So Tread Softly...

studio space

My studio space is a large room that leads off the lounge area. It works well for us. Mr Tread Softly can be sprawled on the sofa with his head in a book or watching the latest cop show, whilst I'm sitting at this little wooden table hand sewing but, we're still together. I can see him (and I do like looking at him) and he can see me. Like I said, it works well for us.

Everything has it's place in my room. Those of you who have been readers for a while won't really be surprised at that!

That's a new (to me) cupboard underneath the pin-board. I picked it up for $20 a while back. It won't always live there.

A while back I mentioned that we were about to embark on a building project that hopefully, will be completed by the beginning of December at which point, I will be moving studios. Now, you need to use your imagination here a wee bit!

What do you see? A garage and car port? Do you? Really? If you look at the photo and squint a bit (well, squint a lot actually) do you see a huge studio with an attached shop? Do you see the large floor to ceiling windows and the two sets of French doors? Do you see the little log burner in the corner glowing brightly against the white, white walls? How about the weather-board finish painted Periglacial Blue? No? Ah, but you will do. The Tread Softly gang are about to start work on the transformation. I'll bring you updates every now and again. But until then (and I really can't wait), I'll still be in my studio at the little wooden desk sewing madly until moving day.

Until next time... 

For the past couple of weeks I've been feeling Christmassy. I'm used to Christmas happening slap bang in the middle of winter so it's no surprise that I struggle with it taking place during the NZ summer. A new country and a simplified lifestyle surely means that we can invent and introduce our own new traditions? So this weekend we planned to get down and get Christmassy and it being winter solstice just seemed liked perfection. We decided to share it with other British folk, people who can relate to wrapping up warm, sitting in front of the fire with a glass of mulled wine and celebrating. Our new tradition is simple. We drink, eat, exchange small gifts and toast those we love and all that we know back at home. Here are just a few shared moments:

image: sewing placemats on solstice morning whilst Trumpet watched on

image: solstice dining table with twinkle lights

image: let the eating begin!

Until next time...

 

wearables

Back in February I joined a dress making evening class at our local college. It's just for two hours a week and even though I haven't been able to attend each session due to regular work commitments, I've managed to produce two garments. If it wasn't for those precious two hours where I allow myself to indulge, they simply wouldn't exist.

I have a dark chocolate and teal thing going on right now as you will see. This is a kimono top with ruched gathers at the waist.

It took a while to come together and consequently, I've gone right off it and haven't worn it yet!

Hoping that it will grow on me as it took soooo long to make!

My second garment I really do like.

I have a Carly Harris dress (NZ designer) and decided to take a pattern from it. I chose a beautiful fluid silk which was really tricky to use as it's so slippery.

The dress has a definite 1920's feel to it and looks great over jeans or trousers. I'm desperate to make more. Just need to lay my hands on some more silk.

Next week I'll be starting something new. Not sure what it's going to be yet but I'll keep you posted.

Do you mind if I end with a photo of Trumpet? Indulge me? This was taken last night. He'd just woken up for a long sleep.

Until next time...

shared moments - first week of june

I've taken on several new stockists over the past couple of weeks and am really busy with orders so thought that I'd pick a few moments from this chilly winter week and share them with you.

image: sitting on bales of wool in an old barn in the countryside, sipping hot chocolate and listening to Joe Bennet tell stories.

image:  Joe Bennet - he wouldn't stand still for a minute!

 image: freshly baked bread that has now become a regular weekly task

 image: studio chandelier reflected in the window - working long into the night

 image: fresh screen prints ready to be made up into cushions

 image: findng prehistoric-like patterns in the firewood that's just been delivered.

until next time...

my love affair with the washing machine

If you love fabric as much as me (especially of the vintage variety), then you will no doubt understand the close relationship that I have with my washing machine. Actually, the first place Mr TS looks if he wants me, would be the laundry room. In the UK where I'm from, only posh people have special rooms where nothing but clothes washing takes place, but here in NZ, they come as standard. This week the laundry room has had more than it's fair share of my company.

The ribbon and lace that was kindly gifted to me has now been washed and pressed having been stored for many years. The 'hangy thing (I'm sure some kind reader will tell me what it's called) on the ceiling looked really pretty, a little like a maypole. I almost danced! Nah not really, but Trumpet loved it. Anything dangly, he's there!

Last week I was also EXTREMELY lucky enough to come across a huge stack of antique and vintage Japanese fabrics (mainly cotton and silk) all the way from Kyoto. The colours are beautifully faded and soft and I was thinking about maybe making them up into packs to be used in collage or craft and selling them from my neglected etsy shop. What do you think? Would anyone be interested perhaps?  They were also drying on the hangy thing and have now been pressed. Here are a few of them:

Remember my first screen printing attempt? Well, I finished the stitching around each of the gum nuts and made it into a cushion for the lounge area.

My second attempt, last Friday was perhaps not quite so successful. I think I know where I went wrong and will therefore have another go this week.

Until next time...

away from home

I've been away for a few days in Wellington on a course connected with my regular job. I'm not that keen on hotels, being a bit of a home girl, but there's something about the crisp white bed linen that I adore.

Being in the capital gave me a great excuse to meet up with a girlfriend for dinner. Thai food and great crafty chat was a wonderful way to pass the time. I even came away with a box filled with old lace and ribbon that I will certainly make good use of. Thank you Davina!

Mr Tread Softly joined me on the second night which was so lovely. We drove into the city for more great food.

I'm now happy to be home.

Hey, I've just heard that I have a stall, well, half a stall (I'll just have to pile high) at the next Craft 2.0 on 19th July. If you're in the area then come on down. I hear that it's amazing.

Until next time...

giant acorn cups

We're lucky enough to have a wonderful art space in the town next to us. Members of the public can just turn up and create. All of the equipment and resources are there and it's free! Can you believe that? If you want to do pottery it's all set up, needle felting, they have the know how, oil painting, not a problem. I've been wanting to learn how to screen print and an incredibly talented girl friend and artist just so happens to have mastered the technique and also teaches there. Friday's are women only days so a couple of weeks ago I decided to pop along.

Moments before going, Mr Tread Softly said that he had a present for me and handed me half a dozen giant sized acorns cups that he'd picked up. I've only been able to photograph two of them as Trumpet spotted them and they're now under the furniture!

Anyway, I decided that the giant acorn cups (I know that they're not acorns but haven't the foggiest what else to call them) would be my inspiration for my first screen print. I photographed the process for you step by step as I thought that some of you might be interested in this simple but hugely effective technique.

So I started off with a sheet of paper and my little bit of inspiration. I used newsprint.

I penciled in my random design...

..and then carefully cut out the shapes with a sharp craft knife.

The newsprint was then taped onto the front of a screen printing frame.

Hmmm, this photo is a little dark but at the top I'd spooned out a line of dark chocolate brown textile paint and then used the spreader to pull the paint down the screen. Can you see the Maori design on the screen? Whoever used it in the past didn't wash it out properly so the paint has stained. I plan to purchase my own frame in the near future.

Here you can see the spread of the textile paint. Doesn't look too pretty does it? But wait, now for the exciting part.

I carefully pulled the screen away from the fabric to reveal my design. I used natural linen to print onto.

Et voila! Here's my finished design. Next time I go I'll be using two colours.

So having heat set the ink I'm now in the process of embellishing it with a simple running stitch in three colours. If you click on the image you should be able to have a closer look.

I'm not sure what the fabric will be made into yet. Maybe a cushion cover - best to keep my first attempt simple I think. Whatever it becomes, I'll keep you posted.

Until next time...

update: apparently, the giant acorn cups are actually gum nuts - thank you helen for letting me know.

treasure

Can you walk past a op/charity/thrift store without popping in? I certainly can't. What if you decide to pass on by and there just so happens to be treasures waiting in there that should really belong to you? I couldn't live with myself!

I was looking for old books, ones that had seen better days and didn't mind being chopped up so that I could use them in a few crafting ideas I have in my head. Having had a quick whizz around the store I ended up at the book stand and immediately spotted a couple of volumes that had potential. Trouble was, they were way down in the corner and I couldn't get to them as another shopper was crouched down scanning the shelves. Being terribly English I didn't want to disturb him so decided to have one more look around the store until he'd finished. As I was passing the manchester section (for those of you not in New Zealand, Manchester means linens! Don't ask me why - I don't think anybody knows - at least, the people I've asked don't) and a volunteer placed an interesting looking box on the shelf in front of me.

My years of secondhand shopping has taught me that if there's a box, tin or suitcase, it always pays to look inside because that's where the treasures hide. As I opened the tatty cardboard box I gasped as I found it crammed beautiful embroidery that someone had started and not had time to finish.

The cloth had aged beautiful. Some had developed tiny rust marks that I just love.

Underneath the pile of fabric I found yards of wonderfully coloured embroidery silks that had been wound around cardboard and rolled up pieces of newspaper.

I looked at the price on the box and it said $2.50! For friends and family in the UK, that's about 80p.

I'm fascinated by social history and would love to know who this belonged to and when it was packed away and why. But if you look closely, the box holds many clues.

Having unraveled a length of floss wrapped around a piece of newspaper, I discovered that the original owner wound it around the time that Edge of Darkness' was playing at the Regal and 'Casablanca' at the Adelphi. I'll spend time this weekend unwinding each of the threads to see what other clues the box holds.

What can $2.50 buy you nowadays? Well,if you decide to pop in to the op shop and not walk on by, and if there's a sense of hope and a little of bit of luck on your side, it can buy you hours of pleasure.

Until next time...

on being thrifty

So food prices in New Zealand have increased by 28% in the past year and they're set to continue rising. Here in the so tread softly house, we've always tried to watch our spending. Each week - usually a Sunday morning - we sit down, plan our menu and write a shopping list. We started doing that about 8 years ago as we found that at the end of each week, we were having to throw out good food. Since planning our meals, not only have we saved money on the weekly shop, but we very rarely throw anything away.

Now we're about to embark on, what could be, if we're not careful, a pretty expensive building project (more about that at a later date) and were thinking of areas where we could be a wee bit more thrifty. Each day Mr TS takes a couple of biscuits to work in his lunch box and so he has decided to make his own in a bid to save a few cents, that, as we all know, soon add up. This afternoon he made a batch of Tiffin Cake (a recipe from my Mum) but it tasted so good that there's not a great deal of it left for the weeks lunch box!

This afternoon I've been curled up on the settee reading this book about the cotton farms in Alabama throughout the last century. Women then didn't have a rubbish bin in their kitchen purely because of the fact that they didn't have rubbish! The food scraps were given to the pigs and the flour, grain and sugar sacks, all of which were made from pretty printed cotton, were made in clothing, pillowcases and quilts. Thread was a real luxury so they used to unpick the cotton sacks very carefully and use the strands. If you happen across a quilt from the beginning of the last century and it's sewn with red thread, this was probably unpicked from the tobacco pouches and re-used. Quite amazing!

I'm determined to be more thrifty. We were pretty much self sufficient throughout the summer regarding vegetables and salads and our food scraps were turned into fabulously rich compost, but I will certainly think twice in future, before putting anything into the rubbish bin.

Now were did he hide that tiffin cake?...

Update: It seems that the increase in food is a worldwide issue looking at your comments. Thriftiness is on many of your minds. Mr TS's auntie wanted you all to know about a smell free composting method that you can use in your home. Here's the link. She uses the system and swears by it.

Keriann wanted the recipe for Tiffin Cake as she tried it once in the UK. It's so not good for you but we all deserve a treat every once in a while!

Tiffin Cake

6 oz plain biscuits

4 oz marg or butter

1 tablespoon of golden syrup (although Mr TS tells me he sneaked in 2!)

2 tablespoons of drinking chocolate

3 tablespoons sultanas

1 dessert spoon on caster sugar

Cooking chocolate to cover

Melt marge/butter, syrup, drinking chocolate, sultanas and sugar in a pan. Crush biscuits and add to melted mixture. Press into a greased swiss roll tin. Cool slightly and pour the melted chocolate over it. Allow to set and then cut into squares.

friday : blue

image: colour samples on the garage wall

image: we plumped for periglacial blue

image: the front of our little wooden cottage

image: the bathroom

image: me - wearing blue - especially for today

Thank you Leya for hosting another hugely enjoyable colour week. Looking forward to the next one!