Welcome, to Whimsicals and BoxCleva everyone!

For over thirty years I have been making tiny hand made perfumed Christmas Tree decorations and pomanders in the form of little people and, because recently I have had so many requests for a blog to show them I have created Whimsicals...Here it is!
I hope you will enjoy accompanying me on the journey as I create new figures for each season, Christmas, Valentine’s day, Mother’s Day, Easter, The Wedding Season and Halloween.

What are they?

POMANDER….A pomander, from the French pomme d’ambre, i.e. apple of amber, is a ball made of perfume, such as ambergris (whence the name), musk or civet. The pomander was worn or carried in a vase, also known by the same name, as a protection against infection in times of pestilence or merely as a useful article to mollify bad smells.

Today we might call anything that is small, round and perfumed for use around the house, a pomander.

I’ve taken this idea one step further and have created a range of little people to hang in the wardrobe, the car, on doorknobs, to put inside shoes and drawers, to hang on potted plants, or on branches at Easter ( as you can see above ), to give as presents by looping them over the neck of a bottle or through a parcel ribbon. There are many uses for them. In the right season… Christmas Trees are just not the same without them. . Whatever you do with them…they are sure to smell sweet for a long time to come. Little girls love them… and big girls too….

Made from the essential oil impregnated scented wooden balls that we used in our drawers ;) a while ago, they are much more exciting to look at! Indeed this is why I created them as I felt that the plain wooden ones were a
trifle boring.

They are completely hand made…no machine sewing, they are far too small at just over an inch and because they are hand made, each Whimsical is unique!

I used to have an international company with twelve outworkers making them for me, supplying the most prestigious shops in the world, including Harrods, Liberty and Fortnum and Mason - but now I do it just for me- and for a local charity to whom I give a percentage.

As they were such a good idea, and those don’t come along very often, I took out a registered design on them, to preserve them as my property, and so the idea is protected by law! Beware of imitations….let me know if you see any copies…anywhere. :)

Keep returning – as there will be new figures appearing from time to time.
I began with Autumn figures designed to lift the spirits during the dull days of the run up to Christmas.

i have several scents at the moment. Of course Christmas now takes a hold! Warm Gingerbread...cinnamon and orange, of course, berries and plum pudding and a spicy one called Baroque.

The house smells FANTASTIC

AND NOW... I have started BoxCleva, clever little boxes, bags and bibelots made of paper.
I was always being asked for little boxes to put my Whimsicals in...So here we are ...lots of them. Themed to the season of course.

And not just boxes and bags but lots of things that can be totally made or decorated with paper. I LOVE being an artist in paper.

Do let me know what you think.....
Sue