Brooches Stash

My husband and I decided to make the most of the sunshine the UK is experiencing at the moment and went out for dinner in our favourite cafe/bar/restaurant. Just as we were sitting down I realised the brooch I had being wearing was missing! Uh oh, this led to a panic and I ran off to retrace my steps. Thankfully I found it on the ground next to the car, I think it must have caught on my seat belt but I recovered it, phewee! It was this sparkly delight...

A few years ago I lost a real beauty on the way to a concert and even to this day when I walk the same route I look for it. My only consolation is imagining the delight on the lucky finder's face when they discovered it.
I've got a thing about brooches, I think they really are a nice finishing touch to an outfit, especially a blazer or summer cardigan. A lot of people I know see them as old fashioned and don't tend to wear them but that's definitely not me, anyway old fashioned is a plus in my eyes. 
As such I have a lot of brooches and some are really special to me so I thought I'd share a few of my favourites with you, they are either very sentimental to me or I just love the design but a lot of the time it's actually both.

As all my family know how much I like them I was very lucky to get my Grandma's collection when she passed away and these are very dear to my heart. 
This one I simply adore even though it's a little damaged but to me that just shows it has a history. I love the design and colour but most of all I love that my dad said he remembers his mum wearing it when he was young.

This next one was a present from one of my truly best friends, she gave it to me for making the place settings for her wedding. She knows me so well as I couldn't have picked better myself, it was such a delightful surprise.

This one I've mentioned before, my husband bought it for me because I love bumblebees. Again, this one has "history" as I dropped it the day after receiving it (so like me) but thankfully it was a clean break and could be glued, otherwise I would have been heading straight back to the shop.

This is a fun one that was originally a child's hairclip but thanks to a pair of pliers, some glue and a brooch finding, it has a new purpose.

Tortoises are another favourite of mine (none more so than my actual tortoise Evie) and as such I have numerous ones, many of which were gifts.

This one a good friend of mine bought for me as a souvenir when we visited San Francisco Zoo, sadly we're no longer in touch but it brings back very fond memories of a wonderful Summer.

On the subject of animals, birds make numerous appearances in my brooch selection, especially owls. Oh and insects too for that matter.

OK, this was supposed to be a quick post but I could go on and on so I'm going to stop here. It has occurred to me though that they could be displayed a little better so I can enjoy them even when I'm not wearing them rather than sticking them in a box. That's my next project sorted...
Until next time craft in earnest, Craftin' Ernest x

Hectic November!

November is pretty much over and this is my first post for the month! I'm very sorry and I promise it's not that I'm being lax, I've had a lot to make and do this month and most of it I can't share yet! A few sneaky peeks won't hurt though ;-)

My wonderful sister/bestest buddy, Faye, is getting married this year, on Christmas Eve!! She's asked me to play a major part in the organising/details and I cannot express how thrilled and delighted I am about that, as such I've had lots to keep me busy. 
I made the invitations and response cards to send out this month and was really pleased that both the bride and groom were very happy with the finished result. They (she) wanted a snowflake theme so I combined shimmery card with vellum and embossing them together with a snowflake pattern before using a snowflake stamp and silver embossing powder to add some intricate detail. It's hard to capture the detail in a photograph but here's a close-up of the top and bottom...

We have had our hair trials which was a lot of fun. Faye realised she needed her hair accessory for it on the Wednesday beforehand. No problem, out came all my white and silver beads and I got to work on it. 

There's nothing quite as motivating as a tight deadline but I got it all finished and thankfully it was just right for what she wanted and she loved it. Here's a sneak peak in her hair...

Also, it was her Hen Party last weekend and that too involved lots of organising and making, all of which was a surprise for her. We had a truly amazing time making cocktails followed by a boat cruise. As there were 26 of us, I got the Shrink Plastic out and made badges for everyone- any excuse for some Shrinkies action ;-)

On top of all this I have had a few Christmas orders, including my favourite- owl doorstops. Here's two I made today ready to be stuffed and weighted.... 

This hasn't left me with much time to blog I'm afraid, sorry!
And with the countdown to the Big Day in full swing I don't think I'll be much better in December, but I'm incredibly excited and will try and share what I can.
Thanks so much for taking the time to read my post, I really appreciate it and would love to hear any comments you have!
Until next time, craft in earnest. Craftin' Ernest xx

What's the time Mr Owl?

I've got a bit of a thing for owls and so was delighted to take part in a bird of prey experience with my hubby recently. This involved a few different species of owls- Barn Owls, an Eagle Owl and my personal favourite a Southern White-Faced Owl called Furby, who was just too cute for words.

Due to my fondness for owls and all things owly, my sister gave me a gorgeous watch, with an owl on the face, the Christmas before last which I love! I wear it so much I've worn a way part of the strap and I thought rather than buy a new one I would try crochet one.

I decided to used embroidery cotton and a fine hook (1.5mm) to make the strap "fabric" nice and tight.

I started by joining the cotton (DMC colour 708) using double crochet (dc) straight to the strap bar, as if the bar was a previous row, and continued with dc. It was only four stitches per row and was simply a case of 1dc in each dc with a turning chain at the end of each row. 

Originally I was thinking of reusing the buckle but I thought why use a buckle when you can use a button! At the end of the side to have the button I created a rounded end by chaining 1, skipping the first dc, doing 1 half treble in the next 2dc, chaining 1 and slip stitching into the last dc. I chose a little two-holed, mother of pearl button. I then used the end of the cotton to attach the button and sewed the end in.

On the end of other strap I chained 6, attached to the 4th dc of the previous row, then crocheted 10dc into the chain space, slip stitch into the last dc of the last row, I then made sure it was the correct size for the button to fit through and sewed the end in with a needle.

All done!
I found one skein was just the right amount, in fact I had just over 30cm left.

I'm so happy with the result and if possible love the watch even more!?
Until next time craft in earnest, Craftin' Ernest x 

Ernest in Ireland!

I'm afraid I'm a day late with this week's post as I went away to Ireland last week to visit the family and was totally exhausted (in a good way) when I got back yesterday and even typing was too much. 
During this visit we went to Bunratty Castle and Folk Park for the day. We used to go a lot when we were children but I hadn't been in years and we had a great time. It's a good place to visit if you find yourself on the West Coast of Ireland. It's a lovely castle with lots of spiral staircases and worn stone steps- I love worn stone steps, they make you wonder about all the people who've trodden on those steps to wear them away and give them that wonderful smooth polish.
Then there's lots of cottages, shops and a school set out as they would have been in days gone by. There were turf fires burning in all the cottages and fresh scones being baked for the visitors to try. There's also a weaver's shop to visit with items for sale! They had some beautiful handmade hats that I admire, very Twenties looking and my aunt Claire said she didn't like that style at all. To quote her, "They look like something Mo (her Grandma) would wear". Well, I tried it on none-the-less and she totally changed her mind, so much so I ended up buying it! I was also very pleased I'd supported a local craftsperson, always a great excuse ;-)

I also bought some fabric and wool remnants and a button- I couldn't resist!

I look forward to using them for something, when I get round to is a different matter.
My Mum and Claire had a fantastic time on the swings and Claire fell in love with one of the pigs!

 

All in all it really was a good day on a lovely trip. Nothing beats quality time with family.

Before I went I did manage to make a couple more owl doorstops, these two much more colourful characters!

 'Til next time, Craft In Earnest! x

Owl Doorstops

I've got a thing about owls, which is great as at the moment they're everywhere. I have a Greek uncle who gave me lots of books about Greek mythology when I was young and my favourite goddess was Athena who's symbol was an owl- ever since I've loved them.
A couple of years ago, one afternoon my sister and I were in my kitchen which looks out the front onto the street whilst my husband was upstairs. Out of nowhere a huge owl flew down and landed on the pavement at the top of our drive. Without missing a beat my husband, who had seen it too, came running downstairs shouting our Hogwart's letter had arrived :-) It turns out a man who lives behind the houses opposite us keeps owls and it was the owl's first flight and he flew further than the man had expected. It was a young eagle owl we were told and was called Norman. It was pretty incredible even if you weren't keen on them.
I've made all sorts of things with owls on over the years but I think owl doorstops are my favourite as they're quick and easy. Although I've made quite a few, I make them up as I  go, they've all been different. Most often I tend to crochet them but sometimes I knit or sew them.
Here are a few examples of crocheted ones:

Carry on reading to learn how to make one of these cuties.