Host your own high tea - Pt 1

I don't know about you, but I am a HUGE fan of luscious high tea, especially when enjoyed with good friends or family.  I am, however, NOT a fan of the exorbitant prices that most high tea venues charge.

Which is why hosting your own affordable, yet still decadent, high tea (like the women's group at my church does every year) is gaining in popularity each year.  Besides having a host of delicious recipes for finger sandwiches, scones and sweet treats, the other key ingredient to hosting a fantastic high tea is, of course, darling serving dishes!

There is nothing more fun than having a range of small trays and cake servers filled with treats on the table in front of you, each one carrying a tempting array of mini desserts and savouries.  Which is why Domum Vindemia is being restocked with a range of vintage chic cupcake servers created from orphaned porcelain crockery.  I have my favourites, which are yours?

Swizzle sticks and party tricks Jane Austen style

Just over a year ago, I introduced a range of literary cupcake toppers to Domum Vindemia.  These fun toppers come in a choice of three of Jane Austen's novels: Pride and Prejudice, Sense and Sensibility and Persuasion.  I've been thrilled to see these heart-shaped toppers gracing gorgeous cupcakes at parties, and was urged to expand the range with more party supplies.

Sooo, I have added to this whimsical range of party supplies by introducing literary swizzle sticks, perfect for adorning your favourite cocktail while discussing your faourite characters in literature!  To match the cupcake toppers, the swizzle sticks come in your choice of the three Austen novels mentioned above.  Which work would you choose, and what is your favourite cocktail?

Bespoke To Kill a Mockingbird

Some of you may remember back to two years ago when I first launched the current literature charm bracelet range, and how excited I was to show off the new range.  I am so pleased to look back over that time and see how popular this range has been in both its gold-plated and silver-plated colourways.

Today I am showing off a bespoke version of the To Kill a Mockingbird bracelet, commissioned by a customer who was interested in including Dill's name in the bracelet.  I really like this version of the bracelet and am seriously considering adding it to Two Cheeky Monkeys as an alternative to the existing design available for purchase.  What do you think?  Do you love the addition of Dill?

Peter Pan and Neverland

It has definitely been a very storybook bunting fortnight as I attempt to restock sold out buntings in between continuing to deal with my strained gluteal muscles.  (They are getting better, painfully slowly, but at least there is gradual improvement.)

This week has been all about the boy who never grows up, Peter Pan.  The Cheeky Monkeys absolutely love the Peter Pan story (and sometimes would like to never grow up too), and I'm so honoured that everyone else loves Peter Pan and my Neverland buntings so much too.

As always, I am offering longer and shorter versions of the Peter Pan bunting in-store, as well as different colourways for the bunting tape/ties.  Which version do you prefer, the longer and pennant style, or the shorter and u-shaped style?

Storybook Buntings

Now that the peaceful Easter holidays seems like a distant memory, I have been working on re-stocking Domum Vindemia with popular buntings which had sold out.  So today, I'm showing off two of my newest offerings, storybook buntings for a little one's room or play area.

Dumbo seems to be a special favourite with many customers, and Winnie the Pooh is a classic character who will also never go out of fashion.  I don't think I've created Dumbo or Winnie the Pooh buntings in these colourways before, so I'm really hoping that you all love them as much as I do!  What do you think?  Do you love more "unisex" and brightly-coloured bunting tapes, or are you more a fan of neutral and lighter colours?

A Special Spot Bunting

This past week I have been working on a special bunting order for a little boy's first birthday party, and it's been so much fun having Spot the dog illustrations floating around my work space!

I haven't been regularly stocking Spot buntings in Domum Vindemia, but the one's I've made have been so popular that I'm now planning to add them as a regular fixture to the book bunting range.  Which Spot stories would you like to see in the bunting range?

My dear, I don't give a damn

"My dear, I don't give a damn" or "Frankly my dear, I don't give a damn" - one quote comes from Margaret Mitchell's novel and the other comes from the film version of said southern novel.  But whichever version of the quote you're a fan of, you're going to love entertaining with our new Gone With the Wind wine glass charms!  Which character would you choose for your wine glass?

More English Literature

Thank you everyone for your well wishes this past week!  I am pretty much back to normal now, and raring to go with several plans I had temporarily put on hold.  Today I am showing off a few new creations which feature classic English literature from the late Victorian and Edwardian eras.

The first is a set of wine glass charms featuring some of my favourite characters from Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes stories.  Like many, I loved Doyle's quirky detective before he became even more popular thanks to Robert Downey Jr's and Benedict Cumberbatch's film and TV portrayals of one of the most famous detectives in literature.

The second is a set of charms featuring the sweet, funny and naughty animals from Kenneth Grahame's The Wind in the Willows.  I recently took the Cheeky Monkeys to see The Australian Shakespeare Company's production of Grahame's most famous work, and it inspired me to include its characters in Domum Vindemia's more popular designs (you can currently find Mole, Toad, Rat and friends in our magnet sets and wine charm sets).  Which set is your favourite?

Hey, Boo

A quick post today, as I am recovering from a small surgical procedure I had done on Valentine's day (oh so romantic to have Mr Cheeky Monkeys driving me to hospital at the crack of dawn and then picking me up all groggy and out of it from anaesthesia).  To distract myself from the yuckiness of recovery, even if it is just from a minor day procedure, I'm sharing a fun To Kill a Mockingbird creation I was working on last week.

"Hey, Boo" is one of the cutest lines in the whole novel, and I finally found the opportunity to add this sweet quote to Two Cheeky Monkeys.  For those of you who have been following this blog since its start, you'll know that my watch necklace creations have evolved over the years, starting as merely vintage-inspired creations and gradually changing to become literature-themed pieces which still embody the vintage look.  So, what do you think of my latest addition to the range?

9 Ways to Upcycle Paint Card Samples

So the summer school holidays are well and truly over here in Australia, but I wanted to share some fun tutorials I found for creating with paint card samples (or paint chip samples as you North Americans like to call them).  For those of you asking why one would need to upcycle paint cards, then you need to know that it is almost impossible to enter a hardware chain store (such as Bunnings Warehouse) without the Cheeky Monkeys grabbing a handful of pretty-coloured paint card samples.

I got sick of their growing piles of paint cards, so I suggested that they put those cards to good use instead.  Here are nine of their favourite tutorials for upcycling those paint cards.

1. These orbs make for fun decorations on a desk.

2. Paint card mosaics make great artworks as well as greeting cards and scrapbooking embellishments.

3. The Cheeky Monkeys' favourite way of upcycling their paint cards - bookmarks!

4. Adorn baby's nursery with a cheap but pretty paint card mobile.

5. Make adorable little boxes out of paint cards.

6. Fun gift packaging makes any present even better!

7. If you're lucky enough to own a spiral binder, turn your paint card samples into notepads.

8. My personal favourite, multicoloured artwork made from paint card shapes.

9. You don't have to leave the paint cards as is, use them as a base for embellishing and collaging in these handmade notebooks.

DIY Upcycled Christmas

Today I'm sharing a roundup of sweet Christmas ornament tutorials all upcycled from the various odds and ends that tend to collect in one's home (especially if you're a hoarder of craft supplies).  These ornaments are fun for decorating your tree or adding as toppers on your Christmas gifts.  Enjoy!

1. A fun Christmas tree made from tiny thread spools.

2. Turn an incomplete Scrabble set into word ornaments!

3. Turn plastic bottle rings, old jewellery and fabric scraps into beautiful ornaments.

4. Why create more land fill when you can turn old lightbulbs into a variety of ornaments!

5. Add a family photo and pretty paper and your old lid is now a Christmas keepsake.

6. Stash bust your button collection and create darling Christmas tree ornaments.

Tote bags from bed sheets

A very quick post today whilst I am revelling in the back to school freedom (I say freedom, but really, I spend all my time washing uniforms and making lunches now; it's easier in many ways not to have the Monkeys at school).  A little while back I received a commission to create tote bags out of vintage Voltron bedlinen, a challenge I found intriguing and accepted.  These are now finished and are about to head off to my friend and customer, a mad keen Voltron fan.  She will be then sending these off as thank you gifts to those who have been reviewing her Voltron fan fiction writings.  What a fun idea!

A very special music-themed order

I know, I know, Christmas has only just passed and we still have the new year to ring in with celebrations.  And I am technically still on holiday.  Buuuuuttt...I have been slowly working on some non-rush orders for lovely friends and family members.

One of those orders is for my cousin who has probably studied music the longest out of all of us cousins.  She wanted little gifts she could give to her music students and commissioned several creations which I have not previously stocked in Two Cheeky Monkeys.

The musical clef cufflinks have been a popular addition to my stores, with several already heading off as gifts to music teachers and musicians.  However, the cute musical note collar pins are a completely new design.  I am loving their fun small size, and am seriously thinking of adding these to my store.

Another new design is the musical hair pins/bobby pins.  I will be adding this design to my store for sure, and customers will have their choice of treble clef, bass clef or musical note variations.  What do you think - would your favourite musician or music teacher love one of these?

Sweet Dreams Dreamcatchers

With Christmas approaching, I have finally gotten round to realising yet another creative idea which has been floating around in my overcrowded imagination.  I've been making vintage embroidery hoop ornaments for a few years now, and they have been popular with those who love shabby chic decor.  With my love of doilies continuing as strongly as ever, I have been thinking of making a new range of hoop ornaments based solely on doilies.

And now, I am thrilled to announce that there IS a new range of ornaments!  Yes, they're created with vintage doilies.  But I've also followed the current trend for dreamcatchers and added strands of vintage lace, ribbons and ric rac to the bottom of each hoop.  I think my latest creations are adorable, and would make fun ornaments on a large Christmas tree, or a be a sweet hanging over a little one's bed or your loved one's desk.  These are just two of the dreamcatchers I've created so far, what do you think?

Tutorial Roundup: Upcycling vintage thread spools

After spending a day or two researching tutorials for wooden spool bouquets (for Monkey #1's birthday party), I found a tonne of wooden spool-related tutorials which looked delightful.  So much so, that I have a list so long of the ones I want to create, it will probably take me the rest of the year!  I've put together a short list of my favourite DIYs for you to enjoy and entertain any little people you have running around this school holidays.  Enjoy!

1. Button bouquets by Bella Dia
2. Photo holder by Stampington & Company 
3. Christmas ornaments by Blackberry House 
4. Summer fruit spools by i heart naptime 
5. Liberty of London spools by Tea Rose Home 
6. Christmas tree by The Creative Patch

Upcycling Roundup: Denim Rugs

As my close friends and family know, I love a good picnic with perfect weather and a beautiful location.  Spring is usually my ideal time of year to go on picnics, so now that Spring is officially here in Melbourne, I have been trawling the internet for fun picnic ideas.  I am currently enamoured of upcycled denim jeans rugs, so today I have a roundup of great tutorials, each showing you how to make a variation of a jeans rug.  And the best part?  You're being eco-aware by recycling old jeans, AND you get a sturdy and fun blanket/rug to boot!

1. DIY denim patchwork quilt

2. Blue jeans quilt

3. Easiest denim quilt

4. Denim picnic blanket

5. Denim triangle quilt

6. Checkered picnic blanket

Musical Creations

While the two cheeky monkeys were preparing for their annual piano recital last week, I was inspired to expand on my range of music-themed creations for Two Cheeky Monkeys and Domum Vindemia.  The first is a set of asymmetrical musical clef cufflinks perfect for your favourite musician or rockstar wannabe.  Customers who prefer a symmetrical look can choose to have two treble clef or two bass clef links made for them instead.

The other item I managed to make (before catching the monkeys' rhinitis germs) was a book clip featuring both a treble and a bass clef.  This piece was made with the monkeys' piano teacher in mind, and I think the prototype bookmark will go to her as an end of year thank you gift later this year.  What do you think?  Which creation do you prefer?  And who would you give them to???

Rescuing Battered Old Classics for Book Buntings

 

As I promised earlier in the week, this has been a book-heavy week of blog posts!  The theme continues today with an exciting new lot of Little Golden Book and classic children's storybook buntings.  I was fortunate enough to resuce these children's literature classics last week and quickly turned them into my much loved book buntings.

Old May Gibbs' books are hard to find, so my May Gibbs buntings are always snapped up very quickly when they make an appearance in my stores.  Bible story buntings are also popular and, I think, a great way to celebrate your little one's favourite story from the Bible.

But this final bunting is one about which I am VERY excited.  Although the Lassie books and original television series were before my time, one can't help but immediately recognise such an animal icon.  And I hope that my customers will be as excited about Lassie buntings as I am.  So let me ask you, which classic literary icon would you like to see commemorated in a bunting?

Happy dancing for the vintage ladies locket range!

I am having so much fun this week with my literature-themed posts!  Today I am proudly sharing a sneaky peek of new additions to my literature locket necklace range.  I was recently thrilled to find a set of vintage lockets with vintage cameos of ladies attached to the front of them and knew that I had to include them in my designs.

The elegant look of the raw brass lockets and their Victorian era ladies inspired me to add wire-wrapped freshwater pearls to the necklace chain.  I love working with both faux and real pearls, and it's always satisfying to be able to add them to my designs, be it in a traditional or more contemporary fashion.  At the moment I have only made up a Mr Darcy and Elizabeth Bennet necklace design, but will soon be creating Jane Eyre/Mr Rochester necklaces as well as Wuthering Heights necklaces.

Once all of the new designs have been made up, I will be adding these new additions to both my Etsy and Madeit stores.  I can't wait to show off the other two necklaces - which would you choose?  And as usual, if you are just dying to own one of these limited edition necklaces before I release them to the general public, please message me to pre-order your necklace and guarantee that you will become the proud owner of one of them.

Customised Jane Eyre Magnets

I was recently commissioned to make a special set of Jane Eyre magnets by a customer who was playing the role of Jane in a theatrical adaptation of Charlotte Bronte's beloved novel.  The play's run was coming to a close and she wanted to give each cast member a magnet featuring their character's name as an end of production gift.

I thought this was such a clever gift idea and was quietly pleased to be able to make magnets of characters which, while essential to the story, are not the main or popular characters which customers usually request.  I enjoyed putting this set together and hope that the magnets will be a fun reminder of each actor's time in the production!