Friday 15 November 2013

Doing those little jobs I should have done months ago . . .

That's how I spent my day today, finally getting things done that I had "put off till tomorrow".  I'm very good at that!


Firstly, these lovely heavily embroidered Crinoline Lady cushions needed cushion pads and then some gentle stitching along the top edge to make them up.  Tick.


I finally sewed the corners and glued the gimp on this little footstool . . .  Tick.


This beautiful 1980s Pollyanna Pickering print needed a new frame and we chose this lovely Sky Blue for the mounting board.  I don't really want to sell it, so if it doesn't go, I shan't mind too much.  Tick.


This old narrow loom Welsh blanket needed hemming, which I did recently, and also a couple of darns.  Tick.


The top of the table we got yesterday was very pale and wan from being in the sunlight, so my husband gave it some tlc and a couple of coats of oil really brought the colour out.  Tick.

Still to do:


I have two lovely and skillfully embroidered Crinoline Lady chairbacks to turn into cushion covers.


Amongst my souvenirs I found a little tablecloth which an old lady had started off neatly enough, but then eyesight or dementia had spoiled it, so I am unpicking it and re-embroidering . . .  Still at the unpicking stage now.



8 comments:

  1. These little 'doee upee' tasks make all the difference don't they ... give the item a new lease of life and hopefully a new home.

    Vicky x

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  2. Hi Vicky. Yes, it makes all the difference. I am quite adept at turning sow's ears into silk purses, and my husband does the same with wood/furniture.

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  3. It always feels lovely to have ticked so many things off your 'to do' list. Love the fact you make cushions from the embroideries. They are well worth giving a new life too. I have some chair back covers stashed in a drawer so I really should do something with them.

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  4. How lovely to have completed all those tasks and restored old and beautiful items to their full glory.
    Lots of "to do's" here too, but for now I am waiting for my blog friends Kay and Simon to arrive from Cornwall! we are off to the carnival tonight. You may have been in the past, it's called the Bridgewater carnival, but it travels to all the towns in the area.

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  5. Elizabeth - I was going to sew them up this mmorning, but my husband voted we sort our stuff out and load the car, ready for tomorrow. Only then did I twig that the Rugby was on this afternoon! I got the new cushion pads, and have a damaged but quality linen tablecloth to backthem with,so will do it at my leisure.

    Kath - It doesn't happen often enough, so I am revelling in the feeling! I still have a long list of "to do's", two BIG quilting ones, but one I am waiting on material for, and the T's quilt can only be worked on when my brain is in residence : )

    I've not been to the Bridgewater (or all-around-Somerset!) Carnival, but look forward to seeing your photos.

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  6. Impressive progress! I couldn't live without my lists. I try and do one every day. If I don't have one, very little gets done!

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  7. Ah, the narrow loom blanket grabbed my attention; I am such a lover of old fabric and since I learnt the basics of weaving this past summer I have begun to look with an entirely new eye at almost every piece of fabric I see or touch. This one you have is a beauty; is it warm as well? The embroidery that you are unpicking will be a picture of handiwork when you finish it; I love that more than one set of hands will have worked it-somehow that appeals to me.

    Thank you for your pictures and wonderful tales, Bovey Belle, I am enjoying every visit I make to your blog and the header picture reminds me of the rolling beauty of lowlands in southeastern usa where we drove thru a number of times on our way to the far reaches.

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  8. I have a couple of the narrow loom blankets Lynda, This is the oldest I think, but the most-used as the other one is twice as thick, and from a different mill too. There were many woollen mills in this area, because all the small swift rivers and streams were in place to provide the power; the grazing was suitable for sheep to provide the wool; and even the dye plants grew locally. I am glad you enjoy my blog so much.

    Em - my lists are in my head. Although I do keep a shopping list on the kitchen door, where I add things as I get on to the "spare" (as in baking stuff etc) and usually forget it when we get the groceries!

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