Work in progress

Claire August 22nd, 2007

It feels like ages since I have posted – after my initial glut of (very long) posts, sampling the delights of blogging, I kinda dried up a bit. That’s more due to having a lot on, and not having my camera around with me to be able to take pictures of the stuff I have acquired. And that has been particularly fruitful recently. How is it that when you are skint, you see some real bargains? I cannot resist a charity shop, and luckily I know a few really good ones. I also seem to have “urges”(not those kind!) to go into shops, and when I have I have managed to find some real bargains. Take this for example -

This vintage peach cut glass dressing table tray was bought for the princely sum of 10p. I am not kidding. Now, although I have a dressing table my set is green, with lots of mismatching trinket boxes and dishes. The peach will not be making an appreance on my dressing table, but I will use it to display some of the things I have made, andwill be nice for sorting beads on, as it has a small lip all the way round to stop them rolling off. I will find some use for it – even standing a plant on it – for 10p I could not resist.

Then this:


for 30p. Yes, charity shops do still have those kind of prices – you just need to know where to look and go when you are being called! It’s a daisy maker, and I have been looking for one for ages, after buying a Golden Hands book for 10p on holiday, that showed a lovely quilt made up of nothing but daisies crocheted together – so pretty.

I do love the instructions – how to be creative. It should be serialised and put into one of the part work magazines that no one manages to collect because newsagents stop stocking it. Like you can learn how to be creative. I feel everyone is creative, just lacking in confidence in their abilities. I also love this woman’s expresison – she’s shocked that her top has daisies on it. Either that or she has really bad wind….
Daisy makers were big in the 70′s when there was a lot of interest in crafts, and then all of a sudden you couldn’t find them anywhere. This was in the middle of a load of knitting patterns, and had the sheet from the magazine, and the daisy maker hadn’t even been made up. Made a few to practice, and I will make these into a baby blanket to sell in my Pinky and Boo shop (when it is eventually set up).

Speaking of Pinky and Boo,I thought I would show you some of the things I have been making for the shop – pincushions galore. Not all of them are finished, but I have made quite a few. Well, about 50 or so….

I think they look better like this though

- much nicer. Some of them are nice and squishy, some have lavender in them so when you push your pins in it releases the smell. They are made either from vintage fabrics, or new fabrics that are vintage inspired, and all have wool felt leaves and crocheted flowers, often made from vintage threads, such as some lovely smocking threads Susan gave me – they are quite hard to use as the fine hook (1mm) splits the threads, but when they are done they look really lovely with a soft sheen, and curl up on themselves like they are just opening up. They are all finished on the bottom with a mother of pearl button.

One of the other things I have been doing is working on other things to sell, and have been making some “rosebud slippers” from a pattern in Essential Crochet” by Erika Knight – a gorgeous book that Pamela gave me – these will have ribbon ties on them, almost like ballet shoes and are really pretty.

So far I have made a pink pair and half of a pair in a lovely eau de nile colour. The purse I have my crochet hooks in was 50p from the same charity shop I got the daisy maker in. I keep my really fine ones that I make the Irish crochet flowers with in an old wooden pencil box I have had since I was a child – keeps them from sliding around too much and getting damaged. I have also been crocheting some dishcloths for a gift pack I am going to make up for the shop, although I may use the experiments pictured here at home myself.

Another long post, so I will go now and get on with some work! xoxo

• crochet , pinky and boo , thrifting
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