busy

A busy Easter bank holiday weekend, have five ring pillow orders to fill and ship out for tomorrow, have spent the days cutting and stamping and sewing and stuffing.  Most especially fiddling to get things just in their nicest, best order.  Love being so busy with orders, wish every week brought me so many!

In 'real life' we have four weddings this week in the flower shop, everyone is tying the knot it seems.  I love making wedding flowers, maybe not so much as making pillows but close.  Wish I could sew all day.

Dresden Plate Applique

Years ago I found these 'Dresden Plate' applique panels in my late Grandma Beck's things.  They look like they were worked in the 40s or 50s, lovely old printed cottons.  My Grandma saved every bit of fabric, it doesn't surprise me that she tried her hand at these patterns that use up the smallest scraps.

I am contemplating what to do with them, there are five which makes a bed size quilt a tricky proposition.  Maybe a smaller quilt with four of the plates, and one framed to hang?  They are worked on to unbleached calico, and some of the basting stitches haven't even been removed.  My Grandma sewed a lot, but this is the only quilt I've ever seen of hers, I'm delighted she never finished it or she would have given it away.

I love paper piecing anyway, so I think this pattern might work really well for me.  I've been looking at other Dresden Plate variations on Pinterest, lots of beautiful work there.  I'd like to try it in some of my own colours and mixing in some lace and buttons as I normally use.  Here are some other plate patterns I love!

A gorgeous wall hanging by blogger Retro Mama:

Vintage Dresden Plate potholders from Etsy seller Vera Viola

And a cute version from Cath Kidston that uses a yoyo for the centre:

Looking at these, I think my Grandma's are the nicest!  The colours are still beautiful after being stored for all these years.

Little China Pincushions

This week I made pincushions!  I found a little china jar with no lid at the car boot sale in Shanagarry a couple of weeks ago, and it said to me 'pincushion'.  It is startling how many things say that to me.  So this past weekend at the awesome Carrigtwohill car boot sale, I bought some more bits of china to make into even more pincushions.  I even made one with the little shot glass with the milkmaid on it.  I literally eyed up everything as a possible pincushion, but I think it's out of my system now.

My favourite is the Carrigaline china dish with the shamrocks on it, as it came out satisfyingly round.  I also love the little vase with the strawberries on it.  These are all very good pincushions, they sit very still while you do your business of putting pins in them, no trying to get away.

I took my photos in a different spot with a different camera today.  My beloved Lumix has memory card issues and really needs to pop up to Dublin to get sorted out, meanwhile I am using Kieran's little pocket cam.  I took the photos on a shelf in the flower shop, instead of the window where I usually take them.  They came out like a lightbox...I don't like it!  I want my overexposed, Etsy-angle photos back!

These will probably not make it up on Etsy until Monday.  I suspect I will retake the pictures, I just can't let good enough alone.