I was busy making tiny crochet teddies, when I was reminded of a most enduring memory, which is, I believe the start of my long crafting journey.
It is a wet afternoon back in the 1950`s. The fire is lit. We three girls are involved with our own pursuits such as drawing, probably on the backs of old birthday cards, colouring, playing with toys. Mum is sitting in her armchair knitting. At some point in this restful afternoon a little toy dog is completed by her and she gives it to us. I am enthralled. Here is a toy made entirely by her.
It is a very clear memory of happiness, homeliness and cosiness and I believe it is the reason I love making toys for children.
(Incidently this photo was taken by my Aunty Pauline using the first flashbulbs we had ever seen. Up til then it had been very difficult to take photos indoors unless you were near a window.)
And going back to the use of cards for drawing ... we were always desperate for more paper. In those days greeting cards were folded into four and it was possible to open them right out for extra blank paper. Dad sometimes brought home old used carbon papers which were fascinating to us. We used them to make double drawings. Cereal packets were a great source of card and often had masks or puppets printed on them. The hard toilet paper was used for tracing. Oh we were most ingenius with our crafting. Glue was made out of flour and water but it sometimes `went off.` We also used a bought glue called Gloy but when it ran out we resorted to the flour mix.
When I see the craft items that are available for children today, I am in wonder at the choice .... pipecleaners, lolly sticks, glues of all kinds, bottles of paint, glitter, gems, feathers. We would have been in seventh heaven. When I go into The Works or Hobbycraft, I am a child again.
But I think we managed very well with what we had.
Here are those two tiny crochet teds mentioned at the beginning of my post, for my great niece Hollie.
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