A gem in my chaos!!

I took a little time out from packing up our house - we're at the super-messy-we'll-never-get-this-done stage - and checked the mail. Look what the postman brought today - these exquisite turned pieces are from Tom Saunders' Etsy shop Turnings in Miniature. I love them!!

So finely turned and finished in birdseye maple, so nice to the touch.

It's made my day!

So many ideas, so little time!

Dreaming big in miniature!!

I thought I'd share my list of want-to-do-projects with you. On re-reading it, I realise that a lot of my inspiration comes from the books that I read and love.
I'll never, ever get them all done (especially if I keep on being a perfectionist procrastinator), but I keep the list for ideas when I can't think forward, or need something new to make.
I've started to collect things for the ones marked *

Houses -

*Finnish lakehouse - have the kit and lots of items
*medieval enchanter's tower - ditto
*Hobbit hole - Sam Gamgee's childhood home
*modern - preferably a Paris Renfroe M112 pod
Russian dacha - wooden summerhouse in the woods
bronze/iron age roundhouse
New England lighthouse
Arts and Crafts house
shepherd's hut - Terry Pratchett's Granny Aching
*witch's cottage - Terry Pratchett's Granny Weatherwax
haunted house
airship gondola - Phil Reeve's Jenny Haniver
gyptian canalboat - Phil Pullman's Golden Compass
anything from Rosemary Sutcliff - my absolute fave author!
Doctor Who Tardis interior - my style!
space station
70s geodesic dome house
saxon barn

Settings/rooms -

*medieval stillroom
early medieval viking camp
anything elven from JRR Tolkien
*Tom Bombadil's room - JRR Tolkien
castle room - Judith Tarr's Kingdom of the Grail
Death's House - Terry Pratchett
*vampire hunter or vampire crypt
eastern theme - casbah, souk, mirrored temple
craft studio
art studio
Venetian masked ball
Egyptian archaeology site
Roman room

Settings/tables -

alchemist
wizard
*witch - gathering baskets
medieval lady
medieval man - hunting table
*medieval scribe
apothecary

People/dolls -

pedlar
ratcatcher
ghosts
shaman
woodland sprites
Moorish astrologer
St Francis of Assisi
the nac mac Feegles - Terry Pratchett

And I have very full documents/favourites/scrapbook of resources!! I used to work in a library and my alter-ego is an archivist. Happy to share.
Thanks, Ira!!

Two new rya rugs on Etsy

At last!!

Well, I've finally finished these two modern rya rugs. They measure 5"x7" (13cm x 18cm) each, and that doesn't sound very much bigger than my other ones, but it was! Three times bigger.

A sharp incline on the learning curve!
Working the extra width was enough to make my RSI return, so it was slower than a snail's pace. The bright white for some reason on the test showed every single stitch, not a good look, so I had to re-design in alternating rows, as well as use more strands of thread in the pile.

And as for working with black!!! Not again. I could only work it in full sun, and even then my brain tried to fall out my ears.

However, I'm very pleased with them, and more pleased that they're finished!

They're listed in my Etsy shop (here).

Witch baskets

Janice - this one's for you :-)

A day spent making baskets was fun - especially when I'm ignoring the fact that I have to pack up the house for our move in three weeks!! It'll be a good way to spring clean my minis workroom I suppose. Chaos here I come!! The cats are already wild-eyed and crazy. Wait till they have to spend eight hours travelling in the car!

Sorry the photo's not good - bad light today.

Tudor money pouch

He likes his new leather money pouch - a pity it's not full of coins, because then he might be able to buy some clothes!

Witchy trays

Some days it just doesn't go right - an uphill fight. Yesterday I decided to make these trays as I had the bases and rope already made, but everything seemed against me. I was down in the dumps, it was too cold to glue, it was too gloomy to see, my eyes were blurry, my hands were shaky, everything looked crooked. So when I finished I almost threw them away. My husband Alan said no, wait until tomorrow. He was right - they don't look so bad today, so I filled one with some of my precious and loved mini bits from Nikki Rowe: unicorn horns, mandrake, eggs, toadstools, a bone.

So here it is - my crooked little witchy gathering basket.