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.

Mobile May 30, 2008

A quick pre-weekend post about a present for a friends baby. It was inspired by this post and books from this lady… I liked it a lot and was pleased to see it in full “swing” on my recent visit to Scotland. I also recently go Lotta Jansdotter her new book on prints which is beautiful and very comprehensice so am very exciting about starting that and sharing it with you soon. Off to Amsterdam in a few hours to visit my family and do a bit of shopping, have a nice weekend

Needle holder May 14, 2008

A birthday present for a knitting fanatic friend. Loosely based on this tutorial but with improvisation and changes. I loved the ribbon from the moment I saw it in Ikea almost 2 years ago and am pleased I finally found a purpose for it. Don’t make the same mistake as I did though and sew it all the way along cause I had to take the stitches out again as it only needs to be attached in a small part.

Hot feet January 1, 2008

Here’s one I made last year as we’re still enjoying our extended holiday in Tasmania!

We have a big bed. When moving here we decided to splurg and go for a 200×220 bed which is great but as the days are getting shorter and it was getting colder it’s harder to heat….and who wants to get into a big cold bed…not me. So we bought a hot water bottle/ but this was a bit hard and plasticy so now I made this cover with some pieces of felt I was given as a sinterklaas present. Now the feet are nice and warm and happy with their soft bed companion.

Girlie baby blanket December 8, 2007

I made this baby blanket as a present for one of Barry’s cousins. She had a baby girl in September (shows you how late I am!!). I got my inspiration from some lilies we had around the house and based the color scheme on it. I decided to weave this as it’s so much faster than knitting, however its still a new thing for me. Last year I went on a weaving weekend with friends of mine at our favourite local wool shop. I loved it and was full of enthusiasm, when I moved away from Dundee shortly after they gave me a small Ashford loom as present which was great. I haven’t used it as much as I would like (so many things to craft!) but this has definitely given me a taste for more. For the blanket I used cotton as it can be easily washed, the pattern is easily made with randomly alternating colours in the warp and then having even rows of weft. When finished I sewed it onto some purple fabric (not very straightly but that makes it look more “authentic” :-))and lined it with thin batting inside. I will be giving it to them tonight as we’re seeing them all in this fantastic hotel for their yearly family reunion.

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!

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!