Thursday, May 4, 2017

Pru's Order

Greetings dear friends & readers & Welcome to May (already!!!)

After I had completed the Princess & the Pea Order & delivered to my friend Sally, I sat at the table the following morning sipping a hot cuppa & a thought occurred to me ......................
for the VERY first time in about 18 long months .......... I had absolutely NO orders to do !!!!!!!!!!!

As the Cottage was well stocked (& quiet) I could actually make something for myself ........... a doll perhaps ???
Imagine the possibilities .......................


No sooner had I finished the last sip of my coffee than Pru drove in my driveway
Pru calls into the Cottage from time to time & buys the handmade organic soaps that I sell .... it was during her last visit that we shared a conversation & Pru mentioned that she had this large pile of doileys that her late Mother & Nana had crocheted & what could she do with them??
I explained to Pru that I had made vintage table runners before using up old doileys & linens


This was the beautiful pile of vintage doileys Pru presented me with ... they had been crocheted many years ago by her late Mother & Nana.  The two heavy damask tablecloths were almost 100 years old & still in wonderful condition.
Pru's instructions were for a tablecloth 1m x 1 m square using the white doileys & then 2 runners using the cream crochet doileys
No problem ..................................
Although it is photographing cream, this tablecloth is in fact, pure white - very heavy too - but beautiful .... & would look gorgeous folded up on the end of a single bed I thought !!



The smaller of the 2 runners measured 115 cms long x 40 cms wide . . . .
. . . . & then the 2nd runner measured a whopping 2.20 cms in length & sure used up a large amount of the doiley pile !!!!


This was to sit on a long antique wooden cabinet that Pru has .... I am sure it will look stunning


Showing some of the doileys up close


When I am working out the placement on anything like this, I like to have it on the table & walk past it over a day or two as I frequently change my mind & re-arrange the placement until I am happy with it.
When it became apparent that Blackie intended to "assist me with the placement" - I decided to put up a trestle table to keep them off what I was working on .  .  .  .
.  .  .  . as you can see above I was none too successful in that endeavour !!!!!!!!!
(Sorry Pru)

The 2nd bag of goodies that Pru wanted completed was the hardanger embroidery above, the Thomas the Tank Engine cross stitch & the piece of silk ribbon embroidery - all her own handwork

As per her instructions I made the hardanger piece up into a cushion with a zippered back closing -  to sit on Pru's bed


The Cross Stitch was to be cut down, backed & made into a small plump cushion for her grandson ... who adores Thomas the Tank Engine


I was able to back the silk ribbon embroidery piece with some pale pink linen I had in my stash & stitch it into a pretty lavender pouch


Last, but by no means least, was this beautiful calico quilt that Pru had begun some 20 years ago.  It was to fit a king size bed, to have the silk ribbon rosettes in the centre, the ruched calico around a scalloped edge on the base & be backed & quilted.
Pru had long ago given up on this piece & it had sat in the back of her closet all these years.


She instructed me to cut the centre panel out & hem it & edge it with the cream french lace that she had purchased to use on the quilt.
As it had a dainty eyelet edge separating the centre panel, I cut it a couple of inches below this & then hemmed it as I really liked the effect.  Pru is very much looking forward to using this on her table now.
Thank you So Much Pru for trusting me with your beautiful vintage linens.


When we did our lounge extension last year, this folk art Watering Can somehow ended up in the garden & then got tossed under the house when we were endeavouring to clean up.
I fished it out this week, gave it a scrub & a dry in the sunshine, then I removed the centre lip as I planned to sit some hydrangeas in it that I had been drying


I especially love the colours & tones of my hydrangeas in autumn & am hoping they don't fade too quickly



We had our first fire last night & the house feels cosy again.
These two got the prime seat & soon radiated towards the warmth.
 
I hope the week is treating you kindly dear readers .  .  .  I am off to bed for an early night
Thank you so much for your visits here
with much love & friendship to you all,
Julie & the furry ones x0x0x0

25 comments:

  1. Hi Julie love those doley's i always love seeing what you are up to,hope you had a good day my friend xx

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  2. Positively dreamy results all around!

    *hugs*
    ~Kelley

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  3. Beautiful creations with the lovely old linens. I find just like you I am humbled when someone trusts me to quilt their beautiful quilt tops. You have cleverly made a pile of linens into things to be treasured all over again. Nice to see the four legged employees are still on your pay role!

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  4. How strange! How strange! As l have more time,
    on my hands now, being fully retired, well, sort
    off...Yesterday, after cutting the grass, trimming
    the Privet, l decided to clean, polish my glass coffee
    table, under the chess board, l have embroidered
    Sicilian runner..Thought l'd have a change, so, in
    the Welsh Dresser l found some of my Mums things she
    made over the years! One was a white crochet runner!
    Just the right length and width..! :).
    I've several runners in fact..they always look nice down
    the middle of a table, at a dinner party!

    The cushions look lovely to...Thomas the Tank Engine.....
    Everyone loves Thomas, no matter what age you are..Never,
    realised how many adventures he had, just by being a train! :).

    And..last..and by no means least...'The Furry Ones'...Bless!xx
    I can see Julie, how your work has greatly improved, since the
    extra help from the furry ones! I'm sure they know exactly where
    everything must fit, and everything must go! :).
    And..the last photo..is what 'love' and 'friendship' is ALL about!
    LOVE IT...! =(^..^)=

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  5. Those two furry friends look as if they were a great help to the arrangement. I do hope you did it their way! They are all beautiful! I think it is so wonderful to be able to make beautiful things out of beautiful things. So clever, and now they will all get used and admired. The hardanger looks great as a cushion and of course dear old Thomas looks perfect. I can understand why you lit the fire - it sure is getting cold at night now. More quilts on the bed for us for sure!

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  6. Divine creations including the two little fur faces at the end...Thank you so much for the welcome I am so happy to be here at your Lovely blog

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    1. Thanks so much May for taking the time to leave your lovely comment. Julie xx

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  7. Lovely heart warming post, as usual Julie. Those hydrangeas look fabulous, especially in the watering can.
    Jean
    x

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  8. Those two are so adorable! Amazing work with the doileys and a great way to treasure and use them. But I wondered did you manage to get something done for you??? Gorgeous hydrangeas too.

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  9. What beautiful linens you had to work with and of course you transformed them into something even more amazing. I loved to see your beautiful cats warming themselves xx

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  10. Sp many beautiful pieces... when my son was very little, he used love Thomas a lot..

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  11. Beautiful pieces!!! And your kitties are adorable! Nancy

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  12. wow what an awesome job you did Julie, beautiful and something Pru can look at and remember her mum and Nana always.
    Love what you did with her other bits, my 27yr old would still love that Thomas cushion hahaha.
    Blackie and Miss Pippi do look cosy sitting there. Your hydrangeas look wonderful in that watering can, I miss my hydrangea bush we had at our old house. Have a great week Julie, stay warm. Chris xoxo

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    1. Thanks so much Chris, yes Pru was delighted with her keepsakes. I don't think our boys ever grow out of good old Thomas the Tank Engine!!! Hope you have a great week too Chris xxx

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  13. Julie you have worked your magic on those beautiful linens and doilies...love how you think all is done and then something happens to change that! Pru must be so happy to have new life in her treasures. Good to see the Furry Ones keeping up the quality control checks :-). Those hydrangea flowers look wonderful in the watering can, great idea. Have a wonderful weekend.

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  14. So many pretty pieces to be seen here, Julie. All those beautiful doilies...be still my beating heart. They look beautiful arranged together in the runner. Alas, it seems to always be impossible to keep cats from invesigating the landscape. Sweet cushions and the watering can is perfect with those autumnal Hydrangeas. They are gorgeous, aren't they. Why, I picked myself a bunch yesterday to bring inside to age gracefully.

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  15. You have made some beautiful things with all that vintage linen Julie, I am sure your friend Pru will be super happy with the end results. Don't you love how cats just have to HELP!! Winter is definitely coming we can no longer prevent it from happening. Staff warm, well and happy Julie.

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  16. Wel that certainly was one big compliment to you and a demonstration of trust if I ever saw it! Pru would've known you would be able to come up with a magnificent idea for all of those items and how beautiful they all turned out.

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  17. Wow, well done on the amazing work you did with the bags of bits!! You have created some beautiful, useable pieces that honour their beginnings. I love that they still look like 'them' but are finished :-)

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  18. I was lucky enough to see the doily runner and cloths, in real they were breathtaking, beautifully finished. You are a wonder Dear Julie. Luv Blackie and Miss Pippi.

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  19. Hi Julie, You and your work are inspirational! Thank-you so much for sharing what you did with the beautiful vintage pieces. Truly wonderful. Cheers, Jo

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    1. Thanks Jo for leaving your lovely comment. I really love working with the vintage linens & making them into something that someone can enjoy & get pleasure from. Julie xx

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  20. Dear Julie I agree with jomorro, you really are an inspiration. Loved all the photos and the hydrangeas are gorgeous.

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  21. I read your comment on KIWIKIDS blog about feijoas. I take the pulp out and freeze them, then I can make feijoa cakes whenever I want one. I use the Edmonds Banana Cake recipe, just use feijoa instead of the banana. Just a suggestion for all those feijoas from your son's hedge?

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