buttons .

With a named seam binding tag








I am adding these to my shop
Would you like to give one of
these a new home ??

" Our Home Nest " Hanging Doily

My latest creation -

" Our Home Nest "

I decided to use one of my vintage

crochet doily`s , although sometimes

it is hard to use them ! Other than staying

in a box , and getting out to admire them

now and then . The time had come to use one .

Hand made nest - with raffia - 1.5"

- 2 teeny half eggs - 1/2 inch big !

and one that i coloured for contrast sat on a feather .

Bunch of vintage millenery flowers , and Our

Home stamped on a piece of ribbon .

The back has been given strength with a

card and music paper piece . And you can see

the palest blue colour more , of the doily .

With fabric flower petals , vintage buttons

and seam binding .

Wishing everyone in their nest

A happy weekend !!

Fabric Doily Flowers ...

I`m stil having a run on creating , after

having what i call a dry spell ! So i`m making the

most of it ! I came up with these - fabric doily flowers ..

This one is border anglaise fabric , petals , vintage

music paper and a millenery flower

The 2 below , are small doily`s edged with a gold

stamp pad , music paper , fabric petals

and various embellishments . The butterfly one has

sold already ! But the other 2 are available

in my shop !

My Postcard Swap !

Now Sherry has received my postcard -

i can show you what we sent each other !

" Time For Tea "

Which i showed a peak photo of the clock ,

and it totally threw her off the guess scent ! LOL

With handmade cupcakes , and a teapot . Along with

some Yorkshire teabags and a herbal one with cinnamon

in - as i don`t like the taste ! And not that i palmed you

off with that one Sherry !! But i knew you liked it , and i

couldn`t just throw it away !!

Here are my goodies - this gorgeous
collaged postcard - which looks sealed with gel medium.
And will help to keep it dust free ! With a bird on-
no less ! Oh and a butterfly ( in joke ! )
My own little masterpiece which is in
my studio to glance at !







AND 2 packs of Laura Ashley notelets !!
Being a big fan , Sherry saw these and thought of me .
Two design styles i have not seen here in the UK !
I was more than happy to receive these and
can i choose a favourite ? That`s a difficult question !!

I Love them all !!

Thank-you !!

Personal Correspondance

I am always on the lookout for old postcards ,

and i was lucky to find these last week .

In the age of e-mail today , i often wonder

how we would cope without it . Think of it as a lost limb ?

Once we have used it , you miss it more , when you

cannot access it ? If you were told you could not use

it , would you think about it all the time ?

Granted , i am grateful today for e-mail , i know i

couldn`t live without it ! But there`s

nothing more heart warming , than receiving a

hand written letter from a loved one or a friend .

That is why , i am always fascinated by written words,

in days gone by. When they knew how to write poetically ,

with some words we do not use anymore and the writing

with pen and ink . Written on postards that are not produced

in the way they are now , and some penned with " racey "

emotions of a loved one missed .

I bought some for the front verses ,

and the others for the writing , which i could read

on the back ! Some words were not legible to me , so

i`ve done my best to show you !!

Christmas 1916 , to a Miss G Roberts.

My friend is me

whom i have fancied cold in early days of converse -

But whose hold upon my heart strings few to links of gold .

My dearest ,

how do you like this one , but it`s not so pretty

as the ones you sent me .

can i come and help you after work tonight , carry your

--------- ? for you ,

goodnight my dearest

Annie

Meet Willow ...

Here is a new addition to my nest !

I love all birds , and here`s the latest i

have taken under my wing !

I would like you all to meet Willow !

Oh dear - i think he is a little shy ....

Come on , turn around Willow -

so all the lovely people can see you ...

Ta Da !

Isn`t he cute !! ?

With vintage button eyes and felt beak ..

And little felt feet !

Made from this vintage sheet i found .

I fell in love with it straightaway , the pattern

and the colours are gorgeous !

And i finally took the plunge of cutting into it !!

More will be added to my flock soon

available to buy !!

My In The Pink Contribution ...

I can finally show you , what piece i

have created for Jo Anne`s

In The Pink Collaborative Book .

As she had emailed me last night ,

and i was relieved to hear that she had

received it , after having problems with

other peoples work going " missing " in the

post !! Or rather , being taken out of their

packaging and just the empty envelope being delivered !

Some people have no morals these days !!

We had to create something , with pink in ,

and no surprises to some - mine includes birds !

It`s not a colour i usually work with , however ,

i totally enjoyed creating this piece !

Thankyou so much Jo Anne , for coming up

with this brilliant idea of yours . And i cannot wait

to see the final book with all the participants

creations in !

For My Cousins ...

Today , i spent a few hours with my cousin ,

who i had not seen for many years . We chatted

about the " old times " and had a laugh about things

we remembered from relatives , travel

and life in general . In doing so , i found out , that his sister

reads my blog ! When i had no idea that she did do !

So - i would like to say HELLO !

And many thanks for reading , although we do

not keep in touch as much as we should do .

I hope you`re all doing well !

I know you will not be expecting this - both of you

but here`s a little personal message for you both !

And hope it gives you a chuckle to brighten your day !

Let me know you have seen this !!

Rhonda`s First Swap

One of my best friends through blogging is

Rhonda . She has posted about a french themed

book swap ! How cool is this !! ?? Mind you -

she just loves anything to do with Paris

itself , so it was no surprise to me that this would

be her first swap that she is hosting !!

Please take a look on her blog , if you`re

interested at all in participating -

The more the merrier !!!

Check it out HERE

I have been busy again with blog banners .

Sweet Marilyn got in touch , as a present to herself

to celebrate her 50th post , i created this for her !

She was a delight and easy to work with ,

and her blog is HERE

And a springy banner for Tammy ,

including some of her own nature photo`s .

My Love Of Children`s Books ..

ABOUT THE AUTHOR (1926-) Joan Walsh Anglund became successful with her first book, A Friend Is Someone Who Likes You, in 1958. She's been making books featuring these same round-faced mouthless characters ever since, and her popularity continues to grow. There's something ineffably sweet about her creations, which are based in large part on people and places in her own life-- particularly on her children Joy and Todd. She is a perennial favorite and a popular choice for gift books. She seems to strike a nerve and her images of childhood have an innocence and purity that people respond to with a rush of nostalgia. Older copies of her books are usually preferred by those who want their nostalgia to be real, right down to the feel the book, and the out-of-print Brave Cowboy is perhaps the most sought-after title . She lives in Connecticut .




Although i do not remember these books,

I have grown to love them , and these

are what i have so far , finding yesterday the pink

covered titled " Love is a special way of feeling "

It`s not the fact i am trying to relive my childhood .

Although it recalls your own experiences sometimes

of other books and toys played with .

It is the beautifully illustrated pages , the simplistic

meaning of her written words . A small book , which

you can read in a few minutes , relate to and

they make you think of the things you take for granted .

Like this ...

Love is found in unexpected places ....

It is there in the quiet moment

when we first discover

a beautiful thing .....

When we watch a bird

soar high against

a pale blue sky .....

Doing a little research myself , i found too , that
she had created some porcelain 5 " mini plates for Avon
back in 1986/7 , ad has sold over 45 million copies
of her 80 published books .


These are my books now , which i will treasure ,
and be on the lookout for more of her work
to add to my collection .

Busy Bee Me ....

It`s spring cleaning time here in

miss Magpie`s nest . It`s one of those

necessary things we all have to do !

And with banners to create , my lack of

employment , creative ideas buzzing around - my nest

needs re arranging and feathering back to some

sort of norm for me .

So i will be back in a few days time ...

xxxxxx

Trish`s Banner !

Here is the banner that i created for Trish

HERE

which she won from my 200 th post giveaway .

Which seems ages ago now to me , but

it is finally up at last , after her having problems

with her computer !!

Thank- you so much Trish !!!

Enjoy !!!