Of mice and cushions ...

The little teapot dormouse has found a new home. I'd never heard of the place he's going to - it's in County Cork, so I looked it up on Google and discovered that Schull is a pretty little fishing village on the most south-westerly point of Ireland. He should feel right at home there!

His friends came out to see him off in his shiny pink packaging... three little mice I've knitted from another Alan Dart pattern (Chalk and Cheese) - they're going to the first Craft Fair of the season next week ...

I've also been having great fun with applique - and different variations on the British flag - the Union Jack. You can see a couple of cushions in the background ... they're also off to the fair - unless I sell them online first!!

I really love the centre panel with its Union Jack and "V for Victory". I've been helping clear an old lady's house - she was a very keen craftswoman, and the transfer for this pattern was amongst her treasures.

So, using Paintshop, I tidied it up a bit, replaced the funny looking UFOs with white doves of peace (they don't show up very well on the photo) and then added colour. It was huge fun to do - I love the idea of the nations of the world coming together in peace - you can sense the joyous relief that the terrible war had finally come to an end and the hope that now the people of the world would be able to live together in harmony.

Some of the countries were easy to identify - an elephant for India, Kiwi for New Zeland, Manhattan skyline for the USA and a maple leaf for Canada. I spent ages trying to identify all the flags, but I'm still not sure they're all correct!

Then I printed it onto transfer paper, switched on my trusty heat press and transferred the picture to a piece of pure cotton sheeting. The applique pieces are a mixture of vintage and new - I'm really pleased with the outcome. I'm thinking of selling the panel either as a jpeg for home printing or already printed on fabric, but haven't got round to listing it yet. If you'd like it, then please let me know.