Vintage chintz

Spiral Garden

Sometimes things are really crazy simple... when up till now you thought they were complicated. OK so one of the top all time fave designs that people like to buy is called Spiral Garden. It's a double helix spiral with a daisy chain decoration...
plus I show you how to join up double helix rope to make a continuous loop for bangles and necklaces. I love this design, I've made myself and my friends lots of different versions to wear over the years. It is genuinely a constant source of happiness for me that other people really love it too.

So there I was trying to work out an idea, and hit upon the most simplest ever way to make a garland of beady leaves and flowers spiral, without even trying. Gasp! I was so excited and eagerly tried it out on my 'not very good at beading' tester...
Aww! heartless you I hear you splutter into your coffee. No, not at all, she's a nearly beginner and loves to try out my designs and is perfect because she shows me all the places where I'm just assuming you'd know how to do stuff, which is really easy to assume if you already know how to do it... Oh c'mon, I pay her in beads too!
She loved the pattern too, which is sometimes how a new design is born.

Summer Garland, vintage pink

I've called it Summer Garland, inspired by Garden fetes and country weddings, cream teas on mis-matched china, and time worn favourite floral cotton dresses. You can see that once I had the design sorted out (the original sample, for reasons I won't get into, was bright yellow, navy blue and orange), I just fell in love with mixing up some retro inspired colour combinations.
So come and join the garden party, Summer Garland is available as a pattern, as a kit in vintage pink or vintage blue, and with additional materials packs too.

Easy Peasy Lemon Squeezy

Romance with friends

sugar candy, mmmm!

I love a good wedding, no really, there is nothing better than the opportunity to dress up and party!
just before Easter we went to our friends 'renewal of vows' wedding. This was truly a no expenses spared (thank you so much my lovelies, you know who you are), kind of day. An unashamedly romantic day too, with poetry and love, laughter and the best kinds of tears... the happy couple's grown up children part of the celebration and a lifetime of friends and family to join in.
Post vow making was the best buffet ever... little paper bags and jars and jars of delicious sweets... those magical confections that the corner shop had in penny amounts on saturday mornings, sticky bliss!

The cake was a divine confection of chocolate and strawberry, and the day flow by in a dazzle of afternoon tea, roulette tables, dancing, entertainers, more food and fireworks. I still cannot fathom how that magician made the wine bottle sink through the table (no really!), nor how I started by holding a pack of cards and ended holding a block of glass... without noticing... and I don't drink!!!!
Like all good parties, we as guests were blissfully oblivious to the year long preparations, the hours and hours of work to get so many lovely details in place.
As an off duty designer I couldn't help but love the colours, a gentle chocolate and strawberry theme, with clever vintage mixes. The bridal party were in adorable '50's outfits, grown up bridesmaids in flatteringly bitter chocolate silk, flower girls in  dreamy cream with little fur bolero's and tippets, and all the guys in Gatsby smart suits and correspondent shoes. I loved the flowers too, just look at this bridesmaids bouquet... definitely going to have to explore this colour mix!!!

two lovely peeps

Delicious colours on a delightful day