• Jenny Makes Mollie Makes cross stitch jewellery kit
    crafts - handmade - Mollie Makes crafts - sewing - tutorial

    Jenny Makes Mollie Makes cross stitch jewellery kit

    March 8, 2015 - By 

    I couldn’t wait to get my hands on the Mollie Makes cross stitch jewellery kit from issue 51. I enjoy cross stitch and have made a couple of things with these wooden pendants before. Jenny Makes Mollie Makes cross stitch jewellery kit The kit contained two pendants which could be made into a brooch and necklace as well as a page of patterns. I made up one of the patterns from Mollie Makes. It was a really quick little make and I enjoyed using the colourful threads provided. The second pendant I made my own design of a simple heart.…

  • competition - handmade - sewing

    Kirstie Allsopp Fabric Pin Cushion Kit giveaway

    February 27, 2015 - By 

    Are you giving a gift this Mother’s Day? I have a lovely little giveaway to share with you today, and it would make a lovely gift, for your Mum or Nan. Or you could keep it and make it for yourself! I’m a huge fan of  Kirstie Allsopp and her craft kits range at Hobbycraft. Today I have a lovely Kirstie Allsopp Fabric Pin Cushion Kit to giveaway, and the winner should receive it in time for Mother’s Day on March 15th. image credit This kit is beautifully presented in a gorgeous floral box. This charming pin cushion kit is…

  • Cath Kidston - handmade - sewing

    Cath Kidston inspired rainbow needle case

    February 24, 2015 - By 

    I mentioned the other day how I was inspired to get my sewing box out after a visit to Cath Kidston in Piccadilly. I really loved the felt rainbow needle case and pincushion I saw but wanted to make my own version. It took me a while but here’s my finished Cath Kidston inspired rainbow needle case. I love working with felt and chose a selection of colours from my stash box. I drew a rainbow on a piece of paper and used it as a guide, cutting out each arc then pinning it to a larger piece of red…

  • book review - competition - sewing - What I'm reading

    Win a copy of Torie Jayne’s Stylish Home Sewing

    February 18, 2015 - By 

    I’m delighted to be taking part in a blog tour today for Torie Jayne’s Stylish Home Sewing book. I’ve been a fan of Torie Jayne’s blog for a long time so I knew her book would be full of beautiful and stylish items to make. This book does not disappoint. It contains over 35 projects to make your home beautiful. The projects are fresh, are co-ordinated in Torie’s trademark pastel colours, and definitely reflect her style which shines through on her blog. As you would expect from a book published by CICO Books, the projects are really well laid out…

  • DIY Valentine hoop art - the gingerbread house
    crafts - sewing - Valentines Day crafts

    DIY Valentine hoop art

    February 11, 2015 - By 

    I’m not sure how Valentine’s Day has come around so quickly. Have you bought your other half something special? We usually only exchange cards but this year I have made some hoop art for my husband. Materials needed to make a DIY Valentine hoop art: embroidery hoop fabric felt red embroidery thread or red wool fabric glue How to make a DIY Valentine hoop art: First cover your embroidery hoop with fabric. I chose a simple Dear Stella fabric and made sure it was tight within the frame. I’ve been playing around with a spool knitter, trying to teach my…

  • competition - crafts - handmade - Handmade gifts - sewing - Valentines Day crafts

    Win 1 of 2 Sew Your Own craft kits

    February 11, 2015 - By 

    I have been enjoying all the heart themed crafts over the last few weeks. There’s just something about the bright colours at this generally gloomy time of year. Our house is filled with hand made cards, decorations and a few sweet treats too. My children are a lovely age for this little celebration and they’ve really enjoyed making cards for everyone. With two young children much of my crafting is now aimed at them. They love to craft more than anything and our house is filled with their work. I figure I have plenty of time to craft when they…

  • liberty heart-shaped patch
    sewing - Valentines Day crafts

    First steps in customising clothing

    February 8, 2015 - By 

    I mentioned the other day how I really want to try some dress making. I have started with some simple steps in customising clothing – baby steps first! What would an English Paper Piecing obsessed mother make for her daughter? Yes, EPP hearts for Valentine’s Day. Simple Liberty heart-shaped patch I found a super sweet tutorial from Wild Olive for simple heart-themed English paper piecing. Baste two jewel shapes, then stitch them together to form a heart. You can then adorn anything you like from hand towels to clothing. I found some gorgeous Liberty scraps in my stash just waiting…

  • quilt - sewing

    Monthly Makes – January

    January 31, 2015 - By 

    There’s something about January that makes me want to stay in and hibernate with some sewing. It’s been so cold that I’ve been quite happy to spend my evenings working on my Union flag quilt – a gift for my 3 year old – hopefully before she leaves home. I’ve seen real progress with it this month and it’s grown quite a lot. I’ve also incorporated some fabrics from her old baby clothes so it’s turning into a real heirloom piece which I hope she will treasure. You can’t really see the scale of it from a photograph but each…

  • days out - sewing

    Monday happy things

    January 19, 2015 - By 

    Yesterday I spotted my first snowdrops of the year whilst we were out visiting the Watts Gallery in Sussex. I love snowdrops and it always makes me happy to see them poking out of the frozen ground. I seemed to have reached some social milestones this week. Yep, I’m celebrating 5 years on Foursquare and a whopping 8 years on Twitter. I reached over 100000 followers on Pinterest too. I’m not sure how I feel about this, in fact I’m trying not to think about it too much! It may seem from reading my blog that all I’m doing at…