Family craft July 8, 2008

Crafting was something we were taught early in our family. When we were little my brother and I would often draw, paint, play with clay, garden, cook or more with my parents as it was part of their “keep them away from the tele” regime (very successful and very happy about it now). My mum would do the more artsy stuff with us and my dad was more into woodwork.

Now that they’ve both retired, they have even more time for creating things as you can see here….This stool is their last project, they were inspired an exhibition they saw last year combining origami and furniture. After much puzzeling my mum figured out how to make it was composed and my dad put it all together. As family members, we all were given one and got to pick the colours we liked.

I chose orange and yellow to match our sleeping sofa cover (yellow) and notice board (orange) in the spare room where it functions as my sewing stool. By coincidence, I still had a scrap fo fabric left that matched perfectly so made a matching pillow to sit more comfortably during long sewing sessions.

Mighty mittens! November 26, 2007

These mittens are a present for a friend in Scotland, hopefully they will give her nice warm hands both around Edinburgh and during her winter walks in the mountains. They are made out of an old set of woollen trousers I had, when they broke I was very sad as I loved the material and just couldn’t bare to throw them away…after two years of carrying them around, they have finally been recycled and should be extra warm with a beige felt lining. The fabric for the trim fitted perfectly and a button and loop finish it so they can be either tied into a jacket (kiddy-style) or just neatly stored. I think I might have to make a second pair just for me!

Cambodian warmth October 11, 2007

The blog has been quiet for a while but life is just whizzing past me at the moment. I was in Paris the last weekend of September for the world cup rugby. Well, thats what I told Barry but the shopping, eating and culture were a big draw too :-). Then I spent last weekend with my brother walking in Kiental, tomorrow I’m off to the lake district for a girly weekend with my friends from Dundee and the last weekend of October we’re off to Berlin to visit Barry’s brother!

 

As you can understand, I’m not crafting so much in the mean time but I did manage to finish this bedspread I’ve been wanting to make for years! I bought this piece of silk fabric whilst traveling in Cambodia in 2005. It was a bit of an impulse buy spending our last Riel (their currency) before heading into Thailand. I’ve carried it with me since then as I love the colours but couldn’t decide what to do with it. I felt it was a shame to cut it, plus it wasn’t really enough to make anything big out of. So with autumn well and truly here, the nights are getting colder but it’s still too warm for the winter duvet. So I lined the edges with some orange cotton to make it a little bigger and sewed it together with batting in between.

 

I’m very pleased with the result! Not only have I finally found a use for it, the colors brighten and warm up the room. Specially early in the morning when the sun shines in and sparkles off the gold threads reminding me of the beautiful temples in South East Asia. Bring on autumn and winter cause I have my blanket to keep me warm!

Freddy the fish July 29, 2007

Let me introduce you to Freddy, he was a present for Barry’s cousin’s baby who was born a few months ago. Lightly based on this pattern he came out fairly well but reminded me that I do need to a) use the right size crochethook for the wool, b) read the pattern better before I start and make sure I understand it and c) keep my tension a bit tighter to prevent holes appearing after stuffing. But his new owner Darragh is very happy with him and lucky for me not very critical (yet!).

A bag for my sunnies July 17, 2007

 

I needed a case for my new sunglasses as they don’t fit in my new ones. So I made this bag from a piece of fabric I made a few months ago after being inspired by this post.

I wanted to practice my handsewing, had a drawer of bobbins of thread in various colours and was about to go on a weekend trip to the UK. So I packed all the bits and bobs and set off to security, the bag went through and surprisingly, they let me through without problems!! Also no-one said anything when I was on the plane, yeah!

It’s pretty fast depending on the size of fabric you choose and how close you make your rows. Plus the mesh in the fabric is a nice guide to make sure you sew straight. I’ve made a few pieces like this now and it’s definitely my new craft to do when traveling on a plane.

Against the clay… July 5, 2007

With my pottery classes in full swing, I decided I couldn’t keep borrowing other peoples aprons. So I made this one from a piece of fabric I found in the bargain bin. I copied it from my kitchen apron but made it extra long and wide so it wraps around totally. The little tulips are so sweet (I can’t help it being Dutch) but unfortunately these have already started to disappear under layers of clay. However, it keeps my clothes protected when I’m working, specially at the wheel, so it’s reducing the pile of washing after Tuesday nights classes!