Some Chairs I Have Made.

I made this wing chair several years ago from a pattern in one of my Venus Dodge books.  I own quite a few of her books, they are my favourites  for ideas and patterns.

 I really love these books, the style in most of the rooms is country cottage and cosy and the patterns are very easy to make up.

 After I made the chair I decided to make a foot-stool in the same fabric. The cushion is mine as well.

I love this little bedroom chair.   A friend gave me the one you can see in the bedroom of my florist shop.

 I made the red one and was happy that it turned out as pretty as the gold one.

The back is just as pretty as the front don't you think?

This chair was a real challenge.  The man who taught me how to make it is a fantastic miniaturist and is also an upholsterer in real life so the chair was put together the same way a full size chair would be made.

 It does make a much better finish but also lots of time and detail too.

Making a Bamboo Planter Stand.

This was my first attempt at making a  piece of bamboo furniture. It's a bit fiddly and it tested my patience because I'm not the most patient person at times.

 The pictures are prints on paper but fabric glued to a backing could be used just as well. 

  The "hinges" are sewing cotton wound round several times and cut off close to the sides. The trick is to do the centre first then the top and bottom.

This little Victorian sewing stand was lovely to make. Same technique as the screen but fabric lined front and back.

 Little pockets were made to hold all the sewing needs that I also made.

Here's a quick lesson on how to make a bamboo planter.

 Firstly, you will need thin wood skewers. Cut four pieces 2 inches long.   Cut another eight pieces 3/4 of an inch long.  Cut two pieces of timber or thick card, 3/4 of an inch square. I used balsa but it's not as smooth as I wanted it to look.

Give everything a light sand then paint the pieces either after they have been cut or you may find it's easier to paint then cut as it's hard to know where to hold the short bits!

 I mixed up some acrylic paint "till it looked a bit like baltic pine or a honey colour.

Lay two of the long pieces down and glue two short pieces in between. Do the same with the other side.

Next, glue the shelves in leaving one side open, it's easier to fit them in.

 Then glue the last two short pieces on to make a stand.         Leave to dry.

 Don't worry if the glue looks a bit messy, it all blends in once it's finished.

Put a small amount of glue on a dish and taking a tooth-pick or similar, run glue around the pieces.This should look a bit raised up or thicker. Try not to make everything even,   bamboo's not like that in in nature.

  All will make sense shortly.

When this glue has dried, take a fine brush and carefully paint over the glue rings with dark brown paint. Also touch lightly all over with the paint, you will see the look of  bamboo magically appearing.

Seal the whole stand and it's ready for a pot plant.

All About Thomas.

I made this florist shop in memory of my beautiful cat Thomas who died three years ago. I made it because he liked jumping onto my lap to see what I was making. He was never very far away from wherever I was in the house, he was a lovely, cuddly cat.
 He also loved flowers,  well....  eating them anyway!  I couldn't bring fresh flowers inside because he would jump onto the bench and nibble on the petals.

 Like most cats, he also liked climbing into boxes, shopping bags, hand-bags and  several times into my empty doll house.
I had to change the owners name to Thomasina because the bedroom  is feminine. I'm sure Thomas wouldn't have objected

I named the shop after one of my "new" cats, Bella.
 Now all I need to do is make something for my other cat Harry. I think it will have to be a gymnasium because he's so lively and loves to climb!

I made most of the plants and flowers. I like using bunka, it makes great plants like lavender and hyacinths but it's also good for rugs and trims on hats and other furnishings. It comes in a large range of colours too.

I made the footpath from a full size kitchen tile that I cut into shapes then glued down and "grouted"
Some of the flowers are paper punched, some are masking tape and wire then hand painted and some I have bought.

Beautiful Botanic Gardens.

I would like to show you some of my favourite places in the Botanic Gardens here in Ballarat where I live.

The lake is now full after several years of severe drought that saw it dry up completely.

We wondered if we would ever see water in it again but it seemed to take no time at all to fill when we had some much needed rain

The swans and all the other birds that live nearby, miraculously appeared again when the lake filled,  I wonder where they went when there was no water and how do they know when to return!          

The Begonia House is a large glass building. I'm still not sure if I like it as it's very modern but when you venture inside, there is  always something interesting to look at.

Fun making furniture.

I'm very lucky to have a lovely husband who is also a man of many talents. He made my large dollhouse, also several room-boxes and many other " can you please cut this out for me " items.
 I also have a small band saw and a couple of power Dremel type drill kits. Wish I owned a scroll-saw too, one day maybe.
One of my first attempts at making a piece of furniture was these settles. I distressed them to make them look well used.  Cushions always look good and I have plans to put one in a kitchen and pile some newspapers and perhaps a basket or a coat on the seat. The ones I've seen in magazines always seemed to be piled high with clutter.

This kitchen table was fun to make. The legs are newel posts from a stair case set. This has also been aged as all good kitchen tables should look. The scone and biscuit baking was also fun to do.