My Love of Roses

"Won't you come into the Garden?
I would like my roses to see you..."
                        Richard Brinsley Sheridan

I took advantage of the late summer sun on the patio and took some photos of my roses fabrics.
I have designed so many, I had to limit my choice to a few, but in my Spoonflower shop, Lilyoake, I have nearly 170 fabrics.  Most of them feature roses.
I think I have an addiction!!

Trying a Different Approach!

Its so hard to start a small business these days - loans are few and far between, unless you have a friend or relative who offer a loan to you.

I had a friend offer me one, but she wanted 10% interest back on it, which I just could not afford!

(especially when I worked all last year on digging out of debt!)

So I decided to try this route: Kickstarter.

Hey, if a guy can get $45,000 pledged for wanting to make a potato salad, then I might have a shot at getting backers to help me in my endeavors to design home accessories/tea towels/sachets/pillows/aprons, etc., using my own fabric designs.

If you know of any philanthropists who might be willing to pitch in to help a small business get off the ground, I'd so appreciate you sending my link on to them!

Have a great day everyone!

Bringing Beauty to Everyday Life

Summer Flowers on Blue and White

"The fragrance always stays in the hand that gives the rose."

   (George William Curtis)

Setting up for Tea

I am thinking its nearly time for a tea party again!

While the summer flowes are blooming and its mild enough to either sit outside or at least with the top of the Dutch door open, I should invite some friends over and serve up some hot, liquid gold, strawberry cake and halibut mousse croissant sandwiches!

Dressing the Dining Chairs for Summer

Hi Everyone!
Join me over at PINK PAGODA for the Blue & White Monday bash!
Check out everyone's blue and white inspirations, and hopefully you'll find something to inspire you too.
(or just get your blue ad white fix)

I'm back at it!  Now that it's spring and I have spring fever,
it's time to begin where I left off before the holidays began, last year.
Time to finish sewing up the casual linen/cotton slip covers
for my dining room chairs.  

There are four.  I made the third this past weekend while
watching episodes of "Time Team" on youTube!
(the fourth chair's fabric has not been ordered yet, but I
am having fun narrowing down which one to have printed)

I design all my own fabric and sell it in my shop, Lilyoake,
on Spoonflower.
Here's a link to it:
Lilyoake on Spoonflower
Let me know what you think!  I have pink designs coming soon...

I chose to slip cover each chair in a different pattern.
This works for me because I used the same shade of blue in all
the fabric designs so they really do go together well, without
looking so mixed as to be weary on the eye!
This pattern I used on the third chair, I call "Seaside Garden Stripe".  It's a soft Swedish Gustavian blue and white stripe with a smattering of blue and white roses over it.
(I actually designed the fabric with a horizontal stripe but to fit my patterns on the piece I had printed, to maximize use, I used the pattern in a vertical format. It works well either way!

Thanks for stopping by to take a look at my latest project!