Polly & Patch

Do you remember my little owl Hooty?, well I was very pleased to find him featured at Softies Central the other day, thank you Therese!. A coincidence, as I had also been thinking about Hooty too. It occurred to me that the same body template could be used to make other animals just by using different felt or fabric applique, so I decided to give it a go. So far, I have come up with Polly the cat and Patch the dog, both have little accessories to go with them!.



Close up of Polly's little toy mouse.



And here is Patch, with his bone chew toy!.



When boy meets girl.......



Crafting has been thin on the ground with it being the school holidays (as has the sunshine!), but it seems I have a bit of competition. My husband took our daughter down to his studio to make a robot out of cardboard, our son wanted to get in on the act so decided that he was small enough to get into the robot!. He was ok, until he realised he couldn't actually get himself out, and started to panic a bit, but all's well that ends well!, one small boy released and one robot put away until another day.

100th post (and a special edition giveaway...!)

Well, according to my blog stats, this is it, the 100th post.  I feel like I should be saying something profound, but if truth the known, I'm just too tired tonight!.  It's been a busy week, we've been to the beach, sorted our kitchen out and now have floor again, and school started on Thursday.  So, while the little ones were off being educated, I took a trip to a sewing machine shop, and came home with this beauty...!

(apologies for the awful photograph, the camera was on the wrong setting)

So, now I have the machine, I need something to sew..., hmm, now what could I make?

How about a special edition owl?, say, larger than my other owls and, oh I don't know, you choose the colour.  Right, that's settled, leave a comment, by midnight (GMT) on Monday 1st September, to be included in the draw, tell me the colour(s) you would like your owl to be, and I'll select a winner, the random number generator way on Tuesday.

PS, my contribution to the 'Softies for Mirabel' appeal is included in the current round of auctions, there are still a couple of days left to bid, please go and check the other items on offer, there are some lovely things.

The Great Giveaway!

My copies of the sewing calendar have arrived, and it's looking pretty good, Megan has done a fantastic job in pulling it all together.  There are 2 projects per week from a huge variety of designers including :  The Long Thread, Elsie Marley, Sew Christine, Rachael Rabbit, Bella Dia,

 Pink Chalk Studio and there are 3 projects in there by me.  

(The calendar is available to purchase here or here)

So, now for the good part!  The great giveaway part!!

There are 3 prizes in total, top prize being a calendar, and for the other 2 winners, they will receive a little pack of materials (fabric, felt, buttons etc), and a copy of either the kitten or the hedgehog pattern as was featured in Sew Hip magazine (you can see them in the blog sidebar), so there are 3 chances to win.

Just leave a comment on this post before midnight (GMT) on Sunday 30th August, and I will get the random number generator to do it's magic.

A tail of two rabbits,

It's the school holidays here in the UK, which also means I get very little time to work in between all the other parenting stuff.  The offshoot is there's very little to blog about, hence the quietness here!

Until the other day, I'd promised the kids a comic each, and during the hour (it felt like an hour!) it took them both to choose one, I went browsing amongst the sewing magazines and discovered...

Sew Hip, issue 32 - September 2012, has a pattern extracted from my book in it!  I knew there were a few projects placed by the publisher as features, but didn't know what, when or where.

It's the baby Rabbits that are featured, along with their personalised tails.

Although the dates still look odd to me being a Brit.  As the book publisher is American, the dates were stitched with the month first, followed by the day.

If you do buy the magazine and make a Rabbit, remember to join the Countryside Softies Flickr group and post what you've made.

Pretty portrait...

I haven't made one of these for a good few years now, but as I was doing one for my one year old niece to match her older sisters, thought I may as well photograph it for a tutorial.  So, if you would like to have a go at a little 3D portrait, this is what you will need,

a 4" flexi hoop, I used mine as an embroidery hoop and also as a mount

a circle of patterned background fabric

2 circles of plain coloured fabric, one 0.5cm smaller than the other

a circle of flesh coloured fabric, 7cm across

flesh coloured embroidery thread

pink embroidery threads, a light pink and a dark pink

selection of other embroidery thread for decoration, hair and lettering

2 grey beads

polyfil for stuffing

a circle of pink felt, 9cm across

needle

scissors

pins

and of course, a willing subject for your portrait!

Begin, by placing the background fabric, centrally, in the flexi hoop.  Place the other 2 circles of plain fabric in the centre, one on top of the other, pin, and then sew using random straight stitches around the edge in some embroidery thread.  I used a multicoloured thread to add an extra dimension to the embroidery.

Next, take the circle of flesh coloured fabric and sew a running stitch all the way around, 0.5cm in from the edge using the flesh coloured thread.  Gently pull on the loose end to gather the circle, placing some polyfil inside before anchoring it shut with a few stitches.  Turn this head shape, raw end side down, and place centrally on your base design.  Sew it on with a few random stitches around the edge, you may find at this stage you can do a bit of 'sculpting' of the head shape with how you place your stitches.

Now, begin to add the hair.  Chose a thread colour that matches your subject as best you can, and gradually build up the hair strand by strand, this can take a little while to get right, but keep going!.

To add the facial features, using the pink embroidery thread add some shading on the cheeks, I just added some crosses, but you could add some tiny french knots for freckles.  Also add the grey beads for eyes, and a mouth in the darker pink.  We're not going for a 100% likeness here, it's just a bit of fun!.

In the space, underneath the portrait head, you can add a name in backstitch, and I've also sewn on some french knots for decoration.

To tidy up the back, and hide all the loose ends, turn your embroidery over, and sew a running stitch round the edge of the background fabric, gather, and then secure with a few stitches.

Place the pink felt circle, over the top, and sew on with random straight stitches around the edge.

And there you go, all done!  Happy stitching!

ps, I have just noticed this is my 99th post, oh my!  Maybe I could give away some of my ironing in my 100th post?, what do you think?!  

...or should it be something handmade?!

If you make something from one of my tutorials please do join the Flickr group, Lucykate Crafts... pattern pieces, to show off your creations.

Baby steps...

Hello.  Long time no see.  The break wasn't meant to happen, but there's been a lot going on.  As a rule, I don't blog about personal stuff, but this summer has, so far, not really gone to plan.  We're fine, the problems are within the extended family, and we're doing what we can to help and support.  But with all this going on, and the kids off school too, there has been very little time to work myself, and the time I have had, I've been too exhausted to be creative.

So, taking my own advice following on from a conversation with a family member the other day, take it slow, one thing at a time, break it down into smaller chunks, don't try and run before you can walk and all those other cliched phrases, ...baby steps.  Today's task I can achieve is to use up the rather large courgette I've been given (or zucchini for those across the pond) and make some soup.  There are lots of curried courgette soup recipes about, I used Stephanie's version, firstly because I love coconut milk in anything, and secondly, I put in too much curry powder by mistake and was hoping the coconut milk would balance the flavour.  It did, and it's lovely.  Lunch is sorted.

My next plan for getting back on track is to visit the Festival of Quilts on Friday.  There are lots of UK craft bloggers going, twitter is buzzing with meet up plans.  It's going to be good!

Time for...

some thank you's.  

Thank you for all the excellent suggestions for crafty boy items, some superb ideas came up.

Thank you to all those who have nominated me for bloggy awards recently, it is very sweet of you.  I've been such a bad, (but busy) blogger I haven't got round to this yet!

Thank you to Sarah of The Pesky Bombolino, for the ticket to the Amy Butler (who is strikingly tall!) talk today at the Festival of Quilts, it was fascinating.

Thank you to Manda, and Janet, for taking time out today to meet up.

and a big thank you to my husband, for being 'mum' for the day so I could go off on a jolly!

(I spotted this clock button on one of the stands today which has given me an idea for a future project, all I need now is some time to play around with it!)

After trying out virtually every sewing machine in the NEC today, I am shocked by what they can do nowadays, mind you, it has been twenty years since I was last in the market.  The shortlist is narrowed down to, either a Husqvarna Sapphire (I quite liked these because of the automatic sensor system on the foot, and they seemed quite user friendly) or a Bernina Activa (well, Bernina's kind of speak for themselves don't they?!) 

Help!, which would you choose? 

Playing with food,

Now, I'm always having to tell Luke in particular off for playing about with his food rather than eating it.  But there are occasions when playing is the right thing to do, and this was one of them.  I decided it would be fun to make pizzas from scratch, even the dough.  (ok, I confess.  We did use the bread maker for the dough)

Each pizza was a different shape,

for Lucy, our resident rock chick and Hannah Montana fan, a guitar.

For Luke, the car enthusiast, a VW Beetle.

And for me, Lucy informed me this was in the shape of my favorite thing.  Given the frequent mess in this house I clear up on a daily basis, I assumed she was referring to the hoover!  But no, my favorite thing, as she reminded me is, of course, chocolate.  Its in the shape of a bar of chocolate!

Now, they're all in the shape of a few crumbs!

ps, next post is going to involve a giveaway, and 3 prizes!!

Well, you could have knocked me down with a feather...,

or in this case, a bottle of wine!, but after all my moaning last week, just look at this...,

my children, (and husband!), frolicking in a field,

chasing butterflies and picking the odd wild flower.

We spent Saturday night under canvas, in a local field with a group of friends.  And, it has to be said, the person guilty of the most moaning was me.   I am not a natural camper, I went under duress, but I went nonetheless.  

Things I like about camping  ::  How excited Lucy and Luke were.  Overexcited.  I worried they were going to burst a blood vessel or something.  Watching them building dens out of branches and bundles of freshly cut grass.  And the fresh air.  I love the smell of fresh air.

Things I don't like about camping  ::  Earwigs.  I don't mind insects in general but really don't like earwigs.  Being the filling in a snoring sandwich between my husband and my son.  And lastly, waking up in the middle of the night and realising that the inflatable mattress which started out to be oh so comfy, has sprung a leak and is gradually going down, and down, and down!

Boys, and their toys...

Ideas of things to make for girls come to me very easily, things for boys however, is something I tend to get stumped on!.  I have this fabric with the cars and trucks on, some other fabrics which sit well alongside it, and also, the cute little transport buttons which are all ideal to make something for Luke with, but what?!

What should I make?, any ideas??, my mind has gone blank!

Songbird

Lots going on here, some things I can talk about, some I can't (yet!)  I took a little time out yesterday evening to make another bird, 'The Songbird'.  I really enjoy making these, and have plans for lots more following an Ebay purchase of a beautiful set of vintage postcards featuring illustrations of birds.

There are some new craft kits which I've designed for Anchor coming out soon, one of which is based on my mini owl pattern.  I've been making these owls for over a year, and given the pattern is going to be available as a kit, am going to retire the design from the Lucykate Crafts range.  There are 4 in my Etsy shop, which will be the last I make, so I guess that makes them 'limited edition'!

Thank you for all the encouraging comments about the magazine, roll on October when the first issue is launched!  Other news to look forward to is I'm off to the 'Festival of Quilts' next week, and will be meeting up with Janet, who has a stand there, and also Manda, I'm really looking forward to meeting them both in person.

My tantrum free summer came to an end rather abruptly on Monday, a visit to the museum in Leicester was somewhat marred by my angelic looking son behaving like a banshee!  My ears are still ringing.  The Wallace & Gromit exhibition was good though!

It's the summer holidays...,

...and I know I should be enjoying it, but I do feel like I'm fighting a loosing battle here.  A battle against these words.

"I'm bored!"

I am enjoying the freedom, the time with the kids (when they're not bickering), not having to be up and out of the house at a certain time.  But I browse other blogs, and as well as feeling inspired, I also do feel an air of inadequacy.  Why aren't my children happy skipping through fields, chasing butterflies and picking the odd wild flower?  Part of the reason why, isn't down to them though, it's because, here in the UK, a) the weather is rubbish, we've had rain most days for the last few weeks and there's only so many times that getting wet is fun, and b) for health and safety issues, you're not allowed in the field for fear of someone tripping, hurting themselves and suing either the local farmer or the council!

We've done stuff, cinema, swimming, visited friends, playdates, made playdoh, and other crafty activities, and yet, they still say they're bored.  I've come to the conclusion, that although I'm exhausted attempting to keep them entertained, the thing they are happiest doing, is whining!  My only hope is that, rather than being inadequate, we're actually, dare I even say it...,

normal!

In a weekend bid for some happy children, we did set to a crafty playdate.  I was contacted by a UK craft supplier a week or so ago and asked if I would like some craft items to have a go with and review.  While I don't normally go in for advertising on my blog, summer holidays, children and the offer of free supplies was too good to turn down!   So, armed with a pack of plain tote bags, fabric paint and pens, and also some spinning tops, I went into battle with the boredom.

The girls eagerly decorated t-shirts and bags,  Lucy's very happy with hers and the paint dried pretty quickly too.

(Design wise, we've gone through the High School Musical phase and have now entered Hannah Montana zone) 

While the boys tinkered around with the spinning tops.  These were great fun actually, very effective.  Cheap too, and there's 12 in each pack.

(Alternative uses for spinning tops!)

I think I may have won.  Slightly.  OK, just a little!

The war rages on, next round is paper mache, what fun!

(All supplies from Baker Ross) 

Cat creation... (and something special!)

This week has seen yet more fun with felt, and using some of my current favorite fabric from Kitty Craft, I came up with this little one. The pattern is based on the 'kitty' design as seen as my buddy icon for Flickr, I have thought for a while that I should bring this to life as a softie. Front view, and a rear view to show the heart motif and how the tail is attached.


And now for something special...

For my birthday, my husband knew that there is one fellow blogger in particular whose work I admire. He made contact, and made a commission, which was then swiftly designed and beautifully stitched, all in secret. The first I knew of this was when a package arrived all the way from New Zealand, containing my very own doll, and here she is...!

She began her journey from Prairie Mouse (image courtesy of Prairie Mouse),


to my daughters bedroom (hey, I thought she was for me!). She is a lovely addition to our household, came with her own party hat and a tiny additional doll that fits in her pocket.


She is currently perched on my 'softie shelf' above my desk watching me sew, with a couple of friends to keep her company. A big thank you to both my husband, and to Prairie Mouse.



Addition to post, my cat has made its way onto the Cuteable web site here!

Listen, do you want to know a secret...?

Well, now I can tell!  Manda, from Tree Fall Design has made an announcement this morning about her involvement in a brand new sewing magazine, 'Sew Hip'.  It is all very exciting and I'm chuffed to say that she has asked me, along with some other very illustrious crafters, to be involved.  Pop over to the magazine site and you can find out more of what it's all about, and when the first issue will be available, which will be including a Lucykate Crafts... softie pattern!.