Meet Snow Bee..

I had a sudden realisation yesterday that I hadn't designed my now annual Christmas bee bauble! For Since 2012, I've been coming up with a seasonal bee design...and I almost forgot!!

A quick doodle and the Snow Bee was born....

Isn't it cute?? 

Can't decide if its the carrot nose or the little coal buttons (antique glass beads) I love more. I even found a use for my white Swarovski crystals, which I hadn't got round to using.

Snow Bee baubles are made to order and come with its own calico pouch to keep out the dust when in storage. The are priced at £15 + Postage.

Past Christmas Bee bauble designs include:

Merry Santa Bee - 2012

Royal Bee - 2013

Merry Bee - 2014

I still have a few of last year's design available to purchase (originally £15 each, now £7.50 plus free postage within the UK).

Patchwork WIP and 2015 Projects

Happy New Year Everyone! I hope you all made it in one piece. 

I thought I would skip over a review of 2014 and just crack straight into what I've been stitching, cause frankly getting back to stitching and mucking about with fabric has really gone me into a happy place and got me in the zone for looking forward to 2015.

It feels so good to get back to stitching and working on projects that have had to put aside for months in order to concentrate on deadlines and so forth. The quilt I started last Christmas was brought out once more and I cracked on with putting together the last four blocks, tidied up the size so they were all an even 12" square, and then..finally started to add sashing! It really is satisfying that before I return to work next week that the major part of the quilt is finally, finally complete!

Working out the placement of the blocks...but changed it again before I machined the sashing on.

And as you can see the border is now on! Love, love it! It's not an overly complicated design but it's tested me for the first proper patchwork quilt I've put together. Really looking forward to sorting out the backing fabric, as I have so much of Petite Street Fabric and white left over there might be another larger patchworking on the back. Then I can get the wadding and then...then I can do some quilting. So excited. Okay, I know I wanted to get it done before this Christmas just gone, but still I feel fairly accomplished that I've got at least this far and from here on it's at least likely to get done by winter 2015 now.

It's not the only patchwork piece I've been turning my hand to, because I have a stupidly large stash of scrap fabric from the embroidery work last year, the quilt and so forth I like to every now and then just do a little hand sewn scrap quilt. No plan to it just going with the flow. In fact what started as a small square is now looking likely to be a long panel which I think might go in the bedroom to compliment the quilt. You can follow the progress of this here and over on instagram. 

I've also decided as this is the year to being creative as possible. Being creative makes me happy, and keeps me focused on that. So one thing I signed myself up for as a bit of a mini year long challenge is a project my friend Nini of Made By Nini has set up 12 page in 2015. I didn't stop and think as to whether or not to do it I just signed myself up and so not to backtrack on it I set about making my little 12 page journal. Rather cute if I do say my self and made completely from one box. The first prompt has been announced, 'New Beginnings, Friends and with a bonus of Washi Tape. I look forward to spending an afternoon working on my page. Again keep an eye on instagram. Oh, and if you are interested in participating, not to late to join, lots of folks from around the world are taken part.

Got a project your working on or planning to start?

I have some doodles in mind for future embroidery projects, as I am nearly ready to get back to doing some more intricate stitching.

Oh, and one final thing I have the sale still going on!

Would love to Meet you...

If you live near or in Farnham, their 10th annual Farnham Malting's Christmas fair will be taking place. Owing to massive popularity they have made it a two day event. I will be there with my merry band of Bees and I would love to see you there!

Heading to Farnham Xmas Fair

Christmas has properly arrived at Mason Bee HQ...as the new Christmas bee bauble has been designed, stitched and made up, well the first very batch at least. More will be made over the coming weeks, all the way on the run up to Christmas, reason being because I'll be at Christmas fair this year, not done one in...well a few years now.

I've just paid for my stall and with that bit of admin sorted, I can now announce (for sure) that I will be at the Farnham Malting's Christmas Fair this coming December. Which will be exciting and a touch nerve wracking as I do now need to start upping the anti with the making of stock, without getting too worked up over it. So...no pressure then. Thankfully, as mentioned previously I've been doing a little bit of planning over the last couple of months, and will be mainly concentrating on small items. Which was the reason I forked out for this little bundle of fabric. Can't beat the plain colours of Kona fabric. It's enough to make you smile.

So it's a short post today, mainly because I must crack on with the day, not only to get on with stock making but with the change in season, god I love autumn, I feel more in the mood for cooking. So lots of large vat sized portions of stew, soups, pies are on the horizon. Good, simple, tasty fare. So I hope everyone is snug as a bug this weekend. Do let me know what your up too! Also if your on instagram let me know, and I will be sure to follow you.

Fairs and a Christmas Bee

So last week I mentioned last week that I had an opportunity to go to the Handmade Fair at Hampton Court, courtesy of the lovely gang over at We Make. I am hope wining tickets to the fair might mean I would win the lottery. But you know to do that you have to first buy tickets....

It was surprisingly, and perhaps a somewhat unfair comment to make, that the fair was rather good. Now I did only go for just over an hour and half which might not seem a long time but it was a bit of an early start on a Sunday to make sure I got there early enough. I like to get to show's early, not a big fan of crowds, and when you have tents...the heat. Now a lot of it was geared towards classes, and talks which I wasn't there for as my ticket didn't allow me to do any, and honestly not sure I would have wanted to. There was, however, a nice mix of craft folk and suppliers. Though it would be nicer to see if they do it again next year they could attract more independent suppliers, the niche stuff that you nine times out of ten have to order on line to see it. And it was some what of a surprise that the RSN didn't take a stand, would have been worth the outlay which I know was fairly substantial, or even have the workrooms open for the day. 

Fabric a gift from my best mate, she knows me so well, some uber cute Christmas Decorations and yes might have picked up some more papercraft stuff. It's an addiction...

Anyway, I picked up a few bits, was being good given I had just come back from the States with a bucket load of supplies, and I knew that the following week I would be off to Threads....

Which like the Handmade fair is still in its infancy. 

For those crazy long term followers of the blog, god love you all, I talked about it's inaugural show last year. Which was a little bit...well I wasn't sure what to make of it, and I am still not sure it's got the mix right. Like with the Handmade fair, I would have loved to have seen more niche suppliers of kits and materials. Not sure it's the fair for purchasing finished products. Especially in a few weeks time is the Malting's big Festival of Crafts. It was also I think a little smaller than last year, or that could have been my imagination. Still it was a good couple of hours of wandering around with the lovely Laura Howard aka Bugs and Fishes wandering about and talking to the stall holders. 

Of course I did buy a few bits...

So much pink...

Such as more wonderful threads from Zoe Acketts, who I have spoken about before, and now has the most delicious range of silk threads to compliment her cotton threads. All hand dyed and produced by her. In due course she'll have a website to sell the threads from which I can't wait for. Really was great to see her again. 

I also got the chance to meet Sophie Simpson of What Delilah Did, so great to put a name to a face. And seeing her new book, which I have to say you have to get because it's so darn cute, Stitch the Halls. Prompted me to purchase the skein of hot pink cotton thread from Zoe, so I can stitch the bunting design featured in the book, which is of winter animals, polar bears and so forth. Sure I have enough to be doing at the moment but a little project for the train can't hurt...

Well, I'll squeeze in around all the other oodles of sewing I've started to get into doing. In particular I mentioned as well last week that I was designing this year's Christmas bee bauble design....well here it is. Well, in it's near finished state:

Bzzzz

Yes, the little Merry Bee is back, in miniature size sporting a Swarovski crystal nose. Bling for bees. I have to admit it did take a couple of attempts to get back into how to stitch the bees, nothing like brain freeze but having just stitched another one think I am getting back into the zone. Just have one more to stitch up and then I can get them turned into baubles, so hopefully by next week I can start looking at getting them listed. Might try out having them just on my website. I'll keep you posted. 

My tea has now been drunk, and so that means time to step away from the computer. Hope you lovely lot are well, and that you have had a nice weekend.

Pre Break Ramblings

Days are really starting to fly by at a rate of knots, which whilst a little daunting when you still have so much to get done before Christmas, there is a flip side because it means it's nearly here! And that also means it's closer to my rather overdue holiday. Having moved house and dealt with so much this year it's rather needed. 

At the weekend I wrote and sent out my last newsletter for 2013, it was a brief little nugget of news informing that I am winding down for the impending break, my store on Etsy will be closing for the holidays this coming Sunday evening. 

Which on a side note if you do wish to grab a quick present then do nip along. If your in the UK I'll even throw in free shipping, 2nd class, if you use the following code UKLUVXMAS.

I also mentioned my desire to do an early spring clean of the website, start tinkering with designs I want to work on, and in some instances start them. 

I did mention last week that I was going to talk about these plans, and having spent some of yesterday in the company of a very good friend, Laura Howard of Bugsandfishes, it made me think that for me personally that I am better of remaining flexible with my 'goals', have them but not to become too fixated by them, accept that sometimes things don't work out the way you want them too. I admit it nearly crushed me over the summer that I wasn't doing half of what I had planned, and that it was likely I wasn't going to do any fairs this year either...eventually I got over that and the lack of stress was a relief. 

So back to what I have already began to plan to do:

1. Working on the website and getting that tidy is likely to be one that I achieve before I head back to work mid-January. I'll be condensing the gallery, press section, updating about me and making the site a little more user friendly, and I'll be looking closely at making more use of the shop function on the site. 
2. Getting out and meeting/networking with the folks that I have come to talk to rather regularly on Twitter etc, crafty folks. And it's something I am working on with Laura Howard, and hopefully dragging along other waifs and strays we know to pull ourselves out of our little comfort zones. It also gives a great excuse for eating cake.
3. Typography is really going to feature in my designs, and they will be intricate designs that I love to do, think Paradise Bird but lettering instead of feathers. I have the design already in progress for the first piece and will be starting before the year is out. I hope that I will be able to start doing a WIP blog posts about this very, very soon!

For a start of a plan that's not all that bad, what about you guys are you thinking about what you want to do, achieve next year? Or are you going with the flow? 

I promised you also what I thought of Bust Craftacular, where I met up with Laura. Out of the three fairs I've been to over the past couple of months it was the more promising. Quite tiny in comparison to the others but at least I felt like I want to buy, and I did. Admittedly I had gone with the attention to buy the remaining christmas gifts for family and whilst I did buy one gift...I also brought a picture for the flat. In my defense it had a hamster on it and it's for the Hallway which I am going to be decorating in the New Year. 

 

Isn't he smashing?! He's by Jimbob Art, Christmas Fox. I'm going to get him framed professionally, thinking a double mount, one crisp white the other rich red, framed by ebony/black wood. I know the exact spot to put it in too. Can't wait! 

I suppose I should add that goal number 5 should be to get out to more shows, I really would love to go to one of the Cockpit Art open studio days, and Renegade by all accounts was brilliant. I also want to go back to the Knitting & Stitching show in London to find some new suppliers and catch up with folks I know that either exhibit there or attend.

Cor I hadn't really set out to write such a long blog post, I hoped to have pictures to show you of pieces I've been up too...but I didn't actually get up to much stitching this weekend, just lots of tidying up loose ends and doodling. I have a crafting day with my best friend on Saturday so that means there will be more pictures on Sunday!

Christmas Time at Chez Mason Bee

I couldn't quite resist bringing the festive cheer to my wee abode a little earlier this year. Normally I wait until today, 1st December, popping Elf or Muppets Christmas Carol on in the background and getting thoroughly stuck into the decorating. This year, however I think I was just itching to get the twinkling lights up, because I had not one, not two but three Christmas tree's to decorate. Sure I could have easily put my two tiny tree's away but what the heck I put all three up....and I don't regret it.

Giant Red Robin on the top of the tree

Bee and Toadstools...

I didn't need to make any new tree decorations to furnish all three, though I did buy four new ones to add to the stash. This year it was a large red robin, a tiny glass robin, green sparkly star and a glass green and clear bauble. I'm aiming to have a tree one year where no one decoration is a like. Admittedly it might have to be a fifteen foot tree to accommodate them all.

But whilst I've not made for the tree that's not stopped me from making other decorations for the house. I've actually got a door wreath, which is fab and it's one I've decorated myself. I had been utterly swamped with inspiration from Pinterest on what I could do with a wreath form but Friday night I suddenly came to me what I could do with just the fabrics and bits and pieces I had to hand. I had been tempted to cover it in pom-poms or googly eyes, maybe next year!

I'm really, rather pleased with it. I especially like the fact I can also use the form again as none of it, bar the crystals is glued on. it's either pinned or hand-sewn. I don't have any progress shots as it was rather late at night and was too much in the zone to stop and grab the camera. But if you want to have a go...

You will need a wreath form, strips of muslin, red felt, needle and thread, pins and Swarovski crystals (or similar). 

I wrapped the form in a couple of long strips of muslin, to keep it in place I used pins and a few holding stitches at the back. I then cut ruler width strips of red felt and pinned them, temporarily, at certain points around the form, I judged this by eye. Once I was happy with the placing I sewed just the end of the strips to the muslin, the felt you see doesn't wrap all the way to back. To finish it off, I made a nice fat bow, again using pins to hold it in place whilst I stitched it to the wreath. To give it some glitz, and just because I could, I covered the bow with crystals. Then add a felt tab at the back to make it easy to hang.

This is only the beginning of my crafting for Christmas, I've got a table mat to make up, a few gifts and some other bits and pieces to do as well. I would have cracked on over this weekend but I had to finish off a commission (a very one of a kind button clock) and make and write project for a magazine...which as you guessed it I can't tell you about at the moment.

I'll be putting together a wee newsletter during the week, so keep your eyes peeled for that. And then next weekend I will be back to talking about things I really want to make over Christmas and in 2014, hopefully some photographs of bits I am making at present. Also will talk about my wee trip to Bust Craftacular. I am hoping that this craft fair will make up for the two I've been to over the last couple of months. Looks like a fab line up and gives me a chance to meet up with another fellow Laura, Laura Howard of Lupin and hopefully another Laura too, Laura Howard of Laura Fallulah. I think this means that some cosmic event will happen...hopefully it will involve cake.

Hope everyone has had enjoyable 1st day of advent!

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. 

Stitching to Christmas

I have to say I am one of those folks who loves the run up to Christmas, the cooling weather (not the rain so much!), the fact you can stay snuggled up in doors and cooking seems less of a chore and more of a pleasure. 

So whilst I am ever so slightly freaking out at the list of things I really want to get done on the run up to Christmas, I am actually okay with it all. I am starting to realise, and I've been told it many a time lately, I can't do everything no matter how much I want or feel I need to. I am trying to build up stock should the opportunity to do a craft fair crops up, but this year I am not beating myself up over it if I don't get the level that I wanted. If it comes to it I'll simply pass on it. I've had a busy couple of months and as my spare time is limited I need to ease up otherwise I'll simply not have the energy to do anything. 

Weirdly since instigating this I've found myself more inspired and energised to get things done. Whatever the reason I am quite happy with this, because whilst I am making pieces of stock (slowly), I've been caught up in a quilting bug. You might have seen/read that I've fallen in love with a fabric bundle called Petite Street. I've been drooling over it for ages and finally felt I could buy it and did so last night, and since then I've been drooling some more over quilt designs/patterns. Then just like that I found myself suckered into buying more quilting fabric...such as this rather lovely Christmas design I found over on Eclectic Maker. The big panel is for a cushion but I am going to alter it to become a table mat, going to back it with cherry red cotton, just mulling over the binding. 

Winter`s Lane Quilt Panel in Grey by Kate & Birdie Paper Co.

....I'm not entirely sure how my bank account is going to cope with this sudden passion for quilting (reawakened love affair - I've always had a soft spot for it), especially as it's coping with being a home owner with a picky interior style. 

If your interested to know what quilt design I am going to do with the Petite Street fabrics I think I am settled on this one called Ruby, Pearl and Opal design over on Moda Bake Shop. I think I can just about manage that one, but I feel I might need to invest in a proper rotary cutter, mat and rulers to do it all properly. 

As we are hurtling towards November, it's time to remind you all again, that my project for Crafty magazine is out next month. Exciting! I really, really hope you love it, and likewise as mentioned before there will be a giveaway to go with it on the blog/newsletter I've only just this week been in dialogue with the Editor to get that settled. Work sadly has gotten a little in the way these past couple of weeks, I had a trip to Stirling Castle for a Heritage conference which has thrown me out a little. I don't regret the trip though, it was fascinating and has only cemented the idea that I've had of going to Scotland for my *cough30thcough* birthday next year. I also got the chance to see the newly installed tapestries in the castle. Apologies the photo's aren't the best as I was meant to be concentrating on the tour guide... 

They feature a story of the Unicorn, and are copied from the ones that are in MET in New York. They really are very stunning in person and the appliqué work above the Queen's chair is also lush, and I wish I asked who stitched the reproductions as they were rather good. I do like it when I get a spot of day release from the office to go on trips like this!

I thought I would round off this rather long blog post with a little look at a few bits I rustled up today:

A new batch of tissue holders, perfect for a stocking filler, loving my little handmade fabric labels, using my custom made stamp. Which was also used on a stack of drawstring bags which are used as part of the packaging for Christmas decorations and jewellery, so much quicker to make them up with a sewing machine than by hand. Although its a slow process if you forget half way through doing one how you sewed the one before...there was a fair bit of unpicking. Happens to the best of us!

I hope everyone is doing well, and do tell me what your up to project wise!

Christmas, New Stock and a Vow to Buy Quality

It feels nice to be working on a blog post during the day and not at night as with my previous weekly musings. The sun is still shining and the sky is blue. Thus far it's been a rather productive week and a bit of a rallying one too. I'll get to the latter bit a little bit later because first I really, really want to show you what I've been working on this week. 

I'm utterly stoked with the way my new Christmas bee design has turned out. I made the decision quite early on that I wasn't going to do the same design as last year and I was prompted to get drawing again when I sold the very last Merry Bee. I had actually tweeted the design I came up with the other day and so this weekend I set about making the sample. Well, the sample turned out to be beyond my expectations and as such its' up for sale already, complete with a little pouch to store it in. I've been mulling over packaging lately and I thought about buying in a load of already made calico pouches and perhaps in due time I'll do that but till I've sourced ones I'm happy to pair with my own work I've opted to make my own. Now the one shown below is completely made by hand, and yes you can imagine it took a wee while to sew it which isn't practical but with a sewing machine I'll get the time way down. It also meant I could also use my massive stash of bakers twine and my wee custom made stamp. So all in all it's rather perfect.

Queen Bee Tree Decoration £15.00

The bee wasn't the only thing I've been working on. Last week you'll recall my mentioning playing about with the Paradise bird design again, this time making some rather swanky looking brooches. Well I think I can safely say I've cracked it. It took some attempts and alterations but I've finally got it to fit neatly and securely into the brooch setting. It will be made in other colours, peach, pale pink, lilac, turquoise, hot pink and mint...actually I might still play with the combo's but at least you get the idea. I've not listed this one for sale as of yet, but will be in due course. So keep an eye on the store!

So yes, it's been a rather busy weekend, amongst all that lot I also managed to fit in a trip to Farnham's Food Festival (spent a small fortune on yummy produce), finally settled on how I am going to make a blind for the study, massive clothes clear out and made a concious decision in regards to clothes buying habits. 

Now I know that's a weird thing to do, the latter that is, but this week I finally had enough of buying cheap clothing. What did it for me? A pair of boots, which I had ordered from New Look and realised you really do get what you pay for. Now, yes I know if you buy cheap you get cheap. I've know that, occasionally though you buy cheap and you can get good quality too but like many you get pulled into the need it now situation and forgo buying into investment pieces because it involves searching, saving up and waiting. Not to say I am not patient (mostly) but well it's easy just to find something that vaguely does the job, that might last the season and get rid. But I am feeling really uneasy about that lately. More so now I have my own place, and the whole buying bits for it, be it a lamp or the paint. Now part of me wants to rush out and fill the place completely with everything I need but that's both unrealistic financially but more importantly where's the fun in that? I've been on the hunt for a console table pretty much since I moved in but I'm not rushing to IKEA to get one. I'll wait till I find the right piece that could be several more months down the line but that's fine by me. 

So going back to the clothing I've decided that not only a small wardrobe (not talking about the furniture) made up of pieces that are really well made and fit properly is the way to go. The first thing I'm saving up for is a pair of Grenson Chelsea Boots 'Jessie', aren't they just lush! I've just popped some bits on Ebay that I don't want any more and the money from that is going in the pot. Hopefully be able to afford by the next pay cheque. 

Then saving up for a new leather handbag....

So here is to saving and buying quality. 

Sunday Night Pondering

This is the second time I've written this blog post today. I had started off with stating that this weekend has been less than productive. But weirdly writing the first blog post attempt seemingly spurred me on. Perhaps I'll try that next time I feel like I've done nothing with my time.

So what have I done....

The image above shows that I've attempted making things. It's an attempt pretty, but not quite right. It doesn't fit flush to the brooch fitting and whilst I was trying to be clever and time saving by using self cover buttons to give the dome effect and to make it easier to adhere to the brooch back, it's a bit gappy around the edge (can't really see it in the above photo). So I chucked it to one side, attempted to write a blog post, then had a sudden thought. Went back to it and found a better way to do it. Wrote my making knots, doodled the two designs...and well that's that project on its way.

Re-took some photographs of products, realising that some of the pocket mirrors weren't listed in the Etsy store. Rectified that, and if your one of those that likes to get the Christmas shopping done early, then they make a nifty little stocking filler...*hint*.

Played around with more photographs, in my attempt to take sharper photographs of 'Tea Solves Everything' and 'Life is a Big Puddle Jump In'. So that I can progress the idea of turning them into post or greeting cards. I was asking over on Facebook

Oh, and I finished the second sample and instructions for Crafty Magazine yesterday....and whizzed up a batch of jam tarts.

So really, in conclusion I was perhaps more productive than I thought. Which also makes me realise that I need to relax a little more, and be less harsh on myself. After all I do fit this round working full-time.

Ending the night on a bit of a ponder.