• Christmas - daddy - handmade - Recycled crafts - sewing - swaps - tutorial - upcycling

    Vintage blanket cushion

    December 9, 2010 - By 

    We decided to go home for a few days! My husbands’ health is improving so much quicker than last time that we’ve decided to return home for a few days before Christmas. We miss being a threesome, miss our cats and doing our own thing although we are incredibly grateful to my mum for letting us stay with her. On Saturday we’ll be getting on the ferry and heading back to London. I am so excited as I’ll be able to attend the Julie Arkell workshop on Sunday too. Vintage blanket cushion Today I finished a cushion for my youngest…

  • baking - Day Zero - sewing - swaps

    Day Zero – Month One (October)

    November 1, 2010 - By 

    It’s been 6 weeks since I started my Day Zero list and I’ve made good progress. I’ve found having a list of things I want to achieve helps me focus. Sewing/craft projects So far I have made Edward a beanbag, finished covering our nursing chair, made my sister a draught excluder, made Edward a Clothkits cushion and finished a felt gingerbread house. I’ve taken part in at least one swap a month (via the Secret Post Swap and Swapbot) and made vintage tags for swaps and parcels. Cooking/baking I’ve made a couple of soups from scratch, made meringues, baked a…

  • baby - Christmas - handmade - sewing - vintage

    What do you buy the boy who has everything?

    October 19, 2010 - By 

    I’m wondering what do you buy the boy who has everything for his first Christmas? My son has everything he needs and at 7 months he’s too young to hand me a wish list of toys he would like. My husband has been restoring some beautiful vintage wooden toys for him and I’m making him a dinosaur blanket to snuggle up with. I’m sure he’ll be spoiled by his extended family too. He is now sitting up independently so we’ve packed the baby gym away. I recently bought some colourful and noisy toys which he loves to play and interact…

  • handmade - sewing

    Fabric goodies

    October 7, 2010 - By 

    Today I went to the Knitting and Stitching Show at Ally Pally. It is literally on my doorstep and I have been going for the last couple of years because it’s a great place to get inspired and stock up on sewing essentials. Every year I seem to visit the same stands and buy things that I never use. So this year I am going to show you them in the vain hope I will complete the projects before next years’ Knitting and Stitching Show! I’ve also added them to my Day Zero list so I have a deadline of…

  • baby - Cath Kidston - handmade - sewing

    Refashioned beanbag

    October 4, 2010 - By 

    A while ago I bought Edward a beanbag chair but he never looked very comfortable sitting on it. So over the weekend I refashioned the beanbag into a large cushion using some lovely alphabet fabric from my Cath Kidston stash! Much happier (honest!).

  • baby - giveaway - handmade - sewing

    Reversible hoodie pattern from Kitschy Coo

    September 17, 2010 - By 

    A couple of weeks ago Kitschy Coo put a call out to test her new reversible hoodie pattern. I leapt at the chance. I’m a complete novice crafter but love handmade so I had to give it a go. I chose a fleecy orange for the lining and green camouflage for the shell. The pattern was well laid out with easy to follow steps. First I cut the pattern in both fabrics. I put the shell and lining together, with ribbing for the cuffs and waistband. The hoodie took me an evening to cut out and an afternoon to piece…

  • handmade - sewing - vintage

    Cath Kidston Badge blanket

    September 3, 2010 - By 

    I absolutely adore the badge blanket in the current Cath Kidston catalogue. I think it would be perfect to keep in the car and use when we’re out and about on picnics. However the £60 price tag is a bit steep for my mummy purse and I don’t think my husband would be pleased if I used the child benefit! So I’ve decided to make my own. I spent the last few weeks looking out for patches to sew on the blanket and have accumulated a great stash on vintage and new.  Some of my favourites were picked up at…

  • reviews - sewing

    Product review: How to Sew e books II

    September 1, 2010 - By 

    This post follows on from a previous post reviewing two ebooks: How to Sew – Basics and How to Sew – Applique. This review is of two further ebooks: How to Sew – Patchwork and How to Sew – Machine Sewing. How to Sew: Patchwork The How to Sew: Patchwork ebook (a handy pdf) contains a basic introduction to patchwork and quilting along with three simple projects over 27 pages. The ebook covers both machine piecing and hand piecing patchwork as well as machine and hand quilting. Lots of helpful hints are included and the layout is clear to read…

  • reviews - sewing

    Product review: How To Sew e books I

    August 27, 2010 - By 

    I was recently given the opportunity to review four ebooks on a variety of sewing topics: How to Sew – Basics, How to Sew – Applique, How to Sew – Patchwork and How to Sew – Machine Sewing. Today I will be reviewing the first two ebooks. I’m a complete novice at sewing but I really enjoy having something creative to do after putting my little boy to bed. I was encouraged by my grandmother and mother who could both knit, crochet, sew and embroider anything. How to Sew – Basics The How to Sew – Basics is a handy…