The Embroidered Velvet Needle-book Kits have sold out! Thank you to each of you who purchased one. The pdf directions are still available in the In Detail.
I am currently planning the next kit: The Parasol Pen-Wiper, which happens to make an adorable ornament. This kit will also be a limited edition, with only a small number available.
After that, I am pondering a seashell and/or walnut pincushion kit. Would that be something of interest?
Today’s video covers impromptu hat stands and a couple new cdvs.
This is the tempting photo that would like have a hairnet given the headdress….
Here are magnifications:
Here is the second photo of Emma and Jennie, who may be sisters, who may be twins….
And some magnifications:
Part 1: Wednesday chat…
Part 2: Introducing Share the Spirit of the Holidays!
Find the Cornucopia in the Holiday Whimsy section of my Etsy shop.
I want to say Thank You to everyone who takes the time to leave a review or send me a note when their package arrives.
Reviews can be a big pick-me-up, especially in these stressful times. Knowing something I make brings joy to others, brings joy to me.
Reviews also help us, craftspeople and artisans, know what people like and where to focus our attentions. This could be favorite items, styles, colors, materials. Today’s review helped me make a decision on fall/winter materials.
I thought it would be nice to make it easier to find the free projects I’ve shared here on If I Had My Own Blue Box as well as those on Don’t Paint the Cat. After all, if it is challenging for me to remember and find each of the projects I have offered, it is likely challenging for my readers. Here is a collection of the projects I’ve offered over the years. They are in a variety of formats including videos, pdf printables, and blog posts. Note some of the projects from my video series span multiple posts/video.
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Find the In Detail downloadable PDF here:
Find the Limited Edition Kit here:
(Remember – You need to order both the Kit and PDF)
I actually did a happy dance at the mailbox. I am pretty sure the frogs in the pond were as excited as I was. Then, I even jumped up and down as I pointed to my envelop, yelling “Thank you” to my delivery person. She was kind enough to yell back at the overly-enthusiastic, possibly crazy person, as she drove by.
So…. what had me so excited?
A small, 9×10″ padded manilla envelop.
This is an envelop that I wasn’t really sure would ever arrive. When I stumbled across it early in July, I thought I was seeing things. I had been looking for one of these for years. Really. Years. But, there is was. Well, not it. They. There they were. Dirty. Filthy. Worn. Damaged….. Perfect.
And… in England…. in the middle of a Pandemic…. in the midst of a global postal slow-down……
The shipping notification gave a two week window. Knowing how things were going, I figured they might show a week or so after the window. As events evolved, I started to wonder if the package would even make it. Would it get lost? Would someone get sick? Would it get mixed up with mystery seeds?
Then, mid-day-ish, I went to the mailbox to get a box of flowers my delivery digest said was coming. I open my mailbox to see not a long, skinny box, nor even a key to open another box, but a little manilla envelop…..
Que: “It’s here!” (loudly) and happy dance
Que: pond frogs replying in mutual glee…..
okay. maybe not so much with the frogs.
Some of you may be looking at the video wondering “What are those things?” or “What is she so happy about?”
I suppose I should back up and start with:
What are Straw Splitters?
Straw splitters were tools used for splitting a cylindrical tube of wheat or rye straw into almost-sorta flat pieces that can be braided/plaited or used for making straw motifs/decorations.
There were a few different kinds of straw splitters used in the nineteenth century. Here is an article from The Straw Shop showing the different types of straw splitters. Mine are similar to those in the fifth photo down. As you can see from their article, straw splitters initially were very small tools easily lost in their time or over time. I can’t help but wonder over the decades, how many disregarded mystery items found tucked in workboxes were in fact straw splitters.
As I said in the video, I am very excited to have these and to be able to display them in the future. At one point in the video, I had to remind myself I was recording. I could have sat there staring at these little tools for a long time wondering whose hands used them, how many hundreds or thousands of straws they split, what hats or bonnets they became, if they helped feed a small family or maybe a large one, and how they were lost……
My next steps will be to temporarily add them to the display case I have. I don’t foresee being able to get the case I want this year. The craftsman only does this one event a year. I think the temporary case will be the safest place for them for now. Eventually, I will get the right case. In the meantime, it would be nice to find a blacksmith who could reproduce a straw splitter like this.
*Note: I mis-spoke in the video. These are not archeological finds. These were found by a person using a metal detector.
A nice winter hood arrived today. This is a wadded or pumpkin style hood in a red and black plaid silk taffeta. Inside is a brown polished cotton lining and a tan silk facing.
This is the largest of the wear spots that almost all appear to be from rubbing in storage. This is part of the triple set cords.
Here you can see the cord placement, a triple set closest to the front, followed by two double set cords.
This shows some of the interior:
Personal linens protect your clothes from… well…. the biology of life.
All too often, our personal linens become an after thought or an overly procrastinated project.
This challenge is to make personal linens for your wardrobe. This can include: cuffs – collars – kerchiefs – fichus.
As with the previous challenged, this is for fun, you set your authenticity goals, you pick your era.
How to participate:
Join the Facebook Group: Linens Challenge. There will be questions to answer so I know you are a real person.
We will begin discussion officially August 1st.
What to do:
Decide what personal linens you need and share your progress as you make it or them. Your project can be from any era and any region.
Share your progress. This can include: pattern, directions, or inspiration piece, your material choices, and steps as you work.
Rules:
This is for fun. Each person will choose their own goals for this project. I ask that we support each other in those goals. Participants may choose to do any era, region, and size container. I also welcome those who wish to work in doll scale.
If I Had My Own Blue Box: 