Yes or No?

I've made this table topper for my mum for her 84th birthday this Sunday. She has a round table & I thought it would look pretty when she doesn't have a tablecloth on. Trouble is, although I like it, nobody else seems to, ds did say he liked the design, but not the fabrics, so not all bad, lol. As my closest friend is about 1000kms away I don't actually have a friend to show it to, so I really need your opinion.

 I have birthed it, rather than binding it, because I couldn't find a fabric that matched to use for the binding. I quilted it more than this, but it didn't sit well, there was puckering, so I undid most of the quilting. The flowers are all 30's fabrics, the green around each flower is actually a tiny white spot, not a solid.

So hit or miss?

My 'Carry On Vintage' Stall

I finally made it out to check on my little stall yesterday & to take a few things out to add to my stock. I've been laid low by a virus for nearly a month so it was really nice to finally be able to see how things were going. I was pleased to see I've sold a few bits & bobs. I made 6 pincushions & took these 3 out to sell.

Things are looking great at Tyabb Vintage Garage, there are some new stalls & lots of great stock. I'm trying very hard not to buy any more stuff, & to actually sell some, but I was tempted by a gorgeous little kitchen dresser. I'm not sure where I'll put it yet, but I'll find the right place.

If you're in the area do pop in for a browse.
It's open 10am - 5pm 6 days a week. Closed Tuesdays.

Tyabb Vintage Garage

1546 Flinders Frankston Road

Tyabb 3913

Facebook pages: 

My page for Carry On Vintage:
https://www.facebook.com/carryonvintageoz

Tyabb Vintage Garage:

www.facebook.com/pages/Tyabb-Vintage-Garage/467122843378712

August Books

Two books this month. I recently watched the old Joanne Woodward movie, 'The Three Faces of Eve' & it reminded me of Sybil, a book I first read in the 70's. I still had the copy so I reread it. It was still as incredible as ever, 1 lady with 17 different personalities. The book covers her psychoanalysis over many years. It is certainly easy to see how her condition developed when you read of her upbringing, & sadistic mother, & aloof father. I Googled Sybil to see if there was any info on her since the book was written & I found an article claiming that the whole thing was a hoax simply made to make money. I don't know if that's true or not, but I felt the claimant, who has since written a book herself about the whole thing, may well just be the hoaxer cashing in on someone else's story. The fact that Sybil, her psychoanalyst & the book's author, have all since passed away means there is no one left to confirm or deny this person's claims.

To be honest I needed something light after Sybil as it is a very dark book so I reread 'Watermelon.' I LOVE this book, it's the first Marion Keyes book I ever read, it is her first book & it introduced me to the Walsh Family. Marion has written several books about the Walsh family, each time focussing on another of the sisters, & their lives, & I've loved them all. This is a very funny book, a real laugh out loud book. It's actually starts out a sad story, & you may shed a few tears as the main character's husband walks out on her the day she gives birth to their first baby, but the way she deals with this, & how it all pans out is very entertaining & not depressing. I just love Marion Keyes, she is an Irish author, I seem to have a weakness for Irish authors, & all her books are fun & funny.

Vote For Me, please!

I've entered a contest with the magazine Cloth, Paper, Scissors to win units for my sewing room. 

I'm currently preparing Rowan's old bedroom to be my new sewing room so they would be brilliant! 

Please check out the competition & vote for me if you would like to. The link is at the top right of the page.

Thanks!

PS You can vote daily. :-)

My Latest Venture

I mentioned in my last post I had a couple of projects on the go & this is one of them.

I've had my name down for a stall at a local vintage business for 18 months, as it wasn't going to happen anytime soon when a new place opened a few weeks ago, I made some enquiries, & booked myself a tiny space, just big enough to fit a set of shelves. Normally I'd throw myself in the deep end & take on a massive project, but this time I decided to take it slowly, hence the small space. I've been buying loads of vintage stuff for years & I really have way too much stuff to use so the opportunity to on-sell some of my goodies came at a good time. I also desperately need to downsize my craft supplies, so hopefully this will be a good place to do it.

The biggest problem was finding just the right name. I've been mulling it over for weeks & although I had a long list, & liked quite a few of them, I knew I hadn't found the right one. Then last Thursday I walked into the kitchen & read the sign over the mantle 'Keep Calm & Carry On.' Then it hit me 'Carry On Vintage.' I'm a big fan of the Carry On films, especially the early ones made in the 50's & 60's, so as Pop Larkin would say, 'perfick.'

So name chosen, boxes of stuff everywhere to be sorted, time to get moving! To be honest I've been lacking motivation to do anything  much lately, so this seemed like the right way to give myself the kick in the bum I needed!

Being OCD I had to be totally organised. I put the shelves together, my dd Emma helped me paint the timber shelves, I covered the metal shelf supports with fabric to soften the look, chose the stock & set it all up. I washed everything that was washable, catalogued it & priced it. 

Come set up day I had everything packed up by shelf, so I was totally organised & was able to set up the stall in record time, & here it is!

I need to make a much bigger sign but I was against the clock.

I made the bunting out of remnants of vintage sheets.

I painted the shelves different colours & set them up with different themes.

Bedroom shelf.

Kitchen shelf.

I plan on making things out of vintage fabrics to add to the stock.

The stall is at Tyabb Vintage Garage 1546 Flinders Frankston Rd, Tyabb, VIC 3913

It is currently open 6 days a week (closed Tuesday) from 10am - 5pm.

I have set up a facebook page @ https://www.facebook.com/carryonvintageoz

Please pop over & like me. :-)

Yay a tick off my bucket list!

Book Catch-Up

I can't believe I haven't blogged since January! I kept putting it off thinking I'd get Live Writer installed again but it just won't work so I'll use the blog post system or I'll never blog again!!!

I'll start out by updating my reading list.

 The last book I blogged was a biography on the Queen Mum, it was excellent, & as I was still wanting more royal family, I then read Magnificent Obsession by Helen Rappaport. This is a biography of Queen Victoria & I loved it. It made me realise I knew very little about Queen Victoria, & her life was very interesting.

Next was A Casual Vacancy by JK Rowling. Hmmmm, to be honest if I'd read this book not knowing who wrote it, I probably wouldn't have gone in search of more of their books. It was a good read, definitely very well written, but it didn't really get me in, & I felt it ended suddenly without resolving everything.

Against the Current by Joan Hellegers. I read this book years ago & enjoyed rereading it. It tells the story of Adeline Keating. An incredibly interesting book, Adeline had an amazing life growing up in Bendigo in a prosperous family who lose everything. She travels to Melbourne to work, & ends up travelling the world for Myers, the first female buyer.

31 Bond Street by Ellen Horan is a whodunnit based on a true story. Set in New York four years before the outbreak of the American Civil War this is a real page turner.

Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe by Fannie Flagg. I loved the movie & the book was great! The book is set in the 20's, 30's, 40's & 80's, moving backwards & forwards through time very successfully.

The Rector's Wife by Joanna Trollope is one of my all time favourite books. I've read it several times & just find myself drawn back to it every so often. Obviously it is about the Rector's Wife, but rather than being a meek & mild woman, Anna rebels against her role, & the expectations of the church & the community. Her husband is distant & doesn't understand her need to retain an identity for herself. It is so well written, as are all Joanna Trollope books. I just love her work.

Summer of Love by Katie Fforde. I've read a lot of Katie Fforde books, they are lightweight romances set in England. I enjoy them. This one is about Sian moving to the country with her young son Rory to start a new life.

My Life in France by Julia Child. Love, love, love this book. I love the movie Julie & Julia, & this book tells the Julia side of the story. It is just so entertaining, Julia Child led such a fun & interesting life. 

The Vault by Ruth Rendell was a very different Wexford novel as Wexford has retired. In this book he is an advisor to a London Detective Superintendent. The case is a real mystery & keeps you guessing till the end.

Coming Home by Rosamunde Pilcher, a fabulous saga of a book stretching from 1935 till after WW2. This was classic Pilcher, I love her work. A brilliant story very well told. Judith is sent off to boarding school when her mother & sister travel to Ceylon to join her father. She is befriended by a school friend Loveday & taken into her family.

Liz by C. David Heyman. Well they may have made some very tame movies during this time, but the stars led anything but tame lives! I've always loved Elizabeth Taylor but this book proves she would have been a very difficult lady to live with! Mind you, she was an incredible friend to many people & would stand by them through thick & thin. This book covers her life from birth until the 1980's & her last marriage, this time to Larry Fortenski. A good read I really enjoyed it.

The same can't be said for this book, Going Too Far by Catherine Alliot. What a dog of a book. I've read other books by this author & thoroughly enjoyed them but I actually gave up on this one. The main character was a selfish, shallow cow & I wouldn't have cared if she'd fallen under a bus!

I decided to treat myself & read another Marion Keyes book. I've bought them all & I'm rationing them. :-) This one, Angels, is about another of the fabulous Irish Walsh sisters, this time Maggie. With her marriage on the rocks she heads off to stay with a friend in Los Angeles. Lots of fun characters keep you entertained & laughing. I enjoyed it so much I'm rereading Watermelon, Marion's first book & the first novel about the Walsh family. I laugh so much while reading these books. 

Next time I'll blog about some of the work I've been doing to the house, & I'll be sharing 2 lots of exciting news. :-)

Homemade Gifts

I only made two gifts this past Xmas, a pincushion for dd Emma & a bag for my lovely friend Pinky. I also made a bag for my dear friend Helen's January birthday.

The pincushion pattern is in Annie Downs book 'Some Kind of Wonderful.' 

I handpieced the whole thing. I tried machining the top & base to the embroidered section, but it didn't end well, lol. 

 The base.

I hoped Pinky, a US friend, would like this cute Aboriginal inspired fabric so I made a bag for her out of it. The fabric is much brighter than it looks in the pic.

I got this cute fabric at Spotlight last year. 

I made 2 identical bags, one for me & one for Helen. 

I'd seen a few pleated bags online & I really like them. I didn't have a pattern, so I made one up. I plan to make more pleated bags in different sizes.