Artistic Affaire Moulin Rouge!

Through a friend I was pleased to find out about Artistic Affaire, a wonderful weekend long event hosted by Kim Allistar Caldwell and taking place this week in California, starting today on St. Patrick's Day.  I won't be able to attend the event in person, but I was happy to create two garters to be part of the raffle!  Letting the Moulin Rouge theme of the event inspire me, these are the garters that I happily sent off to California and which are now waiting to beautifully grace the legs of two lucky ladies.  I had to show several pictures of the first one just to get all the details in!  Done in plus purple and gold silk ribbons, it has hand pleated ribbon across the front, two bows with vintage glass buttons, and on the back a hand embroidered bow as well as a beaded tassel!  Oh la la!!  The second one is also made of plum purple silk satin ribbon, french style black lace, and the front is adorned with a silk ribbon flower, black feathers and a Swarovski crystal.  I hope they will be well recieved.

Take a peek at Kim's blog post about the event, you will wish that you were in California this weekend!!  Keep it in mind for next year, she hosts this event each year, with a different theme each time.  Have fun all lucky participating ladies!

http://artisticbliss.typepad.com/my_weblog/2010/10/moulinrouge.html

Spring is making itself known!

I guess Cody has not yet felt the first stirrings of spring time, he would much prefer to just lay by the window resting his head on the blanket, and dream of all the things that he used to do. He is no longer as active as he once was,  (but then who is!!)  and he suffers with arthritis now even though he is not yet 7 years old.

What he probably did not notice while he dreamt the day away, is that the first crocuses have bloomed in the yard, wild little flowers that sprout up here and there and yet none of us know where they came from!  I am not a gardener and haven't anything near to a green thumb, but I make sure that these little beauties do not get destroyed when the men in the family are out with the mower cutting down anything and everything that gets in their path.

I am sadly lacking that green thumb, but I have been making flowers come alive in my little corner by the window not far from where Cody sleeps, working some magic on old 1920's ribbons, creating these newest Ribbbonwork compositions.  I wish I had more hours in the day so that I could spend a bit more time on the very thing I love best - old silk ribbons and what they can be folded and stitched into!!  Lovely Victorian Ribbonwork.

Wishing you all some lovely hours doing what you love best, indoor or out, and hoping that spring time is starting to make itself known where you live.

Time spent with an old love!

Sometimes it is nice to take a break from doing what it is that we do all the time.  For me it was taking a couple of days off from making garters.  I spent a delightful few days going back to my passion for Victorian Ribbonwork and created these lovely flower appliques.  I used original 1920's Double-faced silk satin ribbons for the rose, the cabachon rose and the ruffled roses, as well as some of the buds.  And for the other buds I used a lovely vintage pale lilac silk ribbon with a small design in it.  The calyxes and the leaves were made from vintage french wired ombre green ribbons.  And all flowers are stitched to crinoline, just as it was back in the 1920's when ribbonwork was so popular and ladies attached little appliques similar to these to their lingerie, pillows, night caps, garters, well... you name it, and there most likely was some kind of ribbonwork on it!  Oh my,  how utterly feminine!