awesome!

You may or may not remember that I mentioned I won a giveaway on twitter from promotional print specialists Awesome Merchandise. They are a nice company to deal with and do lots of printed-to-order promo stuff, including T-shirts, badges, flyers, mugs, and even zipper pulls and drumsticks.

Well, my prize arrived today!

So what’s in the shouty box, I hear you ask?

No, I haven’t brought out a range of retro floral drumsticks… but I now have swing tags! (otherwise known as tie-on labels).

When I found out I’d won I thought it was so awesome that I ought to have a proper logo to put on them, rather than the usual bodge-it job by yours truly. (Plus, they had to be designed in Photoshop, which I don’t have).

So I asked alice apple - cheekily – if she ever did design work for other people, since her mod-tastic florals are my favourites, and just the sort of thing I had in mind. And she said yes!

Aren’t they nice?

Just the thing to price up stock on my stall or tie onto orders. They are made from eco-friendly recycled card.

And look at the back…

Lots of room to add a sticker with all the relevant details. I left them mainly blank so that they’ll be adaptable for all sorts of uses.

They are even perfect for garments…

Should I ever need labels for such a thing!

pretty thing of the week

Some people might say there’s no place for vintage florals at Christmas.

Of course, I would have to disagree.

And so, I’m happy to say, does Alice Apple, judging by her lovely angel decorations.

I can just imagine a row of these lovelies strung across my wall. Or maybe even hung on my pinwheel garland.

Unfortunately, imagining is as far as I will get – as they have now sold out!

However, you can still get hold of a patchwork dachshund from her Etsy shop – if you’re quick!

 

twist and shout

Yesterday was spent doing a lot of sorting out and catching up.

Amongst the pre-holiday mayhem, the machines turned against me.

The printer didn’t want to print.

The computer didn’t want to work.

And most annoying of all, the sewing machine didn’t want to go at any of those useful speeds between crazy-fast and stop.

Which made finishing this commission a lot more tricky than it should have been.

The fabric is an Alice Apple design – a special order from Spoonflower especially for this nursery commission.

The colours are a little more muted than I expected.

And the print seemed to be a little wonky somehow, making the cutting of a nice square cushion, rather than a twisty one, somewhat awkward.

I admit it – I lost it a bit. I had a bit of a shout. At machines and everything.

Have you ever felt that things are conspiring against a job getting done?

But done it now is.

Phew!

pretty thing of the week

I have done quite a bit of embroidery and cross stitch in my time.

It was something that was do-able in front of the telly, which was on a lot in my parents’ house.

But I’m not sure I ever stitched anything quite as pretty as this lovely pattern by alice apple.

Sometimes you look at something and think: why didn’t I think of that?

It makes me very tempted to start cross stitching again.

Though I think I might muck the pattern up if I tried stitching it whilst watching Scandi crime dramas.

Probably better I stick to sipping on a Saturday, rather than stitching.

scrummy scraps

I have long been an admirer of the work of Alice Burrows, aka alice apple.

Being me, I could never decide which of her gorgeous fabrics to go for. They are all so pretty.

Luckily, I didn’t have to. Having spotted some scrumptious scrap packs for sale, I indulged myself in a mixture of miniature morsels.

They were waiting for me yesterday when I got home.

What a lovely welcome!

And just in time to run up some pretty things for the fete at the end of April where I will be selling my wares (crediting Alice, of course).

You can find Alice’s fabrics for sale on Spoonflower and her toys and scrap packs (when available) in her Etsy shop.