I'm a July Jester - part two

Where does the time go? That's 7 days of the July Jesters gone in a flash! But there's still another 24 days left - which means 24 new items to be listed in each of our Folksy shops (1 each day). Wow, that's a lot of things to make. Better get cracking...

But first, here's what I've listed in the last 4 days: packs of four coasters in either pale blue or peppermint green - perfect for alfresco dining in this glorious summer weather, or even for that lovely picnic in the countryside as they're light and easy to pack, and machine-washable! If it's a posh picnic or alfresco lunch then the apricot floral napkin rings would be perfect for bringing that bright summer feeling to your table (again in a pack of four).

And finally from me, another teardrop keyring but in a lovely yellow cotton, sprinkled liberally with lots of shiny black beads and four beaded tassels to add a bit of movement. There are different colours listed already in my shop, with more to follow. Great for spotting your keys at the bottom of your handbag, or you could even use it as a bag charm itself.

And on to some of my fellow Jesters; a few of my favourite listings from the past few days:

This purse by Leanne Woods Designs is so sweet; I love the bashful look on the ducks face - and the fact that he brings his 'girl' flowers. Who could resist?

I love this millefiori red hearts & charms bracelet by Just K Jewellery. The hearts actually remind me of strawberries, and along with the little red chillies and silver flower charms it's the perfect summer accessory.

These sock zebras from Lonely Hearts are custom-made to your own colour specification. Aren't they just so cute?

This beautiful butterfly album by Dottie Designs can be personalised and would be a really special gift for someone to display treasured photos in.

This tribal shell necklace by Kirstys Creations would look fab with a low-cut summer dress and a suntan; a lovely statement piece!

And finally, Polka Dots and Posies has created this gorgeous cupcake cushion - personalised for your own sweet little girl.

Hope you like my picks today. Click on the links to find out more about the individual pieces - perfect presents for a friend or loved one, or a lovely little treat for yourself!

Pretty beads and clouds

After a bit of fiddling about with buttons and beads of various colours and sizes, I went ahead with clusters of silver beads on the floral crochet napkin rings, and I'm really pleased with them. They just add that little bit more 'oomph' to the flower.

I'm going to list them as a set of four on Folksy tonight. They go really well with a set of coasters that I also have for sale.


The weather is supposed to be getting better in the next few days so here's hoping that everyone will start thinking of eating and drinking outdoors again.


The weather has been so erratic lately. A day of hot sun, followed by a day of torrential rain, followed by three days of showers. The great British weather - we never tire of talking about it do we? I'd hate to live in a country with no seasons and pretty much the same weather every day. That must be so boring! As I've mentioned before, I love sitting out in the sunshine, but as a gardener I know how important the rain is too. One thing I hate though is being cold; I guess that's how I started out making loads of scarves!!

I've always been interested in the weather, but I know very little about the science of it all. I have a few books about the weather, but like most of my books I look at the pictures and read the captions, and then never get round to reading it cover to cover (one day - when I retire!). One of the books is really easy to dip into though - 'The Essential Book of Weather Folklore' by Leslie Alan Horvitz. It's full of old wives tales and superstitions and whether they hold up to scientific fact, or not. As well as the folklore there are a lot of facts and illustrations explaining the science behind the weather. It's a really interesting read for an inquisitive Aquarian like me.

This was the sky at 9.30pm last night. I love how one part of the sky can be so full of fire and drama, and the opposite side is all dreamy and soft. Who could get bored with that? Now I just need to study 'The Cloudspotter's Guide' (Gavin Pretor-Pinney) to find out what kind of clouds they are...

Sunday in the garden part two

After spending the morning gardening, after lunch I decided to work on another crochet design. I love working outside when it's sunny and warm; the light is so much better outside and it's nice to get some fresh air and watch the bees, birds and butterflies go about their work too - but I'm so easily distracted!

I've been trying to to think of some different items that I can put in my Folsky shop, rather than just the knitted scarves and bags that I've been selling online and at craft fairs for the past year. And now that I've finally got my head around crochet (after year's of my sister telling me, 'But it's so easy!!') new ideas are coming to me faster than I've got time to make them. I'm finding that I can be so much more creative and experimental with crochet. I won't abandon the knitting altogether, but for the minute crochet is king!

So on Sunday, inspired by the summer weather (we had one day of sunshine amongst the sea of rain this week) and thoughts of alfresco dining, surrounded by lovely flowers in my garden, I decided to work on a napkin ring idea that I had.

After making numerous flowers and trying out different colour combinations the floral napkin ring was born.


I like them as they are, but I think I might experiment a bit with embellishments - a pretty button or a cluster of sparkling beads in the centre of each flower might just added that little extra bit of interest. So I'm off to do that now. I'll let you know how they turn out...