Button It !

As I think I've said before, I make buttons and beads from time to time with the scraps left over from the big stuff, but I haven't ever sold them through shops or galleries until now.  But The Little Gallery at Dereham has asked for some, so I had to consider what to do.

Would folks want to buy them individually? Or should I tie them/bag them together in jumbled up lots, or in sets? I decided in the end that presentation was important, so had me some fun with black card, home-made labels, hole punch, wire and guillotine.

And a few hours later they looked like this.

and this

and beads like this:

so that I ended up with lots of little cards of sets of buttons, ready to send to the gallery.

... and when you need to sew a button on, you need a needle, (seamless link there!) and how lovely to be able to keep my needles in this gorgeous needlecase,  handmade by Su at Living on the Edge which I was lucky enough to win last week.

It is made from beautiful fabric designed by Celia at Purple Podded Peas using her own prints and the design-your-own-fabric service offered by Spoonflower.  You can read the fascinating background to all that on their blogs.
Thank you so much Su and Celia!!

Which reminds me .... I must do a giveaway in time for Christmas - would the cards of buttons be a good idea for a giveaway maybe?  I shall do it - soon!

 x Cathy

Family Tree

So, after all this time, I finally got around to making something for my parents!  It was long overdue, but I didn't have to think very hard about what it should be.  Like most of us, family is everything to them, so I attempted to represent their/our/my family onto a large plate.

It started life as a round slab onto which I impressed all the names.  I soon realised that I would really need something the size of a dustbin lid to fit even my immediate family - my parents, my siblings and their children.

The plan was for two main inter-twined branches (mum and dad), with four off-shoots (me and my brothers and sister), and then their kids. 

In the end, the whole thing grew and grew til it just resembled a large over-grown bush!

I wasn't able to be there on their anniversary when it was opened, but I have it on good authority that it made my mum cry ..... in a good way.

And maybe I have created something that will be handed down through the generations - a future family heirloom?  Who knows!

 x Cathy