Romantic Mori Necklace

 

Happy Friday people!

Today I have to show you my newest necklace from the "Romantic Mori" Spring Collection I am working on right now. You know I love mixed media projects, and because I cannot resist fabric especially when it comes to incorporating it in my crochet jewelries, I decided to make a collection of this mix.

Usually I am a color dependent person, but I leaned to the most practical side  of my work and that is to use pieces I already have in my stash. I have mentioned many times that there are boxes of crocheted flowers and other bits and pieces just lying around and finally I am clearing away the clutter and using them for my newest collection.

I am so excited about this project and I can literally burst with all the ideas and inspiration I have right now.

More Mori soon :)

 



Pom - Pom Headband DIY

 

 

Today we played with pom-poms again. This time we made a pom-pom headband using one of Eva's metal ordinary old ones and some mohair poms which turned out great.

 

I think it looks fabulous for a winter "snow -queen" look :)

 

 



 



Heart Bunting and a 3D Heart - crochet pattern

 

 

 Just in time for Valentine's, I am presenting my Heart Bunting and 3D Heart. It is such an easy pattern but I worked on it for a while to get it just as I imagined it and I am quite satisfied how it turned out.

 

I am making a ton of the 3Ds because, Eva was born on Valentine's so we are going to make brooches for her girlfriends as gifts for the birthday party. And the bunting will also come in handy.

 

I am happy we started off fairly early and we are almost done  with them and that I don't have to make them until the last day!

 

The pattern is in the shop.

 

Alexandra Ivanova: Dream World

 

Today I would like to introduce an amazing jewelry designer that creates under the name Sofija Filigranska and the creative force behind it is Alexandra Ivanova, whom I had the pleasure of meeting in person.

 

When I got to know her better it was as finding my own twin in the creative world. So without further ado, here's Alexandra:

Who is Alexandra Ivanova? Tell us more about yourself.

I have been living the magic of creating new worlds with my hands for more than ten years... Abracadabra!... and there you can see the tangible joy emerging from the heart. I am enchanted by the magic myself. It surfaces before me from loads of materials and techniques.
In the beginning I started making cards that told stories of people. Those were the starting point of a whole collection of jewelry composed of clay people drawn and painted by hand. After that I studied an old silver working technique.. filigree... That was a whole new world. After that I experimented with natural stones, textiles, polymer clay and everything I could find available for work.

What is your latest collection and what influenced you to make it?
My latest collection are the dream necklaces. The motifs that appear throughout are the cities that are someone's dream, for example Paris or New York, or minutia of cities I have captured and that do not belong to a specific city, like for example my necklace showing the city with a sky in its heart.  I cannot pinpoint a certain thing that influenced me do it; it just happened - it was the moment for those images to become real through the necklaces and they made so many people happy.

Where do you look for and find inspiration?
I get inspired, if I can put it this way, when the power of visualization  materializes and becomes palpable. I thoroughly enjoy when ideas spring out of my hands, in fact I live for that moment and I believe that people recognize my joy and we share it together.  

What are the motifs that often appear in your creations?
The most applied motifs are the cities in my latest collection but they result as a portrait of a certain emotion, not just structure ... those are cities with souls.

Materials to work with. What are you favourites?
I don't have a favourite material but I've come to notice that lately I love materials that give me the possibility to drew on them  and to use colors. Everything that represents foundation for drawing is alluring to me.

What are you working on at the moment?
At the moment I am working on a collection of bow ties. The motifs of cities drawn on wooden foundation. I am completely enchanted by the moment of creation.  

Is there a technique or a style that you'd like to try and experience in the future?
Porcelain is my dream and I feel it is rushing towards me.

What are your plans for the future?
My mission all these years have been not to have free time... I want to be free all the time. And you see.. it has become reality. I enjoy my life and share the joy from it.

 

I hope you enjoyed the interview and the images of her work. If you are interested in her jewelry, Alexandra takes commissions and you can make your order here.

Winter Mori Cowls and Scarves

After waiting for more than a week for fair conditions in my household for shooting these cuties, they are finally here.

These are part of my Winter Mori Collection, and I made them having the concept of the Mori girl in mind. They all feature a different pattern and to make them stand out I have added beautiful lace ribbons and pieces.

I cannot pick a favourite  - I really can't. Each has its own attractiveness, although I am most taken by the lace on the orange cowl. My Gosh! It is breathtaking! I must use it in other projects in the future!

 

 

 

What makes these cowls and scarves great is the possibility of changing wearing styles, so they never get boring.

 

If you are interested, they are listed in the shop

 



 

Paper napkins into craft background

 

Today I made paper napkins backgrounds for shooting my jewelries or other small projects. This is something I long wanted to try mainly to preserve and keep some of my vintage paper napkins. You see, as a little girl I used to collect paper napkins. I had them well into my teen age and then gave out many to friends and younger cousins but kept some dear with me. For example the above floral napkin is about 40-50 years old and on the picture below you can see the tooth of time upon it.

For this project I used some of my old paper napkins.

 

First I ironed them on low heat to straighten up the creases, then I took a cardboard and applied craft glue on the sides only because glue makes paper napkins wet and unusable, so I wasn't risking ruining them.

 

With a tissue I wiped the excess of glue and carefully applied the napkin. This napkin is one of my newer ones and I wanted to use it whole - for larger projects. I left it aside to air dry before use.

 

 

Or you can make only little squares out of the napkins as I did with these.

 

 

 

I hope I can use them more in the future.

 

 



Pom - Pom Bouquet - how to

 

 

Hi guys! To continue my play with the pom-poms I made a bouquet. It is such an inexpensive and easy project and it also gives so much warmth and beauty as a décor.

 

This is in fact a short how-to  - not that there aren't any on the internet - but this is the way I did it. 

For the project I used fabric yarn, yarn pom-poms, plastic sticks (taken from artificial flowers - or you can use wooden sticks instead) and a liquid silicone glue. 

I applied glue on the stick and insert it deep into the pom-pom.

When you are done with the others, gather them all together, hold them tightly and at this point you may tie the sticks together before adding the fabric.

Gradually, as you work your way down, add glue on the sticks and roll the fabric around the stems.

 

 

Roll it down. Then add glue on the fabric and without cutting off the yarn, work your way up, adding another layer of fabric. Work all the way up to the base of the poms. Ant that is it!

 

A fab, eye-catching pom-pom bouquet!

 

We are quite satisfied with how it turned out and hope we can use it as a photo prop too.

Vintage Embroidered Tablecloth

Here's my vintage embroidered tablecloth I got from my MIL. It was masterfully embroidered by her mother and if you remember, I showed a sneak peek of it here.

What makes me happy is that it is in mint condition without any holes or stains, and from what I've learned, it wasn't used a lot, I cannot imagine why!

{Upper corner side}

 



 

{Lower side view}

After I took the pictures, I just sat and looked at it like mesmerized because it is really stunning. Right now I am very much into embroidered roses and actually working on a textile project involving roses I hope will turn right.

Have a lovely Friday evening!



I didn't throw it away - Blog Train Entry

 

 

 

 

This wondrous jacket is more than 40 years old. It was brought as a gift to my mother from my uncle who traveled the Orient.  

I inherited it while at the uni and I remember wearing it dearly. It was the right thing to throw on over a tee and jeans and head out. Not to mention that it had quite a stir among my friends - it was original, it was hip and it had a mysterious feel around itself.

I have kept it - as many of my mother's clothes- because of the beautiful memories I have with it, because it sparks my desire for foreign travels, explorations and adventures and keeps it aflame, because to me, it is a real treasure.  

The other thing why this is a real treasure is the craftsmanship and authenticity. You see, this jacket was made in Isfahan, Iran. Isfahan, once the capital of Persia is protected by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site and the city is also famous for its wide variety of historic monuments and is known for the paintings, architecture and history.  

 

I haven't worn this jacket for many years. It shows sings of severe wear and tear. From all the washings it's seen it lost its colors. As you can see, I tried rejuvenating it with fabric markers. I worked only the right hand (or the left as you see it here) panel just to see if it works, but I am not satisfied how it turned out so I left it until I find ink or some kind of other markers that will work on the fabric. I plan to make it fully functioning again, because I cannot describe Eva's reaction when she discovered it, neatly folded in my wardrobe.

 

So I guess the story of the jacket will repeat itself, until one day - if you know the story - we don't make a button of it :)

 

*This story was supposed to appear in "The World In My Wardrobe" Series, but apparently it was meant to appear in this blog train instead.

 

This post is part of a blog train hosted by Agatha from Green Issues by Agy on "I Didn't Throw It Away".
We have become such a throw-away society, but there are some things in our households that we still keep. Why is that so? Perhaps this blog train can unlock the reasons behind it! Follow the daily posts on this blog train and read about the stories behind the things we have kept for many years and why we didn't throw them away.

The next to participate the blog train is Stephanie of  Swoodson Says