Wallpaper Whimsies...

Thought I'd revisit an idea I had a few years ago for pretty gift sets.
I bought several bars of Pears soap this week; the traditional transparent one that they've been producing for over 200 years, which comes in a lovely sturdy box... 

I wrapped each one in a section of vintage floral wallpaper from my collection. This was held in place with a soft green ribbon tied in a bow, which I decorated with a coordinating vintage millinery flower.  

I then teamed each wrapped soap with a pretty vintage china saucer, which make sweet informal soap dishes. To finish, they will be individually wrapped in clear cellophane when I get to my shop tomorrow...

A charming little gift that's just a bit different.

***

Another craft project for this week involved this tiny cabinet...Not sure what this once was, but suspect it may have been a clock case? It had lost much of its wood veneer from the front and was generally quite scruffy...which I liked! I didn't want to lose its signs of age under a coat of paint or other such makeover, so I decided to revamp it with an antique hand blocked wallpaper. I only had this small scrappy piece in my supplies...

Anyone who has used antique wallpaper in crafts will know, that the brittleness of the paper can make them very difficult to work with. I decided that this fragile nature of the paper would hopefully work to my advantage in giving the cabinet a genuine antique look.
I used PVA glue and carefully stuck sections of the paper down, not worrying about small tears or wrinkles, and actually ripping the paper now and then to scruffy-it-up even more.  

I decided to line the inside of the cabinet with antique ledger pages. I've had these squirrelled away for a few years now - They were part of a swap gift I received from Heather of Pretty Petals blog. They were just the thing to continue the theme of the little cupboard.

I must confess I am quite pleased with the way that its turned out and I may just have to keep this project! I'm usually pretty good at offering my handmade (or hand-tweaked!) items for sale...in fact I don't very often have the time to make things for myself...But it does look pretty nestled on the old writing desk with my collection of Water Babies books...

And then there's the fun of adding little treasures to the inside...

Time will tell if it stays with me...Rather appropriate for an old clock case! ;-))

Hope you've enjoyed the beautiful sunshine today,
Niki x

Vintage Bazaar, Devises

I shall be offering my wares for sale at The Vintage Bazaar, Corn Exchange, Devises, 

on Saturday 31st August 2013, 9.30am to 3pm - Admission £1. 
(My shop will be closed whilst I attend the fair - Sorry for any inconvenience this may cause.) 

My latest collection of fairy dolls and some of the other handmade items I shall be taking with me can be seen on my other blog here. 

Niki x

Garlands, Greetings and Gift Ideas

My latest handmade items can be seen on my other blog...Including a garland I created from these vintage hand embroidered flower motifs...

Lots of handmade greetings cards...

And several painted projects.
Niki x

Pretty Coat Hangers

I've been working hard on this collection of padded coat hangers - Each stitched entirely by hand.

I use antique or vintage fabrics and decorate with antique lace and a vintage costume brooch, which can be removed and worn if desired. 

These are all sold - Thank you! 

Niki x

Shoe Stretchers

Been busy making-over a collection of plain c1930's shoe stretchers.
I bound the metal shafts in velvet ribbon and decorated the toes in vintage/antique fabrics. 

I also re-covered this little wooden stool, adding a fun 50's animal print fabric to the seat. 

Have a great week,

Niki x

Bottling Things Up

I gave a plain chocolate brown draylon headboard a makeover this week, by stapling a cheerful Sanderson floral fabric in place. Headboard will fit a standard 5' king-size bed. 

A little French vitrine was also in need of some TLC...

A couple of coats of pale grey paint soon had it looking a lot smarter.

Thought I'd jazz-up some empty antique bottles, too. I used snippets from a French magazine dated 1909 to create the labels on the fronts, and scraps of vintage lace were tied to the necks.

All have arrived at my shop today. 

Bottle/brooch combos.

These were another little make I created this week. I'd dried some pretty pink roses a while ago - I was able to gently squeeze a flower head inside the neck of each of the clear glass bottles. Scraps of lace accompanied them and I sealed each one with tightly rolled-up sheet music.

Looking forward to making lots more pieces for the shop and all the vintage fairs coming up (a list of the fairs I am attending can be found on my other blog and my website.)

Niki x