Something blue

Today one of my closest friends is getting married. I can hardly believe the big day is here and that we were in Barcelona over a month ago.

I sent Miss C a little 'something blue' to pin to her dress earlier in the week. Blue silk on linen. Mine was a tiny blue ribbon from my mother's sewing box pinned to the underneath of my train. It's probably still there.

I've memorised my reading and am trying hard not to think about the pulpit, the microphone, the 150 guests or the 4th paragraph which makes my voice catch.

I think I may actually be more nervous than my own wedding day.

I finally get to wear the dress, with the matching bag, and I even found an appropriate nail varnish this afternoon called 'Elegant Mauve' that just about goes. I'm still undecided about whether to fascinate or not (which, incidentally, the lovely Miss C bought me last year). I might take it with me to the hairdressers - oh yes, in a last ditch attempt to look half decent in the photos I thought I would get my hair blow dried. Entirely out of character - my hairdryer is still in a box in the cellar from when we moved five years ago - but, you know, there's a first for everything.

All we need now is fantastic weather and lashings of waterproof mascara.

And tissues.

Anyone would think it was me getting married!

Barcelona beach bags

Well, we couldn't have a hen do without a memento. Using some calico, cotton tape and image transfer paper, I made beach bags for us to use in Barcelona. Whilst we didn't have time to lounge on the beach, they became our shopping bags for all things divine from Mercat St Josep.

I wanted to turn this into a tutorial, but ran out of time to photograph all the stages. I'll make sure I do when I next make one. They are essentially book bags with a wide bottom. So easy to make and I'm really pleased with how they turned out.

For now, here are some photos of the initial stages and the image transfer paper being used. I did a printing course about 3 years ago and bought it hoping to use it, but like so many of my craft bits it was tucked away for a rainy day and forgotten about. The instructions are really straightforward - simply treat it like printer paper and just remember to reverse the text or image before you press print! I had a small IT issue with my laptop and printer (they are apparently 'on a break') but this was easily resolved using a rather convoluted method of two laptops, pdf, gmail, printer and floor cushions. The latter due to the location of said printer!

Patience is the key - when you have printed the image, it needs to be bone dry before you iron it onto the fabric. When you iron it onto the fabric it needs to have cooled completely before peeling off the transfer backing. On the first bag I made, I tried to overlap the names on the main image - big mistake. Obviously the heat of the iron heats up the main image and everything becomes a hot, sticky, transfer mess. Stick to the recommended ironing times - I got distracted by Miss P a couple of times and had to cobble together a method of getting the smaller name transfers to attach fully to the fabric after I'd peeled off the backing paper.* The cherries were a standard iron-on patch - something I'd not used before, but fell in love with and thought they'd go well with the Spanish themed handles.

The bag itself is double stitched and unlined. I trimmed the seams with my pinking shears to keep everything neat. Next time I'll make them a touch wider and double stitch around the top of the bag - I gave them two rows of stitching (top and bottom) but that wasn't strong enough.

*I used the large backing paper that had been peeled from the main image and simply placed it over the smaller transfers that were being difficult. I then ironed on top as per the instructions, left it to cool and then peeled the backing paper off again. Seemed to do the trick!

Rock Star part 1

Another of our friends little ones turned one at the weekend. To avoid gift duplication and disappointment, I thought I'd make him something special. Admittedly the xylophone and wooden drum were screaming 'buy me, buy me', but we managed to walk on by - I like to think of it as avoiding the potential for future retaliation buying!

I still wanted something music themed though. And what better than a soft toy career nudge?
Ribbon tuning keys as I've heard on the grapevine that little ones are rather smitten with such things.
It's perhaps more ukulele than acoustic guitar in size to the average adult bear, but then he is only 12 months old so it will hopefully be just right.
Rock Star part 2 to be revealed. I may have got a little carried away with the theme...ahem.

I'd like you to meet someone

Thank you for your lovely messages. I'm trying to get a second opinion to make sure it's not something nastier. Ah well...onto nicer things...

I was a busy little bee last week making a birthday present for our little niece who turns 1 this week. Do you want a peek?

Any ideas?

Well, what else would a self-confessed cat obsessive Auntie make? Why, a soft Miss P for little Miss M.

The real Miss P isn't wildly impressed about sharing her inside space with another cat as there are more than enough in her garden thank-you-very-much, but it won't be for long.

Made from tough cotton, painted with fabric paint and with the odd bit of embroidery here and there, the non-spiky Miss P2 has been washed and is ready to be wrapped.

I hope little Miss M likes her. Obviously, it being a present for a 1 year old, it's highly likely that Miss P2 will be discarded in favour of the wrapping paper and toys that shriek noise and have a high shine appeal. I'm sure she'll be discovered sooner or later...she'll certainly have some stories to tell.

Sublime stitching

I hope my knitting needles don't mind being tucked away this winter as I have been well and truly bitten by the embroidery bug. All seven babygros have been finished. Roses for the twins, space rocket for baby S, a pusscat and bird for little B and a truck and spaceship for new kid on the block, T.

They are so quick and easy to do - iron, needle, thread and scissors. To think of the hours spent knitting baby blankets and booties, whilst therapeutic, not exactly quick particularly when there were so many little ones arriving this year! All the designs came from Sublime Stitching - although I have bought myself an embroidery pen to have a go myself at some point...but that will have to wait until the tapestry is finished. It has been, along with everything else, royally neglected. I have completed 'U' and 'G' - which makes me chuckle each time I look at it. Pickle has taken quite a shine to it too!

A bowl full of buttons

I like buttons. I find them incredibly therapeutic to play with. Like grains of sand running through your fingers. Shiny, fabric, functional, decorative, 2-hole, 4-hole, shank, chocolate - there are just so many to chose from. As a child, I would spend hours playing with my mum's button tin - my favourite was a bright blue rabbit button. My own button collection is rather small and, alas, lacks in little treasures (apart from a certain little blue rabbit...). It certainly has never been the treasure trove all mothers and grandmothers appear to have tucked away for rainy days, projects and bored children.

The other day I popped into John Lewis with my friend R to track down some suitable buttons for a bracelet. We spent some time deliberating and cogitating over colours and combinations. When we'd made our decision, we pulled out the tube. I was astonished. The buttons that we wanted were £3.95. Each! And the project wanted 12 of them. Suddenly making a present didn't seem to be the thriftiest idea after all.

So, I've been keeping an eye out for buttons in my local charity shops ever since. I popped into one of my regulars on Wednesday and spied a shelf by the counter with jars of buttons. Lots and lots of buttons! Big ones, small ones, white ones, wooden ones. I can't believe I've never spotted them before. There was no price tag - when I asked, I was told that I should pay what I felt the button I wanted was worth. Blimey. I decided to put an offer in for the whole jar. And they accepted. They kept the jar and I walked away, pleased as punch, with over 100 large buttons. I spent a thoroughly enjoyable hour sorting and matching, and discovering some real beauties like these.

I wonder what garment they once belonged to. You can hardly see the pattern unless they are held up to the light. So, thanks to a little thriftiness, my button collection can no longer be called small and I have lots of bits for my corsages. India Knight would be proud. Hoorah.

Now, all I need is a larger button tin...

A tip top Thursday

Gosh, what a productive day I've had and it's only just gone 3. That might sound like a rather silly thing to say but since becoming an unemployed statistic, trying to maintain a routine has been quite a challenge at times. I had a long ol' list this morning and, by George, everything got ticked off.

First stop was a local college where I signed up for a week long course on Project Management which I start on Monday. It's a fascinating place, established in the 1920s for working women and based in a listed building which is just stunning. Next was a quick browse along the shelves of the local library - where to my amazement I was able to pick up some fab craft books (here and here on Amazon if interested). More on these beauties once I've picked out what I want to make!
Chuffed with my finds, I popped to Waitrose to pick up some essentials, including the latest Country Living magazine as my subscription hasn't yet kicked in. I'm looking forward to following their 'Earn a country living' series - I'm in desperate need of inspiration together with a large glass of escapism!! A petite bonjour at Chez Julienne for another cafe au lait (addicted...) and then home via a gem of a charity shop. And look what I found hidden behind some particularly ugly wine racks!!
I have wanted to have a go at embroidery for simply ages and what better excuse than this. It's small - which is just perfect for a beginner - and it was only when I got home and took it out of its bag that I realised that the original instructions were attached and it was as good as new. I just love the typography. Now, all I need is a trolley...and some thread...

No. 6

Thank goodness the rain has stopped. What grotty, snotty weather. This week's project was to cover two old cushions that we've had since our university days and are currently used as a space filler between the head of the mattress and the headboard.* At the time, it was really cool to have faux fur cushions. And, at the time, they were really, really soft - they were pretending to be husky fur and were a great substitute for a cat. Over time, they have gone from cool to naff and, dare I say, a little sad looking. So, off came the covers, out came the sewing machine and a remnant from Ikea and voila, two pretty cushions.

The only problem is that they look quite good on the chair, which means that there is now a gaping hole at the top of the bed once again...curses.

*Small tip to those buying a new bed. Buy both frame and mattress from the same place - don't try and be clever like us...

The sun has got his hat on

What a bright day it is today - it's hard to believe that we were waiting for the snow to arrive a week ago. I picked up some daffodils on Thursday from the new florist and they have finally bloomed - their yellow trumpets reaching for the sky. Such beautiful hues of yellow - my camera doesn't do them justice.

We've had a lovely relaxing weekend. Mr M flew in from Paris on Friday evening so we spent Saturday catching up. We have a lovely little French deli called Chez Julienne who sell the most delicious things - forestiere pate, Brie de Meaux, mini macaroons, strawberry tarts - heaven. They have room for a handful of people to take a pew and sip a coffee, it's usually packed with a gang of regulars but we decided to chance it and we were in luck. The cafe au lait was the best I've had since France last year and the cheese and ham croissant with bechamel sauce was to die for. A quick pit stop at the local supermarket to pick up a paper and some beer for the rugby and our afternoon was complete.

Mr M left this morning to fly to Munich, so to get out of his way whilst he packed the last of his things I decided to have a go at another corsage which I've been doodling this week.

This one was even quicker than the last one to do. I'm going to road test it this week to see how it weathers as the felt is much thinner - although I have reinforced the back with some seriously thick felt from The Cloth House.

Righty-ho! I have a sandwich to make and a list to write with all the crafty things I want to do on this fine sunny afternoon. I might even decamp to the chair in the bedroom because it is currently basking in the sun rays.

Have a lovely afternoon!

Sun, screen printing and self

Finally - I have found some time to pop up a post. We've had a fantastic couple of weeks - Berlin, blue ray, blue skies, Blue, bolognaise, buddies and brilliant fun at the local scout fair on Sunday (including a dog show and the puppy next door called Archie).

And it gets better - I have just got back from spending 3 hours screen printing = bliss. I love the result but, being so impatient, I dislike the cleaning up, waiting for the inks to dry and the fact that the stencils can't be reused. The textile course is starting to include stitch which is great fun. It's just finding the time to do the homework!

So most of this evening was spent cutting circles for the stencil...but hey, I'm happy. Take note of the great linen! ; )

Must remember to cut out templates before next Tuesday!

My sewing machine lives!

The biggest excitement of today, other than N's expertly cooked lamb shanks, was sitting down and testing out the sewing machine following Mum's poking about. It worked! I now have one finished tablecloth and six matching napkins.
I am so, so pleased. Watch this space for skirts being churned out factory style!

p.s. the chocolate cake has been devoured - there are two sad pieces left, so no photo. However, I will most definitely be making it again! Before I do, I think I need to get back to the gym...

Lovely Liberty and laziness

Actually, I don't think I'm lazy - I just get swept away with things. I have grand ideas and they are often parked for the more mundane things like washing up, going through piles of paper (why, oh why, are there never ending piles) and the like.

Talking of parking things - in an earlier post I waffled on about some gorgeous Liberty fabric that I picked up in a random sale that they had a couple of weeks ago and without further ado, here it is.
I love them both. The big flowers are going to become a dress and the trees are going to become a layered skirt. That's the grand plan anyway. I have a couple of things to make before embarking on these but my goal is to have them done before we go to Italy in August. Plenty of time...

One cushion completed

I had a crafty hour yesterday afternoon and finally covered the cushion for the chair in the bedroom with the fabric left over from our wall hanging. So simple and easy to do, but I am so pleased with it.
My beloved Bernina started to misbehave and the stitches began to go a little wonky. Thank goodness for the pillow case back so you can't really see it. I need to book it in for a service. It is nearly 30 years old. It was my mother's first electric sewing machine and I love it. The slight musty smell when you pull it out of the case, the sturdiness of it and the gentle hum as it stabs through the fabric. Time to take it to the sewing hospital...