Rosy Ribbons

Vintage inspired beaded ribbon bracelets

I love the fashion for wrapped bracelets and my Huckeberry Buckle workshop is all about beaded ribbons and embellished buckles. I can now confess that when I first designed it was a working 'in theory' idea.
A beaded ribbon is not like a real ribbon, it is rigid, it takes up space, it needs to have room to move and it definitely hates being pushed in and out of a buckle repeatedly.
What followed was a search for a neat and dainty, yet everso discreet clasp that I could include in my design, getting me past the technical hitch stages and back into gorgeous design territory again.
Happily the 'in-line' clasps, which I now have in my little store, are perfect for any narrow beaded bracelet designs and have proved really popular. At shows I have a demonstration bracelet, which is a double or triple length wrap bracelet... can't tell you how many times I've been asked for the pattern!
So, the pattern is now included with all orders for in-line clasps, it's also to celebrate that I have a new colour of clasp in store now, to go with matt vintage bronze finish and shiny silver plate there is now a slinky dark shiny pewtery gunmetal colour too...mmm

red flannel

Sandy's cute flannel sets

I love a simple thing done really well. These are cute pairs of hand crocheted flannels or dish cloths. Made from purest cotton in adorably retro colours, who could resist! I found them in a lovely craft market which is held once a month at the Cheese and Grain in Frome, Somerset. Sandy, the creative force behind the lovely brand of Padleigh Corner also has a folksy store. 

OK, so you can sense a theme when I tell you I next climbed Catherine's Hill in Frome to visit the lovely Zoe Constantine at Bead Bazaar where I found exactly what I was looking for... which I usually do as when she's not busy selling sparkles, Zoe is off travelling to source more gorgeousness. On the way back down the hill I stopped off to visit at Millie Moon which is the kind of haberdashery that stitchy fingered folk's dreams are made of. I bought the piece of fabric you can see under my lovely flannels... for no other reason than I love the colours and the pattern. 

It is currently folded up on my desk, but I'm hoping it will become part of something lovely one day soon.