I have always loved to craft, mainly with cloth and thread. Whenever I saw a haberdashery shop as a child I had to go in and look. I preferred them to toy and sweet shops and mum didn't mind looking because she liked to do a bit of sewing and embroidery too. I have been crafting (preferring material crafts rather than paper crafts), since I was able to handle scissors, needles and fabrics. At a very young age I discovered libraries and craft books. I had to make do if I wanted to create something and had to use what was available. There was always fabric and thread and a huge tin of buttons and beads at home which I loved just to tip out on to the carpet and sort! As I got older and received pocket money I would buy yarn for crochet or knitting, mum taught me the basics of how to knit and crochet and I taught myself to read knitting and crochet patterns. I bought fabric and thread and borrowed needlework books from the library. I had a fantastic school-teacher (who as they say changed my life) when I was about 10yrs and she patiently taught the whole class to cross stitch on Binca and to make felt toys, in those days the school provided everything!
I am self taught in embroidery and other craft activities, and someone once said to me that you cannot learn Bobbin Lace from books. Well to me that is a 'red rag to a bull' so I did just that! If there is something new I would like to learn, I try and seek out a book designed for children as these books always seem to always work! I also taught myself Tatting travelling on a train to and from work in the seventies from Southend-on-Sea to London, a 45minute journey.
When I married and started a family, I started crafting more and more. I said I would love a large needlework box where I could separate things into different compartments, well I thought that would never happen but, when we moved to Minehead twenty years ago, we had trip to Taunton our nearest large town and walked into a charity shop and there it was for £5. I brought it home in the boot of the car and left it in the hall, where it stayed for many years being used as a dumping ground. (when one draw got full, because there was no-where else for the crap to go, we started the next draw!) I don't know how many times I sorted it and tried to use it for its intended purpose.
Forward a few years and boys left home one-by-one and there was an empty bedroom. I thought "that's my craft room" Well, it is what is described in housing blurb as "the box room".
Alex painted for me and put shelves up etc. I thought to sort it gradually, that didn't happen. Alex proceeded to dump my stuff in the room not sorting it leaving that to me. In the end I just put the books on the shelves and filled another shelving unit with stuff that needed sorting. By last Christmas I must have been in the room about eighteen months and think all my stuff has congregated there. From the 1st January I set myself a little tasks, just an hour a day when I would go in there and have a sort, emptying the draws of all the stuff that is in them and set about using it for its intended use!
Draw oneSCISSORS
and other cutting equipment
Draw twoNEEDLES
lots of different needle for different uses
Draw threePINS
Draw four
appertaining to my old and new
SEWING MACHINE
Draw Five
REELS of COTTON
Draw six
General HABERDASHERY
Draw seven
Draw fourappertaining to my old and new
SEWING MACHINE
Draw FiveREELS of COTTON
Draw sixGeneral HABERDASHERY
Draw sevenPATCHWORK
Draw seven 
Draw nine
Draw sevenPENS and PENCILS
and hole punches
Draw nineVINTAGE!
Draw ten 
Draw eleven 
Draw twelve
Draw tenRIBBON
Draw elevenLACE and BRAIDS
Draw twelveBIAS BINDING and ELASTIC
Draw thirteen 
Draw Fourteen 
Draw fifteen
Draw thirteenBUTTONS and CHARMS
Draw FourteenMIXED BEADS
Draw fifteenJEWELLERY FINDINGS
Draw Sixteen
Draw SixteenSEED BEADS
Draw seventeen
Draw seventeenCHIPPED STONES BEADS
Draw eighteen
Draw eighteenBEADING THREADS and WIRES
Draw nineteen
Draw nineteenSEQUINS
Draw twenty
Draw twentyLARGE SEQUINS
Draw twenty-one 
Draw twenty-two
Draw twenty-three 
Draw twenty-four 
### TIP ###
Draw twenty-oneWOODEN, PLASTIC and
OLD PEARLY BEADS
Draw twenty-twoCERAMIC and DECORATED
GLASS BEADS
Draw twenty-threeBELLS and BEAD KITS
Draw twenty-fourITEMS
that can be found here
### TIP ###I save these little packets.
Do you recognise them?
They can be found in the box with new shoes
or in the bottom of a new Handbag, well don't throw
them away, they are great for keeping moisture at bay
in things like needles, and pins and scissors.
