Hello Poppets

Hello Everyone how are you all doing?  It has been a mixed day here weather wise with torrential rain followed by sunshine, however it has been on the rather chilly side.  I hope you have all enjoyed a good Sunday and have a special week ahead.  Do come in out of the cold and make yourself at home.

I am afraid  I do not have any news on the giveaways yet Folks as I am waiting for Sophie to pick out the winning numbers, I am hopeful it will be a little later this evening and then I will let everyone know.  The bobbin dollies are so excited as they are going to new homes somewhere, I shall miss them but know whoever wins will look after each one well.

I wanted to talk to you about my trip out yesterday to Liverpool.  I visited a vintage sale whilst I was there and picked up a few bits and pieces which you might like to see.  Today I have been working on work related things but managed to finish another set of bunting for my little peeps.  Only one more to go then the three will have their own personalised decorations for Christmas.

 

 

I really enjoyed doing these but I have to work to a system otherwise I get easily distracted.  I don't want to let this project slip through my fingers as I need to get them done and dusted well before December - have had quite a few requests from the family for these which is nice but obviously puts pressure on my time.  I am sure you will all keep me on track though Folks.

 

Now down to the vintage fair finds.  I have a favourite seller who always seems to have the things I like at a good price and yesterday was no different.  I spied this little cigar box when I went to their stall.  These were very popular in the `1950s and 1960s when smoking was very popular than it is now.  I had a few which I kept little treasures in - I can assure you that I didn't smoke the cigars!  The stall holder wanted £2 for it with the contents intact.

 

 

I had a peep inside and there were some bits and pieces but didn't have a close look until I arrived home.  Inside was my favourite book from my childhood.  I am sure you are all too young to remember the tales of Milly Molly Mandy.  I loved her so much and followed her stories in school.  I wanted to be Milly Molly Mandy.

I hadn't realised what year they had been written.  This part of history was another world to the one we have now.  Some things are better, other things we have lost forever.

 

 

I knew the map of Milly Molly Mandy's house like the back of my hand and would love to trace her adventures using the map. 

 

 

 

One of the illustrations shows Milly and her family - I presume that I am now the Grandma sitting in the corner with her knitting!  A far cry from the grandparents of today I think.  Do you agree?

 

 

There were a few other little things in the bottom of the box - some bias binding, always useful.

 

Some interesting little packages - interesting to see that most of the mending was centred around cigarette burns, something unheard of now.

 

 

 

At the bottom of the box there were also some packets of sewing machine needles, not sure if they will fit mine but nice to have these dinky packets.

 

 

 

I also spotted this little box - it attracted me because I could remember seeing the Christmas paper before when I was a child.  In those days the wrapping paper was rather limited so you generally saw the same or similar patterns, certainly not like today. 

The stall holder asked £3 for this and threw in some cotton reels as well.  I peeped inside and could see some embroidery.  There was another lady at the stall who was very interested in this box so I quickly paid for it before I missed it.  It is a table cloth and whoever has started the embroidery was very talented as you can see below.  Now I must tell you lovely Folks that the photograph below is the wrong side of the material, yes the wrong side.

 

 

Below is the correct side and you can see how well she/he has crafted the flowers, they are just lovely.

 

It was a strange feeling when I found the needle still in the fabric threaded ready to continue with work.  Do you think there is a message for me here?  I am always talking about doing it but never seem to get around to it.  Maybe this is a challenge for me - I would love to hear what you all think.

 

 

 

There were lots of lovely colours just waiting to be used in this project - no instructions but I guess it is fairly self explanatory.

Now I think my final find will be interesting to the lovely Jo from Three Stories who was recently discussing using older patterns and how much the sizes varied with our measurements today.  I picked up a plastic bag and the stall lady said I think you might like this - it was £4 but when I saw the date I thought this was a bargain.  Look at the postmark - 1966 - 47 years ago, a lot older than you lovely folks.  The postman/postwoman had even written a little note to say that the householder was out so it was being returned to her the following day.

It was a pre-cut dress from Woman's Weekly - there was not price on the package which was a shame but the postage was 1s.6d which is about 7p in new money today.   I certainly love the style and it is something I would wear now.  Do you like it?

The instructions are a little short but then everything has been cut out.

This particular dress is a 36 inch bust so a fairly good size for then and now.

All the clever sewers out there will recognize these instructions I am sure.

The fabric has to be dry cleaned and is very scratchy, I don't think I could wear this all day without a lining.  Below are the two arm holes, zip and binding.

The lady has done a bit of sewing on the bust and the darts as you can see.

 

I thought the way it has been cut out to be rather strange - in fact I thought it was ripped when I first took everything out.

 

So what do you think I should do with it Folks.  I cannot see me wearing it to the office next week if I am truthful but I would like to see what it looks like when it is completed.  I am thinking of taking it to sewing class next week and asking Rachel to help me put it together.  I would be grateful for any ideas about this - it would seem a shame to cut it up and to be honest I am not that taken with the fabric or the colour. 

 

Well my lovely People I must leave you once again to return to my work which I have to do in preparation for tomorrow.  Speaking with you is such a warm delight and I am hopeful that I will be able announce my giveaway winners very soon.  Have a fabulous day tomorrow Everyone, keep safe and sound until we next meet again.  Big hugs to you all, lots of love, Dorothy :-)xxxxxxxxxxxx