2017 Wk 40 Bits and Pieces

A lovely afternoon at Chertsey Museum - making Autumn Wraps! We all started with an Ikea fleece blanket. We looked at two different design ideas

Ann made a poncho, the rest made a wrap

Take an Ikea fleece and fold in half lengthwise. Then fold in half width wise to mark the centre. Cut along the long fold from one end to the middle - about 1.5 inches from the fold, so you are cutting out a piece about 3" wide. Arrange so the solid section is at your back and the two thins section hang over each shoulder - you can throw one front jauntily over the other shoulder, and look as fab as the ladies!

Some then went on to decorate their wrap with embroidery, other salvaged the fleece scraps and made flowers

Next I went to Portsmouth to see mum. I gifted her the wrap I'd made - and that was very well received! Look at the fab view from her flat!

I just love when one of the girls comes home and asks "muuuummmmm..."! She was about to meet her boyfriend's baby nephew for the first time - and needed a quilt finished. Luckily it had been largely constructed but needed name embroidering and binding finishing

First problem was quickly solved

And then she got a quick lesson on sewing binding and off she went!

Me? I did some making too - some more of these porthole blocks. I'll take them to Richmond and Kew quilters tomorrow and see if I can work out the best arrangement - should all 4 patch blocks be made with with coloured portholes, or just some? Should the colours arranged randomly (randoku! Thanks Avril - it's a fab word) or in a pattern? Either way I'm loving the blocks

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2017 Wk 39 - Bits and Pieces!

Nothing major this week -

These assorted t-shirts for customers, plus another ten in one design on the go at the moment

Worked with this lovely group of ladies working on the Days 4 Girls pads and bags at the church

Finally finished a felt box for the chalice and bag for the plate used at communion

Received this card and lovely key ring from my lovely Jackie (who is going through a bit of a tough time - so if you are a praying person please add her to your list)

And some pretty fab bunting from Plum

 

Can you see that they are owls?

 

I got these birthday cards from assorted friends who obviously know me very well

ad this one from Lisa and Niki which really made me laugh!

While the embroidery machine is doing it's job I have to stay nearby to feed it more t-shirts, so I have been having a go at making one of these

I'll let you know how I get on!

 

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2017 Wk 38 -Designs & Stuff

I seem to have got myself an agent (a pimp?)! A lady who runs a burger bar also sells polo-shirts and sweatshirts for a friend of hers (I know, a strange combination!) I have done some embroidery for a couple of people who happen to be her customers, and she is now offering my services to her other customers

These designs have been messaged to me to see if they can be digitised - and I've had great fun!

I also did a design for the lovely Amo

While they were stitching I had a play with a new zippy pouch:
It progressed from this

to this

to this!


It's a gift for a friend whose birthday is this week - she has just learnt to crochet so I'm stealing a suggestion from Jackie and making a pouch for her crochet hook collection she will inevitably now start to buy

And my final creative photos today are from me dragging the family out to a pottery lesson! Luckily they enjoyed it more than they expected and we've chosen 7 to be glazed and fired and collected in a month or so

Hope you had a fun weekend too!

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2017 Wk 37 Crafty Week

I was back at Chertsey Museum on Friday . . . but as a student rather than as a teacher. The lovely Claire was teaching a textured book cover - oh my gosh I loved this class!!

I was having far too much fun to take many stage pics but after sticking torn paper scraps and assorted sizzixed shapes onto a notebook we slathered black (or white) gesso and then some metallic paint on top of that. Once it was all dried we then used wax gilt to enhance ... well, whatever needed enhancing!

So I came home with this

And this

(Alice's looked like this before the metallic paint and wax)

So I confess I might have been http://www.thecraftbarn.co.uk/ to look at getting my own supplies!!!!!

Here are all the note books created:

What else do I have that I can show you? I only got one pic at Crafty Church today but my friend Jane joined us . . . and learnt how to crochet

She got it much quicker than I did, but being a couple of years ahead mine doesn't look too shabby:

I've made a bag for the Church Chalice out of some lush 4mm felt:

And I'm delighted to have got the maths right - and the bottom fitted perfectly!

I've started a gift for a friend

And finished three polo shirts for a customer

And made bunting for this Goddaughter who is on her way to university

I'm posting the A to her as a postcard! But planning she'll get the rest a few days later!

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2017 Wk 36 Finished at last!

I don't have much that's exciting to show for this week, except this box sees the last of the 163 items of school uniform all embroidered and now delivered with a rather scary invoice! Boring for you, but I'm really pleased!

I did have a fun evening at Chertsey Museum with ladies from the WI painting on hessian (jute / burlap) bags

With some great results:

I had a wipe clean table cloth that had got beyond its best, but sections were still fine, so I've started to cut it into usable pieces, and to use up half zips left from the humbug class to make a few zippy pouches

And a while ago I made a Block Bag from a few left over blocks forgot to blog it

. . . I might have loads of UFOs but at least some have nice homes to love in while they wait!

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2017 Wk 35 Bah Humbug

I can't believe it's September already! Is it just my age, or is time passing really quickly?
Anyways, I am STILL, boringly plodding through the Pumpkins embroidery - up to 120 items now but starting to see the end. Yesterday I was at Chertsey Museum with my lovely ladies - making humbug pouches. We actually had some finishes (and close-finishes) and ended up with a fab group of pouches
 

The big pouch is made from two squares and one zip from this tutorial.  The smaller ones are made from one rectangle and half a long zip, from this tutorial 

And we've started thinking about next year's crafts ... like this little draw string bag (which could be made smaller as Christmas decorations?)

Meanwhile, hot on the hooves of Lisa asking for a zippy pouch last weekend, Niki has asked for a new notebook for her new job starting on Monday- so of course I obliged!

She said she didn't need a pencil case as well, but I added one to the notebook cover just in case! A few minutes sewing to close the turning hole and she'll be ready for Monday!

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