peony pressie

thank you sister for my most pretty peony 

beautifully wrapped from Liberty florists 

Wild at Heart

I will try to document its blossom

(ah the joys of Hipstamatic)

me xxx

marmite art

you may remember a while ago I posted about taxidermy, 

and my growing love for it.
I have since discovered that others do not feel the same, 
in fact they feel the complete opposite.
quite the group dividing topic it seems.

Today I was looking on the rather wonderful

Ponystep website and came across an article entitled

Beautiful Creatures:

The Amazing Art of

Polly Morgan

Well. Wow. Wee.

"If you were to find yourself in Marylebone over the coming weeks, keep an eye out for the birds. Not the pigeons hobbling aimlessly outside the chi-chi cafes on the high street, but the serene, lifeless chicks that hang suspended from miniature balloons within their own bell jars in a window on Hinde St.

The window invites visitors and passers-by to Other Criteria, the art and publishing venture set up by Damien Hirst, Hugh Allan and Frank Dunphy, while the curious feathered subjects feature in Still Birth, the latest series of works by London-based artist Polly Morgan."

 There is just something so painfully beautiful about these pieces.

They are shocking and heartbreaking and wonderful, all at the same time. 

and I simply love them.

me xxx
 

Urban Orchard

you may be trudging home

you may have had quite the bad day

you may have cried in a toilet cubicle 

you may have thought that nothing works or makes sense

and then

you may happen upon something like this ...

The Union Street Urban Orchard

and you might, just might, smile.

"Following the London Festival of Architecture and lasting through the autumn, the site of 100 Union Street in SE1 has been transformed into an urban orchard and community garden.

Designed by Heather Ring of the Wayward Plant Registry for The Architecture Foundation and built with the help ofBankside Open Spaces Trust and an array of other helpful volunteers the garden will regenerate a disused site in Bankside and create a place for exchange between local residents and visitors to the Festival.

There will be a series of workshops and activities taking place in the Orchard over the next couple of months so please check out events calendar.

The Urban Orchard is also home to the LivingARK, a zero-carbon pod which is inhabited during the period of the project to showcase sustainable ways of living.  The site also hosts The Nest, a pavilion created by the Finnish Institute, the Identikit by Thomas Kendal and Tamsin Hanke and a skip turned table tennis table created by Oliver Bishop-Young.

In September the garden will be dismantled and all the trees will be given to local estates and other community gardens to remain as a lasting legacy of the 2010 London Festival of Architecture.

Tis a little beautiful haven

thank you to people like this who improve all of our lives 

and make us happy

me xxx

some more bustiness

setting up stall!

me xxx

BUSTY NEWS

So Saturday was the summer Bust Craftacular.

Pure Harte arrived in on Friday eve and finishing touches were added and ironed and pinned and sewn.

Sandwiches were made.

Despite it being a SCORCHER of a day outside and not much cooler inside, there was a tres long queue of eager shoppers right around the corner! And as the doors burst open there was was quite the flurry of pretty faces and handbags!

As the day rolled on it certainly wasn't as busy as Christmas, 

but what with the sun splitting the trees outside, 

it really was no surprise.

This being only our second market we knew we still had a lot to learn. But everyone was so lovely and friendly. The BUST team sure do generate a great, fun atmosphere. 

We even made a few friends! 

The quite dashing Dan Hillier stopped for a couple of chats and even bought us some ice pops as a cool-down-treat! 

We were all wide eyed and giggles.

I also chatted at length to the gorgeous 

Jamie Chalmers a.k.a Mr X Stitch.

He was so enthusiastic and encouraging about my embroidery hoops. I was so grateful for his comments - 

sometimes you don't know if anything is 'good' any more.

And to my UTTER DELIGHT he bought one of my pieces!

I KNOW!

Chuffed is not the word.

I am so delighted to have made the connection, I know it will be a good productive and inspiring one.

We were sharing a table with the very talented Elaine Eckford who was selling her wonderful illustrated stories. 

Her characters were fantastic, all childlike but with a somewhat uneasy darkness ... 

Her blog is also beautiful, just like her!

A couple of pics of our stall:

My cards, hoops and crockery

and also in the bottom left corner, the very beautiful lace collars from Pure Harte

the beautiful clothing range from Pure Harte

and when Zooey is blowing you a kiss, you know you are in the right place.

I should have a couple more pics to show you soon.

Thank you so much BUST for having us and for all our lovely friends who popped along with cheery faces and bottles of water. We love you.

And now I am aiming to open up my etsy doors by Wednesday night ...

Some work to be done!

me xxx

I thought I could. I was wrong.

me xxx

(via loafingodysseys)

me xxx

Clara Francis

I took a little solitary wander around Spitalfields on Sunday

on account of market research.

I came across the quite simply wonderful jewellery of

Clara Francis

I want so badly

"Imagine a thousand tiny glass beads. Now picture them if you will shaped into a delicate hand-beaded necklace that portrays a humming bird in flight. Or a rare moth or butterfly. Or indeed a flower." 

(from her website)

She also has a blog which I am so very excited about exploring.

Some gals are just ever so talented.

me xxx

  

oh look

Hawk&Fallow got a little mention over at 

Gathered by Coincidence

Bust Craftacular got a mention on her BBC London radio slot ...

and H&F one of the (many) vendors

Oh ok, so she's my sister

but

a mention is still very much a mention.

me xxx

ps. FOUR DAYS TO THE MARKET!!!!

label crazy

hawk&fallow labels 

everywhere

on everything

me xxx

Eavesdrops

playing a bit of catch up ...

I have been busy busy these past few days.

On Sunday eve, Jive Chum and co suggested sitting outside the enclosures of Jay Zed's gig in Hyde Park and having a good old eavesdrop. Why not says I?

I mean it was sort of like listening to a very loud radio, but hey we were in the same park, breathing the same air. 

I think I felt some of his coolness rub off on me. 

I mean I have felt a bit more hip this week.

Anyway, beside our little group, a couple decided to light a flying Chinese lantern 

(as you may recall I posted about my absolute love for these)

And to my utter overjoyed delight, I managed to capture it's ascent ...

wow

twas a beautiful moment as many rushed to assist its journey,

and as it floated onwards and upwards,

we all shared a clap and a cheer.

me xxx

today

me xxx

pretty flower

me xxx

V&A

Jive chum took me to the V&A to see the Grace Kelly exhibition last night

what a beauty

the dresses were fantastic ...

a lot of oohing and aahing.

The museum was open until 9.30pm. 

It was so lovely to be there at that time and sit out in their gardens and it still be warm. 

a treat indeed!

me xxx

ps. thank you most beautiful JBA 

for insisting I get Hipstamatic to make 

my photos look like they do 

bust a move

I was having a nosey through my fellow Bust Craftacular vendors,

realising that if I wasn't careful, I might spend any money I make right there on the day. Note to self : Do not do that, ok?

Anyway. I came across a certain Mr Dan Hillier. 

And I fell in love at first sight.

"These forgotten images and discarded memories re-write a gorgeously dark period of history, one full of elephant men and taxidermy, death and medicine. The resulting pieces are like postcards coming from Beardsley from a Victorian mansion - if the mansion was populated by circus freaks and Werner Herzog." 

Dazed and Confused Magazine 

Exactly what I was thinking.

I have found it difficult selecting images for this post, simply because every single work of art makes my insides crumble, rejoice  dance and cry all at the same time. 

That's what a bit of beauty will do to me. 

They are the things of the most amazing dreams and nightmares rolled into one.

Mr Hillier, it says you doff your hat at us, well, I doff my hat right back at ya.

me xxx