Summer's here at last! It's such an inspiring time, isn't it?

Summer’s here at last! It’s such an inspiring time, isn’t it?


We’ve been enjoying blue skies and beautiful weather here – and the garden is blooming.
After I’ve dropped the children off at school, I like to come back to my garden and potter with a cup of coffee. Feeling the sun on my face, listening to the hum of bees and breathing in the warm scents of summer – it’s so calming and gives me a wonderful sense of purpose for the day ahead. After a session in the studio, it’s also the perfect spot to catch the last of the day’s rays – preferably with a glass of something delicious in my hand!

Meanwhile, pirates have taken over the studio! Our classic pirate ship design is back with new fabrics and a very special personalised twist. Choose a name and I’ll embroider it on my handmade and appliquéd cushions, laundry bags and framed pictures. I’m particularly excited about the pictures – they’re my first foray into appliqued and embroidered textile art and I know you’ll love them as much as I do.

Pirate ship collection

Each of our pirate designs combines denim, ticking stripes and spots – they’re the perfect gift for the little adventurer in your life. I’m currently developing this design into a printed fabric, so keep your eyes peeled for more exciting new products!

This month I’m also feeling inspired by my recent adventures with my family on the North Norfolk coast. The sun shone and it was even warm enough for the youngest member of our team to have a little paddle in the sea! The Norfolk coast is about big blue skies, pale sand and little beach huts. No trip is complete without a visit to Cromer to do a spot of crabbing. Did we catch any? Sadly not, but a great time was still had by all!

 











Now, it might sound a little crazy, but I’ve also been thinking about Christmas. Yes, that’s right, Christmas in June! In the world of design, we’re always thinking ahead. And I’m so excited about what I’ve got planned. I’ll be launching my very first Christmas fabric! 
As well as beautiful textiles, my design will also feature on kitchen products, cards and gift-wrap. Exciting, right?


Now, let’s make a swift return to summer time! As you know, I hand make everything in my studio. I thought you might like a peek inside my day. Here’s a little video, showing part of the process of making the new pirate range. I hope you enjoy this little glimpse into life at the studio!

I’d love to hear about what’s been inspiring you this month!

Sunshine and pretty flowers

Today has been all about taking some photos of products and picking flowers from the garden.

I try to take pictures of all the orders that I make, sometimes it's just a snapshot for my reference and others, like today it, it was a style shoot as an order was in a different colourway to what I normally do.

wedding table tags available from www.elmtreestudio.co.uk

I love to see flowers picked from the garden put into jam jars and milk bottles, as I find that garden flowers often have short stems and my vases are all quite large.

I like to "pretty up" my containers with scrapes of linen, lace, ribbon and vintage style letter stamps. It's so simple to do, I just fix the ribbon or whatever I'm using with some double sided tape to keep everything in place. If I'm using fabric scraps, simply iron a hem (no need to sew)to make a neat edge. Layer ribbon or lace over the top and fix again with tape.

The small glass bottle (which we found when digging the foundations of our new home!) has some linen ribbon and pink ricrac wrapped around. 

Now my home is filled with the heady scent of lilacs, my favorite flower... I will be sad to leave this behind when we move, but an excuse for buying some more, one of which I will plant near the kitchen window to allow the scent to billow through.

I must admit that most of the flowers in my garden are pinks and lilacs.....

Allium holladicum, lilac superba, aquilegia vulgaris, aquilegia winky , geranium sanguineum

But then there are splashes of blue....

Forget-me-nots

And orange.....

These zesty orange poppies give a fantastic pop of colour

And of course, daisy's, a must for teaching Chloe the joys of making daisy chains.....

Daisy, daisy.....