Ravenhill

Thrifted threads and trims

This past weekend's flea market finds are definitely worth sharing with you!

Some of the rolls of lace were quite thick with meter upon meter!

 

The inch wide black velvet trim looks to be vintage but never used and talk about being a thick roll! I had to contain myself from jumping for joy when I came over these at the flea market.

 

I also found several cards of black trims: lace, rik rak, and sequins.

 

I haven't the faintest idea what I will do with these metalic trims but aren't they interesting?

 

The flea market I went to seems to be good for trims but I never find a great deal of fabric. This one large piece of fabric was a great find though. It is a welcome addition to my growing collection of fabrics with prints on both sides.

The season is nearing an end now I am sorry to say. Now I can look forward to the upcoming Christmas markets which I will hopefully document and share with you!

I was so happly this week when the Etsy treasury I made appeared on the Front Page!

Mail for me

I ordered some supplies that are so pretty I have to show them to you. Here are a couple of twisted baker's twines, an unusually color combo of twine from a lovely Etsy shop.

I also received an unexpected parcel in the mail last week! Sheree sent me a lovely package full of fabric!

 

She treated me to a large piece by one of my favorite Japanese fabric makers, Lecien.

 

I couldn't help but smile at all these lovely pinks.

 

Sheree, you will have to tell us who made these? I love them! Thank you so much!

Finally, my shop is full of new dolls! Here are a few of them.

Weekly challenge

This week's European Street Team's challenge was tough for me. I am good with cute, pretty and girly. I am not so good with "boy" as the theme was this week. I did my best!

Please greet Harald. I combined two things I have been wanting to do for a long time: boy and person of color. (Please do forgive me if I am not using the correct term for this now. I have been in Norway now for 17 years and don't always know the proper terms anymore.) I have been wanting to make some non-white dolls for a long time. I can admit that this is one of my favorite dolls I have ever made.

 

I guess he is still girly, but young boys do look really sweet don't they?

Ellen Julie is another fresh face in the shop also made with Fluttby fabric by Tula Pink.

Shhhh, Henni is sleeping so nicely and I think having such pleasant dreams.

I am loving using the Japanese fabrics I have been collecting. The muted colors and homespun feel make them look old fashioned.

To market to market...

Maybe when the kids are bigger I will become a professional flea market buyer. It doesn't sound like a high-powered career but I would love it. If I had the time and transport and energy I would go to each and every one in town.
 

Yesterday's finds were particularly delightful.

These doilies with these incredibly tiny stitches are some of my most treasured finds. Now I have to figure out what to do with them... Any ideas for me?

These sweet printed placemats are going to be nice on the table in the spring.

I found just a bit of vintage fabric, here is my favorite.

I don't know if you will be able to stand it... I found a stack of 4 handmade vintage Norwegian sweaters. Don't you love the pewter buttons?

I don't know how anyone could give these away, but I am glad they did!

This reminds me that I have an amazing book to show you about Norwegian knitting for the hands. I borrowed it from the library and kept it out so long... it is now returned but I have some of my favorite pages to show you soon.

Our fall has been one of the prettiest ever! Hope your weekend has also been nice.

Just wanted to tell you that a couple of my girls were featured on a lovely blog with other Scandinavian artists.

Knitted, crocheted, read and sewn

I made a really cute hat (pattern by Knitwhits) for Lilly a few years ago and she wore it for two winters. It was her favorite and she actually didn't really want to wear anything but that one hat. So when it became too small at the end of last winter I knew what I had to do.

 

This new version I made from leftover alpaca yarn. Funny how it was nearly the exact same colors as the original hat. I also crocheted the flowered scarf for her. You know another funny thing? Her smile here reminds me so incredibly much of my close friend from college, Brita.

Look what came in the mail yesterday!

The very first issue of the new UK sewing magazine Sew Hip. You can order a subscription on line like I did too.

I have followed the editor, Manda's wonderfully personal and inspiring blog through her last pregnancy and it is cool to see her take her talents to new heights as editor of this delightful sewing magazine. With interviews of crafty blogger Alicia Paulson and designer Amy Butler it made for interesting reading.

Aren't these wonderful patterns from Alicia Paulson?

 

I think I will make a pair of these for Lilly next summer in some pretty and airy fabric.

 

This is one cute little kitty pattern from Lucky Kate Crafts! I would really like to make a few of these for stocking stuffers.

I have been keeping busy though lately trying to stock up enough dolls for the holiday shoppers! Mor (sorry, just sold), Lillemor  and Emma (sorry,  she is sold) are waiting in the shop for someone to play with.

 

Stine is also made with Japanese fabrics, but this time one of my favorite Quilt Gate prints.

Anna has started a new blog and I am among the first featured there if you would like to take a look. I would also love for you to see the treasury I made. Mainly it is full of items from Etsy shops from Europe.

I hope you are having a lovely weekend! We are enjoying beautiful fall days and went to a flea market this morning. I will show you some of my finds soon!

 

walk in the fall and a necessary interjection of PINK

My children do squabble on occasion, but here was a sweet moment.

You see Lilly had use for her new pink felted mittens that I made for her and I have also made good use of the new fingerless gloves from Michele! Thank you! These will be great when taking photos outside this fall!

I thought it might be fun for you to see the view from Sebastian's school.

Can you see the cruise ship coming in to Oslo harbor?

 

Fall walks are some of the nicest.

 

He let me take his picture this time and didn't even make any funny faces! 

I have to interrupt all this fall for a bit of spring-like cheer. Here are some recent fabric purchases.

I had to have some of this pink and white baker's twine from Greta. It is thick and very pretty.

 

It made the perfect ties for this gift bag I made.

And now there are pink and red dolls in my shop! Malin, Ebba, Anne Karin and Lill are all excited at the prospect of finding good homes. 

 

You can see that I really have a thing for the Japanese dragonfly fabric on Lill? I am having my first ever sale in my shop, and if you order quickly there is still a really good chance they would arrive in time for Halloween!

Something cute to show you

My Halloween matryoshkas popped up here the other day. And thank you to all of you who told me that I was featured on Decor8. The other recent place to feature my matryoshkas was an Australian site: Living Creatively. Wow, they do such wonderful articles about talented artists and I am pinching myself that I should be so fortunate to be featured there.

 

I just put these in my shop the other day and everyone but Jasmine at the very front of the line have disappeared from my shop already! 

I guess I am a bit behind because this was last week's challenge item: Two babies in a basket in need of a good home.

The theme for the European Street Team's challenge last week was "cute". They each have their own hand quilted blanket. Inside the 100% wool felt basket I have put a round mattress that fits it snuggly. The babies too are made of a lighter colored 100% wool felt and completely hand stitched.

 

 It was just like when i was a little kid and made a doll house for my younger cousin. I had so much fun planning and sewing all the little details. The fabrics are Japanese cottons. Jan might recognize the very sweet print with the berries on it? She gave it to me in our swap. I am so happy that I am getting around to using the fabrics in my stash and especially those given by friends.

A little sewing

I made another needle book.

I wanted it really tiny.

That way it would fit into my pretty pouch that I got awhile back from Deb as a thank you for the Pay it Forward gift I had sent her. I like to have several pouches ready with needles and scissors so I can always snatch one up when I want to take a sewing project with me.

Some lovely new fabrics arrived in the mail the other day. The red, brown and green are Japanese Lecien prints and the taupe fabrics are Kaufman Gentle Flowers prints. I bought these at The Fabric Shack.

 

At the moment I have a zillion things going on at once. I am making more dolls with Tula Pink's Flutterby. I am also making some mother and baby dolls with some of these woven Japanese cottons. I adore working with the subtle colors and wonderful nubby textures. 

Torild is the newest sleepy little one in my shop. I made her from Moda Posh fabrics which I like so much!

Lovely gifts from afar

Thank you to all of you for your warmth and kindness in wishing my little family back to good health. I was happily spared any illness this round and everyone is now nursed back to near perfect health. These photos were pre-illness and you'll be able to see the first hints of a cold...

 

Is this a happy faced girl is what? She was about to open the present from Michele!

What joy my virtual friends bring not only to me but to my family! Thank you Michele.

Unfortunately her good mood didn't last terribly long. She loved the gift but was on the verge of getting sick and so this was one of the better poses I got from her wearing the cute outfit from Michele. I will have to get a better shot later!

I got heaps of presents from Michele too! 

She sent me homemade bias tape, which she also sells in her shop! How thoughtful!

I am running out of time as it is nearly my bedtime! I just have to show you what was inside the beautiful pouches!

 

I am thinking about how I can thank Michele for her incredible thoughtfulness. She had been preparing this package for me for months! I know that behind each and every beautifully wrapped present went a great deal of thought, and I didn't even show you everything she sent! Thank you so very much!

Falling ill

With the beautiful fall days comes the inevitable sniffle and maybe a cough or two. My lovely little children have both come down with mild colds. Sebastian coughs a great deal at night and Lilly has a terribly runny nose. It isn't bad but there has been so much waking every evening that it has given me little time to enjoy my crafts. The worst part is that now my dear husband has come down with it too. He is taking today and tomorrow off as vacation days and seems to be going to have to spend them in bed sick! Boo hoo!

This past weekend though I had a sewing bee with my wonderful friend and neighbor, Anne Katrine. This is one of the gorgeous projects she was working on. I carted my trusty machine and piles of fabric up to her place and we worked and chatted happily for hours!

Anne always has the prettiest new fabrics to show me.

I have been working on some Halloween treats for my shop. Here are Emma and Maud. My good friend Michele sent the adorable pumpkin fabric to me. (I will have to show you all the lovely things she sent me soon!) However, I haven't show you the bag I won recently from Zee!

 

She has sent me such a big, lovely and sturdy bag! The details on it are delightful!

Thank you so much Zee!