A Charming Little Giveaway......

A chance to win a Scottish Blossom Honey boxed candle....

To celebrate the 'new look' blog, I'm going to have a little giveaway.

Today has been a very busy day, and my Instagram friends will know that as well as progressing with the Christmas Boxes, I've been making a few boxed candles from my Institutions Collection, for a hamper which will be part of the Ecomunky Christmas Boutique this Sunday, at Oran Mor in Glasgow's West End. The money raised will go to Yorkhill Children's Foundation.

So this morning, I made a fresh batch of Scottish Blossom Honey (which will be discontinued on the new website, to make way for a revised version 'Wild Flower Honey') and Hyndland Velvet, an opulent floral of Rose, Gardenia and Patchouli...

To be in with a chance of winning a Scottish Blossom Honey, simply follow Delphi Burling via the blog, Facebook or Instagram, and leave a comment on any post. A winner will be chosen at random next Thursday evening!

Leanne xxx

Scented White Winter Dove Tutorial......

These are my favourite Christmas decorations, and so easy to make.

To make these, you will need:

MATERIALS....

White felted wool 

Velvet ribbon (I use 6mm ribbon)

Small silver bells

Polyfibre or natural Kapok for filling

Small faux diamante

White thread

Christmas fragrance oil or Essential oil

TOOLS....

Sewing machine

Hand sewing needle

Pins

Pencil and card to make a template

Scissors

Pinking Shears (optional)

1. Draw a Template.

When creating templates for anything, I find it easier to draw a picture of what you want to create, and then draw a cm border seam allowance right around the picture. This way, your picture inside will be the finished shape of your creation.
It's too easy to make the mistake of cutting out the picture as you've drawn it, and then finding once its sewn and stuffed, its a completely different shape to what you'd envisaged. 

Using your template, draw and cut out the two sides of your dove.

2. Pin and Sew.

Cut a length of ribbon and place it right side down, with loop end upside down, between the two pieces of felt. Make sure the ends are sticking out of the felt at the top, so you can sew them securely.
Pin, and sew around the edges with a running stitch, taking care to keep the shape of the bird, and leaving a 1.5 inch gap at the neck, to turn out and stuff. 

Once sewn, gently snip round the extra felt with pinking shears, or fabric scissors, to trim excess fabric.

Your dove should look something like this...

3. Turn, Shape, and Fill.

Carefully turn right side out, using a blunt pencil or similar object to get into the narrow parts like the tips of the wings, and beak. Felted wool can be manipulated into shape if your dove looks a little different from your template! It should now look something like this....

With your chosen scent, sprinkle a few drops onto your filling (a large hand full should be enough) and 'fluff' up'. My Kapok is left to cure for a few days to take on the scent, but this isn't necessary if using polyfibre filling.

4. Sew up, and Embellish!

Turn the opening in, and press into shape.

Then, using your white thread, hand sew small slip stitches to close. 

Sew on your bow and bell with a few stitches, and stick on your faux diamante for the eye. Hang up, and enjoy!

Christmas Boxes and November In Pictures.....

Nearly a month has passed since I relaunched the blog, and posted about the Christmas Boxes, and I've had a fantastic response to these. So much so, that tomorrow is the last day to buy from folksy for those wishing to buy one and donate to Save the Children.
As you can imagine, I've been really busy sewing, mixing scents, and hand-printing Christmas fabric to make up the boxes, and I am so pleased with how they've turned out this year. I am aiming to get them all off to their new homes a week tomorrow. I do hope if you've been so kind as to order one, or even two, that you are pleased with what you get.

November in Pictures........


November seems to have flown by for me, and Christmas is fast approaching. It was only a few weeks ago that I gathered the last bundle of Sweet Peas from the garden. We had such a huge amount of flowers this year that I struggled to find vessels to house them, and discovered the beauty of the humble jam jar; not only for garden posies, but for home made hurricane lamps decorated with ribbons, pine cones and twine.....

This month, the renovation of the original fireplace recess in the living room, revealed a lovely large space for the new stove, with exposed red sandstone. The hearth and limestone mantle were fitted, and I couldn't resist  decorating around it with the jam jar hurricanes, vases of beautiful flowers and candles......

Finally this month, all of the fabric colourways were finalised and sent to the printers in England. The candles are awaiting their new packaging, and the beautiful stationery designs are nearly ready.

On the 15th of November, I received the news that my Granddad had passed away while in hospital. Although he had been ill for some time, you can never prepare yourself for loss. I took this picture shortly before we came home from the funeral on the 21st. I thought it rather poignant.

I have a tutorial for the White Winter Doves, which I will post tomorrow, as its rather late now. 

Have a lovely evening, and if you would like to leave a comment please do so, and thanks so much for reading.

Leanne xx

DB Christmas Boxes

For a few years now, I have been making Christmas decorations, and selling them to raise money for Save the Children. This year, I decided to create a 'Christmas Box', which will contain a selection of vintage style textile decorations, embellished with beautiful velvet ribbons, buttons, cabochons and bells. 

I started my little production line a few weeks ago, designing Christmas bells, elves boots, stockings, hearts and the very popular White Winter Doves from last year. They are all filled with natural Kapok (for those who don't know what Kapok is, It's what was used to stuff teddy bears etc, before the invention of polyfibre, and is completely natural), which is cured with my essential oil blends 'White Winter' and 'Mulled Wine'.

 I have sourced lambswool, tweeds, vintage fabrics and herringbone wool to make these, and last week, sampled a few and photographed via instagram.

Since then, I have had so many people emailing to reserve one or more, so thank you everyone for your support.

As well as decorations, I've decided to include a few pretty handmade cards, and some tea lights in our candle scents. 

The boxes cost just £10 each plus £2 P&P, and ALL profits go to Save the Children.

I am only taking reservations for now, by emailing  DelphiBurling 
Please include your name and address and your twitter or IG ID, if you have one. I will be later emailing with payment details when the boxes are ready to be sent out mid November.
I'll also be selling them via etsy.

Here are some pictures of what you might get in your christmas box....

White Winter Dove. Scented, felted wool trimmed with mink velvet ribbon and silver bell.

Vintage Christmas tree heart scented with 'Mulled Wine' oil blend and trimmed with vintage style cabochons, glitter ribbon and bells

Lambswool tweed heart filled with scented kapok and trimmed with red and cream velvet ribbons and bow, and faux diamante

                                          

These will all be available to buy separately too. Details coming soon.......

I have approx 30 Christmas boxes left, so please reserve one and support Save the Children this Christmas.

Have a great Sunday.

Leanne xx

New Beginnings and Relaunching Miss D

New beginnings are exciting and refreshing, like breaking the spine of a new notebook and having all these crisp blank pages ahead of you, waiting to be filled with whatever you choose. 

I wanted to begin the new blog by telling you about Delphi Burling, and how she came to life.....


This month, three years ago, I was sketching 'vintage ladies' one afternoon, and wondered if any of them were how I would have looked in those particular eras of time. The shoes, handbags, if i'd be wearing gloves and a hat, etc etc. 

Then I realised that the faces of these sketches were all the same. They were one woman. Through the ages. She didn't look like me in any way, but she wore the clothes that I longed to wear, had the haircut i'd always wanted, and the grace and elegance that all women strive to achieve. 
So I set about crafting a life for her; how I imagined she'd live, her favourite possessions, her beautiful home, her charming character. And Delphi Burling was born. 



At the time, I was making homeware from other fabrics. I loved vintage florals, and the geometric and 'object' prints of the 1920's, and although beautiful, I found some a little too heavy on the eye, and 'fussy'. 

Vintage Florals.

1920's 'Object' Shuttlecock Print.

So I updated the floral prints I loved and created some simple designs to preserve the heritage of the vintage style. At first, I hand-carved printing blocks and did everything by hand. My first prints were 'Pimlico Rose' and 'Camaraderie'.

 'Pimlico Rose' Tote Bags, Linen, and Tea Towels....

Bringing Textiles to Life with Perfumery.....

I'd always loved how textiles, along with scent, created something entirely unique. How putting your nose to an old teddy bear or piece of clothing propels you straight back to the memories and feelings of the past. I had been making candles and dabbling in mixing oils for years and wanted to combine the two to capture the experience and bring my textiles to life. I began studying Perfumery, and with my candle making skills, began trialing scents to 'match' my new designs. 

My first five candle fragrances were created with British Institutions in mind, and each were linked to a different era and fabric. 

Cabbage Rose and Coconut, with the 1950's, Tea with Binkie with the 1940's, English Riviera with the 1930's, Hyndland Velvet with the 1920's, and Orange Blossom Honey with modern day. 

By this point, Delphi had acquired 'friends' and I pictured them each with their own very different tastes, using different fabrics and scents.

Planning and Relaunching...

So now, after so much planning and designing, the Delphi Burling fabrics will be digitally printed on beautiful linen in the UK, in 'vintage' muted tones of rose, grey blue and creamy old whites. 

Cushions, lamps, books, and accessories will all be coming soon.

I am so excited to finally see it coming together. 

Today, Delphi got some new clothes. She's been through all the eras of fashion, but for the relaunch, a girl has to have something new......

  

The beautiful new website will be online very soon. I do hope you will follow our handcrafted journey.

Leanne xx