Crafty Catch-up

Gee it's been ages since my last post...I have no excuses either as I've had the last couple of weeks off work for Easter and my birthday, so I've definitely had the time… tsk tsk! Now that I’ve told myself off lets begin…

- delicious birthday muffins from The Hummingbird Bakery Cookbook

Just after Easter I went to stay with some relatives in London. It was Luca's first trip to the big city and overall I think he liked it - his poor Dad and Uncle though were left with the challenge of carrying the pushchair up and down a gazillion steps to and from the tube - if nothing else they came back a lot fitter than when they went!

Luca at the V&A Museum* 

Whilst we were there I managed to drag everyone to my favourite fabric shop – Fabrics Galore. I didn’t go too mad with fabric buys…ahem...

I bought some lovely blue linen for a bag from this book. I thought it would be perfect for the summer - light weight and big enough to pack the suncream, a good book and even a small crafty project.

The only alteration I made was to add a small zip pocket inside, just so I don't have to keep rooting to the bottom for my lipbalm!

I also bought some beautiful bird fabric. It's medium weight cotton, perfect for making an apron. I'm really proud of how this turned out as I didn't follow a pattern, and usually when I don't follow a pattern things go slightly awry! After, I had just enough fabric left over to make a simple bag, which I lined with raspberry cotton.

Finally I'll leave you with pictures of a project I finally got around to starting. I've had a stack of Folksy Flannel on my sewing room side for a while now with the intention of making a simple blanket after seeing this one at Frontier Dreams.

Well I finally bit the bullet and cut it up!!

All that's left to do is sew a white border around each 9-patch, which I'll do using a brushed cotton sheet from ebay - bargain!

*If your heading to the V&A Museum before July 4th they have a Quilt exhibition which is well worth a visit.

And finally...

I finally finished Luca's gift this weekend, and not a moment too soon!! His birthday was on Monday, but luckily his party wasn't until today, so I had an extra 6 hours to get it finished! Phew!

I had the idea to make a blanket showing his first year, around Christmas time and since then I've been getting a little bit made here and there. Although it's not perfect, I'm chuffed with the finished blanket, and I'm pretty sure my sister liked it...oh and Luca too!

It's made up of patterned and plain squares; embroidered pieces and photographs, which I transferred onto fabric using Inkjet Iron On Transfers Paper, which I bought here. It was really easy to use, although I did have to rope Karl into the photoshop bit (cropping, reversing and printing the photographs!) - thanks honey!

-this is the back

- and as it is Luca's day, and I'm a smitten Auntie, here are some cute birthday boy pictures...

Iggle Piggle - sweet and sugary

Luca drooling over his birthday cake!

Hope you had a wonderful weekend!

Scenes from the Weekend

This is what job hunting looks like...messy! Notice the umpteen cups - tea to get me through the day!

A little night time reading - the newest addition is this book, which I have whole heartedly fallen in love with!

Progress - 8 days to go!

And finally...

I finally got around to snapping my crafty Christmas gift from Karl - only 3 months after the event! Isn't it wonderful! It was completely stuffed to bursting point with shredded wrapping paper which went everywhere! Inside is a real treasure trove of craft goodies - from a scrap bag of fabric, fancy wool, and sparkly thread, to a collection of beads and buttons. All I need now it time to play with it all!

Hope you all had a fun weekend x

Heavenly Half Term

What a busy week! I've been extremely spoilt with time for the last 7 days as I've had the entire week off work and literally done nothing other than sewing. Total bliss!
I've made a great start to my nephews 1st birthday gift, it's still a secret so I can't reveal what it is yet, but here are a couple of pictures of the progress made so far.

More to follow.

This week also saw my first attempts as dress making.

I bought a couple of Japanese dress making books from Etsy and finally had a stab at making something from them. The first project was from the  Stylish Dress Book vol 2 - dress 'D' which is on the cover. I made it using a thin wool fabric which is super warm. I did have to alter the shape around the waist and I took the sleeves off. Overall I'm really happy with how it turned out. If you're attempting to follow a Japanese pattern and need a little help, Pink Nelie has a really useful list of Japanese-English sewing translations.  

The second project was from the Stylish Dress Book - blouse 'B'. The only alteration I made to the pattern was taking it in at the front a little more, just to reduce the bagginess. I love how it turned out.

I've been eyeing up a few more dress making books, but I'm spoilt for choice - any recommendations?

Yeehaw!!

Gosh it's been ages since my last post...since then I've made a cozy laptop sleeve, a hot water bottle cover and finished knitting my very first hat! All of which are sat waiting patiently to be photographed and displayed to the world. Sadly, they are going to have to wait a little longer...my lovely other half has once again reclaimed his camera (how dare he!!) and besides, the days are still pretty dark here - not the best for snapping beautiful photographs!!

And so, to fill the space with something fun, here's a picture of some wonderful boyish fabric which Karl has picked out for his new laptop cover. More pictures to follow - I may even attempt my first tutorial!

Little Folks for Little People

Just a quick post today...thought I'd better get my skates on with making my nephew his first birthday present. So far I've picked the fabric! I don't think he's yet mastered the art of surfing the internet, so I think it’s safe to show you. I wanted something that wouldn't look out of place in a boy’s bedroom in years to come. What do you think?

I can't reveal what I'm going to do with it just yet, as it'd be a nice surprise for my sister and her hubby.

Bags, Balls and Biscuits

Sorry for the lack of posts recently…my lovely other half has cheekily reclaimed his camera so I haven’t been able to snap any of the bits I’ve been working on…so that’ll have to wait (until I can sneak the camera back again!- sshh don’t tell him!) So instead, here are a few pictures of pressies I made and received at Christmas.

A knitting bag for my mum - now she has no excuse for leaving her balls of wool rolling around the living room floor!

These little houses are actually coasters! They're from Zakka Sewing -

  your cup goes on the window and the door is where the biscuit(s) are stashed!

This scarf was for my lovely other half, Karl. I used Pampas Chunky wool and by knitting one row and purling the next it curled in at the edges, which made a lovely tube scarf! I think it's lovely!!

I made everyone a stocking this year - these were pretty easy to make, so I made myself one too!

Just before Christmas Karl treated himself to a new pair of boots - last of the big spenders! And so I felt his precious new boots needed a special boot bag in which to live...voila!!

Is it morning yet?!?

Well I'm super excited about tomorrow, I'm off to the The Knitting and Stitching Show in Harrogate, and I can't wait! I just need to finalise my shopping list...this may take some time!!!

I'll hopefully have lots of beautiful bits and pieces to show you tomorrow...

Christmas Crafting

I realise it's a little early to mention it...but Christmas is not far away and so this week I’ve begun some yuletide crafty projects.

This year my family have all agreed to put their varied skills to the test and make presents for one another, instead of traipsing endlessly around the shops buying gifts that we don’t really want or need.

Already this has made Christmas more meaningful. I’m already giddy at the thought of my family’s reactions to the little creations I’ve made. Equally I’m excited about the things my loved ones will make for me…with a chef for a mother and a Dad who makes beautiful wine, I think Christmas is going to be very merry in my household!!

Obviously I can’t show you the things I’ve made (just in case a relative can’t wait until Dec 25th!) but I can give you a teeny tiny glimpse at some bits and pieces I’ve been working on…

Homeless No More!!

Finally my crochet hooks have a home! Today I made a roll to keep all my hooks together, and there's even room for a pair of scissors and some pins. What do you think? I think it's turned out rather beautifully, despite the odd little mishap with the binding! (but shh don’t tell anyone!)   

Oh and as a quick make to use up some scraps, I made a little pincushion.

I hope you like them :o)