Crafty Pieces

Raineach is checking out our new road side sign for spelling mistakes!

Our broadband connection seems to have been affected by the weather today – wild and wet and windy this morning although we have blue skies and puffy white clouds this afternoon and everything is now steaming. The waters of the loch have calmed down, from white topped waves this morning to gently rippling this afternoon.

But the slow connection is driving me up the wall as I try to work on the new website for the Studio Barn. In many ways it is nearly done, but then again in so many ways it isn’t nearly done at all! Doing this site has been a learning curve of epic proportions, rather like scaling Everest without oxygen I think. I have spent days getting cross with my inability to work out what to do and with the website designers inability to predict exactly what I want it to do. However there was a break through on Monday something clicked in my head, I reached the summit and it has been much easier and calmer ever since. I’ll be announcing the launch any day now but that is why the blog and Face book page have been so quiet recently, all my energies have been taken up with the website. Or else I have been too wiped out with hay fever medication to get out of bed!

With the slow connection today hampering progress I am going to give myself the evening off to do some ironing instead! Did I say off????!!

But before I do that I thought I would share with you – if the connection will let me – some of the craft items I mentioned in the last blog.

Lovely traditional willow baskets made by Jane Allan of Achnamara, a little village only a couple of miles away. Made with traditional skills, and using traditional materials and tools these baskets are built for use, often using willow that is grown on Jane’s farm.

    

Soap dishes – beautifully presented with traditional, old fashioned Pears soap and a wonderfully soft organic cotton facecloth, these lovely vintage saucers get a new lease of life.

Hearts galore, a whole sweetie jar of lavender or rose and lavender scented ones made from recycled shirt fabric, traditional gingham ones a must for any country kitchen.

Then one for the loved one in your life. Give them ‘the key to your heart’ with this pretty scatter cushion made from remnant fabric and finished off with a pink and white spotty ribbon and key.

Another touch of old fashioned elegance with a selection of cushions made from vintage embroidered linens.

   

And something for the boys: Bosnia Bags and Iraq Sacks. Kit bags, large and small, made from the uniform of an ex RAF Officer namely my brother!

Flight Lieutenant AJD Hamilton returned safe and sound and now works for a civilian company in Angola. These trousers saw action in Bosnia – green, and in Iraq – sand. Now they have been remade in to useful bags, for sandwiches or toy cars, or perhaps gym and swimming kit.

50% of the sale of these bags is donated to the British Legion

Appropriate for the drought type weather we’ve been having recently, these turned and stained topiary style trees don’t require watering or clipping!

Now I’m off to do some household chores that have been neglected this last week or two whilst I have battled with the website.

Is anyone coming?