Petal & Pins
Month: June, 2014
June 26, 2014
The Fairy Cordwainer’s Wares
Garden Fairy’s boots © Sandra Alcorn 2014
Garden Fairy’s shoes © Sandra Alcorn 2014
June 23, 2014
Foxtails & Foliage
On Friday I finally got around to playing with the bunch of foxtail grass I picked on my east coast sojourn. I’m sure you can guess what I wanted to create with them for my Garden Fairy’s Wardrobe!
They were more difficult to work with than I had imagined as they kept moving each time I tried to place another.
After mixed success I chose to do a bit of flower arranging instead.
Cathy from Rambling in The Garden‘s ‘In a Vase on Monday’ meme has prompted me to take the time to do so more regularly.
I find Seed Flora’s photos on Facebook inspiring – they are the team behind the spectacular David Jones Spring Flower Show which I posted about last Spring.
Their voluptuous and oversized arrangements with interesting and exotic mixes of foliage show you don’t need lots of flowers to create impact. But have a look at what they do with roses too it will make you swoon.
This was my Fridays arrangement. I have started keeping a few interesting shaped branches as they can come in handy when wanting to add some height.
© Sandra Alcorn 2014
On Saturday we had friends coming for dinner so I decided to do 3 more arrangements and I was pleased with what I could pull together from the winter offerings of my garden.
© Sandra Alcorn 2014
© Sandra Alcorn 2014
© Sandra Alcorn 2014
My Garden Fairy might need to wait for some alternative inspiration for a faux fur coat but she did get a stole and I think she would have been happy with that for her Winter Solstice celebrations.
© Sandra Alcorn 2014
And I’m looking forward to the longer daylight hours the solstice brings.
June 18, 2014
Parisienne Opticien
Two years ago in Paris I bought myself some lafont sunglasses.
The sales assistant popped my details in their database (one is allowed to at least dream of getting back one day).
Since then a lovely surprise has continued to drop into my letterbox.
Seasonly inspired postcards from Paris – marketing yes but also a lovely reminder of my holiday!
I love the illustrations and another just arrived today. The stamp is pretty too.
The lafont postcard will find a home in one of my empty macaron boxes along with the others and my elf.
Yes you read correctly – my very own elf! – it too arrived in my letterbox.
Read about it here.
June 13, 2014
Garden Fairy Found In Montauk
A month ago Lee from Fort Pond Native Plants in Montauk New York contacted me. The garden centre has a shop and gallery and she was interested in my Garden Fairy’s Wardrobe!
So I am excited to tell you that they now stock a range of my notecard sets and individual cards.
© Sandra Alcorn 2013
Being half a world away I have had to be content with only looking at photos of their wonderful nursery but I instantly knew if I lived locally I would be a frequent visitor.
Fort Pond Native Plants 26 South Embassy St Montauk, New York
tulip bulbs at Fort Pond Native Plants
Beautiful plants, interesting garden themed gifts and books, landscaping services, classes…oh and some cute resident dogs!
Perhaps Montauk New York is your neighbourhood or close enough to visit – I’d love to hear if it is and I hope you’ll be tempted to buy some of my Garden Fairy’s Wardrobe cards from Fort Pond Native Plants.
© Sandra Alcorn 2014
The cards are blank inside for your own message, greeting or using for invitations. And they look great framed too!
Collection Sets (5 notecards + envelopes) include –
Verde, Haute Couture, boho, Passion and Garden Party.
‘Ode to Chanel’ is a trio of cards.
If you can’t get to Montauk you can visit my Petal & Pins etsy store.
Wholesale enquiries welcome.
Fort Pond Native Plants images used with their permission – thank you Lee!
June 12, 2014
An Imaginary Journey
© Sandra Alcorn 2014
Last winter playing with scraps from something I was cutting out I made this felted wool ‘flower’. This morning I stitched a safety pin on the back to adorn my vintage coat lapel.
When I returned from walking Mademoiselle Agnes I decided to create a vignette.
© Sandra Alcorn 2014
With a posie of bergenias, daisies and ivy.
© Sandra Alcorn 2014
A scarf I made decorated with vintage buttons.
© Sandra Alcorn 2014
Some old suitcases and my ruffle trimmed umbrella.
© Sandra Alcorn 2014
An Imaginary Journey.
What is the destination? Who are the flowers for?
Perhaps it might inspire a story from the writers amongst you!
June 6, 2014
Fashion & Favourites
I smiled when I saw this design from the Oscar De La Renta Spring/Summer 2014 collection as it reminded me of my Garden Fairy’s Wardrobe dress that I created for my very first Petal & Pins post in September 2012 .
The Oscar De La Renta dress is made from crushed pleated silk taffeta and tulle, my Fairy’s dress was made from a peony flower!
The big voluptuous blooms of the tree peony are a favourite of mine and I’m lucky they were a favourite of a previous owner of my garden who long ago planted two.
That’s the thing with favourites you keep coming back to them or you want more – choosing the same dish at a favourite restaurant, revisiting a holiday destination or wearing some things from your wardrobe more often than others.
Sometimes fashion labels repeat a popular style in a different fabric or colour the following season, I certainly do that for some of my clients and I have done that here for my Garden Fairy’s Wardrobe – recreating my peony dress with roses.
© Sandra Alcorn 2014
June 4, 2014
The Writing On The Wall
Chanel store window Melbourne © Sandra Alcorn 2014
“To be irreplaceable you must be different” Coco Chanel
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