Yesterdays delivery

I always love the postman ringing the bell with a parcel and today was no exception. In the box yesterday were all the goodies that I ordered to help with the sale. It was really exciting to see the logo on stationary and looking quite professional.

I managed to get a really good deal so I not only had postcards made for the logo but also some of photos of a couple of the favourite items that I have made. They look great and will be good for popping in bags to remind people what I do. I also came up with a little strapline.... happiness is handmade. 

My workspace seems to be getting fuller and fuller with all the bits that I am starting to pull together. I thought of the need for bags the other day so I pulled together all the nice plain ones I had in our "bag" drawer and also found some brown paper ones left over from Niamh's 5th birthday party. It looks relatively tidy here though.

Fortunately some things need more space than others but with these little gems the key has been to keeping them out of the way so that nobody knocks them before I glue them. One day soon they will become rings and hair slides.

Creating

So it's time to make my room messy! Not that hard really.... it quite often is. This time though it will be with a real purpose. I have written a list of the sorts of things that I think might sell well at the event at the end of November. I'm now trying to pull together a selection of items but I'm thinking it might be tricky judging quantities.... however there's no reason why I can't take orders if something sells really well and I run out of stock. The trick will be to hit a variety of price points so that there is something for everyones purse.

I thought I would start by taking some inspiration from a cushion I made last year, still one of my favourites and lots of people comment on it which is a good place to start.

The cutting mat has been out and production has begun. I love the colours that I chose before but to cater for a variety of tastes I've made a purple/pink one too. If it doesn't sell little Niamh has already declared it hers!

I've also got a lot of wooden beads in a pot ready for another project and I just love the colours here too. when you jumble things up like this it's amazing what colour combination gems you start to spot.

Little steps.

Logo

So I've decided that it was time that I had some sort of logo. Something that represents what I do. I have been pondering about it for a while and recently was able to get access to Adobe Illustrator which has spurred me into action. As I have now also decided to have my first proper sale at the end of November at a village event I thought I'd better get on with it.

I love images of birds and I am brightonbirdy so using a bird seemed the obvious choice. I wanted it to try and represent what I do though as the name doesn't give any insight alone. So I cunningly reused a decoration that I had made for when Niamh turned 5. It all spotty and was the theme for her party. To represent the handmade element of what I do I added some stitch lines around the outside. I really like it. Clean, crisp with colours that I love.

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I then needed to add the name and wanted to stick with red text which is what I use for my sew in labels. so then the logo became this.

I'm really pleased with it, I have an identity! The next step will be to get some cards printed with it for use at the sale and of course to pop at the top of my blog!

Gorgeous Blanket

Doing a little late night surfing and have stumbled across this gorgeous blanket. The website of  Coco Rose Diaires is definitely worth a visit. 

 Stunning. Totally. Would love to think that I could pull this off but can't help thinking that my crochet technique isn't up to it yet.

Found another great inpsiring blog too. This time a lovely lady called Lucy who writes under Attic 24. I think she's a bit of inspiration for me because she has the most wonderful blankets but hasn't been crocheting for years and years. She has such a fantastic eye for colour.

My two favourites are.....

And

Back!

So I've been away but I've decided that it's time to come back. Shortly after the move Niamh started school, in the midst of all the building works,  and then I got a promotion at work which has kept me rather busy. One year on I'm beginning to find some balance again and at last feel ready to be able to put the blog back in action on what will hopefully be a regular basis.

I also thought I'd post a piccie of my latest creation which was a ukelele cover for Cait. I had some Cath Kidston fabric in my cupboard and had recently made some red piping for a window seat cover. It was one of those projects which all just came together. It wasn't without a few issues but after a little unpicking it worked just fine in the end. And most importantly Cait seems to like it!

The job for this weekend is to get a patchwork blind up in the utility room. I've made the patchwork and it's sitting next to me ready. Time to get busy!

New Creations

No, not mine this time.

I was full of excitement when I opened my new edition of Sew Hip magazine and found a photo of a pink owl. I'll try and see if I can show the piccie  but meanwhile thanks to Melanie Kemp, you made me smile this morning. Nothing is more rewarding than when you see a creation from one of your own ideas.

Returning to the real world

When I logged on and realised that my last entry was the 14th May it seemed so very long ago. Everything normal seems so long ago. Doing any real sewing seems so long ago. Life has been so full with other stuff.

The move went really well considering how late we stayed up packing boxes the night before, why do we never get ourselves better organised?! Our decision to delay our move until a week after completion to get the bedrooms decorated was definitely the right decision. On the first night to be asleep in a freshly painted room, with colours of our choosing, felt a real luxury. The girls rooms both look great. Mr B found a fab wallpaper for Niamhs rooms by Harlequin so we had one wall done with the others just white. 

When we have the main computer up and running and I can download the photos from my camera I will try and show you how it all looks.

Cait's room is all white and looks lovely and airy. We've managed to fit a lot in without it feeling cluttered and it's a room that will suit her for some years to come. She's really pleased with it and once I've got my sewing bits unpacked there are some cushions to make for the finishing touches. Cait wanted some bright accent colours; red, green, blue etc and I've got some fab fabric from Ikea that will be perfect.

The loveliest thing about this house though is how quickly it felt like home, despite the half unpacked sensation with more boxes full than I would normally like - out of necessity for when the works start. It feels like we've lived here for far longer than we have. When Mr B went away for 6 days with the lads to celebrate the beginning of the world cup I felt wonderfully at home, more than I had ever felt in the rented house, even towards the end.

So the confession is that I missed being able to do the sale with Cait that we had been hoping to. All too much going on at the same time with the house move but I have my eye on some others in the autumn which may be better timed.

And the other little update is that Niamhy turned 4. I had hoped to be able to do a little party for her at home in the new garden but with the move so late in May and her Birthday being the 2nd June it was one thing too much again. She had a fab time in a sports hall with bouncy castle though and I've 12 months to plan a homely treat for when she's 5.

Mr B and I also enjoyed a lovely day at Chelsea Flower Show. A little bit of down time in amongst the madness. We'd been last year so knew the form and were able to walk around this year with lots of purpose gathering ideas for our garden. It is a complete blank canvas apart from the Summerhouse at the end. Affectionately now known as 28b, it's a fab space..a real room at the end of the garden. Mr B's retreat if he gets his way... although Cait has already booked it for her 13th birthday sleepover.

There is loads more to tell and lots to show so I'll be back soon,