I have my work cut out today.....I am designing a flyer to hand out and to post to my eBay customers. I don't think eBay will be very happy if I message them through eBay.....so I have to write and slip a flyer in with each letter.

I have been selling on eBay for over five years so I have picked out my regular customers ....and that is a lot of letters...a lot of stamps!

I nipped around to see my post office ladies ...bought the stamps ...got stuck chatting ..now I am behind as normal.

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I have a face book page for my customers...lovely ladies who are now my friends. Caroline, who I call my mermaid lady had sent me a message reminding me that she would like yet another mermaid. She has two gorgeous daughters and has been buying my mermaids for them and herself ever since I began making them. Caroline asked me to make her a mermaid similar to one which is on my old blog...a more grown up design...more of a decoration...

This is one of my little mermaids...the way I make them now....

This is the new design for my big mermaids .....

I made and sold several of these a few years back....I printed them .....

sorry the photo is not very good...

This is the mermaid Caroline would like, I sewed on sequins and embroidered the tail...she has a more realistic bust..a quilted tail and has a string of pearls. You can see the date on the photo... 2007... Sorry the photo is awful...I had a cheap, rubbish camera. I still have the pattern I designed, so I shall make some more, but I really do not like her face.  A few adjustments here and there are needed..... 

 This is another old photo that I found on my old blog. A mermaid clock I made from mdf...I went through a wood working phase. I love to paint wooden things but it takes me to long cutting out the wood.  I nearly sliced off my thumb right through the nail using a band saw. That was enough to put me off....shame....

If I ever come back to this world....I hope I shall be a hunky... fit... carpenter....



Handmade fabric rag dolls.....

A lot of my customers say that my dolls have a retro look about them.....I suppose they do !....I drew some sketches...and decided to make a doll that looked a bit like how children draw people....I just love children's drawings...they have a way of simplifying everything..I have sold many of these, each is different. They are about 31 cm tall.....some have felt eyes sewn on with tiny stitches, but I am gradually going over to printing the faces...this adds to the retro look.  My main love is screen printing fabrics and I hope at some time to print the whole doll...I just need a bit more room in my tiny house to fit in a bigger table and use my larger screens. I print in the sun room in the summer...there is no heating out there, so some things I want to do will have to wait...

Handmade patchwork fabric lovebirds ...

These are Shabby Angel love birds....I made them in patchwork just because I love it and I thought it would make them colourful...They are 25 cm tall. Each has button eyes...a felt beak sewn on with tiny stitches and a pocket hand sewn on with a little stuffed heart . The wings have a layer of wadding in to give them some body....the feet are felt. These were quite time consuming but I enjoyed every minute...I sold three as soon as I made them....All my things are as well made as I can make them. All the things sewn on are done with very strong thread and as secure as possible...

Handmade gift...I love you...fabric cat dolls...

I was asked to make some pink I love you cats....the ones I made before Christmas were in colours suitable for boys or girls.....I sold out of them. So I have made these as I was asked and sold one to the lady who requested them....Little girls just love pink !  When I was little I wanted every thing purple...and I must admit it is still my favourite colour in any shade.

These cats are about 24 cm tall..they always seem to vary for some reason....the faces are printed and I did the words in various ways in order to make the all individual....

Handmade fabric... Ilove you... rag dolls

These little I love you dolls are by far my best selling doll....The idea came as I have so many pretty bits of material left from larger projects....Each doll is about 25 cm tall. I print the faces and use acrylic yarn as hair. I like to embellish each doll with embroidery, felt, applique and add something pretty to the hair.  I sold out of these at Christmas, not only were they sold as stocking fillers, but gifts to children and adults alike....everyone likes to know they are loved. I started making these seven years ago and selling them on ebay. Some customers buy up to five or more finding little girls like to play with many of them at once for their imaginary games.

Handmade gifts...fabric little mermaid dolls..

 At first glance some of these may look the same but everyone is different...I sold out of these on ebay over Christmas...well I sold out of everything and have been madly re-stocking ever since...these are 29cm tall...some have printed eyes, some felt that I carfully stitched on...they have a shell , starfish or something pretty in their hair....

Handmade gifts...fabric mermaid dolls..

These are my new mermaid dolls....They measure aprox.38 cm high..arm span about 22 cm as each may vary very slightly. The faces are printed and hand embroidered...I try to make each face a litle different. I use acrylic yarn for hair, and sew on something pretty . The bodies are curtain weight fabric...the fabric I use for the tails vary accordingly to what I think is mermaidish ! I stick to cotton as I like to sew it, although some fabrics I use may contain a little polyester. Each mermaid is unique...the tails have wadding in them and are quilted....

The mermaid above is sold....

Handmade gifts...fabric kittens in bags....

These are cute little kittens that have their own bag...the heads are fleece fabric, the bodies are cotton. All my dolls are filled with polyester stuffing... I buy pillows from Sainsburys which is just down the road from my house...The faces are hand embroidered.    I have put on a photo to show how the bags fit on the cat dolls.....

This cat and her kitten are sold...

Handmade gifts...perfect pink and white cat dolls...

These are my cat dolls....I have sold a great many of these...they are made from soft fleece with strong cotton fabric bodies...they are about 33 cm tall. The pattern is my own, in fact all the designs, patterns are unique and my own.I use felt buttons etc to embellish my dolls..every one is different.

Handmade gifts....cat dolls...

I either print out and sew on,or embroider a special little something.....a few meaningfull words that makes each cat or doll an extra special present for someone you care about......This one says ...You're Special...... The white heart and the ears are felt with glitter on....I spend ages choosing just the right buttons. 

I like my things to have a slightly handmade look whilst sewing everthing as perfectly as possible.

I am a trained sewing machinest and worked many years for a top upholsterer...we did upholstery for 'Cliveden House'...Lady Astor in Buckinghamshire... The fabrics we used were extreamly expencive,and I was often quite worried I would make a mistake.....The best thing though was that I got to keep the left over fabric...I still have a lot of it in the loft...Pure silk velvet...siks and embroidered fabric far too posh for my little house. Mind you although I love my fabric stash, I far prefer cotton and retro designs... 

Handmade pink fabric cat doll....

I really like the fresh colour of the fabric for this cat...I have used the same fabric as the backround on my cat tote bags....