It seems fitting that in celebration of my 50th blog post that I should be celebrating selling another tea cosy since the very first thing I sold as tinyinc was also a tea cosy, THE tinyinc tea cosy!

I call this style of tea cosy the retro racing tea cosy as it reminds me a bit of  racing flag, though much prettier.

I love tinyinc teacosies and have 3 of them that are all used at home.  I have the very, very original 4 cup tinyinc multi coloured retro racing tea cosy which I managed to burn on the gas hob once but it is still usable and the burn survives the washing machine.  I have a 2-3 (small) cup tea cosy that is in cream, terracotta and green that gets most use.  The other is a blue and green striped pom pom tea cosy that is used a bit less than the other two. I suppose it serves as a back up of sorts.

Anyway, the one recently sold is from a handful that I advertised on Folksy just last week and it is winging it’s way to edinburgh as a christmas pressy for my customer’s sister.

I have discovered that I am a bit anxious until I know that items have arrived and that the recipient is happy with them. I get the same concerns with ebaying too.

tinyinc very racing retro tea cosy

I also sold the cushion cover that used to be an arran sweater so I am hoping that with the coming festivities and next week being amongst the first days of December, people will set their minds to a bit of Christmas shopping and start buying more of my things.

I used to be an aran sweater

It’s very exciting when people want to buy your things.  It doesn’t matter that you think they are nice or that they are well made or that you have spent hours creating them, nothing beats the proof that they are all of those things and a good idea because someone has decided that they want it and they will pay money for it too.

I continue to get great feedback from friends (and customers too now) about the items and a lot of them think they are perhaps under priced so I have made some minor adjustments on costs but, at the moment, I am comfortable with the price points and the items generally.

I still have a million other things that I also want to do but will need to be careful that I don’t broaden my ‘range’ too much.

Is it right to specialise at such an early stage in my attempts to make a living out of this or should I continue to experiment and allow the shoppers to decide what the speciality should be?  It’s a tough one.

To add to the excitement of selling things, I have been invited to apply to the BBC to audition for a new programme they are launching in the spring which effectively follows kitchen table/spare room start up businesses as they are mentored by one of the UKs own kitchen table success stories.  I am nowhere near being included amongst those that they want to feature in the programme and have only just applied to audition but imagine what a great boost an experience like that would be.  The researchers found my story interesting enough to approach me so that can only be good news.

One of the questions on the application asked where you saw your business in 5 years time.  That was easy and I’d like to think I’d get there with or without the programme but you don’t know do you.  A lot of effort, talent and even luck aren’t always enough.

]]> http://tinyinc.wordpress.com/2009/11/25/tinyincs-lion-cushion/ Wed, 25 Nov 2009 20:48:40 +0000 tinyinc http://tinyinc.wordpress.com/2009/11/25/tinyincs-lion-cushion/

Alex the Lion

I was delighted to be asked recently to produce a lion cushion for a little boy called Jack who had seen the block for Bertie’s Blanket and thought the lazy lion looked like Alex from the Madagascar film.

Jack has taken delivery of his cushion, thanks to a very kind friend of ours who couriered it and safely delivered it by hand to his mummy.  He likes it and his mummy likes.  I can let my breath out now!

I love doing these cushions, pictures and blankets but can never quite believe that people like them as much as I do.  I’m delighted!

barry the buzzy bee

Whilst making Jack’s cushion, I realised that there is a little character who is starting to appear on a lot of my pictures….

The little character is a buzzy bee and I’ve decided to call him “Barry’.

We have a local bee keeper who is called Barry and he very kindly gave us a talk and tour of some of his hives during the summer while we were out on a bike ride. He now sell his honey through our local butcher and a jar is always in our kitchen cupboard.  We have orders from our friend’s kids for his honey too.  He is a busy bee keeper.

Anyway, I’d quite like to keep bees myself but until a time when I can, I like the wee bee in my pictures and I like Barry’s honey so it seems fitting to call my wee bee Barry.

I hope Barry doesn’t mind.

No lançamento da coleção de alto verão Branchée, você vai poder se deliciar com os cupcakes Bite Me. Além de lindos, a Carol diz que eles têm um sabor inacreditável! Esqueça a dieta…

incredible

The weather has been a bit unpredictable over the past few weeks and the news is full of devastation so imagine my delight to be see these skies on my early sunday morning walk.

There are truely big skies in our little corner of the country and they are completely different every time the day dawns.

I’ve tried painting skies like these and they never do the reality justice and end up looking strangely unreal.  The beauty of the view is never captured very well by paint or in fact a photo.

It is quite inspiring and makes you glad of it.

big early skies

most of the uk has suffered in the rain over the last couple of weeks but our little corner of the country was spared the messy wet stuff for one of the weekends.

I love the rapid change that a sunrise or a sunset shows to a landscape or skyline. It is more beautiful than a photograph can do justice to.

there is a peace and serenity that comes with the rising and falling of the day.

I have never been a late riser and even after a night of too many glasses of wine, I’m usually to be found up and about doing things before 7am.  I’m sure it isn’t good for me but I don’t want to miss these amazing moments.

the quiet almost private and spiritual moment at the beginning of a day as it wakes up to business also offers view of things that are more likely to have gone into hiding by the time the rest of us get with it.

This particular weekend morning, one of the deer families on the farm was upwind of us and, although they spotted us on the horizon, we did get to see them.

JC & I have talked about getting up early and getting hidden away close to their little route, because they do have favourite routes and times, so that we could photograph them at closer quarters.

They are lovely creatures and rightly nervous of people.

the fruits that I harvested for jams in September (even more food for free) have been left without the protection of any greeness now and as a result the vibrance of the colours sing out, especially when it is crisp and clear.

all the harvesting has been done and the land is flat again, the views are clear and only the drilled winter crops are slowly getting in the way of these amazing views.

It is a great reminder of how lucky we all are to be allowed to live amongst this because we surely spoil it with our lack of care.

It is very precious and quite amazing.  I can’t imagine not having this……

]]> http://branchee.wordpress.com/2009/11/18/we-love/ Wed, 18 Nov 2009 19:07:48 +0000 branchee http://branchee.wordpress.com/2009/11/18/we-love/

A bolsa é do Marc Jacobs, criada pra arrecadar fundos para o Creative Growth Center, na California.

Via Museum of Everything

threads

I was searching for a particular embroidery thread the other day and in the process, I emptied my project bag and started to sort through things.

In the sunshine, the colours sparkle and you realise how yummy these silky, wooden, wooly things are.

buttons

JC says that what I do in my full time job is ‘knock all the walls down and paint everything white’…………

It is true, open spaces and simplicity is what I strive for in my job BUT my dirty secret is detail and colour!

my gran's crochet cottons

I’m making decorative gift baby cushions that will have  a name, a birth date and a delivery weight on them.  They have colourful, playful images on them and are to celebrate the birth of someone’s baby.

They are all applique and have new images that I haven’t used before.

beads

I am always on the look out for embroidery silks, ribbons, threads, buttons, beads and fabrics.  I bought 150 8m skeins of anchor stranded cotton embroidery threads from ebay this week. They are delicious and they have swelled my supply beautifully.  So as well as searching for the colour I needed for my work, I had lots of new threads to sort into colours. I would dearly love to have the entire collection of 484 colours.

the pinks & reds

I am still brimming with ideas and not much time to do them in and time always seems to be running away from me.

oranges & greens

Looking through the vast array of colours amongst the threads is inspiring.

purples & browns

All these gorgeous colours are very necessary on these dark, dreary days of november. It is a tough transition from autumn to winter and more people than you imagine suffer from seasonal adjustment disorder.  I don’t think I suffer from SAD, but the seasonal change still affects me a bit and it is nice to see these bright colours.

blues & greys

In order to add even more colour and brighten a rainy day, I wore a bright bright orange shirt with my favourite ‘by appointment’ necklace today.

Every little helps.

Adoramos esses brincos feitos de papel maché, produzidos pelo Atelier Livramento.

Directed by Jonathan Glazer

My Life in France

By Julia Childs

Such a great story from one of the most influential women in food world. Follow up with watching Julie & Julia and you’re deep into mastering French cooking on your own!

The Sharper Your Knives, the Less You Cry

By Kathleen Flinn

Another influential story from the food world—an American journalist ventures into French cooking and chronicles her struggles of adjusting in Paris. The story looks up for her when she finds love and marries in the romantic City of Lights.

Sarah’s Key

By Tatiana de Rosnay

Centered around the Paris deportations in the 1940s, an American-born journalist finds herself researching secrets of her French husband’s Jewish relatives who were deported 60 years before—a truly absorbing story.

Next up on our list:

Half Broke Horses by Jeanette Walls (the author of The Glass Castle)

Here are some wonderful illustrations created by Nacho Gil. We like them so much we publish it on SOKO twice.
Waiting for more animals to come!

yes you read it right. win a whole year of waxing free, on us. All you have to do is spread the word about wax room and you can get the chance to win a whole year of free waxing.

Get your friends to book with us and mention your name and we will put you in the draw to win a whole year of free waxing. The more friends you have book appointments the more times your name will be entered into the competition.

So what are you waiting for? get your friends booking their appointments!! and dont forget to tell them to mention your name.

Bookings can be done by:

Phone: 076 024 4044

online: www.bokadirekt.se (search for wax room)

email: waxroomsweden@gmail.com

The competition closing date is 19 Dec 09 and your free waxing will start 01 Jan 2010 and expire 31 Dec 2010.

waxing competition does not include waxing packages. winner will be able to choose one wax from our price list once a month for one year.

Competition will be drawn at 10am on the 20 Dec 09. Competition and winner will be posted on www.waxroom.wordpress.com. winner will also be contacted by email or phone.

high birds

JC & I are fortunate enough to be invited to a pheasant shoot day every year around about the 5th of december but this year it was brought forward to the 6th of November.

So on Friday, we started our day with a hearty breakfast and headed to the foot of the hills near Thirsk in North Yorkshire.  Having been brought up in similar countryside to that which surrounds Thirsk, it pulls at my heart strings a little to be yomping up some huge muddy hills.

the one that got away

It is a completely beautiful setting and I cannot do it enough credit with photos or words.

This annual ’shoot’ is a day that a local shooting syndicate sells.  It raises money for the upkeep of the estate and the birds and allows the likes of ourselves, who are not land owners, and would normally not have any access to this beautiful part of the country, to enjoy it.

Both JC & I shoot though, like my horsemanship (see ‘pretty boys 10.10.09), my shooting isn’t endowed with much skill.  Don’t get me wrong, when I am shooting well, I can hit targets and I am passionate about being close to the process of getting your food.  I shoot pheasants because I want to eat them and I don’t see why someone else should do my dirty work for me.  The surplus braces that we shot (and we shot 184 birds – 92 braces between 9 guns) provides food for the others & the local game dealer but I can’t claim that my shooting prowess would provide enough pheasants for more than a few pheasant casseroles.

the 'furry one' on his peg

But, it is very exhilarating and the ‘crack’ amongst the guns is terribly entertaining.

“uncle mick” who I adore, is a champion clay pigeon shooter and  hardly ever misses a bird that is in sky anywhere near him, “hinge & bracket” are incredibly entertaining but nearly as committed to shooting  as they are to their families, H is my “sort of step dad type person” who I also adore and is a very generous chap but is dangerous when left in charge of filling up your wine glass, Mr Audi & lovely Mrs Audi are regulars and tremendous company, N is a nice (and there are some) solicitor and there are lots of others too but in total the guns are usually about 10.

where is it?

One of the other things that I love about this shoot is the ‘organisers’, ‘beaters’ and the ‘picker uppers’ are also great fun and tremendous company.  There is no ‘us and them’ that sadly often keeps the shooters and the workers apart.  We go to the pub together afterwards for tea and cake!

They have some beautiful dogs amongst them that work tirelessly all day for our enjoyment.

The dogs that go with the beater are different to the dog with the picker uppers.  The beaters use their dogs to flush out the pheasants whereas the picker uppers dogs are used to collect the birds that have been shot by the guns.

They are highly trained but like anything that us humans think they can control, they don’t always do what they are asked and we watched a very funny exchange between a ‘picker upper’ and his dog who wouldn’t give up the pheasant he had searched for ages for!!!!

no it's mine!

We have been so lucky with the weather too and although the ground was wet our day started out sunny and even though the sun eventually disappeared, the rain stayed away until we were travelling home in the dark.

The first year we did it, the weather was similar to yesterday and we have had glorious sunshine the next year, fog to add to the fun another year and last year the surroundings were made even more beautiful by snow.  It is a wonderful place.

Because I wasn’t shooting this year, I took the ‘furry one’ to stand on the peg with JC and take some photographs while soaking up the surrounds that leave you quite speachless.

woodpecker's home

One of our pegs was next to a woodpeckers hole and although I missed photographing them, we also saw Sikka deer and a Stoat.

I do miss the hills of northern england after days like yesterday.

Trebuie sa-l vezi razi cu lacrimi!!!!

hide,  in 1996, started the event at Chiba Marine Stadium “hide presents MIX LEMONed JELLY” (aka: MLJ).

Finally 14 years since the MLJ, December 13 this year held the day determines hide special version featuring a birthday party! In the event there The important message in the spring of 2010.

Prior to the launch of thanks generally sold out tickets every year
Each official hide residents (members) finally start accepting tickets ahead of target.

Workshop materials now, each trying to hide the details ★ Official Site Check

************************************************** *****************
『MIX LEMONed JELLY 2009 ★ feat.hide Birthday Party!!』

Cast]
hide / DJ-INA / Silver Angle VS Golden Horn (Chirolyn & DIE) / Ra: IN / Nyurotika / WHO THE BITCH / heidi. / VJ-SHRIMP / …and more (in no particular order)

◎ Date: December 13, 2009 (Sun)
◎ VENUE: Kawasaki CLUB CITTA ‘
◎ Time: OPEN 14:00 / START 14:30
◎ Fee: Advance ￥ 5000 (tax / extra drinks during the admission ￥ 500)

[Residents (members) preceding reception limited tickets]
※ 1ID up to four per person, per sheet
※ Please understand beforehand because it may be sold out within a period
※ Please check the exchange period at each site

◎ hide-city residents (PC)
- Application period: October 14, 2009 (Wed) 15:00 – 19 (Mon) 23:59

◎ hide mobile-JETS-JETS Mates (Mobile)
- Application period: October 15, 2009 (Thu) 15:00 – 19 (Mon) 23:59

◎ hide mobile-city residents (Mobile)
- Application period: October 19, 2009 (Mon) 15:00 – 21 (Wed) 23:59

Release [General] 11 / 7 (Sat) 10:00 – on sale nationwide!
◎ PIA (P code :338-686) TEL :0570-02-9999
◎ Lawson Ticket (L code: 77408) TEL :0570-084-003
◎ eplus http://eplus.jp

“” Recent and Upcoming Events, click here!

From: hide-city

We went to a wonderful harvest party last week at a friend’s vineyard in Napa Valley. The fall colors were so beautiful and inspiring, we had to share them. The vibrant red leaves and purple grapes were lovely, and the colors in the food platters were incredible! A little inspiration for our fall wardrobes…

]]> http://lastnightsmixtape.com/2009/11/03/put-me-on-it-presents-we-love-vols-1-2-3/ Tue, 03 Nov 2009 08:34:35 +0000 tang http://lastnightsmixtape.com/2009/11/03/put-me-on-it-presents-we-love-vols-1-2-3/

Nice blog, nice mixes:  put me on it.

Vol. 1

Vol. 2

Vol. 3

flopsy

My very first toy was a pink, green and black hand knitted doll called ‘flopsy’ and she was made for me by my mum.

She suffered only slightly as I have always been careful with my things and look after them.  I looked after ‘flopsy’ for decades; she moved to the city, to college and back with me among my belongings and although she was mostly kept in a box or cupboard somewhere, I always had her.

At some time during recent years though, she very sadly went missing and I have always thought it was a bit of a shame.

I happened to mention it to mum in passing and a hand knitted pink, green and black ‘flopsy’ arrived through my letterbox about a week later.

Mum had found the pattern when she was tidying the loft and getting rid of unwanted stuff.  What luck and what perfect timing since I had just mentioned it.

flopsy (mark ii)

I love her all over again and I have snaffled the pattern and tinyinc has knitted another one that has been put on folksy for sale.

Tinyinc has also knitted another ‘flopsy’ and a ‘freddy’ who is her boyfriend. I hope that they will sell.  They are quite charming and look quite well in Tinyinc’s line up.

My pink, green & black ‘flopsy’ stays with me though.

Thats right there’s a brand new hide DVD coming out. It will be realized December 2, 2009.　”It contains 20 music videos and live videos from “We hide～The Best in The World～”.” it will contain also a private video.

For more details visit hide-city

weathered log

I have always loved nature. It is what I used to prefer to paint, it is what I prefer to be with and I think it offers some of the most amazing images that the human eye can possibly perceive. It is undoubtedly the greatest source of complete beauty that there is.

ripples in sand

It surprises me then, that the things that I prefer to sew are not animals and plants or other images that emulate nature, but geometry and other orderly patterns that you don’t necessarily see in nature. Or do you? Snowflakes are the ultimate example of perfect geometry and symmetry too. A flies compound eye is an engineering miracle and a bees honeycomb is perfect architecture.

folds in timber

Perhaps my preference for crochetted & knitted squares, square cushions, striped tea cosies and blocks of colour is closer to nature than is obvious then. Perhaps the images of buildings, vehicles or man made structures like fences, gates and stys that I like is the result of years and years working in architectural and spacial design. Either way, I am working on a blanket commission for a little chap called Bertie and it is jungle animals. They are very cute and I am sure I will love the finished article but the images that please me most seem to be boats, beach houses and the likes of kites.

I need to come up with some ideas for cushions that typify what would be right for a bay boy or a baby girl, I wonder what comes of of my sketches……

]]> http://mademoisellelek.wordpress.com/2009/10/25/private-sales-of-gaspard-yurkievich-chloe-dolce-gabbana-in-paris/ Sun, 25 Oct 2009 05:09:04 +0000 mademoisellelek http://mademoisellelek.wordpress.com/2009/10/25/private-sales-of-gaspard-yurkievich-chloe-dolce-gabbana-in-paris/

You are in Paris today, great! Go to the gorgeous Marais and stop by the outfits, shoes and accessories private sales of Gaspard Yurkievich, Chloé, Dolce Gabbana, Ralph Lauren, Levi’s, Guess… And don’t forget to print the invitation below (available for 2 persons), you’ll have to show it at the entrance. Enjoy!

We-Love: 38 rue Charlot, 75003 Paris – Today: from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Related posts:

Gaspard Yurkievich, Women Spring/Summer 2009: never without socks!

Gaspard Yurkievich: Women shoes Spring/Summer 2009

Gaspard Yurkievich: Backstage Men Show Summer 2009

Autres articles:

Gaspard Yurkievich, Printemps/Eté Femme 2009: jamais sans ma chaussette!

Gaspard Yurkievich: chaussures Femme Printemps/Eté 2009

Gaspard Yurkievich: Défilé Homme Eté 2009, Backstage

Lips: Number One Hits” is XBOX 350’s newest game, and Swarovski has partnered with the video game to create these limited edition wireless microphones, featuring CRYSTALLIZED Swarovski Elements!!!

It would be inappropriate to kick off this series (“We love…”) with anything other than Southwest Airlines.  Alli and I hold a deep, perhaps excessive, love of Southwest Airlines.  But really, what’s not to love?

We both fly often. A few years ago we began recognizing that our flight experiences with Southwest were markedly different, in a good way, than our flights with other airlines. The whole process, from purchase to deplaning, was smoother–and even enjoyable. Our lauding should not come as a surprise. There is a reason SWA has posted a profit for 36 consecutive years (in a deeply struggling industry) and has hosted more customers than any other US airline since 2006.  A recent poll (Oct 16, 2009) by Consumer Traveler echoed our feelings:

Here are a few reasons why Southwest has become like family:

• Flight attendants with personality. They are often funny, and they don’t take themselves too seriously.  Here’s an example from a recent flight. “And for you, sir, hot pancakes and bacon for your in-flight breakfast meal.” – flight attendant, while handing me a bag of peanuts.
• They perform miracles. About a month ago, while traveling from Denver to the Dominican Republic (with a one-day stopover in Philadelphia), I mistakenly forgot my passport in Denver. To make a very long-story short, the Southwest crew agreed to voluntarily carry and deliver my passport to me. No other airline was willing. There was no reason for them to oblige, but they did. If they hadn’t, I would have been forced to skip the trip I was leading to the DR. Above-and-beyond.
• No seating chart. This speeds up the boarding process significantly. No looking at boarding passes while finding seats. No lag while first class passengers board. No inefficiencies. Love it.
• No bag fees. Thank you, SWA, for not nickle-and-diming me.  This has many positive repercussions. For instance, passengers don’t try and carry-on six bags, resulting in the overhead bins filling up to capacity by the time the first wave of passengers has boarded.
• Cheap fares. It’s uncommon to find better fares. When you add in all the fees other airlines charge, it’s extremely rare to find better fares.
• They provide lifetime free flights to customers who write blog posts about why they love Southwest.*

(Chris)

*This has not yet been verified, but we’re hopeful.