Sunday, December 5, 2010

a distinct lack of creative genius!

You may have noticed a distinct lack of creative goodness on this blog or recent weeks.

Today I decided I had better pull finger and start on my swap goodies for the famous 5 
I decided to start by dying some cotton reels, in a bid to make them look a little old :)


they sit in a bath of walnut ink for a few hours and start to suck it all up, goody!


They dry a little lighter, but they are starting to looked aged! Yay.

Mmmmmm, now I'll need some old lace. But it looks a little too white, 


so, into a lovely coffee bath :))


And then a bit of a rub on the concrete and left to dry in the sun.
Looks pretty old now! 

I'll keep you updated on progress...

Carole :)

25 comments:

Margaret said...

Looks fab, can't wait to see what develops! Mx

Marigold Jam said...

Looks interesting!

JAne

By Hoki Quilts said...

Oh Carole I have to have a little giggle to myself whe I read how you, myself and others put so much effort into making things look old. It was only a decade or so ago when we all wanted new stuff and couldn't afford it eh?
hugs
Miche'le

Unknown said...

Where do you find big cotton reels like them?

Anonymous said...

Looks as if it is definitely worth waiting for your mojo to come back!

Numinosity said...

I think that's my default when I'm not feeling especially creative is to at least make supplies for other projects and it seems to open me back up for more involved finished projects.
A cool aging process, it's almost a tutotial, thanks!
xoxo Kim

Shabby Cottage Studio said...

The reels look like they are coming along beautifully! I love my walnut ink and coffee. And I don't even drink coffee! LOL

Jensters said...

They are so lovely but where do you get your wooden cotton reels from....i love em.

BadPenny said...

Looking good to me ... can't wait to see the Famous five together again !

LittleRed said...

Cannot wait to see your project completed! I've been running in circles here trying to sort out what needs to be done before Christmas....My son and I fly into Tauranga on the 17th for two weeks....I'll have to see if I can figure a way to journey south a bit.

Anonymous said...

Great start, I think this combination will be quite lovely when you reveal the next stage. xox Corrine

Linda Jo said...

ROFL! I love it! You are so tardy!

Dorthe said...

Carole, love the wooden spools, colored like this-they looks fantastic---and I`m sure your creations with them will ve wonderfull.
XO, Dorthe

Dotti said...

It's always nice to hear from you Carole. It's hard to juggle work, cook, keep house, and still have those creative juices flowing!

Dogwood said...

what fun. what is next?

Mari said...

Буду с нетерпением ждать Ваших работ!)
Я тоже очень люблю катушки и у меня есть несколько работ с их применением)

Unknown said...

Was the scrape on the concrete really necessary? I am surprised you also did not back over the lace with your car or have the sheep trample over it!

The coffee bath alone would have been good enough for me. :)

Debrina said...

Oh you big slacker! Ha ha. You know, it's taken me an age to get some walnut ink. I finally found it at Stampington. Where did you get yours? Please don't tell me locally. I'll scream.

Also, next time I'm in town on the weekend, I'm going to send you a text and come out to say hi and maybe play and do some show and tell?

Magpie's Mumblings said...

oooh - I love these!! Really do wish they still put thread onto wooden reels because they are getting so hard to find. Wish I could send you some of my homemade walnut ink!

~*~Patty S said...

sounds and looks like you are off to a splendid start...you have had quite a lot on your plate...partying and working and partying and so on ;)

fun catching up with you Ms Kiwi
oxo

Rhonda said...

Oh Carole, I just love coffee baths for my laces, too. At first the man of the house questioned it but it's been going on for so long now, he is over it. He realizes how it makes everything look old.

Kristin said...

OH, these are all Lovely, thanks for the inspiration :)

Fannie said...

I look forward to seeing what you do with these. Thanks for sharing. ♥♫♥

Mrs A. said...

Hello,
Iv'e blog hopped over to here from
Maureen's blog and really intrigued with what you are going to make so much so that I have become a follower.

Maggie R said...

Interesting Carole
I'm sure it will be something very special..
Merry Christmas from me to you
xoxo
((((hugs))))
Maggie