British Cream Tea : Delicious British Felt Food Sculpture

Another mad week!

This last week I have completed and posted a wholesale order to a new boutique in Hong Kong, completed 2 blog interviews (one complete with pictures) and been featured in 4 more, have been in 7 Etsy Treasuries and sold 17 items...and developed a felt colour chart for an upcoming customisable stick of rock idea...

*phew*

I am loving it!

I am taking a break at the end of this week to spend time with my Mum but I know deep down I will miss little online boutiques, even if it is only for two days (without a computer or internet!)

I am looking forward to helping in the garden, walking with the pram in the park and having someone to sit outside with Toby whilst I sneak into all the little second hand and charity shops in the village that I usually cannot get the pram into ;D

Plus this week I won a Cath Kidson shopping tote *squeel*

and bought myself a cream tiered cake stand for my pieces, a matching bowl for my orders ready to be posted and a brightly coloured stripey fabric box for my sewing stuff..as well as tons of pink tissue paper, pink tiny envelopes, la parfait storage jars and jam jars, all in the name of storage *double squeel*

Remembrance Sunday

Today I remember my Grandparents. My beloved Grandpa who signed up in the first week of WW2 and served in Africa, Europe and, after Dunkirk, Burma; My Nanna who served in the land army at home waiting for him to return; and the Grandfather I never knew who was sunk in WW1.

I was given the green beret of the Burma star after it was removed from the coffin at my Grandfather's funeral. I keep it in my wardrobe with one of his pipes, the smell of which can reduce me to tears, my Nanna's land army badge and the bracelet he brought her back from Africa.

I named my son after my Grandpa. I still miss him. And seeing the last few Burma star veterans in the parade this morning made me cry as it does every year.

He was always so proud on Remembrance Sunday.

Seasonal Scrubbing

This week I have undertaken a scrub of the flat before the Christmas season really takes hold and I don't have time to scrub behind the fridge or above the cooker hood.

It has, however, not been as successful as I had planned due, in part, to a teething baby and some lovely orders!!

but I have tidied cupboards, made draught excluders, bought essential and fragrance oils as well as a powder blue scales and enough natural cleaning product ingredients to last a long time...and the flat is definitely looking brighter for it ;)

A flowery china ball, a scallop shell filled with pink roses and lavender and my oil burner.

Wild flowers, some of my work and my Grandparent's silver cruet set on a starched table cloth

A hyacinth bulb, hopefully ready to sprout

Two terracotta pots on the kitchen window sill with coffee and lemon plants (Billy says they will never grow!!)

A temporary draught excluder made from a fleece blanket and pink ribbon

My essential and fragrance oils in my china cupboard

The cupboard under the sink!

Almost a week....

I cannot believe it has been almost a week since my last post! I really have to get more organised in my postings, and find out where the time is all going!

This week has been busy. Toby is now teething so is extra grippy, cuddly and has been waking during the night for the first time in weeks; I have started to sell in both my Etsy and Folksy shops, which is ridiculously exciting, so I am making friends at the post office and have discovered that the best time to avoid lines in 9.15am on Saturday morning (now all I have to do is sell loads each Friday!!); I have worked out my packaging and branding (newly designed and hand cut business cards and thank you cards, bright pink crinkly tissue, striped paper sweetie bags and gold crowns...check); I am on a Autumn Scrub week so am making green cleaning products, scrubbing places I had forgotten existed and creating lovely new wintery room sprays and vanilla extract (yum) with abandon; and I am approaching 500 hearts fast ;D

Oh and I designed liquorice allsorts and a chocolate birthday fairy cake in a pink lace felt case topped with icing, chocolate sprinkles, silver balls and a lit pink candle ;)

Does life get any better than  a life punctuated by calorie free yumminess!!?

Oh and happy Birthday James :D Toby sends snuggles and I hope you love your cakes!

Today's daybook 29 Oct 2008

Outside My Window...

is the River Mersey, choppy and dark in the low Autumn sun.

I am thinking...
of completely turning out the bedroom and remaking the bed in fresh white linen with lavender.

I am thankful for...
my baby son. I could not even begin to Put into words how much he means to me.

From the kitchen...
wafts the smell of vanilla extract I made last week, slowly developing in a jam jar in my baking cupboard.

I am wearing...
pyjamas and thick pink woolly socks. It is cold!

I am creating...
a set of conkers to replace the pair I sold last night.

I am going...
to baby yoga in a couple of hours...unless it is heaving down with rain in which case we may stay in and cuddle under a blanket.

I am reading...
"That is not my tractor" for the 3rd time today. I really need to buy him "That is not my bunny"! He loves the touchy bits on the pages ;)

I am hoping...
that we can talk Billy's mum into babysitting next week so we can go to the flicks and satisfy my ongoing and lifelong love of James Bond. Note: she never needs persuading!!

I am hearing...
the sound of baby laughter and the creak of a bouncy chair.

Around the house...
there are not enough flowers, the DVDs have yet again grown into piles and need put away and the dining table is covered in folded clean baby clothes.

One of my favorite things...
is the custard tart I have in the fridge!

Here is a picture thought I am sharing...

(Click the first image to go to the Simple Women's Daybook page ;)

tagged...I'm it!

Drum roll please......

I have been tagged by Cloudhopping ;)

The rules are as follows:

1. Link to your tagger and list all these rules in your blog.
2. Share 7 facts about yourself on your blog, some random, some weird.
3. Tag 7 people at the end of your post by including links to their blogs.
4. Let them know they have been tagged by leaving a comment on their blogs.

Now if only I can think of 7...here goes...

1. I love baking, seriously love it, and am currently making vanilla extract with vodka and loads of vanilla pods.

2. I have a secret addiction to "Charlie and Lola" and make Billy watch it every night at 6pm with the excuse that Toby loves it.

3. I own a lot of shoes and beautiful clothes I no longer wear, either because they no longer fit (yet) or a pram is not easily paired with Terry de Havilland platforms, stiletto boots or nude and gold leather tango shoes *sob*

4. I still sleep with a soft toy...I used to sleep with two but now Toby is often found with his arms wrapped round the other one, usually with an ear or foot in his mouth.

5. I have 12 letters after my name (5 italicised) along with two brackets and a full stop.

6. I used to be a Samaritan.

7. I love burying my face in my cat's fluffy tummy and am secretly proud of the fact she won't let Billy do it.

I am going to tag the following bloggers, all UK etsians...

bigbluebed.blogspot.com
clairesblog.paynedesign.co.uk/blog
www.boulieblog.com
lazygiraffejewellery.blogspot.com
illusio-creative.blogspot.com
marmalady1.blogspot.com
amandasainsbury.blogspot.com

My mad week!!!

This has been a mad week in more ways than one!!

I have made new items, been featured on blogs, almost reached 400 etsy hearts, bought two domain names, designed a new website, been featured on quite a few treasuries and sold 4 items ;D

Oh and Toby had his 3rd round of injections *sob*

So this is a kind of catch up post!!

Above is a set of 8 cola bottles.

oooo Vanilla Slice ;)

Cornish Pasty

Bacon Butty

and the first in a new line of badges...this one is a cola bottle ;)

This week I was kindly featured on the blogs of 3 etsy sellers...

Fellow UK etsian BigBlueBed who makes the most amazing weaved Dorset buttons (click the image to read the article) and described me as a "wonderful genius" and says I make her salivate (thanks Blue ;D)...

GrooveyCrafts for her weekly etsy interview feature (again click the image to read) and her description of my shop as the "perfect shop for Christmas stocking fillers"  that "trigger the conversation for hours on what that item meant to that person and how funny it was", which is what I hope my work does...

and Ottoman, who makes the most amazing moss and felt creations...some of which have now migrated onto my Christmas list!!  In this she refers to my shop as "utterly charming" *beam*(again...click!!)

I am also completing another interview for a feature next week so watch this space ;D

Oh and whilst doing a google search for my shop name I came up with this link (click the image...you know the drill!!) which is about Blackpool football but crazily, and somewhat  magically, contains a review and link to my Blackpool Rock...and an article on "I Like"

And finally I would like to thank my two lovely buyers, one on Folksy and one on Etsy, who truly made my week by buying two pieces each :D

Etsy Storque

I had to post again!!

I am on the Etsy Blog, "The Storque", for the second time and it is soooo exciting!!

Click here for the article.

See the image at the bottom left of the grid of nine...

The piece is so new I only just listed it and I haven't even blogged about it yet. I'll do so in the morning ;)

Strawberry Fruity Pop

There is something really moreish about really sugary strawberry flavoured hard sugar!! And these lollipops fill the craving perfectly ;)

They are one of the UK's best selling lollipops and still come in strawberry, lemon, orange and blackcurrant flavours.

The strawberry, with its embroidered yellow "pips" and green top "stalk" is the wrapper of the lollipop, which inside is hard clear strawberry flavoured sugar.

Everything, even the lolly stick is made of felt...

Cornish Pasty

I love Cornish pasties...they remind me of picnics and outdoor lunches by the sea...

The pasty originally evolved to meet the needs of Cornish tin mining. A hearty meal wrapped in a pastry casing made for a very practical lunch (or "croust" , as they used to call it) down in the dark and damp tunnels of the mine. Some mines even built huge ovens on the surface to keep the miner's pasties hot until it was time to eat.

Tradition has it that the original pasties contained meat and vegetables in one end and jam or fruit in the other end, in order to give the hard-working men 'two courses'.

In my mind this pasty contains beef and potato with little slices of onion!!

Perfect with Branston pickle :D