Button heaven

I've found some great buttons recently. Like this great sample card from the early 20th century, probably the 1920s or 30s I think, for shirt buttons.

You can imagine some salesman carrying this sample card around to tailors and dressmakers and extolling the virtures of these buttons. It's amazing if you look closely, across the top are the different qualities of buttons from clear to strong to wavy and various combinations of these sadly I don't think the photos will show up the differences.

At the bottom are the different styles of shirt buttons, all of which I have met before when making earrings and bracelets in my Vintage Collection
But don't worry this card will staying intact!

Vintage mother of pearl button and silver bracelet 

Colourful buttons
I've been rummaging in boxes at a couple of antique fairs and have managed to find some lovely vintage coloured buttons which I will use to make rings and brooches like these.

A collection of these brooches are in my shop at madebyhandonline.com

1950s button card

Buttons from the 1930s, 40s and 50s

Just my cup of tea....

I spent another afternoon in international company today! With teenage students at English in Chester from Russia and Spain we designed and painted mugs.

Just need to make sure they can make a good cuppa to go with it now!

Design in progress

The finished article!

Can you tell what it is yet??

....the Eastgate Clock, Chester

The perfect handmade souvenir of a trip to Britain

A fishy tale...

 Milk please, no sugar...oh and a scone would nice too!

Crafty afternoons in Chester

I have been running some afternoon workshops for English In Chester, a language school in Chester. Those of you who know me will know that my "other life" has been teaching English as a foreign language. (I spent 5 years living in Italy, most of it in Sicily in a place called Siracusa (beautiful crumbly architecture, blue skies, warm seas and delicious food - but that was another chapter in my life!)

Sorry I can't resist a picture now I have started thinking about it.....

Streets in the old town Ortigia, Siracusa...so lovely!

Anyhow back to the present!

This year instead of organising and running the summer school for the teenage students, and all the resposibility that entails, I have actually been able to do some art activities with them a couple of afternoons which has been great fun and they have made some lovely things.

Bangles
Last week we made bangles using wooden blanks and old magazines torn into strips and collaged on with special glue.

This student collected up comic strip style print for her bangle

Putting the final touches, a strip of paper to line the inside

T-Shirts
Today we designed and painted T shirts, using stencils that students made from scratch - and the results were pretty good for just 2 hours work!

Great result, drying off before a good iron!

What's Hot!

My new Vintage Lace jewellery is featured in the latest edition of Craft and Design magazine! Rachael Chambers, contemporary craft editor, selected work for this feature at BCTF in Harrogate earlier this year

The jewellery featured is my Fiorenza earrings, made with old Irish crochet lace, extra fine silver wire, beads and a pearl drop.

Text by Rachael Chambers



www.judithbrownjewellery.co.uk



The British Museum, London

A selection of my Vintage collection jewellery is now on sale at the British Museum in London! Including some vintage button bracelets, each one different.

You'll find it in the Grenville Room shop. I caught up with the buyer at Handmade in Britain in Bath last week and she told me it is in a glass cabinet next to a display of handmade mother of pearl boxes and some pearl jewellery. Hope I can see it when I go down to London in August, well actually, I suppose I hope it sells before then!

Beautiful Bath, lovely new makers and Handmade in Britain

The Assembly Rooms, Bath



Reflections in the Octagon



Chandelier above my stand in the Ballroom



The stunning ceilings in the Ballroom

More ceiling!

My stand - Handmade in Britain

The Assembly Rooms, Bath

 

A mix of Vintage button and Vintage Lace jewellery displayed in my old embroidery hoops

 I've just noticed how my display really coordinates with the colours of the ballroom!

Detail from my Vintage Lace collection display

New maker friends

I was opposite Deryn Relph whose work could not be more different from mine! Vibrant, bold colours, geometric retro patterns. Deryn knits fabulous lampshades, cushions and fabrics which she uses to upholster old chairs to creat something really stunning. Also a fellow fan of carrot cake and observer of "cake o'clock" !

 

I also met Emma of bagladee a twitter friend that I finally met in person. She makes lovely purses, cluthes and bags from lovely fabric. She had a lovely stand - you can see pictures of it here on her blog http://www.emma-bagladee.blogspot.com/

Finally, the most important friend of the weekend, I stayed with Sarah Hardaker, a fellow embroidery graduate. We hadn't seen each other for quite a few years, but as is always the way with real friends, the time passed melted away and it was great to catch up over Sarah's lovely homecooked food and a glass or two of wine. Sarah runs her own fabric design and print business, and a post just about her will no doubt follow soon.

Sarah Hardaker - Vintage Paisley

The Art Market, Holmfirth

On Sunday I was lucky enough to take part in the lovely Art Market in Holmfirth. Lots of friendly makers, fantastic work - from jewellery to ceramics to home accessories to paintings and sculpture.The market took place in the indoor market hall right in the centre of Holmfirth. It was light and airy and decorated with lovely bunting, not your average market!

Upstairs at the Art Market - more downstairs!

 I made some good sales and had a chance to catch up with other makers I haven't seen for a while like Helen Ashworth of Rosie's Armoire who I met about 4 years ago at an event at the Chapel Gallery in Ormskirk. Great to see how her work has moved on. She uses vintage letters to handprint on fabric and then makes them into purses and cushions, as well as upcycling old things into new. I got a lovely "memory journal" from her. It's made from pages of an old book but lots of the pages are embellished in some way. A lovely present for a friend of mine. 

Memory book from Rosie's Armoire

Inside the book

The next market is next Sunday (12th June) with a different set of makers and artists, and it will happen again in November. See www.artmarkets.co.uk for the dates.

My stand at the Art Market