Wet Felting

I had said yesterday I wasn't too sure what to expect from today, I was a little apprehensive this morning and was worried it wouldn't be for me.  I shouldn't of worried, I thoroughly enjoyed every minute of it, well almost, sewing on all the little beads at the end got me down a little bit, I didn't think I would ever finish it, but I did, and I could easily do it again, and again and again, beads and all : )

It was held at Hylands House, the same place I went to for my Flower Arranging and the Torchlit Tour.  The lady running the course was Lynne Sharpe, she is so lovely, I would highly recommend the course.  I know for most of you, you are not local so if you fancied having a look at some of the things that Lynne has made, or would like to buy some of her makes then you may like to have a look at her Folksy Shop, Love From Lynne. 

In the meantime, let me show you how I got on.

Originally I did have a slightly bigger piece of felt that I had made from my pieces of wool.  As you can see I have already cut quite a few bits out of this piece.

The bits were cut out then stitched together to hold in place and to form the shape of the flower petals.

I then cut a circle out of the felt, stitched around the outside and stuffed with wadding to form the centre of the flower.  The started to sew on pretty little beads.

And this is what it looks like when it is finished.  I love it, and will definitely be making more.  so that is now another craft tucked nicely under my belt and the first new craft for 2011.

To top off a great day, when I got home there was a lovely little parcel waiting, just for me : ).  I will let you know what was in it tomorrow.

Hope you have all had a lovely Saturday.

Love Gem xxx

Avon's Country Rose

I mentioned in my last post about a running theme with the polka dots, well while sitting in my bedroom last night I noticed another running theme I have going on.

It is a beautiful print, I absolutely love it, as you can tell.  I have bought quite a few things from the range.  the first item I bought were the PJ's which you can see folded up in the bottom right hand corner of this photo, I then added to the collection with the matching dressing gown which everything is laying on.

I just love the colours and the simple detail in the print.  It has that real fresh summery feeling to it.

I added to the collection with these Rose scented  hearts which I hang on my cupboard door handles, they are just too pretty to hide away in drawers or cupboards.  Also have you noticed the polka dots again, they just keep cropping up.

The make up bags, which I am going to save for holidays, a mix of the two prints, very bright and bold.

They have recently added a new design to the line, I'm not sure that I like it as much if I'm honest, but it is still really nice and has the same effect as the original pattern, fresh and summery.

A new polka dot shopping bag.  Not that I needed any more as I already have so many, but seriously, can a girl ever have enough bags? Really?  I didn't think so.



The line is called Country Rose and can be bought from Avon Cosmetics.  I'm not sure that you can still buy the full range, but you can still get the make up bags, I only bought those a few weeks ago and the shopping bag is due out in brouchures very soon.  As well as that I guess it is a case of keeping your eyes peeled for what they bring out in the future.

~ Gem x

Hylands House Torchlit Tour

As soon as I heard about Hylands House torchlit tour I booked my tickets right away.  

It was a brilliant evening and I really enjoyed it.  We didn't see anything but if I am honest I am quite glad about that, I'm not sure how I would have reacted if we had of, but I'm sure it wouldn't have looked pretty.  The stories we were told were spooky enough for me.

  

As well as the stories of sightings, I actually learnt a lot about the house which was great.  I have lived in Chelmsford all my life and to learn things about the area that I didn't know was really interesting and has encouraged me to want to learn more about it.

It was a very atmospheric night and one I won't forget for some time.

~ Gem x