Loving the vintage vibe!

Here's where I'll share my obsession with vintage fabric! It's taking over my house!

I'll sharing with you my favorite fabrics, my 'adventures" in dressmaking using vintage patterns, some home furnishing ideas and no doubt I'll be telling you about any exciting finds! Love to hear about your vintage adventures too!

My first Shop was AudreysCat ( online shop May 2010) , but my new logo / name - WittyDawn , arrived Jan 2014.

I hope you'll have time to browse my shops too !

Saturday 5 November 2016

VINTAGE HEAVEN 12th Nov 2016 !!! at Cirencester in the Cotswolds

Once again I have a stall at Vintage Heaven!!!

It is pretty much the only event I do because it is EASILY the best round here.

Why ?

- It's for two great charities - Paternoster School in Cirencester and JDRF( the type 1 diabetes charity)
- It is a STRICTLY vintage and eco charity - no new stock allowed unless from a eco or freetrade source, and the organisers do ask stallholders to remove anything that doesn't stock to this standard
- It has a fabulous selection of stalls with great items and lovely stallholders
 - It is at a super venue, there is a fabulous café and a beautifully stocked organic shop.

.... and my friend Emma organises it and it is just down the road from me , we visit this café/shop regularly.

This was all  my stall last year





It's just outside Cirencester and all the details are at Vintage Heaven at The Organic Farm Shop



I'm also taking lots of vintage fabric 'y things , crockery and small furniture items - now I do hope there won't be any bickering over this sweet sewing box! ?


( I am also taking I'm taking a LOAD of my clearance things on Folksy see above - so LOTS of under £10 items just in time for Christmas shopping eh? )


Tuesday 18 October 2016

Macmillan Sept Coffee morning and WittyDawn Autumn Sale

Well another Macmillan coffee morning has come and gone !

Thanks too all my friends and customers who supported this event- my goodness what a lot of cake was consumed.

As usual the coffee morning coincided with my Autumn WittyDawn Sale and I donated 10% of my sales to the final donation amount.

THE FINAL AMOUNT RAISED WAS JUST OVER £227 !!!!

EDIT: due to a late donation the final total went up to £253.57  !!!!


This is a regular yearly event for WittyDawn - in it's 4th year now.  Macmillan is a charity we as a family have supported for many years via monthly donations too.

However this event also  gives me a chance to get all my stock out and review it for the Xmas period , it MAKES me tidy my studio and not least I get to catch up with lots of people and make a few new friends too.

Here's a few shots of my studio in sale mode:



I now have Clearance Sales running in my Etsy and Folksy online shops

My next event will be VINTAGE HEAVEN, at the Organic Farm Shop , Burford Road, Cirencester on Sat 12th November. Free entry, teas and raffle proceeds all to Paternoster School in Cirencester and JDRF - the type 1 diabetes charity, improving lives until they find the cure. They fund research to cure, treat and prevent type 1 diabetes. Lots or really excellent quality genuine vintage and eco friendly gilts and collectables from a super group of vendors.

Hope to see you there!


Friday 14 October 2016

AUTUMN SALE AND STOCK CLEARANCE AT WITTY DAWN !!!

So it's time to clear a few product lines to start fresh on new ideas .... THIS means is bargain time for some lucky folks so check it all out

At time of posting I have:
- About 80 items in my FOLKSY CLEARANCE SECTION
- About 30 in my ETSY CLEARANCE SECTION 

Here's a few examples of what's on offer





It's a GOOD time to grab a bargain with Christmas not that far away !
 

Another recipe - but this time for Dog Treats !

A couple of people have asked me for dog treat recipes so here are the ones that I have used - passed onto me by other kind folks and seen on some great Facebook pages ( eg Lurcher Appreciation Page) :

TUNA BAKE - the one I use the most
1 Tin tuna in sunflower oil, 100 g Self raising flour, 1 egg plus some grated cheese if you like.

Mix, press flat in an oiled microwave dish ( I use a pyrex bowl glass lid) , cook on full full power for 6 to 7 minutes.

Corned Beef bake -
I tin of corned beef , 1 egg, 60 ml water, 300 g plain flour, 100 g cheese
Mix, press into a grease and lined baking tray, cook for about 25 mins at 180 ( 160 fan ) - although I admit I am a bit casual/check it and see about cooking times LOL .

Liver Bake- current fav this makes LOADS
400g liver, 1/2 pint cold water, 400g plain flour ( although last batch I did was 50: 50 SR and plain and was good also, 1 egg, 2.5 fl oz of olive oil

Blend liver and water, mix in other ingredients, bake in shallow greaseproof paper lined tin 30 - 35 mins at 180 degrees. Might have to prick with fork halfway through.

FOR ALL THE ABOVE RECIPES
Allow to cool
Cut into small dice shapes
Freeze and then defrost small amount  

Variations ?
You could try rice flour instead of wheatflour
You could try other tinned fish in oil
I only had 250g of liver last time did liver bake so I substituted apple and sweet potato - worked just fine and might be useful if you need a lower fat treat for your dog.

 I have tasted the Tuna and Corned beef ones and the am VERY nice .... but I haven't tried the liver one!

 Here is Tom waiting for a treat - By the way the photo was taken by Steve Shepard - Candid Canines



Thursday 14 July 2016

New Rescue Dog ! that's my excuse for my dusty blog ....

Let's blow a little dust of this eh??

Ok been a while but I've been busy.

Back in February we adopted a lovely hound from the fabulous people at the Blue Cross!  he is a lovely chap but was terribly thin. So I had a couple of months off from doing much work whilst I concentrated on feeding him up and training him. His name is MAJOR TOM - or Tom for short, he is a lurcher (with a good deal of greyhound in him ! maybe some staffie/collie in the mix too?)

As you can see he has developed beautifully :)



He came to us healthy, neutered, chipped, vaccinated and with a trusting,  happy personally - just thin and in need of a comfy, warm place. he has since been back to visit his Blue Cross friends and from his waggy tail it was clear he had formed a real bond with then during his stay. He is a lovely chap - obedient ( except for when he see cats/rabbits/squirrels - they flip his CRAZY switch, sighthounds like him do have a high prey drive!) , gentle and my how wonderfully he looks when he runs! He has even won a best trick prize at a local show !

If you are thinking of getting a dog PLEASE consider a rescue .... don't assume you are getting a dog with 'issues' many are simply unlucky or have had to have been given up by caring owners due to changes in their circumstances. We do not know Tom's history other then being found as an unchipped stray but we have yet to see any behaviour issues or signs of abuse.

So... what with a couple of hours of walks a day we have been busy - but as he sleeps about 16 hrs a day as well he's no bother!!! sighthound types are notoriously lazy once they find a comfy spot .


Also I have been making stuff for him - his coats, his beds and even his toys and food LOL . I had A LOT of interest when he was wearing his coats earlier this Spring and I think I will be offering these as custom makes soon WATCH THIS SPACE!!!!

(BTW do you like his smart collar ? - made locally by a super lady called Fleur - she has a shop on Etsy called The Artful Lurcher )


Better sign off.... I need to walk the dog...XXX!