Happy Easter

Knitted Easter decorations by Sue Inglis.

Enjoy your Easter! Did you remember that the clocks went forward last night? Spring forward, Fall back as the saying goes. 
Yesterday Ali Cooper brought in a collection of her porcelain pieces I think you will love. If the Picasa problem is fixed I'll show you pictures tomorrow. I need another long slim table for the shop as it gets fuller. I am pleased with the way it looks at the moment. So many desirable handmade objects in one place! People are so clever...! 

Anthropologie shop decor

Bold glued paper backdrop.

Recyled cardboard art.

Who thought woven upholstery webbing would look good on the wall?

Dyed paper hydrangeas - huge and beautiful.

Ancient shutters with  old mirror flank shelves of shoes and jewellery.

Lots of 'Wow' moments in the Kings Road branch of American owned Anthropologie. I'm sorry they've stopped the waterfall feature but who else makes recycling look this good? On my last trip to London, a week ago I can honestly say I found my look round Anthropologie as inspiring as Selvedge and Country Living fairs. Regular readers will know I put up lots of photos of their other shop in Regent Street before - that one has a garden growing vertically up the wall!
I'm most fascinated by those paper hydrangeas - I think it's ordinary white paper that's been dip dyed. They would look wonderful at a wedding , a handmade wedding ...

Is it the duty of all makers to use rubbish in some of the things they do? Recycling that which otherwise would go for landfill? Upcycling to make something better than the sum of its parts. I think I'll make an upcycling board on Pinterest for inspiration.

And if you don't want to just give chocolate this Easter get over to Handmade Happiness today- lots of Easter handmade presents from £2 to £18.
Enjoy your weekend! 

Handmade Happiness is open today

An assortment of Kate Hackett's egg cups in the window

 How great to see the sun this morning. Please hang around sunshine.

Sorry about the reflections in the picture. Kate's egg cups complete with egg are £10 and you can see Sue Inglis's sheep and pigs above them - £5 each. Sue has brought in more of her hand-knitted little Easter decorations - bunnies, chicks, sheep and new flying pigs for your Easter tree - all £4 each. 
Handmade Happiness will be open all day today, Good Friday.

The trouble with Pinterest (you make up themed picture boards by 're-pinning' your choice of pics on them) is that it is a bit addictive. Late at night I'm scouring through hundreds of pictures to find those little gems that I can pin to my boards. It's fun to do. I can't understand how the site owners make their money as there are no advertisements. It's like a public service - like a library where there are no fines.

At Country Living magazine Spring Fair

This garden was inside on the ground floor...

...with masses of scented spring flowers.

Bunting by the letter anyone? www.brilliantbunting.co.uk

Not handmade but don't you love these floral velvets?

 My clever son has talked me through a way round the Picasa problem and here are some photos - ta da!

I think we're all forgetting it's Easter on Sunday because the weather is so unSpringlike. 

In Handmade Happiness now are charming egg cups by Kate Hackett each with a chocolate egg in for £10 each; the cutest knitted bunny, chick, pig and sheep decorations by Sue Inglis for £4 each and a myriad of lovely little gifts for anyone who doesn't want to just give chocolate to their nearest and dearest!

Sewing - the new baking?

'Clutch dolls' for small hands by Jenny Stacy

 The Great British Sewing Bee is at 8pm on BBC2 starting on Tuesday April 2nd. It aims to popularise sewing in the same way The Great British Bake Off popularised baking. 

Two expert judges decide which of 8 contestants has been least adept at sewing a skirt or upcycling a top and that person leaves the show. 

It sounds must- see viewing to me and has mucked up my plans to have a drop in and make evening every Tuesday in the shop. What other evening would suit? Wednesday maybe.

With the lighter evenings I figure I'll keep the shop open longer one night a week so anyone can come in with whatever they are in the middle of making, sit round the table and work at it in the company of like-minded individuals. Tea/coffee and biscuits provided and it will be free of charge. You just have to bring yourself and your project - which could be knitting,crochet or maybe sewing?

The 'Happy' cardigans arrived from Alison Dupernex yesterday. Do come in and admire them. I'll show you a photograph as soon as Google Picasa mends itself to allow me to import pics from the camera again.

I joined Pinterest late last night and as soon as I've put together some inspiration boards will have a link in the side bar.

Keep smiling - and turn the heating up!

A clutch doll by Jenny Stacy

 Picasa is still not importing photos from cameras. I can't tell you the time I have wasted trying to fix it, so sorry but another picture from the archives this morning. It will also remind me to make more little dolls like this.

Yesterday I went to Chichester. After a check up at the dentist I went to Ruth Ellacott's house to collect a rag rug or three for the shop. Ruth lives just round the corner from where I used to live in Chichester and I wish I had known her then. Her house is a treasure trove of found objects - pieces of sea washed broken china and bowls of striped pebbles. Her own art work - rugs, patchwork and beautiful watercolour studies of wild flowers is mixed in with art finds from all over the country - stencilled mugs and old pots that please her artist's eye.
  
We walked to the new Clothkits store in Chichester. The owner has bought and transformed an old pub, 'The Bush' into a state of the art, very desirable shop premises. Lots of gorgeous fabrics, buttons and of course, Clothkits kits. Definitely worth a visit. The store is at 16, The Hornet, Chichester.

The weather was so biting cold that I didn't linger in Chichester but went on to Midhurst for a quick charity run (visiting all the charity shops). I only found one thing - a bundle of embroidered tray cloths for £2 - I'd show you a photograph IF I COULD Picasa!!! They are so delicately embroidered with little daisies in different colours that I couldn't resist.

Today I'll change the window and re-arrange the contents of Handmade Happiness incorporating the latest ceramics from Kate Hackett I collected yesterday and Ruth Ellacott's  rag rugs. This week I am looking forward to receiving a parcel from Alison Dupernex of her stunning knitwear. 

Stay true to you

Painted papers collage by Jenny Stacy

Recently I've found myself saying to makers: 'Stay true to you.' You might start off making things inspired by someone else's work, you might even try to copy someone else's work but as far as selling is concerned it's got to be your own ideas.
All the things about you that make you the special, unique person that you are will come through in your work. IF YOU LET IT HAPPEN. 
The trouble is we listen to other people and their ideas are different and we get confused and don't know which way is up. But there's only one person making that thing or painting that picture - You. 
It's hard to be confident in what we make. I wonder if anyone is ever 100% sure about anything in life. But you can make the very best you are capable of making. You just have to try. And be confident. There's only one you. Believe it.

Google rules ok?

Needlefelted birds by Michelle Green

Turns out lots of people can't import their photos to their computers now. Picasa (owned by Google) are aware of the problem and hopefully will have it fixed sooooon.

I know my limits, I can't fix machines or governments or annoying taped messages on phones that tell you to look on a website when you want to speak to a human being... I can't fix things, I can rage against them but unless enough people rage in a concerted manner nothing will change. Man against machine. Technology has moved on and most of us can't keep up. 
 People want to interact with people not with a machine and they want to feel their voice can be heard occasionally. What they don't want is to have to categorise what they want to say into one of a series of options. 

This week a brave lady came into the shop and told me her story. A pensioner, she is standing up to bully boys trying to get money out of her against her will. She is calm and dignified and I think she'll win. I wish I had thought to take her name and number because I've found someone else with a similar problem and I want to bring them together. 

If you're looking at this blog for the first time you might think what's all this got to do with Handmade Happiness? My state of mind today has, admittedly got something to do with having to shell out  £356 on the car yesterday  but it's an old car and the garage is one I'll always recommend (petersfield garage services). And it's not just the car that's getting older. I'm older though I don't feel older. As we get older I think we should all 'Rage, rage against the dying of the light' as Dylan Thomas so eloquently put it!!

Impressions of Selvedge and Country Living fairs

inside Anthropologie 

I have 20 pictures on my camera but I can't show you any of them because Picasa isn't uploading pictures from cameras today. Grrrrr.
Please bear with me and I'll hope to show you pictures tomorrow.

Selvedge: To have a stand is £360 for two days including 6-9pm on day one. It's carefully selected. If you are a textile artist it looks a good place to sell. Applications are from the end of April on the Selvedge website.
I found some beautiful work there eg the weaving in natural tones of Catarina Riccabona and Annie Sherburne's rag rugs and the prize for sheer wackiness goes to Sally Falkner with her vintage creatures. It was busy and money was changing hands.
If you want to check out the Selvedge fair for yourself it's on today at Chelsea old town hall 10am to 4pm tickets £7-50 on the door. And today the Hens' Teeth lady will be there. Just for one day.I thought she'd be there yesterday - should have checked her website.

Country Living spring fair: To have a stand is £1,000 plus for 5 days including gala evening on day one. It's selected but not on the basis of handmade. Country Living likes vintage. This fair is about four times bigger than Selvedge and it takes a day to really look at everything. I go looking for handmade and Country Living has been trying to encourage more makers to apply with their magazine competition. But I couldn't find the new makers area. But I heard there had been a pop up market on the Thursday. Maybe that was the competition winners prize... I did find some nice things and a couple of possibles for Handmade Happiness. More later.   Country Living spring fair is also on today at Islington. Admission £16

I now must collect the car from the garage. As sometimes happens they found a lot more wrong with it than we thought...It's going to be an expensive day...hey ho.

Today Selvedge and Country Living fairs

This is in Winchester

My friend Ann is in Handmade Happiness today while I whizz up to London to look round the Selvedge fair and the Country Living spring fair. Umbrella at the ready!
I'll tell you all about what I see tomorrow. 

A handmade wedding

by Jenny Stacy. One of the wedding invitations I made for a wedding last year.

 Congratulations to my daughter Amy and her boyfriend Jesse who got engaged last night!
Amy wants a handmade wedding and my mind is racing with ideas for helping her to have the prettiest, most memorable wedding with all the details handmade!

I started producing a mood board last night by painting some old lace gold and embroidering little slips of flowers onto soft, handmade paper.
 Will you join me on this wedding challenge? I'd love to hear your ideas  and anything you've seen you've been impressed by. 
The plan is for a September wedding so there's plenty of time to make things. Do not be surprised to see some wedding jewellery/ hair accessories/ wedding-inspired cards/ decorations  spilling over into Handmade Happiness soon!
By the way I've lifted the comment word verification thing for today as I'd like to make it as easy as possible for you to comment if you want to. Thank you. And apologies in advance for the spam that's bound to get through before I can delete it!!

Changing the window etc.

 Today in the Handmade Happiness window is an Easter tree hanging with little Easter decorations, that's in the centre but it's harder than I thought to take a good picture of it. 

To the left in the boxes, top left to right are: a baby's hat knitted  by June Knight for £9-50; Heart jug by Kate Hackett, £18; denim wool wrist warmers with hole for thumb by June Knight, £15.

Middle left to right:  porcelain candle holder with punched hearts pattern by Samantha Robertson, £10; dyed blanket owl and bracelet by Glen Wellstead, £6 each; pretty heart mug by Kate Hackett, £16.

Bottom left to right: long vintage fabric pieces from Penny Baker, £10; four slate coasters by Eve Deary £16; and picture of log candles which are in the lobby at £15.

Today is part two of Pam Dew's hand stitching Applique and Quilting workshop. It's this afternoon from 2-4pm but the shop is OPEN so don't be afraid to come in if you're passing at that time and you can still browse and buy same as usual. Having learned last week how to do applique, this week we'll learn how to quilt our pictures. 
After this workshop I'll  respond to the demand for more but not initiate new ones for the time being. At the moment I have a request for beginners crochet. Anyone else want to learn to crochet on a Wednesday afternoon?

Eating to live...

Yesterday I discovered www.agirlcalledjack.com  Jack is a single parent who blogs about feeding herself and small son on just £10 a week. She is a fighter who's been through some very tough times and is so likeable that you just want her to live her dream and be totally happy. 

It's her cheap but nourishing recipes that have earned her an enormous following. See what you think.

I remember Rose Elliot's books 'Not just a load of old lentils' etc offering cheap nutrition for would-be vegetarians in the 70s and 80s. I love her books and I bet Jack Monroe will have a book or two to her name soon too!

So yesterday on my day off I visited banks...My 18 months of free banking with Hsbc has come to an end and I reckon bank charges will cost the shop an extra £30 plus a month.

 Having asked Hsbc for an extension on the free banking (No)I went to Nat West. No longer is there someone you can talk to behind a screen, in Nat West you have to phone the Chichester branch to speak to a business account person. I did so and after a quick chat was 'put through' to someone else. Well you hear the music and you wait...and wait...and eventually when you can't stand waiting any longer you put the phone down. 

En route to work I'll pop into Nationwide but it's a building society so not sure if they do business accounts. If not I'll try ringing the Nat West number again... 

Do you think if I start spring cleaning the weather will change?

 The moment I woke up I started the big spring clean. (That was just before 6am.) My best energy is first thing. I feel I could move mountains then. But like a clockwork mouse my energy runs down during the day and it's rare I achieve much late at night. 

I think the Mediterranean countries have the right idea with a siesta after lunch but that just isn't possible in this country, working the 9-5 as we do.

 Power naps - a 10-20 minute switch off day or night seem a very good idea - Thatcher and Churchill thought so; but I think there is an ingrained guilt in most of us about sleeping during daylight hours.
 When you have a new baby I remember the dilemma between using the time gained when baby is asleep to work on something or do housework or cooking when all your body tells you to do is collapse beside him and sleep too.  I say do it. Obey your body or your gut feeling. It's usually right. If you want to sleep, sleep. (And if your mother in law is telling you something else ignore her..!) Look after you.

Window close up this week

The work of eleven makers are displayed in the box this week.

Once a week I change everything in the window. In the box display right now, from the top, left to right are:

Twig hooks by Chris Burgess £5 each; mugs by Jacqui Watkins £9-50 each.

 (Just visible) knitted chick by Sue Inglis £4 each - on the tree to the left Sue has knitted tiny bunnies, eggs, sheep, hens all for the same price; Kate Hackett childrens' mug £12;  embroidered brooches by Karen Boller £20 each; embroidered small picture by Sheila Barrow £38.

 Tooth fairy under pillow bag £15 by Linda Innes; handy bag with long strap by Sue Flux £12-50; love you slate heart on dyed cotton tape ribbon £3 by Eve Deary; red ceramic hearts £2 and £3 by Eileen Brown.

 Blue wrist warmers £28 by Hume Sweet Hume; pretty flower heart mug £16 by Kate Hackett; oak door stop £7 by Dennis Gamble.

Yesterday I had some lovely visitors. 
A friend told me she had just seen Liberty fabrics being sold at Age Uk in Petersfield, so as soon as the shop emptied I ran up there and invested in three pieces of good quality fabric (pic to come!).

 Then across the road something caught my eye in Sue Ryder's window. A yellow ochre cotton smocked skirt, yes, quite unusual and £4-95 but inside the shop the best was yet to come. I found a Joseph lambskin jacket size 8 which I think my daughter Amy will love - for £6! That must be the bargain of the decade!!

Again pic to come. And in case you're surprised that I'd buy fur I argue that unlike me Amy isn't vegetarian and if an animal has to be killed for meat might as well use the skin as well. What do you think?

Useful art by Sheila Barrow

Useful purse/bag by Sheila Barrow

by Sheila Barrow

Covered notebook by Sheila Barrow

by Sheila Barrow

When art also has a function isn't it the best of all worlds? Sheila Barrow's notebooks with thick paper that you can paint on if you want to would make a great present for someone who loves to sketch/paint/ record their travels.  And her purses could hold a phone/ tickets/ specs or sketching pencils! All are available in Handmade Happiness now.

I am hoping that by the time I walk to work the rain will have stopped. A warm sunny day would be nice please.

The finished applique!

Now it can be quilted! My very simple applique picture. Yes, it does need ironing!

This picture has four bits of old Liberty fabrics in it. I occasionally found Liberty in the form of an old skirt or blouse in a charity shop. That was a day of rejoicing. Now I hunt but don't find. I guess there are lots of people out there looking for the same things as me. What do you look for in a charity shop? I also look for cut glass storage jars with lids on. They are great for buttons and ribbons. My best buy of all time was a genuine Mulberry handbag for £3.25 which I use every day! 

I have a friend who knows about antiques. (I know nothing about antiques.) She says: 'Things that are broken make beautiful objects.' And I've been thinking about that lately... 
She compares two large ancient Chinese vases. One in perfect condition is worth £500; the other one is chipped and cracked and worth £5. But if the cheap one is placed with the chip and cracks against the wall nobody knows it is damaged and you get the pleasure of seeing a beautiful thing in your home.

Samantha Robertson's jars and bowls

Sky blue and palest green. I love these pieces by Samantha Robertson.  You can also see one of Ann Hutchins beautiful embroideries on the left.

Samantha Robertson's honey coloured bowl.

 Yesterday Samantha Robertson brought her lovely work into Handmade Happiness. And she'll bring in more after Easter. 
Then textile artist Sheila Barrow came in with her latest pieces. You can just see some of them in the top left of the picture above. More beautiful embellished notebooks, long purses and applique pictures - I'll show you pictures of her work tomorrow.

Last night I finished the applique picture I started at Pam Dew's class. The bird is soaring upwards now not diving but it's soothing to sew all those tiny stitches.  I have an idea for what I want to do next after learning how to hand quilt at next week's class.
 I challenge anyone to come into Handmade Happiness and see all the talent and not feel inspired!

Handmade buttons

Handmade buttons by Jenny Stacy.

Sorry this picture is blurry but the other ones I took yesterday were worse! I like the brightly coloured buttons but black and white and navy and white always sell best.

I am so happy to see the sun shining in a bright blue sky today. The weather has a definite effect on the number of visitors the shop gets.  Damp, snowy weather equals very few visitors. Crisp, bright, dry weather equals maximum shop visitors.
So I re-did the window and moved things round in the shop yesterday it being the former sort of weather.
 My mind is still full of textile images from the show last Friday. There's a danger in me allowing the shop to become too textile-y so I must choose carefully.

No workshop this afternoon but next week on Wednesday Pam Dew is teaching Hand Quilting following on from her workshop last week on Applique.  There are two places available at this workshop if anyone wants to join us, as two of last week's ladies can't do March 20th. Let me know. If you come into the shop this afternoon you'll probably see me trying to finish off my applique picture in readiness for next week's session.

Flowers in the snow

Daffodils floored by the weather

Yellow in the white

Beautiful flowers I got for Mothers Day

It's snow joke! Aren't you longing for warm sunshine? I can't wait to get into the garden and tidy and plant. But not today. I haven't dared listen to the weather forecast this morning.  This year we've had such a long winter. Maybe it's to do with climate change or maybe we've just been unlucky. 
Yesterday I stayed close to home and spent an enjoyable hour or so in Waterstone's choosing books for my son's birthday. When you read there is always an alternative world to enjoy far away from the long British winter!!

Promoting your business

Alison's knitwear is super colourful

Pictured is one of the business cards I brought home with me from the Contemporary Textiles show on Friday. 
I think it illustrates the importance of having good promotional aids for your business. Of the 18 business cards I have this is the one which tells me at a glance what she does. And cleverly she has her information on the front, not the back so you can't see the work without seeing who made it.

Spring is certainly dragging her feet this year! I can't believe it is snowing right now. I'm looking forward to a walk anyway. Maybe I'll see some brave spring flowers ... I'll take my camera!

By the way I'm happy to have had comments to my last post. It seems that taking out the word verification opened the floodgates. Most of the comments I got were spam and you only see the publishable ones here. So now I'm wondering whether it's better to have fewer quality comments with word verification or lots of spam to go through...

A Life in Colour...

Fabrics designed by Kaffe Fassett 

...That is the name of an exhibition of Kaffe Fassett's work at the Fashion and Textile museum (nearest tube station London Bridge) from March 22nd to June 29th.

Happy Mothers Day to all the mums reading this.
 I have three children. Love them all to bits. And I often think how, when expecting a baby for the first time you have no idea how that little person so completely changes your life. Once he or she is born life is never the same again. 
Mine are all grown up now. 

I remember when they were just babies the pressure I felt on me to go back to work when the last thing I wanted was to leave my baby. 

I keep hearing of couples paying out for childcare so both parents can work and I think what's the point of mums working if all or nearly all they earn gets paid to someone else for caring for the children? 

I remember thinking that if the government paid me to stay at home with my children, to do the best job I could to bring up good individuals for the next generation instead of putting me under pressure to leave them to go out to work the country would be a happier place.

However that pressure to earn made me make things to sell. I could make and look after the children, making more when they were asleep. In theory working from home around the children and their needs seems a good compromise. But also getting a cash incentive from the government to be at home would be even better!

I'm getting down from my soap box now. But as a Mothers Day present could I ask you to comment today? I know you don't usually comment but it's easy just click Comments under this post and write. I would love to hear from you. Enjoy your Sunday.

Contemporary Textiles 2013

I bought these exquisite buttons by Wendy Lloyd

 I urge anyone who's interested in textile art to go to Teddington's Landmark Arts Centre this weekend.
I went to the preview with my daughter Amy last night and we saw some knockout work. I came home with 18 artists' cards and feeling I'd like work by all of them in Handmade Happiness!

It's the innovation, the experimental, original pieces that impress the most. The work of really creative imaginations.
I like the weaving into knitwear; the layered felt; the strongly coloured prints on silk and the grey applique landscapes of home. The creators are direct and unaffected. Enjoying communicating about their work. I do hope they are living their dreams. They deserve to.
 More pictures and links soon.

A little something for Mothers' Day

Slate hearts  (£3 each) by Eve Deary are a popular choice for Mothers Day

Eve Deary also makes signs like this £9.50, message boards with chalk and 3 tier cake stands.

These little hearts are being bought for Mothers Day on Sunday. You can hang one over a bottle (a bottle of perfume would be my choice!!) or put one in a card (as long as the card isn't going in the post) or wrap it up as it is. Some of them say 'Special Mum' or 'Love you Mum'. Just right.

Last night I flew the flag for Handmade Happiness at a Pamper Evening at a local school. I went there straight from work and it ended at 10pm. I felt beyond tired! I met some lovely people there who I look forward to seeing in the shop soon.
Tonight I'm going to London for the preview of Landmark Arts 'Contemporary Textiles 2013' show something I'm really looking forward to. I'll try to take some pictures to share. But first I have an early meeting with Sarah who's bringing some 'log candles' to the shop which sound really interesting.

Learning the secrets of applique

My first attempt at applique. Most of the pieces are upside down at this stage.

 Pam Dew's Hand applique class was full and buzzing yesterday afternoon. 

 Pam showed us how to draw our design on freezer paper that served as the pattern on our chosen fabrics. As you can see I made mine very simple indeed but suitable for a baby or child's room which I've got in mind. We then cut the fabric larger than the pattern to allow us to turn the fabric over to stitch it on to the background material. You can see where I've started sewing on the right hand side.

Pam is an excellent teacher and everyone thoroughly enjoyed the afternoon.

My only reservation is that all the people looking through the window of Handmade Happiness might have thought that it was too much of a crush to come in and look around or buy things. But as it says on the door, the shop is Open workshop or no workshop.

Kate Box knitted blankets

Another blanket by Kate Box

Kate Box blanket

Showing you these blankets hanging in the window of Handmade Happiness is not enough. I want to share their beauty in close up! Kate calls these baby blankets. They could go on a cot or in a pram but they are also big enough to wrap oneself in.
I am looking forward to stocking other items designed and made by Kate Box. I'll keep you posted!

Colour in Chichester

Avoca colour in the window of the shop Gorgeous

A blue house against a blue sky

In the window of the Colne Galery

 How great to see the sunshine yesterday!

I got to Chichester late having called on a friend en route and the cafe I wanted to have a cup of tea in had closed but it was good to walk around and window shop.
I actually bought something in Gorgeous - pictured top. My friend Tara gave me a mug and jug covered in buttons by Avoca last Christmas and I saw a breakfast bowl to match. One of those bowls that the French like to drink coffee out of. That shop at the top of North Street is packed with colourful coats and jackets - lots at sale prices. Tricot Too used to stock Avoca, a brilliant Irish company. I do like their things.
I also bought some flowery tissue paper at Paperchase for wrapping purchases in Handmade Happiness.

Just to let you know there is now only one place left at Pam Dew's Hand Applique workshop tomorrow so if you want to join us ring me at work today 01730 267711.

Sorting

Useful lidded pots for sorting at Ikea

I do like red. Such a cheerful colour! Which would you choose red or white? Or neither because they're all plastic! They look like a useful aid for sorting though.

Today is  day off Monday and I'm planning a sorting morning followed by a Chichester afternoon.

There are just two places left for Pam Dew's sewing workshop on Wednesday afternoon at the shop. Drop me an email if you want to come or ring the shop 01730 267711 tomorrow. 

In the window close up

At Handmade Happiness now. Details below.

 Handmade Happiness has so many beautiful handmade things to select from right now.
Slate, wood, clay, fabric, wool, silver, paint, canvas, metals. There is a lot for browsers to look at and comment on.  

In the picture from top left are: Kate Hackett ceramic childrens' mug £12;  Sue Inglis knitted pig and sheep £4-50; Kate Hackett egg cup £10.
On the middle shelf: Hume Sweet Hume lambswool and silk corsage brooch £10; Lindsey Agostinelli bear made of vintage fabric £29;  Maya Bradshaw felt stitched baby shoes £9.50.
Bottom shelf: Kate Hackett childrens' mug £12; Sue Inglis bunny £10.50; Kate Hackett heart mug £16.

I changed the window yesterday. This time next week I'll show you other peoples' work in the boxes. And this time next week is, ta da! Mothers' Day. Enjoy your Sunday.

In the Handmade Happiness window today...

New softest blankets by Kate Box in the window now.

New porcelain night light holders by Samantha Robertson with screen printed tea towels  by Jacqui Watkins

Yesterday Kate Box brought in two of her gorgeous knitted and felted blankets. I love them. Made of lambswool but they feel like cashmere. Perfect for wrapping round a child or a granny or anyone who likes to snuggle in something beautifully soft.  Or you could just hang one on the wall as a piece of Mondrianesque art!

Also new in the shop this week are Samantha Robertson's tea light holders. Samantha also makes blue and green glazed bowls, mugs, jugs and plates which be available in Handmade Happiness soon.

I noticed last night how light it was coming home from work. Hurray it's March and spring has nearly sprung! 

Felting again

A picture I found in a Victoria (US) magazine I'd  been saving.

 Yesterday I got this idea for a bracelet which involves making a few felt pieces and cutting them up. Which I'll do in a minute.

I just want to tell you about what I did last night. Just before closing I heard that a local pub runs an event where women running local businesses can meet and network and, if they like, have a table showing what they sell.  What a great idea! 

In the pub I met Katie showing racks of clothes she sells through her company Forget me Not; Jane Sims and the bags, corsages and cushions she makes and a lady selling her Pilates classes.  There were lots of women in the pub but I'd say they were friends meeting for  a drink rather than women wanting to network. I would not have felt comfortable handing out business cards.. But I'll go again and thank you Lottie who runs The George for hosting these monthly get-togethers.