Baking and Making

A very busy weekend this time, spent with my family. Feeling very refreshed and relaxed today. This morning I am off to the auction to see what treasures they have. I keep seeing a caravan for sale and dream about doing it up. I loved this campervan makeover on Junkaholique

This weekend I made some heart shaped scones (I don't have a round cutter!!), which were of course served with jam and clotted cream - amazing! So easy to make, here is a recipe from Delia

My sister in law got me these great vintage milk bottles with adverts on, bought in an antiques shop in East Dulwich.

I also really like old vintage sweetie jars and these mini milk bottles are really sweet

Dotcomgiftshop sell these 6 bottles for £8.95


This week I also had a play with some washi tape, I know I am completely behind the times with this, however I think it's brilliant stuff! Such a cheap way to add your own detail, my plain white jug from Ikea looked so much nicer with this patterned blue tape:

There are lots of ideas out there for Washi tape, Super Lovely have some great tutorials. I tried their idea of using Washi tape on pegs, a very simple idea but I think I will make a load of these for Christmas cards to be pegged around the house:

 

Right I must go and make some Halloween cupcakes and carve my pumpkin!

Love Lemon x

Happy Monday

Well after an extremely uneventful weekend I thought a collection of the things that make me smile were in order. A husband with work to do and a sick little boy meant no family outings, however I did manage to check out some very inspiring blogs, since starting this blog I have enjoyed discovering all the very talented people out there. So here are a few things I love.

You can't beat homemade soup and fresh bread, my favourite is mushroom

I like to add Thyme to my mushroom soup

Flowers from the garden

Charity shop treasures

This placemat for 75p is perfect for my Ikea carafe

These fabrics are so pretty, now all I need is the perfect project for them

I'm very much a beginner at crochet but I really enjoy it so I'm trying to make time to teach myself more and more and practice lots. I would love to make a family blanket to cosy up with, maybe for next winter.

This week I am hoping to make some scones, practice doing some more crochet granny squares and have a play with the Washi tape I bought recently.

What keeps you smiling?

Love Lemon x

Little Gem 22/10

I love finding a one off shop full of treasures at reasonable prices - a little gem! Through my blog I hope to introduce you to some of the places I find making this a regular feature.

This week I went to Vintage Forty Six in Wickham Market, Suffolk. It's a very lovely shop with a range of antiques including a selection of sewing boxes, lots of jewellery, kitchenware and furniture including this stunning retro piece:

Some very individual and interesting things to be found to add some vintage to your home.

An added bonus is the little cafe attached to the shop which I thought was a great idea. Homemade sandwiches, soups and cakes are served. I loved the chapel chairs and antique furniture in the cafe too and the kitchen area in the middle makes it feel very homely.

Please share any little gems of your own.

Love Lemon x

Going, going....gone!

This week has been all about vintage, retro and antiques. Lovely stuff!

I do love a teapot, I really liked the retro print one in the middle

I went along to the auction house near where I live for my first taste of an auction. The first step is to go at the weekend and have a look at everything that will be up for sale the following Monday. Everything is laid out in these huge barns and numbered. You collect a catalogue and make a note of anything you want to bid on.

The colours and design were so pretty on this dinner set

There were so many interesting things to look at: old cameras, sewing machines, typewriters, record players and lots of furniture including some lovely retro sideboards and 1940s wardrobes. So much to see; almost too much to take in really. I have always liked vintage furniture but it was lovely to see the mechanical and early electronic pieces too – none of these sleek modern pieces of plastic with their hidden mechanisms.  The Singer sewing machine was just beautiful – if only I had somewhere to put such things.

What a great old Philips record player

So. Monday came and I settled myself in front of the auctioneer's stand worried I was a bit small and might not be seen. I then suddenly became aware that any move I made might be seen and taken as a bid. I tried my best to be still and study the action around me. It was good fun to watch and all happened so quickly. When it came to items I wanted to bid for I became incredibly nervous. I tried to copy what I'd seen from the other, mostly male, auction goers around me and managed to pick up a retro formica table and two chairs for a fiver and a cute chair for my little boy! I was thrilled. I am going again next week for a much needed wardrobe.

The great thing is that every week there are different items for sale and different people bidding, so you just don't know what will take your eye and you might be up against!

Very exciting stuff and I can't wait to go back. I think my husband is worried I might spend a small fortune!

Here is the Formica table and 2 chairs I bought for just £5!

There are auction rooms across the country, why not see where your nearest one is and see what you can find. Please add your stories/auction rooms below.
Love Lemon x

My One Day to Myself....

I took this photo a few weeks ago, I love living closer to the sea

My day would go something like this....

....scrambled eggs and coffee for breakfast sitting outside one of the little restaurants in St Christophers place watching the world go by. A browse around the shops, maybe picking up some lovely haberdashery and fabric in Libertys and some vintage finds from Kingly Court.

Then head out to the Suffolk countryside, stopping at the beach to sit on the sand dunes with a picnic of parma ham, olives and crusty bread and a nice glass of red as I watch the sunshine twinkle on the sea.

Then to a country spa resort for a facial and massage and relaxing swim in the pool. Heading up to my luxury hotel room to relax with a book for an hour before ordering some steak for dinner to have while watching a film I haven't seen yet like Bridesmaids. Finished off with a nice glass of wine on the balcony looking out to the stars.


Thanks to Brit Mums for this blog prompt.

Love Lemon x

A room fit for a boy.....

I seem to see so many lovely, pretty things perfect for a little girl's room but when searching for my little boy's room I did struggle.

I like bold, bright colours and wanted the same for my little boys room – no pastels here please!

So here are some of the best bits of what I found for a fab and fun boy's room without breaking the bank and even some DIY ideas.

This chair is so very cool and great as it can be stored flat when you need it out of the way.

This can be found on the Rockett St George website, which also has these great wall transfer letters.

At just £5 a letter these could make a really fun feature wall. A cheaper option is to buy 3D cardboard letters from Hobbycraft and paint them.

Bunting can be made to order so you can keep the theme or colours going in the room, here is some I made to order for a little boy called Daniel's room, which as you can see is also personalised.

I love some of the more modern wallpaper available, which would be great for just one feature wall of fun!
These two are my absolute favourites:

Rush Hour Wallpaper

Penguin Wallpaper

Another really fun idea is to paint a wall or part of a wall with blackboard paint, which costs £11.49 for a 750ml can. You can make it look neater by just painting a shape or speech bubble or even use a frame without the glass to frame the painted area. I love this idea as it's great to be able to add areas where kids can put their own stamp on their room. The paint is also available magnetic so you can add colourful fridge magnet letters and use it to display paintings and party invitations.

Adding a moon and stars and some white shelving is another great way to break up the black wall and add even more fun!

Brilliant Lego storage that's practical and can also be stacked.

Lego Storage

I couldn't let you go without a little something vintage. Hard to get hold of and they can be a bit pricey but a vintage flip top desk is a great edition to a boy's room. Add a bright colour to update them.

Love Lemon x

 

Inspirational Packaging

I thought a lot about how to package my creations when starting Love Lemon. I didn't want anything too fussy and I wanted a handmade touch to fit with the handmade creations I was selling.

I have always loved using brown paper, so simple but there is something about 'brown paper packages tied up with string' - yes I did just quote from The Sound of Music!! It feels old fashioned and there's something about getting a brown paper package delivered to your door.

I also had the idea of Lemon slice stickers and loved the brown (paper), yellow and turquoise colours together.

Of course now Christmas is fast approaching - she says having been to the beach in glorious sunshine yesterday! It's another time to be inspired by packaging and how a few small details and added elements can make packaging look that little bit special.

I love this packaging from the delightful oh hello friend blog

 I also found these party bags made by thenewdomestic.com

The colourful fabric and pegs really work with the brown paper bags.

A great use of buttons, colourful string and cut out shapes in this packaging, so inspiring!

Here is some packaging of my own.

 

 

Brown paper and lemon stickers for my bunting, bandanna bibs (above in the little boat shapes) and T-shirts and handmade turquoise pouches with bright yellow ribbon for jewellery.

For Christmas this year I am going to add white and silver. I'm thinking snowflake cut outs, angel wings and white ribbon corsages with silver buttons.

Love Lemon x