One of my favourite craft books is pretty in patchwork doll quilts. I’ve already made one of the quilts from it (the I Spy quilt) but I’ve also had my eye on the really pretty ticker tape doll quilt by Cathy Gaubert for my daughter. So over a year ago, yep you read that correctly, I bought a colourful rainbow of fabric from an Etsy store and it wasn’t until a few months ago that I got it out again. It felt strange finally cutting into each piece but now I have at least I’ll be able to use the…
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There are some great craft books coming out at the moment. I’ve found a few extra pennies to purchase a few and have ear-marked a few projects to make as gifts for people this year. One book I received to review was Sewlicious – 35 ways to a handmade world. The author, Kate Haxell, creates 35 stitched and highly original projects. This is a lovely craft book, beautifully photographed with clear instructions. The patterns are a little different from other craft books which is really refreshing. In the introduction Kate Haxell explains that “Sewlicious” is delicious sewing. “That just because…
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So I’m blogging about doll quilts a lot at the moment. I love making them and trying out different techniques. One of my favourites was the Grandmother’s Garden doll quilt. I really enjoyed working on it although the shape gave me a few headaches over how to finish it. However, finishing off the Summer Stitching quilt gave me a few ideas which helped. Grandmother’s Garden Doll Quilt Firstly, I added a couple of green hexagons to the short sides of the quilt to make it into a rectangle. I spent a weekend unpicking all the basting stitches and removing the…
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Due to the Summer holidays I’ve been blogging a lot less than normal (for me). I love spending time with my children and have really enjoyed picking up some sewing in the evenings rather than my laptop. My latest project is Wild Olive’s Autumn Stitching Club project. This was quite simple compared to the Spring Stitching Club quilt I recently finished. There were only 13 hexagons to make but they were all really enjoyable to stitch. I love the Pumpkin Spice Latte, Caramel Apple and this pretty hexies of potted mums. I used a Moda Posh Pumpkins charm pack for…
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The Summer holidays are rattling by and it’s time for Week 4 of our Summer holiday round up. Last week Big Brother and I ventured into London to walk the Riverside Book Bench trail. We spent a lovely morning finding the decorated sculptures, painted to celebrate London’s literary heritage and reading for enjoyment. You can find pictures of all the benches we found on my other blog. We enjoyed a family day out at Odds Park Farm as well as another trip to London for the launch of a new augmented reality game at the British Museum. Big Brother and…
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This time of year (distinctly Autumnal!) makes me think of the Knitting and Stitching Show at Ally Pally. I’ve been every year since 2007 and I started blogging about my purchases from the Show. As there are just so many lovely to things to buy I have to be strict with myself so I blog my purchases and what I make to justify my purchases. In 2010 I bought a Clothkits doll cushion, Advent calendar printed panel, gingerbread man cross stitch and Union flag quilt pattern. I made everything except the Union flag quilt as I couldn’t find the jelly…
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I love joining in with Wild Olive’s seasonal stitching clubs. I like to share my progress too but it seems that I often forget! Last summer I took part in Wild Olive’s Summer Stitching Club. You get sent a pattern each week and it builds into a cute little doll quilt or cushion cover using English Paper Piecing and hexagons – my two favourite things. This was the first I took part in and to be honest I found it hard to set aside the time but had a big push and made the bulk of it over one weekend.…
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A while ago I set up my own Etsy shop to sell vintage supplies such as Scrabble tiles and playing cards. I’ve had a couple of sales, and I have plenty of stock which needs to be listed. I really want to push my little shop to the next level so was excited to see a new book from Mollie Makes. Called Making It! the hard facts you need to start your own craft business, this book sounded perfect for me. I’m a huge fan of Mollie Makes. As well as my monthly subscription to their lovely lifestyle and craft…
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I can’t believe I’ve survived the first week of the Summer holidays. I thought it might be fun to blog about what we’ve been up to. The first week started with afternoon tea with Kirstie Allsopp and a paper cutting masterclass with the lovely Poppy Chancellor. I also snuck in a visit to see the Wedding Dresses 1775-2014 exhibition at the V&A. Big Brother and I attended the Hobbycraft Christmas preview, followed by a trip to the Disney store where I treated him to some of the new Planes 2 toys (he’s obsessed after our recent trip to see the…