A Cornish Chill....

Hello my lovelies!

How are you all doing?

Today sees me back at the computer,
back in normal mode
back home here in the Fens...

For the past couple of weeks Mr T and myself have been investigating 

the gorgeous delights of southern Cornwall, right at the very end of 

civilization as we know it, here in the UK!

What do I mean by that?

Well, simply put, we have been holidaying amongst the

most rural part of our little island in amongst the

granite and moss, walking in amongst the wildflowers and

hedgerow lanes.

It doesn't sound alot really does it?

For us though, it was a holiday of a lifetime.

Following Mr T's diagnosis of cancer four years ago and then secondary cancer last year meant we haven't had a 'proper' switch off holiday in four years; and even more poignantly for us, we weren't really sure we ever really would have again...

Cornwall stole our hearts a few years ago and it was Cornwall that took us in her arms

to soothe our worried souls when we first received the diagnosis four years ago.

Naturally, it seemed the perfect place to return to in order to 

recover a little from last year's journey....

Our intention was to do nothing...

but for anyone who knows this part of our island, that's not easy when 

 there is simply too much

history and natural beauty for an old Fen bird like me to ignore!

We stayed as far south of Cornwall as you can get,

 amongst the ruggedness of an ancient moorland that holds 

some of the most beautiful tales and stories.

Sadly, it also holds tales of  the sad reality of an immense hardship 

from an industrial mining area many Cornish folks had to endure..
I think coming from the Fens, I could totally relate to the community comradeship
that many families took as normal life.

Everyone associates this area with the romantic view of Poldark now but visiting many of the small hamlets and villages and tuning in to the history of 'Kernow' (Cornwall)

you really couldn't be further from the truth if you tried.
The average life span for a miner back in the 19th century was only 39 years if he was lucky.
Most children worked in the mines from the age of 10 and then were sacked at 16 so owners didn't have to pay an adult wage.
Their stories write our history and like many tales from our past, sadly
it is not a way of life many of us these days are happy to hear about and yet
we all have a connection to these memories in some way or another.

Southern Cornwall makes no apology for their style of tourism.

What you see is what you get!

There are no fancy frills, no twee bunting like in many Cornish hotspots.

You are greeted with an attitude of 'this is us, take it or leave it' 

which as a Fen 'gal I quite like!

Of course there are some absolutely beautiful gems to be found if you only search for them...

These three-cornered leeks were everywhere and I fell in love with them!

Aren't they the most adorable little gems?

Their stems are what they say...three-cornered!

Little Cornish booties dancing in the breeze...

 

In amongst the down time of not walking, photographing or exploring,

I loved investigating the flora and fauna of the Cornish hedgerows around us.

Colour was simply everywhere.

May is definitely a beautiful time of year to see her sparkle.

And the added bonus of course to that is that there is so much inspiration 

for my little doodles and designs....

It was absolutely beautiful to sit in the Cornish sunshine watching the wildlife chatter about me

whilst I captured the sights around me...

I felt like Beatrix Potter with the bunnies skipping in the buttercup meadow!

I've always loved Beatrix but spending two weeks studying bunnies I have a new found admiration for her.

Why?

Well, she didn't rely on taking snaps with her camera or mobile as we do today.

She relied solely on her ability to observe, for what must've been absolutely hours, to then follow with sketches in order to draw her illustrations.

Amazing...

There is way too much to write about Cornwall in one post so I've leave that for another day.

In the meantime, here is a little snippet of few Cornish memories...

Wildflowers, granite tors, azure seas,

art & design, a new language, Living Stones,

ancient history, Cream Teas,ever-changing skies,

ferns, harbours, sunsets, meandering lanes leading nowhere,

Colour, vintage gems, an old way of life,

calmness...

If you've never explored this part of the British Isles, 

I thoroughly recommend you give it a go...

I will post more pics on my Facebook page so do pop by...

In the meantime

I'll say toodle-ooh for now!

Ally Pally Crafting for our Well-Being

Good morning my lovelies!

How are we all?

Today is a lazy daisy kinda day after spending last week working my little socks off at

the most amazing 'Knitting & Stitch Show' at Ally Pally in London.

I had the most A-maz-ing week surrounded by cloth, thread, yarn, embellishments,

vintage gorgeousness, and even handmade chocolates!

I've been in crafty heaven to say the least............

BUT

Do you know what really made me smile?

The daily taxi ride to Ally Pally through the back streets of London looking at the beautiful Edwardian architecture maybe?

The fabulous Indian restaurant I managed to discover?

The fantastic  plethora of wonderful inspiration on offer from so many talented people?

No.

The answer lies in human compassion...

Whilst at Ally Pally I have been overwhelmed by the beautiful warmth and kindness generously gifted towards me whilst demoing free motion embroidery on the Create & Craft TV stand

Your words and comforting smiles have all made me feel so humble in knowing how you feel I am able to offer you all a little inspiration and help with tips & techniques at times...

You've all shared your stories, your projects and your crafting worries and it has been lovely.

As you all know I am a textile artist who also appears as a guest presenter on TV at times.

Crafting for me is completely all about well-being, friendship and a gentle sharing of skills.

I know for many peeps crafting is often the only little ray of sunshine that helps to keep 

them smiling at times.

And I know through personal  experience when my husband was undergoing chemo treatment for bowel cancer, that sometimes you just need something like some gentle slow stitching, the hum of a sewing machine or the rhythmn of a pair of knitting needles to help to take you away from the harsh reality of life into a warm gentle happiness if only for a few minutes.

I am blessed to be in a very fortunate position of doing a job I absolutely adore and being able to walk my way through life in a gentle way sharing skills with so many others through crafting.

Hearing from so many of you; your stitching tales, your yarn rambles or your thread journeys and how they help to make up your own life's patchwork has been so inspirational and hugely rewarding.

Life often brings you riches in a variety of ways and sometimes not in a financial way.

You just have to decide what you consider is actually valuable in life...

A huge thank you for all of you who took the time and trouble to come and say hello.

Toodle-ooh -for-now folks!

Changing The Tide...

Hello my lovelies!

Gosh what a long time since we last met....

I really must apologize for my quietness of late!

I don't think I'll ever receive 'Blogger Of The Year Award' but be assured I am back in the saddle as they say and ready to face those dark evenings of Autumn & Winter with great gusto...

and lots of my little ramblings to hopefully cheer you all!

So where were we?

Ah yes....

The last time we met I was busily chatting about letting crafts into your life and helping to rest your weary souls from the toil of our busy lifestyles...

It has been so fabulous to catch up with all your gorgeous makes in my weekly

Friday Showcase over on my Facebook page.

Crafting at all levels bring joy to so many people in so many ways...

gifts, treasured heirlooms, designs, small businesses, personalised items etc

It has been a joy to hear you all sharing your thoughts and helping each other to continue with your designs!

For those wanting to join in with our weekly get together simply click here for more details

~~~~~~~~~~

Sadly our summer of sunshine bliss has nearly left us and the golden hues of Autumn are beginning to slowly emerge...

Moving forward to those darker evenings I've already mentioned above, I am going to focus in a little more on some basic tutorials via my YouTube Channel.

You can subscribe here 

I only have a few videos at the moment but watch this space folks for some more inspiration!

I shall be covering a variety of techniques including crochet, sewing, patchwork and much more.

I do hope you will join me...

I know so many of you lovelies would love to visit my workshop and live so far away so 

hopefully this will be the next best thing!

In the meantime you can catch me on Create & Craft TV offering my little ramblings amongst the stash of fabric and yarns....

Do say hello and send in your queries and I will try and help in any way I can!

Well my lovelies, I'm off to enjoy a much needed cuppa now and share a catch up gossip with the delicate butterflies in my garden whilst I still have some sunshine to savour.

Wishing you all a beautiful day...

Keep your comments coming in folks...

Toodle-ooh for now my lovelies!

Tilly

xxx

Keep Calm and Carry On....

Hello my lovelies!

I hope you don't mind but I'm offering something a little different today...

It's taken me a very long time to consider whether to write this post but hopefully you'll understand the reasons to why I have?
Earlier this week I received the best news ever..

Two little words....

"all clear"

*****

A year ago my world turned upside down, inside out and completely off balance when my hubby was diagnosed with bowel cancer.

For a year since, our lives have been on autopilot, both for different reasons... hubby to face all the treatment thrown at him and me because I was the stable one in the equation as often us ladies are...

Every one has their own set of troubles lurking behind the smiles we all offer to each and every one we meet each day...

Some people are very vocal and will tell all and others like myself are very quiet and just get on with things in a stoic true British spirit.

So why am I telling all now?

I want to let everyone know how crafting is so very good for keeping you grounded when all is not stable at sea...

I have crafted since a young child.

It is part of me.

I learnt a long time ago that

I need to dabble each and every day to keep my soul singing...

Up until the diagnosis I had been running my own workshops, craft sessions, offering 1:1 lessons and supporting local schools.

Eventually I have had to put all of that on hold.

My priorities lay elsewhere. 

The same week we found out about my hubby I was contacted by Create & Craft TV to attend a screen test with the view to becoming a Guest Presenter.

Complete pants for timing!

Despite the many pleas from family and friends especially hubby, I put it on hold until eventually I caved in and agreed to give it a go... 

I continued to sit for hours and hours looking at sterile hospital clinic decor whilst accompanying hubby during his chemo sessions and re-designed in my mind each and every corridor Tilly Rose style!

After I had read every crumpled old magazine provided and tackled many books on my Kindle, I decided I needed to take action.

I started to fill my little wicker basket with a riot of colour threads, needles, various fabrics and loads of embellishments. 

I soon began to get a reputation as 'the lady with the basket'!

For every hour spent sitting in hospital armchairs I stitched my little heart away!

I needed to stay in a happy place for part of my day despite the surroundings.

I'm a firm believer in creativity being so good for the soul...

Nurses began to show an interest in my projects, other patients asked questions on how to do something and I even managed to show a young girl how to start embroidering whilst waiting for her Nan!

After hubby's chemo, we faced major surgery, followed by many sudden dashes in ambulances to our local casualty unit never knowing the outcome

Each and every time my little basket accompanied me with some crafty delight nestling inside to keep me busy.

Whilst all of this was carrying on I had started guest presenting..... to say I was a bag of nerves the first time doesn't even hit the mark!

But I persevered, trying to inspire others to 'give it a go' hoping I would eventually work out what to say at the right time and look in the right direction at the right time!

(not sure I'll ever look the professional!!)

Roll on a year...

With the wonderful news that hubby is now 'all clear' we can now look forward....

The reason for this post?

It is simply to say...

"Walk Your Life Towards Well-Being"

Allow creativity in your heart and you will always have a smile

Tilly

xxx

Fun in a Doncaster Marquee!

Hello lovelies!

Wow...what a lovely weekend!

I have just returned from a weekend in Doncaster FULL of crafty loveliness!

I've been surrounded by fabric, threads, buttons, different yarns, shiny gems, stamps and so much more... in fact I have been in craft heaven (if there ever was such a thing!)

It was so busy but I did manage to have a quick look around before anyone arrived which was a real treat!

I thought you might like a quick nosey?

This was my first actual major event with thousands of people all wanting to say hello!

I was doing a 'Make & Take' workshop for 100 people as part of Summer Crafts at Doncaster.

The event was organised by Create & Craft TV.

It was wonderful to have the racecourse all to myself (well several hundred as well) early in the morning...

I felt I was trespassing as it was SO quiet.

The sun was so hot even at 8am in the morning but that didn't dull my enthusiasm 

( I don't like the heat at all)

It was the first year that Summer Crafts have ventured into offering customers fabric, haberdashery and yarns as a tester.

The crowds just LOVED it!

So many people said how much they loved the crossover from paper crafting with sewing which is music to my ears....

Sewing is no longer JUST dressmaking or home decor.

Mixed media is becoming very popular as well as collage work and introducing sewing into making cards and scrap booking.

My 'Make & Take' table was offering crafters the opportunity to make a gorgeous vintage heart corsage Tilly Rose style...

Was I nervous?

Well yes I have to say, just a wee bit.... but boy did I have FUN!

I really wasn't sure what to expect...

So many lovely people took the time and trouble to come and find me to say hello and tell me how much they've enjoyed my TV shows which was just lovely.

The night before, I had actually said to Mr T. "what if no-one wants to visit my table?"

I do worry sometimes!

Needless to say I was a very happy bunny when some lovely ladies turned up!

It was fab to see a variety of ages, abilities, a mixture of friends, family and different generations all sharing a love of  being creative... and all leaving with happy smiles :)

So many hearts were sewn!!!

Everyone had the same kit to start with and yet we had 100 different variations...

how wonderful.

I met so many lovely peeps during the event and made loads of new crafty friends.

I am so very lucky to be able to 'work' doing what I love and to be able to share this with everyone over the weekend was simply bliss for me...

A very BIG thank you to you all for making my first show a success!

Here's to next year....

Tilly

xxx