An update on Evies welsh shop

A few posts back, Irene asked how I was getting on with my little welsh shop. So, here it is, some updated photos :0)

I haven't done a great deal on it as I want it to have authentic welsh looking bits and bobs on the shelves and it is easier said than done trying to collect welsh pieces that will fit into 12th scale!!!

I have managed to collect some tiny welsh love spoons and a welsh dragon 'mirror' which is really a fridge magnet and I've also filled some shelves with lace and wool which you would find in the older traditional welsh shops.

Our lovely Kat made me some welsh hats and I'm hoping to be picking up a special piece in Miniatura next week... more news on that to follow ;0)

The Miniatura show is looming fast and we will be visiting....I can't wait :0) I have noted down lots of stall numbers and will be happily saying Hi to fellow AIM members :0)

 I will pop a link here after Miniatura to let everyone know that I have done a new post, but the treasures I buy from Miniatura will be shown on my showcase blog

That blog shares details of what I buy and from whom, so it is a record for me and a links showcase for you. I hope you will like it and become a follower of that blog, sent from the old wet and windy welsh hills :0) 

Julia xxx 

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Evies

I haven't had time to make anything new for Evies... my little Welsh Shop, but on a recent visit to Mumbles, South Wales, I saw this little chap and thought how perfect he would be to sit in Evie's shop window. So there he is, a little red dragon keeping an eye out for Flora  :)

and here she is... sorting lace in her little shop....

 



.....where I have now put some bits and pieces that I have made, alongside some crochet hats that I had in a box and the lovely crochet bag that Flora brought with her from Joys.

 

Then I filled some shelves with some little balls of wool....

Put up some welsh flags and love spoons



and popped my lovely Welsh hat from Kat on top of the corner dresser

So that's where I am with Evie's :0)

I think it will look lovely when it is finished. I have more balls of wool and button jars too make and I reeeallly want a little welsh doll to sit on one of the shelves with my bears, but for now, I have a new project about to start, so hopefully I will be around quite a bit more in blogland  :)

Julia xxx

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The Welsh Shop has a name!

Progress on the little welsh shop is quite slow at the moment as I have many pressing developments in my 'real life' to keep me busy, one of them being moving house!! In the ten years we have lived here, we have accumulated so much stuff!!!! The man in the local charity shop hides when he sees me now, as I keep filling up his little store room with all my 'don't need any longer' bags!! LOL

Anyways, my little welsh shop won't be going to the charity shop and I am pleased to say that we have finally decided on a name for it. I found the name of the real life welsh shop that I had reminisced about in my last post. It was Simms General Store and the name above the door was Eirlys Simms. So, out came my embossed cardboard letters and I played around with the names and really liked the letters saying Eirlys on the top of the bay window. But... hubby didn't like it!! So, back to rearranging the letters I went! It wasn't so easy trying to get the names hubby was suggesting to fit on the top of the bay though, until... we came up with Evies! 

Yep, I know it's not very welsh sounding and the shopkeeper is called Flora, so where does Evie fit in?

Well, Evie is the much loved, little spaniel belonging to Flora, so the shop is named in her honour :0)

I think she looks perfect for the shop :0)

 and here is Flora, my lovely doll that Joy sent me just before christmas who finally has her own little shop to stay in :0) 

Hope you all have a great week,

Julia xxxx

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Inside the little welsh shop

Over the past week, hubby has continued to work on the little welsh shop. If you remember from my last post, he was waiting for the paper mache to dry enough to scour out the flagstone markings.

As soon as it was dry enough, he used a stanley knife blade to mark out the lines.

 It's a very dusty job, but well worth it.

To colour the floor, he applied a coat of pure black acrylic paint, waited for it to dry overnight and then gave it a sanding down so that some of the white showed through in cracks.

Then it was my turn :)

 I gave the floor a topcoat of grey acrylic paint which I had watered down 50:50. I applied the paint in 2" square patches and then with a damp cloth, I worked the grey into the porous papermache and flagstone cracks to give an old worn effect. Once this had dried well, I applied two coats of clear varnish to seal.

The next evening, I painted the interior walls with a chalky light green emulsion. The paint is from the Craig and Rose 1829 emulsion range, available at DIY stores and they give a lovely soft, chalky look to the walls. I then put the little patch of grey carpet down just inside the doorway to make a doormat.

With that all done, I sat back and had a good look at the shop so far and decided it needed skirting boards!

After a rummage around the garage, I found some old dark stained pieces of wood, which were left over from another project. They didn't exactly fit, but by this time it was nearly 11pm and I was inpatient to get it finished before bed!

So I figured the 'short' bits could be hidden behind furniture and in they went, along with two corner wall beams!!!

 Hubby has made all the furniture to go in this shop and I think it works really well with the old welsh shop theme. I intend to put lace nets up at the window and some lace runners around the shop and whilst I was deciding on what lace to use, I rolled them up and popped them on the dresser.... and then thought... Oh, I like that look!!

So, the welsh shop will now being stocking lace alongside the welsh cushions, blankets, honey, jam and cakes :)

Hope your all having a great week,

Julia xxxx

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A little update on the Welsh Shop

Firstly, apologies for my lack of posts lately, I have been a little busy in other areas of my life and just haven't have time to call by 'blogland'. But, with an hour to spare now, I thought I would share some photos of how the 'Little Welsh Shop' is coming along.

Hubby has been busy putting the shop together and decorating the interior and exterior walls. For the exterior walls, he had a specific 'look' in mind, so using DIY Decorators filler, he made the stonework, left it to dry overnight and then applied a thick coat of black acrylic paint. The next day, he sanded the stonework down to get his black and white stone effect. I must admit, in RL it looks very good and it was a good idea... I'm not going to admit that to him LOL

Above the stonework, he has put a layer of papermache, which he did ask me to age, but I think it looks good white, so for now, it is staying as it is ;0)

Inside, the walls are smoothly covered with more Decorators Filler and I will paint these walls with a chalky White emulsion.

The floor has a layer of paper mache, which is drying nicely today, before being marked out as flagstones tonight. Can you see the bare arc area in the front? This, I hope will work.... it is going to be a little mat area, that you would always of found at the doors of little corner shops. Many, many years ago, my local corner shop was an traditional shop, owned by 2 welsh speaking sisters. It had the chunky wooden counters, stone floors, etc and I am drawing on my memories of this shop to take into my little shop. I just wish I could remember the name of the shop, I could name mine the same then!! The shop was only small and joined onto their home. Sometimes they would leave the door between the shop and their home open and you could just about peek a glimpse of their huge range fireplace, comfy chair with crochets blankets thrown on the back and the smell of welsh cawl would waft through the shop :0) It was lovely....ah .............................................

.... and now I am digressing and going on a trip down memory lane, when I should be concentrating on showing you the shop!! LOL

Anyways... here is the inside view of the bay window that hubby made. Don't look at the dust... he's not as tidy as me at clearing up after himself!!

So, that's as far as hubby has got with the shop. As for me, I have started doing a little stitching for it and I managed to grab myself a bargain... a wonderful black leather armchair... it is simply stunning and even though my old local corner shop wouldn't of had a chair like this... my little shop will :0)

For those of who follow my Witchy Miniatures, don't forget that they are now shown in the AIM free online Magazine  This month, we are on pages 70-75 and we share our kit review on the Gatehouse, which will be become a Tower next month... 'Tumbleton Tower' ... so the real fun starts next month, I'm sure your going to love it :0)

Have a great week,

Julia xx

PS I promise to catch up on everyone's blogs throughout the week ;0)

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Happy St David's Day

The 1st of March already! I can't believe how quickly the time goes! In Wales, the 1st March is St David's Day, so to celebrate I have stitched some little red dragon flags :0) 

Some of these flags will go in our new project... the little welsh shop.

Hubby has made the shop...

but there is a slight problem.....

do you remember I asked him to make me a small shop, around 10 x 10 inches square? Well, off he went to the garage and came back with this....

all 15 x 14 inches of it!!!! 

I just hope I can find /make enough welsh bits and pieces to go in it LOL

The window needs finishing, but it's well on it's way to being ready to decorate. So, today, I have to think of ideas on how I want the shop decoration to look.

Here is the inside with all the furniture he has made to go in the shop. Lots of shelves to fill :0)

I also have to think of a name for it, I was thinking of 'Welshwishes' but we'll see ;0)

Hope your all having a great day,

Julia xxxx



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