felt 'love letter' envelope clutch bag

it's a bit silly, and would benefit from some pretty lining fabric to make to a tad more professional looking, but here's a little something i made earlier:

i'm not sure this is sophisticated enough to merit instructions - it's a very simple bag made from felt, sewn together with big running stitch. but it makes me happy so i thought i'd put it up : )

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revised on 25.03.2013

here's a little doodle of the net for the bag, just pin together and hand stitch about 5mm from the edge in running stitch with embroidery thread : ) enjoy!

'manly' DIY felt microwavable hand warmers

we may technically be in spring at the moment, but i'm in scotland, so it's still sub-zero here. i've seen quite a few of these hand warmers online, but so far they've mostly been more than a little bit girly. i wanted to make my boyfriend a pair that wouldn't be too embarrassing for him (crafting things for boys is so hard!) here's what i came up with:

ok, so the heart kind of defeats the object of the thing, but you could totally omit that bit.

i used: scissors, a sheet of grey felt, black embroidery thread, a needle with a large eye, some rice (and a bit of pink felt for the heart).

time: not that long, if you're good at blanket stitch then you can make these while watching tv.

step 1: cut out four matching rectangles form the felt, use your palm as a guide as to size.
step 2: blanket stitch two together, leaving a gap to pour the rice into.
step 3: pour in the rice - don't totally fill as you want it to be a bit bean-bagy.
step 4: continue with the blanket stitch until the while thing is sealed and tie off
(repeat steps 2 to 4 for the other one)
step 5: microwave for about 20 seconds on high and slip into gloves or pockets for cozy hands : )

using sharpie pens on ceramics - it's all lies!

i, like so many others, was delighted to hear that one can draw onto glazed ceramics with sharpies, which, after baking at 180 for half an hour, become permanent. they don't. which is awful! i spent ages on these:

i didn't put them through the dishwasher or anything, and they were left to dry, but white wine became orange in the octopus tea cup, the image now all but gone, and my doodle of russel's teapot was wiped away with the most gentle of sponges : ( fail! i didn't take pictures of the destroyed work, it was too depressing.

making pretty pink sugar hearts

now, credit where credit's due, i nabbed this off kirstie allsopp's vintage gems.......don't judge me! however i did alter the method slightly so that i didn't have to wait all night for them to finish, and honestly, i might start making these all the time - they're so quick and cute!:

you'll need: chocolate/candy mould tray (about £2.50), white caster sugar, water, food colouring.

time: depends how quick you are/how many you make - but not that long. drying time about two hours ish.

step 1: fill a standard cereal bowl with sugar, add 1 teaspoon of water, mix until totally integrated.
step 2: add one or two drops of your chosen food colouring, mix.
step 3: spoon into the moulds, and press down as hard as you can - try and keep the edges tidy and the backs flat.
step 4: place flat thing (i used a chopping board) on top of the mould, flip, and lift the mould off carefully.
step 5: leave the hearts to dry for like an hour or two - resist the urge to prod them at the beginning, as they will disintegrate.
step 6: enjoy in super decadent tea/make some more in different colours : )

my first commission - minnie and mickey mouse ear headbands

a friend text me with a request (how cool is that?!) two headbands, one minnie and mickey mouse for him and his girlfriend. felt and glittery were my instructions, apparently topshop have made them cool and were sold out. here's what i came up with:

i used: cardboard, two headbands, two sheets of black glittery felt, red polka dot fabric, scissors, and my trusty glue gun.

step 1: draw around a handy little round dish thing (larger than a mug, smaller than a side plate) onto cardboard-box cardboard 4 times.
step 2: cut out.
step 3: place headband on top of one of these circles, draw along the curve of the band, cut, repeat on each circle.
step 4: glue gun these to the hair bands.
step 5: cover with the felt - securing with glue gun.
step 6: make a blow from the fabric and glue gun this to the middle of one of the headbands.
step 7: admire, then swap them for money : )

one year on(ish)! french knot flower embroidery tote with bee applique

it's one year and two days since i first started this blog....i would have written this post two days ago but i've been horribly ill. i've made loads of stuff, too much stuff really, not all of it turns up here, here's one example of an abandoned and unpublished piece which i'm rather fond and proud of:

the plain, recycled cotton totes were down to 50p at work a while back (i think they're back up to a pound now). anyway, i picked one up, drew a large heart in pencil on the inside and, using the heart as a guide, proceeded to try and fill the whole thing with flowers made up of french knots and 'lazy daisy' stitches. it doesn't look like much, but it took up days, literally, days of my life to get this far. as you can see i gave up before it was finished, it's ok though - i tell myself that if completed it would have looked cheesy or childish or something.

i used to dread having to do french knots, but no more! : ) in that respect, at least, i've improved somewhat over the year.

very quick apron : )

if i am going to host a thing with cupcakes and cucumber sandwiches then i simply have to have a pretty apron....here's one i made a couple of nights ago, it took an episode of poirot to make (less than an hour), and it's all hand sewn:

sorry the pic is a bit blurry! it's just two bits of fabric and some ribbon; for the larger piece of fabric it's hip-to-hip plus 50% wide and as long or short as you fancy, the smaller bit is, well, like a hand span smaller all the way around. curve the bottom two edges of each bit, pin, get some embroidery thread and do a big statement running stitch for the hems. then do a running stitch along the top edges and pull so that they gather, to finish sew both to a nice thick ribbon.

now i just have to make cakes and whatnot.