Craft Archives - Page 2 of 2

Embroidered Squirrels

February 8, 2018

Over Christmas I simply couldn’t have knitted or sewn to save my life.

The whole family was down with a flu bug, and whilst we all rallied for The Day long enough to open gifts, cook the delicious meal cooked by The Hubby, and sip a therapeutic glass of prosecco or 2 (or 3!), the rest of the holidays was spent doing some very serious lounging about and recuperating.

Thankfully, I’d recently purchased a delightful embroidery kit from Jenny Blair on Etsy.

I can’t even remember where I first stumbled across Jenny, but when I saw this design I was entranced. The two squirrels that live at the bottom of our garden (whom we’ve named Fred and Ginger, of course!), are an endless source of glee, and this just seemed the perfect project for our home.

Jenny was a joy to purchase from. The design is screen printed onto fabric, all ready to sew, but the colours she had on her site didn’t go with our decor. A quick convo and she’d found the perfect fabric and we were good to go.

Shipping was so prompt and I had embroidery thread and a hoop in my stash.

So I was all ready to go when the lurgy hit, and a little quiet stitching was all I could muster.

This design in done in four simple, basic embroidery stitches and is easy to make up, even if you’re a beginner.

Once completed I just re-stretched the fabric in the hoop, secured with magic tape, and taped a circle of felt to the back, ready to hang.

It’s so sweet and I’m really pleased with the result.

Going Underground Quilt

August 4, 2017

I can’t believe it’s been a year since we moved house. Time flies!

When we told our kids we had finally found our new home, their excitement at moving so close to grandparents and their beloved park was tempered by real stress at leaving their home.

For children without any challenges, moving house is a big deal. For adopted children with attachment (amongst other) issues, moving house is A Very Big Deal, that creates a great deal of fear that they cannot vocalise or even understand. But it’s real, and it’s really quite debilitating.

For our boy, this was expressed as absolute desolation at leaving his bedroom behind. I wish it was an exaggeration but it wasn’t. He spent the last week making little videos on his iPad so he’d have his old room with him at the new house.

To try and calm his anxiety I promised him that not only would his new bedroom be bigger than the tiny box room he had in the old house, but that I would make it extra super special for him. It didn’t work completely to allay his fears, but he was certainly excited as decorating started to happen.

He has a passion for all things London since his daddy worked there a few years ago…made even more exciting for him when we had a trip there to visit Daddy. But he especially loves the London Underground, so there was only one way we could go…..

London Underground Map wallpaper on one wall.

London themed fabric for his Roman blind. It’s Capital by Prestigious Textiles.

London Underground bedlinen (thank you Nana!).

And, for hiding under and playing iPads or reading. For cuddling up in on cold mornings, or if you’re not feeling well. And for making rather splendid dens…….

……a London Underground quilt!

I can’t claim the work on this one. This is all Made By Ma! A huge pile of teeny squares lovingly cut and then put back together in the shape of the London Underground Map.

It’s totally awesome! Iconic! And very clever!

Funnily enough, our little man doesn’t miss our old house at all any more. And loves his new London bedroom.

Phew!

Project notes

Pattern: Tikki London – London Underground Quilt PDF

Pattern cost: £3.95

Fabric: Plain quilting cotton

Colourway: Various

Purchased at: Black Sheep Wools

Total quilt cost: Approx £100

Steampunked sewing

April 24, 2017

The sewing room is ready to reveal. The last boxes were unpacked a couple of weeks ago. All the fabric has been sorted, measured and catalogued. All paper patterns have been scanned to Evernote ready for tagging, and then packed into easily accessible boxes. Even the new blinds have been fitted. I just need a bin, an ironing board and iron specifically for that room, and a full length mirror.

As the first thing I’m going to be making is curtains, and I’ve got all of the missing items in other parts of the house, I’d say I’m good to go!

I need to take some photos so I can share with you, but till then I’ve got quick snaps of a lovely sewing room warming present the husband bought me last week from Pipecreative in Hebden Bridge.

I’m sure the vintage sewing machine purists will be up in arms about this but I absolutely adore it!

A Steampunked sewing machine. A Jones, no less. It couldn’t be more appropriate!

The owner was highly amused that he was selling a Jones sewing machine lamp to Mrs Jones to go in her sewing room. He didn’t believe us at first, and double checked the Mister’s bank card when taking payment.

It’s totally bonkers in the best possible way.

Sitting proudly on the windowsill to the side of my sewing table, it’s straight in your eyeline as you enter the sewing room. It makes me smile every time I walk in there.

My hubby buys the absolute best presents. I’m one very lucky lady!

Summertime

July 20, 2015

….and the living is busy!

So much going on here. The kids are on holiday from school now for 7 weeks. Already we have a playdate with friends and sleepovers at grandparents planned. A week at playscheme will be a good break for all of us, as will spending the last week with friends in Bedford. It’s hard to believe but when they go back in September Button will be in juniors.

Needless to say everyone is tired. Boy threw the mother of all tantrums this morning and after 3 hours (I kid ye not) of yelling and stamping and tears and throwing toys around the place he’s finally asleep. Button is enjoying the respite as much as I. Things will settle soon after a few days of chillin’.

Husband and I are shattered as, despite not completing the reno on this house, we’re thinking the best option might actually be to move!

I know….it was totally outta the blue for us too. But our current home is teeny tiny with a garden the size of a postage stamp. After a recent visit to our friends in Bedford and their half acre garden, Button would stand at our bedroom window wistfully wishing that we could knock the fence down between us and our neighbours. Add in that we have need of a home office and a dedicated sewing room and only one small room that could eventually be argued over and we decided it’s time. Trying to sew, eat and run a business from the kitchen table is getting old! We’ve spent the last few weeks looking at everything on the market that remotely fitted the bill. We think we may have found the ideal candidate. There’s another interested buyer so we may lose out…time will tell. I’ll let you know as things develop.

So, as you’d expect, there’s not much creativity happening here.

A little knitting…..

This is Brooklyn Tweed’s Longfellow by Michele Wang which I’m knitting in Drops Alpaca in Navy (colour 5575) for Hubby.

There’s also a quilt to be layered ready for hand quilting:

And a new bag kit that I received as a birthday gift from my in-laws:

Mine will be red leather.

That should keep me occupied over the holidays. I’m hoping to get a little time at the machine too. I’ve two lots of fabric for shirts for Boy and the yellow blouse is going to be remade for Button.

I’m planning a version of her Liberty blouse, this time with a pleated front as per her request.

I think it will suit her more than me!

I also have a couple of makes that need photographing. Perhaps we’ll have a day of nice weather soon and we can get out and about with the camera.

Priority for the next 7 weeks, though, is picnics and playing in the park. Reading and drawing. Visits to the zoo and museums. Playdates and pyjama days. Pretty much taking the days as they come. Hopefully without too many meltdowns! Either theirs or mine!

So posting will sporadic…I’m sure you’ll understand. In the meantime I’m off to do some colouring with a small girl. I’ll see you soon.

Hello again Kitty!

June 24, 2013

Whilst it took me a couple of months to embroider the Kitties, Ma was much more efficient and had the Puss in a Corner patchwork blocks whipped up in no time.

How amazing is that?

I LOVE this quilt.

And it’s not even finished yet!

There’s a pink border to add around the edge of the quilt and it will be bound in a floral print.

Thankfully there is no rush as we’ve three other rooms to redecorate before we get to Button’s.

Retro Kitty and Brit Boy

February 7, 2013

I mentioned in January that I want to return our home from its current shabby state back to a cosy, hopefully stylish, family home. This means new windows, some plastering, new flooring throughout and lots of decorating. All of which is quite an expense…and therefore is going to take some time! 😉

This is a good thing. It works nicely with my new ethos of slow, but also allows me to really ponder the style choices I’m going to make in each room. Work has already commenced with two ceilings being plastered last week. Some essential bathroom repairs are coming soon, and a new bathroom floor.

So far, so dreary! Basic stuff…not remotely exciting.

But! Once the bathroom is done, the next room on the list is The Boy’s, and then Button’s. And whilst we are gathering the resources to buy all the materials and furnishings we need, it seems sensible to make a start on the quilts.

This is much more fun.

First up…The Boy! He’s Union Flag mad! Every time we see one in a shop he dashes straight to it! So, the Union Flag is to be the leitmotif for his new Brit Boy room. And what better quilt to make for him than Busy Bee Quilt Design’s ‘Victory Garden’.

Obviously the colourway shown on the original isn’t going to work for my little chap, he’s camp, but not girly. However, Makower’s ‘London’ is just the ticket.

This is a project that Ma is going to make. I’m not that fond of machine piecing and quilting, but she loves it. Who am I to spoil her fun? 😉

For Button, who is a huge Hello Kitty fan (I haven’t met a 5-year-old girl who isn’t), we are taking our inspiration from this spectacular quilt I spied on Pinterest.

image from http://qisforquilter.com/2009/02/hello-kitty-redwork-quilt-top/

Isn’t this just so stunning?????? It’s an original design by Q is for Quilter and I just couldn’t resist it. Button has to have this quilt.

There is no pattern, so I’m ~~shamelessly plagiarizing~~ reverse engineering and putting my own spin on it. To start, I’ve sourced a pile of Hello Kitty images from Google and printed them out. There are tons of them out there…just Google “Hello Kitty Colouring Pages”. I’ve then reduced them by 50% to get them to a good size to make a quilt block. Each block will be 6″ square when completed.

These are then going to be traced onto fabric and embroidered. The images have been delivered to Ma this morning…she’s been champing at the bit to start the tracing. I’ll be doing the embroidery. This is going to be a wonderful joint project with Ma, she’ll be doing the pieced squares, which are going to be cream/pink/duck-egg blue…which is pretty much the colour scheme for the room.

These quilts are going to be the centrepieces of some pretty cute new bedrooms for the kids. When I’ve told them about what we’ve got in store for them, there has been a huge amount of excitement, which makes these projects even more enjoyable for me (if that’s possible!). And at the end of it, they’ll have rooms that reflect their individual personalities and are a joy for them to spend time in.

Whether they’ll keep them tidy is another matter! 😉

automne – FO 23/2012

September 28, 2012

So I have preparation for my final exam to do.

And the kids have brought home back-to-school-lurgy so I’ve been feeling quite a bit under par this week.

So, of course, I’ve been making a dress for Button.

And not just any old dress…no! A forest themed dress for FSC Friday!

When school told us that today the children could go dressed in green instead of uniform, or in something forest themed, I first planned to do a quick dress out of cord to represent the tree with a few felt leaves tacked to it!

These leaves are all properly appliquéd onto the dress…by hand! Thanks to the lovely Liz for letting me raid her felt stash!

I must be mad. I swear I need to learn to leave well alone. But this has gone from being a one off costume to a little dress she can wear all winter. And a self drafted one to boot.

Because you know that the leaves go round to the back of the dress too.

Yep…I did…I’m crazy! Even more so when you consider that that is a hand picked zip.

It was so worth it though to see her face light up as she saw it coming together, for the ecstatic thank yous, and the bear hug and face full of kisses she bestowed.

I know she won’t always want Mummy’s handmades, so for now I’m happy to pull crazy sewing out of the hat now and again. Even if I should be studying. 😉

Edit…

I forget the credit for the squirrel appliqué ..I do apologise.

I sourced this from Wee Folk Art and you can download it here.

Another year over……

December 31, 2008

…and wow what a year it’s been. We had a rocky start to the year with my road traffic accident and Pa Stitches-in-Law scaring the bejesus out of us with his heart attack. And then we sadly lost Uncle James mid year. But as we sat around the table on Christmas Day (just the six of us this year – both sets of parents and Mr Stitches and I) we still felt blessed. We have wonderful family and friends, all have our health, roofs over our heads, food on our tables and a warm bed at night. In the grand scheme of things you don’t need much more.

I’ve been thinking back (as you do at this time of year) over what we’ve achieved. Whilst I haven’t done nearly as much sewing, knitting or embroidery as I’d like to have done (and frankly, who does), we have achieved a great deal:

Renovated the whole house – just the outside and the sewing room to do over the next year (hopefully – but don’t tell Mr S!)
Completed our assessment for adoption – all paperwork is now in and we are awaiting confirmation that we shall be at Panel on the 14th Jan.
Mr S passed his Prince 2 qualification first time out and secured a great new job. Snaps for Mr S.
I passed my Italian despite my complete lack of studying.
I completed a basic pattern drafting course and now have a full set of blocks.
We set the date for the wedding (not long now. Note to self – must lose weight and decide on wedding dress!)

Not too shabby in hindsight. No wonder we were tired!

Anyhoo – despite thinking we had all we needed, Santa took a slightly different view. I think he went down the route of “well, next year it’ll all be about the children” so we had to climb over piles of gifts to sit down in the sitting room on Christmas Day.

I’m not going to bore you to tears with the whole list of goodies, (it was enormous) but everyone was too generous (thank you all) and I got lots of lovely things to support my knitting, sewing and cooking obsessions. I think the squeals gave away my delight. But without doubt my absolute favourite gift (and one that hadn’t crossed even the darkest, dustiest recesses of my mind) was from Mr Stitches (who else?)

Apparently its a bit of a family tradition that eternity rings are given before the wedding and who am I to argue. The picture really doesn’t do it justice but for the record its white gold set with aquamarines and diamonds. The aquamarines are the exact same colour as my engagement ring. He is a marvel. I’m still not over the shock and find myself using my left hand more than usual!

I am a lucky girl.

There has been little crafting going on here over Christmas, mostly knitting whilst watching movies and munching chocolates. This scenario also included Amontillado sherry and/or Bailey’s lattes!

However I have finished the back and am one pattern repeat away from finishing the front on Mr Stitches French Sweater:

I’ve finished Butterick B5125:

This is made up in 100% cotton. The print was imported from the States last year – can’t for the life of me remember where from. The plain is just a quilting cotton from Hobbycraft. Very simple to make up and has a nice retro vibe about the styling.

I’ve also finished my first jersey top and have started birthday gifts for next year – but haven’t done the pics so will revisit them next year. I’ll also start thinking about projects for the New Year and getting the new look blog up and running (it’s a work in progress at the moment).

So for now I’ll say goodnight and wish you all a happy, healthy and prosperous New Year. May your dreams come true. See you in 2009!

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