Beautiful Blue French Bistro Chair....and a few other new items in the store

Bonjour!  

I was invited to see a friend's items that arrived in their recent container and look at what I found!  I love this chair!  It is a pale robin's egg blue.  It is chippy and worn and fabulous.  I was very grateful for the call to preview their treasures!  I was like a kid in a candy store.

I love that the edge of the seat is chipped off.  

There are layers of green, a darker blue, and red on the back side of it.  

I made this market tote last weekend.  I pieced two different sacks together.  

I love the shade of the blue.  And I think that it is special because of the monogram.  It is that of the farmer who used this particular sack.  I think that this would be a nice tote to take to the market, or beach bag to carry in Hawaii, or any beach for that matter.  The great thing is that it comes with history. 

Sold. 

This beautiful pitcher came from the same vendor but I purchased it a long time ago.  I love the patina on it.  There are a few white paint stains on it.  It is no longer watertight.  I place a glass in it to hold water for flowers.  

And last but certainly not least, I promised in a past post that I would be getting more enamelware canister sets in.  Here are three of the four sets I have found.  I am still waiting to receive the other one from France.  

I like the ribbing on the sides.  What a nice touch. 

The next two pics are sets consisting of two canisters.  I really like the faded gilt striping and gothic lettering on both of them.

All of the above items, minus the cream and gold enamelware pitcher (cannot seem to list that one yet :)) are available in my Etsy shop.

Thanks for visiting

Michele

Sharing at 

Primp's Primp your Stuff Wednesdays

The Farmhouse Porch's Cowgirl Up

Common Ground's Monday Marketplace

Faded Charm's White Wednesday

French Country Cottage's Feathered Nest Friday

Jennifer Rizzo's Fabulously Creative

Happy 4th!

Happy 4th of July!  I hope that you all enjoy your holiday.  

As most of you know, my home is very pale in hue.  So, in the spirit of our country's independence, I made a grain sack body pillow for the shop with red and blue stripes.  The monogram is that of the farmer. 

  

Enjoy the food, fireworks, fun, and most of all time with your family and friends!  (How's that for a little alliteration?) :)

Be safe

Michele

Antique Hemp Linen (Grain Sack) Apron

Hello, all. I have again been absent. For the last 36 hours I have been either in a car or in front of a customer.  It was great and productive. 

My mom and stepdad own a wonderful bed and breakfast in the Pacific Northwest called The Quimper Inn.  Clearly my mom cooks quite a bit and is always wearing aprons.  I have wanted to make her one for quite a while.  I decided to try it out using some fabric I had on hand.  

This one is not intended for her, but to see how I could make it turn out.  

What do you think?

What I found interesting about this piece of fabric was the bleeding.  It looks like when this piece of hand loomed hemp linen was created it was folded over onto itself prematurely causing the color to offset onto itself.  The stripes themselves are navy whereas the unintended color is more of a royal blue.

  

I realize that a lot of people may not like the fact that the fabric is not perfect.  But that is precisely what I love about it.

I decided to sew it using navy thread and a serging stitch, using my new.....wonderful....machine!  I thought it would make it more interesting.

I want to thank Kathleen of Faded Charm for featuring my blog and Etsy store on her lovely blog.  Please do check it out if you are not already a follower.  I really like her style.

So I think I will use this one as a template for my mom's apron.  This one will go into the store for now. 

I wish you all a wonderful week.  Thank you for the very sweet comments on my kitchen and welcome to my new followers.  I am happy to have you!

xo

Michele 

Linking at

The Farmhouse Porch

Grain Sack Slipcovers

Hi friends.  I have been absent from the blogging world of late.  My Mom and Stepdad have been with us for the last four days.  We had a great time!!  And as always, I was sad when they left.  My stepdad put the lighting in the kitchen for me.  I am thrilled with it and will show it to you later after the finishing touches are added.  So for now, here is my latest project.  

I made these slipcovers out of hand loomed antique hemp linen, or grain sack material dating from the late 1800's to the early 1900's.  The one on the right is very nubby and those stripes are actually a grayish blue. I used yardage I had one hand for that one.

And the windowpane one was made from two actual grain sacks which I ripped apart.  

I fell in love with this particular sack when I saw it.  How often do you see this pattern?  I think it looks out of focus but it is two thin stripes right next to each other. 

Here is the reverse side. 

I sewed them by hand as I am not yet confident enough with my machine on this type of linen. 

They are not perfect but I really like them!

They give my hallway a completely different feel.  The antique ceiling tile imparts an industrial feel.  It comes from a church in Minneapolis and dates to the 1920's I am told.  

Welcome to my new followers.  I am happy to have you and in some cases to have found your blogs in return.  Have a good week and I'll post about the mercury pendants soon.

Michele

Sharing this project at the following parties

I should be mopping the floor's mop it up mondays

Miss Mustard Seed's Furniture Feature Friday

The Farmhouse Porch's Cowgirl Up

Boogieboard Cottage's Masterpiece Monday

My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia's Treasured Tuesdays

Primp's Primp your Stuff Wednesday

  

Grain Sack Baskets

I saw a photo of some grain sack baskets and it inspired me.  So I decided to make some myself.  I made these reversible baskets out of 100 plus year old hand loomed hemp linen.  One of the sacks has faded blue stripes and it is one of my very favorites.  The initials CI were how the grain house marked the sacks to carry their product in.  

You could use these as a cachepot, or to store cosmetics.  I thought they would be cute on a shelf in a bathroom.  

This is the larger of the two.  At 8.5 inches tall, it turned out bigger than I expected.  

This is the smaller of the two, same fabrics though.

They are available in my etsy store.  I hope to add a small version tomorrow.  

Fun project for a Saturday afternoon.  

Have a great weekend.

Welcome to my new followers this week.  Thanks for all of your kind words.

Michele

PS thank you also for your prayers for our little Ella.  It went well and she is resting at home.  

Giveaway at Primp!

Michele Raven at Primp is generously hosting a giveaway from my Etsy shop, Maison de Michele.  I am sure that many of you follow Michele closely.  But if you are unfamiliar with Primp, head on over.  She is very talented and has a wonderful eye. I think you will really like it.   The winner will chose any grain sack pillow or sham in my store valued up to $65.

  

Thank you Michele for hosting! 

Have a great day

Michele