The Beauty is in the Detail

I made this! - Silver Cloud, Silver Moustache and Silver Whale brooches

2012-01-31T18:53:00.000Z

Been busy lately working on some new designs! Here are three of my most recent additions to my Not on the High Street Store -

I made this! - Solid Silver Buttons

2012-01-29T19:37:00.000Z

Whilst making a fabric brooch for a friend I thought it would finish it off nicely to sew a real silver button into the centre so I made a silicon mould from a nicely shaped button and then cast one in Art Clay Silver. I loved how this little button looked so decided to make these to sell. There are three sizes, which look really nice sewn as a group onto a coat or bag but I'm also selling them separately so people can either buy several of the same size for sewing projects or individual buttons as little tokens of love or friendship. Available in my Not on the High Street Store -

Bumpy Arrived!!

2012-01-29T18:08:00.000Z

Well on October the 14th at 9.05pm my little boy, Olly Anthony Weeks came into the world. All 9lb 8oz of him, ouch! Three months on I'm just about feeling back to normal (if things will ever be truly normal again!). I'll attach some photos of my little smurf below. . . (my best creation so far!) -

I made this! - Butterfly brooch

2011-09-16T16:34:00.000+01:00

I must apologise again for being such a bad blogger. My last post was in April - when for me, the world was a much happier place. In May we discovered that my wonderful Dad had advanced Pancreatic Cancer, and we lost him in June. It all happened so, so quickly. We were all in shock. It's been 15 weeks since he passed and each day seems to get harder. My first baby is due any day now, and knowing that Dad won't be here to see him breaks my heart.

It's hard to be positive at times like this, but with the new baby on the way he will bring much needed positivity and happiness at such difficult times. I must admit that I haven't been spending alot of time crafting of late, but have made some bits and bobs for the nursery -

I really wanted to avoid the typical nursery colour and pattern themes so decided to paint it an elephant grey. All the furniture is white so it doesn't make the room too dark - just nice and cosy. I really like scandinavian patterns and bright modern colours (no pastels please!) so have tried to use a mixture of different patterns and fabrics to add colour to the room.

I've been planning to add more designs to my range of brooches which I sell on my Not on the High Street Store so I felt inspired to make a butterfly due to its relevant symbolism to me at the moment. Finally today I have managed to list it online! Hopefully in time for the christmas rush!

Once I recover from Bumpy's arrival I will let you know how it all went and put some photos up too!

I made this! - New brooches

2011-04-05T21:29:00.000+01:00

Sorry for the absence of posts this year - I have been busy honestly - but mostly busy making a baby! Yes the hubby and I will be expecting our first baby this October!! So expect lots of baby orientated projects over the next year or so as it becomes my only subject of discussion!!

But babies aside - I wanted to talk about my silver brooches - I have been selling the silver button brooch for a little while -

And the Hedgehog -

And now most recently a smaller owl - as my original owl would have worked out far too expensive to sell - so I have kept her for myself -

So now I need to decide what to make next . .

I've been considering maybe a mouse (of course) or a cat, maybe a fox to carry on the woodland theme - hmm . . if anyone has any suggestions please comment - I welcome the inspiration!! x

Lisa Stickley

2011-01-20T23:28:00.000Z

Still loving the adorable retro designs by Lisa Stickley I saw some of of her new lines at the recent Top Drawer exhibition at Earls Court and have promised myself a new handbag - at some point! My husband pointed out that my new blog background even looks like her website - didn't realise this at first, but he's right! Oops! :0)

Art Clay Silver - Mrs Owl Brooch - WIP

2010-12-03T20:52:00.003Z

Thought I would share with you my new venture into making silver jewellery. Now I have always wanted to learn silversmithing, but have yet to find a suitable evening class in my county, so was more than tempted to try a much easier and accessible way of making my own silver jewellery using Silver Clay.

Some of you may ask - What is this Silver Clay stuff?? Well - it's almost magical stuff in my opinion - it is recycled silver particles bound together with an organic binder. Basically it looks like clay, acts like clay and can be moulded like clay. Once you have made your shape, you then burn off the binder (using a butane torch, in a kiln, or get this - on your gas hob!) and you are left with a piece of silver which is usually 99.9% pure silver (unlike Sterling Silver which is 92.5%).

It was invented in the early 90's in Japan. There are two main brands - Art Clay Silver (which I have been using) and Precious Metal Clay. It's not cheap though - a 50g piece will set you back around £60. And it can be a little tricky to work with as it dries so quickly (you can also buy slow drying clay though). But on the whole it is the most fantastic stuff in my opinion - and I'm sure I will be making a million things from this! (Check out my flickr gallery for my latest creations!)

So here is my run through of how I made my Mrs Owl Brooch -

This is the final brooch - photographed on the lapel of my grey woolly jacket.
I started out with an initial sketch of the owl - my first attempt looked too much like a cat so I wanted to emphasise the eyes a little more.
Using Sculpey Mold Maker (a professional type plasticine which you can bake in the oven to harden) I started sculpting the main shape.
Wings and feet are added.
More detail was added using whatever I had to hand (mostly pens and pen lids!) - the holes for the eyes were made using the glass head of a pin!
I managed to follow my original sketch quite closely (amazingly!)
I then baked the Mold Maker - this hardens it to a hard rubbery texture.
Using Silicone Rubber - in a two part mix specially formulated for making impressions of objects I made a cast of the owl.
Here you can see the original and the cast - this picks up the detail quite well but is tricky to work with as it hardens in around 15 seconds - so you have to work very fast!
Using Badger Balm I painted every nook and cranny inside the rubber mould so that the clay would release more easily.
Here you can see the silver clay pushed into the rubber mould. Again I had to work quickly here as the silver clay starts to dry out after a couple of minutes!
After about 4 hours on the radiator the clay was dry and I released it onto my wire mesh. Unfortunately I had not made the back of the legs thick enough so then broke off! :0(
Using another piece of clay I had attached a sterling silver brooch backing - there are much better and neater ways of doing this though!
With the protective cage over the clay I turned on the hob on full heat (with the extractor fan on!). After about 30 seconds the binder catches light and you see a small flame which quickly burns off. The piece will shrink a little now. I then set the timer to 5 minutes and allowed the piece to heat over the hob as it glowed salmon pink.
At the end of the five minutes I picked the owl up with tongs and quenched in cold water to cool it down.
At this point the owl looks white - this isn't clay, it is the silver particles standing up, so what you need to do is use a wire brush to smooth these particles down by brushing firmly in the same direction to reveal a silver finish. You will notice that the brooch backing has discoloured - this is what happens when you heat sterling silver and can be corrected by "pickling", but as I planned to antique it anyway I just left it.
You can further compress the silver particles (microscopically) to create a shinier finish by using a burnisher - I use an agate burnisher as it is less likely to scratch.
To pick up the detail I decided to antique the owl using Liver of Sulphur - you only need a couple drops of this in warm water. It's really stinky though - smells like rotten eggs! About 20 seconds in this solution darkened the silver nicely. You can play around with how long you "dunk" your piece to see how dramatic an effect you can create. Then using silver polish and a cloth I polished the darker finish from the raised surfaces to finish the piece off.
In this shot you can see the original, the rubber mould and the final silver piece. I could have tried moulding the owl directly into the silver clay, but as I am new to this I preferred to make a mould - plus it means that if I can make more exactly the same now! (Although this used 30 grams of silver clay - so wasn't cheap to make!
I tried attaching the feet again for this shot, but alas they don't want to stay on - so Mrs Owl is legless!

Hope you found this of interest and that it inspires you to try making something yourself!

xxx

Meringue Mushrooms!!!

2010-11-13T11:47:00.000Z

Just discovered these amazing little guys - Meringue Mushrooms!

Yes, they are meringues made to look like mushrooms - held together with chocolate and dusted with cocoa - wonderful!!

http://thebakelab.com/downtherabbithole/

click here for the recipe

http://www.flickr.com/photos/lilfishstudios/5107605790/

baltimoresun

Momento Carousel from my Big Sis

2010-10-02T20:36:00.002+01:00

My wonderful sister Zoë surprised me with this handmade carousel recently which documents everything from my engagement celebrations, Hen Do, Wedding and Reception.

It is so clear that she put so much time, thought, effort and love into it.

Every time I flick through it I notice something different. Each page has a pull out section with a little surprise on it.

Zoë is an obsessed scrap-booker and used so many pretty techniques in this piece, including sections taken from the wedding invite and even the train tickets from the Hen Do!

Thanks Zo - you're the best Sister ever!

Pom pom pom pom pom!!!

2010-09-13T21:27:00.000+01:00

Those who are familiar with my flickr gallery may already be aware of my penchant for pom poms!

They are such wonderful little fluffy things, totally impractical most of the time, but so very happy and frivolous! I am currently in the early stages of a new pom pom related product which I will hopefully be able to launch in my Not on the High Street store before Christmas (oh no not the C word!!).

I have made so many of the little blighters I think I could make them in my sleep now!!

I made this !! Button Brooches

2010-08-09T20:43:00.000+01:00

Slowly getting back into making bits for my Not on the High Street and Folksy stores lately.

My newest line are my colourful wooden button brooches.

Nice and cheery - even if the British Weather doesn't follow suit!

The Big Day!!!

2010-07-31T17:51:00.001+01:00

Hi Everyone - so sorry not to have updated this sooner. Those married people who are reading this will completely understand how hectic things are in the weeks after the event! Things seem to be getting back to normal now, I have had my professional shots back, sent out my Thank you cards and caught up with my washing - so now with the blogging!!

I have decided not to add all of the images onto my blog, instead I have used my very favourite shot, which for me encapsulates the whole day. This was taken in front of the most beautiful pink barn door in a small holding across the lane from the pub where we had our sit down meal. For those interested in seeing some more photos from the day please visit my flickr gallery and check out my sets of not only the pro shots, but photos taken by our guests, processed images and also the preparation!

So where do I start? Well - it was the most magical day - this is something I'm sure every bride says about her wedding day. The sun was shining, the back garden looked amazing (after the whole week before was spent decorating it!), everything was organised and even my hair had turned out well after a last minute trip to the hairdressers to add more highlights and then having to wash my hair in cold water the night before! As the wedding was at 11am it was an early start, so my parents, sister, sister in laws and friends Jo and Mandy (who were responsible for the make up and photography respectively) all arrived bright and early.

The flowers arrived on time, and I was amazed at the unusual hydrangeas used on the bridesmaids bouquets, really wonderful! Unfortunately my peonies hadn't opened in time, so they were just buds, very pretty still, but not the big pom pom flowers I had wished for. Jo did an amazing job on the make up for myself and the bridesmaids, she's a miracle worker! We even had time to spare for a photo shoot in the garden which turned out amazingly! Then the lilac morris minor convertible arrived, driven by the fantastically named Andrew "Charlie" Chaplin - in a smashing 50's inspired outfit!

We married in our local registry office - the Archbishops Palace in Maidstone, which as registry offices go, it's pretty special. It's a very old stone building right next to the river with a herb garden and small park behind which many (including us) use for photos. After a short wait in an adjoining room, with a few last minute shots it was show time! The bridesmaids all looked so pretty in their colourful pink and lime green shrugs, and polka dot and floral dresses. They also had smaller versions of the fabric pom poms in their hair.

Dad was suited up with his lilac floral shirt and tie. And not forgetting his vintage grey converse trainers (these were the same as Wayne was wearing, he didn't know that both my Dad and his Dad were wearing these also until the day!) He looked so cool - much better than a stuffy old morning suit! I entered the Solar Room to the sound of Glenn Miller Moonlight Serenade (one of my faves). It was so touching to see all our friends and family there, smiling, wearing a wonderful mix of bright pretty colours (as I had suggested on the wedding blog). Then I saw Wayne, he looked so handsome, and nervous, but smiling still. He seemed pleased to see me too - which was a bonus!

The whole ceremony didn't take than long, and flew by. Although I did manage to start blubbing during my vows, which set everyone else off! Oh yes, I almost forgot, I did also get Waynes name wrong - much to everyone's amusement! Doh!!!

After this we all flew out the building, gave and received lots of kisses, then had some formal shots taken in the park behind. At this point I must mention my photographer. My good friend Amanda Jayne Stewart, never will you see a more hard working photographer. She has such a lovely way of dealing with the guests - who can be unruly at times! She manages to capture so many wonderful formal and informal shots, and did a truly amazing job at documenting the whole day, including all the little details I had worked so hard on. Details of Amanda's (Mandy's) website are below in my thank you list.

So then onto the pub - the beautiful Horseshoes, gastropub in East Farleigh. It's one of our locals, and was the ideal location for our informal gathering. We basically took over the back half of the pub, where we had our own bar, toilets (most important), lounge area, patio and restaurant! The restaurant section is is a lovely conservatory like building, with wonderful beams, vaulted ceiling and an eclectic mix of vintage chairs and tables. The manager Paul Stewart was most accommodating and enable us to tailor the room to our specific needs.

At this point though, I cannot go any further without mentioning the truly inspirational Haylie Harrowell - owner of Violet Weddings. Haylie is a super organised, knowledgeable, hardworking and lovely lady, without whom I couldn't have survived the day (or the run up!) I contacted Haylie early on in the planning when I realised that to have the reception in the back garden with food and entertainment meant I needed help. Like many people I'm guessing, I always thought wedding planners were for the rich and famous. Or are an extravagance nonetheless - how wrong I was! Having Haylie help plan and organise the day was completely invaluable. A good wedding planner will actually save you money! Even for the reassurance side it is money well spent! Not to go on too much about money, but our wedding was on a tight budget - the whole thing (excluding the honeymoon) came to just over 5k. Not bad I think considering what we achieved. But to stress my point, having Haylie on board was the main reason we managed to keep our costs down without compromising on anything! Details on how to contact Haylie are below.

Ok - so whilst our guests were enjoying the Pimms in the lovely sunshine, Wayne and I nipped off in the Morris Minor to the small holding across the road. It is owned by the lovely Ann Moon, who was so very kind and sweet to allow us to use her property for our mini photo shoot. The idea of this was something I'd had from the very start, I'd seen some lovely images on flickr (check out these galleries of inspirational images I gathered from the world of flickr) of couples stood "shaker style" in front of agricultural buildings and really loved the quirky, twee, arty feel, so was amazed when I caught eye of Ann's pink barn door just across the lane from the pub - perfick! So as you can see from the image above it really works with the vintage 1950's feel I was aiming for.

Then after the wonderful food and drink at the Horseshoes (amazing quality, extremely tasty by the way!) we all set off back to our house - a 5 minute drive from the pub. When we arrived the band were setting up, Waynes's ipod was on, playing his fabulous playlist (which started off with Buddy Holly (our first dance was "True Love Ways"), Glenn Miller, Billie Holliday, Frank Sinatra, Miles Davis - classics to get everyone in the mood for the band!! Even before I met Wayne, I knew two things about my wedding day (as I'm sure every girl does) at my wedding it must have fairy lights, and a live band! The band we chose after about 3 weeks of researching was Brighton based Greggi G and his Crazy Gang. A four piece jive band who were perfect for my theme. As well as the marquee we had also hired a stage for the back of the garden for the band to play from - it was a little tight (sorry guys) but it didn't seem to affect the glorious sound they made!

So to set the scene - you had the large open sided marquee, filled with bunting, fairy lights, martha stewart tissue pom poms and seating made from straw bales - we even made a sofa from them! The band at the back on their stage (of course also with bunting, fairy lights and pom poms!), the dance floor in the centre then on the left hand side trestle tables with polka dot and floral oil cloths, a plethora of cake stands, jars of sweets, punch bowls, candles and all around were scattered the assortment of vintage bottles and jam jars I had sourced throughout the months before. These were filled with either tealight candles or the mix of pretty flowers we bought from our local supermarket!

Inside the house were the main attractions - the chocolate fountain and the cake! Wedding cakes are funny things. Some people spend hundreds of pounds on them, then moan that they didn't taste very nice, or hardly anyone ate any. For a start, I knew for sure I didn't want a traditional cake, and then the only other option seemed to be a cupcake tower - but everyone does this now - as pretty as they are I wanted something else. Luckily flickr came to the rescue again as I came across the doughnut wedding cake!! Here's a link to my one. The stand was cardboard - not the most glamourous material I know - but cheap and recyclable! To pretty it up I covered it with Cath Kidston wrapping paper - alternating between polka dots and florals. Then the toppers - I spent so so long thinking about this - until Haylie suggested the obvious - mice! For those who don't know, in my crafting world I am most know for my sock mice - they have been my most successful creation by far. So it made sense to make my own mice! This time I chose not to use socks - maybe a little too much foot association considering food is involved! So I then used the linen from my wedding dress - oh the dress, I should have mentioned this already!! Will do after this section! Ok - back to the cake! Both the Wayne and Shelley mice were made from linen, and instead of the usual button eyes I used miniature black glass eyes used in toy making. My mouse had a pink chiffon petticoat and a mini pom pom sash, whist Waynes had a grey felt waistcoat, complete with pocket and handkerchief! Then the doughnuts themselves were Krispy Kreme, original glazed and chocolate sprinkled. Although you can get this type of doughnut cheaper in the supermarkets they really don't taste anywhere near as good as Krispy Kreme! I will never forget the gasps of delight everyone made when I lifted off the cover! Brilliant!

Right then - the dress! So, as I mentioned in previous posts the idea of finding a wedding dress filled me with horror! That was until I realised I could have any kind of a dress I liked. I very quickly settled on a 1950's tea dress style, which just HAD to have a colourful petticoat underneath! My friend Sass Tetzlaff was the obvious choice to make this dress for me, she has made more wedding dresses than I've had hot dinners (!) I managed to find a roll of Irish linen on eBay for £20, just what I had wanted, then I came across Annabella Designs who can custom make petticoats in a variety of styles and colours - so I chose a pink and blue tulle petticoat - not too full, as I didn't want to look like a toilet roll holder! After just a few fittings Sass created my dream dress, which was finished off perfectly with a hot pink silk sash, and a teal blue shrug. I then added my own finishing touches with the pom pom and ribbon corsage! A bit bonkers, but fun and colourful!

So - the rest of the day went well. The drink flowed, the music was popular thanks to Wayne's tireless efforts in putting together a diverse mix of old and new songs for each stage of the evening, Haylie and her partner Andy worked so hard (and so discretely) at laying out the food (and cooking some of it too - sorry!), the flowers, the drink and making sure everything was running to schedule! The punch went down well, and even though we had the doughnuts and the extremely popular chocolate fountain even the sweeties in jars were scoffed - our lot certainly do have a sweet tooth!!

After the scrum when the bouquet was thrown, the band had packed up and DJ Wayne was in effect, the heart lantern had been lit (say no more), the evening then whizzed by in a blur of twinkling lights, dancing and laughter - our Perfick Summer Fete Darling Buds of May wedding. What a day!

So here I must thank all of our friends and family who helped us create this day, for the gifts, the crafting, the generosity and kindness, that made everything even more special than I had ever dreamed it would be.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Wedding Planner - Haylie Harrowell - visit website
Photographer - Amanda Jayne Stewart - ajsphotography - visit website
Bouquets + Buttonholes - Girlflower - visit website
Wedding Dress - Sass Tetzlaff - please contact me for details
Petticoat - Annabella Designs - visit folksy page
Morris Minor - Andrew "Charlie" Chaplin - please contact me for details
Chocolate Fountain - Chocoholics Delight - visit website
Band - Greggi G and his Crazy Gang - visit website
Wedding Rings - Charmian Beaton - visit website
Marquee - Four Jays Group - visit website
Letterpress Invitations - Blush Publishing - visit website

And a special thanks to:-
My amazing sister Zoë for her help, support and thoughtfulness.
My dear friend Jo for her makeup, beauty and crafting skills and all round support.
Our friends Darren, Leza, Steve & Sam for their help with the preparations.
My Mum & Dad and Wayne's Mum & Dad for their generosity and help.
Ann Moon, for the use of her barn door and tractor!
Ron and Glenn for the Straw Bales
Krispy Kreme Bluewater

Papered Parlour - Hen Afternoon!!

2010-06-12T00:20:00.000+01:00

A little later than planned, but I just had to blog about my wonderful Hen afternoon at the Papered Parlour in Clapham. To be honest, the idea of a hen party filled me with dread. I just didn't know what to do. I knew what I DIDN'T want to do (strippers, L plates, plastic willies etc), but it took me a while before finding the right thing.

I started off thinking of cupcakes and cocktails - two things I really like. There were plenty of High Tea options at fancy hotels to choose from, and the odd cupcake decorating classes. I knew I liked the idea of something crafty to do, but the local options were very limited in Kent, so realised we may have to go up town.

In desperation one day I resorted to asking my Twitter followers for suggestions and the lovely Monda-loves suggested the Papered Parlour to me - and I'm so glad she did!! I googled them and found their site - link which had everything I had wanted, craft, cupcakes and cocktails!!

We started off the day on the train - in First Class no less - drinking bubbly, eating chocolate cupcake lollies which I made for everyone, and all wearing our corsage flowers made by my lovely big sis Zoë (Zed Designs) who had also put together the most wonderful goodie bags filled with brooches, bangles, magnets, mirrors, hairclips etc many of which she had bought from the very helpful Anna from Lilies and Daisies I felt very spoilt indeed!

We were made to feel very welcome on arrival at the Papered Parlour by Claire, the decor in the Parlour section was adorable, with reclaimed doors as the bar, vintage teacups hanging from the beams and Buddy Holly playing on the original 1950's record player - wonderful!

I choose the silversmithing- ring making class, so that we could all make something we could keep forever. It was quote challenging, but every single one of us made a ring to be proud of by the end of the 3 hours. We learnt how to measure, anneal, shape, solder, file, sand, hammer and stamp a strip of silver until it resembled a real life ring!!

Here are some of the photos from the day!

Thanks Papered Parlour for a wonderful experience - and thanks to all the girlies for joining me (especially my gorgeous sis for her thoughtfulness!)

xxx

Not long now!!!!

2010-05-30T20:22:00.000+01:00

Apologies for not keeping up with my blogging of late. Struggling to find any spare time at the moment. Four weeks yesterday until the Big Day! Wow - how did that happen. A word of advice to anyone planning a wedding - everything will take longer to sort out and cost more than you expect - so start early and save where you can!!

Even on our small "budget" the costs are mounting up - despite my overuse of Ebay!!

So the bunting is finished - yay!! And the favours are all set up - just waiting the final edible treat to be popped inside - be warned that I have gone overboard on the favours, most people seem more than content with an organza bag and five sugared almonds - not me, I have spent hours and hours researching, painting, sewing, threading, cutting, printing, sticking and melting (!) and all for something that most people will probably leave behind on the tables!! I have seriously lost the plot!!

I have so enjoyed making all these things though - this point may have been lost along the way! I'll never understand how people can buy the same old things as everyone else when with just a little thought (and fun) they can easily create something unique and memorable. The whole wedding planning process has made me even more passionate about my crafting and how personal it can make your day. I know it's not to everyones tastes, and not all people want to or are able to make things for themselves - but anything that moves away from the typical wedding look is a good thing in my books and shows people can add your own personality to the day!

Squeaky Bunting!

2010-05-12T21:52:00.000+01:00

Now as soon as I sit down in my mini studio and even think about making something a small furry animal appears in front of me. Squeaky in particular is a big fan of interrupting my crafting and likes to make sure she is the centre of attention.

Here you can see Squeaky nestled down whilst I was marking out my triangles for my bunting! Unfortunately after she finally got the hint and moved on she left a lovely trail of fur all over my lovely Heather Bailey fabric. Hmm hairy bunting - nice!!

By the way I am making over 70 metres of bunting for the big day - mostly to decorate the back garden and the marquee. It's a big job, but will make up such a large part of the look it will be worth the while. You can see some of my triangles behind Squeaky in the second photo, and another sneaky peek on my flickr gallery. Fingers crossed I will get it all done in time - wish me luck!!

The Pom poms continue! . . .

2010-05-02T12:17:00.000+01:00

Still in the middle of my pom pom frenzy! Even made a group on flickr to indulge this obsession - For the Love of Pom Poms would love for you all to take look, join up and even add some of your own pom pom creations to the pool!

Have added some of my latest uses of poms poms - firstly as decorative gift wrapping using chiffon pom poms - these are so pretty and super quick to make! Then, wait for it - a HEART shaped pom pom!! These are a little trickier to make (I have used the clover heart pom pom maker), and the instructions will scare the life out of you but it is well worth the effort. Made several of these into a garland for my friend Jo's birthday.

Sneaky Peek - Favour Labels!

2010-04-26T22:54:00.000+01:00

Little name tags for the wedding favours!!

My hands ache from all the cutting and threading, but that's one more thing to tick off the list!!

Wedding preparations . . .

2010-04-20T19:45:00.001+01:00

Sneaky peek of the current preparations . . .

I've been featured!!

2010-04-20T19:11:00.001+01:00

How excited to find I have been approached by a couple of lovely blogs to feature my Wedding Invitations!!

Check them out here -

I made this!! Rag Pom Pom!!

2010-04-05T15:49:00.000+01:00

Now I promise I am not being sponsored by Clover, but, I must urge people to buy one of their amazing pom pom makers! They are such a clever design that makes pom pom making so easy and professional. They come in lots of different sizes from tiny 20mm to big huge ones - and even heart shaped! I bought mine on eBay, but you can get them from lots of different craft supply shops too. Here's what they look like . . .

To make a pom pom you just wrap your wool, embroidery thread, fabric etc around each pair of semi circle arms (which hinge out of the centre) - there are two pairs of arms by the way - make sure you wrap your chosen material around the two together. One you have filled up the two semi circles you push back to the centre, making sure everything is together securely then using a sharp pair of scissors or snips cut all the way around. Loop a ribbon or strong thread in between the two discs - give them a wiggle to make sure the they reach the centre then knot very securely!!

To release the pom pom I find it easier to open the hinged arms on each side then pull the whole thing in half (the two discs are held together with a pin in the centre). Give your pom pom a fluff, trim off any straggly bits with a pair of scissors to tidy up and hey presto - a pom pom!!

Here I have shown a pom pom made from very roughly cut scraps of leftover fabric. Some of these strips were only a few inches long but that doesn't matter - they just need to be long enough to wrap around the arm once. So this is a fantastic way to use up all your leftover scraps of fabric. What do you all think?

I made this!! Flower Corsage Ring Cushion!!

2010-03-21T19:36:00.000Z

Apologies in advance to the Best Man, but I have made a ring cushion for my wedding.

This may not be the final version - want to try a small one in silk next, but I wanted to put some of my new Heather Bailey fabrics to good use (and of course my pom pom makers!!)

Wedding Invitations . . .

2010-03-15T21:55:00.000Z

Originally my plan was to make these myself - I have a decent printer - know my way around a computer and am known to be a little crafty - but after researching other peoples invites on flickr I came across some beautiful examples of Letterpressed invitations by Bella Figura.

This led me on a search to find a UK based Letterpress company - it wasn't long before I came across the wonderful Blush Publishing! The ever diligent and eternal night owl Mark Moran was extremely helpful and patient whilst I dithered about what design I wanted. Originally I had planned a funky square invite with motifs representing myself and Wayne. Wayne would be easy - an xbox controller (!) and maybe mine would have been a pair of scissors or a needle or a mouse? But as the wedding plans took shape and the vintage element really kicked in I just had to work this into the theme!

Quickly I decided on a 1950's postcard style and used an example from the fantastic resource which is deviantART to use as my inspiration. I really wanted to incorporate my own artwork for this and knew deep down that computer graphics would look too stiff so I dusted off my sketchbook and got to work . .

Once the artwork was finished, I scanned it, tidied it up in Photoshop then turned it into paths for Illustrator where I could work on the text. I have always loved the look of old fashioned typewriter fonts, they remind me of my art school days when I used my old Olivetti to create many a bizarre text based piece! But I also love the trendy carnival style fonts you see a lot these days. Every waking minute I spent trying to get the look and the wording right - I even sent what I thought was the final proof off to be printed with several errors in my haste and bleary-eyed state!

But shortly after everything was finalised Mark and the clever bunch at Blush turned my design into the loveliness which is below. Even the cute wrapping added to the wonderful experience which is letterpress!

Even after all the agonising over the design and wording the hardest part was writing on them - so wish I had nicer handwriting . . .

Craft and Cupcakes Day!!

2010-03-10T22:15:00.001Z

My friends are very encouraging of my "sewing stuff" and I decided to call their bluff the other day and invite them round for a craft and cupcakes day. The house was filled with chatting, babies, buttons, fabric and high calorie treats and we all had a splendid time!!

It gave me the opportunity to make use of some of my new fabrics and my array of notions.

We started off with a tissue pom pom blitz, as these are so easy to make. Everyone chose their favourite colour, Jo of course had to have the pink which matched her nail polish! Baby Sam chose not to participate - but boys tend not to get overly excited by pom poms!!

It wasn't long before the cakes were out and we ever so daintily stuffed our faces! We then moved onto woolly pom poms courtesy of my new clover pom pom makers. The wool turned out to be highly unsuitable for pom poms, but the colours were nice anyway!

We finished up by making some fabric corsages. Must have been too tired to remember to take photos at this point, so the first one is a photo taken the next morning of my effort made from some lovely dupion silk. The second one is Jo's lovely corsage which works wonderfully on her denim jacket!

It is far too easy to get lost in your own world when you craft, and as wonderful as chatting online to fellow crafters is, nothing beats the hands on fun of a group of girls making lots of pink things!!

macarons . . .

2010-03-06T19:51:00.000Z

Mini post just about the lovely macarons - which are just sooo pretty!!!

Is there such a thing as too much research??!!

2010-02-20T22:32:00.000Z

Since the 21st of January (the day we booked the date at the Registry Office) I have spent EVERY spare moment thinking, planning, researching and breathing the wedding. Is this normal? I have a tendency to over think things, and over plan. I can never go on a holiday without reading all of the tripadvisor reviews about the hotel, and seeing all of the guests photos, or checking which airplane we are booked onto and in which seats, checking traveller forums the best sights to see, restaurants to eat at, which rooms to ask for - yep basically I go over the top.

I'm sure that most women tend to go into this mode when planning a wedding - but I'm surprised that I have enjoyed it so much. Especially as the starting point for our plans was to have a simple, cheap, informal wedding. Would things be easier if we were spending 30k? Probably not.

I think I can be a resourceful person, and I know my way around the internet, which has been my lifeline in researching and planning. I have made the mistake previously of buying wedding magazines. These in fact scared and depressed me so much that I was dreading getting married!! How silly is that? I found their budget and time planners dangerously silly - especially as I came over in cold sweat when realising that I should have sent my invites out 4 months ago and my flowers should cost a 10% of my budget!! But then I came to my senses - but the magazines away (in the bin) and made my own plan!

So a month since setting the date and 126 days until the big event we have achieved a lot. For the moment I am feeling less panicked, and am reveling in ideas for things I can make or silly ideas I can work into the day. I have an album filled with pictures, a large notebook filled with lists, a computer filled with research images, emails and budget spreadsheets and a flickr gallery filled with more inspiration than I know what to do with! But my efforts are being focused as much as possible - I made myself concentrate initially on the big things - whilst the little voice inside me kept saying *look at shoes!!*, *fairy lights*, *envelopes* etc etc!!

Now most of the "big things" are sorted I can indulge myself in silliness and all the pretty little things that really excite me. My other half is maybe not so excited about all of this - in fact he has probably wisely decided to let me get on with it. Something I found hard to understand at first, but he knows me VERY well after all these years and will make himself useful when the time comes - or when I freak out at him!!

So here's a peek at some of the things I have been thinking about the past couple of days -
Doughnuts, invites (sneak preview of the design if you look closely!), my increasingly cluttered dining table and tissue pom pom tutorials!!

The Big Day - preparation . . .

2010-02-06T19:12:00.000Z

Been busy lately - spent a lot of time online researching and sourcing things for the wedding - must be enjoying it based on the amount of time I have dedicated and the lack of sleep as a result!

Really trying hard not to become Bridezilla and have to remind myself from time to time that it is just one day - the most important part is making the commitment to my partner and our lives ahead - BUT - I still want it be an amazing day - I want it to be fun and relaxed and silly - no stuffiness and pomp allowed!!

The image above represents the last week or so of planning, photographing, making, buying, watching, emailing, freecycling . . .

I made this!!! Felt Button Brooches!!

2010-02-06T18:19:00.001Z

Haven't given much time to crafting lately - what with all of the wedding planning - but had a blitz last night and made three of my felt button brooches - I had ordered some beautiful merino wool rovings from forestfibres and hadn't had the chance to use them until now - the colours are wonderful!

Have listed them in my noths store if anyone fancies one!!

Darling Buds of May 1950's Summer Fete Handmade Wedding!!

2010-01-30T16:13:00.000Z

Apologies for the crazy title - but it gives an indication of the feel I am after - shame our budget didn't stretch to hiring out a barn - but hopefully we can get a small scale version of this look in our back garden!!

My simple but complicated wedding!!

2010-01-30T15:35:00.001Z

Last year my boyfriend of 9 years proposed to me - we have lived together for most of this time and to all intents and purposes were like a married couple anyway - but now we are both in our 30's we thought it was the right time to do it!

Now probably unlike most women I have never dreamt about the big white wedding, in fact the whole idea scares the life out of me - but I realised not so long ago that I could actually make this a day I would enjoy - it might not be everyone's idea of the perfect day, but for me it's just right!

So, the plan is to get married in our local registry office - which luckily for us is a beautiful old building by a river with a small park next to it. I am not religious so getting married in church wasn't the right thing for me. Of course I want to arrive at the registry office in a car - no Rolls Royce for me though, I'd much prefer a convertible Morris Minor!!

Oh I forgot - the dress. Well being on the plumper side of plump I really didn't relish the thought of finding a dress - and especially not one made from Duchess Satin, in fact I really don't want a wedding dress at all - but I realised that I do need to it some way look like I am the bride and not a guest so I have designed my version of a wedding dress - it will be a 1950's style tea dress, calf length, in white linen with a colourful patterned waistband/sash. Then to add a bit of drama - I want to have a pink tulle netting underskirt and possibly colourful flat shoes (cannot walk in heels!)

Luckily I know a lovely lady who will be able to make this for me - so I have avoided the horror of bridalware shops and the embarrassment of trying to find a dress I can squeeze into!! And although spending a lifetime trying to lose weight I am not crash dieting for my wedding day - if I lose weight that's good - if not, well my OH still loves me!!

So over the next few months I will be blogging about my preparations and inspirations in the run up to the big day - which is on the 26th June this year. We haven't left ourselves much time to prepare, but I am really trying to keep things simple - 50 or so guests for the wedding and meal then 80 in total for the evening reception which we are holding in our small backgarden!!

I have put a few of the many, many images in the collage above - and if I achieve a fraction of this loveliness I will be happy - I have also put together galleries on flickr if anyone is interested - Wedding Galleries

Wish me Luck!!

Charity Auction - Marty the Handmade Felt Mouse!

2010-01-17T20:12:00.002Z

Wanted to do my bit to try and raise some money for the people of Haiti after the terrible earthquake so I thought I would donate one of my latest creations - Marty the Needle Felted Mouse.

I have put him on ebay - the auction ends just before 8pm on Sunday 24th January 2010. Here is the link to the listing - Link to Ebay I have started the auction at £5.99.

All proceeds will be donated to the Disasters Emergency Committee

I really hope that Marty raises a good amount as they really do need all the help they can.

x

Update 24th Jan 2010
Marty has sold - to the lovely Michelle! Thank you to everyone who bid, Marty is extremely flattered and impressed by your generosity!!

Shelley
x

I made this! - Felt Buttons

2010-01-14T18:58:00.000Z

Just a quick post to show off my new felt buttons - love making these!!

Thinking of making them into brooches, hair clips etcs.

What does everyone think?

Needle Felting

2010-01-07T22:30:00.000Z

For those who have seen my flickr photos recently you may have noticed my latest obsession - needle felting!

I received a book for Christmas called "little felted animals" by Marie-Noëlle Horvath (click here for the Amazon link), and this inspired me to try my hand at needle felting, which up until then I had been completely ignorant about if I'm totally honest!

For those who may equally be in the dark, in simple terms needle felting is the art of making shapes out of wool fibres (carded or combed). You need a special felting needle for this which has little barbs which cause the wool fibres to knit together when you jab into the wool with it. I bought myself a little starter kit on ebay (click here for the listing link) which is ideal for beginners.

Above I have shown some of the things I have made this week. My first item was the mouse (Marty) who wasn't initially supposed to be a mouse but just an experiment, but strangely enough a mouse started to appear!! Then I made a toadstool - just because I love toadstools!! Then I made a piece of cheese for Marty, see the steps below which show how this turned from a cloud of yellow wool into a slightly strange looking piece of emmental!! My last piece was a corsage flower which I attached happily to my new grey woolly jacket today - can't wait to make more of these, can see these being a favourite of mine!!

You can buy so many different colours of wool - or if you are feeling adventurous you can dye your own - might leave this to the experts though!!

The great thing about needle felting is how quick and easy it is. You will probably end up stabbing yourself a few times along the way as you do jab quite quickly once you get the hang of it - but it helps to keep your eye on the ball!! Before I started, I watched a few videos about needle felting on Youtube as I couldn't quite believe that all you had to do is jab at the wool - it seemed too easy!! And there are no hard and fast rules, just the more you jab the denser the shape gets - simples!!

There are some amazing felt artists out there such as Kit Lane, Lil Fish Studios (Lisa Jordan) and Vria Lee (Victor Dubrovsky) to name but a few - please do check out their links - you will be amazed!!

Craft Review 2009

2010-01-02T23:05:00.000Z

Well, I finally had a few minutes spare to gather my thoughts about 2009. For me it was a year in which I re-discovered my creativity and finally felt that others appreciated what I made. Ironic really considering that my day job is as a product designer!! And for the past 9 years most days I have been designing and developing giftwares for thousands of people to buy and give as presents.

When you work in mass produced products you lose your connection to the item. It is produced rarely for its aesthetic beauty or to win design awards - it is created purely to make the most amount of profit - 70% usually for the big High Street guys!! (Don't tell them I told you that!!). Don't get me wrong, I do like my day job - much better than previous jobs (chambermaid, cleaner, checkout girl, office junior, pound shop worker, call centre salesperson, canteen assistant, graphic designer), and I still get excited when a DHL arrives at work from one of the Chinese factories with my designs inside.

But it's different when you have crafted something by hand, tweaking the design along the way. Wondering whether it is something you could sell, something a friend or family member would like - or even something to keep myself!! Not overly caring that you have just spent £20 on materials, thread, books, a new pair of scissors, buttons, ribbons or just had to buy a new desk, or chair or storage unit to house your ever expanding stash! It's not about the money for me - it's about the sense of achievement and the thrill of other people noticing my work and commenting - and when I sell something I get a real rush of adrenalin - followed usually by a tinge of sadness knowing that I cannot keep it for myself now!

Learning to sew again and embroider, appliqué, lino printing and needle felting have made me a much happier person - and the friends I have made - mostly online through this blog, flickr and twitter have opened my eyes to a whole new world - one that suits me down to the ground. Not only can I be creative with pretty fabric I can also indulge my inner geek and learn about blogging, seo's, keywords, meta tags and nettiquette (still need to work on that!!).

Before I blether on too much, just a wish for 2010 - that I can find more time and energy to do the things that I love!

Happy New Year everyone!!

x

(these are just a few of my creations from the past year - the whole collection can be found on my flickr page)

I made this! - Velvet Stocking!

2009-12-29T15:33:00.001Z

Made this Christmas stocking for my Mum. Used some lovely metallic mink velvet which worked beautifully with the Designers Guild cut velvet on the top trim. I still had some of the turquiose velvet left to make a piping trim and then I bought some turquiose dupion silk for the lining.

Luckily most of the presents I had bought for mum this year were small enough to fit in the stocking so it ended up being useful!!

The Christmas wrapping dilemma!!

2009-12-14T22:07:00.000Z

Each year I spend far too long thinking about my wrapping paper.

Now I don't know about you but I must confess that I am a wrapping paper snob. I truly believe that the way a present is wrapped indicates the thought and care that has gone into it and is just as important as what is inside!!

And for Christmas, the present also becomes part of our decorations, spending several days under our trees before being unwrapped.

Last year I bought a giant roll of brown paper along with 100 metres of brown grosgrain ribbon and a circle punch to make my own gift tags out of cream card with buttons and hand drawn stitching. Quite a rustic look, and I was really happy with how the pressies looked, but oh my god, the tags alone took forever and I really don't think anyone really appreciated it apart from my sister who is a fellow crafter!

This year I planned to make my own paper (red paper with handprinted white polka dots) but had to admit defeat last week when I accepted that I really didn't have the time to do this. So then I searched around for unusual and beautiful (and affordable) handmade or designer wrapping paper - to no avail!! If anyone knows of a good supplier do please let me know!!

My search ended up in Sainsburys where my other half made me choose there and then (knowing how fussy and annoying I am about wrapping paper!!). My final choice was half green damask foiled paper and hot pink and green damask to compliment. The tag selections were awful so I bought plain silver and am jazzing them up with bits of the wrapping paper. Then of course there is the ribbon - a costly detail, but I just couldn't resist - this year I opted for thin velvet ribbon in pinks, purples, greens and kingfisher blues.

Am I one of the last remaining gift wrap snobs? Is it crazy spending so much time and money on something that just gets ripped open and thrown away!?

I made this! - Christmas Cards!

2009-12-12T23:33:00.002Z

Wanted to attempt to make some of my own cards this year for my family. Of course somehow I had to incorporate some fabric. After a few unsuccessful experiments I decided to use this simple tree design which was machine "embroidered" in several colourful threads before being cut into the tree shapes.

I then stitched the felt to the front of the card and hand sewed the wooden sequins on to finish!!

Really happy with how these turned out - bright and colourful and simple!!

Less than two weeks to go now!!

x

I made this!! Christmas Stockings!!

2009-12-08T12:46:00.004Z

So it's my first proper Christmas as a crafter - last year my craftiest effort was using brown paper and making my own button gift tags. Seemed like a good idea at the time but over a hundred presents later it became a little tedious!!

This year I will be buying my gift wrap but making a few presents and decorations instead!!

I've started off with the essential stocking - bought a couple metres of thick red felt (why is this so expensive!?) and a few machine blanket stitches and finishing touches later there are stockings!! The beauty of using felt is that you don't need to worry about linings or right and wrong sides or fraying!! Really like the naive look (I'm good at that!!)

I made this!! New Batch of Meese!!

2009-12-03T17:50:00.005Z

Yes I have been busy - been making lots of mice for my NOTHS store, commissions, for friends and as pressies also. I think I can make felt ears in my sleep now!!

Squeak!!

I made this!! Christmas Sock Mice!!

2009-12-02T12:48:00.004Z

Ho Ho Ho!!!

Hey look what I've been up to . . .

Yep - more Christmas Sock Mice!!

This time they have little woolly hats and scarves!!

I will also be adding more "non Christmas" sock mice to my NOTHS Store.

Merry Christmas everyone!!

x

Sneaky Peak

2009-11-03T22:41:00.004Z

Does anyone realise that Christmas is coming?!! (Not Xmas - the abbreviation annoys me!)

So to get into the festive spirit I have created some jolly red and white meeses!!

Will soon be on my NOTHS store which is in desperate need of more mice!

Watch this space . . .

Oh My Dog!!!

2009-10-28T19:47:00.003Z

A bit of a change in topic to my usual posts but had to share my photos of this dog that I came across one afternoon in Hong Kong.

Aparantly he is famous in Hong Kong as he wears a different pair of sunglasses every day. He was a very happy looking dog, and was very friendly and calm considering the chaos that is Cheung Sha Wan Road which was right in front of his nose!

If you are ever in Hong Kong pop by Lai Chi Kok MTR and you will find him on the other side of the road (near Starbucks!!).

I promise you he'll be happy to see you!!

Wish you were here!!

2009-10-16T12:43:00.002+01:00

Hi everyone!!

Just in case anyone misses me - I am away on business until the 28th of October - off to enjoy the wonders of the Far East!!

My NOTHS store is suspended until then, but if anyone needs to contact me they can drop me a message on thebeautyisinthedetail@gmail.com

不久见

I'm in heaven!

2009-10-10T23:38:00.004+01:00

Just a quick mini post - just had to add this lovely image of chairs upholstered in my current fave fabric - Dandelion Clocks by Sanderson (Fiona Howard pattern). I know I've already posted about this before - but hey - you can't get enough of a good thing!!

How lovely is this!??

I have bought several metres of this to make roman blinds from for my guest bedroom - have enough scraps left over for bags!! - Hooray!!

Should fabric make a person so happy??

I made this! - Wooden Button Brooches

2009-10-05T19:28:00.004+01:00

Now I know these are nothing new - but after making one of these for myself the other day I thought - hey, other people might like these too - could be a nice idea for my noths shop? I have a growing collection of gorgeous large Italian wooden buttons and already had the brooch backs (from making my corsage brooches) so with a little fiddling around and a little super glue - hey presto - button brooches!!

I couldn't just glue to buttons to the brooch back - that would be too easy!! I had to over complicate things (as usual). I cut out small circles of linen to glue over the brooch backs - so that you cannot see the silver through the button holes (which would look weird) and then I threaded and glued embroidery thread through the holes for the finishing touch!

I made this! - Polka Dot Corsage Brooch

2009-10-02T20:10:00.025+01:00

Now you know by now I am quite partial to a polka dot - so much so I am even considering a polka dot wedding dress (don't tell my other half!), so it makes sense that I should make one of my pleated totes in a polka dot fabric!

My sprig tote bag has been very popular so I just had to make a matching corsage brooch for this bag too. I love making corsages - just wish they didn't take me so long!! Will never make my fortune that way!!

I decided to do a little modelling too for the corsage brooch - that's if you can count a shoulder as modelling!!

For those who may want to buy the bag (which comes with or without the corsage) or the corsage on it's own please head to my new Not on the High Street store - click here

I'm on Not on the High Street!!

2009-09-20T12:23:00.003+01:00

Very happy today - my store has launched on the Not on the High Street website this weekend!! Here's the link.

I made the decision to take my work more seriously and find a suitable online outlet after some less than successful craft fairs this summer. I have had such a good response from my work shown on my flickr gallery that I thought - hey I could possibly make a business out of this!! So now The Beauty is in the Detail . . . is a proper "serious" brand!!

Still early days - but if you don't try these things you will never know!! Wish me luck!!

x

Fiona Howard

2009-08-29T12:06:00.004+01:00

I just love the designs created by Fiona Howard. Such lovely elegant graphic images using a sophisticated colour palette. These mugs shown above are a great example - but there are many more things to be found on her online shop.

Fiona is also responsible for my current favourite design - Dandelion Clocks by Sanderson (see below). Which I will soon be using to make a blind for my spare room!

for the love of Polka Dots . . .

2009-08-13T19:56:00.006+01:00

I'm obsessed!! I now run a group on flickr called For the love of Polka Dots . . . There are other great polka dot groups on there but I'm planning to make mine the prettiest and have a "strict" (as strict as I can be anyway) policy of only accepting the prettiest polka pics!! Here's a few of my faves so far!

Thanks to everyone for such fantastic images!!

1. Polka dots ballerinas, 2. Application, 3. Pink and White Polka Dot Cupcake Liners - Baking Cups, 4. nature pocket jumper, 5. Polka Dots, 6. 005, 7. Untitled, 8. Tulips, 9. Untitled, 10. Untitled, 11. Bye bye!, 12. Gretelies Tasche - Bag , 13. taggie legs, 14. Happy dotty duckie, 15. MacBook Envelope - 13", 16. Polka dot top

I made this! - Mortimer Sock Mouse!

2009-08-07T20:55:00.007+01:00

This is my newest addition to my sock mouse family. A commission for Zoë Power. The brief was that he or she had to be pink and purple. Recently if I come across a pair of socks I like I just have to buy them now - it's become an obsession! This time I had to hunt down the right pair - not as easy as you would think - even when I had the whole of Oxford Street to choose from!!

But finally in Topshop I spied this lovely pair - and I just love how the large spots work with the shape. This time I made the heart belly a little smaller so it didn't wrap around the sides too much and I used piping inside the tail to create the nice rounded shape. Not content with having Molly Mouse my friend Mandy has commission me to make another mouse now with the other sock in this pair!

Think this sock mouse lark might be taking over my life . . .

Craft Fair! - Tunbridge Wells Pantiles

2009-08-02T19:14:00.006+01:00

Well - my first "proper" craft fair - or Craft Market as it is officially called. Spent every spare hour preparing, writing lists, stressing. Still didn't have enough stock really to fill up the stall but it wasn't a problem in the end as I only sold three things!! So depressed! Think I am better spending off my time selling online - so my next job is to list everything on my Esty and Folksy stores - can't get any worse I guess!! :0(

Craft Fair! - Tunbridge Wells AEC

2009-07-11T22:11:00.003+01:00

So I had my first craft fair - it was organised by Bev Russell from Tunbridge Wells Adult Education as a chance for students to learn how to sell and to promote the courses.

Was a bit daunting to start with as I didn't know anyone - was the only person from my Soft Furnishings course who exhibited.

Had few pieces pre-prepared, but when I realised just a few days beforehand that I had a whole table to fill on my own I panicked and spent every spare hour sewing - which was great fun - but slightly stressful.

Wasn't the busiest craft fair I have ever been to and halfway through after only selling three things I was feeling a little despondent but things did pick up towards the end.

The best part was meeting all the other sellers - such a lovely bunch of people.

Can't wait to do my next fair now!!

I made this! - Polka Dot Teacup Pincushion!

2009-07-11T22:02:00.003+01:00

Another one for the craft fair - this is now the third teacup pincushion I have made - and I think this is my favourite! Loved the leaves on Dianes Teacup and was itching to add more colour and pattern so used one of my last remaining scraps of my vintage floral print cotton.

Have shown my work in progress as I often get asked how I make these. This latest one has a little lavender bag inside it also - just for the hell of it!!

I made this! - Lavender Birds!

2009-07-11T21:52:00.005+01:00

Still love anything birdy - so was dying to make my own bird hangers. Thought they would be great for my very first craft fair - they went down a treat luckily - especially as they took much longer than expected to make!

I made this! - Doorstops!

2009-07-11T21:26:00.008+01:00

Used a pattern from one of my favourite books - Simple Sewing by Lotta Jansdotter.

The largest one is from the actual pattern and the two smaller ones are a scaled down version as I found the original to be too large - and costly to fill!

I adapted the handle from Lotta's original specification as I prefer it to be the full width with the ends hidden in the seams - you just have to make sure that you really securely stitch the ends inside the seams as they are pretty heavy.

Pretty easy to make - just have to take it slow and be careful when you attach the top section as if you are slightly misaligned it will look pants.

I made this! - Sock Mouse!

2009-06-27T19:22:00.010+01:00

Always been a bit of an animal lover - especially anything cute and furry.

So I thought I would turn my burgeoning sewing skills towards creating something cute and woolly!

As I cannot knit I thought I would make good use of the many colourful pairs of socks that are bought for me each Christmas - many of which remain unworn.

If anyone wants to try making one of these here's my mini tutorial -

1. Firstly take a sock - preferably clean - preferably unworn. Cut down the back through the heel to the toe

2. Cut a heart shape out of the sock - any shaped heart will do!

3. If you want to add an appliqué shape on the belly then you will need to pin the sock heart shape onto an embroidery frame - I used some hideous fabric that I wouldn't dare use on anything else - don't worry no-one will see it!! Then I pin the appliqué fabric in position and draw the shape I want in chalk. Using a close together zig zag stitch you carefully sew round your shape.

4. Remove the fabric from the frame - cut off any excess hideous fabric then very carefully trim around your appliqué shape. The first time I tried this I snipped through the sock and had to start again!

5. Now is the time to decide to what kind of tail your mouse should have. On Marvin mouse I spent forever turning piping inside out - which creates a stiff rat like tail. For Molly mouse, she has a more simpler tail - a strip of fabric with the raw edges folded in twice - stitched one line along the whole length then knotted the end!

6. Once you have trimmed off all the fabric and made your tail fold the shape in half and pin. Contrary to my photo I would advise starting from the tail end - if you look closely at my photo you can see a white mark on the right hand side - this was my stop sewing mark. If you start from that end and sew towards the nose end it is much easier!! Learn from my mistakes. Before you start sewing tuck the tail inside and position - it is much neater and more secure if you machine sew this on as part of the seam.

7. Once you have sewn the back seam, turn inside out making sure the nose is as pointy as possible and start stuffing! I use natural lambswool but you can use anything you like.

8. When you have finished stuffing you will need to weight the mouses bottom - I use a large plastic button which weights it and creates a flat surface helping your mouse sit up. But I'm sure there are many other ways to do this!!

9. This is a rare sight of Molly's bottom! This part needs to be hand sewn. Naturally the open ends come together as shown above - but if yours doesn't just trim bits off until it does!! Tuck the raw edges in and use invisible stitching (ish) to bring it all together.

10. All you need to do now if add the finishing touches - The ears - are just two Pac Man shaped pieces of felt, and the eyes and nose very small buttons - but beads could work just as well.

The Beauty of these little meeses is that they will all be different - no matter how many you make!!

Would love to see other peoples sock mice - post a link to your image - or share on flickr. Other images of Molly and Marvin can be seen on my flickr gallery

I made this! - Pleated Bag

2009-06-06T22:23:00.007+01:00

Started making this in my soft furnishings class during the week. Was supposed to be learning how to make a fabric box. Due to my dodgy measuring the box wasn't going to work so to save wasting this lovely fabric I had a spark of inspiration to add a few pleats and a handle and hey presto a new bag!!

Used this for the first time today - such a pleasure to make use of something you have made - can't wait for the day that someones says "Oh I like your bag . . . " and I can say "Why thank you, I made it myself!!" (proudly). I'll have to swing it around a bit to get it noticed!!

As you can see my cat Fizzy decided to use it as a cushion whilst she had a little nap - nice - a hairy handbag!!

I love clotted cream . . .

2009-05-23T15:30:00.003+01:00

Just came back from a lovely holiday in Cornwall. It was a surprise for my boyfriends 30th. We stayed in the most beautiful cottage on top of a cliff overlooking St. Ives. I know it's a cliché but the light really is amazing down there.

I've posted a few of my favourite photos.

P.S. If anyone is planning a trip to Cornwall I can give you the details of the cottage . . .

Oh I do like to be beside the seaside . . .

2009-04-12T22:24:00.003+01:00

Went to Whitstable today with my family.

Started off a little grey and gloomy - but turned into a beautiful day. Felt inspired to take some photos - here they are!

I made this! - Easter Egg Card

2009-04-11T19:28:00.003+01:00

Instead of those calorie ridden, overly sweet and naughty eggs we gave my other halfs sisters money this year for Easter. But to "Easter it up" a little I just had to make a little fabric egg card to hold the money in!

Are quite simple to make. Cut four egg shapes from card (I used foam board which is about 3mm thick). Two of the eggs were about 5mm smaller. Using alot of pritt stick, UHU, sellotape and double sided tape I smothered the cards in tissue paper for one of the smaller ones, Velvet with foam padding for the back, spotty cotton with a pocket for the other smaller egg shape, then for the front I sewed ribbon and buttons onto some stripey cotton using lots of different stitches.

Glued all the bits together with bright pink grosgrain ribbon to hold the front and back together and to also tie the card up with a big colourful bow!! Pressed under a weight overnight to set (all that glue takes a while to dry!!)

After all that I think the money was the most exciting bit for the girls - but I still enjoyed making them!!

Happy Easter everyone!!

I made this! - Easter Eggs!!

2009-04-05T14:43:00.005+01:00

Thought I'd make a few fabric Easter Eggs for my family this year - this way everyone can have an egg - dieters, diabetics and all!!

They are all a little mishapen - but as always I'll put this down as character!!

What do you think?

I'm on Folksy!!!!

2009-03-28T18:27:00.002Z

Been thinking about it for a while and finally decided to take the plunge and try selling some of my bits and bobs.

Had so much good feedback from the livingetc forums, etsy forums and flickr that I bit the bullet.

So here's my Folksy Shop - link

Wish me luck!!

I made this! - Rosettes

2009-03-28T15:30:00.004Z

Learned how to make rosettes in my Soft Furnishings class last week.

Amazed at how easy it is - all you do is -

cut (or rip - I prefer the raw frayed edges) a strip of fabric - no specific size or length.
Using double thread, stitch a loose running stitch along one edge (about 5mm from the edge works well).
When you reach the end gently pull and gather the fabric the together - you will see how the rosette starts to take shape.
When you are happy with the shape sew the ends together - I prefer to knot in the centre then stitch the two ends together to hide the gap.
You can either add a button - or a smaller rosette, or a ribbon rosette, or a pom-pom - whatever you fancy.
Maybe sew onto a scrunchy or a brooch or a bag or a jumper!! So many options - so little time!!

I made this! - Teacup Pincushion!

2009-03-22T21:49:00.007Z

Came across a few people on flickr who had made similar teacup pincushions (Made by BeaG, Mel Garza and cupcakeDD) and felt inspired to try my own version.

Bought a cheap cup from TK Maxx and using offcuts of piping from my cushion projects I started by glueing the first section then once this was completely dry starter hand-sewing the rest on in a big swirl, stuffed very full with polyester filling before sewing closed and hey presto!!

More photos of this appear on my flickr page.

Update 11/4/09
I've been blogged!!

Top Totes!! KaireK

2009-02-22T19:43:00.004Z

In case you were getting tired of my work I have included some examples of more inspirational totes you may like. The first examples are from KaireK who has a shop on etsy and more examples of her work can be seen on her flickr pages - beautiful designs, fabrics, colours and detailing. I aspire to all these things . . .

I made this! - Linen Tote Bag

2009-02-22T18:17:00.003Z

Recently I have become obsessed with tote bags - maybe because they are relatively easy to sew - couldn't wait to try my hand at making one to my specifications. Used more of the lovely Romo Sapporo fabric which my sister bought me for Christmas along with some John Lewis scraps from my local haberdashery and then some lovely Harlequin Kini cotton for the lining.

Found a useful tutorial on Expert Village by Terri Turco on making a lined tote bag for anyone who fancies a go at this . . .

I made this! - Birdcage Cushion

2009-02-21T10:04:00.009Z

So far this has been my most adventurous creation. A birdcage cushion for my friend. Have had a great response on flickr so I thought I would post a mini how-to for making a piped cushion. As usual I spent a while digging around online to see how to do piping so I hope this is useful to some!

On this piece I used my favourite Romo Sapporo heavyweight linen/cotton as the front and a fine mink linen (used to be a blouse) for the back. The piping was a lime green linen blend which was quite stretchy. The design was inspired by my friends necklace (the friend I gave this cushion to). I liked the idea of enclosing the appliqué in stitching so I embroidered the back of the cage first, then appliqued the bird and then stitched over the front bars!

I've included a couple of detail shots too of the appliqué and the buttons as it always helps to have a closer nose at how things are made!

Here goes . . .

Once you have cut your fabric (and embellished with appliqué, beading etc) make your piping. With mine I cheated and didn't cut on the bias - this way I was able to use a really long length with only one join. It depends on your fabric really - but as this was already stretchy I got away with it. (Piping Tip - don't sew to close to the piping cord - try to leave about 3-4mm - this way you can hide this stitching in your seam - see point 7.
Pin your piping facing inwards onto the front of your cushion as shown. I just judged everything by eye - but you can always measure to make sure everything is keeping square.
On the corners snip up close to the stitching on your piping to enable it to curve - you can choose whether to create a sharp corner or rounded corner - don't worry if the piping looks too scrunched up as when the cushion is turned the right way out the piping will stretch out.
Once pinned in position you will be left with the ends meeting eachother - don't panic! Take time to work out where the cords meet and just trim the cords not the fabric on the piping - it helps if you have about an inch of raw cord poking out one end and a hollow "sleeve" of fabric coming off the other end. It's a little fiddly but tuck in the end of the sleeve (to hide the raw edge of fabric) and then poke through the raw cord from the other end. If you cut your cord right both ends should meet and sit flat nicely. If you feel it is too bulky trim off any excess fabric from the piping - but make sure you leave enough to tuck in the sleeve and to hide the raw cord!! Pin in place - once stitched this should all hold in place nicely - see my detail shot of my ends.
OK - using a zipper foot (or even better a piping foot if you have one) set you needle to the left so that your zipper foot isn't squashing your piping too much but so that you stitching will fall slightly inside your stitching on your piping. I found I hade to push my piping sideways towards the needle when sewing to prevent the foot pushing my piping in too far - but be careful not to sew through you fingers doing this (it hurts!!).
Once you have sewn all the way around it is time to place your backing in position.(I had already cut and sewn two flaps with buttonholes for the back - but this will vary depending on what kind of closure you have chosen). Place the back face down on top of your piping to make a piping sandwich. Put a few temporary pins in the hold the position but turn the whole cushion over to pin the fabrics together (so that the inside of the front section is uppermost). This will make sense in a minute . .
Once you are happy with your pinning - make sure that your piping is still facing in towards the centre - you can do this by feeling through the fabric. Now this is the tip I searched for hours for - all you have to do is to use your stitched line (from where you sewed the piping to the front of the cushion) as a guide and follow it all the way around. If possible try to sew in from this line - that way you will create nice crisp piping and hide the lines of stitching from your piping and the front cover all in one fell swoop - fantastic!!
When you have finished sewing trim off the excess fabric to neaten up and to improve the seams when reversed and triangle cut the corners to reduce the bulk.
Now you can add your buttons if needed (Tip - put in the cushion pad first to judge where the buttons should go!)

Hope you found this useful - let me know if this has helped!

I made this! - Birdy Pouch

2009-02-21T09:27:00.003Z

This is my first post showing my own creations!

Have posted these already on my flickr page and some on the livingetc sewing forum and have received a good response so I wanted to show off my favourite pieces on here - plus a few tips for fellow sewing newbies who like me spend hours trawling online tutorials for tips and tricks!

This first piece was really just an experiment to use up some smaller pieces of fabrics and to make use of this lovely lime green polka dot cotton from Moda which had arrived in the post that day from Mr Ebay.

I now use this to hold my sewing machine pedal and cable when I travel with my machine - nice to make things that serve a purpose!

Found a revelation regarding appliqué (one of my favourite techniques) - I'm sure most of you know this already - but for those who don't . . .

My big tip is not to cut out your shape then stitch over the edge (unless you are handstitching of course). I tried this to start with but it is almost impossible to do and looked awful.
Instead lightly sketch your pattern in pencil onto the face of the appliqué fabric - make this slightly larger than you want it to be.
Pin your appliqué fabric onto your base fabric (for my bird I only used a couple of pins in the middle - just to hold the fabric steady - I kept these in whilst sewing as they were not in the way).
Position your needle at a corner - I found this better than on an obvious line (just in case you don't meet up exactly at the end!)
Select a zig zag stitch and make your stitch quite wide but very short - this will create the dense ridge of stitching - and will securely hold most frays.(Practise on a scrap first).
Will be different with every machine but with mine I had to pull my fabric through a little harder than normal to avoid too many tangled messes underneath! Use a slow setting also, and stop every now and then to make sure you appliqué fabric is staying flat and isn't stretching.
Once you have stitched around the whole shape use either a small pair of sharp scissors or snips to cut off the excess fabric - taking care not to cut your base fabric or the stitching. You can go in as close as you like - some people like to leave a frayed seam (approx 5mm) but I like it all trimmed off - looks neater and crisper.
Et voilá you have quite professional looking appliqué!!

Hope this info helps - leave a comment if you have a go at this.
Happy Appliquéing!!

Boden!

2009-02-05T12:37:00.003Z

Big Fan of Boden's accessories. Their colours are always so fresh and fun and they aren't afraid of combining contrasting colours and prints. Their printed catalogues and fliers are also nicely designed also - have a handmade, quirky look - guess that's why I like it . . . .

nanaCompany

2009-02-04T22:49:00.002Z

Love Love Love nanaCompany . They have an Etsy shop but you can see more of their pieces on flickr. Above are just a few of their adorable creations.

Spool

2009-02-04T22:42:00.003Z

Surprise Surprise another sewing post! Have a look at Spool. In their blog section there are helpful patterns and how-to's. Love these hanging birds (link to flickr site). You can download the link for the pdf pattern here.

Folksy - Etsy for the UK

2009-02-04T22:23:00.003Z

Not sure when this launched (haven't done my research as usual) but there is now an Etsy for the UK called Folksy. Don't think they are affiliated (could be wrong - research research!!) but the idea is the same. Handmade precious items sold by the makers - wonderful!!

House Cushions!

2009-02-04T21:52:00.003Z

Came across these characterful cushions whilst browsing Etsy the other day. By a company called LeiliLaLoo have at look at their shop - many other wonderful things on there - you won't be disappointed.

Hannah Zakari

2009-02-04T21:38:00.009Z

One of my new favourite sites is Hannah Zakari owned and run by Rachael Lamb. Amongst the many, many desirable items are this beautiful pair of bird earrings by Dottyspeck. Also you'll find funky, fashionable, handcrafted and unique pieces such as this Gilbert the Goat Necklace from Haberdash House (is the goat the new motif for 2009???!!), and the wonderfully kitsch jewellery from Lady Luck Rules.

Tote Bags

2009-02-04T21:23:00.008Z

Ok - I've gone sewing crazy. Currently obsessed with tote bags. So expect multiple posts on this subject. Currently faves are this twee tote from RobinsEggBlue on Etsy, and the huge array of skillfully crafted bags from Raspberryfairy . Only wish I could sew that well - just a few more decades of practice required!!

Morello Living

2009-02-04T21:11:00.004Z

Nice Little site called morello living who have a small but lovely range of gift and home wares. Particularly love their knitted birds by Claire Pugh and their Poppy Treffy Bags which are so cute!

Plumo Little Bow Slippers

2008-11-22T00:06:00.002Z

Love these. On my Christmas List . . . from Plumo.

Monsoon Kids Autum Winter 2008 colours

2008-11-21T23:57:00.003Z

Saw this display in my local Monsoon kids. Loved the colour palette so much just had to take these photos.

Romo again . . .

2008-11-21T23:48:00.002Z

More lovely Romo shots.

Hotel Chic Bedrooms and Boudoirs

2008-11-21T23:40:00.002Z

Gathered these while researching my own bedroom design. Still working on the glamour look. Need more money!

Sleek Designs

2008-11-21T23:35:00.001Z

Just beautiful looks. Very chic and elegant.

Romo always . . .

2008-11-21T23:28:00.002Z

I love Romo fabrics - the colours, patterns and textures are just my taste - really versatile also. Best to visit the Chelsea Design Centre to have a browse through their books.

Fabric Hearts

2008-11-21T23:24:00.002Z

Love these pretty fabric hearts. You can find similar from pins and ribbons

Jewellery Storage Ideas

2008-11-21T23:16:00.003Z

Came across these pretty and quirky ideas for jewellery storage on the Martha Stewart website www.marthastewart.com

Furry People

2008-10-24T22:12:00.000+01:00

These two furry things live in my house. Their names are Fizzy and Squeaky. Fizzy is the fluffy one. They smell, make a lot of mess, wreck things, fight together and get in the way - but we love them all the same!