Getting ready

What a beautiful morning it was around here. I just love waking up to the sounds of the birds and soft drizzling. Found this amazing creature yesterday and just had to share.  Isn't it gorgeous? Loads of inspiration.

So today and tomorrow are all about finishing up projects and getting ready for Saturday's event. My mind is in full whirling dervish mode. (I drive my family mad right before events. They just kinda stay out of my way in fear that I might run them over.) This morning I broke out the sewing machine to stitch one last vintage small pillow that I stuff with old fabric remnants like the old days. I pretty much so hand stitch everything, but once in awhile I like to have the extra strength that a machine stitch gives. I do enjoy hand stitching though.

I  am really happy how these turned out.

The small cloth baskets turned out very nice as well. These are great for holding both necessities and trinkets.

I hope everyone has a great weekend! I plan to share lots of photos from Farm Day in a few days.

**************************Have a beautiful day********************************

Labels and soaps and glue...oh my!

New Honey Almond lotion bars. Yum!

Whew. Just under 90 labels made and attached today. But they look gorgeous. Pictures do not do them justice! 7 beeswax soaps, 4 different lotion bars, 4 hand and body creams, and 3 kinds of lip balm.  I added a new scent called Honey Almond (completely different from the Almond & Honey already in the line) and it is amazing! Has undertones of vanilla. So good!!!



Soaps done, now time to move on to lip balms!

Looking forward to Farm Day this Saturday!

Finished!

If you are able come on by Thames Farm from 9 to 12 Saturday.
*******************Have a beautiful one*****************

Crafty days

One thing about being an artist and crafter is that there is always an abundance of handmade objects about. When I finally unleashed the artist within me about five years ago it became clear, in a hurry,  I was going to have to find a venue to sell some of my creations. (I must have been making up for lost time or something because it was just crazy around here!)

This weekend is one of my favorite venues to set up at - it's called Farm Day. One Saturday a month a local farm hosts a day to come visit and pick up some delicious grass fed meats, eggs, locally grown veggies, and peruse local artists wares. It is a wonderful day filled with seeing old friends and meeting new ones. At The Old English Barn booth there will be lots of handmade beeswax soaps, lip balms, lotion bars and of course a smattering of the different crafts made over the past couple of weeks.

Small cloth baskets to hold your little things.

I did a run through yesterday to play around with the set up and snapped a few photos. Let me know what you think. (But only if it's positive......hehe.)


I love rustic, primitive looking signs and stitchings.

***************************Have a beautiful day!****************************

A season for everything

Albino out for her morning stroll.

His beard was out before - trying to impress the ladies.

Can you see the robin on the left?

My absolute favorite season is fall. Something in me sparks alive that time of year. I can feel the change in my very being. Crisper air, cooler nights, colorful leaves (fewer spiders), and the ending of the growing season. Maybe it's because I was born in October. I just feel so much more comfortable in my skin in the fall. That being said, who doesn't love a much needed gentle spring? Here in SC, we have had a gorgeous one. And, oh! How much I appreciate it!!  (Not the spiders though.) Flowers blooming, trees coming to life, our bees gathering all the sweetness around us, and happy chickens scrounging for bugs. My heart truly feels as if it will burst sometimes for all the beauty around me in the spring. So while a part of me pines for the autumn air, I will appreciate and be glad for this season. (Will someone be sure to remind me of this post come August when I am sweltering of the heat and complaining in a corner somewhere? Thanks.)  Enjoy some photos from around the homestead this spring. And as always, have a beautiful day.

First ladybug of the season

Grape vines coming to life.

Apples!

Beautiful rose.

Unexpected gift

A few mornings ago when I opened our living room curtains, I noticed something (or some critter) dropped on me. I didn't find it and figured it was probably an ity bity spider. Than that evening I noticed a few more. Not spiders (thankfully) but something very small with long legs. So Elijah and I took a break from smooshing the critters and researched. Baby praying mantises! Everywhere! WHAT a gift!

If you don't know, praying mantis mama's will usually lay their eggs on the backside of a leaf. And there are about one hundred eggs. (Equalling one hundred baby mantises running around the house!) But what an awesome gift of insect control for the yard and especially the gardens. Since they are predatory and carnivorous there isn't much they won't eat. (Better hide the cats.) Some will actually grow large enough to eat birds, fish, lizards, and even snakes!!(See, I told you! Hide the cats!) That's actually kind of creepy if you think about it.......

                     Pretty sure this is how they got in. Hitchhiked on the back of an azalea leaf.
So now, Elijah and I are running around with mason jars trying to catch as many as possible to release in the gardens. They are quick little boogers and so cute. I have to keep reminding myself that their closest relatives are termites and cockroaches. Thank goodness they are cannibalistic.

*******************************   Have a beautiful day  *************************
                                     And be sure to watch out for those unexpected gifts.
                                                 They come in all shapes and sizes.

On pins and needles

I love waking up before the sun this time of year, don't you?  The day seems to hold so many possibilities.  And the birds?  Oh! The songs they sing at dawn. Just beautiful!

Today, I plan on learning a form of folk art called punch needle embroidery. This form of embroidery has been around since the ancient Egyptians used the bones of bird wings for their needles. (Hmmm. Think I will pass on that technique and stick to listening and enjoying their songs.) Way back in the Middle Ages they used punch needle as a means of decorating their clothing and then at some point in history, Russian immigrants  brought this form of art to America. ( The history behind these Russian immigrants is very interesting. I don't know about you, but for me, learning something, anything, that our clever and industrious forefather and mothers did for either enjoyment or sustainability  is a thrill.)  If you don't already know, the process of punch needle is very easy. Simply 'punch' the threaded needle in the fabric following your design. But when you pull the needle out you move it only slightly over and do it again, and again and again. By doing this consistently, you form small loops which becomes your design. And by adding different colors, you add depth and contrast.

I have admired punch needle folk art for a while now and am very excited to give it a try. So to start with , I will need to gather a punch needle  (funny looking thing which I hope to become very well acquainted with), lots of floss, some fabric, a hoop to hold said fabric, and of course, scissors. And a design. Hmmm.  Me thinks it would be fitting for my first project to be a bird, don't you?

Interestingly enough, I have had a vintage punch needle in my possession for the past few years - and didn't even realize it! How fitting is that?

****If you are interested in seeing some amazing punch needle folk art, visit Lori at notforgottenfarm. Her work is such an inspiration! I hope to get to visit her shop in Virginia soon.

*******************************Have a beautiful day**********************************

Come sit for a spell

I don't know about you, but I find most days my mind is going a mile a minute with my body trying to keep up.  And I do great - get all sorts of "things" accomplished. Then it happens. The crash. Sound familiar?  I have decided to try my very best to purposely take the time to stop, rest, and smell the roses. So come , join me, and sit a spell. I have plenty of spots available. 

 

 

 

Welcome to The Old English Barn! My first day blogging. Yay for me!I am as tech savvy as a rock........so please bear with me. But I figured life is too short to let the unknown hold me back in all I want to do with what precious time our heavenly Father has given me. So here I go...head first with feet flying (or flailing, can't tell yet).

I fell in love with prims about 5 years ago and quickly set about changing up our decor. With only one income (stay-at-home homeschooling mama), I realized I would need to start making what I could. Thus began my small business, The Old English Barn. Soaps, lotions, and balms joined in with the prim dolls, pillows, table runners, and smalls. Of late, I feel the need to lighten the look in our home and have gravitated to the rustic farmhouse look combined with the already established prim look. It is a VERY slow process and the living room looks quite comical at this point. But that's okay. It's a work in progress.