A Country Friends Angel & A Bowl of Gingers ..........................................................

Greetings dearest friends & folk

Welcome to another bright shiny new month

Exactly one week to go now until my local Christmas Craft Fair

 If you are in the area on the day, do pop by & say Hello ... I am site No 76
Lets hope for some fine weather for the day Please ..................... !!!!

This Country Friends Angel doll started her life quite sometime ago

I think it would be fair to say we are talking years here, rather than months !!

 Like many things here at Threadbear, she sat as a half completed dolly, wearing a pale blue floral skirt in the 
"one day pile"

(The pattern is called "Christmas Angel" & is an old design by Wendy Briggs of Country Friends)

When I came across her again I decided she should indeed be a Christmas Angel & so removed her blue skirt & made her one in christmas fabric instead ... bright red poinsettia fabric !

The original pale blue skirt

Though I have forgotten to take any photos as I progressed, I completed her but still felt something was missing ??
Perhaps she needed to be framed ??
I found an old "welcome" picture frame in my sleepout, removed the centre & then, with The Mr's help, stapled chicken mesh to the back of the frame ... she might look okay in this I thought

Yes she fitted perfectly but still .... something was missing ....

 I sewed a rusty star wreath to her hands then wound some berries around the wreath & hung a wooden folk art christmas decoration from it

I glued an old key to the frame & then I decided to add the christmas berry swag .... I think this just gave her that extra festive christmas zing somehow ....

I am thinking of including the blue skirt with her ... that way the red skirt, the wreath & the berry swag could be removed & she could stay out all year round in her frame wearing the blue skirt.
What do you think dear friends - would you do this ???

(The berry swag is wired to the frame .... so easily removed if necessary)

Another item in the "one day pile" was this plastic bag full of gingerbread men/women christmas decorations.
These had been purchased many years ago when I worked at the Gift Shop & would've been bought in the New Year sale when all the christmas stock was down to half price

I just loved their happy, smiley faces & had always planned to make up a small "gingerbread collection"
A friend had given me a cream porcelain bowl with a chip in the rim & I had put it aside for this very idea ....

Using Cottage Garden thread "waratah"  I stitched a small primitive pillow which I filled with crushed walnut shells 
I made some primitive candy canes & a calico gingerbread man shape which I painted with a strong coffee mixture ... he smelt delicious ... I coated him in a pva/water mix to stiffen him

All my bits & bobs fitted perfectly in my (chipped) bowl & I added some greenery, berries & a bundle of cinnamon sticks
I didn't have any gingerbread smelling oil so instead I sprinkled everything liberally with cinnamon oil

Lean in real close to your screens & take a big sniff !!
To say it smells divine would be an understatement !! 😊

A long time customer phoned to ask me if I would be at the craft fair this year & if so, would I have any golly teatowels for sale??
I realised I had not one single teatowel left in the Cottage so this week I managed to applique 6 golly teatowels & 6 angel ones

These items usually sell well for Christmas gifts

A small Christmas display created in the Cottage mid week

I was lucky enough yesterday to spend some time with my delightful grandson Alec ...

... who was so proud of the very colourful "worm" he created at daycare!!
Alec is now 2 1/2 & is talking very well - even his Granny can understand him now !!

Thanks So Very Much for your visits today dearest friends,
May your weekend be a happy & creative one
with much love & friendship,
Julie & the furry ones x0x0x

A Revamped Santa Bear .... & a Junk Journal

Good Wednesday Greetings dear friends & readers

Sometime late last year my friend Gail was having one of her throw outs declutters

 Bearing in mind my "Steptoe inclinations" ... I happened to drop by to assist her !!

 I rescued this funny looking chap above from Gails rubbish heap & bought him home with me.
 He had begun his life as a teddy bear plastic bag holder & then my friend Gail had turned him into a doorstop, which she then dressed as a Wizard in this blue & purple sparkly cloak.
I think he even had a wand at some stage!
Once undressed I gave him a gentle sponge & brushed his fur - he came up really well & has the loveliest face

Even Miss Pippi was none to sure about him but she was being very nosey brave !

Using the Wizards cloak as a guide, I sewed him a new cloak from some burgundy fleece I had & trimmed it with some cream fur

I made him a Santa hat with a cream pompom on the end.

He was coming to life again !!

Next I made him a beautiful vintagey looking Christmas stocking using some fabrics left over from last christmas & filled the base of it with wadding
I sewed this to his hands as I planned to fill the top of the stocking with toys, bears & gorgeous goodies
However  .  .  .  .  .  .

.  .  .  .  . just the weight of the stocking alone was enough to make him topple forward, let alone when it was filled with goodies !!!

No matter what I did he kept ending up face down !!!
In disgust I took him to bits again.
I went down to the corner of our road (after hours!) & half filled my bucket with some new fine gravel that had just been loaded there
Back home again, I removed the lower part of his body stuffing & filled it with the fine gravel inside a bag, then packed the rest of him with more stuffing

His figure kind of resembled mine some days !!
But he stayed good & upright (& heavy)

This Santa Teddy will be going on my craft stall at the Christmas Fair next month

Here he is completed, with his stocking filled to the brim ... some small teddies & vintage christmas ornies, some berries & greenery & some ornies tied to the stocking as well

A gorgeous Boyds Bear Christmas brooch at his neck ....

When I asked The Mr if he was most impressed with the way I made him more sturdy ... he just gave me a long look & said "don't forget to add a note with him to say that when they no longer want him, they can take all the gravel out & use it to resurface their driveway !!!"

Indeed !!!  😯

We had some lovely sunny spring days last week & I was able to take my sewing outside to the deck table ... I had been making up some more little christmas tree ornaments with cinnamon stick trunks

I made another dozen - these are fun to make using up scraps of fabric & they sold really well last year
I just need to scent this batch with my cinnamon/clove oils.

When I wrote the post about my (new) vintage Edith Holden book  my friend Chris from Australia left me a lovely comment saying she would like to show me what she does with Edith Holden books 
I was most fascinated !!
I waited patiently for Chris's email to come through showing me the photos of her work

Imagine my surprise when instead a parcel arrived all the way from Victoria, Australia - beautifully wrapped in a doiley & polka dot ribbon.
Inside was this beautiful journal handmade by Chris using a vintage Edith Holden book

Chris had covered the Journal in a teddy bear stitchery & the theme was teddies & gardening

Chris had written a lovely letter explaining to me about junk journals, which I had not heard of before.

My photos really do not do justice to this gorgeous journal - there is so much detail that everytime I open it, I find something new !!
Tags, charms & embellishments everywhere ....

I have it sitting by my lounge chair & I enjoy picking it up each evening & just savouring the pages
Thank you So Very Much Chris for your kindness & your generosity... it is something I will treasure always 💓


Finally dear friends, I wanted to mention a book I have just finished reading from my local Library

I love it when other bloggers recommend books they have enjoyed & often make a note to read them. 
I saw the DVD of this & then read the book & I just LoVed it from beginning to end!
 It is an amazing story & I would thoroughly recommend it.  

Thank you So Very Much for your visits here today,
with much love & friendship,
Julie & the furry ones
x0x0x0x

Revamping Raggedies

Happy Wednesday Greetings dear friends & readers

Last week while reaching way up into the top of the spare room wardrobe for a lightweight blanket for Sid's cot, this pair of Raggedy Anne & Andy dolls fell down on my head .  .  .

 As I hastily tossed everything back up there, I suddenly glanced at the raggedy dolls - "ah yes .... I remember you" I thought ....

I think I could do something with you two 💕 ....

That is their strips of fabric hair shown lying beside each one !!

I had originally purchased the dolls through the Gift Shop where I previously worked.
 I enjoyed them for many years but when they began to fade, they were put away out of sight in the "one day pile"

The worst part of the fading was their raggedy hair which had faded to pink in some places - I managed to remove this easily enough & then gave their faces a spray with parisian essence to give them some colour back again 
Each dolly was given a gentle sponge bath & when dry received new chunky wool hair ....
Even this alone brightened them up SO much !!!

I decided to tackle Raggedy Andy first ....

I made him a primitive looking Santa sack & stitched this to his hands .  .  .  .

.  .  .  .  then proceeded to fill the sack with all sorts of goodies .... a teddy, a gingerbread man, cinnamon sticks, greenery & pip berries & some primitive looking candy canes which I striped with my burgundy fabric paint

While I had the burgundy paint out, their wooden bases got touched up a little ....

I also made him a Santa hat - keeping to the muted country colour scheme - & stitched a rusty bell to the end
 I love embellishing & adding rusty stars & bells to things ... I often have to stop myself getting rather carried away & overdoing it !!

Next came Raggedy Anne . . . .

I loaded her arms up with goodies .... a rag doll, a golly, a wooden heart, candy cane, berries etc & tied a big homespun bow in her hair

I have decided to call my pair "Santa's little helpers" ... I think they will look wonderful on my stall along with my Snowmen & other christmassy crafts

" SANTA'S LITTLE HELPERS "

This Christmas Garland was another finish this week .... this pattern is called "Celebrate Christmas Swag" by Tracey North from "I Luv Country"   .  .  .   stitched in Cottage Garden thread "mistletoe"
   I chose to blanket stitch mine onto dark red felt & attached a small rusty bell to the corner of each square

I used torn strips of dark green homespun to tie each square  together
(not photographing very well today unfortunately)

Last Christmas - among the gifts I gave my son Kayne & his wife for their soon-to-be-born Son - was this photo of Kayne taken at Cherry Island & wearing a smocked romper suit I had handmade for him, 32 years ago when I briefly attempted learnt to smock.
Along with the photo I gifted them the romper suit as it was still in pristine condition !

They sent me this photo just yesterday of my grandson Sid wearing the actual romper suit 💗
Sid is currently experiencing his first holiday with his parents in Rarotonga & this was taken on the beach - he has the same serious expression his Daddy used to have !!

And then this photo came through this morning ... there is no bath tub in the unit but not a problem ... he just gets bathed in the kitchen sink along with the dishes, & doesn't mind one single bit!!!

Just delightful !!!

Thanks so much for your visit to my blog today dear friends

 I hope your Wednesday is a happy one indeed !
with much love & friendship to you all 💝
Julie & the furry ones (absent today !!)
x0x0x0

Finishing things .....................

Greetings dear friends & readers

I am very happy to report that the past week has seen several completions here at Threadbear Cottage

These baskets below were part of my friend Elaine's declutter when I popped in to see her back in March & came away with a bootload of treasures

When I unloaded my car I plonked them on my deck & there they stayed all winter long while a colony of spiders took up residence in them.

One sunny day last week I gave them a good scrub in hot soapy water then sat them on my deck seats to dry

Unfortunately a couple of days later when I went to paint them  - I found a colony of a different sort had taken up residence in them!!!

Dear Blackie .... with his ample proportions squeezed into the baskets !!

  I planned to line the bottoms so I painted everywhere except the bases .  .  .

As I was using a gorgeous Sanderson linen to line the oval basket I found a lovely wide vintage lace to compliment it.
I knew it would "flop" when I inserted it in the basket inner, so I sat it on an old towel & sprayed it with cheap hairspray (which I keep on hand for just this reason) .... over the course of an hour, everytime I walked past the towel, I gave it another blast til it felt like it had enough body in it ....

I was really happy with the end result & the lace sat perfectly upright in the basket

These are going for sale in my Cottage as workbaskets ... though the bottom one would also make a lovely waste paper basket

I managed to stitch up another dozen wool blanket hearts filled with my homegrown lavender .  .  .  some of these have gone to a lovely Farm Shop that I supply with my handwork, along with a dozen bags of my citrus potpourri

This sweet Christmas Angel was another completion - the pattern is called "Love Blooms in Christmas Hearts" by The Chook Shed, & is out of a very old issue of Australian Patchwork & Stitching Magazine. (Vol 2 No 3)
As I wanted my angel to be a decent size, I trotted along to my local photocopy centre where they increased the pattern by 200 % for me 

As she is unstuffed, she is a wall hanging Angel only .... I think they are called "flat dolls"

The banner in the original pattern reads "Love Blooms in Christmas Hearts" but I changed my wording to 
"Christmas Wishes"


I begun the stitchery for these stockings below while Mum was still with me.
I used Cottage Garden thread "Mistletoe" which I was able to purchase online from my friend Kerryn's gorgeous shop The Country Yard

Again a very old pattern by Melissa Duncan of Mogs Designs

Last month a beautiful surprise package arrived from my South Island friend Therle ..... gorgeous x-stitch, a lace pouch & beaded tassel .... all her own creativity.  The  pouch was stuffed with lavender scented wadding, still smells divine & looks perfect hanging on my Oak Dresser handle.
Thank you SO much Therle for your thoughtfulness - your work is exquisite!


A longtime customer Ruth, dropped by last week with a box of old fabrics & lace for me .... Ruth sometimes donates bits & bobs to me & anything I won't use I pass on to either the kindy up the road, or Alec's daycare centre.

I was busy minding Sid at the time so just parked the box in the corner 
 I swear within the hour a certain little ginger being had taken up residence amongst the lace & fabrics ... thank you most kindly Ruth from Pippi for the "new bed arrangement"  !!

And thank YOU dearest friends & readers for stopping by today,
I hope the week is treating you all kindly,
with much love & friendship,
Julie & the furry ones x0x0x