Accidental Vix

Well, I had a tough start to the week and shared my to-do-list in the hope it would spur me on to finish it, and although the weekend isn’t quite over I hang my head in shame as I only achieved 2 of the 3 items. So let’s start with the things I did manage… My table cloth for Handpicked Hall is now complete, although I have realised that I still have another one to make for next Saturday (that will be on tomorrow’s list) and the item I made for my studio was a lampshade, including some gorgeous hand printed fabric from Leanne at The Little House Martin! However, I still haven’t finished my bunny hats, but to be fair I did finish my 5 half-sewn bibs so that’s only half of one of the items not finished, and I could surprise myself and get it done now so that I start next week with a completely new list. How much of your list have you finished this week?

Off to contemplate sewing some bunny ears to some hats now, enjoy what’s left of the weekend.

Xx

Do you ever have days where you just feel rubbish, isolated and cut off from the rest of the world? Well I’m having a few of those days, and part of me knows the reason why but then part of me doesn’t understand how it has escalated into an all consuming problem. So, how do you start to battle with it and get yourself back to normality? I’ve decided the only thing to do is hatch a creative plan of action! Here are my 3 creative things to do this week, in the hope that if I make them public I will be motivated to fulfil them and distract myself from the trials and tribulations of life:

1. Finish my table cloths for my craft fairs, I already have a table cloth but it’s looking a bit tired and needs a bit of brightening up and accidentalvix-ifying! Apart from getting to play and sew with pretty fabrics this will prepare me for the Handpicked Hall dates I have signed up for in Skipton. It opens on 8th March and my first day will be Saturday 9th March and then the first Saturday of the month thereafter, it would be lovely to see you there if you are local or visiting the area
2. Make some more stock for all these sales I’m hoping to have! Ok, that is a bit of a broad topic so today’s stock list is to finish my half made bibs, and hats that I have plenty of bunny ears for
3. Something creative for me, with no specific purpose other than to look good in my studio and make me smile on rainy days (this will be the difficult one but it’s on my list now so no choice but to succeed)

Right, off to put some music on and get the sewing machine out – wish me luck, and I will post pictures of this week’s achievements by Sunday. Have a great week and please share your to-do-lists below. Xx

As Valentine’s Day approaches what else can be on the creative list than hearts! I’m a bit late with Valentines items this year but I’ve just booked to do the Heart and Craft Fair in Headingley on 9th Feb so I thought I’d better sew a bit of love for it, so when I wanted to send my friend a hug through the post my little lavender hearts emerged. They were also a great excuse to use all the smaller bits of fabric I have left over that aren’t big enough for my  bibs or booties etc. As well as being a great little handmade gift for Valentine’s day they can also be hung in your wardrobe or put in your drawers to keep clothes smelling lovely and repel moths or as a fragrant present to yourself or someone else to help get a good night’s sleep.

Xx

I was very excited to receive my sketchbook project from Art House Co-op for 2013 last week and couldn’t wait to start it. Although I had told myself I wouldn’t start it until I’d finished my prismacolor mystery project, which I am still finishing, I just couldn’t resist as I already have many ideas swimming round in my head. So, I allowed myself to start working on the cover and although it is work in progress I feel better that I have started to put pen (and thread) to paper.

Watch this space…

Xx

As opposed to my journey up North on Friday when I was pushed onto an escalator and ended up black and blue with a few bruises and a broken crutch as it got lodged sideways on a moving escalator I thought I’d show you my black and red bag. I can now reveal my first ever bag attempt, and I even surprised myself that it was good enough to give to my friend Jane for her black and red themed birthday at the weekend! I got the pattern from Ali Foster on Etsy and it was so easy to follow, probably the clearest pattern instructions yet! So now I am going to embark on a bag making frenzy, ready to list in my etsy shop hopefully before I go back to work. Your thoughts and feedback are always welcome.

Xx

I’ve decided that my time might be more productive if I do tasks in bulk, so I spent a good day just cutting out patterns from my stack of fabric which was also more economical with the fabric as I could get as many patterns out as possible but also highlights which colours I’m running low on (yes with my fabric obsession it’s difficult to imagine me running out of any fabric!) Now time to start sewing, so if there are any colour requests before they start going into my shops then please let me know.

Xx

The sun was shining yesterday which made me think of spring and the bunnies hopping around the fields so I decided it was time to use one of the patterns I got from Tie Dye Diva on Etsy to make this cute bunny hat. It is the first of a range of novelty hats that has just made it’s way into my Luulla shop, there will be more coming soon. This particular one is a present to our friends’ daughter who has just turned one.

Have a good Saturday,

Xx

I’ve now been a married lady for nearly 4 months so it’s got to be time to start the mini tutorials on the handmade wedding bits I promised a few weeks ago. The first one is bunting, not wanting to teach a grandma how to suck eggs but I’m going to keep it relatively simple and easy. If I can make 50 metres for our wedding in a few evenings then anybody can fit a bit of bunting time in their lives.

1. My fave part – choose the colour scheme and fabrics, for our wedding we chose charcoal and aqua but you can use as many or little colours as you like, and it’s also a good way to use up scraps or left over bits of fabric.

2. Choose a size and then cut out a template, this can be done from recycled cardboard or paper. Think about where you are hanging your bunting; you can do small bunting for cots or large bunting for hanging in rooms or outside. I used triangles but can can use rectangles or other shapes if you prefer. Another example of fab bunting, which has been seen at a small pram size to larger than life at Camp Besitval is from the fab Ruby Shoes Rocks.

3. Cut out lots or a few triangles depending on your appetite for a challenge or overall length in mind, remember you will need to double your triangles if you want similar bunting to the ones shown, alternatively you could save yourself some time and just use single triangles (skip to step 7.)

4. Choose 2 triangles and put them together with right sides facing each other (they don’t have to be matching fabric, in fact I think they look more quirky if they’re different.) If you want to at this stage you can applique onto some of the triangles before sewing together – for our wedding I added our initials or letters to spell out words such as love – there is a fab picture of us and my parents with bunting above us that says love!

5. Sew down the 2 longest (angled) sides.

6. Turn the sewn triangles inside out and iron (it’s best to choose cotton or fabrics that will iron easily.)

7. Choose your ribbon or bias binding and cut to required length, don’t forget to add some extra for fixing/tying it in place.

8. Fold ribbon etc in half and iron.

9. Sew down the edge of the ribbon with the top of the fabric triangles inside, make sure you leave enough space before the triangles to allow you to hang or tie your bunting at either end.

10. Do just that – hang your bunting, then stand back and admire

Bunting is perfect for cheering up any home, shop, environment or event especially weddings and comes in all shapes and sizes so why not take advantage of doing it yourself and experiment from mini bunting for cots and even prams to big bunting in the garden or street parties. If you don’t fancy giving it a go yourself then why not contact me and I can make it for you! I’m already making some as an alternative to tinsel this Christmas and love a good wedding or party.

Happy bunting

Xx

Well, our start to married life is stressful at the moment to say the least but without the pressure of having to make and create every spare moment my creativeness has actually increased. The problem now being that I have so many ideas in my head that I don’t have time to attempt them all, but I guess that is what my sketchbook is for. On top of my regular sketchbook I have also signed up to the sketchbook project 2012, allowing myself more time to complete it this time. Our wedding and honeymoon now seeming like a distant memory I have made a start on filling the pages. Unlike my previous (and first) sketchbook project which was rushed to say the least I have decided to make the most of this year’s being shorter at 32 pages, a standard picture book size. Continuing with my illustration dream the first page starts my story and view of 2011 as it has been an important year in our lives!

Anyone following my blog will know of my love of textiles, sketching and my overworked sewing machine so why not combine them all. I will let the pictures tell the story so far, but watch this space as the journey unfolds. Any comments or feedback would be great as I still have 29 pages to go.

Xx

A quick Folksy Friday from me today as things are manic at work and stressful in general at the moment. I’m looking forward to going home after work tonight and having a relaxed and fun weekend as my mother in law is visiting and there are some creative plans in the pipeline. Married life is a bit stressful to say the least at the moment and one of the biggest issues at the moment is the battle we are having with our landlord, and to be honest we can’t wait to move – the problem being finding somewhere to move to! So today’s theme for today’s fave picks from fellow Folksy sellers is home which also inspired my latest Folksy listing; no matter where we’re living we are newlyweds and living with each other (that doesn’t stop us dreaming of our perfect home tho!)

Little black heart – Up my street illustration (this is definitely up my street and reminds me of my latest ‘style’ for my sketchbook project 2012 – watch this space over the weekend for more info)

Dollydoo – Funky house cushion (love the bright colours on this, and it would definitely make our dreary flat cheery)

Maggie B Crafts – House collage (in contrast to the bright colours of Dollydoo this would be very calming, again something we could do with at the moment)

Flossy teacake – Fruit and veg shop mono print (ok, so this isn’t strictly a home but it’s so cute and I dream of living in the countryside again one day)

Frillybee – Little house (this is adorable, and you should know about my love of sewing by now)

Time to get back to the mountain of work now.

Have a good weekend.

Xx