Showing posts with label Renata Clarke Designs. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Renata Clarke Designs. Show all posts

Thursday, December 9, 2010

Vintage Finds and Christmas Drama

As it is December, on Tuesday I started to put up Christmas decorations, starting with changing my tablecloth to a Christmassy red one and stringing up tinsel around the house. My husband, being the romantic and sweet man that he is had brought me home a bunch of ten red roses the night before. Then, this weekend I'll be singing a song with my mum, and had laid the sheet music out on the table to practice...



...leads to a very dramatic looking table doesn't it? Pretty, but an oh so dramatic Christmas scene. And what would Christmas be without drama, it always seems to show up at some point.

Anyway, on to the main point of this post. A couple of weeks ago my aunty/shop lady challenged me to go on a hunt for vintage items to start contributing items other than my quilled creations to our little shop. I did so last week, and would you believe the items sold?? Being the goose that I am I neglected to actually take photos of the items before they went to the shop :s

So, given that it seems I have an eye for this vintage finding thing, yesterday I went off and did it again.



The vase full of flowers is not for sale obviously, I just thought my dramatic table was a good backdrop for the photos.



These candlesticks were actually bought in the first vintage hunt that I did, but they were in need of a good cleaning so they didn't make it to the shop last week. I also added some lovely long pink candles and tied two tiny white roses around each of the candlesticks to make them more delicate and girly.




This tiny teacup is so sweet, I'm guessing it once belonged to a children's teaset, and perhaps a teddy bear drank imaginary tea from it. It was in bad shaped but I gave it the cleaning of a lifetime and it came up just lovely.



I love etched glass, and this bowl with its little flowers was too pretty to pass up.



No one can have too many tiny vases in my opinion, and I can see this sitting on someone's windowsill with a few wild flowers sitting in it. I added the little rose to the bottom for decoration.



This little nun thinks its all such a scandal! I realise that being a religious figurine it may take just the right buyer to find her a home, but the look on her face made me giggle and I just couldn't resist her.



This little china vase is charming, and almost matches the next item...


A little china trinket box! The detail engraved on the edging is beautiful. I can see this and the vase on someone's nightstand, holding little flowers and the owner's earrings or something.



Now, while I love all of these items and look forward to seeing how they go in the shop, I must not forget my quilled items in this post. I've been meaning to post about my quilled snowflakes for over a week, and while there's little to say there is plenty to see.



They've been very popular and today I'll be busy making more. I put glitter along the edges on both sides of them, so that they sparkle in your tree. They're lots of fun to make and I think I may keep one for my tree too, they're just so pretty.



I realise that living in Australia its quite ironic to be selling snowflakes at Christmas, given I've never seen snow I am very aware. I just love the design and the look of them, they are beautiful and are good for those Christmases where you wish it wasn't 37c degrees and would much rather be rugged up by a fireplace for the day.

I think that they deserve their place on anyone's tree just for how pretty they are, and somewhere in the world it is snowing on Christmas, we can't just represent our country when we celebrate Christmas, it is a world event, so snowflakes belong on trees anywhere I say.

That's for all the stick-in-the-muds who scoff at wintery items at Christmas time. Hmmmppphhh.

I guess I did have something to say about them afterall.

Okay, I'm off to quill, have a lovely lead up to Christmas my loyal readers.

xnata

Saturday, September 11, 2010

Oh I Do Like to be Beside the Seaside

...Oh I do like to be beside the sea!

Tomorrow in our shop the theme table will be visiting the seaside!

Just imagine a table full of pretty seahorse cushions and bags and all sorts of other ocean themed items that would just love to go home with someone new!

These two cards of my creation will be there:


my whale is still with us, I don't know why, if I saw that for sale I'd snap it up - I'm going to get a memory box/photo box and make another whale to live inside it, maybe he's just too nice to be only a card, I'm not sure.


And my seahorse will be there keeping the whale company!


Lilly Cottage & Friends
in Coutts Cottage
at the Petrie Markets
Sundays from 8am to 2pm!

Look forward to seeing you!

xnata

Thursday, September 2, 2010

So Much More

If Paris themed cards aren't what you are looking for, I have much more to offer.

Baby bootie cards


Wedding dress cards - great for giving with wedding or engagement gifts


Thank you cards

And even some Dad related cards for those buying last minute Father's Day gifts.


There is more, but I'll let you come and find them for yourselves :)

If we don't see you down at Coutt's Cottage this Sunday, I hope you have a nice day with the fathers in your family, and Happy Father's Day to all daddies from me.

I love my Daddy,

xnata.

Ooh La La!

At Lilly Cottage & Friends we've got a special theme table on which we display our precious items in a different theme every week.

This week our theme is French, so I've been working on some Ooh La La items!

The Eiffel Tower with a pinky paper to compliment


A French Poodle

A tribute to the romantic city

Cute, oui?



I've always loved French, I learned it a bit in primary school and learning to speak it fluently is on my life 'to-do' list. I'll take lessons one day (when I have time), but for now I practice by learning french songs, which is lots of fun. I know quite a few now, and I'm actually starting to be able to tell you what the words mean, so that's a step in the right direction I say.

So, if you love gay Paree, come and spend a spring day at the Petrie markets with us!

C'est si bon,

xnata

Tuesday, August 10, 2010

New Poster


Just thought I'd make a quick post to show you the new poster I've made for our market stall. I've done this on two pieces of about A1 sized paper (so really big paper), and apart from the flowers and clouds this was all traced, so don't give me too much credit there. As I said I've made two of them so that we'll have one for either side of the blackboard we use at our market stall, and I coloured it all in with these cool pastel sharpies I bought ages ago and until now hadn't actually used. Now its just a matter of having them laminated and then they'll be all ready to go!



Looking at it makes me smile, I hope it does the same for everyone :)

xnata

Friday, August 6, 2010

Seahorses and Hot Air Balloons

MARKETS THIS SUNDAY!!!

Petrie Markets Sunday 8th of August
8am-2pm

That's right, its the second Sunday of the month this Sunday, so my market buddy and I will be at the Petrie Markets from 8am-2pm. I'm very busy with uni and various other life stuff at the moment so I apologise for my slack posting both last week and I'm guessing in the week that is ahead of me.

I'll be heading off to Cairns for five days on Thursday of next week, a much needed break from everything, but I promise to take pictures and have a wonderful time. But before that I'll be doing a test for one of my uni courses, cleaning this house and packing everything we need, and of course, going to the markets.

I've made thirteen cards for this market, and I won't show you all of them but here are some of the treasures to be bought by willing customers:


A happy birthday cupcake, of which I have another in purple and green.

A seahorse to keep the whale card company because it is still with us at the moment.

Some green trees for a change, because Autumn isn't the only season.

and a hot air balloon to float away in.

I've also made some flowery cards, some dragonflies and some butterflies. All good fun and pretty.

So if you like what you see there's more where that came from, I'll see you this Sunday!

xnata

Saturday, April 10, 2010

~THE BIG MAKEOVER! ~

Yes, once again the blog of Renata has shed its skin and come forth in new and brilliant colours!

Though that change is minor in comparison to others. For instance, we say goodbye and thanks for the memories to the name 'Nata's Little Place', and welcome in the new and exciting era of 'Renata Clarke Designs'. A tad more grown-up in looks and name I say.

With a new title comes a new heading picture, a photo of me taken a few years ago with my beloved pink parasole, which I have turned into a silhouette. Better, do we agree? I'm feeling this is a lot more me anyway.

I haven't been paying attention to this blog at all for months. I think the wrong name and the wrong look were throwing me off, and so I was just avoiding the place all together. In these months of ignoring my blog, I have been doing all sorts of crafty things, which I will update you on soon, lots of photos coming. I am intending to start up an etsy shop and begin selling my creations.

So stay tuned folks (assuming I haven't lost you in cyberspace thanks to the new web address :/ ), because this place is finally getting interesting.

xnata