Project #1 - Pencil Roll is finished!

The book is so beautiful, that I have already made the pencil roll.

The instructions were very clear, so I had no problems at all. The only mistake I made was, in my giddiness to assemble it all, I put the bottom pocket on the wrong side, so I would have had the blacks on the left and yellows on the right, but I unpicked it as I wanted the yellows on the left!!!



My son was very impressed that you could match the pencil colours to the fabric.



He told me he wants one as well.



I think it looks pretty all rolled up!



It is in the 2 - 4 hr time slot, and it took me between 3-4 hours, but I did make a mistake, so if I do make another one, I'm sure I would be a bit quicker. Of course, you could make one with less patchwork, or no patchwork, for real speed! Just a fantastic fabric!

It came!!

It only took Amazon 3 months to deliver this book. But the wait was worthwhile! Project 1 starts tonight!!!

Sunny Bag for a Rainy Day

I made another simple tote in this cheery fabric I bought a while ago.

This time I made it 13" x 15" and the longest strap 18" rather than 16" so it fits on my shoulder more comfortably.

You can see the size difference above and my youngest child's hands

Gocco Fabulous! A Big Thank You

Finally can I just say a HUGE THANK YOU to everyone in my gocco swap group. I loved the diversity and orginiality in all the designs. They will all be treasured and only sent out to my closest friends!

Clockwise from top left: Gena Perdue, Viking ships and Fish by Julie Broberg, Cat uner Mushroom Umbrella (one of my faves) by Susan Estelle Kwas.

The next set of cards are by Sarah Parrot. All beautiful, taken from lovely pencil drawings.

The plants are by Cloth Paper String (and gocco swap organiser) Sarah Hannigan.

The 50s children and 70s family by Jennifer Noland

Write Back (love it!) is by Kirsten Cantrell.

The antique sewing machine, shell and paisley prints were sent to me in a gorgeous fabric bag by Jeanne Boyle. Love them as well!

These beautiful birds came from Modern Thread (I think Maura D'Amore)

They are all fantastic, and have introduced me to the work of even more talented people.

Check out the Flickr Group for better photos and more inspiration!

Make and Bake

It's the last day of my holidays, and although I had some plans of making stuff, it hasn't really materialised until now!




I made some scones to keep the husband happy, no double cream in the house, just served with jam. Warm scones fresh from the oven are lovely. I think I rolled the dough a bit too thin, next time I'll keep it 3-4cm thick. (excuse the revolting table cloth, its an oil cloth thing, easily wipeable)


Then this afternoon, I decided it was time to do the simple tote from Bend the Rules Sewing I decided to read simple as quick, but obviously it refers to the design. It took a few hours, partly because I was faffing over choosing the right fabric, then the PC wouldn't log on to the Internet so I could check the errata - yes the strap states 13" X 16" IT SHOULD SAY 3" x 16". Apart from that I found the instructions straight forward. And hopefully I'll do another, soon, probably larger, so I can fit a bit more in! I like that it's lined, makes it smarter than my other unlined totes!
The front fabric is Michael Miller, "shopping". It's quirky and I like it.

The back is a fabric from IKEA, that worked out well.

Interior pocket is a black and white polka dot fabric.

I'm pleased with it. I made it for my sister, so I'll bob it in the post to her tomorrow, with a gorgeous gocco note card! I'll post about that tomorrow!

complicated!

Who do you think you are?

When I'm making things, I like to think that they might be around for a while, mainly the knitted items as they take me so long to make!!

I'm also very interested in the quilts that people make, and how some bloggers are from a long line of quilt makers passed on through generations. The fact that they have quilts that their great grandparents made, is a really special thing, and certainly places you within the context of your family's generations.



Anyway, one captivating programme on BBC called Who Do You Think You Are? is all about genealogy and finding a "celebrity's" family history. Last night it was Jerry Springer, who was a very fascinating subject, as was Boris Johnson, Mayor of London (seen at the Beijing Olympics's Closing ceremony with suit button undone, looking bemused, getting the flag for London 2012) Boris has Royal links and Jerry unfortunately has his family caught up in the Holocaust. It is a captivating programme as it is a history lesson for all as much as a personal programme to the individual. I certainly feel that I have learnt about my ancestor's past through watching some of the programmes. You can watch them on the BBC I player for 7 days for free, if you are interested.

I know it's not a "make and do" post, but often we learn our crafts from our parents, grandparents etc and who did they learn from? So there is a tenuous link of sorts!