Don't miss the Vintage and Handmade Fair

Well goodness me, I didn't think I was going to be writing this post! Hooray for the broadband-fixer-man who just came and made everything magically work again. So now I can tell you that I've spent my week getting ready for the bestest fair around, the Vintage and Handmade Fair which takes place THIS SUNDAY in Chipping Sodbury, oooh I'm very excited! Now's the time to get all your Christmas shopping done and make sure your nearest and dearest are presented with the best, most beautiful and most original gifts ever. Not forgetting a few well deserved treats for yourself, of course!

On the HenHouse stall, you'll find a selection of gorgeous patchworked notebook covers...

...and some cute patchworked lavender mini pillows with fun coloured bobble trims. Use them to store brooches, scent your drawers, decorate beds and chairs, or for dollies to rest their weary heads as you choose.

Of course, I'm biased but I think I'd very much like to receive one of these on December 25th!

I've also been working on these pretty and practical teacup pin cushions. I had lots of fun choosing the gorgeous vintage fabrics to top the pretty vintage china.

Meanwhile, I've also been at the papercrafts and to accompany my usual selection of popular hand made cards, I have a special Christmas selection.

I've used paper copies of original vintage fabrics as the backdrop and then added detail with lovely vintage festive ribbons and labels which I've been hoarding for a few years now.

I think it's a shame so many people have chosen to forgo Christmas cards, I do love to receive them each day in the run up to Christmas and then displaying them around the house, reminding us of friends and family we can't necessarily be with at Christmas.

But that's not all! Two items which have demanded most of my time recently are these special beauties...

Yes, two most-coveted dolly's rocking cribs, now subject of a full HenHouse make-over with pretty pink paint and rosy transfers and inside, all the gorgeous bedding a dolly can desire...

New clean covered mattresses, cosy flowery flannelette sheets, vintage lace trimmed pillows, vintage satin-edged woollen blankets, pretty vintage embroidered top sheets and finally, proper patchwork quilts made the traditional way with real batting and hand sewn binding. Lucky dollies, eh!

Talking of quilts, special little girls and of course PINK, when my cheeky sister recently asked me "Do you ever make anything without pink in it?" I thought, "Do you know what, I'm really going to give in to my love of pink, let's make something which ONLY has pink in it!"

What fun I had raiding my stash for every pink fabric imaginable. And errrm, there were quite a few. Vintage, modern, floral, polka dotty, they're all there.

This is possibly the pinkest cutest quilt ever, what else could I name it but "Pretty in Pink"?!

Here it is on a king sized bed, we don't have a pretty girl's single bed here at the HenHouse and I didn't think I would be allowed to put it on the Munchkin's bed!

I think I am going to have to make myself a grown-up girl's version of this...

Hopefully, this quilt will find a special home keeping warm a little pink-loving lady.

Ah yes, it's certainly the season for cosy quilts, isn't it and I'll be bringing a selection of fine, handmade ones with me.

Golly, now I had better get everything downstairs ready to pack the car, I still have a cake to make for the tearoom (I think it will be the choc orange loaf cake from Nigella's new book, it's yummy) and believe it or not, I'm also hoping to get the binding on and finish this quilt, a version of the much admired (thank you!) Calico Country quilt, to grace my stall as well.

So, I hope many of you will be coming to join us at this super event on Sunday, please come along and say hello. I hope everybody, fair-going or not, makes the best of the coming weekend.