• competition - crafts - handmade

    Make new from old with Reloved magazine

    The summer issue of Reloved magazine has just been published and I’m pleased to say it is packed full of projects like the last issue I told you about a couple of weeks ago. The magazine features 30 hands-on craft projects from some of my favourite people, such as Kirstie Allsop (who I was delighted to meet at BritMums Live this year!) Pearl Lowe and Annie Sloan. The tag line of the magazine is ‘the creative guide to upcycling’ and this issue has a focus on putting the chic into your shabby furniture, home decor and clothes. I’m not sure…

  • crafts - handmade

    Something new

    Moving house has definitely killed any desire to be crafty. Aside from crafting with the children (and I really don’t count that!), my boxes of fabric and notions are still largely unpacked and staring at me every minute of every hour! I was hoping to carry on with my Grandmothers Garden doll quilt but I haven’t looked at it for the last 8 weeks – eek. The one little glimmer of light has been the ATC swap organised by Ali at Very Berry Handmade which I signed up for before we moved house. The theme was ‘Something New’, and had…

  • crafts - Crafts for kids - handmade - tutorial

    How to make Minions from kinder eggs

    Our household is a little bit obsessed with Minions at the moment. Minions are of course the highlight of the films Despicable Me, to my toddler anyway! I’ve seen lots of Despicable Me crafts on Pinterest and thought we would make our own Minions. We used the plastic shell from a Kinder Surprise which is the perfect shape and colour. How to make Minions from kinder eggs You don’t need many supplies to make your Minions; the shell from an empty Kinder Surprise, blue and black Sharpies, googly eyes and Scotch Super Glue. The plastic shell already has a helpful…

  • crafts - playing - tutorial - upcycling - vintage

    Ikea doll bed makeover

    It seems an age ago since we were lucky enough to come across a really cute little wooden doll bed on a recent charity shopping spree. It was quite big but we managed to get it home on the bus, just! We paid £2 and when we got home I realised it was from Ikea and actually retails at £14 so I felt quite proud of our bargain, especially as Little Sis has been playing with it even since. I knew I wanted to personalise it for her so the first step was to give it a wash, a quick…

  • crafts - garden crafts - handmade - sewing

    Pinned it, made it!

    I am a member of the Collective Bias®  Social Fabric® Community.  This shop has been compensated as part of a social shopper insights study for Collective Bias and their client. You all know I’m a huge fan of Pinterest, so much so that I actually guest post every week over at the PinAddicts Challenge! I love to make the things I pin and thought it was about time I showed that here on my own blog as well. I’m an avid pinner and after attending a pretty inspiring Pinterest session at BritMums at the weekend I’ve spent a couple of…

  • crafts - Dolls quilts - handmade - Orla Kiely - quilt - sewing

    I Spy with my little eye

    I Spy with my little eye, something beginning with Q. I have completed a project! I’ve been working on a doll quilt for Little Sis for quite a while. She has a growing collection which I am very happy to add to. The pattern is from pretty in patchwork doll quilts which is easily my favourite craft book at the moment. Fortunately for me the quilt came together in several distinct steps so I was able to work on it over a couple of weeks. First of all I chose and made the 24 hexagons, then arranged them again and…

  • crafts - Day Zero - driving - Etsy - moving - weight

    My Day Zero challenge is over

    I’m actually quite pleased to say that the Day Zero challenge I started on the 19 September 2010 has finished. It seems a long time ago but my 1001 days are over. I haven’t quite completed my list but it’s 87% finished, which is good enough. Time to start something new for me. This year has been busy with the house move and adjusting to our new life in suburbia. At the beginning of the year I said I wanted to slow down on the blogging front. It’s taken over my life and not in a good way. I appreciate…

  • book review - crafts - handmade - upcycling - vintage - What I'm reading

    What I’m reading: Vintage Revised Jewelry

    Moving house has helped me re-discover all of my lovely crafty items which have been packed away during the whole house moving shenanigans. Everything is slowly coming together and I have a long list of things I want to make. A couple of weeks ago I was sent a copy of Vintage Revised Jewelry by Co-Co Nichole Bush to review. I’ve been reading through the 35 projects and already want to try so many of them. They combine my love of recycled treasures and handmade which is a brilliant match for me. Divided into four sections the projects cover Vintage…

  • book review - competition - crafts - Day Zero - handmade

    A book, some sewing and a competition

    We’ve had an amazingly busy weekend. It was lovely to do some non-house related stuff and we had a great day out in London as well as a fun playdate with friends. Somehow I managed to finish the latest BritMums bookclub book – Ancient Lights by John Banville. It was the strangest book I’ve read in a long time. The main character of the book is a complete narcissist and I found him difficult to like. He was very wordy too…. Anyway, the premise is that in a small town in Ireland in the 1950s a fifteen-year-old boy has illicit…