stevens happy accidents

play cubes

2011-10-16T13:54:00.000Z

why is it that some of the most complicated and fiddliest things to make bring in the least amount of money ?. but at least these play cubes look lovely, and i quite like making them...each one is different and has two little bells inside for that twinkling sound, they are in my shop now

saw these and selfishly thought of me

2011-10-04T17:25:00.000Z

it was easily love at first sight when i saw these, all i need is a home of my own with walls to fill and i will have these, i will, just watch, i will.... they are from here..

a few new dresses

2011-09-15T18:23:00.000Z

new stuff just finished and chucked in my shop.. well not chucked, more thrown gently...

just stuff

2011-09-12T23:53:00.000Z

just some images from the past few weeks in my life...

im nice, like me

2011-08-27T22:45:00.001Z

I'm trying to get my "likes" on my facebook page up, so please like me, please share my page with your friends, i don't know how some of the pages on facebook get thousands of followers when, erm, don't know if i can say this, but they sell such crap.... shhh dont tell anyone i said that....

love these

2011-08-27T22:36:00.000Z

thse are so lovely i must use them in some project one day soon.... they are from here

new stuff

2011-08-18T11:13:00.000Z

im constantly making and sewing and listing stuff in my shop, and these are a few of the newest ones...

i am the godfather

2011-08-16T16:09:00.000Z

hello, its official, i am THE GODFATHER, i told the devil where to shove it and i became Scarlett Pearl Williams High's godfather, she has another godfather too but hes not as good as me... and we had an amazing day where she ran riot in the church and entertained us all, and then we had a lovely meal in a country pub and i took a gazillion photographs.

i bought her a brilliant little necklace from carry me home, that looks like a price tag, and inside the lovely packaging is a space for a message where i hand printed a little note, i also made us some badges to wear.

i promise to be the one who takes her to the things her parents are too cool to attend, i will expose her to camp musicals and silly things and force her to listen to pop music and watch reality television.

just stuff

2011-07-27T23:41:00.000Z

just some images that for some reason are on my desk top... thought i would share....

take that and party

2011-07-16T13:18:00.002Z

i have been incredibly blog lazy again.. not that anyone really gives a toss. hahah.. but hey ho i did go and see take that in concert, on the final UK night of their progress tour at wembley stadium down in stinky london, and it was bloody brilliant, yeah i sweated my arse off queueing for many hours just to get near the stage,(and i burnt my baldy head) and yeah by the end of it i though my back was broken, but wow it was one hell of a show.... here's a few snaps.... i wont tell you what song i sobbed my heart out to as its too embarrassing....

my newest old thing

2011-07-01T20:40:00.000Z

I'm in love with my new poster... its massive and just brilliant, its actually bigger than i thought and no frame i have will ever fit it... so on the wall it goes with trusty sewing pins... i saw it weeks ago in vintage etsy (the best pace to waste time) and it was in this shop, and stayed in my favorite album until i grabbed it... (they actually have another one of these available).. but look at it, its amazing... did i say i love it....

i love this

2011-06-29T00:13:00.000Z

and its from here

best in show

2011-06-28T12:16:00.000Z

OK so this wasn't an award that i was actually given, but my stall at the event i have just done was easily the most colourful and interesting... or at least i think it was... and it certainly helped sales as i sold lots of things...

who wants to win a prize

2011-06-23T22:22:00.000Z

its a very special prize.. and you have 1 week left to enter... you see my favorite stockist carry me home is celebrating a big girl birthday and she is now 6 yrs old.. and i have been given a gift voucher for £35.00 to give away, and its easy peasy to enter, all you have to do is comment on this picture with a nice birthday message, and please follow this link to carry me homes face book page and like them... go on, what you got to lose... its £35.00 to spend online, or in the shop, which is in Londons ever so fancy Carnaby st area.. just about 100 yards from the world famous Liberty department store..

and your name will be added to the names who commented on my facebook page.. which i urge you to also "like".. who doesn't like to be liked...

could have should have

2011-06-11T16:11:00.000Z

i love a good rummage around etsy vintage and put lots of things in my fave album hoping one day that i might have the spare cash for a bit of a splurge, but i always risk the chance of things selling before i can grab it, i accept this and have missed some lovely things.. but hey, if they were meant to be mine then they would be i guess... but look at what i could have and should have bought, and this will most likely give you an idea of the kind of things i like..

i love cushions

2011-06-10T19:36:00.000Z

i like making things, i LOVE fabric and i love having a project on the go and have many things on my to do list... but i really really like making cushions.. from lovely lovely fabrics.. and i have just finished some for my new shop, and they are real happy accidents.. i didnt think about it too much, i just got a mix of fabrics and sewed them together and then got my bag of ribbons out and like a lucky dip just kept going until the edges were trimmed in a frilly ribbony splendid lovlieness... and they might just be a bit too much.. but i love them...

i love this

2011-06-07T12:42:00.000Z

this is so lovely, and a perfect gift. i want one ... wanna buy me one ?.. its from more than words, a place where you can personalise lots of text based art for your walls..

i love this

2011-06-07T00:06:00.000Z

i was just browsing etsy vintage when i came across this shop and i just love how they display their things.. so simple but so effective.. i love it...

in front of me

2011-06-04T13:14:00.000Z

just a few pics of what i have seen with my four eyes this last week or so...

i love this

2011-05-27T21:48:00.001Z

and its from here, wanna buy me it ?.. its not cheap...

unintended niceness

2011-05-20T23:02:00.000Z

i turned my head to the left and saw this unintended niceness..so i took a picture. i have many cushions chucked onto my bed and they are either my dinner tray or my head rest or just for visual pleasure... and this little montage is just as i saw it.. no styling, no fluffing, just unintended niceness... thankfully i didn't turn my head to the right because that side is just a mess....

im alive

2011-05-20T19:11:00.000Z

or at least my new website is... its taken me a good while to get it looking just how i want it, i did it all myself using one of those free web building sites.. and if i say so myself i love it... look here.. what do you think ?...

my own little place in the world wide web is where i will sell, or try and sell, the dresses i make, and soft toys, and things for the kids rooms, unique cushions and super soft quilts.

i think i will keep an etsy shop, but instead of having 3 separate ones like i used to have, I'm going to combine them all into just the one...
and if you wanna "like" me on face book... please search for my happy accidents, and you will find me I'm sure.. (look for the dress)..

im so splendidly busy

2011-05-18T14:34:00.000Z

so I'm also a massive fat fibber.. I'm not that busy, but I'm super lazy so at least I'm good at something.. BUT, i have been getting together my own little online empire that is all mine mine mine.. i love etsy but its not really ever kicked off for me so I'm doing my own... its a pretty simple site that i have been able to manipulate to my own tastes.. and its a few days away from being ready... it was probably ready last week but I'm a fuss pot who wants it kinda perfect before the critical masses get to have a look... this collage is a sneak of some images on my spanking new website... I'm excited...

i love this

2011-05-06T15:01:00.000Z

i might just buy myself this print... its a lovely message that gives me a nice feeling... i do love a good quote.... and its from here..

royal me up

2011-04-28T20:57:00.000Z

so unless you have been under a massive silly rock you will know that royal wedding insanity is gripping the world, and no more so than in my head, I'm so excited i might burst red white and blue glitter, i love a bit of traditional English pomp and ceremony and love the real life history that i will be watching.. but ultimately i guess I'm more excited about the dress and all the hats. and to feel more part of it this week i made myself a cushion from an old tea towel i found, yeah its not a wedding one, but hey, its got a crown on it.. and talking of crowns, i thought it was only correct to make sure i was wearing one whilst i watched the wedding on the TV..

soft and squishy

2011-04-21T14:57:00.000Z

so not only is my big wobbly belly soft and squishy, so are these new kids quilts i have just made for an Easter fair I'm doing this weekend, i really like making them, i just hope people like buying them...

my favorite places

2011-04-19T16:40:00.000Z

nearly a year ago i left London and changed my life by moving hundreds of miles away, and one of the main reasons i drove 8 hours north was to have daily views like this.. and you can guarantee that i can be found around these views at least 3-4 times a week, views like this a free visual therapy and just make me smile.. and i can honestly say 100% that i don't miss that horrible stinky big city one bit...

dress making machine

2011-04-18T17:43:00.000Z

I'm a dress making machine at the moment, as i have a few fairs coming up and a few shops to keep stocked, god knows how ill keep my own website up and running when i finally get around to doing that.. but here are a few pics of what i just sent off to their new home in carry me home...

i love these

2011-04-16T18:52:00.000Z

so the shop i used to work in, down in stinky London town, carry me home, has just got in some amazing new stock, and i bloody love these lights, red London buses and traditional English telephone boxes.. don't they look brilliant all lit up.. i want some.. wonder if my staff discount still works ?

and now that the sunny sunshine has started to show his happy face more often, how appropriate is this super cute baby outfit/body suit/romper or whatever you wanna call it ?.. either way its quite brilliant..

oh and all these things can be found here...

in a circus

2011-04-12T16:10:00.000Z

i got this book of etsy a few days ago and look at the fab illustrations, circus is my fave word to search for in etsy, its amazing what treats can be found... if only i had the financial means to indulge in this drug more... but this little thing will do for now. i shall display it proudly... it was love at first sight...

i would make a lovely clown...

a supermodel and a window

2011-04-09T20:16:00.000Z

look at this picture of future supermodel Scarlett pearl rocking one of the dresses i made for her.. shes walking now and there is no stopping her strutting her stuff . how cool does she look..

and this week i was sent this picture of my things in a window display at love from hetty and dave, one of my stockists down in sunny Bournemouth.. i so need to pay that shop a visit one day soon...

more things

2011-03-24T19:05:00.000Z

a few more snaps of whats been going on here, which apart from constant sewing is not much at all, but i wanted to show off my view, because every day when i wake up and wonder how the hell did i end up here (very long story i wont bore you with) all i need to do is look out of my window and i turn my frown upside down.. do ignore the ugly wires that cut across my view, but look, every morning its like my own private turner painting..

did i tell you i had a new stockist for my things ?.. maybe not, anyway i had to try and come up with some quick tags to put the price and size on.. so i got my graphic designers head on and knocked these out, i hand stamped the words and i really quite liked them, UNTIL, i realised the bloody ink was very easily smudged, so i couldn't risk the ink rubbing off on the dresses so in the bin these went.. that's an hour of my life ill never get back..

and finally just a small corner of my room that caught my cameras eye..

splendid stuff

2011-03-22T16:26:00.000Z

just a few snaps of whats caught my eye this last few days, i got this book at he local car boot sale for 50p, and i do believe that everything should have the word splendid, in it, its just a splendid word.. and inside was this book plate that i thought was quite appropriate what with all the news about bullying and retaliation that is all over blog world at the minute.. have you seen this ?.. some agree , some disapprove. i know who i was applauding...

and secondly after making that bib for my little nephew zachary, i hunted for some fabric suitable for boys.. making only girls dresss has resulted in me having a pile of girlie styles, and this one is just perfect.

and finally i have been cutting out dozens of 20cm squares ready for more quilts, i kinda love making them as they are easy and splendidly effective.. i love that word..

future superstar

2011-03-17T16:11:00.000Z

meet my little nephew Zachary. hes 6 months old and already a future superstar, hes very naughty and does not seem to like sleep much... maybe its because hes too excited to play with his happy accidents toy that i made him, or too happy to dribble drool all over his new bib i made him... either way hes amazing and i wish i could see him and his sister the Izz monster more often...

soft as a baby

2011-03-14T17:41:00.000Z

i made these new quilts this week, well, i call them quilts but they are really padded little blankets/wraps/play mats/..erm, whatever you want to call them ?.. there is not much actual quilting on them, and i possibly broke lots of quilting rules along the way, but i love them, and they are super colourful and the fleece on the backs is soooo super soft..

it was a struggle for me to send them to carry me home, my London stockist.. all the fabrics are scraps that i had never thrown away from all the dresses i make.. i knew i would find use for these bits one day, and they are such fun to make.. like a fabric jigsaw, putting the combinations together... I'm sure ill be making more..

i stole these pics

2011-03-06T17:42:00.000Z

so i didnt take these pictures but my best friend nick did, on his very recent trip to hong kong, and these are some of my favorites that i saw on his facebook page.. im sure he wont mind me using them.. look how the flowers are protected with their own tiny little nets, and look how stupidly high and dramtaic that massive skyscraper is.. a crazy place i hope one day to visit myself..

i made these

2011-03-02T13:24:00.000Z

so my blogging hasn't resumed full service, I'm not sure what full service means but i know I'm not doing it enough.. but i have been busy making things, i now have my dresses in 4 different shops and these have been keeping me quite busy, and here are just a few pics of what i have been doing..including the new elephant soft toys that i have started..

im selling liberty

2011-02-20T15:48:00.001Z

i know i have a small fabric addiction bit sometimes i just have to let it go to a better home than mine, and this week I'm selling some liberty fabric that i have had lying around for a while, i LOVE liberty tana lawn but to be honest, for the dresses i make i much prefer a heavier weight cotton, i think it just sews better, but hey that's just my preference, maybe i should experiment and see what i can do.. but anyway for now these fabrics can be found here in my sisters ebay shop.. I'm also massively addicted to ebay but that's for another story..

blanket booty

2011-02-18T16:40:00.000Z

this last few weeks i have been pretty lucky at the local car boot sales by finding and grabbing stupidly colorful vintage wool blankets, in the future when i have my eclectically patterned tiny house with a little easy to care for garden i will scatter these kind of things over chairs in cozy corners, or maybe alternatively ill bang them in my vintage etsy and make some cash, i cant decide, what should i do.. ?

i went to london

2011-02-17T14:12:00.000Z

last week i jumped on a train and sped south to stinky London town, calling it stinky is my way of saying i no longer find that place as wondrous as i once did, bad memories etc, have tainted the big city for me but for a few days i can cope with it... and its always nice to see friends and to get a taste of things i just cant get up here in the wilderness of west cumbria, don't get me wrong i totally love being up here but it is lacking in many things that most big cities offer... anyway here's a few snaps i took..these are my dresses hanging on a rail in carry me home, my main London stockist

this is a corner of carry me home that caught my eye, i love these stacking blocks and the blackboard is always so fun,

this next picture is two contrasts to the big city, the image on the left is inside leadenhall market in the city and its a beautiful place to have a little wander and grab some food, and the image on the right is what will soon be Europe's tallest building, the shard, and its just gigantic and i have enjoyed watching it slowly rise from a huge hole in the ground.. i know there are many bigger buildings in the world but this is still quite breathtaking to see up close..

and finally what i bought, i had a Christmas gift voucher to spend so i ran off to John Lewis as soon as i got to London and grabbed this Rob Ryan vase, i love it, its so very me, and the fabric on the right i got from liberty, i really think i am addicted as i so don't need any more fabric in my life, but before i knew it i was walking out with half a meter of each...

so London was ok, but I'm glad i don't live there anymore, a happy tourist yes, and happy I'm no longer a frustrated resident.

hello..

2011-02-07T17:44:00.000Z

hello, i have not updated this thing since before Christmas, i have pretty much had the whole of January off and just hibernated like a tortoise, and ate too much food and got fatter, but i guess ill have to try and get back into some kind of routine.. how long do tortoises actually hibernate for ? anyway this week i got an e mail of a magazine over in Korea, asking if i would send them some pics of my bedroom.. as they are doing a feature on boys and girls rooms, i didn't tell them I'm nearly 35, because i guess my room does look like it could belong to a small fluffy girl... but i got out my rubbish camera, on one of the greyest dullest days and tried my best to make light come from somewhere, i sent off the pics and so far i didn't get a reply telling me they were rubbish so here are a few of them to get me back into this blogging malarkey...

(after just looking at thesze pics again, bloody hell i really need a new camera. feel free to buy me one..)

hello little man

2010-12-06T21:07:00.001Z

my friend drew , who i have never actually met or spoke to,(don't worry he's not imaginary) has a really brilliant etsy vintage shop called kitsch cafe.. and just today he has made it all stupidly festive by adding this little guy... and i love him, (santa, not drew, i havent met him remember)...... and he lights up... what more could you want...

i love old stuff

2010-12-04T23:27:00.001Z

i love searching etsy for vintage posters and just saw these, i LOVE THEM.. they are from here, the car ones my favorite, the colours and the graphics are just lots of fun...

im outfit of the week

2010-11-29T15:42:00.000Z

one of the dresses i made has just been featured in outfit of the week, over at carry me home, my main stockist, it that there London town.. nice picture ain't it...

first snow

2010-11-28T19:13:00.000Z

the last few days around here have seen the first snow of this winter, and according to the news that seems to think snow is headline grabbing stuff, its the earliest snowfall for decades... in this country we get a few inches and its chaos, whilst in other places around the world that get far more, they just seem to get on with it... but it still looks lovely and I'm not complaining.. let it snow let it snow let it snow....

such a warm picture

2010-11-24T17:27:00.000Z

i just saw this here, and its so nice and is just like my ikea curtains that i have in my room...

i know bunting is everywhere now and has been for some time, but i still want to make my own.. one day soon i will...

i love this

2010-11-23T23:17:00.000Z

simple as that, i just think this is bloody lovely... and its from here

busy busy

2010-11-22T17:15:00.000Z

the last few weeks i have been working much harder than i really like, i actually don't much like working at all, but that stuff printed on paper i suppose wont make itself.. so i have to work to get it.. and all this activity that saw steam rising from my sewing machine was for the markets i have been doing recently and this weekend i went a ridiculously fancy country house hotel to take part in a Christmas fair.. this was my stall, i really liked how it looked.. i didn't sell much really,it seems that cupcakes and jams are what most people will be getting this year as those stalls almost sold out..

i love this

2010-11-10T18:01:00.001Z

this is from one of my favorite etsy shops, the wheatfield and i think i might just have to buy it..

i certainly dont seize every day, but i try to.. this print might just make it easier.

i love these

2010-11-08T00:27:00.000Z

so its already in every shop and nearly every advert on TV is telling us about what deals can be had this year , yeah so its pretty much Christmas already, i have already consumed many many mince pies and i think my mam would put up our tree and decorate every surface now if she could, and i was just browsing around vintage etsy and saw these and they are so very lovely, and i love them, so there..

they can be found here in this shop.. dont tempt me

first market done...

2010-11-01T20:41:00.000Z

so as i said a few posts ago, i took part in my first market this weekend, and well, lets just say i learnt lots. firstly, where the stalls were positioned was rubbish, away from the main Halloween activities, and the weather was so horrible with lots of rain, BUT i did sell some dresses and i covered all costs, which was good.

when i do the next one i will know what to expect. i now know how big the table is, how big the stall that the table goes in is, and how to set up the stall to make it look good.

and mainly i learnt not to forget chairs... it would have been a very long dull day without having borrowed a chair from a neighbouring stall. so it certainly wasn't brilliant, but I'm confident, and hopeful that things can only get better.. god i hope they can.

my favorite model

2010-10-31T19:18:00.001Z

meet Scarlett, again, i first introduced her here, and just look at her now. on my recent trip back to London i gave her a dress i made and here she is showing it off like seasoned pro... i love how well coordinated she is...

just imagine how many lovely things ill be able to make her as she grows up...i cant wait..

busy busy

2010-10-29T17:55:00.000Z

this last few weeks all i have been doing is making dresses, then some more dresses, you see this weekend its the first market I'm doing since i joined made in cumbria, there was once a time when i was a regular stall holder down in London, and i loved it.

but its been so long that I'm panicking ill forget something crucial.. like bags for people to put things in.. or change to give them if they don't pay the exact amount. but look, dont the ones i have made look good hanging together.. I'm doing 6 more markets before Christmas and will add more products as the weeks go by, but for now my 30 dresses will do just fine..

oh and please pray it does not rain, the weather has been miserable here the last few days...

let there be light

2010-10-25T22:02:00.000Z

i saw this today in a shop in keswick, in the lake district, and i want to do it in my house.. i have seen it before in magazines and on blogs but having now seen this in person i want my own cluster of vintage shades hanging from my ceiling, definitely one for the memory bank of future must do's.

i love these

2010-10-18T18:37:00.000Z

i was just rummaging around the biggest vintage store in the world, or at least my favorite one.. yeah I'm talking about etsy... and i sometimes just type into the search box random words to see what comes up, and today i put in education and i saw lots of lovely things but my heart was mainly stolen by this globe.. i love it... but don't need it and probably not going to buy it but i will love it forever... its from mila treasures

comissioned

2010-10-16T15:31:00.000Z

i was asked by a friend of mine to make a personalised gift for her friends new baby girl and this what i came up with.. i have done a few of these birds now and really enjoy bringing them to life.. the legs are always the last things i paint on, and only then are they ready to fly...

and i made a soft toy also, i really want to start making toys again, but i dont have enough pairs of hands to do that.. just in this last few weeks 3 new shops have asked about my dresses so im up to my eye balls in them.. useless etsy does not work for me but at least other places like them... anyway here is the toy..

lovely accessories

2010-10-08T18:25:00.000Z

i think this fabric is one of my absolute favorites, its the accessories lovers dream design with shoes bags hats and many more items all in one.. and when made into a cute little dress it looks even better. i have been buying lots of fabric recently because of the Christmas markets coming up soon, I'm building up a good stock ready to sell.. or hope to sell ? and i know this print will prove most popular.

they are now in the shop

new ink

2010-10-05T17:22:00.001Z

i got my new tattoo today and i love it, its exactly as i wanted it to be, clean and unfussy, the stars and words are new, the tribal style band part is ancient, and if anything represents the old me... the words here are so important to me and are part of a phrase that i read daily.. i blogged about it here some months ago and knew i wanted it not only to be in my head but part of me..

and I'm very happy with the end result, it flows around my arm really nicely, and i don't care what anyone says tattoos bloody hurt... but worth it..

i love these

2010-10-03T13:23:00.000Z

i like nothing better than looking through etsy at vintage books and ephemera, especially childrens books, and i love these , i want them on my wall, framed or just propped up on my shelf.. should i ?... ill have a think, they are from here

no longer in love

2010-10-01T21:17:00.002Z

so i am back from 3 days in London, and for the first time ever i couldn't wait to leave, i lived there somehow for nearly 13 years, and towards the end couldn't wait to get out, i just now find it a hectic crazy busy place that actually just drives me slightly mental, getting around is just hard work, the public transport sucks and its just not home to me anymore, and never will be again I'm sure. maybe i was rushing about too much trying to fit in everything i had to do and all the people i wanted to see ?. ill always go back to visit friends but will always be happy in the knowledge i can leave. so for now here are some of the sights i snapped with my little trusty phone camera.

can you guess which of the above images is my favourite one...

from top to bottom, 1,2 and 3 greenwich antiques market, 4, all the fun of the fair, 4, john lewis, 6, fur coat no knickers, 7, view from window on way home

im in the big city

2010-09-28T07:48:00.000Z

I'm back in London for a few days visiting friends and doing some essential shopping... fabric shops watch out I'm coming....(liberty and john lewis i love you) is it wrong to spend birthday vouchers on fabric that i can turn into things that ill sell for more profit ?.. or should i buy pants ?.. but my main reason for coming back to this stupidly busy place is to meet and greet a new box fresh tiny baby, and if course i had to make him some gifts, first a picture for his wall with his name on...

and secondly he needs his own happy accident to play with, so he got an extra special one with a big letter Z on the back,and a few extra ribbons in its hair..

i cant wait to meet him, and ill take some pics of him with his things, hes 2 weeks old now so surely he can sit up and pose with his gifts right...

im very jealous..

2010-09-26T17:24:00.001Z

don't know if i told you this but years ago i used to own a shop with some friends in central London, it was so exciting and something I'm gagging to do again.. but for now I'm sharing the excitementt of my friend Zoe from love from Hetty and Dave who is about to open her very own shop.. and this pic was taken just as she moved in.. i think it was already there but it so reminds me of my shop as we had one too, it hid our tiny cupboard full of rubbish... every shop should have one....

im getting inked,

2010-09-26T14:50:00.000Z

isn't that what the cool kids say, inked ?.. well in just over a weeks time im finally getting a long thought about tattoo, i already have one around my wrist, and i have for a long time wanted to add to it, and this picture is just a tiny part of my design, my right arm will never be the same and i cant wait..i will of course blog about it once its all nice and healed... you dont want to see it all bloody and sore do you ?

i love these..

2010-09-25T11:25:00.000Z

im already stockpiling a list of faves over on etsy for potential xmas gifts for myself and i love these from pepper beaumont, feel free to buy me the no place like home one, thanks very much..

a cape fit for any super hero

2010-09-21T23:18:00.007Z

its not just superman who needs a cape, small tiny girls do too, so i made them one.. OK i actually started making these last year and they sold so well in the shop in London where i sell lots of things, that i have started them again now that there is a nip in the air and a few leaves are falling from them there trees.they are roomy enough for arms to freely throw snowballs and will easily fit up to 4-5 yrs.. i love making them so expect to see more here soon.

dressmaking robot

2010-09-18T16:08:00.005Z

i feel like a dressmaking robot as its all i seem to be making at the moment.. and ill be making many many more over the next few months as i have just signed up to take part in 1 Halloween festival and 4 Christmas markets up here.. I'm excited to turn back time and be a stall holder once again, as many years ago i regularly had stall at Spitalfields market in London..but for now here are the newest ones i have made, i personally love the matroyshka fabric.. sometimes i really do wish i was a girl..

i want both of these

2010-09-17T21:46:00.003Z

this dog is just too cute, but its possibly out cute-ed by the jacket its wearing... its from rover dog, and its the best thing i have seen all week..

owl you doing ?

2010-09-12T22:44:00.004Z

I'm funny, look at the title of this post, its hilarious... but anyway look at one of the bestest loveliest fabrics ever seen, that i have just made into these dresses.. just too cute right ?.. as soon as i saw this fabric i grabbed, it and as soon as Mr postman pushed it through my door, it was chopped up and these are the results and they are now here...

i saw some llamas

2010-09-09T17:36:00.003Z

this picture was taken just a few miles away from my house, and i saw some lamas and they saw me too.. look, they are looking at me as if to say what are you looking at fatso...but i couldn't stop looking.. and neither could they...

sentimental slush

2010-09-07T21:44:00.003Z

this is my mam and dads wedding picture, they were married in 1965 (i think ?). i found this whilst looking through lots of old pics, and i think its really really lovely.

outfit of the week

2010-09-05T16:42:00.003Z

carry me home, the shop in London where i sell most of my things, has just used one of my dresses and elephants on their blog in a feature called outfit of the week, thanks guys, i love it, now get back to selling my things.... i have a tattoo to pay for...

vintage lovely

2010-09-03T19:15:00.004Z

i found this lovely fabric in the bottom of a box at the local car boot sale, and i just knew someone could give it a better life so i rescued it and it's now in stevensstuff, its 70 inches long and 47 inches wide, I'm not sure what kind of fabric it is but it has a glossy shiny textured feel and it's in prefect condition.
i didn't know what i could do with it, i have kept a tiny bit, enough for a cushion maybe, but i wonder what someone else will use it for..

all for darcy

2010-09-01T16:42:00.003Z

so a few weeks back now my friends had a baby and named her Darcy bloom,cool name or what. (i wish i had a middle name) and she lives many thousands of miles away and technically in the future, all the way over in New Zealand.. and i made her a quilt/blanket thingy, can i call it a quilt if it has no actual quilting on ?..anyway i loved making it and heard today that they did too, so i can finally show it here.. maybe i should make these to sell... what you think ?

no more tricks

2010-08-30T20:46:00.006Z

so i think I'm in love with an elephant,or three, and can you blame me, look, they are just too lovely.with their colorful big trunks and floppy big ears and big bold eyes, how can you not fall for them too.
everyone knows the famous song Nellie he elephant, and i really love the lyrics

"Nellie the elephant pack her trunk and
Said goodbye to the circus
Of she road with a trumpety trump
Trump trump trump"

"Nellie the elephant packed her trunk
And trumbled of to the jungle
Of she road with a trumpety trump
Trump trump trump"

"Night by night she danced to the circus band
When Nellie was leading the big parade she looked
So proud and grand"

"No more tricks for Nellie to perform
They taught her how to take a bow and she took
To crowd by storm"

so no more tricks for these guys to perform, just new homes to be found, and they are in myhappyaccidents now. i loved making these, its satisfying when one of those bubbling ideas turns out so well.

pebble love

2010-08-29T19:04:00.004Z

so my friend Zoe just made a small tiny tear come to my eye, after i saw on her blog what she did for her boyfriend, she just went on a mini holiday with her sister and left him behind with the cat, but look what she made him.. its too cute, i love it.. and I'm in no way whatsoever at all jealous that she has someone to do nice things for, OK i am, very jealous indeed..the bitch...(love you really Zoe)

why i left london

2010-08-26T21:26:00.012Z

so i left London after 13 years of the hustle and bustle for amazing views like this and lovely ice creams by the seaside with best friends... words are not needed, pictures say far more.and i don't regret it for one second....

i put a shelf up...

2010-08-24T22:30:00.007Z

so a few days ago i suddenly became all butch and manly and got out a big drill (that i borrowed from my sister)and bravely drilled 3, yes 3 holes into my wall and put up the thinnest shelf ever to be seen... and if i say so myself, not only is it not wonky, but it looks pretty brilliant now its got my things on display....its only about 1 inch wide and my pictures, if i admit, are scarily balanced on it, i wanted a shelf that i could lean things on, somewhere i can just display things when i find a new pretty, something like a library shelf, where the books face cover out.. do you know what i mean ?.. i really like leaning picture on top of picture, building up layers of colour and contrast, but i don't want it to look unconsidered, so everything that makes it to the shelf means i must love iti love my new tiny shelf.

only took me a year

2010-08-23T18:31:00.010Z

so finally this week i finished a mini project that was started just over 1 year ago, i blogged about it here when i first went back to my old college to print the fabric.
and now finally i have them sewn up and listed in the shop.. and i really kinda like them, they are slightly different from my usual stupidly colourful work, but if i remember when i designed the print i wanted it to have a dramatic look, does that make sense ?.
i wanted imperfections and i intentionally didn't wash the screen after every pull of the squeegee, and i think i got the effect i wanted.
these really are one of a kind and unique because the silkscreen does not exist anymore, and since my big move recently i dont have any clue where the artwork is.

countryside fun

2010-08-21T21:44:00.013Z

so today i went to the gosforth agricultural show, and it was totally bonkers and brilliant all at the same time and totally reminded me of my childhood when i used to enter and often win the kids sections of my village show...this one today was a chance for the local farmers to parade their best cows and fluffiest sheep and chickens and polish their biggest onions, and for the kids and amateur craftsters of the surrounding villages to get out their paints and and knitting needles,..i loved the way the displays were presented and how little certificates were awarded to the best in show.. be it for runner bean or cockerel...so prepare for a picture heavy post, words are not needed..

and i know I'm new to these country ways and my big city ideas might cloud my thoughts and opinions but surely even i cant have been the only one to spot the obviously obscene cactus... it didn't even win first prize.. it was robbed.... it was a winner in my eyes.

if i could crochet

2010-08-17T13:06:00.002Z

so i found a bag full of old crocheted doilies at the car boot this weekend and makes me wish it was a craft i could master, everyone tells me its very easy but I'm so impatient i doubt i would stick to it for long, so instead i will just hope someone else can do something good with them, i have put them in stevensstuff..

i have been a busy boy

2010-08-14T13:23:00.006Z

so this last week or so me and my sewing machine have been firm friends, never been far from each others side and keeping each other company, whilst some of my friends are out getting up to no good, me and janome.. that's his name... have been watching murder she wrote and csi New york, Vegas, and Miami, whilst making nice things together. and finally last night i got them listed in the shop.. not that they will sell there, don't know why its not working for me ? but i know they will in carry me home, so it wasn't a totally wasted time.. and this first one below has added humour in a way i only noticed this week on one of the music channels, as its the same fabric snoop dogg is wearing in the Katy perry video for her song California girls...

win me

2010-08-13T16:42:00.004Z

so over on little miss heirlooms, one of my dresses is up for a give away... the dress was featured in their online magazine babiekins and now its available to win...
its a size 1-2 yrs, and is a really soft lovely cotton, and is also fully reversible..so over to little miss heirlooms you go... thanks...x

in progress

2010-08-12T19:36:00.003Z

so just a few pics of some things i have been working on the last few days.. watch this space, i have actually been making stuff..

lovely body

2010-08-10T18:51:00.007Z

so i found some brilliant old books at the car boot last week, called the peoples physician, and they were full of colour book plates showing detailed illustrations of the human body,but the mother load of all the pages, the one that made me squeal like a girl was this fold out double page of the human body that has multiple parts to reveal more as you lift them,and all of these are now in my vintage shop.. i love hunting for old books, especially when i find treasure like these..

love this

2010-08-08T22:28:00.002Z

someone PLEASE buy me this... ill happily do rude things to you if you do.... its from here and it makes my heart go boom boom boom....

babiekins

2010-08-06T22:05:00.007Z

so i was asked some months ago if i would like have one of my dresses featured in issue 2 of a new online magazine called babiekins, and finally its online and my dress has been used in a back to school feature, and i love what they did with it, its a lovely well put together scene, look...the magazine is a new project from little miss heirlooms and they have put together a really fun magazine full of unique products and features, here are some of my favorite pages..

i hope you agree after you have a virtual flick through the pages that it is pretty cool... thanks babiekins, i love it...

lakes love

2010-08-03T23:25:00.006Z

so i left London 6 weeks ago and honestly its the best decision i have made for a long time, i have left the hustle and the bustle of one of the busiest cities behind, and after nearly 15 or so years there, I'm now embracing my immediate environment, and a few days ago i went into the lake district, which is about a 20 mile drive away and look just how incredible it is... makes me smile every time...and leaving London was all about making me smile again... and being so far away from that place is certainly good for me..

p for paper

2010-07-30T20:48:00.008Z

so i have been out hunting and gathering over the last few weeks and have amassed a brilliant collection of book pages, and i have just listed them in stevensstuff, you all know i love ABC books.. and currently that's what my thrifting radar is focusing on and look at some of the lovelies i found.. as vain as it might be i really am looking to get my name spelt out in pages from different ABC books.. is that vain.. yeah it is isnt it ? but it will look nice... i think/hope.

very handy

2010-07-29T17:30:00.004Z

so my friend Zoe, from love from hetty and dave, who i have talked about before has made the best pin cushion i have ever seen.. its just too cool.. look, its only a bloody severed hand, what else would you use a felt severed hand for ? pins of course.. and if your quick the first 10 sold are only £10.00... get one quick...
she also is on twitter and would like some lovely new followers, i do follow some people but I'm not part of the twitter world yet, i just like to be nosey and see what some rubbish celebrities have been up to but not sure its for me really, but maybe i should ?.. follow her here..

i stole this pic

2010-07-28T22:27:00.003Z

so yeah so i stole this pic, but its OK its from my friends face book, and she just came back from a trip to Berlin, and how cool is this... wonder if my mam and dad will let me do this to the side of their house ?..

repetition kills me

2010-07-27T12:49:00.005Z

so i have just finished a commission i was given, to make 25 toys, i was set the brief by Scott from hairyhand creative, and i came up with the design.. i spoke about it here weeks ago,.. and now that its all done and packed up and ready to go, i can say i really enjoyed doing it but the repetition involved was quite something.
i make the same things often, dresses and toys but usually with different fabrics and details, .. so to make these all so similar was a challenge, i did add my own touches, the placement of the eyes gives each one its own character, the spikey felt hair is all different, and the placement of the "trousers" is unique on each toy, but the fabrics were the same on every one... and by the time i had sewn on the 50th eye i was going slightly mental. b
ut i hope you agree the end result is pretty impressive.. and we are already discussing the next toy we can do together.. so watch this space...

i have new eyes

2010-07-23T12:20:00.005Z

so I'm sure nobody could care less but i have new spectacles and i blooming love them.. i got a cracking deal from vision express, buy one get one, so my first choice was these lovely clear rimmed beauties from RayBan..and my second free pair were these black rimmed, with a clear plastic detail at the side, from diesel, so two quite different looks for whatever mood i have.. i loved my previous stupidly expensive ones and looked far and wide for some replacements, and I'm more than happy.. i love being a speccy four eyes..
a tattoo is next on my shopping list, so watch this space... something i recently purchased has massively influenced part of my design... i cant wait to be inked, as the cool kids say..

from my bed

2010-07-20T22:57:00.003Z

so i don't know where you guys work, where you sit to create and make.. well i sit on my bed, and in front of me i place a small flat wooden surface and use that as my desk, my cutting table and my sewing space, and its upon this i place my sewing machine and the fun begins....and these are my newest accidents,that's what i call these guys, but before the end result a mess is more often than not created.and the backs of these accidents are just as good, if not a little nicer ?..
these guys are destined for carry me home

oh and i have had a play around with my blog, did you notice ? its more me, if that makes sense, i like it, what do you think ?..

i love a nice letter

2010-07-17T19:46:00.004Z

so here is a peek at what ill be listing in stevensstuff very soon, i have been busy photographing and editing these amazing pages from vintage books i have been collecting..

thanks very much

2010-07-15T15:14:00.004Z

so when i worked at carry me home, i would answer the telephone by saying, "hello carry me home".. and my friend thought it was highly amusing to reply "no thanks i couldn't pick you up".. but today I'm sending out a thanks to my old workplace because they have blogged about my dresses that i sell there..in fact they sell so well there that sometimes it seems all i do is cut out and sew dresses.. I'm not complaining though.. you see carry me home is smack bang in the center of London and tourists from around the world have bought my things and i like knowing my dresses are well traveled.
thanks carry me home xx

im not a child

2010-07-11T21:28:00.006Z

so its my birthday soon and i just forced my sister to buy me these old educational classroom posters from here and I'm like a big bald hairy child who cant wait for them to arrive.. there are some more of them still in the shop but i think i grabbed the best ones... is it just me or are they slightly camp.. and nothing if very play full.. its the look on his face.. hes playing leap frog with a cheeky glint in his eye..and look what hes wearing in each one.. hes a very snappy dresser don't you agree ? but this one below is my absolute favorite, and i knew it was mine before i even read its description or saw the price.. and this one is destined for my wall.. i certainly don't remember my school having such interesting posters, maybe if they had i would use better grammar and bother to put capital letter's where they should be..but then again maybe not..

excuse the creases

2010-07-08T17:42:00.006Z

so my 14yr old niece Lisa is far cooler than me and has one of those new fancy pants iphone thingies... and i made her put the hipstamatic app onto it so i could take cool pictures..(I'm already addicted to it) and just look how cool these are that i took of some new dresses i made for carry me home.
but please do excuse the creases, the effort to get the iron out was far too dull and boring when i had that fancy phone camera computer music playing thingy in my hand...

very peace-ful and love-ly

2010-07-04T21:02:00.005Z

so my mate Zoe is in serious danger of major finger damage if she does not stop the spectacular repetitive hand sewing she does to create these leather brooches and key fobs... these ones are destined for japan, (they love her over there)... but more of her stuff can be found here.. and her blog which is much fun, is here..

where you will find me

2010-07-03T13:17:00.013Z

so i have been here just over a week or so and my new world is looking just as i like, colourful and comfortable with the things i love in direct view, during this time i have even made a day trip back to that London to collect the final things i couldn't get in the car,7 hours drive each way... ouch ! and i want to know how is it possible to amass such rubbish, i could tell my dad was thinking "what the hell is that ?" when he saw such things as the huge garden gnome that guards my room... but its my rubbish and i love it so that's all that matters right ?

i showed you already my new view from my window, and now for some inside views.. these were taken with my little mobile phone camera, i like the quality.. kinda hazy but good... i think ?, and if you look at the picture below that shows the cushions on the bed, you can see on the wall this, i told you i wanted it, and i got it, and its even better in reality, and my favorite line is

"as you simplify your life,the laws of the universe will be simpler"

so now that my world is in decorative order, i might finally get some work done, and with my things around me, order to my life should fall into place..

a new improved view

2010-06-25T19:33:00.005Z

so a few weeks ago i posted about me leaving london, and after a traumatic move that upset me more because of what i couldnt fit in the car, than the fact i was leaving an old life behind..im here, and as i type this i can see fields and trees and blue open sky..
this picture below was my old view...

and this below is my new improved view...

and its from here where i hope to heal my heart, fix my messsed up head, and get the motivation back to start again... and with a view like this how can i fail...