Marthe Armitage - printmaker

Oh my! Let me introduce these beautifully serene wallpapers and fabrics, for sale at Hamilton Weston. The designs are from original prints by Marthe Armitage. She's been making wallpaper for over 40 years, cuts all her lino blocks by hand, and does the printing by herself with a century-old offset lithographic printing press.

 

Do have a look over here to view some of her work in detail (click on each image to expand) ... the colours and designs are exquisite! I couldn't pick a favourite ....

These images from BBC Gardens Illustrated, via Savilintu. 

Corsets and cupcakes (NSFW)

.... not really the thing for me now that I'm a woman of a certain age (and a bit squeamish about tight-lacing in general), but I do love these playful creations from Maya Hansen and What Katy Did:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Cute!

The secret life of machines

Have you ever wondered how some machines work their magic? I have ...

This wonderful little video explains the hidden secrets of the humble sewing machine:



The workings of many other machines are revealed in amusing little pamphlets over here. I think they're fascinating!

Which machines have caused you to wonder at times?

Bee feasts and the home harvest

On Saturday I immersed myself in the furious buzz of insect activity that can often be found in my mum's beautiful rose garden. I've never seen so many bees clamouring for pollen in the early hours of the morning!

 

 

 

Gus chased rabbits (don't worry, he never catches any...) and then found a tub of slimy, muddy water to splash around in with abandon. Sometimes it seems his one aim in life is to get as filthy as possible, and he sure has fun while he's trying!

We're still harvesting delicious, sweet veggies every day from our little raised beds - they never fail to delight and I can't wait to expand our garden to double or triple its productive space.

 

By the way, I wrote a little guest post for the US Urban Homesteader blog the other day too. Urban Homesteader is a lovely, inspirational site, full of wonderful ideas for living the good life..... why don't you pop on over and take a peep?

Vintage matchbox art = joy joy joy!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Seriously, are the matches in your local shop ever packaged this beautifully? These babies come from the collection of The Invisible Agent.

More can be found at my vintage illustration blog.

Always in love with colour!

These are the sorts of images that fill my mind in quiet moments ....



Purl Soho, Osborne & Little, and Sweet Georgia Yarns provided today's beautiful eye candy.

No-bend rest chairs

Found over at Tea with the Vintage Baroness... Our favourite Land Girl explains:

"One way on-screen starlets were able to dodge the issue of brassieres altogether was through the practise of costumers sewing the actresses into their dresses. I watched a Jean Harlow documentary that mentioned Harlow was sewn into many of her slinky numbers, as well. If the frocks were too fitted to allow the girls to sit down, I'll bet they were too fitted for the "girls" to droop down, too. (Insert Marx Brothers eyebrow raising and lowering/cigar flicking here) ... "

Love it!