Making in 2015

I'm having a look back at all the things I made last year. I think
 I did well. I didn't manage any dress making as I'd planned to do
at the start of 2015 but there was still some good sewing. I made costumes and I hand quilted my patchwork blanket. Both tested and improved my sewing skills and I learned a lot from making them.
I'm also very pleased to have made a tea cosy. I still use it everyday
and it's certainly one of my favourite makes from last year. My crochet
got better too. Amongst my crochet projects were shawls, pot holders and several cowls but I'm most proud of my bear bag. I adapted a triangle pattern for the ears but the rest I just made up as I went along.
My crochet confidence grew from from making that little bag. It's
another favourite from 2015.

As always I feel lucky to have had the time and resources to make
all these things. Getting crafty and being creative bring me a lot
of enjoyment as well as comfort, pride and satisfaction and I hope
there will be more in 2016.

Wishing you all a good week. It's back to work today but school
doesn't start till tomorrow for the girls. They're playing nicely at
 the moment so fingers crossed I can do some crochet this afternoon.
My unfinished blanket is calling out to me. See you soon!

Sidetracked by a Bear

 I got sidetracked by a bear last week. Blanket and costume making
had to be put on hold because this sweet little thing was demanding
to be crocheted and made into a bag.

The idea came to me one morning while I was thinking about presents 

I'd like to make for the girls and it kept nagging at me until I gave in. So

 I got my hook and yarn out and the pattern that I've worked out in my head seemed to have worked. Yay!

My bear is made of cotton yarn both DK and aran. Her face and nose

were crocheted on the round but her ears are double crochet triangles*

that I've slipstiched round to make them less pointy. I've even made

a loop and attached a button at the back so it can be closed like 

a proper bag. 

I'm really, really pleased with her. I'm usually not very confident
with crochet and wouldn't attempt anything without a pattern to
follow so I'm very chuffed with how this has turned out. And the
girls love it too which always makes it even better.

I'm glad to have been distracted by this little project because it's
given me lots more ideas. Someone said this will make a cute cushion and I do think it will work. I'll just have to make it much bigger and
add two more loops to close the opening. That's definitely something
I'd like to try soon but first I have to make another bag so the girls can have one each. They love this bear but I might make a fox or a cat
 for the next one. I'm not sure yet, we'll see!



*from 201 crochet motifs, blocks, projects & ideas by Melody Griffiths

A Crocheted Rug

Hello. I hope it's been a good weekend for you all. Thank you for
stopping by here and for all your well wishes this week. My knee is healing and I'm feeling so much better. The new antibiotics seemed
to have done the trick. Lulu is recovering too and is back to her usual
chirpy self which is just wonderful. However now it's Markie who's
got the 'tummy bug' that her sister had. I was hoping she'll avoid it
but no such luck. She'd spent most of today curled up under a blanket
 on the sofa but she's looking better this evening so we're keeping
our fingers crossed.

Anyway, I said in my last post that I'll show you the rug I've made
 for their bed room so that's what I'll do here and I'll tell you all about it.

I started off a few weeks ago with this big ball of yellow fabric yarn
and a size ten crochet hook. It didn't take very long for the rug to
grow and take shape but then I ran our of yarn and had to order for
more. It was finally finished last week and we're all happy with it.
Now there's a little more colour and warmth on that bare space
next to their bunk beds and it feels much nicer especially when
 they're playing on the floor.

I've never used both yarn and hook this big before and it took

me awhile to get used to them. I've had to rest every now and

again otherwise my fingers and shoulders ached if I worked on it

for long periods but I'm quite happy with the fabric yarn. It's soft, 

didn't have many knots and the colours were even throughout. 

I got the idea and pattern for this from Mollie Makes issue 51
though I changed yarn colours in a slightly different way. I initially
wanted dark pink for the outer rounds but it was not available and
the pale pink is so pale it's almost white. Lulu suggested orange,
confidently assuring me that "it' s a good colour, Mummy" and
she's right. It's bright and cheerful and all three colours go well
together. I think next time I'm stuck for ideas I should just ask her!

So that's it, my latest finished project. Thank you again for your
visits here and for your comments. Hopefully Markie gets much
much better tomorrow. Take care and have a good week!

Getting Yarny

It's been three weeks since school started and we are now
firmly back to everyday life with school runs, homework, etc. Both
girls are settled and happy at school and I am beginning to really
enjoy the days when Lulu is at nursery and I'm on my own at home.
I'm usually busy pottering and catching up with various jobs and
of course, crafting. I've seldom had whole uninterrupted hours of
sewing or making before and having this free time now is just
fantastic. I have started two new projects, both crocheted and
both in preparation for colder days ahead: I'm making a blanket
for our living room sofa and a rug for the girls' bedroom.

I'm following a pattern from Inside Crochet for the blanket and so far
it's going well. I really like the clusters of trebles and the wavy lines
they make. It's working up fairly quickly too which is very good
and exciting.

The rug was also making up quickly but I've had to take a break
last week after running out of fabric yarn. It's going to be nicer and
 softer underfoot for the girls once this is made- and colourful too!
I've just bought some more yarn and hopefully I'll get this all
finished in the next few days.

Once the rug is made I'm planning to start on a cushion cover
I found in this old crochet book. It's round, with a big flower and
can be made with any DK yarn- perfect for these cotton lovelies
in my yarn stash.

Aside from these three, there are many other things I'd like
to make this autumn and winter, including another patchwork blanket
 and an embroidered picture for the girls' room. I think there's a better
chance of getting some of them made now that I have Mondays and
Fridays free. Plus the cooler days and darker evenings are also very conducive for making with yarn so I'm feeling very hopeful about
these projects. I just have to stop faffing about now and get cracking!

Hope you've had a great weekend. It was lovely and sunny here
both on Saturday and Sunday but we're back to grey, cold and wet
today. Anyway, have a good Monday everyone!

Last year's makes

These were all the things I made in 2014. Looking back now
I feel very lucky and pleased that I've used a lot of my free time
 creatively and have made some nice and useful things for myself,
my family and our home. I crocheted, knitted, embroidered and
did some machine sewing. I tried my hand at covering a lamp
shade, furniture painting and dress making. I also discovered
the joys of using washi tapes and making my own cards.

Overall it's been a good year for making and I hope 2015
will be the same. I have a few projects planned already
(first on my making list are crocheted pot holders)
 and I can't wait to get started!



Wishing you all a fun and very creative 2015.
See you soon!

Lovely Happy Things

We had a long, busy, tiring and stressful week last week
 so I'm grateful and relieved that our weekend had been a slower
 and more relaxed affair. On Saturday I was going to take the girls to
Weston Park but because it was raining we just stayed at home. The
girls spent most of the morning playing, watching Cebeebies and
happily pottering about. I spent most of mine reading, crocheting,
 drinking cups of tea and ignoring the many chores that were
 calling out to me. It was lovely!

We enjoyed the gingernut & chocolate biscuits we made the
day before and we had a go at making rubber band jewellery.
Well, I did while they picked out the colours and played with the
rubber bands.

On Sunday we took it easy too. It was so nice to not do much
 for a change and we do feel rested and better for it.
Hooray for quiet Saturdays and easy Sundays!



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One day last week my father-in-law came round bearing gifts.
He brought us sweet strawberries and gooseberries all grown in
his allotment.

We ate the freshly picked strawberries straight away but the
 goosegogs were made into a crumble. We ate it with cold vanilla
flavoured custard. Yummy! Another great summer treat.



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We also got this jigsaw puzzle. It's still in its original box
and the colours are fantastic. I love old toys and I was very
chuffed about this.

And yes, my father-in-law is a lovely man and he's wonderful
with the girls. We're so lucky.



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Crafting always makes me happy and I've been working on my
 granny square throw whenever I've had the chance.

I've been making up the colour combinations and joining
 the squares as I go along. So far it's been a fun project and I'm
really looking forward to more crochet time this week.



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I got these paper clips from Sainsburys yesterday. Aren't
they so cool?

I love the colours and the teeny tiny buntings--- definitely
one of my favourite happy purchases this summer.






I hope you've all had a lovely weekend. Take care
and thanks again for wishing me well on Friday.
Back soon!

Lovely Happy Things

I've enjoyed some crafting time this week and this always
makes me happy.

I've been doing a bit of embroidery and crochet and
I have also made this birthday card for a friend--all fun,
happy making projects.



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A new magazine and a cup of tea--always a treat!

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It was my birthday on Thursday, a very wet and cold day.
But despite the horrible weather it was a wonderful day, full of
beautiful treats and presents. I felt very loved and spoiled.

I'm still not too sure though about being forty. It is such a big,
grown-up age and I don't feel forty, not yet. But I guess that's
a good thing. As they say, you're only as old or as young as you feel.



.........................



I've made another new top and I love it.

I'll tell you more on my next post--soon!




Thanks for reading.
Wishing you all a lovely, sunny weekend!

Making Cards

I've spent most evenings this week making invitation cards
 for Markie's upcoming birthday party. It was actually my husband
 who suggested that I make them as we're trying to keep costs down.
 I wasn't too keen on the idea initially. I've never made my own
cards before and I have a few WIP's I wanted to get back to and
finish this week. But I changed my mind when I realized I have
 everything needed to make them--blank cards from an unused
 Christmas card making kit, alphabet stamps and washi tapes--
so why not try. And having warmed up to the idea, I thought this was
 my chance to have a go at making washi tape cards like those lovely
ones I've seen online. And so my card making evenings came about.

I started off by sticking strips of different washi tapes to plain
 white paper. I then cut out the shapes I needed before gluing them on
 to the cards. It was easy and I had a lot of fun with the four designs
 I'd chosen.

The idea for the cupcake and ice creams came from some appliqued
bags I made last summer (you can read about it here) while the bunting
and balloons were inspired by a card that Lulu got on her first birthday.
The bunting was also a great way to make use of small pieces of
washi tape-covered paper that were leftover after I've finished
making the other cards. 

I've made a dozen in total and I'm really happy with them. I'm
also glad I tried my hand at something new. As for washi tapes, I'm a
big fan now. I think they're so brilliant. My husband have said the cards
are 'too nice' which is a great compliment. I hope Markie's friends
will like them too and they'll all come to her party. That will make her
really happy.



Thanks for reading. I hope you're all having a lovely weekend!

DIY String Storage Jar

I'm always on the look out for clever and easy ways to keep all
my crafty notions neat and tidy. While browsing through last month's
issue of Ideal Home magazine I spotted this string storage jar.
I really liked the idea of using a jar to keep strings, ribbons, bakers'
twines and even yarn. But this one was rather expensive so I thought
of making my own cost free version. After all it's really just
a jar with a hole in the lid.

It was easy peasy even when I had to make the hole the old
fashioned way--with a hammer and nail.

Ta dah! A nice little string dispenser/holder/storage jar.
So simple and works great.

I'm keeping it plain like this but I might pretty it up with
a nice sticky label or some washi tapes later.

Thanks for reading. Hope you're having a happy Sunday!

A Little Break

This week we were in Center Parcs in Sherwood Forest,
Nottinghamshire. We always love coming here in spring time.
In fact it's our favourite place for family holidays and lucky for us,
it's only an hour's drive from Sheffield. This time the place
we stayed in was next to a pond full of ducks, geese, moor hens
and swans. Our feathered neighbours liked to walk around and have
a nosey all the time, looking through the glass doors to see what
we were doing- much to the girls' delight.

Home away from home

Early morning visitors

It was cloudy and cold most days but luckily it didn't rain and we spent
our mornings outdoors- walking in the woods and of course,
 the playground.

Early afternoons were spent in the swimming pools which the girls
absolutely enjoyed. Lots of playing in the water and going down slides.
When everyone got tired we all headed back to our little place
in the woods for snacks and more play and then it was nap time.

Snack time for the grown ups

When it was all nice and quiet I sometimes read and did a bit of crochet
and sewing. Bliss!

Sometimes I couldn't resist and fell asleep too.

Mummy's having a nap. Shhhh!

My husband, as always, did all the cooking and he made us
lovely meals every day. We were spoiled!

Our days were happily spent like this when we were there--
very happy and relaxing. We all wish it was longer than five days
 but at least we've had a much needed break and we were
 able to spend wonderful time together as a family. It's been a great
holiday, our first one for 2014, and we're so grateful.
Hopefully we'll have a few more this year.


Hope you've had a fun week too!

Bye for now!