Sneak Peek into Our Autumn 2022 Of a Kind Collection!
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Scroll Down to Preview the Collection!
This morning, in my journal, I was contemplating the complexities of the fine point of balance when running a small business. These last few years – before the pandemic, through the thick of it, and this lingering now — have given us so much variety, forcing that fine point to dance like phosphorescence beneath a moving boat at night, engaging us to consider potential nexts. I move my journal to the floor — there being no more space on the crowded, trash-picked table, in a window filled with plants and the morning’s light pushing through the trees. The table is piled high with projects that I am longing to get to. Our actual kitchen table – a big farmhouse table a few feet away, is full as well, as I’ve decided to photograph our Of a Kind collection upon it, despite my family's grumbling. We push piles to the side so we can squeeze onto a small end of the long table for dinner.
Are you, too, feeling a multitude of dreamings leftover from the time-abundant early pandemic days?
Books still longing to be read? (on the table)
Sketchbooks and journals begging for a scribbling in, a finishing up? (on the table)
Trails wanting walked and biked upon daily? (bits from them, on the table)
I am breathless, dreaming of the possibilities that crowd my living space.
I merge the dreaming with the practical(ish) when I can. I was able to lure my family into the woods for a walk with Pearl, and a simultaneous photo shoot of some of the One of a Kind bags. We danced and high-beamed around the ruins of a mill along the path. The autumn air and the freedom to wander, feels like an absolute luxury — and is! But it is only one part of the long process of bringing our Of a Kind collections to life and running a small business in general.
Fortunately, Pearl loves partaking in the weird things we do!
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The Secret to a Good Flea (Market) Day is a Good Friend!
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Our Autumn Of a Kind Collection!
Our third Of A Kind Collection of 2022 is a celebration of the afterlife of already long-loved objects. It contains One of a Kind bags made with antique, well-worn re-constructed seed, feed, and bank bags, Antique Tin alternative sketchbooks (and re-fill packs for a past favourite due to many inquiries!), and some pouches, which are always a favourite. Every discovery holds a bit of the past, and the story and marks accumulated. They are a joy to put together and harken back to the best part of our origin story – the gathering of old things and the reimagining and reworking of them into once again useful objects.
Photograph by Søren of me with an Of a Kind mini tote made from a vintage Timothy Grass Seed Bag.
Søren, Pearl, and I went out for a walk on a trail we normally bike on. Slower, we noticed new things.
Mini Totes made with Vintage Textiles!
We’ve transformed vintage seed and feed sacks found at a Flea Market this past summer! So many scrumptious textures, fadings, holes, and repairs are evident in this collection!
We’ve cleaned and cut and paired the vintage bags with waxed and vegetable tanned leather, making our classic and loved bags into One of a Kind treasures!
Journal Excerpt – I lingered at Leonard’s flea market table, unfolding and refolding seed and feed bags used over and over until disposable bags replaced them in the 1960s. The textiles on Leonard’s table were washed and faded and soft. He couldn’t hear very well so I had to get extra close or raise my voice to communicate. He smiled a gentle smile with each shout. I left with arms filled with vintage bags, eager to imagine them anew.
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Standard Totes made with Vintage Textiles!
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Vintage Textile Pouches!
It is hard to resist old printed cottons and feedsacks from the early 1900s on flea market tables. We’ve transformed the gathering of patchwork and scrap into useful pouches, giving them new life.
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Alternative Sketchbooks!
Ginger Tin!
This vintage Ginger Tin makes a great alternative sketchbook for small projects. We’ve filled them with 100 sheets of laser cut Strathmore Drawing paper. Put the tin in the outside pocket of a Sendak, or a pouch, and head out to draw! The portability makes sketching ever-accessible, and the shape makes a good drawing feel complete!
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Cloverine Alternative Sketchbooks!
We are excited to offer a handful of vintage Cloverine Alternative Sketchbooks in this Collection! Each tin comes with 200 sheets of Fabriano hot press watercolour paper. These morsels fit inside the Sendak, making sure you always have some of the finest paper on hand! Additional packs of pre-cut paper can be ordered separately or as an add-on.
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Suggested Blog Posts
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How does a thing begin? With a word, a colour, a rhythm thumping around in one’s head. Ideas rise from the perfect and unexpected combination of little things. This one started with a remembered crunch of vintage chiclet gum upon finding partly faded fabric, shells from the water’s edge, and well-worn aprons and quilts bearing evidence of past existence. It is also spring, and the springy colors of Chiclets and chicklets and flowers abound. When I came upon two little hand-stitched curtains with yellow and chartreuse flowers, it all came together. Weird and wonderful – just as we like it.
Be the first to know when future collections of a kind collections launch by signing up for our newsletter!
Bags and Pouches
Pouches, Pipits, Tinned Bookbinding Kits, Oh My!
Walter & Sons Tote
Tinned Bookbinding Kits + Sketchbooks
Tinned Sketchbooks, always your favourites. And something new: Tinned Bookbinding Kits!
We made a video showing how to make the books and more – but definitely go there second because these tins won’t last!
Tinned Bookbinding Kit
Floss and Bundles
Finally, more vintage scrap bundles and embroidery floss for bookbinding and other maker adventures, all in delicious faded tones and bright bursts!
Chiclet Scrap Bundles
Collections Explained
If you’ve been following along with us for a while, you may have noticed that not all launches are the same – some products stay for years, some fly off the shelves, and others fall somewhere in between. Here are some explanations to distinguish between our various collection types.
Standard Collections: Everything in our standard collections will be ongoing until we decide to stop making them! They may include some vintage or antique materials, (ex. journal fabric lining) but these details will vary subtly to ensure their ongoingness.
Small Batch Collections: Limited batches incorporating vintage or antique materials where larger batches can be made, but are not infinite! The quantity ranges, but we aim for minimum of 100 in these collections.
Of a Kind Collections: Limited batches incorporating vintage or antique materials. Each object will be limited from 1–20 items depending upon our findings.
Be the first to know when future collections of a kind collections launch by signing up for our newsletter!
Substack + YouTube
Everywhere Astonishments
I went to New York for two days to visit friends. I didn't take photographs except for my little wander to a coffee shop in the morning. We discovered that pigeons nest in the Sycamore Tree hollows. Most of the visit felt like old Sesame Street episodes. The dogs, the crossing guards, the wire fences.
My paint palette!
Visited Yoseka Stationery Shop. What a magical place! It was packed. I didn't take a single photograph. :(
Storefront
The Peg and Awl Storefront is open for visitors! Come see our treasures in person along with other maker’s treasures and vintage finds.
Monday–Friday 10–5
We’ve got a new sign — come visit and see where everything is made.
The Studio Tour is coming up May 16th and 17th. More on this soon!Chicklet Of a Kind Collection!
How does a thing begin? With a word, a colour, a rhythm thumping around ...
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Have a wander through our collection of bags and pouches made with homespun linen, a delightful variety of quilt blocks — these are much older and remind me of my childhood. There are also 1960s hardware store aprons, feedsacks, and 1930s dressmakers cotton, along with some of our favourite scraps of scraps, with which we made a variety of littles. Some of the bags are made with our classic waxed canvas colours, and others with our limited Autumn canvas colours – so many hoorahs!
Each new Of a Kind collection allows us to dig around and find treasures within treasures. Every discovery holds a bit of the past, and the story and marks accumulated. They are a joy to put together and harken back to the best part of our origin story – the gathering of old things and the reimagining and reworking of them into once again useful objects.
We have a handful of journals covered with Antique Leather Postcards! We have a selection of crossbody bags made with our limited canvas colors and vintage textiles!
Our Springy 2023 Of a Kind Collection!Happy Spring! We are getting outside, digging in the dirt, and being surprised again at the bounty of colour, texture, and wonder of the season.
This Spring collection has a different color palette than we are used to here – a Spring of the past, which is familiar, but also a palette of Peg and Awl’s past. As we are working through the layers of the shop, we are finding so many good treasures once buried, like the beloved Antique Leather postcards. We have an abundance of small treasures, as well as some particularly special bags and colour arrangements!
Have a wander through our collection of bags and pouches made with homespun linen, a delightful variety of quilt blocks – these are much older and remind me of my childhood. There are also 1960s hardware store aprons, feedsacks, and 1930s dressmakers cotton, along with some of our favourite scraps of scraps, with which we made a variety of littles. Some of the bags are made with our classic waxed canvas colours, and others with our limited Autumn canvas colours – so many hoorahs!
Alt Sketchbook: International Dial Co.
View in our ShopWe have a few blue Watch Part tins in stock – they are nearly 100 years old and have varying degrees of rust and marks of past lives. Each tin comes with 100 sheets of Fabriano Watercolor Paper, cut to size!
My Non-Dominant Hand 100 Day Project from Last Year
We don’t have many of these tins, and we are always looking for more, but in the meantime – grab your favourite tin, cut your favourite paper and voilà! Here is our short video on cutting your own paper.
Crossbody Bags made with Vintage Textiles!
View in Our ShopThe more I return to the same flea market, the more I know where to look and find treasures in overlooked corners. These feed and sugar sacks, tool belts, and homespun make magical fun of our classic bags!
Mini Tote with Vintage Homespun German Pillow Sham: Francis Standard Tote with Vintage Feedsack: Laurel 
Mini Tote with Vintage Hardware Store Canvas Half Apron: Moose Heavy homespun German pillow sham transformed into a Classic Tote lined with Fog. 
Classic Tote with Vintage Feedsack: Heidi For those city dwellers, travelers and others wanting more security, the Totes have a separating zipper that tucks neatly in the bag when not needed. 
Mini Tote with Vintage Sugar Sack: Sugar No. 2 Mini Tote with Vintage Sugar Sack: Sugar No. 1 Pouches made with Vintage Textiles!
View in Our ShopWe’ve been finding so many gorgeous textiles at Flea Markets lately that we must tame the scale of each collection. We’ve transformed the gathering of patchwork and scrap into useful pouches, giving them new life.
These pouches are perfect for littles that need organizing. As for me, I recently used mine to gather some Persimmon seeds from the wild! They’re hard to be without and you can never have too many!
These patchwork quilts appear to have been made by two, now three, sets of hands. The small squares were first hand-stitched – they were next put together with a machine, then waiting for me to scoop them up and have Tori make them into pouches with waxed canvas lining and backing.
*Custom Pouch Sizes in this Collection: We have 7 pouch sizes in our Peg and Awl catalog, but when we find a quilt block or scrap that is perfect as is, we make the pouch match its size!
Custom Pouch with Vintage Quilt Blocks: Peecha Custom Pouch with Antique Hand-Stitched Quilt Block: Cass 
Custom Pouch with Antique Hand-Stitched Quilt Block: Maeve The greens are lined with our Fog waxed canvas! 
Custom Pouch with Antique Hand-Stitched Quilt Block: Morley Custom Pouch with Antique Hand-Stitched Quilt Block: Lucia 
Custom Pouch with Vintage Quilt Blocks: Elke Spender Pouch with Vintage Feedsack: Maude Alternative Sketchbook: Chartreuse Watch Parts Tin!
View in Our ShopI couldn’t resist this colour and the mini size. Tuck it in your Sendak and come what may! The smallness makes painting ever-accessible, and the shape makes a good painting feel complete!
Antique Postcard Journals!
View in Our ShopOne of a kind Antique Postcard mini journals are back! The cover is made simply, from antique leather postcards which bear incredible old handwriting, postmarks, and on some, a stamp! The insides, as always, are made of hand-stitched Strathmore drawing paper and work wonderfully with a variety of drawing and writing materials.
Antique Postcard Journal: No. 4 Antique Postcard Journal: No. 16 
These postcards are covered in handwriting, markings, and sometimes stamps! As with all our journals, these are hand-stitched! 
These minis are each one of a kind, covered with a unique postcard! These are made with Strathmore drawing paper and work wonderfully with a variety of drawing and writing materials.
The Secret to a Good Flea (Market) Day is a Good Friend!Sneak Peak into our Springy 2023 Of a Kind Collection
Each new Of a Kind collection allows us to dig around and find treasures wit...
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Happy New Year!
“Turn it and turn it,
for everything is in it.”
–Ben Bag BagGrowing and flourishing are not always analogous.
Join us for a quick wander through 2023, the year we smallened Peg and Awl, and moved out of Philadelphia. Also the year where we found ourselves finding ourselves again. The ‘smallening’, as I’ve been calling it, is a bit vague. I’m an open book when it comes to most things, and would love to engage in conversation on the topic, but mostly, I know neither where to begin, nor how to distill it. The simplest version is this: Peg and Awl was a thriving small business with twenty-five people at our height, reaching sales numbers we’d never imagined nor planned for. But the joy of having a small business, being curious, and exploring this weird world with family and friends, became secondary as our responsibilities to maintain this monster perpetuated. Somehow growing and flourishing are not always analogous.
And here we are in 2024, returning, already, to what matters most! We’ve ventured south for a little warmth and a lot of biking, I went north for a mini retreat in the snow. We’ve been working on new Peg and Awl treasures, building our barn storefront and workshop, and working on the land.
We cannot wait to share our progress – there are so many stories to tell!
Our 14th Anniversary was January 10th!
Søren and Silas made me a bunch of Specimen Cards of the Five Acre Wood for Christmas! I continue to fill sketchbooks and journals, and am designing some new books and journals that will be available soon! 
One of the most thrilling parts of 2023 was finally launching our long-in-the-works Solvitur Ambulando ring – and with much success! We appreciate all of your shared stories. Thanks to Claire of Warwick Furnace Farm for modeling for me!
We opened up our barn shop which we look forward to stocking with Peg and Awl treasures and more. We are heading to New Orleans for the NAMTA show in March! We made new treasures out of Sendak scraps, and small batch colours, a puzzle of a kind! 
We spent a week on a cargo ship during a storm on the North Sea – there were two visible twisters at one point! By the fourth day a calm settled over the sky, and the water, and the few floating birds, and we jumped into the cold sea. (no showers on board!)
So often I wish to jump back in, to return to the cold depths in that utter post-storm quiet. We went from thinking we’d made a big mistake in booking this trip, to longing to do something like this again – such a harrowing and magical adventure!
Here in Whitby England, where we wandered in the glorious and misty rain. Before the storm and the reality of our upcoming adventure, Walter painted and Søren drew. ps: Walter began to work on a larger Scout! 
We discontinued 3/4 of our catalog – both daunting and freeing! Inevitably, once we sell out, the inquiries start pouring in. We still have some Rogues and Weekenders and more available in our Last Chance! section.
(Here, in Amsterdam on gigantic rented bikes!)
Søren, Silas, Pearl, and I moved our studios back into the cozy Springhouse! We opened our barn for the Chester County open studio tour. Come visit us May 18 and 19! 
We traveled! Here we are, on the other side of our wild cargo boat trip after wandering down the coast of England. We spent a quick couple of days in London!
We cold plunged in Virginia when it was 29 degrees outside and were tingling and spectacularly warm when we climbed out onto the previously cold rock to shake off. Walter bringing flowers over to the barn to brighten the wet and wintry gloom. 
Solviture Ambulando (It is solved by walking)! A Christmas Eve post dinner walk and view of the Peg and Awl Barn from the street.
I started 2024 with a retreat with my friend, Deb, in CT during a snowstorm! Making progress of a kind on a project. I share bits on my Substack and @beingmargauxkent We did a few shows – here we are at Wintherthur, which we shall partake in again in 2024! 
One of our last family photographs in our Philadelphia workshop!
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Everywhere, Astonishments!
I was working on this newsletter at Lentil & Co, and this song came on. It comes and goes as songs do, but this one every time, crawls into that place where only certain songs crawl.
No Hard Feelings by The Avett Brothers
When my body won't hold me anymoreAnd it finally lets me freeWill I be ready?When my feet won't walk another mileAnd my lips give their last kiss goodbyeWill my hands be steady when I lay down my fears, my hopes, and my doubts?The rings on my fingers, and the keys to my houseWith no hard feelings.
This paired well with the essay Who Will Mourn Them When They Are Gone? from Margaret Renkl’s new book, The Comfort of Crows.Also reading Planting in a Post-Wild World which is a really hopeful and process heavy take on regeneration!
Planting in a Post-Wild World The Comfort of Crows Our Year (2024) in Photographs and Words!
Happy New Year!“Turn it and turn it,for everything is in it.”–Ben Bag Bag Gr...
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HOME, AGAIN.
HOME, AGAIN.
A joyous new-place photograph that you’ve seen if you’ve been with us for any amount of time. Every year we promise ourselves a new family portrait, but the year ends and I find myself reaching for this one again.This shall be a kind of public self-nudge!14th Anniversary Pondering, a Power Outage,and a Coffee Shop Pause
Walter and I started Peg and Awl on the 10th of January, 2010. My journal – which was blank – suggests nothing miraculous. Last night’s power outage from yesterday’s deluge means a coffee shop in-between which rouses the unexpected, always. As I walked and wrote in my new journal*, the in-between felt grounding, as each footfall, each letter, and the sun warming despite the cold, settled me.I was thinking that we should share a timeline of Peg and Awl successes, but it occurred to me as I walked, to share bits of the in-between days instead.
Thank you for being here!
As we do our best to plan for this coming year (I am notoriously spontaneous, but appreciate the need for a weaving), I look forward to so much. So here, a little looking forward to 2024:-
Our Shop! We recently opened it up to visitors for a few days with great success – we met so many wonderful people, which reinforces how lucky we are to connect, through Peg and Awl, to such humans. 2024 will see our shop filled with new treasures from us along with treasures made by others. We are heading to NAMTA in New Orleans in March, on the hunt for art materials.
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Journals and Kits and Tutorials! We’ve been working on some unusual new designs and look forward to sharing them.
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Of A Kind Collections (accompanied by more Flea Market adventures)
- New Collaborations, New Colours, and New Found Treasures!
Time Traveling Through the In-Betweens...
2009Before starting Peg and Awl, I had a little slow and steady business called The Black Spot Books. I made journals and jewelry and a gathering of my favourite scraps lead me to make the tiniest books, which I eventually strung together into the Library necklace. Boing Boing featured it, making it my first experience with spiraling, viraling.2010We started out making treasures for our Philadelphia Row Home, including our Tub Caddy out of reclaimed wood and materials gathered from nearby construction sites. At that point, people were thrilled that we were rescuing the materials from them or the deconstruction sites, saving them time and money with trips to the dump.
2011Now with two boys and a business, and needing a diaper bag that wasn’t paislied, flowered, or pre-gendered, we decided to make a bag that would suit all of us. Thus, the first Peg and Awl bag – The Tote – came to life! This may be when we realised we could keep making things first for ourselves, and then for others.
2014The Black Spot Books and the early days of Peg and Awl treasures were mostly comprised of reclaimed and found materials. As our business evolved, we started using new materials for a variety of reasons, primarily as a shortage of reclaimed materials arose. In our first couple years, we decided to officially launch our Of a Kind collections which harkened back to those early days.
2016I went to Spain for Picture Camp, a picture book workshop with my art supplies in various pouches and bags. On the way home, realizing i needed something more conducive to traveling, I started to design an artist roll unlike any artist rolls I could find at the time — one that would hold a variety of art materials, could hold small necessities in a zip pouch, as well as small notebooks. Thus, our most popular treasure to date — The Sendak — was born!
2019Walter, feeling compelled to find his way back to making art as well, went to a painting workshop lead by Jeremy Mann and Nadezda in Tuscany, Italy. On the supply list was a plein air box. Not knowing what this was, Walter ignored it and found himself taping his canvas to his hand to paint. Thus began his developing of the Peg and Awl Scout Plein Air Box!
2023Growing weary of Philadelphia and the business success story of growinggrowinggrowing, we sold our Philadelphia workshop and moved everything to our land in West Chester, rebuilt the dilapidated barn, set up shop, and are now enjoying our new adventure!
2024Journals! I am always eager for change and currently working on new journals*, tutorials, and kits for Peg and Awl. If you’ve been following along, I started this unusual creature a few years ago, and they are nearly ready for take off! This one I made for my friend Deb, using her Pinocchio illustrations on the cover.
Just Yesterday
When the power went out, we found a box of unused Hannukah candles, sunk them into decade old organic black rice and farro, and lit our way through a few rounds of one of our favourite games, reminiscent of The New York Times’ Connections, Code Names! Søren and I started out strong with Roadtrips for 5.
Workspace:
I moved around a lot in 2023 and started this year the same! We’ve already found our way to Savannah, GA and I meandered up to snowy Canaan, CT.
I’ve been moving around The 5 Acre Wood looking for spot that is just right.
Sophie Blackall’s, Milkwood in New York, Photograph by Sophie. Our Cabin in CT, photograph by Deborah Stein. 
A salvaged flat file turned standing desk! A beloved new corner of my studio.
Everywhere, Astonishments!The Flynn Effect and “kids these days...”
I don’t know about you, but I hear a lot of mischief about kids these days and see a lot of memes that don’t make a whole lot of sense to me.
This morning in Turk’s Head Coffee Shop in West Chester, Penna, there was a young person – he must have been 5 – who sat near us and lit up upon seeing a gigantic book of maps on the table and immediately asked “Where is Israel? Where is Japan?” as he navigated the book’s systems. “Mommy, I want to go to Japan.” She considers then realizes he means Japan in the book. Pages turn. “Where is Taiwan. What is this island? Georgian Bay, Ontario. Lake Superior. Where is Minnesota?”
He reads and pronounces places I am still learning, and goes on to explain what makes 75 an interstate.
I could have sat and listened all day, but I had to go fetch my own two creatures, full of wonder, curiosity, and magic. I wanted to leave my name and number, to connect this 5 year old map lover to my 13 and 15 year old map lovers. But maybe they aren’t unusual, these curious young people. Maybe they are everywhere.
Leave us a comment!
–Margaux✨ This Year, We Celebrate 14 Years of Peg and Awl!
HOME, AGAIN. A joyous new-place photograph that you’ve seen if you’ve been w...
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Our Shop! We recently opened it up to visitors for a few days with great success – we met so many wonderful people, which reinforces how lucky we are to connect, through Peg and Awl, to such humans. 2024 will see our shop filled with new treasures from us along with treasures made by others. We are heading to NAMTA in New Orleans in March, on the hunt for art materials.
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Our Barn Shop is Open, Now by Appointment!
Come Visit Our Shop!
Come say hey and pick up a treasure if you are in the area. Email us to make an appointment.
Morning Light! Cozy Corner and Our Bags! 
Vignettes of our Actual Messies!
Walter Hanging Photographs Silas Setting Up Track Lighting 
Walter’s Original Oil Paintings
Scout Pochade Box Handmade Ink! 
Our Bookbinding Kits
Vintage Pencils and Dip Pens! Bioplastic Pans from Poems About You that fit our palettes! 
Of a Kind Book Necklaces Along with Our Classics.
Everywhere, Astonishments!Søren, Silas, and I went to Philosophical Hall in Philadelphia with Katie to hear Catherine McNeur talk about her new book Mischievous Creatures. The title was enough to draw back to the city – and my homeschoolers are up for most adventures. Catherine, Margaretta, and Elizabeth’s stories were full of magic and wonder, local history and mischievous creatures! The erasure of these two women scientists came undone through Catherine's excavation, as one unexpected finding after another revealed their story.
Mischievous Creatures by Catherine McNeur on my desk! Catherine’s Desk Caddy from Peg and Awl, which she’s had for a decade(!), on her desk. Come Visit Our Barn Shop!
Come Visit Our Shop!Come say hey and pick up a treasure if you are in the ar...
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Have a wander through our collection of bags and pouches made with homespun linen, a delightful variety of quilt blocks — these are much older and remind me of my childhood. There are also 1960s hardware store aprons, feedsacks, and 1930s dressmakers cotton, along with some of our favourite scraps of scraps, with which we made a variety of littles. Some of the bags are made with our classic waxed canvas colours, and others with our limited Autumn canvas colours – so many hoorahs!
Each new Of a Kind collection allows us to dig around and find treasures within treasures. Every discovery holds a bit of the past, and the story and marks accumulated. They are a joy to put together and harken back to the best part of our origin story – the gathering of old things and the reimagining and reworking of them into once again useful objects.
We have a handful of journals covered with Antique Leather Postcards! We have a selection of crossbody bags made with our limited canvas colors and vintage textiles!
Our Springy 2023 Of a Kind Collection!Happy Spring! We are getting outside, digging in the dirt, and being surprised again at the bounty of colour, texture, and wonder of the season.
This Spring collection has a different color palette than we are used to here – a Spring of the past, which is familiar, but also a palette of Peg and Awl’s past. As we are working through the layers of the shop, we are finding so many good treasures once buried, like the beloved Antique Leather postcards. We have an abundance of small treasures, as well as some particularly special bags and colour arrangements!
Have a wander through our collection of bags and pouches made with homespun linen, a delightful variety of quilt blocks – these are much older and remind me of my childhood. There are also 1960s hardware store aprons, feedsacks, and 1930s dressmakers cotton, along with some of our favourite scraps of scraps, with which we made a variety of littles. Some of the bags are made with our classic waxed canvas colours, and others with our limited Autumn canvas colours – so many hoorahs!
Alt Sketchbook: International Dial Co.
View in our ShopWe have a few blue Watch Part tins in stock – they are nearly 100 years old and have varying degrees of rust and marks of past lives. Each tin comes with 100 sheets of Fabriano Watercolor Paper, cut to size!
My Non-Dominant Hand 100 Day Project from Last Year
We don’t have many of these tins, and we are always looking for more, but in the meantime – grab your favourite tin, cut your favourite paper and voilà! Here is our short video on cutting your own paper.
Crossbody Bags made with Vintage Textiles!
View in Our ShopThe more I return to the same flea market, the more I know where to look and find treasures in overlooked corners. These feed and sugar sacks, tool belts, and homespun make magical fun of our classic bags!
Mini Tote with Vintage Homespun German Pillow Sham: Francis Standard Tote with Vintage Feedsack: Laurel Mini Tote with Vintage Hardware Store Canvas Half Apron: Moose Heavy homespun German pillow sham transformed into a Classic Tote lined with Fog. Classic Tote with Vintage Feedsack: Heidi For those city dwellers, travelers and others wanting more security, the Totes have a separating zipper that tucks neatly in the bag when not needed. Mini Tote with Vintage Sugar Sack: Sugar No. 2 Mini Tote with Vintage Sugar Sack: Sugar No. 1 Pouches made with Vintage Textiles!
View in Our ShopWe’ve been finding so many gorgeous textiles at Flea Markets lately that we must tame the scale of each collection. We’ve transformed the gathering of patchwork and scrap into useful pouches, giving them new life.
These pouches are perfect for littles that need organizing. As for me, I recently used mine to gather some Persimmon seeds from the wild! They’re hard to be without and you can never have too many!
These patchwork quilts appear to have been made by two, now three, sets of hands. The small squares were first hand-stitched – they were next put together with a machine, then waiting for me to scoop them up and have Tori make them into pouches with waxed canvas lining and backing.
*Custom Pouch Sizes in this Collection: We have 7 pouch sizes in our Peg and Awl catalog, but when we find a quilt block or scrap that is perfect as is, we make the pouch match its size!
Custom Pouch with Vintage Quilt Blocks: Peecha Custom Pouch with Antique Hand-Stitched Quilt Block: Cass Custom Pouch with Antique Hand-Stitched Quilt Block: Maeve The greens are lined with our Fog waxed canvas! Custom Pouch with Antique Hand-Stitched Quilt Block: Morley Custom Pouch with Antique Hand-Stitched Quilt Block: Lucia Custom Pouch with Vintage Quilt Blocks: Elke Spender Pouch with Vintage Feedsack: Maude Alternative Sketchbook: Chartreuse Watch Parts Tin!
View in Our ShopI couldn’t resist this colour and the mini size. Tuck it in your Sendak and come what may! The smallness makes painting ever-accessible, and the shape makes a good painting feel complete!
Antique Postcard Journals!
View in Our ShopOne of a kind Antique Postcard mini journals are back! The cover is made simply, from antique leather postcards which bear incredible old handwriting, postmarks, and on some, a stamp! The insides, as always, are made of hand-stitched Strathmore drawing paper and work wonderfully with a variety of drawing and writing materials.
Antique Postcard Journal: No. 4 Antique Postcard Journal: No. 16 These postcards are covered in handwriting, markings, and sometimes stamps! As with all our journals, these are hand-stitched! These minis are each one of a kind, covered with a unique postcard! These are made with Strathmore drawing paper and work wonderfully with a variety of drawing and writing materials.
The Secret to a Good Flea (Market) Day is a Good Friend!Sneak Peak into our Springy 2023 Of a Kind Collection
Each new Of a Kind collection allows us to dig around and find treasures wit...
Read The Post
Suggested Blog Posts
How does a thing begin? With a word, a colour, a rhythm thumping around in one’s head. Ideas rise from the perfect and unexpected combination of little things. This one started with a remembered crunch of vintage chiclet gum upon finding partly faded fabric, shells from the water’s edge, and well-worn aprons and quilts bearing evidence of past existence. It is also spring, and the springy colors of Chiclets and chicklets and flowers abound. When I came upon two little hand-stitched curtains with yellow and chartreuse flowers, it all came together. Weird and wonderful – just as we like it.
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Bags and Pouches
Pouches, Pipits, Tinned Bookbinding Kits, Oh My!
Walter & Sons Tote
Tinned Bookbinding Kits + Sketchbooks
Tinned Sketchbooks, always your favourites. And something new: Tinned Bookbinding Kits!
We made a video showing how to make the books and more – but definitely go there second because these tins won’t last!
Tinned Bookbinding Kit
Floss and Bundles
Finally, more vintage scrap bundles and embroidery floss for bookbinding and other maker adventures, all in delicious faded tones and bright bursts!
Chiclet Scrap Bundles
Collections Explained
If you’ve been following along with us for a while, you may have noticed that not all launches are the same – some products stay for years, some fly off the shelves, and others fall somewhere in between. Here are some explanations to distinguish between our various collection types.
Standard Collections: Everything in our standard collections will be ongoing until we decide to stop making them! They may include some vintage or antique materials, (ex. journal fabric lining) but these details will vary subtly to ensure their ongoingness.
Small Batch Collections: Limited batches incorporating vintage or antique materials where larger batches can be made, but are not infinite! The quantity ranges, but we aim for minimum of 100 in these collections.
Of a Kind Collections: Limited batches incorporating vintage or antique materials. Each object will be limited from 1–20 items depending upon our findings.
Be the first to know when future collections of a kind collections launch by signing up for our newsletter!
Substack + YouTube
Everywhere Astonishments
I went to New York for two days to visit friends. I didn't take photographs except for my little wander to a coffee shop in the morning. We discovered that pigeons nest in the Sycamore Tree hollows. Most of the visit felt like old Sesame Street episodes. The dogs, the crossing guards, the wire fences.
My paint palette!
Visited Yoseka Stationery Shop. What a magical place! It was packed. I didn't take a single photograph. :(
Storefront
The Peg and Awl Storefront is open for visitors! Come see our treasures in person along with other maker’s treasures and vintage finds.
Monday–Friday 10–5
We’ve got a new sign — come visit and see where everything is made.
The Studio Tour is coming up May 16th and 17th. More on this soon!
Chicklet Of a Kind Collection!
How does a thing begin? With a word, a colour, a rhythm thumping around ...
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Have a wander through our collection of bags and pouches made with homespun linen, a delightful variety of quilt blocks — these are much older and remind me of my childhood. There are also 1960s hardware store aprons, feedsacks, and 1930s dressmakers cotton, along with some of our favourite scraps of scraps, with which we made a variety of littles. Some of the bags are made with our classic waxed canvas colours, and others with our limited Autumn canvas colours – so many hoorahs!
Each new Of a Kind collection allows us to dig around and find treasures within treasures. Every discovery holds a bit of the past, and the story and marks accumulated. They are a joy to put together and harken back to the best part of our origin story – the gathering of old things and the reimagining and reworking of them into once again useful objects.
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We have a selection of crossbody bags made with our limited canvas colors and vintage textiles!
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Our Springy 2023 Of a Kind Collection!
Happy Spring! We are getting outside, digging in the dirt, and being surprised again at the bounty of colour, texture, and wonder of the season.
This Spring collection has a different color palette than we are used to here – a Spring of the past, which is familiar, but also a palette of Peg and Awl’s past. As we are working through the layers of the shop, we are finding so many good treasures once buried, like the beloved Antique Leather postcards. We have an abundance of small treasures, as well as some particularly special bags and colour arrangements!
Have a wander through our collection of bags and pouches made with homespun linen, a delightful variety of quilt blocks – these are much older and remind me of my childhood. There are also 1960s hardware store aprons, feedsacks, and 1930s dressmakers cotton, along with some of our favourite scraps of scraps, with which we made a variety of littles. Some of the bags are made with our classic waxed canvas colours, and others with our limited Autumn canvas colours – so many hoorahs!
Alt Sketchbook: International Dial Co.
View in our Shop
We have a few blue Watch Part tins in stock – they are nearly 100 years old and have varying degrees of rust and marks of past lives. Each tin comes with 100 sheets of Fabriano Watercolor Paper, cut to size!
My Non-Dominant Hand 100 Day Project from Last Year
We don’t have many of these tins, and we are always looking for more, but in the meantime – grab your favourite tin, cut your favourite paper and voilà! Here is our short video on cutting your own paper.
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Crossbody Bags made with Vintage Textiles!
View in Our Shop
The more I return to the same flea market, the more I know where to look and find treasures in overlooked corners. These feed and sugar sacks, tool belts, and homespun make magical fun of our classic bags!
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Pouches made with Vintage Textiles!
View in Our Shop
We’ve been finding so many gorgeous textiles at Flea Markets lately that we must tame the scale of each collection. We’ve transformed the gathering of patchwork and scrap into useful pouches, giving them new life.
These pouches are perfect for littles that need organizing. As for me, I recently used mine to gather some Persimmon seeds from the wild! They’re hard to be without and you can never have too many!
These patchwork quilts appear to have been made by two, now three, sets of hands. The small squares were first hand-stitched – they were next put together with a machine, then waiting for me to scoop them up and have Tori make them into pouches with waxed canvas lining and backing.
*Custom Pouch Sizes in this Collection: We have 7 pouch sizes in our Peg and Awl catalog, but when we find a quilt block or scrap that is perfect as is, we make the pouch match its size!
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Alternative Sketchbook: Chartreuse Watch Parts Tin!
View in Our Shop
I couldn’t resist this colour and the mini size. Tuck it in your Sendak and come what may! The smallness makes painting ever-accessible, and the shape makes a good painting feel complete!
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Antique Postcard Journals!
View in Our Shop
One of a kind Antique Postcard mini journals are back! The cover is made simply, from antique leather postcards which bear incredible old handwriting, postmarks, and on some, a stamp! The insides, as always, are made of hand-stitched Strathmore drawing paper and work wonderfully with a variety of drawing and writing materials.
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The Secret to a Good Flea (Market) Day is a Good Friend!
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Sneak Peak into our Springy 2023 Of a Kind Collection
Each new Of a Kind collection allows us to dig around and find treasures wit...
Read The Post
Happy New Year!
“Turn it and turn it,
for everything is in it.”
–Ben Bag Bag
Growing and flourishing are not always analogous.
Join us for a quick wander through 2023, the year we smallened Peg and Awl, and moved out of Philadelphia. Also the year where we found ourselves finding ourselves again. The ‘smallening’, as I’ve been calling it, is a bit vague. I’m an open book when it comes to most things, and would love to engage in conversation on the topic, but mostly, I know neither where to begin, nor how to distill it. The simplest version is this: Peg and Awl was a thriving small business with twenty-five people at our height, reaching sales numbers we’d never imagined nor planned for. But the joy of having a small business, being curious, and exploring this weird world with family and friends, became secondary as our responsibilities to maintain this monster perpetuated. Somehow growing and flourishing are not always analogous.
And here we are in 2024, returning, already, to what matters most! We’ve ventured south for a little warmth and a lot of biking, I went north for a mini retreat in the snow. We’ve been working on new Peg and Awl treasures, building our barn storefront and workshop, and working on the land.
We cannot wait to share our progress – there are so many stories to tell!
Our 14th Anniversary was January 10th!
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One of the most thrilling parts of 2023 was finally launching our long-in-the-works Solvitur Ambulando ring – and with much success! We appreciate all of your shared stories. Thanks to Claire of Warwick Furnace Farm for modeling for me!
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We spent a week on a cargo ship during a storm on the North Sea – there were two visible twisters at one point! By the fourth day a calm settled over the sky, and the water, and the few floating birds, and we jumped into the cold sea. (no showers on board!)
So often I wish to jump back in, to return to the cold depths in that utter post-storm quiet. We went from thinking we’d made a big mistake in booking this trip, to longing to do something like this again – such a harrowing and magical adventure!
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We discontinued 3/4 of our catalog – both daunting and freeing! Inevitably, once we sell out, the inquiries start pouring in. We still have some Rogues and Weekenders and more available in our Last Chance! section.
(Here, in Amsterdam on gigantic rented bikes!)
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We traveled! Here we are, on the other side of our wild cargo boat trip after wandering down the coast of England. We spent a quick couple of days in London!
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Solviture Ambulando (It is solved by walking)! A Christmas Eve post dinner walk and view of the Peg and Awl Barn from the street.
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One of our last family photographs in our Philadelphia workshop!
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Everywhere, Astonishments!
I was working on this newsletter at Lentil & Co, and this song came on. It comes and goes as songs do, but this one every time, crawls into that place where only certain songs crawl.
No Hard Feelings by The Avett Brothers
This paired well with the essay Who Will Mourn Them When They Are Gone? from Margaret Renkl’s new book, The Comfort of Crows.
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Our Year (2024) in Photographs and Words!
Happy New Year!“Turn it and turn it,for everything is in it.”–Ben Bag Bag Gr...
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HOME, AGAIN.
HOME, AGAIN.
Walter and I started Peg and Awl on the 10th of January, 2010. My journal – which was blank – suggests nothing miraculous. Last night’s power outage from yesterday’s deluge means a coffee shop in-between which rouses the unexpected, always. As I walked and wrote in my new journal*, the in-between felt grounding, as each footfall, each letter, and the sun warming despite the cold, settled me.
I was thinking that we should share a timeline of Peg and Awl successes, but it occurred to me as I walked, to share bits of the in-between days instead.
Thank you for being here!
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Our Shop! We recently opened it up to visitors for a few days with great success – we met so many wonderful people, which reinforces how lucky we are to connect, through Peg and Awl, to such humans. 2024 will see our shop filled with new treasures from us along with treasures made by others. We are heading to NAMTA in New Orleans in March, on the hunt for art materials.
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Journals and Kits and Tutorials! We’ve been working on some unusual new designs and look forward to sharing them.
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Of A Kind Collections (accompanied by more Flea Market adventures)
- New Collaborations, New Colours, and New Found Treasures!
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2010
We started out making treasures for our Philadelphia Row Home, including our Tub Caddy out of reclaimed wood and materials gathered from nearby construction sites. At that point, people were thrilled that we were rescuing the materials from them or the deconstruction sites, saving them time and money with trips to the dump.
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2011
Now with two boys and a business, and needing a diaper bag that wasn’t paislied, flowered, or pre-gendered, we decided to make a bag that would suit all of us. Thus, the first Peg and Awl bag – The Tote – came to life! This may be when we realised we could keep making things first for ourselves, and then for others. |
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2016
I went to Spain for Picture Camp, a picture book workshop with my art supplies in various pouches and bags. On the way home, realizing i needed something more conducive to traveling, I started to design an artist roll unlike any artist rolls I could find at the time — one that would hold a variety of art materials, could hold small necessities in a zip pouch, as well as small notebooks. Thus, our most popular treasure to date — The Sendak — was born! |
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2023
Growing weary of Philadelphia and the business success story of growinggrowinggrowing, we sold our Philadelphia workshop and moved everything to our land in West Chester, rebuilt the dilapidated barn, set up shop, and are now enjoying our new adventure! |
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2024
Journals! I am always eager for change and currently working on new journals*, tutorials, and kits for Peg and Awl. If you’ve been following along, I started this unusual creature a few years ago, and they are nearly ready for take off! This one I made for my friend Deb, using her Pinocchio illustrations on the cover.
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Just Yesterday
When the power went out, we found a box of unused Hannukah candles, sunk them into decade old organic black rice and farro, and lit our way through a few rounds of one of our favourite games, reminiscent of The New York Times’ Connections, Code Names! Søren and I started out strong with Roadtrips for 5.
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Workspace:
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A salvaged flat file turned standing desk! A beloved new corner of my studio.
Everywhere, Astonishments!
The Flynn Effect and “kids these days...”
I don’t know about you, but I hear a lot of mischief about kids these days and see a lot of memes that don’t make a whole lot of sense to me.
This morning in Turk’s Head Coffee Shop in West Chester, Penna, there was a young person – he must have been 5 – who sat near us and lit up upon seeing a gigantic book of maps on the table and immediately asked “Where is Israel? Where is Japan?” as he navigated the book’s systems. “Mommy, I want to go to Japan.” She considers then realizes he means Japan in the book. Pages turn. “Where is Taiwan. What is this island? Georgian Bay, Ontario. Lake Superior. Where is Minnesota?”
He reads and pronounces places I am still learning, and goes on to explain what makes 75 an interstate.
I could have sat and listened all day, but I had to go fetch my own two creatures, full of wonder, curiosity, and magic. I wanted to leave my name and number, to connect this 5 year old map lover to my 13 and 15 year old map lovers. But maybe they aren’t unusual, these curious young people. Maybe they are everywhere.
Leave us a comment!
–Margaux
✨ This Year, We Celebrate 14 Years of Peg and Awl!
HOME, AGAIN. A joyous new-place photograph that you’ve seen if you’ve been w...
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Our Barn Shop is Open, Now by Appointment!
Come Visit Our Shop!
Come say hey and pick up a treasure if you are in the area. Email us to make an appointment.
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Vignettes of our Actual Messies!
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Walter’s Original Oil Paintings
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Our Bookbinding Kits
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Of a Kind Book Necklaces Along with Our Classics.
Everywhere, Astonishments!
Søren, Silas, and I went to Philosophical Hall in Philadelphia with Katie to hear Catherine McNeur talk about her new book Mischievous Creatures. The title was enough to draw back to the city – and my homeschoolers are up for most adventures. Catherine, Margaretta, and Elizabeth’s stories were full of magic and wonder, local history and mischievous creatures! The erasure of these two women scientists came undone through Catherine's excavation, as one unexpected finding after another revealed their story.
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Come Visit Our Barn Shop!
Come Visit Our Shop!Come say hey and pick up a treasure if you are in the ar...
Read The Post
Have a wander through our collection of bags and pouches made with homespun linen, a delightful variety of quilt blocks — these are much older and remind me of my childhood. There are also 1960s hardware store aprons, feedsacks, and 1930s dressmakers cotton, along with some of our favourite scraps of scraps, with which we made a variety of littles. Some of the bags are made with our classic waxed canvas colours, and others with our limited Autumn canvas colours – so many hoorahs!
Each new Of a Kind collection allows us to dig around and find treasures within treasures. Every discovery holds a bit of the past, and the story and marks accumulated. They are a joy to put together and harken back to the best part of our origin story – the gathering of old things and the reimagining and reworking of them into once again useful objects.
|
|
|
|
We have a selection of crossbody bags made with our limited canvas colors and vintage textiles!
|
Our Springy 2023 Of a Kind Collection!
Happy Spring! We are getting outside, digging in the dirt, and being surprised again at the bounty of colour, texture, and wonder of the season.
This Spring collection has a different color palette than we are used to here – a Spring of the past, which is familiar, but also a palette of Peg and Awl’s past. As we are working through the layers of the shop, we are finding so many good treasures once buried, like the beloved Antique Leather postcards. We have an abundance of small treasures, as well as some particularly special bags and colour arrangements!
Have a wander through our collection of bags and pouches made with homespun linen, a delightful variety of quilt blocks – these are much older and remind me of my childhood. There are also 1960s hardware store aprons, feedsacks, and 1930s dressmakers cotton, along with some of our favourite scraps of scraps, with which we made a variety of littles. Some of the bags are made with our classic waxed canvas colours, and others with our limited Autumn canvas colours – so many hoorahs!
Alt Sketchbook: International Dial Co.
View in our Shop
We have a few blue Watch Part tins in stock – they are nearly 100 years old and have varying degrees of rust and marks of past lives. Each tin comes with 100 sheets of Fabriano Watercolor Paper, cut to size!
My Non-Dominant Hand 100 Day Project from Last Year
We don’t have many of these tins, and we are always looking for more, but in the meantime – grab your favourite tin, cut your favourite paper and voilà! Here is our short video on cutting your own paper.
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Crossbody Bags made with Vintage Textiles!
View in Our Shop
The more I return to the same flea market, the more I know where to look and find treasures in overlooked corners. These feed and sugar sacks, tool belts, and homespun make magical fun of our classic bags!
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Pouches made with Vintage Textiles!
View in Our Shop
We’ve been finding so many gorgeous textiles at Flea Markets lately that we must tame the scale of each collection. We’ve transformed the gathering of patchwork and scrap into useful pouches, giving them new life.
These pouches are perfect for littles that need organizing. As for me, I recently used mine to gather some Persimmon seeds from the wild! They’re hard to be without and you can never have too many!
These patchwork quilts appear to have been made by two, now three, sets of hands. The small squares were first hand-stitched – they were next put together with a machine, then waiting for me to scoop them up and have Tori make them into pouches with waxed canvas lining and backing.
*Custom Pouch Sizes in this Collection: We have 7 pouch sizes in our Peg and Awl catalog, but when we find a quilt block or scrap that is perfect as is, we make the pouch match its size!
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Alternative Sketchbook: Chartreuse Watch Parts Tin!
View in Our Shop
I couldn’t resist this colour and the mini size. Tuck it in your Sendak and come what may! The smallness makes painting ever-accessible, and the shape makes a good painting feel complete!
|
|
Antique Postcard Journals!
View in Our Shop
One of a kind Antique Postcard mini journals are back! The cover is made simply, from antique leather postcards which bear incredible old handwriting, postmarks, and on some, a stamp! The insides, as always, are made of hand-stitched Strathmore drawing paper and work wonderfully with a variety of drawing and writing materials.
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The Secret to a Good Flea (Market) Day is a Good Friend!
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Sneak Peak into our Springy 2023 Of a Kind Collection
Each new Of a Kind collection allows us to dig around and find treasures wit...
Read The Post
Comments
Shelly
October 02, 2022Love the music on the preview, and so enjoy watching the process. I didn’t see the solvitur ambulando ring I am sooooo looking forward to😉, but I am keeping out close watch! Thanks for sharing.
Cheryl
October 01, 2022Yes! So many of all the things to make and do! I am trying to trade the pressing for gratitude-for lists ( they speak all of the “to do’s”, but also hint of vision), for the piles, everywhere (so much abundance), for the aches and pains, for I am an old lady now (a body that can still do and live and move and have being)! Grateful for all the things. And grateful for you all and the beautiful vessels of new and old things wrought by your vision and the work of many hands and hearts. They remind us. They connect us.
Thank you.
(the upcoming of a kinds are so lovely!!!)