Monday 23 December 2013

Happy Christmas


 
We made it!
The annex for my in-laws was finished inside this week and they moved in yesterday.
Talk about cutting it fine.
I haven't made as many presents as I wanted, there just wasn't time,
but to be honest it's a small price to pay.
Wishing you all a Happy Christmas.
Vicky x

Saturday 14 December 2013

Bottle Bag and a blustery day

Bottle bag
 
I have been trying to make some presents this week.
I am pleased with these bottle bags.
 I made them based loosely on the tutorial here by Svetlana
but altered the measurements to fit a bottle.
 
I also made some flowers using the tutorial here by Lucy and will be using these to decorate some presents. If you look closely the bigger flower has more petals than she suggests but that's because I went wrong! 
 
A bit of hooky
 
Have a good weekend.

Friday 6 December 2013

Pinwheels Pillow and a walk on the beach

Finished Pinwheels pillow designed by s.o.t.a.k. handmade.
 
The Pinwheels pillow is now finished.
 
It was a great way of making these pinwheels without having to join any triangles and I will definitely be using it again.
I used fabric from my stash and recycled shirts with some white cotton for the joining strips.
The cushion pad is a tiny bit big but it won't take long for it to sink a bit and it is very comfy.
 
 
We went for a lovely walk on the beach today, sneakily while the kids were at school!
 
A walk on the beach
  
Despite the drizzle when we left home
 there were patches of blue sky and sunshine a few miles away on the coast..
 
A walk on the beach
 
Sea air and sunshine in December.
I love it. 

Sunday 1 December 2013

WIP

30.11.13 001b
 
There is a lot of 'Work in Progress' around here at the moment and not much of it sewing.
These are three grain bags ready for filling.
Quick and easy projects perfect for a quick fabric fix.
 
And I just had to show you this beauty..
 
30.11.13 004b
 
It is a Pineapple Sage, or Salvia elegans.
There are very few flowers out in the garden at this time of year
and these red spikes are just lovely.
I think the plant is a tender perennial but it seems to survive in our back garden.
Cuttings are easy to take just in case the cold weather finishes it off.
 

Monday 25 November 2013

A frosty morning

A calendula braving the frost

This little fellow is braving the frost and shining on in the lovely autumnal light.

crunching on the frosty ground

I love walking the dog across the fields on a frosty morning and feeling my boots
 crunching on the grass.

Then I looked up to see a clear blue sky with the moon still visible and a plane on it's way to somewhere else.
 
Blue skies
 
I am happy to be here on a frosty field with the sun shining!

Friday 22 November 2013

In a rush...

Granny squares blanket completed


The sun is out here today and luckily are heating is back on after a slight hitch.
We are madly painting and decorating an annexe ready for my husband's parents to move in, hopefully for Christmas, so there hasn't been much time for blogging and sewing.

That said, a girl needs some hooky and sewing time to remain sane!

Granny squares blanket completed

The granny squares blanket that I have been working on is now finished and looks well at home on the back of the sofa.
 The blankets and quilts have been brilliant to sit under this week with no heating.

Granny squares blanket completed

The blanket is made from double knit special by Stylecraft which is 100% acrylic.
The main red is a colour called lipstick!

 I have also had fun playing with these pinwheels described in a
 tutorial by s.o.t.a.k handmade.


Pinwheels pillow designed by s.o.t.a.k handmade - WIP


I usually avoid triangles because of the precision needed to make them work
which isn't my strong point.
This lovely tutorial however, shows how to get a pinwheel by only sewing squares.
 It's a new one on me and I love it!
Hopefully a cushion to follow.


And finally I have cut out a washi tunic in red, ready for the festive season if I'm lucky.

 
Festive Washi cut out
 
Hope your weekend goes well...

Saturday 9 November 2013

A bathroom window

Bathroom Curtain
 
We have a small raised window in the shower room which has needed to be covered recently and which I covered with an old curtain that looked like it had seen better days.
 
I have been meaning to make something more colourful but just hadn't got round to it...
until this week.
I got a quarter of a new Kaffe Fassett fabric called Uzbekstan Blue which I really wanted to play with and this was the result.

It's hard to get across in a photo and I am certainly no photographer.
I usually turn the flash off on my camera because I like the colours better that way but if I turn it on for this one you can see the fabric better..
 
Curtain with flash
 
I still prefer it like this though!
 
Curtain with sunlight
 
I used my usual recycled shirts for the backing and some ribbon held on with small buttons
 for the tab tops.
The shirts were checked and I like the effect of this on the plain fabric when the sun shines through.
 
 
 
 
 

Monday 4 November 2013

The blanket and some blue sky

Blanket and blue sky
 
A beautiful day here in Cornwall and a bit of a bonus that it is an inset day for the kids as well.
We have been out in the garden and I managed to get a few pictures of the crocheted blanket finally in some good light.
 
The blanket so far..

The nine big squares are now nearly joined and I am beginning to think about a border.
Any ideas?
 

A basket of crochet

Also in my basket are a nearly finished pair of fingerless gloves and a flower broach that I wore this weekend on my coat.
 I have made one of these before and the tutorial is by Lucy at Attic 24 and can be found here.

I love the pattern and it comes together really quickly.
 
Flower broach

Tuesday 22 October 2013

An unplanned break..

I have just realized that it is 3 weeks since I posted which was a bit of an unplanned break.
A heavy cold and then a stack of painting and suddenly the time has flown by.

I have managed to fit in a bit of crafting despite this and the blanket mentioned here and here is growing gradually. 
I am hoping for some better weather to get some pictures outside but we'll see, and for now this will have to do..

WIP crochet blanket

I have also made an autumn skirt from my trusty New Look pattern 6053..
Autumn skirt
Again you will have to excuse the gloomy picture!
The skirt is made from a burgundy needle cord and as with other winter versions I added a lining because it makes the skirt hang better when worn with tights.
One bit I particularly like is the facing for the waist which you can't see but it's an Amy Butler fabric called Disco Flower..
Autumn skirt detail
And finally I have to admit to a bit of unpicking.
You may remember these made a few weeks ago now..
Two pencil rolls for a charity sale
two pencil rolls destined for a charity sale.
I even took a picture in the sunshine..
Pencil role
..before realising that they may look pretty but the pencils kept dropping out.
I could have tied them tight and let them be, but it was bugging me.
 A lot.
So I decided to unpick them and make the pockets smaller.
It was a bit of a job to say the least but I think it will be worth it in the end.
Will let you know,
 and give you some measurements so you don't do the same thing. 

Monday 30 September 2013

My First Washi Dress

Washi Dress
 
It's finished and I love it!
It must be the most comfortable dress I have ever made with the stretchy panel of shirring at the back..
 
Washi Dress
 
And the empire line style..
 
Washi Dress. Pattern by Rae at made-by-rae.com
 
It took less than a day to make from start to finish and that was with shopping, cleaning and taxiing included.
 
The pattern was designed by Rae from made-by-rae , and was a PDF pattern that arrived almost immediately.
I printed out the 36 pages and pieced at all together.
This wasn't as complicated as I thought it might be, and was way outweighed by the fact that it was so instant.
I made it from a linen-cotton mix found at Truro Fabrics.
I am a size 12 and made a 'large' from the pattern, cutting the pocket linings from some batik cotton that was in my stash.
 The pattern said to get 3 yards and I bought 2.5m but there was plenty to spare.
 
All in all I think it is a great pattern
 (no surprises there as there is a huge flickr pool of dresses made from the pattern to see for yourself)
and certainly one that I will be using again....soon.
 
Washi Dress
 
Good with tights too as the weather here is starting to get autumnal.

Sunday 29 September 2013

Lots of sewing and no time to blog!

Sorry for the lack of news this week but I have been busy sewing.
Two pencil rolls..
 
Two pencil rolls for a charity sale
 
..more pictures when the sun comes out.
These are for a charity sale that my Mum's sewing group is putting on.

And some dressmaking that I will share soon.
 A little black dress for child number one and a Washi Dress for me.
 
I bought the pattern online and it was emailed to me the same day!
Printed out and put together, and after a trip to Truro last weekend I have some fabric, a linen-cotton mix, to try it out.
I have been doing my first ever bit of shirring today..
 
Shirring - Washi Dress to follow..
 
Must go, sleeves and hem to do!
 

Monday 16 September 2013

Rosy Red Apples

 
14.9.13 011b
 
The apples are good this year and I particularly like this tree because of the rosy red apples.
I have taken one load already to be pressed by someone in a nearby village
and can't wait to taste the juice.
 
14.9.13 014b

I have also made a phone case this time for me.
 
14.9.13 017b

The fabric came from my Mum and was in a sale in Plymouth (thanks Mum)
so I am not sure of the name,
 but having just looked it up I think it is
 Acorn Chain in Berry by Joel Dewberry for the binding.
And the other one is Amy Butler's deco dots in citrine from the Gypsy Caravan Collection by Rowan.

Long and complicated names for what I thought looked like green and red apples!
 

14.9.13 018b
 
 

Monday 9 September 2013

Lavender Heart Tutorial

Lavender hearts
 
I thought I would do a little tutorial as I haven't done one for a bit.
 
It's a good one for using up scraps especially the ends of strips if, like me,
you have just made a peg bag.
 
Anyway start by drawing up a template heart.
 Mine is about 16cm in height and 15cm across but you can make it however big you like.
I made mine from cardboard.

Place the template on a piece of plain fabric.
This piece will be covered in a minute so any old scrap will do. I used an old pillow case.
Draw round the heart template using a fabric marker (or biro!).


Lavender heart tutorial picture 1


Next lay some small strips of fabric over the heart until you get a colour and pattern combination
 you like and the heart is completely covered.


Lavender Heart tutorial picture


Then take the strips off, placing them on one side and keeping them in order.

Place the plain fabric with the heart drawn on it, right side down on the mat in front of you.

Take the first strip and place it right side up on the top of the backing fabric (mine is a bit further down to show you the placing but it's ok as long as the heart is covered.
Then take the second strip and place it right side down on top of the first strip, matching the bottom edges, and sew a straight 1/4" seam through all three layers as shown below.
Then open out the second strip so they are both right sides up and press.


Lavender heart tutorial picture 2


Add the next strip in the same way, right side down onto edge of second strip and continue until the background is covered.
I think this method is called 'stitch and flip'.
 

Lavender heart tutorial picture4
 

If you turn this over you should now have the heart shape drawn on the back..


Lavender heart tutorial picture 5


which can be used to cut the heart out.
 
 
Lavender heart tutorial picture 6
 

Next, it's time to make the back of lavender bag.
 
This can be made of any fabric really but I like to use linen.
If, like me, you haven't got a big enough piece,
 just join two bits together and add a bit of ric rac or ribbon to cover the join.
 
You can also add a bit of embroidery if you want to.
 Here I used two strands of Anchor embroidery thread and backstitched the letters free hand.
 
 
Lavender heart tutorial picture 7
 

Place the linen on the table right side up, and place the fabric heart on top of it right side down.
Pin in place, keeping any embroidery roughly in the middle of the heart.
Sew around the edge about 1/4" in, through all layers, leaving a 2" gap for stuffing.
 
(You can also add a loop of string at the top of the heart, in between the two layers before sewing this bit if you want it to hang up. Remember to put the loop in the middle and the ends sticking out so that when you turn it inside out the loop will be on the right side.)
 
 
Lavender heart tutorial<a href=
 

Trim away the excess linen, and clip the curves before turning right sides out.
Press with an iron before filling, as this helps the finished heart to look neater.
 
I filled mine with half lavender and half toy stuffing as I think this keeps it's shape longer but it's up to you.
Sew up the opening by hand (I use ladder stitch for this bit).
 
 
Lavender hearts
 

 
 

Saturday 7 September 2013

Pretty Pegs and a Pot

A new peg bag
 
I made a new peg bag yesterday as last year's one broke and I have been using one from a couple of years ago that looks very sad...
 
The old peg bag!
 
If you want to make one too, I made a tutorial for this a while ago that you can find here.
The flower was made using this tutorial over at Cluck Cluck Sew.
 
 
A basket cover

I also managed to get a picture of a basket cover I made for someone while we were away this summer.
It is completely made up and not quite the same at both ends, but it did the trick of keeping the flies off the veg while we were camping!

And finally, I wanted to show you this lovely Orla Kiely pot that I was given a while ago for my birthday and which I am ashamed to say was looking a little unloved when the person who gave it to me called round.

My birthday pot by Orla Kiely
 
I have now bought some basil,
as my efforts to grow some failed,
 and the pot is looking rather gorgeous on the kitchen table.
Thank you K
x