Cosy homes

The paint on our front door is fading. When we moved here we painted it a heathery kind of colour, it isn't quite the colour I had in my mind's eye. The men at the paint mixing centre were all very nice but didn't take kindly to me bringing in a pansy from the window box with exactly the right colour on one of the petals, they raised their eyebrows, mixed something up and well, it isn't quite right.



In our last house we painted our front door a beautiful pink. Deep, vibrant and glossy. When the sun shone down our road on the way up from the seafront it was lovely to think that the gorgeous deep magenta door was ours. I don't really miss our last home although I have lots of great memories attached to it, but the thing I really miss is that front door!



This all might explain why, when I set out to make a couple of tea cosies recently and found that one of them ended up with a pink door (not quite as gorgeous as THE pink door) I had to keep it! Until my front door here gets a new lick of paint I shall keep this little one on my shelf to remind me of what has been and what might be ...



I did make another, this time with a red door, I dyed most of the fabrics myself and love the differences in tones in this one. Some of the colours are lovely and mottled. I have never had a red door and would quite like one, one day. Perhaps I should have a dummy run ...



This one is for sale in my Etsy shop. A cosy home for your cups of tea.
If you fancy one custom made with your own choice of front door, just let me know. I'm enjoying this construction business! Doors, windows, walls and roofs can all be built to your own specifications, I can even do polka dot chimney pots, just like this one I made last year.



There are far too many things I love about our home that balance my need for a pink door again. One of them is the larger garden which means I can grown lots and lots and lots of lavender. I have finally with the help of Little Sister (thank you!) stripped all the buds from the stalks I picked a while ago. We have a huge bowl of it now waiting to be used. I made some more little sachets this week using some vintage embroidered linen I had. They look very pretty and smell delicious. I've put some in my Etsy shop too. (SORRY ALL SOLD OUT, THANK YOU!)


Now, does the lavender outstrip the pink front door I wonder? There is nothing like coming home and seeing your front door smiling at you and putting your key into its lock and opening that door ...



On the other hand there's nothing like coming home and walking up the garden steps and the sweet scent of lavender greeting you... If you could have any colour front door what would it be?



Have a good few days (i'm looking forward to them)
x

For Sale - Two bedroom cosy cottage

Pretty two bedroom country cottage for sale - very cosy! Pink front door and polka dot chimney. Pale blue windows and cheery red roof. Guaranteed to keep your pot of tea nice and warm.

It must have been writing about the cottage I made for my mum in my last post that made me want to make this tea cosy. She loved her tea and she loved country cottages too. Anyway, on Friday night I decided to give it a go, A roaring fire and pile of chocolate kept me going and by Sunday evening the cottage was ready! I've put it in my Etsy shop if anyone wants to have a look.



Thank you all so much for your lovely comments on the last post. It was quite a personal one for me to write and very hard to put into words. so huge THANK YOU! Several of you asked to see the original cottage I sewed for my mum when I was a schoolgirl. Well here it is (thanks M for going up to the loft to have a rummage) - very idyllic and not unlike the ones we see when we're out walking. One day ...
Have a good week

Pompoms, polka dots and postal strikes!

I finally finished my tea cosy order today, right on time! Just in time to hear that the postal strikes are on again! Oh well at least I get to enjoy having them around the place for a bit longer. This green cosy is perhaps my favourite of the batch. I particularly wanted a soft, springy green and dyed the fabric.

I'm pleased with the results and like the way the colour is slightly dappled and varied, it's just how I wanted it to be (for once!). It did mean that for a few days my hands were a rather eerie shade of green (I like to think of them more as that moment in I Capture the Castle when Cassandra has dyed everything green and resembles something out of the House of Usher rather than Incredible Hulk).


I've made a batch in pinks, lilacs, blues and aquas and have used as much recycled fabric as possible too.



I love playing with the colours and have enjoyed making this lot up.

When it's been grey and drizzly outside it's been lovely to have such a collection of bright, fun colours around the place.


The pompoms are nearly done too.



A few more to be completed when I've found some more fabric. I seem to be devouring fabric at the moment.



I love adding the trimmings to my pompoms and cosies. When the cosies are finished and the pompoms are cut, the sherbet coloured ricrac and the polka dots and checks of my ribbons are the bits I look forward to adding. Let me loose in a haberdashery and I'm happy!

"Helping Mother"

Well it didn't take too long - my thumb has started to recover, the sun started to shine and I wanted to make something! Fortunately, I had lots of fabric already cut, so not too much cutting involved and lots of colours to choose from. Talking about my chair last week and my favourite colours made me want to make a cosy in these colours, an attempt I think to prolong the sunshine and brightness of summer for a little longer. Anyway, bright and cheery it is and this little bit of summer is now sitting in my Etsy shop.


M has gone back to work this morning and we're all feeling a bit glum. Sorry that he's not with us to enjoy the end of the holidays and sorry that part of the holiday has come to an end. Although we were unable to get away this year, we enjoyed sharing each other's company, laughing and being silly as a family in a way that is hard to do even with your closest friends. M works long hours and is rarely home to eat dinner with the girls during the week so above all it was great to spend the day and evening with him, enjoying our meals together. The weather was awful though but we did have this weekend which was gorgeous and I think the weekend at the beach did us all good and lifted our spirits. There is nothing better than coming back from a day on the beach, faces tingling from the sun, tired from the fresh air and mucking around. (the downside being the queue for the shower, the sand all over the bathroom floor and the mountain of clothes waiting to be washed).


Just to show you what a wonderful weekend it was, here is a photo of the girls and I enjoying a few moments together in the kitchen, getting all those domestic chores done and loving every minute of it! Well, no, actually it is a print I bought at the car boot on Sunday morning. I thought I'd hang it in the kitchen - it's called "Helping Mother" - in the hope that the girls might take the hint, or failing that, add a touch of irony to the place, I think, however that I'm the only one who'll get the irony and the girls will just see it as another thing on the wall! Strangely enough they do like shelling peas, beans etc so perhaps all is not lost. Anyway the point of this ramble is that when I got back from the carboot and took the print out of its wrapper, I found that there were two of them. Well, there's only so much irony one kitchen can stand so I thought that if anyone wanted the print I'd give it to them. Please leave a comment and I'll give it away - if there's more than one we'll have a draw, name out of a hat (or mixing bowl perhaps) - that's one thing that the girls do like helping with!


I also got this lovely wicker hamper/basket at the car boot and a tray full of greengages which have been turned into pots of lovely jam. Has anyone realised yet just how addictive this jam/chutney making business is?

A breath of fresh air

We had a visitor come to stay over the weekend, just for the two days mind and not sure if and when it'll be back. Yes, summer popped in and said hello and what a difference it made! The girls were able to get out - one was off down the beach and one lazed around the garden. I did some gardening (much needed) and was able to finish my new tea cosy which had been on my to do list for too long. It does look very bright and summery and reminds me of bunting at a summer fete! I've put it in my Etsy shop as I really can't justify having so many teacosies!!!


On Sunday we went on one of our favourite walks up to Ditchling Beacon on the South Downs. If we could pick one place to spend the day without travelling too far it would be here. Away from the crowds on the beach this is where we come throughout the year and never fail to have a good time.


In autumn we pick blackberries and sloes for sloe gin, in winter on a clear, chilly day it's perfect for blowing those cobwebs away, in spring and summer it's the place for picnics and long rambles. Lovely just to hear the birds singing, church bells ringing and tractors in the distance. It is also the only place I've ever seen a flying elephant and seal!!! (look closely at those clouds)...


The girls wanted to make a day of it and suggested we walked down into the village of Ditchling for a pub lunch. So off we walked - it was lovely, Away from the distractions of home the age gap between the girls seems to narrow and it was great seeing them climbing trees, dodging the mud, singing songs and generally having a laugh.


Ditchling is a wonderful little village to visit full of wonderful old houses and buildings and there are pubs and tearooms too! After lunch we went to the local museum to see an Eric Gill exhibition which was great.

The museum is housed in the old schoolhouse and is full of interesting things - both Frank Brangwyn and Eric Gill had lived in Ditchling as well as a thriving community of artists and craftspeople. We had to drag the girls out as they were so busy, but we knew we had a long walk uphill to get back to the car and the promise of an icecream when we got to the top.


Back home in time for a much needed cup of tea and some time in the still sunny garden. So thank you Summer, please come and visit us more often - you're always welcome.

Cosies, posies, poppies and cats

My daughters are back at school. That first day back is hard for everyone - I remember that back to school feeling so well, especially hard after such a good holiday. I love the laziness and spontaneity that school holidays bring and I am lucky that I get to spend so much time with them.
Being outside and enjoying this wonderful weather with them was great and I also found that this sudden onset of new Spring life had inspired me so much that at times I kept seeing ideas for new tea cosies and corsages everywhere! I spent yesterday morning in the garden cutting up fabric and looking at the colours in the garden at the moment. Things are definitely changing and the colours are becoming more strident - our first poppy of the year has opened and look at that orange, isn't it marvellous!?

Right next to the poppy are these gorgeous purple stocks that our cat is posing beside - some time in the future I would love to make something with that purple and orange combination (not my usual choice but it has so much vitality and fun).

These white daisies (I can't remember the correct name for this plant) are really fun too.

The primroses are at their peak and I know they will probably start to fade over the next week or so. I decided to make something that captured a little of my spring garden and so spurred on by the peace and quiet and Radio 4 (yes, being alone again does have its perks) I made this little corsage ....

... and my Spring tea cosy (similar to the one I made last year with daffodils, but this time with daisies like the ones I have in my garden).
I will be putting both of them in my Etsy shop if anyone is interested.



Now can anyone tell me why cats are always ready to pose when a camera's around?

Please Don't Eat The Daisies ...

I've got a new teacosy! A month after getting all my bits and bobs together, dyeing the fabric etc, it's finished! It's quite fitting that I started it just after watching a Doris Day film (see earlier post) as I now think it looks just like one of her hats and or the title credits/graphics to one of her films! Either way I don't think I'll be needing to make an Easter bonnet this year!
I have been overwhelmed by your generous comments about my corsages and cosies. I am so pleased that you like them. I started this blog just to be able to join in this wonderful shared conversation that I had been reading over the months but had no idea that within a few weeks people might want to buy something. I am honestly still surprised when someone has left me a comment on a post! If anyone would like to buy anything they've seen please let me know as I am in the process of sorting it out but have no idea how to go about it. I don't think I can sell directly from this site or can I? Does anyone have any suggestions? Not very good with the self-promoting bit - just got used to show and tell!
Changing the subject quickly - more importantly, my daughter is slowly getting better. The doctor has had to resort to antibiotics as she was deteriorating over the week and nothing was working. Fingers crossed that she's on the mend now though. I showed her the get well wishes she got on this site and she was chuffed, so thanks again!
The sun is shining again today and the lawn has had its first haircut of the year and in amongst the primroses and muscaris, there were real daisies too!
Have a good weekend.

Butterflies aplenty ...

... but still no sign of a new teacosy! The weather here has been so lovely and I have seen five butterflies in my garden (real ones, not like the one above). I have to admit that being outside at the moment is such a joy that very little else has been done on the craft front.
We also have a French exchange student coming to stay next week which has necessitated a bit of a spring clean all round. This means of course that my own little darling will be off herself in a week's time and I'm all in a dither, not really being able to concentrate much on anything, a bit like a butterfly myself, fluttering around never settling on anything for very long. I'm sure I'll feel better when she's back home again and we're all in our right places!
The computer is still having problems with blogging, I have just had to change browsers to upload these photos (sorry, that should say my husband has very kindly sorted it all out for me) so apologies if things are looking a bit askew.
Hoping you all enjoy the spring sunshine. Oh look, here comes another butterfly ...

The cosiness of tea

What is it about tea? By the end of a really busy day if I haven't had my cuppa I'm desperate. Maybe it's something about growing older, but there is nothing better than sitting back with a mug of PG tips with the radio on for a few minutes just thinking and enjoying the moment.
I'm busy dyeing fabric at the moment to finish off the project I started on Monday. I've decided to make a new tea cosy, since my last one was inadvertently set alight by my husband when he was making porridge. If I get the courage I'll show it when it's done - meanwhile the photo above, in true Blue Peter fashion, is one I made earlier (last spring to be exact). Very nervous about showing my things but I have to take the plunge - your comments suggest that you want to see something! Feel a bit like a child handing in their homework late and not sure of the reaction ...
Thanks to all of you for such lovely, welcoming comments, especially to the very kind Samantha at plump pudding. You are a lovely bunch -
enjoy your tea.