New Achievement...and Competition Winners

Yes! I finally tackled making my very first pair of interlined curtains. Is it sad that I am utterly thrilled at having achieved this? Probably, a little. I can't tell you how many free instructions/tutorials, hints and tips I looked at over the past couple of days before I finally just went sod it..wing it.

You can, or rather I can, get really hung up (no pun intended) on the small details, wanting to make sure I do it properly so not to waste an awful lot of money on materials and time making something, only to find I've mucked it up. But I got to the point midway through yesterday when I went, well the worst that can happen is that I have a lot of fabric for my quilt...

A very simple tab top curtains, the tabs have poppers on them so I can take down the curtains, as the pole is fixed in place and can't be removed not without a spot of brute strength and some determination. 

The fabric I've used, you might recognise as being Petite Street, the same fabric as I am using for the quilt I am making over Christmas. 

Not bad huh? Oh, and the curtains weren't the only new thing made for the workroom/guest room. At long last my sofa bed from Made.com arrived this week. And it needed something on it, so I decided to put my collection of Nikki McWilliams biscuit cushions on it. Which reminds me I really want to get the custard cream next...

So pleased to have this room sorted before Christmas, there are a little bits and pieces still left to do such as more artwork up and cable tacking the wires to the skirting but other than that it's done. Ready for me to then move onto the hallway. Going to put together a moodboard for that project, I'll post about that over Christmas. I am plotting and musing on it the moment.

Aside from the curtain making this weekend, I've been working on a custom order for a clock, something I've not made in a little while. Making a clock is like an old friend coming to visit. After this project, I'll be working out my plan for next year, and I've been in dialogue with someone about submitting a project for a magazine. Time is short on that one so, after I've drawn the winners of the competition from three weeks ago, I'll be wracking my brain on that little challenge. 

So without further ado...

Congratulations to Jen Valukas - who won the little prize bundle of a copy of issue 8, a needle case and a pdf pattern

Emma Law - 3 month subscription to Crafty Magazine

I'll be in contact a little later today to get your details! Many congratulations again. 

Christmas Tutorial: Merry Bee Picture

Merry Bee Tutorial

Before you begin this project before sure to read through all the instructions first, and then there will be no stopping you. If you have any questions at all feel free to leave me a comment. You'll also learn a couple of new ways of doing things, such as transferring the design using tissue paper.

For this very Merry Bee you will need:

• Print out of the pattern
• 6” Embroidery Wooden Hoop (or a size that suits your preference – feel free to blow the design up or scale it down)
• Background fabric of your choice, if your using the 6" hoop you'll need a piece 11" square
• Scraps of Wool felt: yellow, white, red and black
• Stranded Cottons: Black, brown and burgundy (I've used DMC 310, 300 and 815)
• White machine thread or white stranded cotton will also work
• Needles
• Pins
• Tissue Paper / light box / transfer crayon
• Pencil
• Sharp scissors

1.       If your background fabric is fairly see-through then you can use a light box or your window to transfer the design onto the fabric. Then place the fabric into your frame making sure it’s taut, then skip step 2.

2.       If your fabric is too thick or dark for the methods listed in step 1, then you could use transfer paper or you can use the method I use, which is using tissue paper. Place your fabric into your frame, making sure the fabric is taut and trace the design onto your tissue paper, and pin it onto your hoop.

3.       Whatever transfer method you used we are going to start at the same place which is the dashed lines. Thread up your needle with two strands of black cotton. The dashes are stitched in multiple back stitches, a dash line roughly equates to three tiny back stitches.

4.       Time to move onto ‘Merry’ is also stitched in back stitch but using two strands of burgundy coloured thread instead. Keep your stitch sizes regular, this will make sure the finish is nice and neat.  Skip step 5 and 6 if you've not used the tissue paper method to transfer the design. 

5.       Using your white thread, running stitch around the main bee body, and the wings.

6.       Now the fun bit you can start to tear off the tissue paper, be careful around the stitches, if any tissue paper gets trapped under a stitch, you can either tease it out with a sharp needle or use tweezers. Whatever you have to hand.

7.       Stitching the padding on the bee body: The body is made up of several layers of yellow felt. Using the template cut out the three sizes marked as bee body. Starting with the smallest piece, pin it loosely in the middle of the shape (as shown). As this is a padding layer, it doesn’t matter if you use yellow cotton or white to stab stitch around the shape. When you’ve stitched the first layer on, stitch the next size up over the top of the first.

8.       Wings: As with the body of the bee, the wings have padding. Cut from the white felt the two wing shapes. Stitch the smallest layer down first, and then the larger piece over the top. I used the guidelines on the background fabric to help the felt piece keep its shape, these guideline stitches will become hidden by your stitching and the felt.

9.   Time to stitch the line that separates the wings. Thread up your needle with your white cotton thread, and using your print out as a guide, back stitch a curve as shown below. If you’re not sure where the line should go, use the tissue paper technique.

10.   Return to the main bee body. Before we stitch the top layer on, you need to cut out the three thin stripes from the black felt, and stitch them onto the largest yellow shape. I used a single strand of the black thread and running stitch up the middle of the black strip to attach it to the yellow. As with the padded layers, you will stab stitching the layer all the way round the edge, this time make sure you’re using a matching yellow thread, and keep the stitches small and neat.

11.   Finishing Details: The eye is a French Knot, in a single thread of black cotton and three wraps of the needle. And the smile is also in a single thread of black, and is in back stitch. 

12.   Nose: Cut out a small circle of red felt, owing to how tiny it is a template isn’t necessary, think a size of a sequin. Stab stitch it down with matching red thread. Don’t fancy cutting out a piece of felt that small? Then you can use a small red pompom.

13.   Antlers: I’ve used two strands of brown cotton and back stitch. You can use your tissue method to transfer the antlers lines or free style. 

14.   With the stitching complete you can use the design to adorn anything such as a cushion or part of a Christmas quilt. Or for a temporary solution, so that you use a hoop again, follow these simple instructions:

a.       Using the hoop that the picture will be framed in, cut back your fabric so that you have a seam allowance of about 2 inches all the way round. Then thread up your needle with thread and do a gathering stitch around the edge, once you've gone all the way round pull the threads in to gather around the inner hoop. Once your happy that the gathering is neat and the gathering thread is secure, you can then cut off any remaining thread. Add a ribbon to the tightening fitting on the hoop and hang up! 

Viola your done!

Threads, Bee and Success

Nothing like a productive weekend, to make you feel that whatever the next week brings that at least you started it with a few things crossed off your list. I had two things that I was rather pleased to get done.

The first is that I finally got a solution for my windows at my abode that works. I've had a bugger of a time with the plaster board. The new buildings owners worst nightmare when it comes to fixing anything heavier than a picture on it. So you can imagine that hanging anything like a blind was a nightmare. However, using components that are actually for wardrobe, small dabs of no more nails to add the screws, and the aid of my mum. I've fitted up a mini pole in the study ready for me to hang the curtains...that I've yet to make but still it's a start!

Taking a picture of it at the moment is a bit dull, but once I've made the curtain I'll show it off. Hopefully, by then I'll have my sofa bed installed too so the room will be pretty much complete and ready for guests to use too.

What's the second thing I am pleased about? Well I have made the sample and pretty much got instructions sorted out for a fab little Christmas project for you all. Here is a sneaky peek of a bit of it to wet your appetite. 

The project will be ready for next week, and I'll be aiming for the 7th November, to coincide with the project in Crafty magazine which will be out the same day. Which I can show you what it looks like, as they have put up on their site this week the template for the design. Sneaky peek and download the template ahead of the game!

This is a prefect opportunity to remind you about the competition I have running, which has some fab prizes up for grabs. Click here for more details.

As well as the Christmas project and the window solution, I popped along to the first Threads festival at Farnham Maltings. It was in the neighbourhood and I wanted to go along to see if it was something I wanted to take part in next year, but I have to be honest I wasn't utterly sold on it. The premise was good, but in reality to me it fell short, I can't fully explain it. I think it largely came down to not knowing what it was meant to be. I personally felt that the set up at the Maltings might have also not fully helped it was a little too bitty, perhaps that was the reason I couldn't quite figure it out. If you've not been to the Maltings, its a collection of buildings linked together, with studio areas, halls and various other side rooms. Which for this festival made me feel as I left that I might have missed something. 

I might have felt even more disappointed had I not come across a rather lovely and local hand-weaver who also sold her hand dyed cotton threads. Naturally I fell in love with the threads couldn't resist purchasing a pack of mercerised cottons and one of her silk dying experiments. I highly recommend checking out Zoe Acketts by going to her site http://www.zoeacketts.co.uk/.  

Perhaps my thoughts on the show were a little hard, given it was the first one, next year I heard its going to be in September rather than November. Perhaps not to compete with the Christmas fairs. Which might work better...I'll leave my opinion as undecided. Did you go, what did you think? 

Now I must toddle off the evening has well and truly settled in and it's time to snuggle down on the sofa with a cuppa.