on the button!

Life gets in the way. And the sickness! But that's another story...

Finally found the chance to tell you all about the fun Stacey and I had a few Saturdays ago at The Button Tin, the quaintest little craft kiosk imaginable. And in good old Rotherham of all places!

The lovely and talented textile artist Gemma Nemer opens up her personal workspace to deliver workshops 'with a vintage twist'. Her ethos is all about keeping alive traditional fabric crafts, and re-using and re-working reclaimed materials -a girl after my own scavenging heart!

Apparently we opted for the trickiest, most labour-intensive make Gemma offers -etui sewing boxes. Nothing like jumping in at the deep end!

I'd planned to give the end result away as a gift if I didn't like it. Being a perfectionist I can't bear to look at something I feel I've made badly, but I worked so hard my eyes were crossed and my fingers were numb! And the clashing fabrics I'd chosen, which initially we weren't sure about, looked just so cute together.

There is no such thing as too much pattern!

So now my battered purple sewing tin has a sweet, new, pain-stakingly crafted companion...

...and I'm trying to pick which of Gemma's classes to try next. I'm thinking the nostalgic jewellery making, in the hope my efforts would turn out anywhere near as perfect as Gemma's pretty petals...

See more of her work on Flickr click click!

And visit The Button Tin's website clickety click!