I was delighted to be able to join Hermione Long and 50+ others for a Pink Fizz Tea at Rogerstone today - I had a stall there, together with Stephanie Keates (descended from a line of Witney blanket-makers, so with a good textile pedigree!), who was selling her gorgeous hearts, flowers and seriously cute owls - with 25% of sales going to the two nominated charities - the A21 Campaign which works to eliminate sex-trafficking, and Newport Women's Aid, which runs the women's refuge.
I had a number of lines for sale - felt corsages, mostly made from Blue Faced Leicester wool dyed by Carole Webb of Brecon and Freyalyn in Yorkshire, and incorporating handmade lampwork beads by Doris John of Jewlls4U. I also made some of her beads into matching earrings, with sterling silver findings.
Since last year I have been knitting fingerless mittens in spare moments, and I took a few of these along too, and despite it being August I sold some!
New kid on the block was the Fabrikant Bear - entirely hand-made, from undyed BFL felt and stuffed with waste wool, with boot-button eyes and embroidered features. These collectors' bears take many hours to make - from fibre to bear - so they are only made to order - this was the first time I had taken one to a public event, and there was quite a lot of interest in him. The pic shows his little cousin - I have found the smaller size bear just too fiddly to make, so am now making a larger size, approx 10 inches tall. I need to meet some teddy bear collectors who will really appreciate these bears! The do not have safety eyes, so are not suitable as toys for children.
I will be listing some new stock in my Folksy shop over the next few weeks - check out www.fabrikant.folksy.com to see what's new.
