Posted by Juliet on Mar 25, 2012 in
Books,
The daily blog NOMAD Bringing your Travels home by Sibella Court published by Murdoch books at £25.00
Murdoch, surprisingly? an Australian publishing company are currently going through a renaissance. The books they publish, are to my mind, some of the most beautiful and covet-able around. Nomad is no exception. Written by stylist and author Sibella Court, she has collected together her thought, images and treasures to inspire the, often drooling, reader. These are the fruits of her travels, with her photographer brother Chris, to Syria, Mexico. Italy, India and Japan.
The inspiration comes from a variety of items door knobs, signposts, roadside shrines and humble tools.
Sibella’s approach is not about recreating or lifting a look but rather about rearranging and recycling to make interior spaces that reflect your own experiences and personality. 
The country living Fair is still on and so here are a few more exibitors to tempt you.
As the country living fair is still on today and tomorrow I thought that I would let you know about some of the other interesting products showing. If you can’t get there yourself I have supplied the web sites so that you may contact the makers directly. A new and much needed company is The Glam Camping Co.
Glam tent
As more and more of us are hit by the recession, and the Uk is becoming warmer, camping has never been more popular. The Glam Camping company cater to the needs of those who want some of the outdoor life but with an element of thoughtful design. Just because you are camping doesn’t mean that you no longer care how things look and function. From lovely sleeping bags to the most stylish red and white stripped tent and collapsible buckets and jug and now a very nice trestle table. This is a one stop camping shop.
trestle table
www.theglamcampingcompany.com
Anna Victoria is a talented textile designer who has just launched a range of tea towels and mugs at The Country Living Fair, called ‘Cornish Kitsch’ The work is inspired by local seascapes, indigenous nautical colours and is a passionate tribute to Cornish Country Life. The tea towels are 100% cotton and locally sourced and produced in Cornwall.
Anna Victoria Designs
Fish Flock tea towels are £9.95 each and mugs £10 each To buy directly visit www.anna-victoria.co.uk
Barnickle Furniture is the brain child of Lucy Schmidt. With a degree in Scenic art from the Central School of Speech and Drama she decided to set up a company recycling old furniture. She chose to use cable reels and filing cabinets that are usually just thrown into skips. With this being the year of the Diamond Jubilee and with London hosting the Olympics, Lucy has chosen to reflect all things British in her work from London buses to union Jacks old fashioned telephone boxes and iconic British products.
union jack cable drums
www.barnickle.co.uk
The country living Fair is still on until tomorrow
Saturday 24th: 9.30am to 6.00pm
Sunday 25th: 10.00am to 3.00pm
Posted by Juliet on Mar 23, 2012 in
Makeovers,
Recycling,
The daily blog Some bow ties made from unconventional materials
Sorry this is such a rip off but I found them on the wonderful site of Design-dautore.com and thought they should be shared with a wider audience.
Plectrums
Pills
old film
Corks
Lego
From food cartons
Posted by Juliet on Mar 21, 2012 in
Designer/Makers,
The daily blog,
What's on A few examples of crafts from The Country Living Fair open from today until Sunday 25th March at The Business Design Centre, Islington
The country living Fair is in full swing at the Business Design Centre, Islington from today Wednesday 21 until Sunday 25 March 2012
Thursday 22nd: 10.00am to 6.00pm
Friday 23rd: 9.30am to 6.00pm
Saturday 24th: 9.30am to 6.00pm
Sunday 25th: 10.00am to 3.00pm
There are lots of goodies to enthuse about for anyone with an eye for crafts, making and design.
If you, like myself are a follower of ‘Not on the High Street’ you will probably already be familiar with the work of Posh Totty Designs which I understand is the most popular jewelry on the site. Most of the pieces are made of silver or gold and they are often personalized with a piece of map or an inscription or initial. She has a special section of her own web site just dedicated to weddings with gifts for grooms, best man, fathers mothers et al.
www.poshtottydesigns.com
A newcomer and exquisite maker is Michelle Draycott, a graphics person by profession, decided she fancied doing some three dimensional work and turned some Harris Tweed into a Hare and then later made a Greyhound and the business has taken off.
www.harris-hare.co.uk 
Caroline Hely Hutchinson’s work is to ceramics what the current catwalk trend of mixing pattern and colour is to fashion. She designs handpainted porcelain and glass. One of her most charming, and perhaps, kitsch designs is cow shaped butter dishes painted in a plethora of pattern and colours.
www.CHH-DESIGN.COM
Posted by Juliet on Mar 19, 2012 in
Books,
The daily blog Adventures in Needlework- stitching with a passion by Jessica Aldred and Emily Peacock published by GMC publications at £14.99
LEAN ON ME
We seem to be back to Hearts again. It was the flaming heart, with the two blue birds, image on the front of this book that made me want to review it. The book is divided into four sections each exploring a different kind of needlework. The first chapter and for me the best by a long way is the one on canvas work. The projects in this chapter are striking,original a little more edgy with more than a hint of fairground lettering about them. The first project in the book “Lean on me’ is a cushion cover. It has fairground imagery and is a really great design,only marginally spoiled by the photograph being badly styled, with a couple of rather suspect shaggy cushions in shot.
The other project I like is another cushion this time with the word Passion set against a heart with orange and yellow flames coming out of it. The book is clearly laid out with step by step photographs and charts. Published by GMC books at £14.99 it represents good value for your money.
Posted by Juliet on Mar 8, 2012 in
The daily blog Juliet Bawden rambles on her blog about Hearts, crafts and a cat called Macaverty
Vintage sailors pin cushion
I have been getting carried away with hearts and have been collecting them on pintrest. My good friend Barbara Boxhall made a collection of photographic hearts one for each month of the year.
November
Double cherry blossom heart April
Macaverty
Today whilst doing a spring clean I happened upon an old embroidery, of my cat Macaverty . So I framed him and shot him on my lap top. That sounds so wrong! Like something from an old fashioned detective thriller.
Posted by Juliet on Mar 5, 2012 in
Books,
The daily blog Juliet Bawden’s first book for the ipad Hearts
The book cover
Hearts Celebrates the rich symbolism of this timeless motif with practical and inspirational projects for you to make. The wonderful photographs are by Debbie Patterson.
Tags: Hearts
Posted by Juliet on Feb 28, 2012 in
Books,
The daily blog Style Me vintage Clothes
A Guide to Sourcing and Creating Retro Looks
By Naomi Thompon is published this month by Pavilion at £9.99
Style Me Vintage Clothes
A Guide to Sourcing and Creating Retro Looks
If you have ever wanted to introduce Vintage into your wardrobe but felt unsure where to start this is the book for you. For the novice Vintage shopper, it is difficult to know which pieces to invest in, and which pieces to avoid. Style me vintage clothes takes you by the hand and gently guides you through the do’s and don’t’s of retro shopping, teaching you which details indicate quality, the silhouettes and shapes that reveal which era the piece is from, the importance of shape wear, labels to look for and how to look after your collection.
Underpinnings
Covering four main sections – Getting started, The Looks, Helpful Extras and a list of recommended reading and stockists. There are examples from the 1920’s, 30’s, 40’s, 50’s, 60’s, 70’s and 80’s, discussing all the crucial points you need to keep in mind when buying vintage. There is a mending section and some example photographs of underwear and swimwear.
Care and Repair
The author Naomi Thompson is a stylist and personal shopper specializing in vintage fashion. She runs a website www.vintagesecret.com
Posted by Juliet on Feb 27, 2012 in
The daily blog,
What's on The Faberge Big Egg Hunt Join the Hunt Win the Golden Egg more details on creativesalvage.com
For the next 40 days and 40 nights, 200 uniquely crafted eggs will grace corners and famous sites across central London in an effort to raise £1 million for the Elephant Family and Action for Children charities.
Decorated egg
They're changing guard at Buckingham Palace
The 2 1/2 foot fibreglass eggs have been crafted by designers from all types of industries, including eggs by Vivienne Westwood, Selfridges and Mulberry. Many of the artists include architects, product designers, jewelry designers, fine artists and street artists.
The funds raised from the auction will be divided between Elephant Family, a charity focused on saving the Asian Elephant population from extinction, and Action for Children, a charity that tackles neglect and abuse issues across the UK. These charities were chosen for the proceeds because eggs symbolize new life and hope for the future, and both of these organizations’ are rooted in those principles.
With 12 zones to search through and 45 eggs in the Mayfair zone alone, there isn’t any time to waste. Zones range from Trafalgar Square to Canary Wharf, so start hunting. Find zone maps at www.thebigegghunt.co.uk
This was first posted by Jenny Brewer for idfx on February 21st 2012
Posted by Juliet on Feb 23, 2012 in
Designer/Makers,
The daily blog,
What's on This week Craft, Hobby and Stitch was held at Birmingham’s NEC. There were some very interesting designs machines in fact all you could need for making.
Mas d’Ouvan
Presented , for the first time in England, their beautiful patchwork fabrics and accessories!
Bruno Lamy has been designing the collection since 1991, always in the spirit of the romantic life of 18th Century France!
’Toile de jouy’ with pastoral scenes, flowers, stripes!
Kelly lamy
Assistante de direction
Executive assistant
Mas d’Ouvan
www.masdouvan.com
0663755120
An old favourite of mine is the very talented Madeleine Millington. she produces kits in wool fabrics and also patterns to make some of her lovely applique designs.
For more information visit www.madeleinemillington.com
or contact Madeleine – Phone: +44 (0)1392 277521
Email:
