more felt balls

now that the smell of autumn is in the air I am getting itchy fingers....I feel some felt balls coming on, and some necklaces....

dyed colours

have been having alot of fun dying some cheap wool effect cloth that I bought at the local market. Because the fabric is synthetic it did not take the dyes very well but the result was these soft pastel shades....mmmm what shall I do with them?

Kristin Vestgard

Here is a treat ladies, saw this artist in Badcocks Gallery in Cornwall a couple of years ago, and have followed her stunning work since then, always too broke to buy any of her exquisite paintings....they remind me of Lisbeth Zwergers work....the colours and the soft haze is inspirational.

Lisbeth Zwerger

Lisbeth Zwerger is one of those illustrators that I love, and I buy them whenever I can! The latest one I bought in Italy and the illustrations have all the usual delicate, beautifully composed, and atmospheric qualities found in her other books....how to capture that some of that magic composition in my own work?

5 a day

had a mad week before the trip to the factory making felt fruit and vegetables, the more I the madder I became! don't really know what to do with them now!

great illustrations

some stunning illustrations in this wonderful 50's childrens french dictionary that I bought at a library sale and have used loads for reference and for printing directly to silk for my dollies dresses..

machine embroidery

Introducing my brilliant daughter who uses a sewing machine like a pencil, drawing with stitches in a freehand way, check out these figures that she did a couple of months ago for a project about eating....

friends

It would be rude of me to carry on posting on this blog without a mention of the wonderful Pantry Violets who have given me the incentive to start blogging as well as sewing, knitting, sketching, crafting......After an amazing 6 days in the sultry south of France at a beautiful home called Briancon, with Julie Arkell and 12 other great artists, I came away with many treasures, and friends for life....

For information on life changing creative classes look up www.lessoeursanglaises.com

scotland

My favorite past time has always been filling sketchbooks....last year I went on an incredible journey with my parents, children, my brother and his family on board his beautiful sailing boat, 'Soutache" I made a small concertina sketch book - 10cms x 7cms and used collage and watercolour....the western isles have to be the most beautiful islands in the world.....

dolls -found and made

and here is one that I made earlier!!

Thank you for the idea to stitch on a heart Jone....any suggestions for a dress?

dolls - found and made

continuing the theme of inspiration and recently made rag dolls.....the little plastic doll here is mine from when I was little, a bit grubby now, but the colours are wonderful....the black and red and cream.

I bought the reproduction of the wooden dutch doll at Nuremberg Toy Fair last year. For more beautiful illustrations of 'The Adventures of two Dutch Dolls and a Golliwog' go to http://www.gutenberg.org/files/16770/16770-h/16770-h.htm

...and this is one of the dolls that I made....

the Magpie and Wardrobe is a London based website making the most lovely dolls and necklaces from antique textiles and trimmings...I saw their dolls a couple of years ago in Libertys and fell in love with them, and was inspired to make my own version of the elongated beautifully attired peg dolls! http://www.magpiewardrobe.co.uk/

theatres and puppets

Also purchased these traditional puppets, so retro looking with their moulded hair...

theatres and puppets

I made this theatre a couple of years ago purely because I had bought these gorgeous papier mache finger puppets in a delightful theatre shop in Barcelona....never finished the theatre!

inspiration

Bethnal green museum of Childhood is another amazing place in London to get inspiration from the beautiful collections of all sorts of toys old and new. the little wooden figures here are about 6cms tall, and every time I go I love them......great faces....

inspiration

had a great day traipsing around London looking at toy packaging....Pollocks Toy museum is obviously a must for the antique and beautiful theatres in particular....felt very smug to see my products on display in there. Fell in love with the card theatres....

...have also been working on a number of different faces....

Sailors and glamorous blondes are always the cutest!

hand dyed wool

this is a simple doll made with more of the hand dyed wool...

little red riding hood...

Fairy tales seem to be in the air this summer.....

Hand dyed wool fabric has been used here to create tactile and soft doll characters from little red riding hood.

Must make some more when I have time!