Contented

Another random post

* Yesterday I wanted to crack on with the zippy pouches I still needed to make for the summer fair - it did not go well!  First I realised that I had bought the wrong kind of interfacing (for the SECOND time running!) but I carried on, completely f***ed it up anyway and broke a needle in the process.  Grrrr.  Today I had another go, BROKE ANOTHER NEEDLE, but did at least manage to work out where I went wrong yesterday and produced one pouch.  But I'm now so hacked off about it that I've decided not to make any more (just for the time being) - what I've made so far will have to be enough!

* Luckily, just at that moment the postman knocked, and delivered some canvas fabric, which meant I could make a start on the end of term gifts for Joe's teachers.  I've decided to make them a simple tote bag each - I don't think you can ever have too many of those, especially when you have school books and stuff to lug around.

Usually we just make some fudge or brownies for the teachers but I really want to show my appreciation for everything that has been done for Joe, so figured that, hopefully, something handmade will be a bit more meaningful.

* Another lovely thing - in the playground this morning Kate, a TA who's recently been brought into Joe's class to work with him on a one to one basis, came up to me and said how much she loves working with Joe, "he's a little breath of fresh air" she said!  It makes me feel so relieved & happy that the people who are working with him really do seem to care about him (and that he likes them too!) 

* I think I may have spoken too soon - almost as soon as I had written that I would not be starting any more big projects for the summer, than I started to think that I really, REALLY wanted to start on another quilt!!  But I will at least restrain myself until I've checked off all the other things on the list first!

* Speaking of which, I've had a few ideas for word play.  When I think of sugar I think "white" - so I want to use some different white fabrics and then some white on white embroidery.  Which means another trip to the fabric shop as I have no white embroidery thread! 

Sorry for the randomness of this post, my mind seems to be a bit all over the place today!

Enjoy the rest of the week!

R x

Stitched up

Do you remember the little stitchery design that Claire of Matching Pegs sent me a while back?  Well, it's been sitting in my to-do pile since I received it, waiting for me to pluck up courage to start working on it as, other than learning the basic stitches at school, I've not really done any "proper" embroidery before.  But this weekend I decided to take the bull by the horns and just give it a go.  And do you know what?  I loved it!  I was completely hooked from the start and did the whole thing over the course of the weekend (although I still can't get the hang of French knots - must go and see if I can find a good tute on youtube!)

 

(Oops, the photo's a bit dark, it looks brighter in real life).

Now, I doubt my stitching would stand up to close inspection by an embroidery expert, but I am so happy at how it turned out!  In fact, I enjoyed it so much that I went and ordered the Doodle Stitching book from Amazon!  Now I just need to decide what to do with my little bit of stitching.  Originally I had though about putting it into a cushion cover, but now I'm wondering whether to just frame it and hang it on the wall?  What do you guys think?

I have been managing to do a bit of "other" sewing too.  With the school summer fair in mind, I've been trying to make a few things each week, so that I won't have a mad panic the week before.  It's not til the end of June, so still a couple of months to go, but already I'm worrying about whether I'll have enough stuff, whether it's the right kind of stuff, will people like it etc, etc.  I've got a few new bags,

 

 

These two still need linings.  Some little quilted hearts,

 

as well as all the felt brooches and beaded hearts that I've made already.  I still need to make more of these, plus coin purses and maybe some soft fabric storage buckets too.  But before I can get on with all that, I have a swap gift to make and some upcoming birthday presents too!  Busy, busy, busy!!

Have a great week!

R x

Bits and bobs

I hope you all had a lovely Easter weekend!  We did, just mooching around at home as usual, but still nice.  Now, what have we been up to?  Peter has had the last couple of days off as well, and today we all went to see Monster vs Aliens - in 3D!   If you haven't seen it - then go see it!  It was a good fun family movie but it has to be said, the 3D effects were pretty spectacular!  We explained to Joe what it would be like before we went but, unfortunately, he decided -after about 5 seconds! - that he didn't like the things jumping out at him and refused to wear the glasses!  He still enjoyed it though, although it looked pretty blurry without the specs. 

So what else have I been up to?  Let's see - my Saffron Craig fabric arrived, just a couple of fat quarters but they are very lovely!

 

No idea what I'm going to do with them yet, of course!  Although I did notice that they seemed to go quite well with the other piece of hand printed fabric I bought a little while back, what do you think?

 

I've also just finished reading this book:

 

Now, you know I don't "do" book reviews, but I did enjoy this one and would definitely recommend it.  It's a  little bit different - I'm really crap at explaining things so I'll just give you a bit of the blurb off the back:

"How can I describe this place?  It's an in-between place.  It's like a grand hallway that leads you nowhere, it's like a banquet dinner of leftovers, a sports team made up of the people never picked, a mother without her child, it's a body without it's heart.  It's almost there but not quite.  It's filled to the brim with personal items yet it's empty because the people who own them aren't here to love them."

I think I enjoyed this one better than PS, I Love You, just my personal opinion, of course!

Finally, I signed up for Silkiesue's Freestyle Swap and have been partnered with Lisa at Periwinkle.  I'd not discovered her blog before so I've been enjoying looking through her archives and learning a bit about her. She's made some gorgeous knitted bunnies!  Now I have to get my thinking cap on and decide what I'm going to send!

Ooh, no that wasn't the final thing, there's more!  Emma at Bagladee is celebrating her blog's first birthday and is giving away one of her gorgeous handbags so do pop over and say hello!

That's all for now.  Enjoy the rest of the week!

R x

One year old

Good morning!  Hold on, it's actually good afternoon already, how time flies!  So today, as you all by now have gathered, is my blog's first birthday!  I can't quite believe it's been a whole year.  365 days, 160 posts, 541 comments, 8110 views(!!!), 3 quilts, 5 pairs of socks, 7 swaps, and too many bags, scarves and felty things to number!  My life has honestly changed so much in this last year - and it's quite wonderful.  I could get all gushy at this point and tell you all how much the whole blogging thing means to me but, to be honest, it's all been said before (and probably much better than I could ever say it), and you guys know already. So I just want to say thank you to you all, for reading my ramblings, leaving me little messages, giving me loads of inspiration and for generally being wonderful friends!  I wish I could have you all over for a cup of tea and a piece of cake!

 

So, to the fun stuff!  As is blogging tradition, I have a giveaway for you.  There are not one but two prizes and I hope you'll like them:

 

- a little soft fabric storage basket, made from that super cute teatowel I showed you the other week,

 

- and another Buttercup bag, made with a button and loop closure this time.  There will be some other little goodies thrown in as well, and I may even pick a couple of runners up too!  You know the drill - leave me a comment on this post and I'll pick names out of the hat next Friday morning (10th).   I will post internationally so my overseas bloggy pals can enter too.  Good luck everyone!   And thanks for sticking with me!

R x

Pootling

It's been another one of those kinds of weeks where nothing very much has happened.  This is fine with me, as I am very happy just pottering about at home.  Being at home most of the week means there has been time for some sewing and I have been trying to get back into the bag making groove.  This morning I finished a pleated tote, another free pattern from Artsy-Crafty Babe - made from a thrifted pillow case. 

 

My success with the buttercup bag meant I was a lot more confident when it came to the box pleats, and I really like the way it turned out, although the print is not really my style.  I've also been sewing lots of felty things.  There was a PTA committee meeting on Wednesday, where we began discussing the summer fair, and that got me to thinking again about whether or not to try my luck and take a stall.  I think I'm going to go for it, and have starting planning what I want to make.  I'm inclined to think that smaller items will sell better than big - I'm thinking brooches, hanging ornaments, keyrings/bag charms, that kind of thing - and then maybe just have a few examples of bags so that I can make them to order, should anyone be interested.

 

I am also absolutely ITCHING to get cracking on some new quilts - the Georgina one and I really want to make another with my Prints Charming collection - but I am still awaiting the arrival of an order of white cotton from the states.  I'm starting to get a little worried - the last batch of Prints Charming fabric that I showed was ordered just the day before I ordered the white - I just hope it hasn't got stuck in customs!

On Sunday we have the school's easter egg hunt - I'm on raffle duty so keep your fingers crossed for a sunny day for us!

Have a great weekend!

R x

P.S.  Next week it is my blog's 1st birthday, so make sure you stop by as there will, of course, be a giveaway!

Buttercup

Good morning!  Isn't it a beautiful day?  I was a bit worried yesterday afternoon when it suddenly became freezing cold and very grey again, but this morning is glorious sunshine again.  I'm feeling quuite chirpy today because yesterday I made a bag and I'm so pleased with how it turned out.

 

It's the buttercup bag which is available for free here.  As it's a free pattern, it's for personal use only, so I can't sell this design but I don't mind one bit because it's actually the perfect size for me (I prefer small bags) so I can imagine making this in all sorts of different fabric combos (a different one for every occasion perhaps!!)  and it will be lovely for gifts too.  This is the most complicated bag I've ever attempted - only because up till now I've only ever made very simple tote type bags with straight edges - but actually wasn't too tricky at all (once I'd got my head around the pleats and how to pin the curvy bits!) It was also the first time I used interfacing and magnetic snaps and, whilst there are probably a few little details that I would do differently next time, it still turned out remarkably well for a first attempt.

   

Have a fab weekend everyone!

R x

Planning

There's not been a great deal of creating this week, but there are a few ideas brewing, which I thought I might share with you :-

* Bags.  I've not done any "serious" bag making for a while (too busy with quilts and socks!), although I did make this one for my niece's birthday last week.

 

You can't see from the, frankly quite appalling, photo, but it is actually quilted.  I was quite pleased with how it turned out and my niece loved it, which is the main thing!  Anyway, back to the subject, last month I purchased a Portobello Pixie bag pattern and this afternoon got round to transferring the pattern from the tissue to a more sturdy paper.

 

 

Although it worked out quite expensive to buy due to the awful exchange rate, the thing I was most interested in is the fact that the designer, Sandi Henderson, has given permission for the bag to be made and sold by "the home sewer" without any fear of a lawsuit!  Hoorah!  So, once I've made one for myself (of course!), I'm going to make some to try and sell.

Which neatly brings me to my next point:-

* Folksy.  I opened a Folksy shop I-don't-know-how-many months ago, listed 4 items and then forgot about it.  No surprise that there's been no interest then!   I would really like to try and make at least a little bit of pocket money from this hobby of mine, so I think I need to give Folksy another chance and actually make a bit more of an effort this time!  If anyone has any tips on this, they would be greatly appreciated!

*  Also in my mind is my next quilt, using that lovely Georgina fabric.  I'm quite glad that I didn't go straight ahead and start making it, as I think I've changed my mind about how I'm going to do it (well, a girl's allowed to change her mind, right?)  I'm now quite keen on the idea of cutting it up into smaller pieces, and surrounding it with lots of white (I think that was Lesley's idea?) - and then using more of the georgina print for the binding - something like this:

 

What do you think?  This will be a summer quilt for our bedroom and I'm really exciting about making it.  I just need February to be over so that I can buy the white cotton I need, then I can get started!

*  And that's the other thing.  I've been very good and haven't bought any extra fabric or yarn all this month (apart from a couple of FQ's for Joe's quilt, but I did say I would allow myself that!)  It hasn't actually been as hard as I thought it might, but I have seen a quite a few new prints around the blogosphere that are on my wish list!  Top of the list has to be some of this gorgeousness from down under:

 

Scrummy new Prints Charming fabric!  And I also can't wait for this new collection to come out:

 

French Hatbox by Tanya Whelan - just beautiful.

So there we have it.  Any guesses as to which "plan" I'll do first?

R x

A little announcement

I have taken a very deep breath and got myself a little shop on Folksy!  I figured there wasn't really much to lose - it's still in Beta so they're not charging commission yet.  I've only listed a few items so far, but will hopefully get more on there in the coming weeks.  Please do go and have a look and let me know what you think - and be honest with me,  constructive criticism will be greatfully received!  I know I still have some work to do regarding my photo's.  I did try and put a button in my sidebar but failed miserably (I've tried putting on buttons before for swaps and had the same problems) - I've read the instructions on Typepad itself and read a tutorial on Bella Dia but I just can't crack it - hence there is only a link.   Maybe someone can help me with that too?  Anyway, I'll leave you with some pics of three little bags made this week - the first two are in the shop but the last one is for me! (Click on the pics for a bigger view).

       

Enjoy your weekend!

R x

Tuesday afternoon

Now the kids are back at school I'm starting to feel as though I'm getting back into some kind of routine.  Actually, routine is probably the wrong word - I am quite an organised person but very lazy too, so therefore very good at putting things off, stuff like housework, dieting, exercise...

Anyway, in an attempt to be a little more productive, I have made myself a little "To Do" notebook, in which I am writing down all the things I need to accomplish each week.  And it seems to be working so far, it's very satisfying to be able to cross things off.  The plan is that anything not completed will be carried over to the next week.  I'm hoping that this will help me keep a bit more on top of some of the more mundane jobs, and that I can also plan in some crafting time too!

And I have managed a bit this afternoon, finishing off this little tote bag for one of Joe's friends.

 

Sorry about the awful photo.  My new camera may be better than the old one but it can't do much about poor light - it's so grey & gloomy here today!  Let's hope it brightens up a bit for Friday - William's birthday!

R.O.B.O.T. Swap 2008

Now that Helen has received her swap package, I can show you what I made for her.  I was really excited about this swap and wanted to try and come up with something a little different, outside of my comfort zone.  I searched for "robots" on flickr which came up with tons of images, some traditional, others totally original.  But however hard I tried I just couldn't get the stereotypical robot image out of my brain.  I've come to the conclusion that actually, I am no good at coming up with original ideas of my own, but am much better at just adapting already existing ideas.  So in the end, I made the one thing that I had told myself I would not make for this swap - a bag! 

As you can see, I added a little robot appliqued patch, made using scraps of fabric, a little embroidery and some vintage buttons that had belonged to my Nana.  Very, very simple, but I was really happy with it, and I think that was more important than trying to make something "original" that I wasn't entirely happy with.

I also found some R2D2 chocolates and a little robot sticky note pad, and I made a card with a felty robot on the front.

    

I had a lovely email from Helen saying how pleased she was with it all, which made me feel really good.  Now I can't wait to see what will be in my parcel from her!