Felt mice and other animals ...

Yesterday was a sewing sort of day.  I searched out some old patterns my mother used to use 40-odd years ago to make little somethings as gifts for friends.  One of the books I found was Felt Toys by E. Mochrie and I. P. Roseaman. 

This contains a pattern for a felt mouse which looked simple enough for a wet Saturday afternoon.

Here's what happened ..

Their whiskers look a little unkempt, I think.  There's a link to this pattern here: free felt mouse pattern

Then I thought 'what about a rabbit?' so I blunted the nose a little, added ears and a pom pom tail and here he is ...

And that is what I did on a wet February Saturday afternoon.   

Vintage Home Sweet Home ....

And here are some of the finished signs.  Now they just need a thin coat of polish before they go off to new homes. 

                       Step 3


I hope you like them.

Getting ready for Shepton Flea - Step 2

I've had a constructive morning painting ...

                          Step 2

I've never taken 'Vintage' signs to Shepton before but I was asked about them at the last Flea so I thought I'd give them a go.  I'll keep my fingers crossed that they are successful.
 Hopefully, the finished signs will be ready to show you tomorrow.

Getting ready for Shepton Flea

The next Shepton Flea Market is on 27th February and I shall be there, sharing a table with my mother.  But first I have to do some preparation.  

                       Step 1

Actually, this is more like step 3 the first two steps being cut your wood up, remove any nails and sand it down.   I have run out of driftwood and old boxes so on this occasion I am using a 1950's magazine rack that I haven't been able to sell.  It broke apart very easily and cut up in to good sizes and shapes.  I particularly like the two with the shaped tops.  Step 2 tomorrow.

My First Post ....

What to write that anyone out there will want to read?  This blog will be all about my crafting activities because my husband doesn't understand it.  He does try (bless him) to listen, but as soon as I start talking craft or antiques I see his eyes glaze over and his mind drift off to football, golf or what I'm going to cook him for dinner.  Well, I married a Northern Man and now I have to live with it.  I don't have any crafting/antiquing friends so, as I am hoping to use these activities to fill the gap that my departing offspring will leave, I feel a blog may be the answer.  I know there are people out there with the same passions as me - I read their blogs every week.  So here goes ....




These books arrived yesterday through the post.  Lovely, aren't they?

                                           The Tilda Character Collection

It was the bird book I particularly wanted.

                                          Tilda Birds

The books are currently being republished, possibly because the link for the full size patterns does not work and the republished version will contain a pattern sheet.
I simply blew the pattern in the book up on the photocopier to get the size I wanted.

My birds are a variation on the pattern in the book mainly because when I had completed the first one it wasn't quite what I wanted so I fiddled about and came up with these.  I've reshaped the body, made the wings a lot smaller, changed the shape of the tail and added a gusset for volume.  Not a lot of the original left! Because I am lazy I've used felt, not fabric.  I'd love to find some felt printed with flowers to make the wings and gusset but so far have not had any luck.  The spotty felt came from Hobbycraft.

Felt Birds

                                         


I think I shall try felt tip pen for the eyes and if that doesn't work I will embroider them on.