Cockerel Glory

Rummaging through florals there came a golden glow from the depths. Marie-Magali was scrunched up and forgotten among dark prints and unloved discarded textiles.

I was speechless at the beauty of this piece of fabric. I loved the detailing of the feathers on the bird's tail and the simplistic illustration of the ferns around. The colour palette was also what drew mew in, the golden yellow background with earthy browns and greens and just a splash of pinky rouge.

In all honesty I'm not sure what kind of bird this is. I'd be keen to know your views. From the tail i'd say it was a cockerel, however it seems too short, with a chunky neck and a flat head. Similarly this also crosses out a pheasant. Perhaps this is an exotic bird not local to Europe.

I'm not sure how to date this fabric at all. I would take a guess at the 1950's or 60's. However, the fabric has already been cut into, cut around so I would have been missing much of the original item. Again at a guess I would say the fabric was originally a circular table cloth, as the print had a central fern. It's just a plain shot in the dark.

In any case, the cockerel's stance and colours are beautiful, there is almost a painted aesthetic quality to the printed illustration. Only a handful of colours have been used but shadows depict his movements and how he is puffing out his neck feathers.

The bottom striped fabric, was also a lucky find. A box of lace and random ribbon came into my possession. Most of the pieces I had no idea what they would have been from and also what I could do with them. My guess would be that it was a wide ribbon for medals as there were similar ribbons with medals on. But it does seem a little too wide. This striped band was very sumptuous but I simply couldn't find a project to include it in.

The Marie-Magali cockerel came along and the colours just merged. I also felt it finished the square cushion well. Added a little something different and interesting. The two were a match made in textile heaven. The creams matched the golden glows of the cotton cockerel background and the pink-rouge also was a match.

The Marie-Magali cushion now looks very much French inspired. I can see it in a rustic French cottage, or perhaps as an outdoor seating cushion, or even in a kitchen, perhaps with similar cockerel prints.

Marie-Magali is looking for a loving home, so be sure to welcome this cushion to your sofa, chair or cushion corner.

Marie-Magali is a cushion cover, but you can also purchase the inner cushion on the Marie V site to fill up Marie-Magali.

If you have any insight on the Marie-Magali fabrics then please leave your comments as I'm keen to know more!

Thanks

Marie V

I'm a little blue bird...

I have been given the most beautiful printed fabric in shades of blue and cream. I fell in-love immediately, almost rivalling how much I like Mr M, but let's not mention that to him.

The gorgeous illustrated birds in flight amidst exotic flowers has been hand illustrated with 4 or 5 different shades of blue depicting the detail. The birds, in various motions, are simply illustrated, with the various shades detailing their feathers.

The blues gradually lighten and darken making shadows amidst the petals and the birds wings. The larger leaves look almost like bamboo or willow, alongside the blue colour palette, I'm sure the print has been inspired by the orient.

I would date this fabric back to the 1910's or 1920's. It unfortunately has suffered through the years, but it is clear it has been displayed for people's enjoyment. And after all that is what printed fabrics are created for. The cotton has been woven, and unfortunately in certain areas this has worn thin.

I've had the fabric a little while. It was found at the bottom of a trunk and had clearly been folded away several years. Unfortunately there are a few fold lines across the print.

I wanted to use the blue bird print fabric for something extra special, where the fabric could be seen everyday and bring joy to the users, myself and Mr M.

Mr M. and I have recently had our living room decorated in pale eau de nil, by Laura Ashley. Its a fresh blue and green colour, welcoming and warm. This colour would have been popular around the Victorian era but probably not used in a living room but more likely in a bedroom or bathroom.

Fittingly, the blue bird fabric was perfect to sit in the room. There was not much of the fabric, so it had to be used sparingly. I had just enough to make two cushions for our sofa and a little left over for Marie-Reine. 

Our sofa is our pride and joy in the living room. It took us almost six months to choose the perfect sofa. Although it usually isn't such an ordeal for most people, it really was for us. We're rather particular about comfort and height.

After having sampled most sofa's across London, old and new, we ended up splashing out for a rather expensive sofa. However, it's deep enough to curl your legs up, and low enough for my extremely short legs!

I decided against piping around the edges to keep the cushion simple and focus attention on the print itself. The original lining fabric, in cream, the blue bird fabric was attached to was used as the backing fabric. This may have been a mistake as it is extremely thin and frail and has already worn thin. We'll call it character!

Marie V

Marie V Commission

A few years ago my friend announced she was engaged and with all the excitement, and perhaps the bottle of bubbly we enjoyed between us, we agreed I would make her wedding dress.

A moment of madness perhaps,but seemingly this blushing bride was keen to move the project forward. We began to rifle through vogue wedding dress patterns to try and find the 'perfect' dress.

The process was possibly quicker than shopping for the 'perfect off-the-rail dress'. We found a pattern, I sourced the silk and one week later a dress was made.

After a few adjustments, the dress had it's fifteen minutes of fame and was stored away forever more in a wardrobe, forgotten amidst mini skirts and work suits.

It was clear something needed to be done with this wedding dress, and this is how once again the dress ended up in my hands for hopefully, it's final adjustment.

All the detail and effort went into the corset. Although the corset was not boned, it still had all the panels of a normal corset. And the signature rusching of the silk was clearly where the attention needed to be focused.

The obvious brief was to transform the corset into a cushion, not for every day use, but perhaps to sit somewhere formal within the married couple's home.

The problem was the corset had a curved top edge for the bust and a decorative curved edge for the waist.. It was decided the curved lines would be kept, so the cushion was recognisable as the bridal corset.

The result was a rather strange shaped cushion, but it represents the world to the bride, my friend, who can now view her wedding dress and that special day, every day.

Competition Time

Marie V enjoys a competition, therefore it is time for a new give-away.

Become a fan of Marie V on Facebook and you will automatically be entered into a random prize draw competition.

All Facebook fans will be entered into the random prize draw to win Marie-Rachele.

Marie-Rachele is a beautiful vintage cushion made from vintage silk. The fabric was originally a silk scarf made from delicately woven silk yarn. The fabric was so delicate that it showed wear and tear.

Marie-Rachele will look stunning as a scatter cushion on a bed or sofa or beloved chair. The Royal Blue colour palette will suit all home décors and is soft to the touch.

Become a fan of Marie V, by 'Liking' the Marie V fan page and make sure you leave a lovely message on Facebook for Marie V to read!

Marie V will pick a name at random on December 1^st and will contact the winner to let them know they have won!

Competition closes December 1^st 2011

Win Marie-Annette!

Marie-Annette is up for grabs.

We all love give-aways and this one is a real treat! The beautiful Marie-Annette, a silk cushion with a very sweet print of a pheasant amidst wild mushrooms, could be yours.

To be in with the chance to win Marie-Annette, simply show your support for Marie V by liking the Marie V facebook page. One facebook fan will be chosen at random.

The competitions closes on the 12^th of August 2011, where one lucky winner will be picked at random and contacted. Already a fan on facebook? You will automatically be entered into the prize draw. Make sure you share the competition with your friends and family.

Marie-Annette was originally a lovely vintage silk scarf. Due to some imperfections the scarf was unloved and has now been transformed into four original cushions each with a different scene of the print.

Marie-Annette needs a lovely home to feature in, so make sure you take part in this competition to re-home this beauty.

Good luck

Marie V