Home again & loving France...

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I thought I would bring you back to France for this post, to our petit coin. There's nothing like being away to make you look at where you live with fresh eyes. Something I love about summer is the smell of pine trees on a hot day. I will always associate this with summer in France...a smell that always makes me smile.

Pin Parasol (Umbrella Pine) common in the south of France

We are lucky enough to live in a very beautiful part of France with wonderful views, undulating hills, vineyards & amazing architecture. It's steeped in history.

Chateau Monbazillac                                                                       source

Of course, there are amazing chateaux, like but you don't have to go far to see bastide towns with medieval arches, covered market places & wonderful pigeionniers...

wonderful tree-lined roads & flowers everywhere...

or this cute pied de terre...

but the best is fields full of sunflowers as far as the eye can see ...

This is what happens when you leave your sewing to make a cup of tea....to a four-legged friend, a reel of cotton is wonderful to chew!

If you are thinking of creating something and want to make it unique, why not add a vintage French trim? Pop over to the Petit Pica shop and look at our lovely collections of vintage laces, buttons & trims...

Hot under the collar....

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Have you noticed that although collar styles change according to fashion, they are always in fashion in one form or another...

Vintage

Adding a vintage collar to an outfit can transform it into something unique & so feminine...

Modern

We have added some vintage collars to our shop too...

...& a collar and cuff set which would make any outfit stunning....

 Did you watch The Great British Sewing Bee on BBC 2 (UK t.v.)?

We loved it although each week we've had a different contender for first prize. Each had their own specialities but in the end, Ann was crowned the winner & extremely well-deserved. She was obviously a very experienced sewer (over 75 years!) & worked so methodically through her patterns & challenges. Our only critcism....it ended too soon! Looking forward to the second series.

Ann (far right) was crowned the winner                           source

 

As cute as a button...

How do you feel about buttons?

Are they something just there to hold your clothes together?

Or do you have a fascination with them? 

One of Great Aunt Violet's button tins. Love her coronation Oxo tin.

Happy hours spent delving into Grandma's button box, finding all the different sizes, shapes & colours; trying to see how many you could match up. There is something tactile about holding a button and they are a great way to change the look of an item of clothing.

Looking back through time, there have been some amazing buttons, some of today's modern ones seem tame in comparison. Our favourites are the really old ones. Let's have a little peek into the past...

Dorset Buttons

source: neheleniapatterns.com

Used for several centuries as a way of making a decorative button. Originally, the disc was made from the horn of Dorset sheep.This was then covered with a piece of cloth and overworked with linen thread. During the industrial revolution, the horn was replaced by metal rings which were easier to work with and cheaper.

circa 1770-1779

source: V&A  collections

The 1700's  saw some amazing embroidered buttons and steel buttons became popular too...

Cut Steel Button circa 1795

source: V&A collections

Mother of pearl buttons come in all shapes and sizes

Mother of pearl buttons were popular especially in the late 19th century when they were first mass produced. They are famously worn by the Pearly Kings & Queens in England.

Mini Pearly Princes & Princesses

source: sisterwolf.tumblr.com

Following the death of Prince Albert, jet buttons became popular and were referred to as mourning buttons. A cheaper version was made in black moulded glass.

jet buttons or "mourning buttons"

source: lucietales.blogspot.fr

Mass produced glass buttons

source: buttonsandoffal.tumblr.com

Glass buttons were also popular in the first half of the 20th century. Love the comment at the bottom of the card..."Will not break in mangling".

Art-Deco Bakelite buttons

source: vintagebuttonemporium.com

The 20th century also saw new materials such as Bakelite and plastic being used as a cheap alternative to some of the traditional materials. They could also be moulded into interesting shapes & dyed in a multitude of colours.

Elsa Schiaparelli - The Circus Collection 1938

source: V&A collections

1950's rhinestone buttons - for that little bit of bling...

source: rubylane.com

We have some vintage buttons arriving in the shop this week. Do have a look and maybe buy your own piece of history...

Such wonderful scent from these, so uplifting, like spring in the air.

A Stitch In Time....

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Stitching has been on our minds a lot recently. Sewing hearts and sachets for the shop got us thinking of all the other women over the years who have sewn and embroidered linen. How many pricked fingers? Thankfully not ending up like sleeping beauty, although who wouldn't want to be kissed awake by a handsome prince!

Looking at some of the linens in our shop you can to see they are a labour of love.

Hours & hours spent perfecting the patterns and making such beautiful stitches.

Cross-stitch is a fairly simple stitch in comparison to others but one of our favourites.

The beauty is in it's simplicity, like lots of little kisses!

This tablecloth must have taken ages. It's so lovely, hundreds of stitches and the choice of colours, carried over in the 12 matching serviettes. This was obviously made for a large family. French meals times tend to be a family affair but this cloth was probably kept for special occasions. Imagine eating your Thanksgiving or Christmas meal on a table laid with this!
This would make a wonderful present too.

Cross-stitch is a favourite of the French too. Here are a couple of books from the petit pica bookcase. Made in France is a good example of how you can combine traditional stitches with a modern twist to make unique pieces for your home.

There are some great projects, like a very pretty marriage sampler.

The other book is Encyclopedia of Needlework by Thérèse de Dillmont. Originally published in French, this was a common book for a young French girl to own to learn all types of handiwork. This is the English version and it's fascinating. Although there is no publish date, the inscription is dated 1914 & when it was published 750,000 copies had been sold in English, French, German & Italian; it is still available today.

Perhaps the original owner used it to make items for her beau who was serving at the front?

There are wonderful sections like "Embroidery upon white stuff" & "How to transpose and repeat patterns by means of two mirrors". Unfortunately this copy is a bit fragile so not practical for everyday use but luckily there is a free e-book available here.

We will be adding some newly acquired vintage embroidery linens to the shop soon. Follow us on Facebook or Twitter to keep up-to-date with the new additions. 

Lauren Bacall by Louise Dahl-Wolf (source)

See we're in good company! Love that sewing box!

Á bientôt,