Sewing Essentials

I hope I haven't bored you with all my talk lately of stamping on fabric (here and here), but just one last post (for now anyway!) on some other things I've been doing with my stamped images.  I showed you in my previous post some stamping I had done on some fabric scraps, well, I've mixed them in with a little bit of patchwork, prettied them up a bit and created some cute 'Sewing Essential' kits. 

It's actually an essentials kit combined with a travelling sewing kit and includes a pin cushion and needlebook, all kept together in a sweet little drawstring bag.  Lots of little bags are so handy, especially when crafting on the go, keeping your projects safe and clean. 

Here's a look at the contents -

I had lots of fun choosing which stamped images to use and how to place them etc.  I have made a few of these kits for my Folksy shop, each kit has the same 3 items but I have used different fabrics and different combinations of the stamps. 

Here's one of the different combinations -

The little needlecases are also extra handy, not only do they have 4 felt pages for needles etc, but they also have 2 little pockets, ideal for holding thread, notions etc. 

These are flying fast out of my shop so if you'd like one head over there fast!  If not for yourself, perhaps it would make an ideal Mothers Day gift?

Combining crafts

Well, I seem to have caught the stamping bug (again!) and have been continuing to play with my stamps.  If you missed my last post, here's a t-shirt I made for my son last week - I did manage to get him to stand still for a split second while I took a photo :)

Needless to say he was delighted with it!

While I had all my stamps out I wanted to 'play' with them a bit more, so I stamped some images and words onto fabrics....

And some more -

And then I had another thought....

I used some other stamps and stamped images onto cardstock, took it to my sewing machine....and teamed it up with some pretty scrapbooking paper by zig-zag stitching them together -

The reverse was blank for me to write my message on - but featured a cute butterfly stamp at the top -

I think this one looks great along with one of the packages I sent!

In my next post I'll show you what I did with some of the fabrics I've stamped on :)

PS - Look at the fabulous gift I got for Valentine's Day (after much hinting!) - a gorgeous tape measure bracelet from Kitschen Sink :)

Aren't they just the cutest? I chose white :)

Linking up to -

Some special stamping

After my last post where I showed you my fabulous goodies I received in the pay it forward from Nikki, it seems I wasn't the only one completely bowled over by the amazing results from stamping on fabric. 

Desperate to give it a try myself I quickly ordered some of the correct ink (Versacraft, which you heat set with an iron) and the same stamps Nikki used (sewing themed).  I also dug out some of my old stamps I had from my scrapbooking/papercrafting days and had a play about with some scraps of fabric. 

I was also working away on a t-shirt order for a customer today, and a special request from our 2 year old - a personalised t-shirt with a motorbike on it!  Eek, not done a motorbike before, cue a little bit of a Google search!  I quickly managed to sketch a simple motorbike shape and used Bondaweb to cut shapes out of fabrics.....Now what's this got to do with the stamping I hear you ask?....Just wait...

The t-shirt was done, but it needed....something....Then I had a *boom* moment! ~~BRAINWAVE!~~

I dug out some alphabet stamps I had and quickly added the finishing touch to the t-shirt.  Here it is - can you spot the extra special addition?

It's here! -

I totally love it!  (I'm allowed to say that, right?) 

And I didn't stop there, I also added this little bit of stamping on the neckline at the back -

I can't wait to see him in it.  I showed him it tonight and he was delighted with it!  He'll be wearing it tomorrow so I'll try to get a half decent photo of him (he won't stand still for 2 seconds!). 

The only thing is that I haven't used this ink before...so the true test will be after it's been in the washing machine...and whether all my stamping is still there!

PS.  Don't forget that personalised t-shirts are also available to order in my Folksy shop, I can see the stamping becoming a feature of many future designs :)

Pay it forward goodies

A very long time ago, so long in fact that I didn't even remember doing it, I left a comment on Nikki's blog on her 'pay it forward' post.  The week I left my job, I found out from Nikki that I would be one of the lucky ones to whom she would 'pay it forward'!  It was great news to hear (in what was a strange week!). 

Now, if you haven't heard of pay it forward, this is how it works -   

1. I will make a little something for the first 3 people who comment on this post. It will be a surprise and it will arrive when you least expect it.
2. I will have 365 days to do it in. What's the catch? To get a handmade present from me, you have to play too! This means YOU pledge to send a little handmade something to 3 readers of your blog. It doesn't have to be quilty - just handmade.
3. You must have a blog.
4. Once you receive your "little something", you must post about your Pay it Forward on your blog to keep the fun going - be sure to use the Pay It Forward badge.

Ok, so do you wanna see what lovely package I recieved this week??

I felt so lucky!  It wasn't even my birthday!

Inside were such lovely goodies, I really did feel so spoiled.  

There was the most AMAZING lined, zippy purse, Nikki has been busy with the stamps and Versacraft ink (and such pretty patchwork!) -

I love this one!

And the reverse -

I was actually squeeling with complete delight when I was opening this lovely gift, it really is so pretty!  And it's full of lovely polka dots and gingham - my 2 favourite fabric designs.

There was also matching pin cushion (with a lovely giant wooden button!) and some love heart pins -

And more fab stamping -

And the cutest little stamped label on the edge -

There was also a piece of yumy tablet to satisfy my sweet tooth! 

To say I was over the moon with this package is a complete understatement, I don't know if it was a happy coincidence or if Nikki had been really keeping an eye on my blog and my comments on her blog to get my tastes just right but she got it SPOT ON! 

I'm really pleased to have such a gorgeous zippy purse as I've been meaning to make one for myself for so long as I'm always looking for somewhere safe to store little projects in (especially taking things away for the weekend to work on etc) so now I have something extra special. 

It never amazes me the generosity of this online community that I've become part of over the past year.  I also love the fact that Nikki is someone I've talked to quite a lot over that year too, 2 people who've never met and she's been so kind as to send me a gift!  For no reason :)

So...now it's my turn....ready, set, go....leave me a comment!

A present and a product

Sometimes I have a new product in mind for aaaaaaages before I actually get round to making it for real.  Sometimes I have the 'excuse' of making something for my 2 year old son and those ideas usually take ages to get around to making too!  This particular idea was a bit of both - I wanted to make Joshua one, but also want to make them as products to sell too. 

I Finally, got round to making......a personalised cushion!

I love this *so* much!  I went for primary colours for Joshua's cushion because when I finally get round to making his quilt, the colours will be like these so I know the cushion will 'go'. 

The cushion cover is envelope style -

Fully removable, machine washable and iron-able (if that's a word?). 

There's red gingham binding around the edge of the cushion and a lovely blue trim on the envelope edges -

Joshua hasn't actually been given his 'present' yet as I had to get some good photos of it first!  I know he'll be delighted with it though - we're still using his/my U shaped baby feeding cushion on the comfy chair in his bedroom, and I've been promising to make him a new one for some time. 

So now that it's finally done, I have now also listed these cushions in my Folksy shop.....  Obviously they can be made in any colourway and I'm looking forward to working on a pretty pink one for a very girly girl next :)

Fabric flower workshop success!

If you're a  follower of my blog, or follow me on Twitter, you'll know that last night I taught my very first workshop!  (There was some info on this in a previous blog post.)

There were 5 participants who all came along to learn how to make a variety of fabric flowers.  The skills of the participants ranged from having never sewn before to some skilled sewers who, like me, were more used to using a sewing machine.  The making of fabric flowers had been a mystery to some, until last night where they have each taken away a new skill. 

I love how everyone was so enthusiastic to learn, it really was a pleasure to teach and share skills with them. 

It was great to see everyone so engrossed in their sewing....

I was well prepared with plenty of different fabrics to try, needles, thread etc, and the tea and coffee was in endless supply!  We were delighted half-way through the evening when Jacquie (who's summerhouse we had the pleasure of using) came in with some huge squares of carrot cake! (And which I unfortunately forgot to photograph!!)

Here are the flowers that the ladies managed to make in just a couple of hours -

I was also armed with my glue gun so we managed to turn most of them into brooches, one into a hairslide and one rose got a pipe cleaner stem and felt rose leaves! 

Here are some of the participants wearing their new flower accessories -

I certainly enjoyed my first taste of teaching and can't wait to have another go.  If you live in the Fife area, you can check out the Meet and Make Facebook page and be kept informed of future workshops run by myself and by others.