For centuries women have used cloth as a tool of comfort and as an expression of beauty within their homes. Creating cloth for warmth, cloth for shelter, our female predecessors embellished these linens with hand stitch using laborious and time consuming techniques thereby enhancing the functional beauty of objects which enveloped and protected their families. Inspired by these women I hope my creations pay tribute to and recognise the devotion expressed in cloth by our female ancestors .







''the use of traditional often time consuming process alludes to the devotion of a mother''. c K. A. Ruane 2007







Sunday, July 19, 2009

Hold on tight, it's a long one

Busy, busy, but still better than being at work! Scrap bags are now in the shop along with a single extra big scrap. I have also listed more pincushions, brooches, buttons, both dolls and other stuff, it's all a blur. I am thinking of introducing a new condition to medical dictionaries, ''etsy upload induced psychosis'' (it appears I am medically obsessed at the moment!)I know lots of you have it too, don't be shy! I wasn't able to make up as many bags of offcuts as I had thought, so there's only a few, obviously didn't have as much clutter as I thought!Now for the exciting bit, a new doll. She is quite plain in comparison to the others, very muted, really influenced by pale cloths and lace doilies. The main body is embroidered and stretched and I got to thinking about the edge of her dress. I had a root around and found a very raggy edge from a table cloth with gorgeous lace, so hey presto, I salvaged and embellished and here it is.She will definitely be finished in a day or so and I have purposely made her smaller so she will be less expensive, no less lovely though. Whilst she was damp stretching I started another one so I hope to have two to show you later in the week.
I have something really exciting and unusual to tell you now. Meet Jamie......Jamie is an unemployed father of three desperate for work. To promote his enthusiasm, get exposure, prove his commitment and staying power Jamie is embarking on an innovative project. For 365 consecutive days he will do a different job! So far he has been a barman, a hairdresser a shop assistant, loads and loads of different things and ............ drum roll........ for day 49 he worked for me! Yay! It was so much fun. He embroidered as if he had been doing it for years, (could end up as competition!) and sped through the dreaded etsy listing like a seasoned professional. Please have a look at his site, he really does deserve the support, encouragement and a sainthood for working for me!


How much excitement can a girl take, especially when she is recovering from swine flu! Thanks for your comments on that, you made me laugh! x

7 comments:

Jane said...

What a lucky guy!
The new doll looks as if she will be really pretty, love the colours in the embroidery

Katy Swift said...

I'm lad you guys had fun.

Love the look of the new doll, the edge and lace looks cisp and delocate. Can't wsit to see the finished thing.

jennyflowerblue said...

Can't wait to see the whole new doll, that peak is very enticing! What a brilliant project with 365 different jobs- cool! Mum is using her scraps for a laundry inspired project with laundry buttons etc. She has promised so send me some pics when she finishes. Off to browse your jam-packed shop! xx

méri said...

Lovely doll, Karen! You have been so busy...

Janice / Dancing with Sunflowers said...

Yay! Go jamie! Good luck! It's a fantastic idea and I hope Jamie is snapped up by a permanent employer long before the 365 days are up. I'm pleased you both had fun. The new doll looks beautiful. Ah, that damp stretched look gets me every time!
Janice.

Maya Sara Matthew said...

Just browsed through the 365 project and I think its really exciting. Good luck to Jamie

Jacky said...

Hi Karen, just catching up on your posts I have missed (having computer issues one doesnt want to browse the internet as it is so darn slow...new computer now, so hopefully back to normal and visiting my favourite blogs again!).

Wonderful post and good luck to Jamie!