Happy Times

Wedding present commission

A while ago I was asked to create a pair of owls as a wedding present. I really enjoyed making them and, I am led to believe, the happy couple were very pleased with their owls, which had their names and special date embroidered on. So, I was very pleased to be asked to make another wedding present. This time I was asked to make a bird cushion in blacks and reds with the names and wedding date embroidered in silver.

Bird cushion with names and date

Head detail

I'm very pleased with how this guy has turned out, I played around with several different fabrics before settling on a heavy black cotton twill and some funky red cotton prints. I also enjoyed making the pattern for this cushion and I think it is one I will use again as I like the chunky shape.

Wing button

Stitch detail

I used buttons for the eyes and to affix the wings and I hand embroidered the name and date in chain stitch. I used a fine silver thread and after about three letters I remembered why I don't often use this kind of thread for embroidery; it snaps and uncoils frequently but I'm really pleased with the finished result and glad I persevered. I hope the happy couple are pleased with their present!

Crafty goods

Hearts and Roses Brooch

I was meant to be at a Craft Fair yesterday but the organisers decided to cancel it because the past few events haven't been very busy and the other aspects of their business are really working out. So, I had an unexpectedly free day so I decided to re-stock my Folksy shop. I've not given it a lot of attention recently so this was the kick I needed to get a bit more organised. Hopefully, over the next few weeks I'll carry on listing more lovely things so please keep checking back. Also, I'm always happy to do commission and bespoke pieces. Please feel free to contact me for details.

Origami hair comb

Lace and Feather Fascinator

Polymer clay buttons

Owl tote bag

Melted plastic ear-rings

Melted plastic heart ear-rings

Felt and crochet brooch

Heart Watch Keyring

Melted Plastic Ear-rings

Applique and Embroidery Workshop #3

Happy shiny stitching!

This morning was the third of my Applique and Embroidery workshops for Prism Arts No Borders programme. This time we were in the Library itself rather than the community room which was lovely and light and great for people watching!

The space before everyone arrived

Lovely piece picking out colours and making patterns

I had a great turn-out today including most of my textiles group from The Heathlands Project, there was lots of stitching and chatting which is as it should be. It was lovely to see everyone getting stuck in to the work and also having a good natter with people. There was some lovely work produced and I'm getting really excited about putting everything together to make the final installation.

Reverse applique with lace

Adding buttons

More shiny things!

A lovely lady who was in Carlisle for the day came and joined in the workshop. She used to work as an artist but had stopped due to a chronic condition, at the end of the session she said she felt inspired to have a go at some textiles work and make art again. It was one of those 'this is why I do it' moments for me; I was so pleased I could help someone by sharing my skills and passion for something I love. The lady said she had been feeling very negative and down recently but that taking part in the workshop had re-ignited her enthusiasm and made her feel much better. That, for me, shows just how powerful the arts are and how important they are on a personal level.

Beautiful detached buttonhole stitch piece

Applique with lace

Animal applique

Happy Holiday Hat (and The Importance of Swatching)

Panda hat

In the past few weeks I've made quite a few hats, most of them have been beanie type hats using nice chunky yarns and a K2 P2 rib. So far they have been well received. I gave one to my long suffering partner; I made the first hat for my brother for Christmas and then decided I had been neglecting said partner so made him one too (instead of doing the washing up which is what I probably should have done.) I also made one for me in gorgeous colours but then decided it made me look like a boy so I gave that one to my partner too.

Beanie detail

Lovely colours beanie

Anyway, I digress. This post is to showcase my purple panda hat. I picked up a copy of Rachel Hendersen's '25 Animal Hats' for cheap a few weeks ago and have had my eye on the panda hat from the start. I've been avoiding making a panda hat as there are so many on the high street but they are very cute. I decided to put my mark on it by making a purple and white rather than black and white panda.

Crochet panda hat

This pattern was a good example of why you should swatch. I used a different yarn to the one specified (same weight and fibre, just a different brand) and used the recommended hook size. It soon became apparent that this was a bad plan. However, being stubborn I carried on and tried to convince myself it was fine. It clearly wasn't so I tried felting it, but I'd used super-wash wool and even at 60 it wouldn't felt. So I admitted defeat (sort of, I still haven't actually unraveled it) and started again. This time I used a hook 2 mm smaller and found this gave me about the right tension ( I still failed to swatch but I did measure after a couple of rounds.)

Shell edge detail

Back of the hat

I added a shell edge to my hat as I like little touches like that but otherwise mostly followed the pattern in the book. When I had completed the crochet hat I used felt, buttons and embroidery thread to make the face and made two fluffy pom-pom ears. These waggle in a slightly disconcerting way when I walk but the hat is warm and cosy and I think everyone should have a silly hat at Christmas. And on that note, Happy Christmas Everyone!

Eye detail

More Doorstops

Green and purple elephant doorstop

Front view of elephant

I thought I'd share with you a picture of the finished green elephant mentioned in my last post and a few owls, just for good measure.

Button free owl

Eyes not made of buttons

This owl was made for a friend who has a fear of buttons. It seemed strange making an owl without buttons but I decided to face the challenge head on and he's actually one of my favourite owls so far. I really like the layered felt and stitching and the fact that he's very purple helps!

Green owl

Tartan owl

I have also listed a couple of owls in my Folksy shop, a green fellow with very large eyes and a seasonably tartan chap.

Stitching Friendships

Tea and Stitching, this is my kind of prep!

Today a Community arts project that I'm working on truly got off the ground. Today was the first of hopefully many workshops that my friend and colleague Helen Tuck and I will be running. This morning I worked with a group from The Prince's Trust to get them started on their patches. Although none of them had done any textiles work before they all picked it up really quickly and it was a surprisingly quiet session as everyone was deep in concentration!

Cutting out patches to applique

Design work

The guys had some great ideas and had come prepared with some sketches. I'm very much looking forward to seeing their finished patches. I also started my patch off last night and when I've posted this I'm off to do some more stitching on it! You can follow the progress of the project here or on Facebook.

Stitching

More stitching!

West Cumbrian Game Fair

In the marquee

I had a stall at the West Cumbrian Game Fair at Armathwaite Hall, near Bassenthwaite on Saturday. It was not a very successful day for me but I did get to chat to some other lovely crafters and we didn't get rained on!

Things and stuff

Lovely owls

Lovely key rings

Lovely hair things

Display

Brooch Displays

I'm doing another Craft Fair next weekend; at Armathwaite Hall, Bassenthwaite. It's the West Cumbrian Game Fair and I'll be with the Solway Crafters in the Fell Gather Tent. This will be the biggest event I've done so far and I've been thinking of ways to improve how I display my work. I think the last stall I had at Appleby had too much on it, I'm going to try and edit my display more carefully this time. I also wanted to display my brooches more effectively so today I went and bought some frames and have turned them into brooch displays. I just bought fairly cheap silver coloured wooden frames as I wanted something nice but not too showy as this would distract from my pieces!

Frame with Button Heart Brooches

It was really easy making them into badge boards; I chose frames with stands (extra easy to display on my stall if they stand up by themselves) and then took the glass out and covered the hardboard backing with wadding and felt to give a cushioned surface to pin my brooches to. I burnt my fingertips on the hot glue but apart from that it was quite an easy job and I think the finished product looks pretty good.

Frame with Felt Flower Brooches

Frame with Suffolk Puff and Origami Brooches

The frames will get a test run tomorrow as I have literally just been offered a stall at Carlisle's Culture Bazaar tomorrow. It is at Richard Rose Central Academy from 11-5 if you're in Carlisle tomorrow!