January 2012
16 posts
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Custom dolls
We have started the first test prints of cotton lawn for what we hope will be the first “casualwear” versions of Penelope’s cloth dolls. If successful we hope to be able to produce kits as well as one-off custom dolls.
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Model T Towels
Keeping it simple. The Model T of tea towels if you would. And we can make them in any colour … so long as they are pink and blue. Well … they’ve been in the store for just two days and already I have reports that folks have remarked about the “other” test colourways. Damn. No matter what design pretensions I might have, I can never resist an actual sale.
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A memory from old Spain
The first minor miracle is that this linen, which we reckon must be well over a century old, remains in such glorious condition. The second is that the great-grand-daughter of the linen’s original Spanish owner, should walk into our shop last week and ask us to make her a cushion with it. Didn’t it turn out just grand …
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Mosaics, bougainvillea & passion fruit?
Why “Cadiz”? Because when I visited the dark, narrow lanes of its Moorish quarter I loved it and have wanted to return many times. The image I had was of colourful mosaics, bougainvillea petals and passion fruit scent. Perhaps, I just wanted a name preposterous enough to be worthy of a Steely Dan song …
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Kitschy, kitschy, coo ...
What would you expect on February 14 … elegant restraint? I think these have turned out sweet and old-school, actually. And did you know? You can have the message personalised to suit your own romantic whim.
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More paper than cotton
I wanted my new print to have the cool, restful feeling of ink and watercolour. The results so far feel more suited to paper than cotton, but I have hopes it might look right on the new lightweight lawn I have ordered for blouses and dolls’ dresses.
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Doll-Making with Penelope
Penelope’s doll-making workshops in Gerrard’s Cross next week are fully subscribed — and now the core syllabus has been finalised too. This lovely cloth doll featuring an elegant Cabbages & Roses organza dress, will be the core project for those in attendance. If you are interested in knowing when and where future workshops are planned, get in touch through our Facebook...
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I have been working on this pattern for so long my world has begun to take on a rather unusual look. Perhaps it is time to take a long walk …
Update: I still have no clear idea what this pattern should be used for. But I think this house could be developed into a fun postcard for the wee shop.
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Chasing skirts ...
Yes. I definitely want to make more little skirts for spring … Here is some work in progress to prove just how serious I am about it.
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Win Rosa's Fab Scraps
Join our January competition to win one of our fabric scap bags. They’ve been a bit hit in the shop, so we hoped you might like it too. Click here to join and visit our Facebook page along the way.
December 2011
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ema’s scrapbook from Nikola Mrdalj on Vimeo.
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Oodles of doodles
This Sea of Sketchbooks features the work of know the work of the talented Lapin.The photo was taken while standing on a ladder and conveys (more or less) every drawn sketchbook of his. You can follow him on blogspot. I came across him as a featured artist on Doodlers Anonymous
November 2011
7 posts
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Colour magic
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"Le parlement des hiboux"
This all-male collection of owls — suitably mustachioed in honour of Movember (the campaign to raise awareness about male health issues) — has turned out looking like an invitational boules team. I think they are French deputies from Saxony … And I can confirm I have no idea if I have translated “a parliament of owls” correctly.
BTW: Till the end of the month, any...
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Pimping cars ... shabby-chic style
These mock-ups of what we would like to do with our little car make me think “pimping wheels” shabby-chic style would be an enjoyable sidebar to our fabric design business …
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Andrea Aranow: A Textile Archive
Andrea Aranow designed clothes for Jimi Hendrix, Miles Davis and the house of Alexander McQueen. As a textile collector she has a wonderful digital archive of more than 26,000 patterns. This beautifully-shot video by Aaron Rayburn takes us inside her Portland studio [ via itsnicethat ]
October 2011
14 posts
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Hark, the wee angels ...
… because every angel is blessed in its own unique way. Penelope’s dolls, never two alike.
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... love is ...
They say that work is love made visible. And that choccolate is in fact love made edible. Well, in THAT case our fabric is love made visible, wearable AND usable! So … We win! We win! We win!
… join us on Facebook!
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Rural ruminations
A spell of insomnia-induced sheep counting has led to a veritable aga saga of rural patterns and prints. I’m still working on the shades of contentment these should induce in the customer … but these are ready to be ordered in any of our cottons.
… the collection is growing. Cocks will be joining the menagerie too …
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September 2011
7 posts
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From my screen to yours ...
Some work is taking shape but as yet it does not qualify as more than “in progress”. So until there is more to offer, here are some images that you might like to try as backgrounds on your monitors. Robin and The Buffalo (bottom) can both be tiled (just right-click and set as desktop). The black and white one in the middle, Tweed, in which one seeks inspiration by raking the pixels...
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Win an Elephant Sew-Me Kit →
We are giving away the first two Elephant Sew-Me Kits to our Facebook and Twitter friends. If you want it to be You+1, then join us and be eligible for this competition that will run till the end of September.
August 2011
6 posts
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It's TuskerMania!
What could be more unforgettable and fun to colour-in than a troop of fashion-conscious elephants? These are the drawings for our new sewing kits, which we are working on at the moment. We must now prepare our protoypes and see to some packaging design. Each kit will consist of one adult accompanied by three little ones.
* Try this as a desktop: To use the image above on your desktop, just...
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Sew-a-Scotty key ring: Thank you for the feedback
A big “thank you” to all those who tried our prototype scottie dog key ring sewing kits. The verdict? Tricky but not so much that those new to sewing by hand or by machine should be put off. And the bonus? The kids love them when they’re finished. All of which was good to hear and means I can now finalise the design of the packs. BTW: This one was the cutie that Lisa made...