Showing posts with label beadwork. Show all posts
Showing posts with label beadwork. Show all posts

Thursday, 21 January 2010

My Creative Space...

I actually realized this morning that the creative space group first starts posting again next week, but I´d taken all my pics and I have soooo much to show you.... many different things on the go.... so I thought I´ll post anyway.

First thing I want to show you is this scarf:


I´ve used a technique where you layer yarn and fibre between water soluble material and then quilt the whole thing together. After having rinsed the scarf I´ve hand dyed it in a dusky purple shade. If you´re interested, you can find it in my Fleur de Bohème Etsy shop!

Using the same technique, I also made this scarf:


I somehow think it looks a bit "naked", unfinished - although there is lots of texture to it, so I´ve chosen some pale yellow yarn to give the scarf a crocheted edge all the way around.

Next project in progress are these two bags. They´ve been on their way for a looong time as I started them over a year ago, haha. I´d sewn the respective fabrics together with material that shrinks when exposed to heat, done the shrinking and cut out the bag shapes.... and then they´ve been resting on my worktable until now.....


...when I suddenly decided I wanted to embellish them with vintage doilies, buttons and beads. The fabric in the bag above comes from a vintage pillowcase and I think I´m going to make crocheted handles in one of the two yarn shades shown in the pic (it´s actually organic cotton). Maybe I´ll add more beads, too.


I certainly love pink, but decided to combine the very vivid colour of this fabric with vintage lace, a doily, and cut out tiny flowers all dyed in a dusky purple hue to kind of dampen the bright pink a bit and not have the finished bag look like a gift from Ken to Barbie, lol. I´m thinking of crocheted handles here, too, in the yarn shown in the photo. What I like about both bags so far is the incredible richness of texture in them.

Next thing:


This is a new brooch design, I´d actually made some similar ones some years ago, found one of them recently and was inspired to do these. They´re kind of baroque I think with pearls and sparkles of gold and silver, but still suitable for the spring and summer season because of their colourway. I haven´t listed them yet, get in touch if you´re interested!

Of course I have someting on the go on my knitting machine, too:


This is a new lace pattern I´m trying, very intricate, and it´s going to be a shrug....well, if the knitting machine decides to behave and not suddenly cast off the whole thing as happened before....

Last thing is a little cosy project for our own home, I´ve decided to crochet a throw out of the many yarn left overs that are piling up in my studio.


I only started yesterday, but I´ll keep you updated on the progress. It´s going to measure 130 x 190 cm approximately so it´ll take me a while...

So, you see, lots of things going on and even more ideas!! I always have to laugh if people ask me where I get all the ideas from.... getting the ideas is not the problem, the problem is more not to get so overwhelmed by them that you end up paralysed because you don´t know where to even start ;-) But you know that probably only too well yourself, haha.

I actually have some exciting news to tell you but that´ll have to wait until next time (always nice with a little cliff hanger, isn´t it?!)

Monday, 16 March 2009

Home Sweet Home...

I recently set up my flickr photostream and my God, it´s addictive!! But I still found time for a little bit of shopping, bumped into this great flower-fairylights in the local shop and had to have them! They look nice draped around my tailors dummy with the vintage slip, don´t you think?

The cupboard is a fleamarket find that I´ve painted in a nice pale yellow shade and the scarf is a gift from my friend Tracy.

I made some more pictures of our home and my favourite vintage goodies for the flickr site.

Here you see a corner of our living room. On the blue cabinet a collection of beautiful ceramics made by my friend Laila Witt. The painting is the work of another friend of mine and the lovely vintage Chinese lantern was given to me by my generous and dear friend Tracy who had found it during a holiday in Brighton.

Some vintage goodies from my studio. The mirror is a fleamarket find as is the beautiful tin, the doilies and the vintage pearl necklace. The metal lace in the foreground is just stunning and comes from France and the other lace is a mix of ebay and fleamarket finds.

I have to show you this, too. It is a vintage angel from the 20ies and it comes from my home country, Germany. She looks like a beautiful fairy as she looks down from the top of my vintage Dutch mirror. I found her on ebay, the picture was quite bad so I didn´t really know what I had purchased befor the parcel arrived and oh so happy I was when I saw her! Look at the teeny tiny candle!! The seller had a blond version too and I´m so cross with myself I didn´t buy this one too!!! I guess I just have to enjoy the one I have.

The last two things I want to show you is recent work - I don´t want you to believe I´ve been lazy! The picture above shows my latest cuff. It´s built around a piece of vintage jewellery and made of layered silk and lace and embellished with a vintage appliqué, pearls of an old necklace, glassbeads and hand embroidery. The cuff was inspired by Sophia Coppolas film "Marie Antoinette" which I recently saw again.

This brooch is inspired by "Marie Antoinette", too. It´s made of a lacy vintage serviet ring combined with hand dyed tulle and embellished with lace, sequins, trim and beads.

If you want to see more, check my flickr photostream. See you soon!

Monday, 9 March 2009

Waiting for the spring....

I am so proud of myself - spent the whole afternoon yesterday cleaning our lovely conservatory and getting it ready for the spring.

We don´t use it in the cold wintermonths as it is very expensive to heat, but from the middle of march the sun is powerful enough to warm it up and we put the floor heating on, too. So I spent a wonderful sunny afternoon getting everything ready, I haven´t put the blankets and cushions out yet as it is still quite cold and I don´t want them to get damp, but apart from that everything is ready. I´m so looking forward to sitting out there drinking tea or a glass of wine, it´s my favourite room from march to octobre where I spend most of the time when I´m in the house and not in the garden. If you want to see more of our conservatory and the rest of the house, take a look at boboho where our home is featured and take a walk around our Danish farmhouse ;-)

The other thing I want to show you is this - I love flowers, so what more can I ask for?

I bought this gorgeous bracelet and the matching earrings on etsy from moonlilydesigns and oh how thrilled I was when I opened the parcel this morning!! Such delicate beadwork! Check out her shop.

So - I am definitely in the right mood for spring!

Tuesday, 3 February 2009

Winter Days...

It has been really cold and stormy the last days, so I have been spending a lot of time in front of the computer listing nice things in my recently set up etsy shop. Nevertheless, being the lucky owner of two lovely dogs and three horses I couldn´t escape the elements completely - the horses need to be fed and Gustav the Border Collie mix needs his exercise (Snuff, our old dog wouldn´t mind to spend the whole day in front of the log burner!). Even the cats couldn`t be bothered to go out and had lazy days on the bed.... on the sofa.... or in my studio!


Today I received a parcel with bright colourful vintage buttons, and a couple of days ago I got my beautiful vintage rhinestone buckles found on ebay, and I have many ideas what to use them for. I have already crocheted a nice dusky purple belt embellished with mother of pearl buttons and glass beads, and it looks beautiful with the rhinestone buckle I think.


I even made a couple of bracelets from the last lot of doilies and lace that I have hand-dyed. I have started to use brighter colours in my work and I´m really happy with the results so far! Makes me think of the spring, birds singing, sunshine.... For the bracelet shown in the picture I have only used vintage materials. First I layered hand-dyed tulle and lace and burnt the edges of the tulle fabric for a rougher look. Then I put on turqoise flowers cut out of a vintage tablecloth. I handstitched the edge of the flowers with thick embroidery thread in different colours that I had been lucky to find in a charity shop and embellished it with vintage buttons and sparkly glassbeads. The bracelet is lined with vintage fabric in candy colours.


Monday, 2 February 2009

Finally got started....

So I finally got my blog started ;-) It took me a while to understand how things work, but from now on I am going to tell about my ongoing projects and artists/websites/events that inspire me.

The picture shows one of my current projects, I am working with vintage doilies and slips which I hand-dye, embellish with beads and vintage buttons and transform into something new! The turquoise slip is not finished yet, I have only pinned the doilies on so far and yet have to do the sewing and embellishing. I will keep you informed how things develop!