Sweet Spring

It was the Jewish spring festival of Purim on Sunday. Which I'm taking to mean that spring is officially here. That and crazy York birds (of the feathered variety) singing at stupid o' clock in the morning!

So, visions of pastel coloured macaroons, Japanese sakura blossom, evening sunshine, and the only time of year I will flirt with the idea of wearing mint green.

I've been tinkering around with some beautiful vintage lilac purple beads that I've just bought from Canada. They glow vaseline blue/purple when the light hits them, casting a sunset yellow pool of light, otherwise they are a cloudy moonstone blue. Love the way they change in the light.  They are actually from an old pearl necklace. Back then, to create an inner glow, they used coloured glass and even low grade real opal beads, which were then painted to resemble pearls. So next time you are about to ditch your great aunt's flakey pearl necklace, do see what lies beneath!! You'll easily be able to chip the paint off with your nail. 

My inspirations for this ring? Spring flowers, Gaudi, Monet's waterlilies series, Art Nouveau excess. It'd make a lush statement at a wedding or party, and if you are a red head or have a cool skintone, these colours are made for you. 

These earrings were made to match the ring, but are daintier, softer. The vintage purple curved shells somehow remind me of those oriental hats or parasols;  Geisha's crossing bridges in an idyllic scented garden. 

I'm not sure if I'll do more in this series. Who knows when inspiration will strike! I've popped them in my online shop, Moth and Magpie, so now I get to see if anyone else is searching for spring....

Moths Be Gone-Lavender Wardrobe Heart Craft

My guest stylist may be only 4, but boy does she have the skills!



This girl is multitalented; she also agreed to model for me-angelic!

I was planning to write about this lavender heart I made from vintage silk, so when Maya pointed towards my window, having quite independently found and arranged this vignette, I was delighted that it'd caught her eye too.




The patterned white silk is from an old blouse. I cut out a heart shape, stitched it to an identical heart cut from a plain ivory fabric, and stuffed it with dried lavender and pillow foam for shape. I want to make more of these with organic cedar shavings(you can buy them on Etsy.)I sewed the seed pearls on afterwards [think running stitch but threaded with pearls in-between stitches], and finished it all off with peach ribbon and a white iridescent shell from a Victorian necklace. Eat your heart out, moths!

As for me and my house....

Product development. What an ugly, clumsy phrase. 
The truth is, its a pretty ugly clumsy process too. 
Lots of trial, lots of error. For me, it means trying to hit upon something that I want to sell that people want to buy: keeping my integrity whilst keeping afloat.


I want to show you something I'm mulling over. I'm not sure whether its a road I want to go down, but Christian art signs [from salvaged material, of course] do seem to be in short supply here in England. Is that because no one wants them, because they are too tricky to produce in large numbers, or just because no one has tried it yet? Check out this prototype:

This verse from Joshua
is a good one to reflect upon...
 Its printed on vintage printing block separators,
 which I've nailed to cedar wood from an antique wardrobe
 and suspended on a charity shop metal snake chain.

I wonder how much people value upcycling-
maybe they just want something pretty?
Maybe it looks a touch too rustic?

This one would make a nice valentine's gift.
Its actually from Psalm 119.
I've nailed the words onto the back of a wooden
ornament mount I found at a jumble sale,
and suspended the whole thing on a string of peach freshwater pearls.

Wood and nails-symbols of the cross of Christ

I'd love to know what YOU think of these prototypes? How could I improve them? Or am I barking up the wrong tree, so to speak?

Lets see what the good people of Etsy think...https://etsy.com/listing/121916005/christian-bible-verse-wooden-sign-as-for

Pugs not drugs: The Doggy Bag

What do you do when the birthday present of your friend's/minion's dreams
 is a rather pricey T-shirt from Urban Outfitters?

You recreate it in black thread on a canvas bag, leaving the strands untrimmed for a punky look. Varying the number of threads definitely adds a bit more character, and she can take it walkies every time she goes shopping.

Moustached monarchs of the Machine Age

Not just a pretty face: stamp stationary customized with watch parts

And now for something completely different...... I set myself the challenge of creating writing equipment for the gentleman, as opposed to my usual feminine butterfly themed bespoke stationary. Its a little steampunk, a little time travel, but all in a discreet and tasteful way. 

My starting point was an old watch found in the street. I took it apart to use the curious metal parts within to embellish some vintage postage stamps of a gentleman I take to be the King of Spain; a grand looking chap with a very fine moustache.  

The watch hands make a nice corner detail to the antique initial-they would also make the most impressive moustache if correctly applied!

I had my brother in mind. A true gent with impeccable taste, he would have been just as at home in the culture of 100 years ago as he is being a thoroughly modern army doctor today. I wanted to make something stylish and unique with a sense of the past about it. Think private members clubs, mechanical progress, leather, Sherlock Holmes, groomed facial hair, royalty and the age of steam.  

The metal disk decorating the binding is the face of the watch from which I salvaged the metal parts and the crested shield pendant is a vintage souvenir. TIME+TRAVEL. 

 I used 100% upcycled materials, as the paper is also made in India from recycled cotton. So thats the past and the future taken care of, lets hope it makes a good present too!

A Meadow for Marie

 Marie, like the rest of us, probably needs a little bit of summer sunshine right now. This'll make the perfect present for a January birthday. I've created a meadow of butterflies and tiny flowers, so she can write fanciful poems about poppies and whatnot.

Betty and Eleanor-Two Letterheads Are Better Than One

Sometimes two letterheads are better than one-especially when it comes to family. I've created separate ones for when they need to write angry letters to eachother about who ate the last of the cheese.

Cinnamon and Espana- custom paper for Miss E

Another post, another commission. A bit of warmth on a foggy winters day. When I made this out of vintage papers especially for Miss E, I was thinking about letters from far off lands, spices in the air, dust on your feet, a straw sun hat, hot colours like cinnamon bark and coconut shells.

Precious papers for Nilma

Sometimes neutral is best: classic, timeless, chic. Beautiful materials speak for themselves: Indian paper recycled from cotton, butterflies individually cut from antique love letters and poetry, her name handprinted here and there, a butterfly stamp, tiny flowers I've cut from a silk blouse, sprinkles of freshwater pearls, vintage thread and silver highlights....

Bespoke Stationary part deux-Bougainvillea Butterflies

For a truly personal gift nothing beats, well, personalisation. But not in a mechanical school name-tape type way. Oh no. It needs to match their style, their personality too. Bespoke custom writing paper sets seem to do the trick. Here is one commissioned for M, a creative lady who loves a bit of colour...