Birthday treats

My birthday was a little while ago – in fact it falls on National Embroidery Day, which I always think is very apt for me! I have recently joined a small group of ladies on IG who take part in a birthday swap. There are 11 of us in total, split into two groups. We each make a gift for everyone in our group and a card for the second group. I had the most amazing birthday this year filled with the most wonderful handmade gifts and cards – which I thought you might like to see…..

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I was just so spoilt. Now it’s my turn to put something together for one of the other ladies!

Thank you for popping in. Happy stitching!

A return to ribbon work….

Following on from the spring needle roll case designed by Tanya Haines of ‘The Common Thread’, I decided to try another ribbon work project. This time I chose the Step into Spring’ ribbon 🎀 work needle case. It looked so pretty that I just could not resist.

The whole project came together very quickly and took just over a day to complete. The ribbons are gorgeous and hand dyed. Would definitely recommend this kit to anyone considering it – including beginners as it is very easy to follow.

Thanks for popping in, happy stitching. xx

Ribbon work….

I just love the start of a new project – it is filled with so much promise. My latest project was the Spring Needle Roll designed by Tanya Haines of ‘The Common Thread’. It is a ribbon work project, something I had never tried before.

Ribbons

The kit was lovely, full of beautiful, hand dyed silk ribbons and the instructions were very easy to follow. I was very surprised at how quickly the design is worked up. In fact it took just the one day to complete! The little project used simple stitches – French knots, lazy daisy and ribbon stitch.

I just love the colours – so fresh! In fact I enjoyed it so much that I have ordered another little kit!

Thank you for popping in, happy stitching. xxx

SAL 50: ballet shoes

I have had more time to sew in the last few weeks, as it is the school holidays, Yay! That said, I have been carrying on with other projects as well as my SAL project. But here is where I was at our last session… the project is a ballerina mouse embroidery, designed by Jenny McWhinney.

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And here is where I have got up to…..

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As you can see I have managed to finish off the ballet shoes – which were worked in stem stitch outline and filled in with long and short. Using wools means that they come together very quickly. I hope to have the flower completed next time and maybe a bit of the mouse.

Many thanks for popping in and look forward to catching up in three weeks time.

Happy stitching.

We are a small group of crafters using a variety of different techniques. Please check out the fabulous stitching by all the other members of the SAL. If you are interested in joining us you can contact Avis for details.

Avis, Claire, Gun, Carole, Constanze, Christina, Kathy, Margaret, Cindy, Heidi, Jackie, Sunny, Megan, Renee, Carmela, Sharon, Daisy, Anne, AJ, Laura, Cathie, Linda, Helen

Swap happy

I love to take part in swaps and usually do a couple each year. My favourites are at Christmas and are hosted by Tracy from https://www.instagram.com/madaboutbags/ But this year I am taking part in a birthday swap hosted by Jenny from https://www.instagram.com/lilmaisiedaisy/ . There are 11 of us in total and we have been split into two groups. We each make a gift for everyone in our group and send cards to those in the second group. As fortune would have it, I was the first in the swap to receive gifts for my birthday and was just blown away by everyone’s generosity. Here are some pictures of the wonderful makes I received.

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My birthday was made very special by a small community of IG sewers and every time I use my gifts, I will be reminded of their kindness. If you are thinking of taking part in a swap, I can highly recommend them.

Thank you for popping in, happy sewing.

Posing pouch….

I just love sewing swaps as the people you send to really appreciate the time and work put in to each gift. Here is a WIP pouch that I made for a swap recently. I found a heart block for the inside of the pouch, then quilted very simply around the shape. A sparkly vinyl was then sewn in place over the top.

Front of pouch shewing heart block.

Back of pouch

I added a simple appliqued heart and ribbon tab to the back of the pouch. These are so easy to make and are great scrap busters too!

Thanks for popping by. Happy stitching everyone.

SAL 49: Making a start…

Hi everyone, another 3 weeks has flown by and the summer holidays are here! So, I have finally made a start on my little ballerina mouse embroidery, designed by Jenny McWhinney. The design has been pre-printed on a linen fabric and the embroidery stitches used so far are stem stitch and long and short – so fairly simple.

Here is my progress so far….

Many thanks for popping in and look forward to catching up in three weeks time.

Happy stitching.

We are a small group of crafters using a variety of different techniques. Please check out the fabulous stitching by all the other members of the SAL. If you are interested in joining us you can contact Avis for details.

Avis, Claire, Gun, Carole, Constanze, Christina, Kathy, Margaret, Cindy, Heidi, Jackie, Sunny, Megan, Renee, Carmela, Sharon, Daisy, Anne, AJ, Laura, Cathie, Linda, Helen

SAL 48: No progress here….

Hello everyone, the last three weeks have shot past haven’t they? I am afraid that I have not even started my next SAL project – as school life has been very hectic, what with report writing and making costumes for our summer production – it hasn’t allowed any down time to sew. Hope to catch up in another 3 weeks. Think I am going to go with the little mouse.

Many thanks for popping in and look forward to catching up in three weeks time.

Happy stitching.

We are a small group of crafters using a variety of different techniques. Please check out the fabulous stitching by all the other members of the SAL. If you are interested in joining us you can contact Avis for details.

Avis, Claire, Gun, Carole, Constanze, Christina, Kathy, Margaret, Cindy, Heidi, Jackie, Sunny, Megan, Renee, Carmela, Sharon, Daisy, Anne, AJ, Laura, Cathie, Linda, Helen

SAL 47: Conundrum

Hello everyone, Since finishing my last project I have been looking for something new to start. I have narrowed it down to the following two pieces – but which one would you like to see? Any help in choosing would be appreciated.

The first project is another sewing etui – but this time of a peacock…. There are a lot of new techniques involved – but it will be a long project to follow.

The second choice is much simpler – a long and short stitched mouse ( there are actually 4 different mice to embroider). The design is super sweet.

Any help please – and then I can get started.

Many thanks for popping in and look forward to catching up in three weeks time.

Happy stitching.

We are a small group of crafters using a variety of different techniques. Please check out the fabulous stitching by all the other members of the SAL. If you are interested in joining us you can contact Avis for details.

Avis, Claire, Gun, Carole, Constanze, Christina, Kathy, Margaret, Cindy, Heidi, Jackie, Sunny, Megan, Renee, Carmela, Sharon, Daisy, Anne, AJ, Laura, Cathie, Linda, Helen

Happy Dance!

Yay! I finally managed to finish my little blue wren etui, designed by Jenny Adin-Christie, It has been a long time in the making, challenging with lots of new techniques to learn – but great fun too! The kit was beautifully designed and all the components of a very high standard, the instructions were easy to follow and provided lots of pictures, which is useful for people like me who tend to dive in and read instructions later!

And here he is in all his glory…

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So now all that is left to do is choose my next project…….

Many thanks for popping in and look forward to catching up in three weeks time.

Happy stitching.

We are a small group of crafters using a variety of different techniques. Please check out the fabulous stitching by all the other members of the SAL. If you are interested in joining us you can contact Avis for details.

Avis, Claire, Gun, Carole, Constanze, Christina, Kathy, Margaret, Cindy, Heidi, Jackie, Sunny, Megan, Renee, Carmela, Sharon, Daisy, Anne, AJ, Laura, Cathie, Linda, Helen