Summer holidays - installment 1

My Christmas and New Year are quietly spent at a little ex-fishermans cottage in Mandurah.  Open house is extended to family and friends, and we move our animal menagerie down so they too have the opportunity to experience the change of scenery and their own summer break.

Those of you who know me well, know I have 14 pet rabbits.  It is a long story as to why I have 14 pet rabbits, but I think I can leave that ditty to your imaginations.

Mocha being unusually shy

With a limited battery life and no charger here with me in Mandurah I have only pics of those who chose to co-operate.

bo jangles and bobby mcgee are brothers, but chose not to pose together

hansel and gretel, brother and sister and inseparable

 

to the left truffle is saying hello, and to the right jelly looks beautiful as usual.

Now my secret is out, and I have been indulged...thanks.

It started as...

a simple mock up...

and finished up being pivotal to calico and ivy's new website.

Please feel welcome to visit www.calicoandivy.com and see the changes for yourself.

We've gone through a fairly major transformation as a shop in the past few months, and this caps the whole process off.

I hope you like it

Silly Season

Silly season is well and truly here with so many girls hoping, in their last days leading up to Christmas, to make special gifts for the special little people in their lives.

Our suggestion is a critter made from a Melly and Me pattern, or perhaps the endearing but mostly unusual interpretations of soft toys in our Softies, or More Softies books.

To help the process along we made up a display of samples, patterns, books and fabrics

bundled into inviting selections.

We received an amazing colour selection of felt also.

What an invitation to create.

Swiss Chard

From this humble beginning I am hoping to one day grow a real life version of the vegetable so wonderfully replicated in one of my all time favourite fabrics - Chard, by Kaffe Fassett.

grow tiny plants...grow to the sun.

Speaking of Kaffe fabric, we have his new fabrics hot on the shelves, and selling fast.

 

As usual the colours are rich and the designs fluid.  I add credit to Brandon and Phil Jacobs as their contributions fill out the collection admirably. 

Snowflakes in summer?

 Anything's possible...but the reality is I forced the issue by creating my own using double sided Peltex and plenty of strips of Liberty of London's yummy Tana lawn.  I then embellished them with ribbon, trim and slivers of fabric nestling multitudes of buttons

An easy project, resulting in a flurry of snowflakes being born of many differing fabrics and embellishments by our enthusiastic customers.

A great project for the young crafter.

All you need is LOVE!

la...la...la...la...la

all you need is love, love

love is all you need

Well a spot of tucker here and there would go down a treat also!

Amy Butler has named her latest fabric collection LOVE

 

We all quite fancy this range.

Amy has also released two new patterns:-

the sweet harmony handbag and tote

and the long awaited Liverpool shirt

You might remember this design was featured as a dress in Amy's Midwest Modern book (pages 142 & 143), and many customers were keen to source the pattern.

We have stock of all of Amy's new goodies, and many of her older designs also.

Sophie Digard

Calico and Ivy stock a selection of very amazing accessories designed by Parisian Sophie Digard, and hand worked by her 'village' in Madgascar

We like to adapt their use to suit what we are wearing on the day - one day a necklet, the next a belt.

Love, Love, Love.

A gifted lady

Anthea Carboni is one very talented lady. Apart from the wonderful assistance she avails to me as a 'counter girl' she spends hours in her home studio making amazing stitched creations.

I am sure you will agree her birds are truly charming

Available now in store.

Ready, set, go...

...our new shop is ready to show off her new look and although a little camera shy we coaxed these images from her.
We are preparing for Christmas and dressing up 'calico' accordingly.